ANDRA Andra is continuing with the design of the Cigéo deep geological disposal project. ASN notes that Andra is firmly committed to public information and consultation. ASN also considers that the operation of the disposal BNIs by Andra, which is the sole licensee of this type of BNI in France, is satisfactory. ANDRA’S PREPARATION FOR SUBMISSION OF THE CIGÉO CREATION AUTHORISATION APPLICATION ASN notes that Andra has changed its organisation in order to ensure successful completion of the Cigéo deep geological disposal project. Owing to the scale of this project, adapting the organisation of the Agency is a very real challenge. In the same way as the exploratory approaches to monitoring the progress of complex projects at EDF and Orano, ASN entered into discussions with Andra at the end of 2021 in order to gain a clearer understanding of the licensee’s baseline requirements for the project, with a view to a subsequent inspection on the Cigéo project. ASN considers that dialogue between ASN, Andra and the Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) on the technical subjects identif ied following examination of the Cigéo safety options is fruitful. In order to prepare for and facilitate the creation authorisation application examination process, ASN also urges Andra to submit all the documents providing additional justif ications or presenting optimisations of the facility’s concept, as early as possible. Finally, ASN underlines the efforts made by Andra to conduct consultations around the Cigéo project, notably concerning the governance of the project and the pilot industrial phase. PROGRESS OF THE STUDIES FOR THE LLW-LL WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES PROJECT Discussions between ASN and Andra concerning the project for a low-level, long-lived waste (LLW-LL) disposal facility continued in 2021. ASN considers that this positive trend must be maintained in order to meet the deadlines that will be def ined by the f ifth National Radioactive Materials and Waste Management Plan (PNGMDR). OPERATION OF ANDRA’S EXISTING FACILITIES ASN considers that operating conditions in Andra’s facilities are satisfactory in the areas of nuclear safety, radiation protection and environmental protection. It also notes the quality of the safety analyses produced by Andra and the fact that the performance of the periodic safety reviews on the disposal facilities is satisfactory. ASN nonetheless points out that the evaluation of the long-term impacts of the radiological and chemical substances in the disposal facilities on the flora and fauna must be consolidated. ASN assessments by activity sector THE MEDICAL SECTOR On the basis of the inspections carried out in 2021 and despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the working of the health services, ASN considers that the state of radiation protection in the medical sector is comparable to that of the years 2019 and 2020, reflecting the fact that the departments were able to adapt and maintain a good level of radiation protection. No major deficiency was therefore detected in the areas of radiation protection of medical professionals, patients, the public or the environment. However, owing to the impact of the pandemic, delays were observed in the radiation protection technical checks for Fluoroscopy-guided Interventional Practices (PIR), leading to a failure to comply with the regulation frequencies of these checks, designed to ensure the radiation protection of the workers. In addition, coordination of the prevention measures during external interventions, in particular by private practitioners, must be reinforced in the field of nuclear medicine and PIR. Finally, the awareness of the operating theatre personnel, who are nonspecialist users of ionising radiation –such as surgeons, must be raised to ensure a clearer perception of the issues and the adoption of radiation protection measures in this sector where, moreover, the premises are being brought into conformity far too slowly. The events reported to ASN underline that the formalisation of practices, the explanation of validations, the management of maintenance services, the notification and analysis of malfunctions, and the evaluation of the impact of degraded situations, are all essential to ensuring that practices are safe. In radiotherapy, the inspections carried out in 2021 in nearly one-quarter of the radiotherapy departments confirmed that the safety fundamentals are in place: organisation of medical physics, equipment checks, training in patient radiation protection, deployment of quality assurance procedures, collection and analysis of events and production of preliminary risk analyses. However, there is as yet little widespread use of the evaluation of the effectiveness of the corrective measures and the preliminary risk analysis still remain relatively incomplete and insufficiently updated before any organisational or technical change, or following experience feedback from events. The occurrence of events such as laterality or patient identification 18 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2021 ASN ASSESSMENTS PER LICENSEE AND BY ACTIVITY SECTOR
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