IAEA news: • Newcomer countries face common challenges in nuclear infrastructure development. • Safety and licensing requirements for small modular reactors: IAEA hosts first workshop for regulators. • IAEA reaches milestone in disposal of radioactive sources

• Newcomer countries face common challenges in nuclear infrastructure development: Countries embarking on a nuclear power programme need to make sure that the development of their legal, regulatory and support infrastructure keeps pace with the construction of the power plant itself. This is the only way to ensure that the programme proceeds in a safe, secure and sustainable way, concluded participants of a workshop on nuclear power infrastructure development hosted at the IAEA last February. • Safety and licensing requirements for small modular reactors: IAEA hosts first workshop for regulators: A new generation of advanced, prefab nuclear power reactors called small modular reactors (SMRs) could be licensed and hit the market as early as 2020, and the IAEA is helping regulators prepare for their debut. In a series of workshops that began earlier this year, the IAEA is working closely with regulators on approaches to safety and licensing ahead of potential SMR deployment worldwide. • IAEA reaches milestone in disposal of radioactive sources: Successful tests of a promising technology for moving and storing low level radioactive sealed sources are paving the way for a new disposal method for dealing with small volumes of radioactive waste around the world. The method, which involves placing and covering sealed sources in a narrow hole a few hundred metres deep, would allow countries to safely and securely take charge of their own disused radioactive sources. The proof of concept for the technology was tested in Croatia late last year — without the use of actual radioactive material.