The opening plenary session of the National Seminar, which aims at deepening the analysis of the technical aspects related to the National Repository for radioactive waste and Technological Park project with all interested parties, was held today. The National Seminar follows the publication, on January 5th, of the National Map of Potentially Suitable Areas (CNAPI).
Today's plenary session ended with a live response to 14 questions collected on the subject during the meeting. This method of discussion will be replicated in the next working sessions.
“The localization process of the National Repository must take place with the utmost transparency and completeness of information towards citizens, - stated Vannia Gava, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Ecological Transition - clearly explaining the reasons why Italy, like other countries affected by the same problems, must take charge of the safe management of its radioactive waste. Therefore, - she concluded - the location of the National Repository will arise only from a wide participatory procedure, which includes the concerted evaluation of every radiological, territorial and environmental element, useful for optimally selecting the site”.
“Today - Sogin CEO Emanuele Fontani commented – represents a part of the first public consultation that takes place in Italy on an infrastructural project of national significance, which will allow the country to close its nuclear cycle and to optimize the management of radioactive waste, including the waste produced every day in nuclear medicine, industry and scientific research, in a sustainable and safe way”.
“This event is a crucial moment of transparency and confrontation – said Maurizio Pernice, Director of the National Inspectorate for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection - which will see ISIN’s commitment to guarantee the rigorous and proper application of national and international regulations, so that the general interest is achieved in full compliance with the territories’ rights”.
“Our community was at first against the Repository” – said Philippe Dallemagne, Vice President of the Department of l'Aube and Mayor of Soulaines-Dhuys. “We feared health risks and economic losses. The confrontation allowed us to understand what this was all about and to change our opinion. Today the Repository is accepted by people and it supports regional development”.
During the National Seminar, various issues related to the repository will be explored, with a specific focus on the compliance of the Potentially Suitable Areas identified in the CNAPI with the international requirements established by the
IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) and the national ones identified by the ISIN (National Inspectorate for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection).
The aspects related to the safety of the workers, of the population and of the environment will also be illustrated, as well as the economic and local development benefits associated to the infrastructure and to the planned compensatory measures.
The National Seminar will consist of nine meetings, broadcasted in live streaming on the seminariodepositonazionale.it website. In addition to the opening and closing plenary sessions, seven sessions are scheduled, a national one and six dedicated to the potentially suitable areas belonging to the regions involved: Piedmont, Tuscany, Lazio, Puglia and Basilicata, Sicily, Sardinia.
The National Seminar will end on December 15th, with the publication of the overall report of the sessions, which will end on November 24th.
After the publication of the documents, a second phase of the public consultation will start, lasting thirty days, during which further observations and technical proposals, in view of the preparation and publication of the Nati¬onal Map of Suitable Areas (CNAI), may be sent. At the end of this phase, the Regions and local authorities may express their non-binding statements of interest to further investigate the subject.