Legal Framework forNuclear Safety(General Overview)
Kimberly Sexton NICK
Deputy Head
Office of Legal Counsel

FNCA Study Panel
23 March 2018
© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Overview• Overview of conventions important to nuclear safety• Focus on the Convention on Nuclear Safety© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development2Legal Framework for Nuclear Safety
Industry
Codes
Regulatory
Operator’s
Guidance
Procedures
Documents

Regulatory
RegimeNational Legislation
National Constitutions &Regional Lawmaking
International Treaties & Obligations© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Non-BindingInternational
Instruments /Arrangements
IAEA, etc.
Instruments
International BestPractices

Emergency Response
Convention on Early Notification of a
Nuclear Accident (Early NotificationConvention)
The Early Notification Convention establishes anotification system for nuclear accidents thathave the potential for an internationaltransboundary release of radioactive material that
could be of radiological safety significance foranother state.
Adopted: 26 September 1986
Entered into force: 27 October 1986
Parties: 121© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Emergency Response
Convention on Assistance in the Caseof a Nuclear Accident or Radiological
Emergency (Convention onAssistance)
Sets up a framework for states parties to cooperate amongst themselves and with the IAEA tofacilitate prompt assistance in the event of a
nuclear accident or radiological emergency.
Adopted: 26 September 1986
Entered into force: 26 February 1987
Parties: 115© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development5

Nuclear Safety
Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS)
An incentive convention that aims to, inter alia,
achieve and maintain a high level of nuclear
safety worldwide through the enhancement of
national measures and international co-operation
including, where appropriate, safety-related
technical co-operation.
• Adopted: 17 June 1994
• Entry into force: 24 October 1996
• Parties: 84© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

6Nuclear Safety
Joint Convention on the Safety of
Spent Fuel Management and on theSafety of Radioactive Waste
Management (Joint Convention)
An incentive convention that aims to, inter alia,achieve and a high level of safety worldwide inspent fuel and radioactive waste management,
through the enhancement of national measuresand international co-operation, including whereappropriate, safety-related technical co-operation.
• Adopted: 5 September 1997
• Entry into force: 18 June 2001
• Parties: 78© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Convention on Nuclear Safety
Main Principles (Preamble)• It is necessary to promote a high level of nuclear safety
worldwide• Promotion of an effective nuclear safety culture isdesirable• Responsibility for nuclear safety rests with the state withresponsibility over a nuclear installation• Accidents have the potential for transboundary
consequences• International co-operation is key© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Convention on Nuclear Safety
Obligations• Article 4: implement the obligations of the CNS in national legalframeworks• Article 7: establish and maintain a legislative and regulatory frameworkproviding for: (i) national safety requirements and regulations;(ii) licensing and prohibition; (iii) inspection and assessment; and(iv) enforcement.
• Article 8(1): establish or designate a regulatory body with adequate
authority, competence and financial and human resources• Article 8(2): ensure an effective separation between the functions of theregulator and any body or organization concerned with the promotion or
utilization of nuclear energy• Article 9: ensure that the prime responsibility for the safety of a nuclear
installation rests with the license holder and ensure that the license
holder meets its responsibility© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Convention on Nuclear Safety
Obligations: General Safety Considerations andSafety of Installations• Article 10: Priority to Safety• Article 11: Financial and Human Resources• Article 12: Human Factors• Article 13: Quality Assurance• Article 14: Assessment and Verification of Safety• Article 15: Radiation Protection• Article 16: Emergency Preparedness• Article 17: Siting• Article 18: Design and Construction• Article 19: Operation© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

10Key Points: Regulatory Functions (Art. 7)
Standards setting

Licensing and permitting

Inspection and monitoring

Enforcement© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

11Key Points: Responsibility (Art. 9)
The regulatory body sets thestandards and enforces them within
the legal framework.

The nuclear operator, however,bears ultimate responsibility for thesafety and security of the installation.
Use of radioactive materials and operation of nuclear facilities
must be deemed safe with low risk of harm to workers, thepublic and the environment© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

12Key Points: Independence (Art. 8(2))

Effective
Separation© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Independence in Focus (IAEA)
Requirement 4: Independence of theregulatory body
The government shall ensure that the regulatory
body is effectively independent in its safety
related decision making and that it has functional
separation from entities having responsibilities orinterests that could unduly influence its decision
making.

© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Independence in Focus (IAEA)
2.8 To be effectively independent from undue
influences on its decision making, the regulatory
body:
••
••

•
•

(a) Shall have sufficient authority and sufficient competentstaff;(b) Shall have access to sufficient financial resources …;(c) Shall be able to make independent regulatory
judgements and regulatory decisions …;(d) Shall be free from any pressures associated with
political circumstances or economic conditions, orpressures from government departments, authorizedparties or other organizations;(e) Shall be able to give independent advice and provide
reports to government …;(f) Shall be able to liaise directly with regulatory bodies ofother States and with international organizations topromote cooperation and the exchange of regulatory
related information and experience.

© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Independence in Focus (EU)Member States shall ensure the effective independence from undue influence of the competentregulatory authority in its regulatory decision-making. For this purpose, Member States shallensure that the national framework requires that the competent regulatory authority:a) is functionally separate from any other body or organisation concerned with the promotion
or utilisation of nuclear energy, and does not seek or take instructions from any such body ororganisation when carrying out its regulatory tasks;b) takes regulatory decisions founded on robust and transparent nuclear safety-related
requirements;c) is given dedicated and appropriate budget allocations to allow for the delivery of its
regulatory tasks as defined in the national framework and is responsible for theimplementation of the allocated budget;d) employs an appropriate number of staff with qualifications, experience and expertisenecessary to fulfil its obligations. It may use external scientific and technical resources andexpertise in support of its regulatory functions;e) establishes procedures for the prevention and resolution of any conflicts of interest;f)

provides nuclear safety-related information without clearance from any other body ororganisation, provided that this does not jeopardise other overriding interests, such assecurity, recognised in relevant legislation or international instruments.

Council Directive 2014/87/Euratom of 8 July 2014 amending Directive 2009/71/Euratom establishing a Community framework forthe nuclear safety of nuclear installations© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Concluding Thoughts• There is broad agreement among international and nationalorganisations that the fundamental objective of all nuclear safety
regulatory bodies – the regulator’s prime purpose – is to ensurethat nuclear licensees operate their facilities at all times in a safemanner.
• While there is great support for the safety conventions (84 parties
to the CNS and 77 parties to the Joint Convention), not every
party has fully subscribed to the articles on responsibility, functions
and characteristics of regulatory bodies.
• Without any forcing function in the conventions, countries are left
with only encouragement to subscribe to the principles of theconventions.

© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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Other NEA Nuclear Law Resources
Nuclear Legislation in OECD and NEACountries•

Country-specific reports on nuclear
legislation and regulation written bymember country experts•

Compilations of applicable national nuclear
laws, in English

Nuclear Law Bulletin“International Nuclear
Law: History,
Evolution andOutlook”

Features: topical articles
written by renowned legal
experts, nuclear legislative
developments, case law,bilateral and international
agreements, internationalorganisation activities andbook reviews••

Published twice a year
© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

ISNL 10th anniversary
special publication
Collection of academic
papers reflecting thesubjects covered during theISNL programme.

Thank you for your attention!

All NEA publications and institutional documentation available atwww.oecd-nea.org© 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

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