Brussels, 05/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - Replacing national reporting and authorisation procedures for transporting radioactive materials with a Community registration system: this is the objective of a draft regulation presented by the European Commission to the Council last week. The Commission has stated that setting up this kind of single registration system would help significantly towards simplifying procedures, reducing administration costs and eliminating obstacles to the transportation of radioactive materials, whilst maintaining the currently high levels of protection against radioactivity.
The proposal presented on 30 August would replace member states' reporting and authorisation systems in implementing Directive 96/29/Euratom, which sets out basic standards on health protection for the public and workers against radiation, by setting up a single registration system. The proposed regulation envisages the creation of a European system for registering transport carriers. Carriers would have to submit their requests on a centralised web interface. These requests would be examined by the appropriate national authority, which would proceed to registration if the body submitting a request has satisfied the basic standards required. At the same time, the system seeks to provide the appropriate authorities with a better overall vision of transport carriers in their respective countries. The system will have to have been set up, tested and operational when the regulation enters into force.
The proposal adopts a phasing-in approach and precludes the registration procedure for carriers exclusively transporting “excepted packages” (any package where the radioactive content does not supersede the limits of activity defined by the UN). The future regulation also allows member states the possibility of adding additional requirements for the registration of carriers for highly radioactive fissile materials.
The rest of the Community legislation and international rules on physical protection, guarantees and civil responsibility continue to apply. This is also the case for the directive on the internal transport of dangerous materials (2008/68/EC). (O.L./transl.fl)