Brussels, 27/05/2011 (Agence Europe) - In a move that has been condemned by the Greens, the European Parliament (EP) energy committee has given its backing to exporting EU nuclear waste to third countries.
Under the terms of the proposed directive on the management of spent fuel and radioactive waste, tabled by the Commission in November of last year, each member state will have to devise policies and programmes to ensure that spent fuel and waste is safely processed and disposed of. National policies will have to include inventories as well as plans for the management of all facilities, even after they close down.
With its adoption, by 31 votes to seven, with 10 abstentions, of the report by Romana Jordan Cizelj (EPP, Slovenia) on Thursday 26 May, the energy committee eventually backed the option of allowing exports to third countries provided exporting member states ensure that the radioactive waste is disposed of in compliance with the provisions of then new directive. In its initial proposal the Commission ruled out authorising the export of European nuclear waste.
MEPs on Thursday also voted for tougher rules for the protection and training of workers involved in handling radioactive waste, from production through to disposal. They also call on member states to ensure that “sufficient financial resources are available when needed to cover all necessary expenses related to decommissioning and management of spent fuel and radioactive waste”, in line with the “polluter pays principle” and avoiding “any recourse to state aid”.
“Burying waste in seismic areas or exporting it to Russia, what a nuclear nightmare”, said Michèle Rivasi (France) on behalf of the Greens. “MEPs have again bowed to the interests of the nuclear lobby, going for totally unacceptable short-term, low-cost solutions for disposing of spent fuel and highly radioactive waste. What safety guarantees do we have of the ability of some states to manage radioactive waste? If an accident happened in a storage centre near the EU, we would suffer the consequences: let us not forget that Russia stores nuclear waste in the open air!” she railed.
The vote on the Jordan Cizelj report will take place at the second June session. The directive, based as it is on Euratom, has to go through the consultation process. The Council will take a formal decision after receiving the Parliament's opinion. (E.H./transl.rt)