ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING ACT 1984

LAWS OF MALAYSIA ONLINE VERSION OF UPDATED TEXT OF REPRINT Act 304 ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING ACT 1984 As at 1 December 2011 2 ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING ACT 1984 … … … … 27 June 1984 Date of Royal Assent Date of publication in the Gazette … … 28 June 1984 PREVIOUS REPRINTS First Reprint … … … … … 2001 Second Reprint … … … … … 2006 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 304 ATOMIC ENERGY ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and application 2. Interpretation PART II ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING BOARD 3. Establishment of the Atomic Energy Licensing Board 4. Chairman of the Board 5. Executive secretary to the Board 6. Meetings of the Board 7. Rules for regulating meetings and proceedings 8. Functions of the Board 9. Committees of the Board 10. Power to charge, receive and recover fees 11. Power of the Minister to issue directions PART III CONTROL AND LICENSING 12. Licensing of nuclear installation and of activities 4 Laws of Malaysia ACT 304 Section 13. Classification of licences 14. Exclusion of activity of prospecting or mining and requirement for reporting 15. Licensing authority 16. Application for licence 17. Conditions in licences 18. Security for licences 19. Registers 20. Returns 21. Return of every sale of radioactive material, etc. PART IV CANCELLATION, SUSPENSION AND RENEWAL OF LICENCES 22. Cancellation or suspension of licence 23. Renewal of licence 24. Licensee to obtain prior approval of appropriate authority for change of address PART V HEALTH AND SAFETY 25. Protection of workers PART VI DISPOSAL OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE 26. Control of disposal of radioactive waste 27. Control of accumulation of radioactive waste 28. Appropriate authority may direct licensee to rectify situation where facilities not adequate 29. Appropriate authority may order licensee or other person to adopt measures to protect life, health and property 30. Transport of radioactive waste with prior authorization of appropriate authority Atomic Energy Licensing 5 Section 31. Discretion to consult Director General of Environmental Quality PART VII APPEALS 32. Appeals PART VIII POWERS OF SEIZURE AND ARREST, OFFENCES AND FORFEITURE 33. Search warrant 34. Circumstances for search without warrant 35. Right of entry, etc. 36. Taking of samples, etc. 37. Indemnity of Government of Malaysia, appropriate authority and public officer 38. Forfeiture 39. Obstruction of inspection, search or investigation an offence 40. Offence 41. Secrecy PART IX LIABILITY FOR NUCLEAR DAMAGE 42. Meaning of “installation operator" for purposes of Part 43. Liability of installation operator 44. Liability for nuclear damage from nuclear material in transit 45. Absolute and exclusive liability 46. Exceptions to liability 47. Recourse action 48. Governments to claim compensation for nuclear damage to environment 49. Gross negligence or intentional act of claimant 50. Liability not affected by Act 6 Laws of Malaysia ACT 304 Section 51. Carrier of nuclear material or person handling radioactive waste designated as installation operator 52. Several installation operators liable 53. Liability of single operator of several nuclear installations involved in one nuclear incident 54. Non-nuclear damage deemed nuclear damage 55. Certificate to carrier 56. Several nuclear installations on same site 57. Investigation of nuclear incidents 58. Compulsory examination and treatment 59. Limit of liability 60. Financial security 61. Government indemnity 62. Intervention in court proceedings 63. Prescription of rights and actions 64. Prescription with respect to nuclear material stolen, lost, jettisoned or abandoned 65. When claims exceed maximum limit 66. Exclusions PART X GENERAL 67. Delegation of powers and duties 68. Regulations 69. Exemptions 70. Repeal of Radioactive Substances Act 1968 71. Operation of Act 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 304 ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING ACT 1984 An Act to provide for the regulation and control of atomic energy, for the establishment of standards on liability for nuclear damage and for matters connected therewith or related thereto. [1 February 1985, P.U. (B) 44/1985] BE IT ENACTED by the Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: PART I PRELIMINARY Short title and application 1. (1) 1984. (2) This Act may be cited as the Atomic Energy Licensing Act This Act shall apply throughout Malaysia. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “appropriate authority” means — (a) the Director General of Health where the activity to be licensed or licensed under this Act is in respect of a medical purpose as determined by the Board; or 8 Laws of Malaysia ACT 304 (b) the Board where the activity to be licensed or licensed under this Act is in respect of a purpose other than a medical purpose; “atomic energy" means all energy of whatever type derived from or created by the transmutation of atom “Board" means the Atomic Energy Licensing Board established under section 3; “conveyance" includes a ship, train, vehicle, an aircraft, and any other means of transport by which persons or goods may be carried; “dealing", in relation to any radioactive material, nuclear material, prescribed substance or irradiating apparatus, means any activity involving the manufacturing, trading, producing, processing, purchasing, owning, using, transporting, transferring, handling, selling, storing, importing or exporting of such radioactive material, nuclear material, prescribed substance or irradiating apparatus; “environment” shall have the meaning assigned to that expression in section 2 of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 [Act 127] and, in addition thereto, shall include the marine environment; “installation operator” means a person licensed under this Act by the appropriate authority as the operator of a nuclear installation; “ionizing radiation” means electromagnetic radiation or corpuscular radiation capable of producing ionization in its passage through matter; “irradiating apparatus” means apparatus capable of producing ionizing radiation; “licensee” means the holder of a licence issued under this Act; “nuclear damage” means any loss of life, injury to the person, loss of, loss of use of, or damage to, property, or loss in, loss of use of, or damage to, the environment, which arises out of or results from— (a) radioactive properties or a combination of radioactive properties with toxic, explosive or other hazardous properties of nuclear fuel or radioactive products or waste in, or of nuclear material coming from, originating in, or sent to, a nuclear installation; or (b) ionizing radiation emitted by any other source of radiation inside a nuclear installation; Atomic Energy Licensing 9 “nuclear fuel” means any material which is capable of producing energy by a self-sustaining chain process of nuclear fission, either alone or in combination with some other material, and includes fissionable material in the form of uranium metal, alloy or chemical compound, and such other material as the Board may from time to time by order in the Gazette determine to be nuclear fuel for the purposes of this Act; “nuclear incident” means any occurrence or a series of occurrences, having the same origin, which causes or cause nuclear damage; “nuclear installation” means— (a) any nuclear reactor other than one with which a means of sea or air transport is equipped for use as a source of power, whether for propulsion thereof or for any other purpose; (b) any factory using nuclear fuel for the production of nuclear material; (c) any factory using nuclear material for the production of nuclear fuel or any factory designed or adapted for the processing of nuclear material, including the reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel; or (d) any facility where nuclear material is placed or stored other than storage incidental to the carriage of such material: Provided that the appropriate authority may determine that several nuclear installations of one installation operator which are located at the same site shall be considered as a single nuclear installation; “nuclear material” means nuclear fuel or other material used for the fabrication of nuclear fuel; “nuclear reactor” means any structure containing nuclear fuel in such an arrangement that a self-sustaining chain process of nuclear fission can occur therein without an additional source of neutrons; “person” means any individual, partnership, private or public body whether corporate or not, institution or organization, or any international body, institution or organization enjoying legal 10 Laws of Malaysia ACT 304 personality under the law of the country or the territory of the country where the nuclear installation is situated; “prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister in regulations; “radioactive material” means any nuclear fuel, radioactive product or radioactive waste; “radioactive waste” means any waste which consists wholly or partly of— (a) a substance or article which if it were not waste would be radioactive material; or (b) a substance or article which has been contaminated in the course of the production, storage or use of any radioactive material, nuclear material or prescribed substance or by contact with or proximity to any other waste within the meaning of paragraph (a) of this definition; “radiologist” means a registered medical practitioner who has received special training and has special knowledge in the use or application of ionizing radiation for diagnosing any condition of the human body; “radiotherapist” means a registered medical practitioner who has received special training and has special knowledge in the use or application of ionizing radiation or a prescribed substance for the purpose of treating or alleviating any abnormal condition of the human body or for any other purpose requiring such specialized knowledge; “registered dentist”, “registered medical practitioner”, “registered pharmacist” and “registered veterinary surgeon” mean respectively a dentist, a medical practitioner, a pharmacist and a veterinary surgeon, each registered as such in accordance with the provisions of the written laws relating to the registration of such persons; “regulations” means regulations made under this Act; “senior public officer” means any public officer authorized in writing generally or specially by the appropriate authority to exercise powers under this Act and includes the Director General of Health where he is the appropriate authority; Atomic Energy Licensing 11 “this Act” includes regulations and other subsidiary legislation made under this Act and anything else done under this Act or under such regulations or other subsidiary legislation. PART II ATOMIC ENERGY LICENSING BOARD Establishment of the Atomic Energy Licensing Board 3. (1) There is established for the purposes of this Act a body to be known as the Atomic Energy Licensing Board whose members shall be appointed by the Minister. (2) The Board shall consist of a Chairman and four other members, all of whom shall have scientific or technical qualifications relevant to atomic energy or other disciplines connected therewith. Among the members there shall be a representative each from the Ministry responsible for health and the Ministry responsible for matters under this Act. (3) A member of the Board shall, unless he sooner resigns or vacates his office or his appointment is sooner revoked, hold office for a term of three years and shall be eligible for reappointment. (4) The appointment of any member of the Board may be revoked at any time by the Minister without assigning any reason therefor. (5) A member of the Board may by letter under his hand addressed to the Minister r