EU to update radioactive waste shipment rules

The European commission has proposed new EU rules on cross-border shipments of radioactive waste. A draft directive tabled on Wednesday will make consent from states of destination a requirement. This will bring Europe into line with an international convention agreed in 1997, to which the EU acceded this year. The commission also proposes applying controls explicitly to spent nuclear fuel. At present, controls are only applied to spent fuel in some instances, the EU executive noted. See press release, draft directive, IAEA convention and EU reserve on accession.