The UAE presents its national report on the management of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste
The United Arab Emirates submitted its fourth report to the International Atomic Energy Agency on compliance with the joint agreement on the safety of spent fuel management and the safety of radioactive waste management, as part of the country's participation in the seventh review meeting of the contracting parties to the joint agreement, which is being held at the agency's headquarters in Vienna, Austria.
The state report includes the legal and regulatory measures it has taken to achieve its obligations towards the joint agreement on the safety of spent fuel management and the safety of radioactive waste management. The Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation issued six regulatory regulations regarding radioactive waste management, including “radiation protection, radioactive waste management and disposal in nuclear facilities “Nuclear Power Plants Decommissioning” regulation, in addition to developing a regulatory regulation “Nuclear Power Plant Decommissioning Trust Fund”.
These efforts confirm the UAE's commitment to the nuclear law of 2008 and its development of an integrated system for managing nuclear and radioactive waste in line with the highest international standards and practices.
The report also addressed options related to the handling of spent nuclear fuel and management of radioactive waste. The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation and its subsidiaries have taken several measures such as designing the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant that provides sufficient capacity to store nuclear waste in a specially designed basin for each unit. Stakeholders to consider long-term nuclear waste management options.
The delegation also presented the measures taken to manage non-nuclear radioactive waste resulting from medical and industrial facilities throughout the United Arab Emirates, where there are currently more than two thousand licensees that use controlled radioactive materials, and radioactive sources are used in the Emirates in the medical, industrial and educational sectors, as well as in the public sector. oil and gas.
During the meeting, the efforts of the national authorities concerned with building Emirati capabilities in the nuclear sector, in cooperation with several educational and training institutions in the country, were presented.
Training programs have been developed to rehabilitate and build expertise in the nuclear sector.
The authority has also approved 157 reactor operators who are qualified to operate nuclear power plants during the past four years.
The country's permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Hamad Ali Al Kaabi, who presented the country's presentation, said: "The UAE has confirmed its commitment since the first day of the nuclear energy program to adopting the highest standards of nuclear safety and fulfilling its international obligations."
He added: "The country's fourth national report is the result of joint efforts between our national partners to define and share with the public and the international community our plans for managing spent nuclear fuel and waste radioactive materials in order to ensure the safety of individuals and the environment."
The country's delegation is headed by Hamad Ali Al Kaabi, the permanent representative of the country to the International Atomic Energy Agency, in addition to representatives of the national authorities concerned with nuclear energy, including the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation, the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, and the Nawah Energy Company.
It is worth noting that the Joint Agreement on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management entered into force in 2001 and calls on all contracting parties to take measures to protect individuals and the environment from the risks of radioactive materials and other risks that the spent fuel of nuclear power plants and radioactive waste may pose.
The contracting parties submit a national report during the triennial IAEA meeting to present the measures taken to implement the obligations of the joint agreement.
The UAE joined the joint agreement in 2009.
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