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The other conventions linked to nuclear safety and
radiation protection
Other international conventions, the scope of which does
not fall within the remit of ASN, may be linked to nuclear
safety. Of particular relevance is the Convention on the
Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, the purpose of
which is to reinforce protection against malicious acts
and against misappropriation of nuclear materials. This
Convention entered into force in February 1987 and as
at 15th September 2015, it comprises 153 contracting
parties.
For France, these conventions are a tool to be used to
reinforce nuclear safety, periodically presenting the
international community with the status of the facilities
concerned and the steps taken to ensure their safety.
3.1.2 European texts
Several European community texts apply to BNIs. The
more important ones are described below.
The EURATOM Treaty
The EURATOM Treaty, which was signed in 1957 and
came into force in 1958, aimed to develop nuclear power
while protecting the general public andworkers fromthe
harmful effects of ionising radiation.
Chapter III of Title II of the EURATOMTreaty deals with
health protection as linked to ionising radiation.
Articles 35 (implementation of means for checking
compliance with standards), 36 (information to the
Commission on environmental radioactivity levels)
and 37 (information to the Commission on planned
effluent discharges) deal with the issues of discharges
and environmental protection.
The provisions regarding information of theCommission
were integrated intoDecree 2007-1557 of 2ndNovember
2007, amended, relative toBasicNuclear Installations and
to the regulation of the nuclear safety of the transport of
radioactive substances, known as the “BNI Procedures
Decree”. Inparticular, thedecrees authorisingBNI creation,
prescribing final shutdown, or authorising significant
modifications to the facilities leading to an increase in
discharge limit values, are only issued once the opinion
of the Commission has been obtained.
The Directive of 25th June 2009 establishing
a community framework for the nuclear safety
of nuclear facilities, amended by Directive 2014/87/
Euratom of 8th July 2014
Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom of 25th June 2009
creates an EU framework for nuclear safety and paves the
way for the creation of a common legal framework for
nuclear safety among all Member States.
This Directive defines basic obligations and general
principles in this field. It strengthens the role of the national
regulatory organisations, contributes to harmonising the
safety requirements between the Member States in order
to develop a high level of safety in the installations and
encourages a high level of transparency on these issues.
It comprises stipulations regarding cooperation between
nuclear regulators, in particular the creation of a peer
reviewmechanism, staff training, regulationand inspection
of nuclear installations and public transparency. In this
respect,itreinforcescooperationbetweentheMemberStates.
Finally, it takes account of the harmonisationwork being
carried out by theWestern EuropeanNuclear Regulators
Association (WENRA), (see Chapter 7, point 2.8).
Directive 2014/87/Euratom of 8th July 2014 modifies
Directive 2009/71/Euratomof 25th June 2009 andmakes
the following substantial improvements:
•
concepts converging with those of IAEA (incident,
accident, etc.);
•
highlighting of the principles of “defence in depth” and
“safety culture”;
•
clarification of responsibilities in the oversight of the
safety of nuclear installations;
•
the safety objectives for nuclear installations which
stem directly from the safety requirements used by the
WENRA association;
•
a safety reassessment of each nuclear facility at least
once every ten years;
•
every 6 years, the organisation of peer reviews by the
Europeancounterpartsonspecificsafetytopics,conducted
in the spirit of the stress tests performed in the aftermath
of the Fukushima-Daiichi accident;
•
the obligation for nuclear facility licensees and thenuclear
safety authorities to inform local populations and the
stakeholders.
These provisions significantly reinforce the community
framework for oversight of the safetyof nuclear facilities (see
chapter 7, point 2.4). For thosewhich require legislative
weight, transposition is ensured by Articles L. 591-2 and
L.591-6toL.591-8oftheEnvironmentCode,resultingfrom
Ordinance 2016-128 of 10thFebruary 2016 constituting
various nuclear provisions, issued on the basis of the
authorisation given in the Energy Transition for Green
Growth Act of 17th August 2015 (TECV).
Directive of 19th July 2011 establishing a European
community framework for the responsible and safe
management of spent fuel and radioactive waste
Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom of 19th July 2011
establishes a European Community framework for the
responsible and safe management of spent fuel and
radioactivewaste. It applies to themanagement of spent fuel
and themanagement of radioactivewaste, fromproduction
to disposal, when this waste is the result of civil activities.
Like the EuratomDirective of 25th June 2009, it calls for
each Member State to set up a coherent and appropriate
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CHAPTER 03:
REGULATIONS
ASN report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2015