Commission publishes its recommendations on the implementation of a NMAC system by operators of nuclear installations

This Recommendation describes the reference characteristics of an operator’s Nuclear Material Accountancy and Control system complying with the legal obligations of Regulation (Euratom) Nº 302/2005. Some of the characteristics described in this Recommendation are therefore only relevant to facilities with corresponding activities and not to those facilities which involve no measurement.

The European Commission has published in the Official Journal of the European Union its Recommendations of February 11th 2009 on the implementation of a nuclear material accountancy and control (NMAC) system by operators of nuclear installations. These recommendations follow the Commission working document entitled “Implementing Euratom Treaty Safeguards” (IETS) which contained the requirement that the Commission draw up as a reference framework for high-quality NMAC systems, as well as stating that auditing of nuclear operators' NMAC systems will be one of the Commission’s supervisory activities.

According to the Commission Recommendation “nuclear operator” means a person or undertaking setting up or operating an installation for the production, separation, reprocessing, storage or other use of source material or special fissile material. The term is also used to refer to the organisation ultimately responsible for NMAC compliance with Regulation (Euratom) Nº 302/2005.

This document also follows the European Safeguards Research and Development Association (ESARDA) 2007 Guideline for Good Practice in Nuclear Materials Accountancy and Control Systems dealing with the elements of the NMAC system that could be audited and the possible criteria for indicating quality performance in each of these elements.

These recommendations include some organisational and management aspects in order to ensure that responsibilities and authorities are defined and communicated within the organisation. Key tasks of these organizations should incorporate quality assurance and quality control measures aiming to:

  • Reduce the intrinsic risk of human errors.
  • Ensure the correct functioning of instrumentation and software.
  • Provide for a variety of indicators designed to alert management to any sign of inadequate performance (performance indicators).
  • Internal assessment in order to detect poor performance.
  • A corrective action mechanism for cases of poor performance.

The nuclear material tracking should document any movement of and the location of every item of nuclear material. It also should imply knowledge of the characteristics of the material and its containment. Any action involving nuclear material that affects the location, the identification, the nature or the quantity of the nuclear material should be documented. In particular, nuclear material tracking should include records that are the basis for re-batching, new measurement, shipper-receiver difference and category change declarations.

The Commission's document includes recommendations on the unique identity record system for nuclear material transportation, storage and tracking during production. It also provides for some rules for inventory control and management discrepancies, highlighting the need for appropriate records and documentation to be kept.

Data-processing procedures should be in place to correct records and generate correction declarations as appropriate for any situation where a discrepancy has been detected. Traceability should be maintained during such correction processes.