WRITTEN QUESTION P-3200/98

by Nikitas Kaklamanis (UPE) to the Commission

(16 October 1998)

Subject: Leak of radioactivity in Bulgaria

The Bulgarian agricultural produce control institute has announced that levels of caesium-137 (Cs 137) in mushrooms are as high as 900 Bq. compared to the normal value of 475 Bq. Petar Konstantinov, the director of a local branch of the institute, has stated that these levels of radioactivity in mushrooms have been detected since the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986. He pointed out that while the mushrooms had been destroyed, the source of contamination had not yet been located. It should be pointed out that in September 1998 mushrooms from Bulgaria contaminated with Cs-137 were found in Germany, Sweden, Denmark and France. Although experts from the institute recommended that mushroom- harvesting should be temporarily halted in Bulgaria, the problem persists, and there are fears of a new nuclear accident.

In my Question H-0438/98 I had pointed out that during a meeting of the Greek-Bulgarian INTERREG and PHARE-CBC programme monitoring committee on 9 December 1997, Bulgarian officials notified their Greek partners that waters from the River Strimon and Nestos had been polluted by radioactivity owing to leaks from the antiquated nuclear reactors of Kozloduy. The reply I received stated that pollution was not caused by the nuclear power station but by earlier uranium mining activities near these rivers.

In view of the new state of affairs, what action does the Commission intend to take: to ensure the safety of EU citizens; and to oblige Bulgaria to honour the commitments it made in 1993 vis-à-vis the EEC as regards the operation of the antiquated nuclear power station of Kozloduy?

Answer given by Mr Van den Broek in behalf of the Commission

(5 November 1998)

The import into the Community of foodstuffs contaminated with radioactivity is subject to controls by Member States, as laid down in Council Regulation (EEC) 737/90 of 22 March 1990 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power-station(1). Mushrooms are occasionally found to exceed the maximum permitted concentration of Caesium-137 (600 becquerel per kilogram). This autumn a high number of cases related to imports from Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Romania were reported. The Commission recently convened the ad-hoc committee established under Regulation (EEC) 737/90 to examine the current situation and measures were taken to strengthen the controls.

No such cases related to the limited imports from Bulgaria (around 2000 tons in 1997) have been reported, though the Commission is aware of reports in the Bulgarian press of cases of contamination in this year's harvest. No causal relationship has been demonstrated between these and the operation of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant. The Commission will continue to monitor developments in view of possible action, notably within the framework of Regulation (EEC) 737/90.

Concerning the Commission's position on the early closure of Kozloduy nuclear power plant units 1 to 4, the Honourable Member is referred to the answer the Commission gave to his written question E-2174/98(2). The importance of closing these units at realistic dates in accordance with the nuclear safety account agreement with Bulgaria was emphasised again on the occasion of the meeting between the President of the Commission and the Prime Minister of Bulgaria on 8 October 1998.

(1) OJ L 82, 29.3.1990.

(2) See page 38.