Brussels, 25/10/2006 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the Commission adopted a new recommendation containing measures which aim to guarantee the availability and correct management of sufficient financial resources for all decommissioning activities for nuclear installations and for the safe management of irradiated fuel and radioactive waste. Decommissioning is an important issue given that by 2025, around a third of the 148 nuclear reactors currently being used in the enlarged European Union must be decommissioned. Furthermore, given the major role of nuclear in the energy makeup of certain Member States or concerns about its possible "return" in Member States which had chosen to abandon this option, the Commission is paying particular attention to new nuclear installations. Against this backdrop, the preferred option for all installations is that of a separate fund- to be managed externally or internally- with appropriate controls on its use. The Commission, which is determined to ensure that the principle of subsidiarity is fully respected in the field of nuclear safety, responsibility for which lies with the licence holder under supervision of the national regulatory authority, is proposing the creation of national competent bodies to be wholly independent in all the decisions they make regarding the contributors to the decommissioning funds, and which will have a mandate and the capacity to publish expert opinions on decommissioning. It also proposes the creation of the necessary framework for continual consultations with the Member States, the creation of a standing group of national experts and the publication of an annual report on the use of funds for waste management in all Member States concerned. (eh)