Abstracts ASN Report 2021

In 2021, ASN carried out 328 inspections in the AuvergneRhône‑Alpes region, comprising 117 in theBugey, Saint‑Alban, Cruas‑Meysse and Tricastin Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs), 92 inplants and installations undergoingdecommissioning, 104 in small-scale nuclear activities and 15 in the radioactive substance transport sector. ASN also carried out 40 days of labour inspections in the four NPPs and on the Creys-Malville site. In 2021, ASN was notified of 26 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 5 in small-scale nuclear activities. One significant radiation protection event that occurred on the Cruas-Meysse site was rated level 2 on the INES scale. 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. Lastly, the site accommodates one of the regional bases of the special Nuclear Rapid Intervention Force (FARN), created by EDF in 2011, further to 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 overall performance of the Bugey NPP with regard to nuclear safety, radiation protection and environmental protection is in line with ASN’s general assessment of the EDF plant performance. ASN considers that the nuclear safety performance of the NPP is in line with ASN’s general assessment of EDF plant performance, but remains contrasted. The weaknesses observed in 2020 concerning the implementation of practices to increase the rigour of system configuring persisted in 2021. Furthermore, shortcomings have been found in the local application of the test rules applicable as of the fourth ten-yearly reactor outages, in emergency situation management and in the control of f ire-related risks. On the other hand, ASN conducted a series of unannounced control room inspections which revealed improvements in monitoring and compliance with the operating technical specifications. With regard to maintenance, in a particularly busy industrial context with the fourth ten-yearly outage of reactor 4 continuing until June 2021 and that of reactor 5 beginning in July 2021, ASN noted weaknesses in the planning and preparation of the maintenance activities. In addition, concerning the integration of modif ications, diff iculties relative to the updating of the set of reference documents and integration of the operating experience feedback from reactor 2 were observed in the fourth ten-yearly outages conducted in 2021. The management of conformity deviations, however, has improved. ASN therefore expects an improvement in the management of outages in 2022, which represent a smaller activity workload than in 2021. With regard to radiation protection, ASN considers that the Bugey NPP’s performance is in line with the general assessment of the EDF plants. As far as the conditions of operations in controlled areas are concerned, despite some improvements, recurrent f ragilities are observed in the radiological cleanliness of the facilities, in the containment of worksites with contamination dispersal risks, and the provision of radiation protection equipment. Furthermore, ASN expects to see improvements in the prevention of contamination of the site road systems. ASN considers that the environmental protection performance of the NPP is in line with its general assessment of the EDF plants. The overall standard of waste management remains satisfactory. Some deviations observed in 2020 concerning control of the conformity of the ultimate retention systems, which contribute to environmental protection, were again The Lyon division regulates nuclear safety, radiation protection and the transport of radioactive substances in the 12 départements of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Auvergne‑Rhône‑Alpes Region 40 ABSTRACTS – ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2021 REGIONAL OVERVIEWOF NUCLEAR SAFETY AND RADIATION PROTECTION

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