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IAEA
INTERNATIONAL NUCLEAR SAFETY CENTRE
(INSAC)
BUILDING COMPETENCY and CAPACITY
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– There are 436 nuclear power reactors in operation worldwide, and over 50 reactors are under construction. Large number of countries without any previous nuclear experience considers implementation of nuclear power programmes in the next decade. There is also a strong interest among countries currently operating nuclear power reactors to maintain these reactors in operation and extend their licenses to 60 and even to 80 years. These are changes that will require, despite nuclear power has proven be safe and economic, enhanced and continuing attention to safety that must be maintained in the years ahead.
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– Especially important is the safety assessment capacity as the primary means for decision making in support of design, licensing and operation activities. Bearing in mind public concerns about nuclear risks and with increase in the demand for nuclear energy comes the need to increase global safety assessment capacity for new nuclear power plant, and the need to assist Member States in the applications of integrated safety assessment approach in order to reach informed safety decisions based on IAEA safety standards
The General conference resolution number GC(53) 27 on nuclear installation safety urges the Secretariat to continue its effort to develop services and tools that support Member States in promoting the safety of existing and new reactor designs. Also, resolution GC (53) 70 supports the Secretariat’s continued focus on developing sustainable educational and training programmes.
The International Nuclear Safety Assessment Centre (INSAC) was established at the end of 2009, to support States with established nuclear programmes as well as those considering starting new nuclear power programmes. INSAC works with them to strengthen their nuclear safety infrastructures though technical support and capacity building, providing leadership and management of nuclear safety, based on a structured, integrated approach.
Again the General Conference in 2010, resolutions GC(54)RES/7 (6, 8 and 9) recognized and encouraged the Agency to continue its effort in facilitating the developments of Member States’ nuclear safety infrastructure.
INSAC ROLE
INSAC is a channel to unify and expand nuclear safety technical assistance efforts based upon some of the recently developed knowledge and capacity building activities within the Division of Nuclear Installation Safety, for example:
- Centre for Advanced Assessment Tools (CASAT) - Launched in 2006-2007 as a platform for transfer of advanced safety assessment knowledge and tools based on IAEA’s Safety Standards. CASAT has broadened networking and collaboration capabilities with a flexible software system tailored to support and sustain long-term projects and safety assessment activities including the development of simulator training and advanced techniques for knowledge transfer and capacity building
- GRSR - In September 2007 the Division of Nuclear Installation Safety (NSNI) has developed a Generic Reactor Safety Review (GRSR) process to provide Member States with an early evaluation of safety cases of these reactors against the IAEA Safety Standards. GRSR has been implemented successfully in both advanced and conceptual reactor design evaluation. Over the past two years a total of six reactors have been reviewed thus far. Currently, this methodology is being transformed into training programme for self-application by Member States. philosophy
- SAET - In 2008 resources were allocated for the development of the Safety Assessment Education and Training Programme (SAET) to provide advanced and a comprehensive safety assessment training and capacity building programmes for Member States.
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– IMPLEMENTATION PHILOSOPHY
The statute of the IAEA authorise to foster the exchange of technical information on the peaceful use of atomic energy and to encourage the exchange and training of experts in the field of safety. The review mechanism of the Convention of Nuclear Safety is a corner stone of the Agency approach in enhancing openness, transparency and cooperation between Member States. More recently, June 2009, the European Union has adopted and published the Nuclear Safety Directive which is mainly based on the IAEA Safety Fundamentals.
– This centre of excellence will further expand IAEA capacity building effort, enhance its support to Member States in harmonizing safety assessment approaches worldwide and be a hub for safety review and advisory services.
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INSAC’s overall objective is to support States capacity building efforts based on the Agency safety standards. through:
a) Facilitating the application of safety standards through the validation of technical bases;
b) Providing support to States in education, training, and methods and tools for the technical evaluation of safety cases;
c) Facilitating comprehensive IAEA advisory and review services.
d) Providing networking systems ensuring effective knowledge and information sharing, coordination and collaboration; and
e) Supporting States in implementing a sustainable nuclear power programme based on a strong foundation of safety, security and international legal instruments.
GENERIC MODEL FOR CAPACITY BUILDING
The INSAC capacity building programme uses an integrated and phased-approach based on the individual State’s needs, to include: planning, implementing, measuring, and analyzing feedback (Fig.1). Through the above objectives, INSAC can assist embarking States early in the NPP selection process with understanding and determining the impacts of various technologies along with the regulations that impact each design. Also, these objectives are flexible enough to facilitate INSAC assisting States in any phase of the NPP process.
Within the IAEA, INSAC services and activities are part of the IAEA primary capacity building systems, which include: the Regulatory Cooperation Forum (RCF), Global Nuclear Safety and Security Network (GNSSN), Global Safety Assessment Network (G-SAN) and the International Seismic Centre (ISSC). In addition, INSAC coordinates and collaborates with State education and training programmes, technical and scientific support organizations (TSOs) and the experts’ community to efficiently and effectively strengthen States’ capacity building efforts.
FIG. 1 A Generic Model for Capacity Building
KEY SERVICES & REVIEWS
The mandate of the INSAC is to support Member States in the development of safety infrastructure through the development and application of advanced nuclear safety assessment capacity, training, tools and services. INSAC provides a platform for promoting harmonization, sustainability and knowledge management of nuclear safety assessment. Moreover, it will help in maintaining effectiveness and continuous improvement of Member States national safety infrastructure.
There are four main activities/programmes :
I. Applications of Safety Standards and their technical bases.
The safety standards provide very condensed information on nuclear safety issues. They are developed on a consensual basis from best practices and state of the art knowledge among number of experienced Member States. As such, the implementation by Member States who does not having past experience and adequate safety capacity might need support. Therefore, the IAEA needs to prepare documents containing materials (and training) that provide the background information on individual statements in the considered standards, applicability, technical information at the basis of the statement, interpretation, relation to other IAEA standards and documents, and references.
INSAC provides an enhanced platform for interpretation and application of IAEA safety assessment requirements to meet regulatory, technical support organisations and operational needs of Member States. This activity will include development of tutorials and conduct of courses that will provide for the new entrants countries in-depth understanding of the technical basis of IAEA safety requirements and guides. This is outmost important activity as many Member States are planning or are in process of implementing IAEA standards into their safety regulations. A web-based platform will be provided to MSs to facilitate exchange of documents and data in support of these activities and to submit their comments and suggestions on safety standard development.
II. Review and advisory services.
Safety assessment is key element of fundamental safety principles (SF-1, Principle 3) and covers whole life cycle of nuclear facilities. Safety assessments are performed at design stage, for site selection, during licensing and commissioning, during operations and decommissioning. Safety assessments have to address radiation risks in the present and in the long term (GSR-4). As such, safety assessments are very complex and multi-disciplinary activities requiring substantial investment in human resources, methods and time. Therefore, IAEA has prepared and is offering to its Member States services that provide support, review and advice in the field of safety assessment based on the IAEA safety standards.
This review and advisory services are especially important for the needs of new entrants, providing for the initial review and development understanding of comprehensiveness and completeness of safety cases presented by vendors and operators. These services help the countries to establish their own independent safety assessment capacity and infrastructure and assure harmonized approach to safety case reviews among Member States. These services do not reduce the safety responsibility of the new entrant countries nor any country or organization requesting such services. INSAC will assure that this activity and other review and assessment services NSNI provides will be integrated and coordinated for continuity of safety assessment over the life cycle of nuclear facilities.
Examples of key review and advisory services:
II.1 Generic Reactor Safety Review
INSAC facilitates to IAEA Member States a Generic Reactor Safety Review (GRSR) service which objective is evaluation of completeness and comprehensiveness of the design safety case. GRSR is conducted by international team of senior experts against selected and applicable IAEA Safety Standards. In principle, GRSR is based on IAEA Fundamental Safety Principles (SF-1) and Safety Requirements for Safety Assessment for Facilities and Activities (GSR-4). These Safety Requirements are high level standards addressing broadly the safety issues for nuclear installations and activities. The GS-R-4 requirements are generic and technology independent, therefore they are applicable at different stages of design evolution as well as to operating plants. The depth of the review and selection of requirements depends also on the design maturity, and available documentation. The IAEA has performed reviews of safety cases of mature designs, already under construction, through safety case of fairly complete designs to conceptual designs.
The aims of the review are to:
· determine whether the design follows the IAEA Fundamental Safety Principles;
· determine whether the safety requirements defined in GS-R-4 are being addressed in the design safety case and identify any that have been omitted;
· for those requirements that are addressed, form a view on whether they are being addressed in a way that is consistent with the spirit of the IAEA requirements; and
· for the safety requirements that are not being addressed or are partially addressed, form a view on their relative significance and highlight their importance to safety.
The GRSR service based on Safety Standards at the fundamental and requirements level, does not cover or substitute licensing activity, nor it constitute any kind of design certification. This service provides only for an early (before licensing) harmonized appraisal of safety cases made by vendors as a basis for an individual evaluation or the licensing process, which remains a sovereign activity of the Member States. Consequently, such safety evaluations, conducted against selected sets of Safety Standards, contribute to more effective management of subsequent activities within a global framework consistent with a harmonized approach to safety worldwide.
GRSR is an advisory service that provides the Member States entering nuclear power field an opportunity to develop focus on technical issues important to safety and to initiate planning and development of adequate safety assessment capacity including human resources development. This service includes training, if requested, in performance of technical and regulatory reviews of safety cases based on IAEA experience in conduct of GRSR reviews.
It is important to note that GRSR service is not singularly designed in support of regulatory authorities or TSOs, this service is also valuable to vendors and institutions developing new reactor concepts as it can provide advice on development of safety case early in the design to assure harmonized approach based on IAEA standards and international practices. The GRSR approach validity and benefits were demonstrated as it was applied to mature designs under construction, designs still in engineering phases as well as to conceptual designs.
II.2 Site Evaluation
Significant contributor to the risk associated with a nuclear facility could be the site of the facility. Therefore, in depth assessment of site characteristics relating to the safety of the facility shall be carried out. Such site evaluation determine whether a selected site is suitable for a facility and assesses the site from operational perspective. The site assessment is to be reviewed periodically over the lifetime of the facility. The assessment includes both the external hazards which may challenge the safety of the plant, and the characteristics of the site which influence the radiological impact of the installation on the environment. The site assessment is an important factor and provides input to probabilistic safety assessment of the facility.
The scope of this service includes all site-related issues; both natural and human induced hazards are considered, e.g. geology, tectonics, geophysical, seismology, seismic hazard assessment, meteorology, flooding, geotechnical engineering, hydrogeology, oceanography, volcanology dispersion, population distribution, etc.
This service is provided by the IAEA International Seismic Safety Centre (ISSC) LINK TO ISSC and supports Member States in Selection of new sites as well evaluation of existing sites.
II.3 Integrated Safety Review
On request of member States NSNI would provide reviews of safety analysis reports or other documentation of the safety cases. The purpose of these safety reviews is to assist Member States in implementing the IAEA design requirements, safety guides and standards of international practice to ensure a consistent and uniform evaluation of plant safety.
The reviews focus on items such as the general adherence of the design to governing safety guides and criteria; implementation of the design criteria, component classification, periodic safety reviews, analysis methodologies, construction practices, quality assurance and control procedures. Innovative and evolutionary reactors are included in this review, as well as operating nuclear power plants.
The following topics are included:
§ Reactor core fuel behaviour and reload analysis