Abstracts ASN Report 2019

ASN ASSESSMENTS PER LICENSEE AND BY AREA OF ACTIVITY CEA ASN considers that the safety of the facilities operated by the CEA (Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission) remains on the whole satisfactory, despite a worrying budgetary situation. The safety issues concern firstly the continued operation of the facilities, designed to old safety standards, secondly the decommissioning of the definitively shut down facilities and the retrieval and packaging of legacy waste, and lastly the management of its radioactive waste and materials with no identified use. Safety organisation and management ASN observes that the organisation of the CEA is constantly changing. These organisational changes aim to improve the efficiency of the CEA structures, clarify roles and ensure greater involvement of the decision-making levels. ASN considers that the CEA must remain attentive to ensuring that all the safety aspects are properly taken into account at all levels of the organisation and are led by people who have the necessary resources, skills and authority. It urges the CEA to rapidly propose a strategic view of the changes under way. ASN considers that the implementation of “major safety commitments,” managed at the highest level and enabling the most important nuclear safety and radiation protection issues to be monitored, is on the whole satisfactory. It will be necessary to ensure that the reduction in resources allocated to the CEA does not affect the meeting of other commitments, particularly those governed by ASN requirements. Facilities in operation and undergoing decommissioning Faced with the ageing of the CEA’s facilities in operation and the uncertainty of the projects to replace some of them, ǣȇ אژ ׎׏ ח Ɏǝƺ !0 ƳƺɮƺǼȒȵƺƳ Ə ȅƺƳǣɖȅ ٮ Ɏƺȸȅ ɀɎȸƏɎƺǕɵ ǔȒȸ Ɏǝƺ utilisation of its experimental civil nuclear research facilities and its waste and material management facilities. The first conclusions reveal the need to streamline and optimise the existing facilities, as well as carry out substantial renovation work and perhaps build new facilities. ASN considers that this prioritisation is legitimate from the safety aspect and that the CEA must draw clear action plans from it and formalise precisely the options it has taken (abandoning or optimisation of operation, work to undertake, etc.). In 2019, ASN and ASND (Defence Nuclear Safety Authority) underlined the CEA’s relevant in-depth review (see Notable events) of its decommissioning strategy, its prioritisation of operations and human resources, the effectiveness of its organization, and the appropriateness of the financial resources devoted to these operations. The new organisation for decommissioning implemented in 2017 also represents a significant step forward. This progress will have to be confirmed in the medium-termby meeting the deadlines for the highest priority projects. The CEAmust remain attentive to the non-redundant facilities whose unavailability could undermine the process as a whole, to the allocated financial resources, to the feasibility of the work completion deadlines and to work progress. The conformity of the facilities ASN observes that the CEA has embraced the periodic safety review process for its facilities by implementing a cross-cutting organisation dedicated to these activities on each site. The check of conformity, particularly with the regulatory provisions, and the action plans defined by the CEA are showing distinct improvements (efforts to be exhaustive, conclusions on conformity with the regulations or not, implementation schedules, distinguishing compliance actions from improvement actions), even if further improvements are still necessary regarding the extent of the checks on certain equipment items and the management of activities important to protection. The reassessment of control of the risks and adverse effects of each facility is also better grasped and well documented. Improvements are however required in the reassessment of the seismic and climatic risks (wind, tornadoes); the studies submitted do not allow a satisfactory assessment of the conformity of several facilities –particularly of their baseline requirements– with respect to the regulations. The CEAmust be vigilant as to the proper execution of the works identified in the reassessments. ASN effectively observes that the CEA sometimes makes commitments without being able to ensure that the human or financial resources are actually available. Management of deviations The management of deviations within the facilities is on the whole satisfactory. Nevertheless, their analysis should be taken to further by analysing all the deviations, from the significant events down to low-level events. On the whole, the number of significant events in 2019 was stable in relation to 2018. No significant event exceeded level 1 on the INES scale. The analysis of their causes regularly reveals a technical deficiency (related to ageing or obsolescence) or an organisational or human cause (related to incorrect transposition of safety requirements in the operational documentation or to activity planning). Lastly, ASN underlines the quality of the experience feedback sheets produced by the central services for the centres and the nuclear facilities. It encourages the CEA to take steps to ensure that the measures defined in these sheets are effectively applied in the BNIs. Management of modifications For many years now the CEA has applied a modification management system that gives satisfaction, particularly through the quality of the files submitted to ASN when applying for authorisations for noteworthy modifications. ASN also observes that the modifications implemented on site do effectively correspond to the information provided by the CEA in its authorisation applications. Maintenance and periodic inspections and tests The maintenance work and the scheduling of the periodic inspections and tests, their performance and their monitoring within the CEA facilities are on the whole satisfactory. ASN does however still observe disparities between the facilities in these two areas. In addition, the traceability of the inspections performed must be further improved. ASN also expects the CEA to implement an ageing and obsolescence strategy that is harmonised for all its facilities. At present, for the facilities as a whole, ageing is often only managed through the periodic inspections and tests. 12 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2019