It was not until September 2003 that DTRA  finalized the terms of the contract for collecting the radiological sources  and collections began throughout Iraq. To further secure the most dangerous  sources it had collected, in June 2004, DTRA and DOE together removed  about 1,000 of the 1,400 previously collected sources from Iraq. Despite  DTRA’s efforts, however, the total number of radiological sources in Iraq  remains unknown. According to DOE officials, they raised this issue of  ownership when the removal mission was being planned, but it was never  resolved. Second, DOD did not search in all places in Iraq where sources  might be found. The United States Helped Create an Iraqi Agency to Regulate Sources, but Future Assistance Is Uncertain

The Department of State supported the Coalition Provisional Authority in  creating an independent Iraqi agency, the Iraqi Radiological Source  Regulatory Authority (IRSRA), to regulate sources, and State and DOE are  assisting the new agency by providing equipment, technical assistance, and  funding. Iraq’s Political Transition and Continuing Hostilities Are Creating Uncertainties for IRSRA and U.S. Assistance

According to State officials, because of uncertainties associated with the  continuing formation of the Iraqi government, State will have to monitor  Iraqi efforts to ensure the continued growth and success of an independent,  competent, and sustainable regulatory authority for the control of  radioactive sources and materials. In addition, to ensure that planning and preparing for potential future  missions is carried out in advance, we recommend that the Secretary of  Defense provide specific guidance for collecting and securing radiological  sources, including   integrating the objective of collecting and securing radiological sources  with military combat objectives, including specifying how security  protection, if needed, would be provided to the organization with  responsibility for managing radiological sources and whether combat  troops would be required to secure sources and provide protection for  operations to collect and secure radiological sources;   determining criteria to define which radiological sources (1) are of  greatest risk and should be collected, (2) are being properly used and  secured and thus can be left in place, and (3) pose minimal threat and  thus do not need to be collected;   specifying the health and safety standards, after considering how U.S.  standards for handling, securing, transporting, and disposing of  radiological sources were modified for use in Iraq;  officially designating the organization responsible within DOD for  collecting, securing, and disposing of sources and establishing  agreements between that organization and other DOD organizations  that may be involved with these efforts;   establishing agreements and points of contact with DOE and other  federal agencies, as needed, to specify the coordination, technical  expertise, equipment, and facilities that may be needed to collect and  secure sources in, or remove them from, a foreign country;   identifying under which circumstances and for what purposes DOD will  contract with private firms to conduct activities to collect and secure  radiological sources, and address legal and contracting issues to ensure  the timely use of contractors; and  establishing guidelines concerning the role of radiological experts from  the country where sources need to be collected and secured. GAO staff who made major contributions to this report are  listed in appendix V.

Scope and Methodology

This report (1) assesses Department of Defense (DOD) readiness to collect  and secure radiological sources in Iraq from the start of the 2003 war, (2) presents information on the number of radiological sources the Defense  Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) secured by the time of the June 2004  transition to the interim Iraqi government, (3) describes the assistance the  United States has provided, and plans to provide in the future, to the Iraqi  government to help regulate radiological sources in Iraq, and (4) examines  DOD and Department of Energy (DOE) actions to assess their experiences  in Iraq and apply any lessons learned to possible future radiological source  collection missions. We also reviewed a February 2004 National  Defense University study of lessons learned from the mission to eliminate  weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and discussed the study with its  author. Based on the Iraq experience, the NDU report recommended that DOD  develop and maintain the capability to quickly eliminate WMD in hostile  environments.
Why GAO Did This Study

Following the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, concerns were raised about the security of Iraq's radiological sources. Such sources are used in medicine, industry, and research, but unsecured sources could pose risks of radiation exposure, and terrorists could use them to make "dirty bombs." This report provides information on (1) the readiness of the Department of Defense (DOD) to collect and secure sources, (2) the number of sources DOD collected and secured, (3) U.S. assistance to help regulate sources in Iraq, and (4) the lessons DOD and the Department of Energy learned.

What GAO Found

DOD was not ready to collect and secure radiological sources when the war began in March 2003 and for about 6 months thereafter. Before DOD could collect radiological sources, it had to specify criteria for which sources should be collected and how to safely collect them, coordinate within DOD, coordinate assistance from the Department of Energy (DOE), and resolve contract issues. DOD did not issue guidance for collecting and securing sources until July 2003 and did not finalize the terms of the contract to collect sources until September 2003. Until radiological sources could be collected, some sources were looted and scattered, and some troops were diverted from their regular combat duties to guard sources in diverse places. In June 2004, DOD removed about 1,000 of the 1,400 radiological sources collected in Iraq and sent them to the United States for disposal. DOD left in place approximately 700 additional sources that it had judged were adequately secured and being used properly by Iraqis. According to DOD and Department of State officials, however, the total number of radiological sources in Iraq remains unknown. The United States assisted in establishing an Iraqi agency to regulate radiological sources. Since June 2004, State and DOE have helped this new agency develop an action plan with assistance from the International Atomic Energy Agency. However, according to State officials, because of uncertainties associated with the continuing formation of the Iraqi government, State will have to monitor Iraqi efforts to ensure the continued growth and success of an independent, competent, and sustainable regulatory authority for the control of radioactive sources and materials. Both DOD and DOE are considering improvements based on their Iraq experiences. A 2004 study of lessons learned, requested by DOD, recommended that DOD develop the capability to quickly eliminate weapons of mass destruction in hostile environments, but it did not focus on the narrower radiological source mission. In contrast, DOE has contracted for a study to examine lessons from its role in removing radiological sources from Iraq.