Report%20about%20activities%20of%20ENSREG

1
Report about activities of ENSREG

• Andrej Stritar
• Chairman of ENSREG
• Director of the Slovenian Nuclear Safety
  Administration
• 12. October 2009

2
Content

• Nuclear Energy in Europe
• Nuclear Safety
• History
• Activities
• Nuclear Safety
• Radwaste Management
• Transparency
• Future

3
Introductory Facts

• In European Union
• there are almost 150 power reactors
• in 15 EU member countries,
• producing 1/3 of all electricity in EU
• We must keep them operating safe!

4
Assuring Nuclear Safety
5
System of operating limits
Physical Safety Limits
EU Legal Framework
National Legal Framework
Licensed Limits for the Facility
Operating Procedures
6
Regulation of Nuclear Safety and Radwaste
Management in EU

• National responsibility
• Nuclear Regulator in every nuclear EU state
• National legislations are in line with
  international standards
• EURATOM Treaty is not explicitly addressing
  nuclear safety
• Until this summer there was no common EU legal
  framework

7
International Framework

• Nuclear EU states are members to the
• Convention on Nuclear Safety and
• Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel
  Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste
  Management
• IAEA standards, codes and guides
• OECD/NEA enhancing co-operation
• WENRA voluntary common standards - reference
  levels

IAEA International Atomic Energy
Agency OECD/NEA Nuclear Energy Agency of
OECD WENRA Western European Nuclear Regulators
Association
8
Developments leading to ENSREG

• First desires to set common nuclear safety
  framework almost a decade ago
• EC attempt with two directives in 2003 failed
• Years of discussions in the Council followed
• In spring 2007 Council concluded and Commission
  decided to establish a High Level Group (HLG) on
  Nuclear Safety and Radwaste Management

9
ENSREG consolidation

• All 27 EU members designated top nuclear
  regulators into HLG, now ENSREG
• First meeting in October 2007
• Initial issues
• Relationship Member States Commission
• Decisions by consensus
• Defining Rules of Procedure
• Setting priorities of work

10
ENSREG three main areas

• Improving Nuclear Safety arrangements
• Improving spent fuel, radioactive waste
  management and decommissioning arrangements
• Improving arrangements for transparency
• Three working groups established

11
Nuclear SafetyPossible EU Instruments

• Expectations from ENSREG to advise
• Very obvious division among the members of ENSREG

• Pro
• EU should harmonize this area
• EU rules prevent from potential deterioration in
  member states
• Stakeholders wanted it

• Contra
• Responsibility must remain national
• National demands could be higher from EU

12
Nuclear SafetyPossible EU Instruments 2

• Commission presented first draft of new Directive
  on 15. October 2008
• Intensive discussions followed
• ENSREG defined 10 basic principles

13
Nuclear Safety10 Basic Principles

1. Maintain and seek to continuously improve nuclear
   safety and its regulation, and add value.
2. Just as every Member State has the right to
   decide to use nuclear power or not, so every
   Member State has the right to impose more
   stringent nuclear safety requirements than those
   commonly applied.

14
Nuclear Safety10 Basic Principles cont.

• Allow flexibility and not fundamentally change a
  Member States national nuclear regulatory
  approach.
• Seek to enhance, not reduce, the power, roles,
  responsibilities or capability of the national
  nuclear regulatory body.
• Do not expand the role of the Commission in
  regulatory decision-making or activities or
  introduce other bodies

15
Nuclear Safety10 Basic Principles cont.

1. Do not divert resources away from national
   nuclear regulatory responsibilities or
   international nuclear safety cooperation.
2. Be compliant with the principles/obligations of
   the Convention on Nuclear Safety.
3. Any proposals should be non-discriminatory
   towards those who use or do not use nuclear
   power.

16
Nuclear Safety10 Basic Principles cont.

• Seek to improve the transparency of nuclear
  safety and its regulation.
• Be clear on the roles and responsibilities of any
  organisations involved.
• These 10 principles were later reflected in the
  COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 2009/71/EURATOM

17
Nuclear SafetyUse of IRRS

• Member States should participate in IAEA IRRS
• Self-evaluation ASAP
• Invite colleagues from other EU members to
  participate
• IRRS mission at least every 6 years
• Compile all EU IRRS reports to establish common
  lessons learned

IRRS Integrated Regulatory Review Service
18
Nuclear SafetyUse of the Convention on Nuclear
Safety

• Contacting Parties must prepare a written report
  every three years
• EU Member States should agree on common lessons
  learned
• Human Resources and Safety Culture should be
  subject to more in-depth study

19
Radioactive Waste Management

• National programmes should be established
• Benchmarking and Peer Reviews
• Use of Joint Convention results for common
  lessons learned
• Support to the Council in passing the resolution
  about radioactive waste management

20
Transparency

• Development of the EU Nuclear Safety Web site
• Due by the end of 2009
• Development of good practice guidance regarding
  transparency for nuclear regulators

21
Future

• Continue with implementation of the programme
• Play a role in implementation of the Nuclear
  Safety Directive
• Advice EU bodies on potential future initiatives
• Launch EU Nuclear Regulatory Conference
• Flexibly respond to all relevant initiatives

22
My personal views for the end

• We have formal legal systems to maintain order,
• but we are all real people, driven by our
  emotions and living in the real world.
• We need to feel each other in order to understand
  each other and improve
• ENSREG was a very positive step towards better
  understanding among everybody involved in nuclear
  safety and for future improvement

23
My personal views for the end cont.

• EU Nuclear Regulators now know each other
  personally
• We understand and respect each other
• Commission knows us and understands us
• We are all learning from each other and improving
  our national arrangements

24
My personal views for the end cont.

• ENSREG should remain a valuable platform for
  crucial think tank on EU level about nuclear
  safety issues
• Responsibilities for nuclear safety must remain
  on national level in the hands of those, who live
  close to the nuclear facilities
• Exchange of practices and ideas for continuous
  improvements must be encouraged