COMMISSION OPINION of 7 November 1994 concerning the plan for the disposal of radioactive waste from the Konrad radioactive waste repository at Salzgitter (Germany) in accordance with Article 37 of the Euratom Treaty (Only the German text is authentic) (94/747/Euratom)

On 5 May 1994 the Commission of the European Communities received from the German Government, in accordance with Article 37 of the Euratom Treaty, general data relating to the plan for the disposed of radioactive waste resulting from the operation of the Konrad radioactive waste repository at Salzgitter.

On the basis of these data and following consultation with the group of experts, the Commission has drawn up the following opinion:

(a) The distance between the repository and the nearest territory of another Member State, namely the Netherlands, is 220 km (Denmark is 280 km and Belgium 340 km distant).

(b) Under normal storage and monitoring conditions, gaseous and liquid effluent discharges will not lead to an exposure, significant from the point of view of health, of members of the population of other Member States.

(c) In the event of unplanned discharges of radioactive effluents which could result from an accident on a scale taken into account in the general data, doses liable to be received by the population of another Member State will not be significant from the health point of view.

(d) The measures to be taken after closure of the plant, the natural features of the site and the limits placed on the amount of radioactivity stored, ensure that the above conclusions remain valid in this long term.

In conclusion, the Commission is of the opinion that the plan for the disposal of radioactive waste resulting from the operation of the Konrad radioactive waste repository is not liable, either in normal operation or in the accident conditions considered in the general data, to result in significant radioactive contamination from the health point of view of the waters, soil or airspace of another Member State.

This opinion is addressed to the Federal Republic of Germany.

For the Commission

Yannis PALEOKRASSAS

Member of the Commission