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STORY: IAEA / SOUTH AFRICA RHISOTOPE PROJECT
TRT: 05:23
SOURCE: IAEA
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 30 JULY 2025, WATERBERG BIOSPHERE, SOUTH AFRICA
30 JULY 2025, WATERBERG BIOSPHERE, SOUTH AFRICA
1. Wide shot, radioactive isotope being inserted into rhino's horn
2. SOUNDBITE (English) James Larkin, Director, Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand:
"We're putting small amounts of radioactive material into the horns of the rhino."
3. Various shots, radioactive isotope being inserted into rhino's horn
4. SOUNDBITE (English) James Larkin, Director, Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand:
"And it makes it so much easier to detect these horns as they're moved across international borders."
5. Various shots, radioactive isotope being inserted into rhino's horn
6. SOUNDBITE (English) James Larkin, Director, Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand:
"Irrespective of how that horn is transported across border, whether it's in a suitcase or in a container, we will detect it, the alarms will go off and we'll catch it.
7. Various shots, radioactive isotope being inserted into rhino's horn
8. SOUNDBITE (English) James Larkin, Director, Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand:
"By making the horns radioactive, we are making those horns, devaluing those horns in the eyes of the poacher and the end users. No one wants a radioactive horn."
9. Various shots, radioactive isotope being inserted into rhino's horn
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Jessica Babich, CEO Rhisotope Project:
"So the rhinos that you see behind me have been treated with radioisotopes at a very special place, the Rhino Orphanage, who have pioneered this technology with us, proving that the animals are safe and that the tech is now at the point of readiness to roll out rhinos nationally."
11. Various shots, rhinos
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Arrie van Deventer, Founder and Managing Director of the Rhino Orphanage:
"Obviously all these rhinos are here because they were orphaned because their mothers were shot. They were poached because of the value of the rhino horn. Now, with the rhisotope project you can't take that horn anywhere. It is radioactive, You can't take it through any airport, any harbour, any customs office. Sirens go off. It is wonderful, I'm telling you, this could be the holy grail to save the species."
13. Various shots, rhinos
23 JULY 2025, VIENNA, AUSTRIA
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA):
“Illegal poaching is driving the rhinoceros towards extinction. In South Africa, one rhino is killed every day. The Rhisotope project is using nuclear science to make that stop. Through this IAEA coordinated research project, a team led by South Africa's University of Witwatersrand is inserting a small amount of radioactive material into rhinos' horns. This procedure doesn't harm the animal. It does, however, make its horn light up on nuclear security detection infrastructure installed at borders, ports and airports, and that makes trafficked horns harder to hide. The IAEA's support of the project is both financial and technical. Over the past year, the research team has been testing its methodology to ensure animal safety and to make certain that the detection devices pick up the radioactive markers. Radiation portal monitors were not initially envisioned as rhino savers. They are a cornerstone of nuclear security detection infrastructure used to detect the smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive material. The Rhisotope project means this technology will now also help combat illicit wildlife trafficking. It goes to show how nuclear science and nuclear security infrastructure can be used in novel ways to address global challenges. Every day, and in many different ways, the IAEA is supporting countries to maximize the benefits of nuclear science and technology. In this case, by making the most of already installed nuclear security infrastructure, we are helping save one of the world's most iconic and endangered species, protecting the joys and benefits the Rhino brings to the people of South Africa and beyond.”
30 JULY 2025, WATERBERG BIOSPHERE, SOUTH AFRICA
15. Med shot, rhinos and a staffer wearing Rhisotope Project jacket
In a pioneering effort to combat wildlife trafficking of the threatened rhinoceros, a South African University began implementing a project supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The project combines the safe insertion of radioactive isotopes into rhino horns and available nuclear security infrastructure to deter and detect illegal poaching.
With over 10,000 rhinos lost to poaching in the past decade, South Africa – home to the world’s largest population of rhinos – remains a target for criminals driven by the illegal trade of rhino horn. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, the South African Ministry of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment reported 103 rhinos poached. In response, this project run by the University of the Witwatersrand is using radiation to support conservation and enforcement efforts.
After two years of initial tests, the Rhisotope Project was created in 2021 with the idea to tag rhino horns with radioactive material. This makes the horns detectable by radiation portal monitors (RPMs) already deployed at borders, ports and airports worldwide. These RPMs, commonly used to detect nuclear and other radioactive material, can now be harnessed against wildlife crime.
The IAEA’s support to the Rhisotope Project leverages its central role in strengthening the global nuclear security framework. With millions of vehicles and people crossing borders every day, the use of an estimated 10,000 RPMs worldwide has become a critical tool for detecting unauthorized transboundary movements of nuclear and other radioactive material.
“The Rhisotope Project shows how nuclear science and nuclear security infrastructure can be used in new ways to address global challenges,” said IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. “The IAEA is supporting countries to maximize the benefits of nuclear. By using already installed nuclear security infrastructure in novel ways, we can help protect one of the world’s most iconic and endangered species.”
At an event on July 30, in the Waterberg, Limpopo, about 250 kilometres north of Johannesburg, the University of Witwatersrand announced the results of the rigorous safety assessments conducted during the pilot phase of the project. In June last year, radioisotopes were inserted into 20 rhinos. Health monitoring and cytological examinations of 15 treated animals and a comparison of five animals not treated were conducted by Ghent University in Belgium. The test results proved that the method is non-invasive and does not pose a risk to the rhinos’ health.
“This has been an international collaboration of likeminded individuals who are trying to make a real difference to this poaching crisis,” said James Larkin, Director, Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand. “We started with the question - what if radiation could protect rather than harm, by turning rhino horns into traceable markers that stop poachers before they trade? After two years of digital modelling, safety testing and detection simulations, we're ready to roll out a solution that could truly reduce rhino poaching.”
The success of project also opens the door for future applications to other endangered species.
“The methodology could be adapted to protect other endangered species like elephants or pangolins,” said Larkin.
The IAEA is providing both technical and financial support to the project under its Coordinated Research Project titled “Facilitation of Safe and Secure Trade Using Nuclear Detection Technology – Detection of RN and Other Contraband.” As part of the project, the Agency also supports countries in their efforts to optimize the detection of radiation by the use of its Minimum Detectable Quantity and Alarm Threshold Estimation Tool, thereby allowing detection of the tagged with radiation rhino horns.
“The Rhisotope project brings the entire global nuclear security network into play,” said Elena Buglova, Director of the IAEA Division of Nuclear Security. “The nuclear security infrastructure that exists in many countries around the world to detect smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive material can be used to pick up the trafficking of rhino horn, and any other contraband that might be carried alongside it. Committing to nuclear security pays off in multiple ways.”
