International Mechanisms to Support Records, Knowledge and Memory Preservation Over the Short and Medium Term

The aim of this analysis is to investigate the potential usefulness of mechanisms that have international influence, scope or support and are based on international cooperation, for the preservation of records, knowledge and memory (RK and M) about radioactive waste in the short and medium term. Eleven international mechanisms set up through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the European Commission (EC) were analysed following two main objectives: identifying the key characteristics of the organisations coordinating the international mechanisms and analysing the contribution of those mechanisms to the preservation of records, memory and knowledge. This analysis points out that the link with international organisations provides international mechanisms with important technical and administrative support as well as with fora for dialogue. The voluntary involvement of contracting parties to join the individual mechanisms for a common goal and their declaration of adhesion to the objectives constitute the driving force of various international conventions. Nevertheless, the efficacy of these mechanisms can be limited in case of conflict. Most of these mechanisms are based on the recognition of individual and societal rights for protection issues, and entail that each contracting party assumes the mechanism's responsibilities. The mechanisms provide a platform for establishing an 'evolving' convention. The prime objective of the conventions examined in this document lies on economic development, while the international mechanisms associated with them also emphasise the necessity to take into account societal and environmental issues. The link with more general frameworks allows the mobilisation of regular funds. Beyond the funds, it is important to mention that the efficiency also relies on the capacity of the various stakeholders (local/national/international) to mobilise dedicated resources for their involvement in the decision-making process. The implementation of their multilevel responsibility and decision process depends on the willingness of the contracting parties to reach compromise. The mechanisms provide various tools and frameworks to cope with information, participation and compliance of the various stakeholders. Their key role is to increase contracting parties' awareness on the issues at stake in the conventions and to sustain the common goal identified as well as to detect problems and, if necessary, to provide assistance, notably in case of conflict or economic, social or environmental crisis. The establishment of advisory bodies, composed of networks of international experts, contributes significantly to the development of expertise and its sustainability. The involvement of local experts and the framework for mobilising pluralistic expertise is also crucial. The long-term sustainability of the actions constitutes a real challenge. This issue, however, is generally not addressed as such in the international mechanisms analysed in this review. The exceptions are the World Heritage Convention and the Memory of the World Register for which the preservation and sustainability of the sites and documentary heritage are crucial. A further noteworthy mechanism is the International Nuclear Information System (INIS). This international database system groups various sources of information and aims at disseminating the information through INS training centres. These three international mechanisms provide dialogue platforms allowing to analyse and to interpret the collected information as well as to discuss the modalities of data preservation for the short and medium term. Finally, it has to be noted that most of the mechanisms encourage the development of an 'active memory'. This analysis shows that, in principle, international mechanisms could contribute significantly to the preservation of RK and M. In this context, it could be envisaged for RK and M preservation in radioactive waste management (RWM) to rely on such existing mechanisms. For this purpose, there is a need to identify the necessary adaptation of the existing mechanisms to cope with RK and M issues in RWM and to explore the conditions of implementation of an international mechanism is this domain (notably concerning partnership, funding, and the development and mobilisation of expertise). (authors)