# Approaching Nuclear Safety Culture in Fission and Fusion Technology
## 3 Nuclear Safety Culture in Fusion
### NSC in Fusion: The ITER Implementation  
The ITER Organization (IO) is the nuclear operator of the ITER facility and the overall integrator of the project with cooperation among its members. The IO strictly observes the French nuclear safety regulations, since ITER is classified as a basic nuclear installation or INB (Installation Nucleaire de Base in French) similarly to all the nuclear fission power plants and other nuclear facilities. ITER is identified by the number \"INB no. 174\" in France. For this reason, ITER receives controls and inspections from the country's regulatory body, Autorite de Surete Nucleaire (ASN), and its technical support organization, the Institute of Nuclear Safety and Radioprotection (IRSN), like any nuclear installation in France. ITER is the first fusion device that has passed the full nuclear licensing process and that is considered as a basic nuclear installation in France. ITER safety studies started in the mid-1990s and were later adapted to the present location in Cadarache (France) [9; 10]. The objective of ITER is to demonstrate the scientific and technical feasibility of fusion energy for peaceful purposes, an essential feature of which is the achievement of sustained fusion power generation. Nevertheless, the IO's first priority, over and above its progress in research activities during ITER operations, is to protect the public, workers and environment by preventing accidents and by limiting their consequences related to nuclear safety. The IO had to define safety objectives and functions together with the correct identification of risks and means to mitigate and minimize them. The main French regulations applicable to ITER are briefly summarized in Figure 4. At the top of the regulatory pyramid there is the French Environmental Code. The main INB regulation, carefully observed by the IO, is the French Order of 7 th February 2012 that lays down general requirements applicable to basic nuclear installations (INB) or \"Arrete du 7 fevrier 2012 fixant les regles generales relatives aux Installations Nucleaires de Base\" [52]. This INB order, 2012, harmonizes the practices of three previous INB orders: the order of the 10 th of August 1984 (quality order), the order of the 26 th  
Figure 4: Main French regulations applicable to ITER. of November 1999 (discharges procedures) and the order of the 31 st of December 1999 (general regulation of INB risk prevention and limitation). With Decree No. 2012-1248 dated 9 November 2012, the IO was authorized to create a basic nuclear facility INB No. 174, called \"ITER\". With ASN Decision 2013-DC-0379 dated 12 November 2013, ITER prescriptions for the ITER design and construction were established. With ASN Decision 2015-DC-0529 dated 22 October 2015, ITER requirements were amended. With ASN Decision 2017-DC-0601 dated 24 August 2017, ITER prescriptions were amended. The authorization of the creation of ITER was issued only when the IO operator was demonstrated to have all the needed technical and organizational measures capable of preventing or sufficiently limiting the risks and inconveniences according to Article L593-7 of the French Environmental Code. The analysis of the risks of incidents or accidents with or without radiological impact is presented in the ITER Preliminary Safety Report (PSR, or in French, RPrS, Rapport Preliminaire de Surete). The PSR demonstrated that, during normal operation, the radiological impact of ITER on the population is negligible and even the most exposed members of the public will receive a dose that is one thousand times less than natural background radiation. The PSR also indicated that the evacuation of the population next to the ITER site would never be necessary, even in the case of the worst accidents, such as a fire in the tritium plant. The French nuclear safety and regulatory authority, ASN, requested particular attention also to toxic materials, such as beryllium, in order to protect the workers, the public and the environment from their potential risks.