The commissioners of the Spanish Nuclear Safety Council (CSN), Francisco Castejón and Pilar Lucio, have attended a technical meeting sponsored by the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN, for its acronym in French) in Bure, France. This meeting falls within the framework of the bilateral collaboration agreement between both regulatory bodies and has served to share knowledge and practices related to transparency and information and public participation in the field of nuclear safety and radiological protection.

During their visit, the commissioners of the Spanish regulator were received by Jean-Luc Lachaume and Géraldine Pina, commissioners of the ASN in charge of the bilateral relations with the Spanish regulator, and went to the town of Meuse to see the facilities of the ANDRA underground research laboratory (The French public agency in charge of radioactive waste management).

Among the elements discussed in the different meetings were the policies and processes of information and public participation regarding the safe management of radioactive waste and, specifically, the storage of medium and high level waste. The commissioners have been able to see firsthand the underground laboratory developed by ANDRA, as well as the CIGEO Project (Industrial Center for the Geological Storage of Radioactive Waste), a deep storage facility, which will be used to store medium and high level waste generated during the operating life of the French nuclear park.

Another highlight of the visit was the participation of the CSN commissioners as observers in the Bure Local Information Committee (CLI, for its acronym in French). These local committees are responsible for keeping the population informed about nuclear safety and radiological protection, as well as the impact of nuclear activities on the public and the environment. There are thirty-four CLIs in France, which hold at least one public meeting a year and that have been regulated by a specific law since 2006.

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