EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
NATIONAL MEASUREMENT ACT 1960
NATIONAL MEASUREMENT REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Sub-section 7(1) of the National Measurement Act 1960 (“the Act”) provides that the Regulations made pursuant to the Act may prescribe units of measurement of any physical quantity.
The National Measurement Regulations (Amendment) (“the amending Regulations”) will amend the National Measurement Regulations (“the principal Regulations”) by inserting the sievert as the unit of measurement for ionising radiation dose equivalent and dose equivalent index.
The prescription of the sievert arises from the acceptance in 1979 of the sievert as a Systeme International (SI) unit for ionising radiation dose equivalent and dose equivalent index by the General Conference of Weights and Measures, the international body responsible for the maintenance and development of the metric system.
Details of the amending Regulations are as follows:
Regulation 1 provides that “Principal Regulations” means the National Measurement Regulations.
Regulation 2 inserts new Division 35 into the principal Regulations. Details of the new Division are as follows:
(a) New section 76 provides for the units of measurement of dose equivalent and dose equivalent index; and
(b) New section 76A defines the circumstances in which the sievert is the dose equivalent or dose equivalent index.
Regulations 3 and 4 amend paragraphs 77(2) (a) and 79(2) (d) of the principal Regulations, respectively, to effect drafting changes of a purely formal nature. The changes will bring the wording of paragraphs 77(2) (a) and 79(2) (d) into line with current drafting practice.
Regulation 5 inserts a new Schedule 36 into the principal Regulations. The new Schedule prescribes the units of measurement of dose equivalent and dose equivalent index (ionizing radiation) and sets out the symbol and dose equivalent or dose equivalent index in sieverts of those units.