The experts of the SAUEZM enterprises, with the assistance of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, the public association «Association of Chornobyl Tour Operators» and other international travel companies, have presented the tourist potential of the Exclusion Zone at the WTM 2019 World Travel Market in London.

In pursuance of Presidential Decree No. 512 of July 10, 2019 «On Some Issues of the Development of Territories Affected by the Chornobyl Catastrophe» the State agency of Ukraine on Exclusion zone management has drafted a law «On introduction of amendments to the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses on strengthening of liability for violations of radiation safety regime requirements in areas that have been exposed to radioactive contamination».

Creation of a radiation monitoring system is the focus of EU-Ukraine cooperation in the field of nuclear safety. State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management is very grateful to the European Union for its continued support.

This was stated by a.i. Head of SAUEZM Oleksandr Kovalchuk during his visit to Lviv Specialized Combine, where he got acquainted with the work of the automated system.

«It is extremely important for us as well as for the EU that emergencies in Ukraine could be quickly identified and responded to. Radioactive waste management facilities throughout the country should be properly monitored and maintained. It is very important for Ukrainian enterprises to be equipped with the latest emergency equipment», - noted Dr. Hans van Vliet, Project Manager from the European Commission.

In particular, with the support of the European Union an automated system of environmental radiation monitoring was installed at the specialized combines of the State Corporation «Association «Radon». The equipment was installed at 5 radioactive waste storage facilities located on the territory of specialized combines in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Lviv and Odessa.

According to Ihor Buksanchuk, Director General of the State Enterprise «Association «Radon», an automated system will allow to monitor and document the parameters of the radiation state, will help to detect radiation hazards and respond quickly to them. The system consists of five environmental radiation monitoring subsystems that measure radiation levels and transmit results to the «Radon» Head Office in Kyiv.

On December 5, Chornobyl NPP has obtained a certificate confirming its readiness for operation of the First Commissioning Stage (CS-1) of NSC.

During the meeting of the Heads of SAUEZM and enterprises of the Exclusion Zone with representatives of the US Forest Service the results and prospects of cooperation between the institutions were discussed. In particular, representatives of the Forest Service noted the progress made by the SAUEZM in establishing the Coordination Center on Emergencies Management and assured their readiness to continue providing expert assistance under this project.

A.i. Head of SAUEZM Oleksandr Kovalchuk at the parliamentary hearings «Parliament's Environmental Policy Priorities for 5 Years» presented the strategy of development of the Exclusion zone and perspective directions of work. In particular, he drew the attention of the members of parliament of Ukraine to the legal conflict arising during the activity of the Chornobyl radiation and ecological biosphere reserve.

Representatives of SAUEZM and Ukrainian enterprises on radioactive waste management discussed with the British Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and a number of profile associations and commercial companies approaches to waste management and potential areas of cooperation for organizations. They paid great attention to the enhancement of international cooperation between Ukraine and the United Kingdom in the field of nuclear and radiation safety, radioactive waste safety and the provision of expert and advisory assistance from the United Kingdom on the improvement of national technologies.

Last week, a meeting of the Donor Assembly of the Nuclear Safety Account took place at the EBRD headquarters in London, during which the Ukrainian delegation discussed the state of work on the construction of a spent nuclear fuel storage facility (SNF-2) at Chornobyl NPP industrial site.

SSE «Radon Association» has started work on the direct removal of radioactive waste (RAW) from the decontamination waste disposal site Pisky-1 (WWTP) in Kyiv region. This project has been developed with the support of the European Union under the ISNF Program and is aimed at rehabilitation of Chornobyl RAW storage sites outside the Exclusion Zone.

At a meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Integration Coordination Commission of Ukraine with the participation of NATO Deputy Secretary General Bettina Kadenbach, representatives of the Government of Ukraine and the NATO discussed the state and prospects of developing relations with NATO.

A task group of experts of the SSE «Association «Radon» and interregional special combines conducted trainings and tests of the modular mobile protective camera (MMPC) for discharge of high level sources of ionizing radiation. According to the results of the tests, it is concluded that the installation is ready for operation.

Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted in the second reading and, in general, the law «On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Improvement of the Legislation on Radioactive Waste Management». By this law the legislative framework of Ukraine in the field of radioactive waste management is brought into compliance with the international requirements of radioactive waste disposal.