| Radwaste disposal now a key EU issue | | Print | |
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The topic of radioactive waste disposal is moving up the political agenda at the EU level as well as in the UK. On November 6, the European Commission officially unveiled a new package of proposed EU legislation covering radwaste management, nuclear safety and nuclear plant decommissioning funds. The package consists of: · a draft Proposal for a Directive on the management of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste; · a draft Proposal for a framework Directive defining the basic obligations and general principles concerning the safety of nuclear installations (including proposed EU rules for the creation and management of plant decommissioning funds); and · a draft decision authorising the Commission to negotiate an agreement between Euratom and the Russian Federation on trade in nuclear materials. The Commission has stated clearly that the overall aim of the proposed legislation is to keep open the nuclear energy option in the enlarged EU. (The first wave of candidate countries will join the Community in 2004, and eventually 10 new EU member states will bring the total membership to 25). The proposed Directive on waste would require each member state to set a definite timetable for the disposal of radwaste. Authorisation for the development of appropriate disposal sites would have to be granted by 2008. For the geological disposal of spent fuel and high-level waste from reprocessing, this authorisation could be conditional on a further period of detailed underground study. (Given current government policy, it is unlikely that major 'nuclear' countries, such as France and the UK, would be able to meet the 2008 deadline). Authorisation for operation of disposal facilities for low- and medium-level waste would have to be given by 2013 or, in the case of spent fuel and high-level waste, 2018. The Commission says the specific aim of the waste Directive is the "credible" management of radioactive waste - something that would increase public confidence in nuclear energy. One of the motivations for the whole package has been the outcome of the consultation process that followed the publication in November 2000 of the Commission's Green Paper on security of energy supply. The package will now be considered by a committee of experts, focusing on a key article of the Euratom Treaty, by the EU's Economic and Social Committee and the European Parliament, before going to the European Council (government leaders) for a final decision. FORATOM, the Brussels-based trade association for the nuclear industry in Europe, is finalising three industry position statements in response to the main elements of the package. The statements have been worked on at a series of meetings involving industry representatives in recent weeks. It is expected that the position statements will be sent to the Commission and other EU institutions by mid-December. Further details about the new legislative package are on the Commission's website: europa.eu.int/comm/energy/nuclear/new_package.htm |
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