Overview

The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was established by the NEA Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) in 2000 and serves as a platform for understanding and enhancing stakeholder engagement in the field of radioactive waste (RW) management solutions. The FSC also supports the Committee on Decommissioning of Nuclear Installations and Legacy Management (CDLM) as of 2019. A stakeholder is defined as any actor – institution, group or individual – with an interest or a role to play in the radioactive waste management process. The FSC provides a setting for direct stakeholder exchange in an atmosphere of mutual respect and learning.

Participants in this forum are government policy and regulatory officials, R&D specialists, implementers, and industry representatives from NEA member countries. Together they share experiences and challenges, identify best practices and publish reports on current and future challenges related to stakeholder involvement in waste management and decommissioning processes. Over the past years, the exchanges held during the FSC led to robust principles concerning dedicated avenues of communication.

The FSC currently has three task groups, which focus on the following topics:

• Youth involvement in radioactive waste management (since 2019),
• Stakeholder involvement in decommissioning and legacy management (since 2020), and
• Perceptions and narratives in radioactive waste management (since July 2023).

The FSC held its 24^th plenary meeting in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, on 26-27 October 2023.

Organisations currently represented in the FSC:

• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia
• Belgian agency for radioactive waste and enriched fissile materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS), Belgium
• Belgian Nuclear Research Centre (SCK CEN), Belgium
• Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), Canada
• Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Canada
• National Research Council of Canada, Canada
• Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), Canada
• Ontario Power Generation (OPG), Canada
• Správy úložišť radioaktivních odpadů (SURAO) / Radioactive Waste Repository Authority (RAWRA), Czechia
• Danish Decommissioning (DECOM), Denmark
• Radiation & Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Finland
• National Agency for Radioactive Waste Management (ANDRA), France
• French Authority for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (ASNR), France
• Electricité de France (EDF), France
• Federal Company for Radioactive Waste Management (BGE), Germany
• Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE), Germany
• Öko Institut, Germany
• Public Agency for Radioactive Waste Management (PURAM), Hungary
• Nuclear Power Plants Management Company (SOGIN), Italy
• Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA), Japan
• Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NUMO), Japan
• Korea Radioactive Waste Agency (KORAD), Korea
• National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), The Netherlands
• Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, The Netherlands
• Norwegian Nuclear Decommissioning (NND), Norway
• Norwegian Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (DSA), Norway
• NuclearElectrica, Romania
• Institute for Nuclear Research of Pitesti (RATEN-ICN), Romania
• Nuclear Agency for Radioactive Waste (ANDR), Romania
• Nuclear Safety Council (CSN), Spain
• National Agency for Radioactive Waste Management and Decommissioning (ENRESA), Spain
• Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM), Sweden
• Swedish Nuclear Fuel & Waste Management Co (SKB), Sweden
• Vattenfall, Sweden
• National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste (Nagra), Switzerland
• Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE), Switzerland
• Environment Agency, UK
• Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, UK
• Nuclear Waste Services, UK
• U.S. Department of Energy, US
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), US
• U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), US
• International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Annual meetings, national workshops and community visits

The FSC convenes every fall for its annual meeting, which allows for an exchange of experiences through lectures and topical sessions.

Additionally, FSC national workshops are frequently organised in NEA member countries to bring together national stakeholders and FSC members to provide a neutral ground for discussion, dialogue and advancement of knowledge on long-term radioactive waste management. FSC members are invited to learn about the host country’s waste management programme and provide support by giving an external reflection built on their own experience. The national workshops can be supplemented by a half a day devoted to a community visit (potential or selected site for a repository) or an open event (public meeting or debate).

List of all FSC national workshops:

1. Paris, France, August 2000
2. Turku, Finland 14-16 November 2001
3. Ottawa, Canada 14-18 October 2002
4. Brussels, Belgium, 18-21 November 2003
5. Gorleben, Germany, 6-8 October 2004
6. L’Hospitalet de l’Infant, Spain, 21-23 November 2005
7. Tengelic, Hungary, 14-17 November 2006
8. Bar-le-Duc, France, 7-9 April 2009
9. Gimo (Östhammar), Sweden, 4-6 May 2011
10. Karlovy Vary, Czechia, 24-26 October 2012
11. Bern, Switzerland, 7-9 September 2016
12. Tabloo, Dessel, Belgium, 5-7 october 2022 – Topic: Youth involvement
13. Cincinnati, United States, 23-25 October 2023 – Topic: Decommissioning, radioactive waste and legacy management
14. Solna & Östhammar, Sweden, 23-24 September 2024 - Topic: Dialogue and Transparency When a Site and Method are Licensed

External link

Lessons learnt from the FSC: a synthesis provided by the European Commission/Joint Research Centre E-Track project, BRANS Marleen, FERRARO Gianluca, VON ESTORFF Ulrik (2015), "The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency’s Forum on Stakeholder Confidence, radioactive waste management and public participation. A synthesis of its learnings and guiding principles", Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.