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IRRT report |
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7. DEVELOPMENT OF REGULATIONS AND GUIDES Experts: M. Maris and M. Šváb Regulations in the field of nuclear and radiation safety have been developed in the past, in the framework of the Yugoslavian federal legislation and the Slovenian State legislation. The SNSA has been created after this development period. As there was no systematic plan to develop further regulations, the SNSA has not acquired large experience in this field. Few (non-mandatory) guides were issued. However, if the new nuclear law is approved by the parliament, the SNSA will have to review existing regulations and establish, where needed, new ones. The SNSA recognizes the need for the establishment of an internal system for controlling this activity and to apply good practices. In the area of nuclear power and research reactors, the nuclear regulator has had a long-term experience in the application of US regulations and standards and has been working with IAEA experts and European regulators for several years. Slovenia has also established, already in the past, a pragmatic approach to the use of international and foreign countries' rules and regulations. It is therefore believed that there is a policy to incorporate international practices in the development of future Slovenian regulations and guides. The ongoing activity in Slovenia to reach the European Unions “Acquis” is one of the elements demonstrating the application of this policy. In the area of nuclear emergency planning, radiation protection in nuclear facilities and waste management, reference is made to Sections 8, 9 and 10 of this report. 7.1. REGULATORY APPROACH The regulations are issued to regulate the implementation of the Acts. Each regulatory body has the duty to make proposals for regulations in their own scope of responsibility. They are approved and issued by the concerned Ministry in charge of the implementation of the Act. The regulations (see also Appendix IV) in the area of nuclear safety, radiation protection, physical protection, safeguards and quality assurance are: On the basis of the 1984 Act on Radiation Protection and the Safe Use of Nuclear Energy:
On the basis of the 1980 Act on Implementing Protection against Ionizing Radiation and Measures for the Safety of Nuclear Facilities:
Several other regulations related to broad nuclear area have been established, but are not described here. Reference is made to Section 2, Subsection 2.2: at present the SNSA should benefit from having a well defined policy, safety principles and associated criteria for all aspects of nuclear and radiation safety of all nuclear installations and transport. 7.1.1. Recommendations and suggestions
See recommendation in Section 2.2.1. of this report. 7.2. DEVELOPING OR REVISING REGULATIONS 7.2.1. System for development of regulations and guides The system for development and updating regulations and guides is not yet in place, but it is recognized by the SNSA that a system is needed. 7.2.1.1. Recommendations and suggestions
No need for recommendations or suggestions was identified in this area. 7.2.2. Plan for development of future regulations The present Acts on nuclear and radiation safety are in review. Once they are issued, there will be a need to review the existing regulations and establish new ones. The activities of Slovenia in the area of reaching the EU “Acquis” in the area of radiation protection are going on. The following EU directives are addressed:
New regulations will have to be established. It is, however, presently not clear which regulatory body will be responsible for developing them. 7.2.2.1. Recommendations and suggestions (1) BASIS - The IAEA Safety Requirements - Legal and Governmental Infrastructure for Nuclear, Radiation, Radioactive Waste and Transport Safety, paragraphs 526 to 529 provide general guidance on development of regulations and guides. paragraph 526 states: “The system of regulations and guides shall be chosen to suit the legal system of the Member State and the nature and extent of the facilities and activities to be regulated. Where regulations are not issued by the regulatory body, the legislative and governmental mechanisms shall ensure that such regulations are developed and approved within appropriate time scales”, and paragraph 528 states: “Guides, of a non-mandatory nature, on how to comply with the regulations shall be prepared, as necessary. These guides may also provide information on data and methods to be used in assessing the adequacy of the design, analyses and other documentation submitted to the regulatory body by the operator”. Taking into account the situation in Slovenia, an optimal solution has to be found, using a minimum of (mandatory) regulations - which still can be issued by the concerned Ministry - and more (non-mandatory) guidelines to address technical issues, especially if they address specific nuclear installations.
(a) Suggestion - Implementation of the new legislation for nuclear and radiation safety could be realized commensurate with the global strategies of the involved regulatory bodies. A possible approach could be that the use of regulations is kept at a minimum and that guides incorporate elements of technical nature. Guides could be issued by the regulatory body having authority in the concerned field. The new legislation should support this approach. See also recommendation in Section 2.2.1. (a) of this report, as general background regarding the SNSA. 7.3. DEVELOPMENT OF REGULATORY GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS The SNSA has not developed regulatory guidance for nuclear safety, due to the adoption of the US NRC regulatory guides. There is no particular strategy for development of guidelines. The guidelines developed by the SNSA are:
In addition, the SNSA has translated the following IAEA safety codes and standards into Slovenian: Safety series Nos. 110, 111-F, 120, 50-C-O (rev. 1), 50-C-D (rev. 1), 50-C-S (rev. 1), 50-C-QA (rev. 1), 50-C-G (rev. 1), 111-S-1, 109, 115, Requirements No. ST.1 7.3.2. Good practice
(a) The SNSA has taken the initiative to translate into Slovenian main IAEA Codes and Safety Guides on nuclear safety and to make them publicly available. |