Safety criteria and procedural steps connected with the licensing of nuclear power plants in the Federal Republic of Germany
The Federal Republic of Germany is a centralized confederacy of States, whose Constitution was amended in 1959 to define the respective responsibilities of the Federal and State authorities in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Nuclear legislation is enacted at the federal level but its implementation is the responsibility of States. The Atomic Energy Act, 1959, sets forth licensing requirements that are more stringent than in any other technical field and, also, provides for a licensee's absolute liability for nuclear damage. The amount of his financial security is determined by the licensing authority, subject to review every two years. Other applicable provisions are to be found in the Radiation Protection Ordinance, 1960, the Nuclear Installations Ordinance, 1970, and a number of public laws governing planning, construction works, water use, electricity supply, trade, and transport, environmental protection, etc. The safety criteria used for licensing purposes, first developed as guidelines and based on the US criteria, were replaced by safety criteria for nuclear power plants approved in 1974. Safety criteria are supplemented by safety guides providing procedures for meeting specific safety requirements. Prescribed safety precautions include safety analysis of the siting and plant design, quality control, recurrent inspections and emergency precautions. The licensing process is conducted by State authorities, in consultation with and under the supervision of a responsible Federal Ministry, which is assisted in such duties by an Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Technischer Ueberwachungs-Vereine eV, Cologne
- NSA Number:
- NSA-33-028254
- OSTI ID:
- 4054583
- Country of Publication:
- IAEA
- Language:
- English
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