Nuclear safety bolstered since Fukushima accident, says Grossi

The IAEA has put in thousands of man-hours and compiled thousands of pages of data and knowledge about the accident, Grossi said in the video statement.

“Within just a few months of the accident, the IAEA had developed a comprehensive action plan to strengthen the global nuclear safety framework and Member States had endorsed it. Around the world, operators’ engineers analysed their nuclear reactors and made upgrades where necessary. Today, virtually all Member States with nuclear power plants have completed ‘stress tests’ and many make use of the IAEA’s expert peer-review missions.”

Grossi said the IAEA has built a single platform that promotes clear nuclear safety practices for existing sites and those being developed and constructed. “Our work has not only led to concrete improvements in the safety of nuclear sites; it has created a sustained and robust global safety culture.

“We have developed and improved Safety Standards, norms and guidance. The adoption of the Vienna Declaration brought together all parties of the Convention on Nuclear Safety to reinforce its principles.”

An important lesson of the Fukushima Daiichi accident, Grossi said, is that regulators must be “strong, independent and adequately resourced”.