Auvergne‑Rhône‑Alpes REGION The Lyon division regulates nuclear safety, radiation protection and the transport of radioactive substances in the 12 départements of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. In 2023, ASN carried out 309 inspections in the Auvergne‑Rhône‑Alpes region, comprising 111 in the Bugey, Saint‑Alban, Cruas‑Meysse and Tricastin Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs), 96 in plants and installations undergoing decommissioning, 90 in small-scale nuclear activities and 12 in the Radioactive Substance Transport (TSR) sector. ASN also carried out 22 days of labour inspections in the four NPPs and on the Creys-Malville site. In 2023, ASN was notified of 24 significant events rated level 1 on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES scale), of which 21 occurred in Basic Nuclear Installations (BNIs) and one in TSR and two in small-scale nuclear activities. Furthermore, two events were rated level 2 on the ASN-SFRO scale (scale specific to radiation protection events affecting patients undergoing a radiotherapy procedure). Lastly, in the context of their oversight duties, the ASN inspectors issued two violation reports. Bugey site The Bugey industrial site comprises various facilities, including the Bugey NPP operated by EDF on the municipality of Saint-Vulbas in the Ain département, 35 km east of Lyon. It comprises four Pressurised Water Reactors (PWRs), each of 900 Megawatts electric (MWe), commissioned in 1978 and 1979. Reactors 2 and 3 constitute BNI 78 and reactors 4 and 5 constitute BNI 89. The site also accommodates Bugey 1, a graphite-moderated Gas-Cooled Reactor (GCR) commissioned in 1972, shut down in 1994 and currently undergoing decommissioning, the Activated waste packaging and interim storage facility (Iceda) and the Inter-Regional Warehouse (MIR) for fuel storage. The site accommodates one of the regional bases of the Nuclear Rapid Intervention Force (FARN), the special emergency response force created by EDF in 2011 following the Fukushima Daiichi NPP accident in Japan. Its role is to intervene in pre-accident or accident situations, on any NPP in France, by providing additional human resources and emergency equipment. BUGEY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT Reactors 2, 3, 4 and 5 in operation ASN considers that the performance of the Bugey NPP with regard to nuclear safety and, to a lesser extent, radiation protection, is in line with ASN’s general assessment of the EDF plants. Its environmental protection performance however is considered to be below the average for the EDF plants. With regard to nuclear safety, ASN considers that the NPP’s performance has improved slightly, but in an industrial context with lower workloads than in the preceding years. Configuring the systems and managing the periodic tests and requalification tests are still areas displaying weaknesses. In addition, ASN expects to see improvements in the control of fire risks, having noted breaks in sectorisation and unauthorised storage of fire loads during its inspections. There are improvements in maintaining the first barrier, that is to say the fuel cladding, in good condition, but shortcomings are still observed in the management of the risk of introducing foreign objects into the systems. Lastly, ASN is waiting for EDF to analyse the causes and potential consequences of the two internal floods of the site’s underground galleries which occurred in autumn 2023 and to take appropriate measures to prevent this recurring. With regard to radiation protection, although occupational exposure is well managed, ASN notes persistent weaknesses in the culture of worker radiation protection, radiological cleanliness of the installations and containment on work sites with contamination dispersion risks. During the tightened inspection it carried out in 2023, ASN noted deviations in the upkeep of the installations, in the management of controlled zones and the personal radiation monitoring devices. 36 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2023
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