[BCMA] Disposing of an old x-ray machine

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv]

Hello Petra,

You could reach out to the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories as this would likely be covered under their Historic Artefact Recovery Program (HARP).  See fact sheet here: National-Programs_Artefact-Fact-Sheet_2022.pdf<https://www.phai.ca/wp-content/uploads/National-Programs_Artefact-Fact-Sheet_2022.pdf>.

Best of luck,
Lauren


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Lauren Buttle    Archival Conservator |  Archives


ROYAL BC MUSEUM
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From: Listserv <listserv-bounces at lists.museum.bc.ca> On Behalf Of Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv
Sent: December 4, 2025 12:01 PM
To: listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca
Subject: Re: [BCMA] Disposing of an old x-ray machine


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Dear Petra, thank you. I am very interested in hazards in museums , and I had not thought of old x-ray machines , though I have cleaned one, ( the outside of graffitti). What do you consider the dangers are ?  There is an oil which is not so healthy but it  is enclosed PCBs. X rays at this time used cobalt 60 , this has a T 1/2 = half life of just over 5 years , thus if we say your machine is 1945 for simplicity . it has had  under 16 half lives and we can reckon that after 8-10 half lives little remains , cobalt 60 becomes safe nickel , I have asked a physics teacher friend of mine for advice too ,  so I am wondering how dangerous it is . There might be lead and Beryllium  that can be dangerous , but they are enclosed
Paul Harrison MSc FII C conservator

On Thu, 4 Dec 2025 at 18:40, Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv <listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca<mailto:listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca>> wrote:
Hello BC Museum Community,

The Summerland Museum and Archives Society is looking to dispose of an old dental x-ray machine from the 1940s. We acquired the x-ray machine in 1977 and seemingly no one in our organization thought about the hazards associated with items of this nature. It has been in storage for a very long time (perhaps even the entire time we have had it) but now we must vacate our storage facility.

I have been trying for some months to identify a disposal method for the machine with no success. Our municipal waste disposal won't touch it, GFL couldn't dispose of it, and another company I reached out to won't call me back.

Has anyone else dealt with an issue like this? I would greatly appreciate hearing about others experiences - and better yet, any advice on how we can properly dispose of the thing!

Thank you very much,
Petra Höller
--
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Petra Höller (They/She)
Curator
Summerland Museum and Archives
(250) 494-9395
curator at summerlandmuseum.org<mailto:archives at summerlandmuseum.org>
The Summerland Museum and Archives respectfully acknowledges
that we are situated on the unceded and ancestral territory of the Syilx Peoples.
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