ITER The ITER installation (BNI 174), under construction on the Cadarache site since 2010 and adjacent to the CEA facilities, will be a fusion experimental reactor used for the scientific and technical demonstration of the control of thermonuclear fusion energy, obtained by magnetic conf inement of a deuterium-tritium plasma during long-duration experiments with a signif icant power level (500 MW developed for 400 seconds). This international project enjoys f inancial support from China, South Korea, the United States, India, Japan, Russia and the European Union, who make in-kind contributions by providing equipment for the project. The large quantities of tritium that will be brought into play in this installation, the intense neutron flow and the resulting activation of materials have serious implications regarding radiation protection and will represent true challenges for the safe management of waste during the operation and decommissioning of the installation. The works on the site and the manufacture of equipment are continuing, having pushed back the previously announced objective of deploying the first hydrogen plasma by 2025. The revised schedule, integrating the assessment of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, has not yet been received and should be formalised in the course of 2022. The year 2021 was marked in particular by the preparation of the first sector of the vacuum chamber, with the installation of its equipment and thermal protections in the assembly hall, so that it can be subsequently transferred to the well of the Tokamak building. A second sector has arrived on site and must also be equipped. ITER organisation requested approval to start the vacuum chamber assembly phase in March 2020, in accordance with the requirement of the amended ASN resolution of 12 November 2013. On completion of the technical examination, ASN found that the state of progress of the vacuum chamber design and the associated equipment did not yet enable this assembly phase to be started. ASN draws up a relatively satisfactory overall assessment of the construction site, but underlines the potential impact of the nonconformities concerning the vaccum chamber sector welds and weld inspections. These nonconformities had not been reported to ASN, which moreover noted difficulties during one inspection in obtaining all the requested documents. The complexity of this project and the regular developments of the facility make it necessary to ensure great rigour and transparency in the development of the technical configuration and the demonstration of effective compliance with the planned criteria for protection of people and the environment. Gammaster ioniser Since 2008, the company Steris has been operating an industrial irradiator called “Gammaster”, situated on the land of the municipality of Marseille. Gammaster treats products by ionisation (emission of gamma radiation) with the aim of sanitising, sterilising or improving the performance of materials. The facility is made up of an industrial bunker and houses sealed sources of cobalt-60, which provide the radiation necessary for its activity. The licensee was served formal notice through resolution CODEP-MRS-2021-020797 of 5 May 2021 to comply with Regulation (EC) 1005/2009 of the European Parliament and Council of 16 September 2009 relative to substances that deplete the ozone layer. The licensee possessed and was using a fire extinguishing gas whose use has been prohibited since 2020. The licensee has brought the facility into conformity and the compliance notice was lifted following an ASN inspection carried out on 5 July 2021. ASN considers that the organisation of Steris for radiation protection and meeting its commitments is relatively satisfactory. The management of radioactive sources must be improved and the licensee must remain attentive to the waste management operations and to deviations. ABSTRACTS – ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2021 97 REGIONAL OVERVIEW OF NUCLEAR SAFETY AND RADIATION PROTECTION PROVENCE-ALPES-CÔTE D’AZUR
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