The United Kingdom’s pending withdrawal from the European Union, and along with it the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), should not significantly disrupt the nation’s management of radioactive waste, according to the advisory Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM).
“CoRWM believes that in the context of the safe management of spent fuel and the safe management of radioactive waste, withdrawal from the European Union and the Euratom Treaty should have no major impact,” the panel said in a report Monday. “The current arrangements that are in place within the UK are robust and provide a comprehensive legal framework for the protection of workers, the public and the Environment and are in compliance with the requirements of the” International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management.
Voters in the U.K. selected” “Brexit” in June 2016, and the nation’s formal withdrawal from the EU is scheduled for midnight Central European Time on June 30, 2019. The government of the United Kingdom asked the committee to offer guidance on what that means for dealing with its radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel.
The independent panel of experts noted the Joint Convention, to which the U.K. is a member, provides the basis for European Union rules in these areas. That suggests the nation’s safety commitments will not change drastically less than a year from now.
The committee, though, listed a number of matters for consideration relative to the Euratom Treaty and associated documents. These include: The U.K. must know how critical data from other Euratom nations is to its own nuclear research, and how the nation can sustain access to that information. U.K. leaders will also need to consider regulation of shipments of radioactive materials between the United Kingdom and European Union, “in order to ensure as little disruption as possible to existing arrangements.” Similar consideration will be needed for radioactive waste shipments.
