CELEX: 51984PC0686(01)
Language: en
Date: 1984-12-11
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL REGULATION ADOPTING CONDITIONS RELATING TO TRANSFERS OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS BETWEEN MEMBER STATES AND TO IMPORTS FROM OUTSIDE THE COMMUNITY

31.1.85                              Official Journal of the European Communities                          No C 29/5
                                                            II
                                                    (Preparatory Acts)
                                              COMMISSION
              Proposal for a Council Regulation adopting conditions relating to transfers of nuclear
                    materials between Member States and to imports from outside the Community
                                                   COM(84) 686 final
                          (Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 20 December 1984)
                                                      (85/C 29/07)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN                                     Whereas the Member States apply to the nuclear
COMMUNITIES,                                                    materials within their territory physical protection
                                                                measures at levels which are internationally
                                                                acknowledged to be satisfactory;
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the
European Atomic Energy, Community, and in                       Whereas the Commission applies the same physical
particular Articles 53 (2) and 76 thereof,                      protection measures to the nuclear materials in the
                                                                establishments of the Joint Research Centre;
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,              Whereas it is advisable to ensure, under Community
                                                                law, the application of these physical protection
                                                                measures to materials involved in transfers between
Having regard to the opinion of the European Par-               Member States or in imports from outside the
liament,                                                        Community;
                                                                Whereas adequate precautions are consequently
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
                                                                applicable, in the case of materials other than
Social Committee,
                                                                plutonium and uranium enriched to over 20 %, to the
                                                                said transfers and imports which can take place
                                                                without other conditions;
Whereas the principle of the unity of the market,
which is an essential element of a Community nuclear
supply policy, involves not only the prohibition of all         Whereas, moreover, this situation accords with the
restrictions relating to transfers of nuclear materials         guidelines applicable to nuclear exports, adopted by
between Member States and to imports from outside               all the Member States as unilateral commitments, and
the Community, but also the possibility of adopting,            published in document INFCIRC/254 of the Inter-
at Community level, specific conditions concerning              national Atomic Energy Agency;
such transfers and imports;
                                                                Whereas the Member States have agreed, between
                                                                themselves, on the need to apply additional pro-
Whereas safeguards, in conformity with Chapter VII              cedures to transfers of plutonium or uranium
of the Treaty, are applicable in the Community;                 enriched to over 20 % between Member States in
                                                                view of the particularly sensitive nature of these
                                                                materials;
Whereas, pursuant to the Treaty on the Non-Pro-
liferation of Nuclear Weapons, the non-nuclear-                 Whereas special measures in this field            are
weapon Member States have entered into a                        recommended in the abovementioned guidelines;
commitment concerning non-explosive use which
covers all of their nuclear materials;                          Whereas such additional procedures relate to
                                                                determination of the places of storage of these
                                                                materials, appropriate information on their use and
Whereas the safeguards of the International Atomic              the consent to retransfers outside the Community of
Energy Agency are applicable, in conformity with the            the Member State which separated or enriched these
agreements concluded between the Agency, the                    materials and of the Member State wishing to
Community and its Member States;                                retransfer them;
 ---pagebreak--- No C 29/6                          Official Journal of the European Communities                                 31.1.85
Whereas agreement was also reached on additional                                        Article 2
procedures as regards imports of the said materials
from outside the Community which relate to the                Plutonium, or uranium enriched above 20 % ,
possible consent of the non-Community supplier State          transferred between Member States shall be subject
to retransfers outside the Community;                         also to the following conditions:
                                                              (a) the recipient Member State shall submit to the
Whereas such procedures, laid down in particular on                Commission, to the Member State responsible for
the basis of the abovementioned guidelines, are an                 reprocessing or enrichment of the material and to
appropriate means of regulating the transfer of                    the Member State (if it is a different State) which
nuclear materials between Member States and imports                transfers them a prior statement containing the
from outside the Community;                                        information set out in Annex B;
Whereas these procedures are applicable equally to            (b) the material shall be stored prior to utilization
the Joint Research Centre;                                         only on the site of the reprocessing plant where
                                                                   the plutonium has been separated, the enrichment
Whereas the Council should consequently adopt a                    plant where the uranium has been enriched or the
Regulation in this field;                                          fabrication plant where the material is to be
                                                                   fabricated into fuel elements, or in a storage
                                                                   facility established and administered by a Member
Whereas, finally, in view of all these precautions
                                                                   State or in such other storage facility within the
transfers between Member States and imports from
                                                                   jurisdiction of a Member State and determined by
outside the Community can take place without
                                                                   joint agreement by the Member States concerned;
hindrance,
                                                              (c) without prejudice to the consent rights of a non-
                                                                   member State as the supplier of plutonium and
                                                                   uranium enriched above 20 °/o, any retransfer to a
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:                                       non-member State requires the prior consent of
                                                                   the Member State responsible for reprocessing or
                                                                   enrichment and the Member State in whose
                        Article 1                                  jurisdiction the owner of the material is situated.
1.    Source materials and special fissile materials
transferred between Member States, and the materials                                    Article 3
derived therefrom, shall be subject to the application
of physical protection measures to levels not less than       This Regulation shall enter into force three months
those specified in Annex A.                                   following its publication in the Official Journal of the
                                                              European Communities.
2.    The same levels of physical protection shall be
applied to such materials imported from a non-                This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
member State.                                                 directly applicable in all Member States.
 ---pagebreak--- 31.1.85                            Official J o u r n a l of the E u r o p e a n C o m m u n i t i e s         No C 29/7
                                                            ANNEX       A
        LEVELS O F PHYSICAL P R O T E C T I O N T O BE APPLIED T O NUCLEAR MATERIALS IN
                                    USE, STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION
        1. The attached table divides nuclear materials into three categories. The physical protection to be
           ensured by the competent national authorities in the use, storage and transportation of these
           materials shall be, as a minimum, at the following levels:
           CATEGORY III
        2. Use and storage within an area to which access is controlled.
        3. Transportation under special precautions including prior arrangements among sender, recipient
           and carrier, and prior agreement between entities subject to the jurisdiction and regulation of
           supplier and recipient States, respectively, in case of international transport, specifying time,
           place and procedures for transferring transport responsibility.
           CATEGORY II
        4. Use and storage within a protected area to which access is controlled, i.e. an area under constant
           surveillance by guards or electronic devices, surrounded by a physical barrier with a limited
           number of points of entry under appropriate control, or any area with an equivalent level of
           physical protection.
        5. Transportation under special precautions including prior arrangements among sender, recipient
           and carrier, and prior agreement between entities subject to the jurisdiction and regulation of
           supplier and recipient States, respectively, in case of international transport, specifying time,
           place and procedures for transferring transport responsibility.
           CATEGORY I
        6. Materials in this category shall be protected with highly reliable systems against unauthorized use
           as follows:
        7. Use and storage within a highly protected area, i.e. a protected area as defined for category II
           above, to which, in addition, access is restricted to persons whose trusthworthiness has been
           determined, and which is under surveillance by guards who are in close communication with
           appropriate response forces. Specific measures taken in this context should have as their objective
           the detection and prevention of any assault, unauthorized access or unauthorized removal of
           material.
        8. Transportation under special precautions as identified above for transportation of category II and
           III materials and, in addition, under constant surveillance by escorts and under conditions which
           assure close communication with appropriate response forces.
 ---pagebreak--- No C 29/8                                      Official Journal of the European Communities                                                        31. 1. 85
                                                                            TABLE
                                                           Categorization of nuclear material
                                                                                                                     Category
             Material                                  F„m
                                                                                              I                          II                     III
1. Plutonium (a)                    Unirradiated (b)                               2 kg or more               Less than 2 kg but       500 g or less (c)
                                                                                                             more than 500 g
2. Uranium-235                      Unirradiated (b)
                                    — uranium enriched             to   20 %       5 kg or more               Less than 5 kg but       1 kg or less (c)
                                         235 U or more                                                        more than 1 kg
                                    — uranium enriched to 10 %                                                10 kg or more            Less than 10 kg (c)
                                         235 U but less than 2 0 %
                                    — uranium           enriched       above                                                            10 kg or more
                                         natural, but less than 10 %
                                         235 U (d)
3. Uranium-233                      Unirradiated (b)                               2 kg or more               Less than 2 kg but       500 g or less (c)
                                                                                                              more than 500 g
4. Irradiated fuel                                                                                            Depleted or natural
                                                                                                              uranium thorium or
                                                                                                              low-enriched       fuel
                                                                                                              (less than 10 % fis-
                                                                                                              sile content) (e) (f)
(a) All plutonium except that with isotopic concentration exceeding 80 % in plutonium-238.
(b) Material not irradiated in a reactor or material irradiated in a reactor but with a radiation level equal to or less than 100 rads/hour at one metre
    unshielded.
(c) Less than a radiologically significant quantity should be exempted.
(d) Natural uranium, depleted uranium and thorium and quantities of uranium enriched to less than 10 % not falling in category III should be protec-
    ted in accordance with prudent management practice.
(e) Although this level of protection is recommended, it would be open to States, upon evaluation of the specific circumstances, to assign a different ca-
    tegory of physical protection.
(f) Other fuel which by virtue of its original fissile material content is classified as category I or II before irradiation may be reduced one category level
    while the radiation level from the fuel exceeds 100 rads/hour at one metre unshielded.
 ---pagebreak--- 31.1.85                             Official Journal of the European Communities                        No C 29/9
                                                       ANNEX B
        REQUEST CONCERNING THE TRANSFER OF PLUTONIUM OR OF URANIUM
                                              ENRICHED TO OVER 20 %
        1. Enricher or reprocessor
            1.1. Name or trade name
            1.2. Address
        2. Consignee
           2.1. Name or trade name
           2.2. Address
           2.3. Principal activity
        3. Nature of the delivery
           3.1. Total weight of materials
           3.2. Weight of fissile plutonium (or of uranium enriched to over 20 %)
           3.3. Form of materials
           3.4. Approximate delivery schedule
        4. Use of materials
           4.1. Fuel fabrication
                 4.1.1. Type of fabrication
                 4.1.2. Name, trade name and address of manufacturer
                 4.1.3. Fabrication schedule
           4.2. Other uses
                 4.2.1. Nature of use
                 4.2.2. Name, trade name and address of user
                 4.2.3. Timetable for use
           4.3. Final destination
                 4.3.1.   Nature of final use
                 4.3.2.   Designation of installation
                 4.3.3.   Name, trade name and address of final user
                 4.3.4.  Timetable for final use
        I, the undersigned, certify that the information set out above is, to the best of my knowledge,
        correct.
        Signed a t . . . on . ..
        Signature:
        Name and designation of signatory: