Adapting working methods and organisations to the new context It is clear that today’s French and global nuclear context is no longer that which existed in the aftermath of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (Japan). From the technical viewpoint, there are many challenges: the prospect of nuclear reactors operating up to 60 years and beyond represents technical challenges requiring the acquisition of new knowledge able to deal with these remote time-frames. The construction of several EPR 2 and the refurbishment of the “fuel cycle” plants requires the construction of an oversight strategy for this large number of worksites. The development of innovation and the integration of new technologies, whether they concern small modular reactor or nuclear medicine projects, mean that ASNR must take a fresh look at how it dialogues with the stakeholders it regulates and oversees, so that it can anticipate future issues. The development of artificial intelligence will also modify interactions between ASNR and those responsible for nuclear activities, but will also offer new prospects for researchers, experts and inspectors. War at the gates of Europe raises the question of monitoring nuclear installations in areas of armed conflict. More broadly, over and above the nuclear field, the organisations in charge of regulation or oversight are facing queries about their role and how they carry out their missions. Finally, the increasingly tight budget situation for public organisations is to be taken into account. This changing context in which ASNR is carrying out its missions and today’s nuclear safety and radiation projection challenges will have to be taken into account in future changes to ASNR. The aim here is not simply change for change’s sake, but to take account of the fact that the current working methods and organisations, to a large extent inherited from the existing situation, were designed to allow the coexistence of two separate organisations, whereas the corresponding missions are now carried out by just one. As has just been done with management of emergency situations, a review will be needed of the extent to which these missions can be carried out differently, giving new meaning to the work of the personnel – taking account of their integration into ASNR – to benefit the protection of people and the environment, while ensuring that the processes are robust, notably in expert assessment and decision-making. The personnel concerned will be involved in these reviews. Giving absolute priority to our primary mission of protecting people and the environment Despite the scale of this work, which is to a large extent based on support or cross-cutting functions, the ASNR technical teams will remain fully committed to performing their mission to protect people and the environment. *** 2025 will be a decisive year for ASNR, which will have to continue with its transformation and conduct its essential missions to protect people and the environment. I know that to achieve this, I can count on the commitment of all the personnel, driven by a single goal: the public interest. n Editorial by the Director General ABSTRACTS – ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2024 11
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NjQ0NzU=