Al-Kadhimi orders forming a team of 4 governmental agencies to remove radioactive pollutants

BAGHDAD-INA

Head of the advisory body in the prime minister's office, Abdul Karim al-Faisal announced on Monday, the formation of a team of four governmental agencies to remove radioactive pollutants, while referring to communicate with the Arab Atomic Energy Organization.
 
"The prime minister approved the proposal of the Advisors Committee to start a major national program to remove all radioactive pollutants left over from the previous regime," al-Faisal told The Iraqi News Agency (INA), adding that "the prime minister ordered the formation of a national team under the supervision of the Advisors Committee, the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology and the main regulatory body represented by the Radiation Prevention Center in the Ministry of Environment."
 
"The team has drawn up a plan in accordance with IAEA standards to remove radioactive pollutants, and the project has been launched in Basra province because of the largest pollution in more than 28 places," he said.

"The Advisors And Minister of Higher Education decided to approach the Arab Atomic Energy Organization to communicate with technical teams and visit Iraq to see the efforts made as well as to strengthen Arab cooperation in this field and to see the application of international standards," he said, adding that "there will be steps by leaders of the national team to work in other provinces depending on the pollution rate in them."
 
"As part of a program prepared with the governor of Basra, the Director General of the Arab Atomic Energy Organization will announce Basra’s free radiation pollution and inform the IAEA of this," he said, noting that "Iraq is a pioneer in this field and has experience since the 1960s working in the field of atomic energy for peaceful purposes."

"The Atomic Energy Act has been legislated, and the government has developed a program to implement it in order to build expertise and prepare cadres under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Organization, so that Iraq will be a leader in this area because Iraq needs peaceful atomic energy purposes, both in cancer treatment and other energy and industrial matters," he said.