Gunther Oettinger

EU Debates Atomic Safety Checks as Spanish Quake Kills Eight

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Planned stress tests on European nuclear plants should focus on threats from natural disasters and exclude potential man-made catastrophes such as a terrorist attack, European atomic industry group Foratom said.

European nuclear officials are to decide today on parameters for the safety checks on atomic power plants in response to the Japanese nuclear crisis caused by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The meeting of the European Commission, the EU regulator, and 27 national nuclear safety authorities comes a day after Spain’s biggest earthquake in 57 years killed eight people.

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EU divided over nuclear plants' resistance to attack

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Europe's nuclear safety tests should be strengthened to include man-made crises, such as terrorist attacks or airplane crashes, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Wednesday.

European leaders agreed in March to subject Europe's 143 reactors to "stress tests," to guard against disasters such as the one at Japan's stricken Fukushima plant.

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EU nuclear stress tests could prove less strenuous than expected

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Europe is preparing new stress tests designed to put nuclear power stations through their paces. It's a response primarily to the problems at Japan's Fukushima plant. But will the tests be as rigorous as promised?

The European Commission is set to present a draft for its new nuclear stress tests next week. While the Fukushima power plant, ravaged by an earthquake and tsunami, teetered on the brink of meltdown in March, European leaders agreed to set the "highest standards" of nuclear safety, with a mandatory round of new stress tests key to achieving this goal.

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Europe eyes deep disposal for nuclear waste problem

Thursday, October 28, 2010

A leaked European Commission draft report says Europe should solve the problem of handling nuclear waste by making industry pay to stash it deep underground, where it will be overseen by independent watchdogs.

"The current situation of spent fuel and radioactive waste management in EU member states is not satisfactory," says the draft, seen by Reuters Thursday.

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EU to propose burying nuclear waste as safest option

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The European Commission will promote underground storage as the safest option for storing nuclear waste, according to a leaked proposal which has already irked environmentalists.

The draft directive seeks to set up an EU framework for managing used fuel and radioactive waste which is generated by nuclear power plants but also medicine and industry, among others.

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EU commission nuclear waste plans 'full of gaps'

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Green MEPs say the commission's draft proposals on a nuclear waste directive contains "serious and alarming gaps."

EU energy commissioner Oettinger will unveil the commission's ideas for a directive on the management of spent fuel and radioactive waste on November 3.

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Brussels to propose EU rules for nuclear waste disposal

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Brussels - The European Commission intends to propose EU- wide rules on the disposal of nuclear waste by the end of 2010, an official said Thursday.

'Nuclear waste management is an important area which needs to be addressed by both industry and national governments (...) the role of the EU is to set a common framework for the establishment of national waste management programs,' said Marlene Holzner, spokeswoman for energy commissioner Gunther Oettinger, during a briefing in Brussels.

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