JOHOR BARU : The government will improve the safety, security and safeguards of radioactive material with a proposed amendment to the Atomic Energy Licensing Act 1984 (Act 304).
Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) director-general Hamrah Mohd Ali said it was high time Malaysia updated its law on the safe and peaceful use of atomic energy.
“Malaysia is among the countries that are up to date in terms of knowledge in atomic energy and our experts have been tasked by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to help in missions around the globe,” he said yesterday.
He said this after the signing of a memorandum of understanding between AELB and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) for the exchange of technical, information and cooperation in nuclear and radiation safety and the security and safeguards of radioactive and nuclear materials.
Hamrah represented AELB while UTM was represented by its deputy vice-chancellor (development), Professor Dr Azlan Abdul Rahman.
Hamrah said as Act 304 was more than 30 years old, the law should be up-to-date with global development and the requirements of IAEA.
“The act now focuses more on the safety aspect of the use of atomic energy.
“The amendment will give us a more precise look into the security and safeguards, which have become more important,” he said.
He said under the act, those who committed an offence was liable to be jailed up to 10 years or fined up to RM100,000, or both, upon conviction.
He said the technical aspect of the amendment had been completed and it was being drafted by the Attorney-General’s Chambers.
“If everything goes according to plan, we hope the amended law will be passed this year,” he said, adding that the review of Act 304 began in 2011, but had taken some time to be completed as it involved various agencies.
He said there were about 2,000 licence holders who were authorised to use and deal in nuclear and radioactive materials in Malaysia.
“These materials are mostly used in the industrial sector, such as in the manufacturing, electronics and oil and gas industries,” he said.