BOULDER, Colo.—A Boulder federal laboratory said it will strengthen safety programs after an investigation of a plutonium spill there found a “casual and informal research environment” led to the incident.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology said Wednesday it will review safety measures after an internal report about the June 7 spill. NIST’s Ionizing Radiation Safety Committee found some personnel were unaware of procedures for such an incident or failed to apply them.
Research results were valued over safety, the report said.
The spill happened after a vial cracked with about a quarter gram of powder containing plutonium. A small amount went into Boulder’s public sewer system when a scientist washed his hands in a sink, but no health problems have been reported.
Researchers were conducting an experiment involving a spectroscopy system used to detect radiation when the vial cracked. Some employees had internal plutonium exposure, which can lead to cancer, but none were expected to suffer health problems, NIST said.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission ordered the Boulder laboratory to stop using radioactive materials until it can show its procedures are safe, and that order remains in effect.
