6 Jun (NucNet): France’s nuclear regulator ASN (Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire) rated four events at Level 2 and 126 at Level 1 on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s International Nuclear and Radiological Events Scale (INES) in 2013, a report says.
The report says reported events in 2013 were in line with previous years and ASN identified “no new major problems”.
ASN was notified of 51 “significant events” concerning the transport of radioactive substances, including one INES Level 1 event. There were 622 significant events concerning radiation protection in small-scale nuclear activities, including 154 rated on the INES scale, of which 22 were Level 1 events and two were Level 2 events.
More than half the events were notified by EDF and Areva, ASN said. About 14 percent of the events concerned radioactive pharmaceutical products shipped by radioisotope producer CIS Bio International.
Road transport accounts for most of the notified significant events. The proportion of significant events concerning air transport, about 17 percent, reflects greater awareness by airport companies that detect deviations and are more familiar with the notification process, the report says.
Three derailments of railway carriages transporting radioactive substances were also notified in 2013.
The report is online: www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/News-releases/ASN-2013-Report
