The OSPAR Convention and other international guidance and recommendations
Since its conception, OSPAR has been concerned with pollution of the marine environment by radioactive substances and has developed the necessary measures over time, in parallel with actions by national authorities, to ensure progress in meeting the objectives of the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Strategy. The OSPAR Convention also recognises the need to take into account the recommendations of appropriate international organisations and agencies when adopting any programmes or measures on radioactive substances.
Policy
At the first Ministerial Meeting of the OSPAR Commission, held in 1998 at Sintra, Portugal, a complete and permanent ban on all dumping of radioactive waste and other matter was agreed (OSPAR Decision 1998/2). Agreement was also reached on objectives to protect the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic against radioactive substances arising from human activities. These objectives were reaffirmed at subsequent Ministerial Meetings of the OSPAR Commission (Bremen 2003, Bergen 2010) and continued as the objectives of the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Strategy (RSS) under the North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy (NEAES) 2010-2020. These objectives state that:
1.1 The OSPAR Commission’s strategic objective with regard to radioactive substances is to prevent pollution of the OSPAR Maritime Area from ionising radiation through progressive and substantial reductions of discharges, emissions and losses of radioactive substances, with the ultimate aim of concentrations in the environment near background values for naturally occurring radioactive substances and close to zero for artificial radioactive substances. In achieving this objective the following issues should, inter alia, be taken into account:
radiological impacts on man and biota;
legitimate uses of the sea;
technical feasibility.
1.2 The Radioactive Substances Strategy will be implemented progressively by making every endeavour, through appropriate actions and measures to ensure that by the year 2020 discharges, emissions and losses of radioactive substances are reduced to levels where the additional concentrations in the marine environment above historic levels, resulting from such discharges, emissions and losses, are close to zero.
New strategic and operational objectives for radioactive substances were agreed by the Ministerial Meeting of the OSPAR Commission 2021 in Cascais, Portugal, under the NEAES 2030.
OSPAR is a Regional Seas Convention that sits within a wider framework of other international conventions at the regional and global scale (e.g. the London Convention, the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, the Convention on Nuclear Safety and the EU Nuclear Safety Directive (Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom)). Regarding radioactive substances, a number of international bodies provide authoritative advice on this topic, such as the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The importance of such advice is recognised in the OSPAR Convention, which requires Contracting Parties to take account of the recommendations of appropriate international organisations and agencies when adopting any programmes or measures for radioactive substances.
Are these measures working?
The OSPAR Radioactive Substances Committee (RSC) has successfully established the necessary monitoring and data reporting programmes and developed the necessary assessment methodologies in order to be able to determine whether the objectives of the OSPAR RSS under the NEAES 2010-2020 have been fulfilled. The measures developed by OSPAR, as well as action by national authorities, has ensured that progress could be made against these objectives. When taking into account the assessments carried out by OSPAR of discharges from the nuclear sector and non-nuclear sector and of environmental concentrations and their radiological impact, and any context provided, it can be concluded that Contracting Parties have successfully fulfilled the objectives of the OSPAR RSS for 2020 under the NEAES 2010-2020 and have made significant progress towards fulfilling the ultimate aim of concentrations in the environment near background values for naturally occurring radioactive substances and close to zero for artificial radioactive substances. In doing so, Contracting Parties have prevented pollution of the OSPAR Maritime Area by ionising radiation. The OSPAR Convention requires Contracting Parties to apply Best Available Techniques (BAT) and Best Environmental Practice (BEP) including, where appropriate, clean technology, in their efforts to prevent and eliminate marine pollution including radioactive discharges. In particular, national regulatory frameworks for the use of radioactive materials and the discharge of radioactive waste take into account the general principles of radiation protection: justification, optimisation, and dose limitations. All Contracting Parties have been found to be applying BAT in the nuclear sector under PARCOM Recommendation 1991/4, which has in turn contributed to meeting the objectives of the OSPAR RSS under the NEAES 2010-2020. For the oil and gas sub-sector, OSPAR Recommendation 2001/1(as amended) requires the application of BAT to prevent pollution from oil and ‘other substances’ caused by discharges of produced water. While this Recommendation is not specific to radioactive substances, its implementation can result in reduced discharges of produced water through re-injection and hence reduced discharges of naturally occurring radionuclides.
Services and benefits
There are no OSPAR measures in place which target services and benefits as a response to radioactive substances in the marine environment.
Should circumstances warrant it, for example where radioactive substances in the marine environment (from historic practices or a nuclear emergency) are such that there are safety concerns associated with services and benefits (e.g. food production, leisure activities), there is an established international framework of standards and guidance to aid the selection of suitable protective measures. These measures could include restrictions on access, on fishery and aquaculture activities, and on the distribution of foodstuffs containing radioactive substances above specified levels.
One of the reasons for national monitoring of radioactive substances in the marine environment is to provide reassurance to consumers of seafood that levels of radioactive substances are low and that seafood is safe for human consumption. For those Contracting Parties with nuclear facilities, national monitoring programmes typically provide information on doses from existing levels of radionuclides in the environment arising from various exposure pathways, for example beach use, in order to provide reassurance to the public that such areas are safe to use.
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