Council Resolution on radioactive waste Action Plan
A Council Resolution of 5 June 1992 on the renewal of the Community Plan of Action in the field of radioactive waste notes that the current Plan (which expires in 1992) has been successful, particularly by enabling technical, legal, administrative and social issues and those relating to information of the public, to be considered within one framework. Current Community activities relating to such issues shall be continued and expanded in the light of the results of the research programmes, the more comprehensive approach to safety and environmental protection now required, and the technical and practical issues resulting from the abolition of frontier controls within the Community plus the gradual enlargement of the Community. Approving the Commission's proposal for renewal of the Plan, the Resolution also notes that it is important to develop cooperation between the Community and third countries, particularly those of central and eastern Europe, and reaffirms the important role of the Community's research programme on radioactive waste in providing better understanding and contributing to a wider dissemination of knowledge, leading to safer and more efficient management, storage and disposal of radioactive waste with regard to industrial safety and the protection of the public and the environment. The Plan of Action, annexed to the Resolution, deals with the problems posed by radioactive waste arising from nuclear power production, from the use of radioisotopes for medical, industrial and research purposes and from possible concentration of natural radioisotopes resulting from industrial activities. To run from 1993 to 1999, reviewable every three years, the plan is based on seven points: - Continuous analysis of the situation; - Development of technical cooperation in the Community in relation to the long-term or final storage of radioactive waste; - Concerted action on the safe management and storage of radioactive waste; - Consultation on management practices and strategies in the context of the abolition of frontier controls within the Community; - Continuity of interaction between research programmes and administrative, legal and regulatory issues - Information for the public; - Development of an international consensus.