Radioactive waste and spent fuel: for return shipments the authorisation application must state the registration number of the original authorisation — Decision (EU) 2026/2209 amends the 2008 standard document
Commission Decision (EU) 2026/2209 of 29 September 2026, published on 2 October, replaces sections A-1 and B-1 of the standard document laid down in Decision 2008/312/Euratom, i.e. the applications for authorisation of shipments of radioactive waste and spent fuel covered by Directive 2006/117/Euratom. Where the purpose is a return, the applicant enters the registration number of the authorisation of the original shipment.
- According to the recitals, the proposal arose in the reporting on the implementation of Directive 2006/117/Euratom: the number allows competent authorities to link each shipment to the authorisation originally issued, improving the traceability and verification of shipments. In section A-1 the field was added for three purposes — return of waste after (re)processing or reprocessing of spent fuel, return after treatment of waste and return after interim storage; in section B-1 — for the return of spent fuel after interim storage.
- The application for waste shipments (A-1) contains data that come from the characterisation of the waste: main radionuclides, maximum alpha and beta/gamma activity per shipment and per package (GBq), total alpha and beta/gamma activity, number of packages and net and gross mass of the load; for multiple shipments the values are estimates. Among the activities giving rise to the waste, the form lists research, non-nuclear industry and nuclear industry, among others.
- The footnote on the package type in the new section A-1 refers to the IAEA “Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material”, 2018 Edition, SSR-6 (Rev. 1) — the original text of Decision 2008/312 referred to the 2005 Edition (TS-R-1). In the new section B-1 the footnote still refers to the 2005 Edition (TS-R-1).
- Section B-1 describes the fuel: type (metallic uranium, uranium dioxide, MOX or other), initial fissile content (uranium-235 with maximum enrichment, or MOX with nominal uranium enrichment and maximum plutonium content) and burn-up in MWd/tHM. The decision does not change the other sections of the document; it enters into force on the seventh day after publication, i.e. on 9 October 2026.