1.2.2 Legal framework for the management of radioactive waste produced by activities governed by the Public Health Code Article R. 1333-16(6) of the Public Health Code states that the management of effluents and waste contaminated by radio- active substances originating from all nuclear activities involving a risk of exposure to ionising radiation must be examined and approved by the public authorities. This is the case in particular for activities using radioactive substances intended for medicine, human biology or biomedical research. ASN resolution 2008-DC-0095 of 29 January 2008 lays out the technical rules applicable for the disposal of effluents and waste contaminated or potentially contaminated by radionuclides owing to a nuclear activity. ASN published a guide (Guide No. 18) to the application of this resolution in January 2012. Management of disused sealed sources Under the PNGMDR 2016-2018, Andra submitted a report in mid-2018 presenting a review of the situation regarding the acceptance of disused sealed sources considered as waste in the existing and planned disposal facilities. Furthermore, Decree 2015-231 of 27 February 2015 enables holders of disused sealed sources to call upon not only the initial source supplier but also any licensed supplier or – as a last resort – Andra, to manage these sources. The holders are moreover no longer obligedto 6. Former Article R. 1333‑12. provide proof that they have contacted all the suppliers before turning to Andra. These provisions aimed to bring a reduction in the costs of collecting disused sources and provide a recovery route in all situations. ASN issued a position statement on 11 May 2021 on the management of disused sealed sources that could not be recycled. It considers that disused sealed sources which cannot be accepted in above-ground disposal facilities must be included in the inventories of projected disposal facilities, and that a complete inventory of the existing management routes must be established, indicating the responsibilities of the various actors. Moreover, ASN recommends that the notion of “last resort” mentioned in Decree 2015-231 must be clarified. The “DECPAR.4” action of the PNGMDR 2022-2026 states that the producers produce an inventory of sealed sources with ownership issues and that a programme of work must be drawn up with Andra to develop management solutions. The volume of sealed sources pending acceptance in a final management solution was introduced as a new monitoring indicator in the PNGMDR 2022-2026. Management by Andra of waste from small-scale nuclear activities Article L. 542-12 of the Environment Code entrusts Andra with a public service mission for the management of waste produced by small-scale nuclear activities. Since 2012, Andra operates Cires, a facility situated in the municipalities of Morvilliers and La Chaise in the Aube département, designed for the collection and storage of waste from “small producers” that are not in the nuclear power sector. ASN considers that Andra’s actions in this area are appropriate to fulfil its mission assigned under the abovementioned Article L. 542-12 and that they must be continued. In its opinion 2021-AV-0379 of 11 May 2021, ASN recommends that Andra deploys, as soon as possible, the necessary storage capacities to allow the management of the highly tritiated waste and sources containing tritium coming from small producers. Articles 45 to 47 of the Order of 9 December 2022 provide for continuation of the work undertaken by Andra to identify and define management routes for this waste by 31 December 2025. 1.2.3 The National Inventory of radioactive materials and waste Article L. 542-12 of the Environment Code assigns Andra the task of establishing, updating every five years and publishing the National Inventory of radioactive materials and waste. This Inventory constitutes an input database for preparing the PNGMDR. The last update was published in December 2023. The Inventory presents information concerning the quantities, the nature and the location of radioactive material and waste by category and economic sector as at the end of 2021. A prospective exercise was also conducted considering four contrasting scenarios for France’s energy policy, as envisaged in the 2019-2028 Multi-Year Energy Plan (PPE). 1.2.4 The National Radioactive Materials and Waste Management Plan Article L. 542-1-2 of the Environment Code defines the PNGMDR’s objectives: ∙draw up the inventory of the existing radioactive material and waste management methods and the chosen technical solutions; ∙identify the foreseeable needs for storage or disposal facilities and specify their required capacities and the storage durations; ∙set the general targets, the main deadlines and the schedules enabling these deadlines to be met while taking into account the priorities it defines; ∙determine the objectives to be met for radioactive waste for which there is as yet no final management solution; ∙organise research and studies into the management of radioactive materials and wastes, by setting deadlines for the implementation of new management modes, the creation of facilities or the modification of existing facilities. The role of ASN in waste management The public authorities, and ASN in particular, are attentive to the fact that there must be a management route for all waste and that each waste management step is carried out under safe conditions. ASN thus considers that the development of management routes appropriate to each waste category is fundamental and that any delay in the search for long-term waste disposal solutions will increase the volume and size of the storage areas in the facilities and the inherent risks. ASN takes care, particularly within the framework of the PNGMDR but also by inspecting the installations and regularly assessing the licensees’ waste management strategy, to ensure that the system made up by all these routes is complete, safe and coherent. This approach must take into consideration all the issues of safety, radiation protection, minimising waste volume and toxicity, while ensuring satisfactory traceability of the operations performed. Finally, ASN considers that this management approach must be conducted in a manner that is transparent for the public and involves all the stakeholders, in a framework that fosters the expression of different opinions. The PNGMDR is drawn up by the Ministry which at the time was called the Ministry of Energy Transition (MTE). The Ministry has opted, in the light of the public debate of 2019, to rely on a pluralistic “Guidance Commission”, in which ASN participates. This Commission is chaired by an independent qualified person. Monitoring of the technical and operational implementation of the PNGMDR is still ensured by a pluralistic working group co-chaired by ASN and the General Directorate for Energy and the Climate (DGEC), as described in chapter 2. On its website, ASN also publishes the PNGMDR, its summary, the minutes of the abovementioned working group’s meetings, the studies required by the Plan and the opinions it has issued on these studies. 378 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2024 Radioactive waste and contaminated sites and soils
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