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Decommissioning of nuclear installations programme: 1992 progress report

The 1992 Annual Progress Report of the Community's research and development programme on decommissioning of nuclear installations (1989-1993) summarizes the status of the programme on 31 December 1992. The aim of this programme is to find "effective solutions which are capabl...

The 1992 Annual Progress Report of the Community's research and development programme on decommissioning of nuclear installations (1989-1993) summarizes the status of the programme on 31 December 1992. The aim of this programme is to find "effective solutions which are capable of ensuring the safety and protection of both mankind and its environment against the potential hazards in decommissioning". To this end, research is carried out by public organizations and private firms in the EU under cost-sharing contracts with the European Commission. The Commission's overall financial contribution to the five-year programme amounts to ECU 33.8 million. The 1992 Report covers: A. Research and development projects on the following subjects: - Area 1: Long-term integrity of buildings and systems; - Area 2: Decontamination for decommissioning purposes; - Area 3: Dismantling techniques; - area 4: Treatment of specific waste materials: steel, concrete and graphite; - Area 5:Qualification and adaptation of remote-controlled semi-autonomous manipulator systems. B. Identification of guiding principles relating to: - The design and operation of nuclear installations with a view to simplifying their subsequent decommissioning; - The decommissioning operations with a view to making occupational radiation exposure as low as reasonably achievable; - The technical elements of a Community policy in this field. C. Testing of new techniques in practice: - Pilot projects; - Alternative tests; - Staff secondment. The Progress Report summarizes the objectives, scope and work programme of the 79 research contracts concluded, as well as the progress achieved and the results obtained in 1992. Work on the four pilot dismantling projects was successful. Also during 1992, Part B "Identification of guiding principles" achieved satisfactory progress and the common action to collect data relevant to cost, occupational doses, working time and waste became a fully operational part of the programme. Both activities are described in the Report.

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