A strict legal framework Radioactive waste is subject to strict regulations. The 28 June 2006 Act sets the broad principles governing its management and the National Radioactive Materials and Waste Management Plan (PNGMDR*) is the primary tool for implementing these principles. The main principles underpinning the sustainable management of radioactive materials and waste in France are set out in the 28 June 2006 Act: ∙ Protection of human health, security and the environment in the sustainable management of radioactive materials and waste of all types, must be guaranteed. ∙ A National Radioactive Materials and Waste Management Plan (PNGMDR) is created to ensure the long-term implementation of the principles of the Act (see opposite). ∙ The availability of funds devoted to the long-term management of radioactive waste must be guaranteed. In this respect, the nuclear licensees must make a prudent assessment of the cost of decommissioning their installations and the cost of managing their radioactive waste. ∙ The ban on the disposal in France of foreign radioactive waste is reaffirmed and the conditions for the reprocessing* in France of spent fuels* or radioactive waste from other countries, along with the publicity related to these operations, are defined precisely. ∙ Reversible disposal (for a certain period of time, the possibility of removing the waste) in a deep geological formation is the reference solution for the management of high-level and intermediate-level long-lived radioactive waste (HLW-ILW/LL). The legislative framework: setting principles and planning ahead * See glossary page 34 The Order of 7 February 2012 states that all waste produced in a basic nuclear installation (BNI*) is, as a precaution, considered to be radioactive and must be sent to appropriate management routes*. The producers of radioactive waste must sort it and carry out conditioning*, employing strict quality assurance procedures and the best available technologies, with the aim of reducing both the quantity and harmfulness of the waste. They are responsible for storage* of the waste and its transport to the repositories* for disposal. The producers are therefore responsible for the correct management of their waste, up until removal to a final disposal solution. WHAT THE LAW SAYS 4 • Les cahiers de l’ASN • May 2024 RADIOACTIVE WASTE UNDER SURVEILLANCE
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