Harmonisation of communication tools ASN takes part in the INES consultative committee, a body comprising experts in the evaluation of the significance of radiation protection and nuclear safety events, tasked with advising the IAEA and the INES national representatives of the member countries on the use of the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) and its updates. In this respect it was closely involved in the work to revise the INES scale manual recently published by the IAEA, the previous version of which was about ten years old. In addition to the updates to take account of advances in scientific knowledge, this revision also includes guidelines for communication in how to use the scale as well on how to apply it in a crisis. Generally speaking, ASN is closely involved in the various actions carried out by the IAEA, providing significant support for certain initiatives, notably those which were developed following the Fukushima Daiichi NPP accident. Management of nuclear and radiological emergency situations ASN takes part in the IAEA’s work to improve notification and information exchanges in radiological emergency situations. On this subject, ASN takes part in the exercises organised by the IAEA to test the operational provisions of the Convention on the Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident and the Convention on Assistance in the case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency, called “convention exercises” or “ConvEx exercises”. These exercises, which are more specifically designed to enable the participants to acquire practical experience and understand the procedures involved in preparing and running these interventions, are of three types: ∙ the ConvEx-1 exercises, more specifically designed to test the emergency lines of communication established with the points of contact in the Member States; ∙ the ConvEx-2 exercises, designed to test particular aspects of the international framework for the preparation and performance of emergency interventions and the assessment and prognosis provisions and tools for emergency situations; ∙ the ConvEx-3 exercises, aimed at assessing the emergency intervention provisions and the resources in place to deal with a severe emergency for several days. In 2022, ASN took part in one ConvEx-2 type exercise (see chapter 4). ASN also takes part in defining international assistance strategy, requirements and means and in developing the Response Assistance Network (RANET) within the IAEA. This network was mobilised in 2022 to address the needs for individual protection and radiation protection resources expressed by Ukraine. 3.2 The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the OECD Created in 1958, the NEA today comprises 38 member countries from among the most industrially developed states. Its main goal is to help the member countries to maintain and expand the scientific, technological and legal bases essential to the safe, environmentally-friendly and economical use of nuclear energy. Owing to the war in Ukraine, Russia’s membership of the NEA was suspended on 2 April 2022. Within the NEA, ASN is more particularly involved in the work of the Committee on Nuclear Regulatory Activities (CNRA). It also takes part in the Committee on Radiological Protection and Public Health, the Radioactive Waste Management Committee, the Committee on Decommissioning of Nuclear installations and Legacy Management, as well as several working groups of the Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations. The various NEA committees coordinate working groups of experts from the member countries. Within the CNRA, ASN contributes to the working groups on inspection practices, acquired operating experience, the regulation of new reactors, safety culture, codes and standards, as well as public communication by safety regulators. In 2022, the CNRA was restructured around its priorities for the coming five years, with the creation of a small number of new working groups. ASN took part in setting up these working groups and will participate in overseeing and coordinating some of them. 3.3 The Multinational Design Evaluation Program (MDEP) for new reactor models The MDEP is an association of safety regulators created in 2006 by ASN and the NRC, the format of which has changed significantly since 1 January 2022. The MDEP aimed to share experience and approaches in the regulatory evaluation of new reactor models, in order to contribute to the harmonisation of safety standards and their implementation. Until the end of 2021, the MDEP comprised the safety regulators of 16 countries interested in pooling their safety evaluation practices for third-generation nuclear reactor models. Closure of the programme in its current format In 2022, having noted the end of the work being done on several reactor models, the 16 programme members and its technical secretariat, NEA, organised the transition towards a scaled down format of the MDEP. Eight of the sixteen members, including ASN, withdrew from the MDEP in 2021. The procedures for continued international cooperation as of 2023 in the field of operation of EPR reactors will continue between the safety regulators concerned, within a framework as yet to be defined. 3.4 The International Nuclear Regulators’ Association (INRA) INRA comprises the heads of the regulators of Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. This association is a forum for regular and informal discussions concerning topical matters in these various countries and the positions adopted on common international issues. It meets twice a year in the country holding the Presidency, with each country acting as president for one year in turn. Two meetings were held in 2022. The first, held in Japan, discussed regulatory changes and the challenges faced by each member of the association, notably in the light of climate issues and their potential consequences on NPP operations, the various bilateral or multilateral initiatives concerning SMR and the Japanese Government’s project to discharge into the sea the reprocessed water currently stored on the site of the Fukushima Daiichi NPP. During the second meeting, held on the margins of the IAEA General Conference, the IAEA’s initiative for harmonisation and standardisation of regulatory processes applicable to SMR, the situation of the Ukrainian NPPs, in particular that at Zaporizhzhia, and the conditions for public participation in the management of radioactive waste, were extensively covered. 200 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2022 • 06 • International relations 06
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