ASN Report 2017

10 ASN report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2017 methods and procedures must be adapted so that they better inform the debates and decisions for those subjects with the most significant implications and consequences. This graded approach will be implemented both for basic nuclear installations and for small-scale nuclear facilities, including for medical activities. In this field, concrete measures were already taken in 2017. Regulation and oversight priorities were redefined per activity sector. Inspections are now more modular, to take better account of the actual situation in the field. Over and above the graded approach, three other aspects resulting from ASN’s strategy are worth underlining. First of all, the fact that ASN continues to place emphasis on technical dialogue with the licensees, because its resolutions are based on a technical assessment – in the broadest sense of this term, in other words including social, organisational and human aspects. This goes hand in hand with regulations which set goals rather than means. As this technical dialogue lies at the heart of the examination processes, ASN intends to further reinforce its technical involvement in the analysis of the files submitted to it. It also intends to ensure improved management and monitoring of external analysis and assessment. Then, as of 2018, ASN intends to implement changes to its regulation and oversight methods. I am more specifically thinking of those which are made necessary in order to deal with fraud, including by carrying out inspections at the suppliers. More broadly speaking, ASN intends to reinforce the effectiveness of its actions in the field, by more closely linking examination of the files submitted by the licensees to the field inspections and reinforcing the ability of the inspectors to qualify and rank the anomalies they detect. Finally, ASN intends to continue its involvement at an international and more specifically European level, with two goals: to promote top-down harmonisation and benefit from the opinion of its peers. ASN has succeeded in creating a European safety doctrine with its counterparts, extensively inspired by the French approach. The aim is now to go further in harmonising rules and practices. ASNmore particularly hopes that the launch of a review of the WENRA association’s strategy will be an opportunity to promote a voluntary interaction between all the European safety regulators in the construction of national decision-making and to increase the use made of the European technical support organisations within ETSON (European Technical Safety Organisations Network). Much has been accomplished during the course of 2017, be it in terms of preparing major resolutions (such as that on the EPR reactor pressure vessel or the safety options file for Cigéo ), regulatory work (such as the transposition of Directives concerning basic radiation protection standards), or the preparation of the new strategy. This report also bears witness to the diversity and scale of the actions taken. 2018 will be no less dense. Over and above the day to day regulation and oversight actions, apart from the workload which will continue to grow in order to prepare the major resolutions, ASN intends to carry out the various projects which will constitute the tangible implementation of the strategic orientations decided on in 2017. Thanks to the constant engagement by all ASN staff and the strength of our common culture, I am confident of our ability to successfully carry out all of these actions, further enhancing the protection of individuals and the environment. Editorial by the Director General