IAEA safety standards and international legal instruments

The IAEA safety standards constitute a comprehensive and consistent framework of reference for the protection of people and the environment against radiation risks. As such, they are of fundamental importance for both regulators and technical and scientific support organizations (TSOs) in their duties related to nuclear safety and radiation protection. International cooperation is also favoured by the IAEA safety standards, permitting the identification of final objectives and the steps necessary to achieve them in very different national and regional contexts. The fact that groups of experts, widely representing the Member States, developed the safety standards is an additional guarantee of their applicability in different situations. Nevertheless, it should be taken into account that nuclear and radiation safety and their regulation are national competencies, and hence the safety standards should be adopted and suitably modified by the States to become a national safety reference. The clear advantages of the technical assistance that some nations can receive from the IAEA in nuclear and radiation safety favour the adoption of the safety standards. In addition, the explicit mention of the IAEA safety standards in international conventions and codes of conduct signed by several countries also helps their implementation from a legal point of view. Unfortunately, from a practical point of view, the difficulties do not disappear by officially adopting the safety standards. Problems related to insufficient resources, shortcomings in the technical infrastructure and/or the limited experience of TSO staff are real problems that require additional efforts in order to effectively implement the safety standards. Renewed efforts to facilitate international cooperation among regional TSOs are necessary, for example, to promote specific harmonization of national situations. (author)