The Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) is a government agency under the Department of Science and Technology mandated to undertake research and development activities in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, institute regulations on the said uses, and carry out the enforcement of said regulations to protect the health and safety of radiation workers and the general public.
Functions
The Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) is an agency of the government that is authorized to regulate the safe and peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology in the Philippines.
Under Executive Order 128, s. 1987, the PNRI is mandated to perform the following functions: Conduct research and development on the application of radiation and nuclear techniques, materials and processes. Undertake the transfer of research results to end-users, including technical extension and training services. Operate and maintain nuclear research reactors and other radiation facilities. License and regulate activities relative to production, transfer and utilization of nuclear radioactive substances.
Structure
Under Executive Order 128, s. 1987, the PNRI is headed by a director assisted by a deputy director. The institute is composed of four technical divisions and one administrative/finance division.
The five divisions provide the Institute with research, nuclear-related, policy development, budgetary assistance, and technology development services respectively:
A total of 263 permanent positions make up the PNRI organization.
History
In 1958, the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) was established under Republic Act No. 2067, also known as the Science Act of 1958. In the early 1960s, the PAEC built the Philippine Research Reactor-1, the first nuclear reactor in the Philippines. The Atomic Energy Regulatory and Liability Act of 1968 established the regulatory function and mandate of the PAEC, whereas on December 13, 1974, Presidential Decree No. 606 established the PAEC as an independent and autonomous body. Three years later, Presidential Decree No. 1206 of October 6, 1977, created the Ministry of Energy (MOE). From the MoE, the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission was transferred back to the Office of the President Executive under Order No. 613 on August 15, 1980, and transferred again to the Office of the Prime Minister under Executive Order No. 708 of July 2, 1981. In 1984, the PAEC was placed within the administrative administration of the Department of Science and Technology under Executive Order No. 784. The Philippine Atomic Energy Commission became the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) in 1987.
In 1995, the trial of the sterile insect technique (SIT) held in Guimaras was successful. In the succeeding year, William G. Padolina, secretary of the Department of Science and Technology, served as the president of the 40th General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In celebration of the centennial of the discovery of radioactivity of 1997, the second Philippine Nuclear Congress was held in Manila.
At the beginning of the 21st century, the PNRI's Radiological Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan was approved in 2000. In 2001, the first positron emission tomography (PET) was licensed by the PNRI at St. Luke's Medical Center. Between 2001 and 2005, a polyvinylpyrrolidone carrageenan hydrogel dressing for burns and wounds was developed by the PNRI as well as the development of the mutant ornamental plants Kamuning dwarf mutant (Murraya 'Ibarra Santos'), Dracaena 'Marea' and Cordyline 'Medina'. In 2005, the PNRI was designated as the collaborating center for studies on harmful algal blooms by the IAEA. The next year, the Philippine Research Reactor at the PNRI was chosen by the IAEA to be the training platform to demonstrate the decommissioning process technique under the Research Reactor Decommissioning Demonstration Project (R2D2P). The 9th Forum for Nuclear Cooperation in Asia Ministerial Level Meeting was hosted in the Philippines in 2008, the same year of the 50th Founding Anniversary of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute.