Commission Recommendation of 4 December 2008 on criteria for the export of radioactive waste and spent fuel to third countries (notified under document number C(2008) 7570)
Date: 2008-12-04
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, export monitoring, export of waste, nuclear safety, polluted area, radioactive pollution, radioactive waste, third country, transport of dangerous goods

17.12.2008

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 338/69

RECOMMENDATIONS

COMMISSION

COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION

of 4 December 2008

on criteria for the export of radioactive waste and spent fuel to third countries

(notified under document number C(2008) 7570)

(2008/956/Euratom)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic
Energy Community, and in particular Articles 33,
second
paragraph, and 124, second indent, thereof,

Having regard to Council Directive 2006/117/Euratom of
20 November 2006 on the supervision and control of
fuel (1), and in
shipments of
radioactive waste and spent
particular Article 16(2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

international
Radiation protection principles agreed at
level form the basis of the measures protecting against
the danger of ionising radiation emitted by radioactive
waste or spent fuel.

Such principles, to be effective, have to be part of a
national regulatory system.

In accordance with the safety culture prevailing in the
Community as regards activities involving radioactive
substances, an effective independence of roles between
required to
regulatory authorities
radioactive
the
ensure
waste or spent fuel.

appropriate management of

and operators

is

The decision to authorise shipments of radioactive waste
or spent fuel to third countries is the responsibility of the
competent authorities of the exporting Member State.

The competent authorities of the exporting Member State
should form an opinion, in accordance with the criteria
referred
Directive
2006/117/Euratom, on the third countries’ administrative

16(1)(c)

Article

to

of

in

(1) OJ L 337, 5.12.2006, p. 21.

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

and technical capacity for the safe management of radio­
active waste and spent fuel, as well as the appropriateness
of their regulatory structures.

Member States,
apply a principle of hierarchy among them.

in implementing those criteria, should

The Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel
Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste
Management
international
is the fundamental relevant
legal instrument addressing the safety of spent fuel and
radioactive waste management.

In addition to the compliance with the set of criteria,
other considerations, such as political, economic, social,
ethical, scientific and public security matters, may be
taken into account for authorising shipments of radio­
active waste or spent fuel to a third country.

Article 2 of Directive 2006/117/Euratom deals with the
right of a Member State or an undertaking in the
to be
Member State to which radioactive waste is
shipped for processing or other material
to be
is
shipped with the purpose of recovering the radioactive
waste, to return the radioactive waste after treatment to
It also provides that Directive
its country of origin.
2006/117/Euratom does not affect
the right of a
Member State or an undertaking in that Member State
to which spent fuel is to be shipped for reprocessing to
return to its country of origin radioactive waste recovered
from the reprocessing operation.

(10)

The criteria established by this recommendation are
in accordance with the opinion of
the Advisory
Committee instituted under Article 21 of Directive
2006/117/Euratom,

L 338/70

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

17.12.2008

HEREBY RECOMMENDS:

1. The main requirements relating to the export of radioactive
referred to in
waste or
Article 16(1)(c) of Directive 2006/117/Euratom should be
as follows:

to third countries

spent

fuel

(a) appropriate

national

provisions

radiological
protection for workers and the general public should
be established and enforced; they should be consistent
with relevant
internationally endorsed standards on
radiation protection;

for

(b) a coherent legislative framework for the regulation of
activities involving a hazard from radioactive substances,
including radioactive waste and spent fuel should be laid
down;

(c) effective independent regulatory authorities should be set
up being competent for issuing licences, reviewing them,
assessing demands, being in charge of inspection and
enforcement functions and having adequate resources;

(d) a clear allocation of

responsibilities of

the bodies
involved in the different steps of spent fuel and radio­
active waste management, particularly between operators
and regulatory authorities should be provided for;

(e) a system of reporting to, or authorising by, such auth­
orities for organisations managing radioactive waste or
spent fuel;

(f)

the assurance that the prime responsibility for the safety
of spent fuel or radioactive waste management rests with
the holder of the relevant licence and that each such
licence holder meets its responsibilities;

(g) the availability of qualified staff as needed for safety-
related activities during the operating lifetime of a
spent fuel and a radioactive waste management facility;
and of adequate financial resources to support the safety
of
and radioactive waste
fuel
management during their operating lifetime and for de­
commissioning;

facilities

spent

for

(h) the establishment and enforcement of an adequate

national third party liability regime;

(i)

the establishment and implementation of appropriate
quality assurance programmes concerning the safety of
spent fuel and radioactive waste management;

(j) adequate protective and corrective measures,

including
the provision of information to the population groups
concerned and the preparation and testing of emergency

plans, which will apply in the event of a radiological
emergency in order to control the release and mitigate
its effects.

2. In order to evaluate whether the above requirements for
exports of
to third
radioactive waste and spent
countries are met, Member States should take into consider­
ation the third countries’ compliance with the following
criteria:

fuel

(a)

leading criteria:

— IAEA membership and resultant adherence to the
International

standards

the

of

relevant
safety
Atomic Energy Agency,

and

— signature and ratification of, and compliance with the
Joint Convention on the Safety of Radioactive Waste
Fuel
Management
Management, thus showing willingness to fulfil the
obligations arising from the Joint Convention and
demonstrating
relevant
compliance with
provisions addressing the safety of spent fuel and
radioactive waste management,

Safety

Spent

their

the

of

— signature and ratification of

the Convention on
Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and its
amendment as expression of
the obligation with
prevention, detection and punishment of offences
relating to nuclear material,

— signature and ratification of, and compliance with the
Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS) as the most
important legal
instrument in the field of nuclear
safety that also contains important provisions on
emergency preparedness and radiation protection,

— submission of spent fuel facilities to an IAEA safe­
guards agreement in connection with the signature
and ratification of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
and related additional protocols to demonstrate that
spent nuclear fuel is not diverted from its intended
peaceful uses,

— signature and ratification of, or compliance with
either the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for
Nuclear Damage, the Protocol to Amend the Vienna
Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage,
the Convention for Supplementary Compensation
for Nuclear Damage or the Convention on Third
Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy of
29 July 1960, as amended by the Additional
Protocol of 28 January 1964 and by the Protocol
of 16 November 1982 (Paris Convention) in order
to demonstrate that the licence holder carries the
main responsibility in the event of nuclear damage;

17.12.2008

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 338/71

(b) additional criteria:

(ENC)

— signature and ratification of, and compliance with the
Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear
Accident and Radiological Emergency (AC) and the
Convention on Early Notification in a Nuclear
Accident
to demonstrate that appropriate
information will be given to the affected population
in the event of a radiological emergency and that
corrective measures,
and
adequate
including the preparation and testing of emergency
plans, will apply in the event of a radiological
emergency in order
the release and
mitigate its effects,

to control

protective

— compliance

with

international

instruments
concerning transport safety of dangerous goods, par­
ticularly the SOLAS and the Chicago Conventions, to
demonstrate that effective checks on maritime and air
transports of dangerous goods are actually carried
out.

regarding political,

3. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, other considerations, for
example
ethical,
scientific and public security matters, may be taken into
account by the competent authorities of Member States
when considering whether to authorise shipments of radio­
active waste or spent fuel to third countries.

economic,

social,

4. Competent authorities of Member States cooperate with a
view to exchanging information on the application of this
Recommendation.

This Recommendation is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 4 December 2008.

For the Commission

Andris PIEBALGS
Member of the Commission