SEPA registers the keeping and use of radioactive substances and authorises the disposal of radioactive waste under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993. As well as major nuclear installations, radioactive sources are used for a wide range of purposes in industry, hospitals and universities. SEPA charges for this regulation in line with the 'polluter must pay' principle. Nuclear establishments are charged for the actual professional time allocated, whereas smaller industrial users, including hospitals and universities, are charged an average cost.

SEPA has the power to issue enforcement and prohibition notices or to report offences to the procurator fiscal.

There are three types of facility regulated by SEPA.


Licensed nuclear sites and similar facilities. There are six of these sites in Scotland:

• Chapelcross (power station)
  
• Hunterston A (power station)
  
• Hunterston B (power station)
  
• Torness (power station)
  
• Faslane (naval base)
  
• Rosyth (dockyard)
  
• Dounreay (former power station, now being decommissioned)
  
• SUERC (research centre, now being decommissioned)
  
  
  

Small users - hospitals, universities and industry

Sites using ‘closed’ sources - such as paper mills and combine harvesters. (A closed source is an amount of radioactive material that is in a protective container.)


Radioactive substances licence application forms can be downloaded below

• RSA1 - Unsealed Sources
• RSA1 - Sealed Sources
• RSA2 - Mobile Sealed Sources and dU
• RSA3 - Application form for authorisation to accumulate and dispose of radioactive waste

SEPA set up the Scottish Small Users Liaison Group (SSULG). You can find out more here.