Overview of IAEA guidelines for fire safety inspection and operation in nuclear power plants

In 1992, the International Atomic Energy Agency began an ambitious project on fire safety in nuclear power plants. The purpose of this ongoing project is to provide specific guidance on compliance with the requirements set forth through the IAEA Nuclear Safety Standards program established in 1974. The scope of the Fire Safety project encompasses several tasks, including the development of new standards and guidelines to assist Member States in assessing the level of fire safety in existing plants. Five new Safety Practices, one new Safety Guide and a Technical Document have been developed for use by the fire safety community. The primary intent of these new documents is to provide detailed guidance and a consistent format for the assessment of the overall level of fire safety being provided in existing nuclear power plants around the world and especially in developing countries. Sufficient detail is provided in the Safety Guide and Safety Practices to allow technically knowledgeable plant personnel, outside consultants or other technical experts to assess the adequacy of fire safety within the plant facilities. This paper describes topics addressed by each of the IAEA Fire Safety documents and discussed the relationship of each document to others in the series. (author)