Session: 10-01 R&D - Euratom-funded R&D Overviews

Paper Number: 110293

110293 - Key Achievements of the European Joint Programme on Radioactive Waste Management 

The European Joint Programme on radioactive waste management is a step change in European collaboration and involves both advanced and early-stage programmes on radioactive waste management and disposal from 24 countries through the participation of 51 mandated organisations, 60 linked third parties, 3 international partner and representatives from civil society. The mandated organisations are waste management organisations ('implementers'), technical support organisations (supporting the regulatory process) or research entities delivering cutting-edge science; each of these three entities forms a college, with the colleges being represented equally in the different governance issues.

The biggest change compared to earlier EC-funded projects and the real benefit of EURAD is to have the three colleges joining forces to define and work on a shared research and knowledge management programme. Joint programming has now become a reality with the creation of a community which fosters mutual understanding and trust between the partners including civil society and the colleges all cooperating towards the implementation of a robust and sustained scientific and technological programme.

Most work packages have now reached their fourth year of implementation and are delivering encouraging results. The scientific excellence developed in EURAD creates new knowledge, educates scientists and allows to make better use of competences and access to infrastructures.

With the publication of a shared knowledge management (KM) and networking programme, the sustainability of the knowledge and its delivery to help Member States in their timely implementation of disposal solutions is assured in EURAD. The development of a process for the update of the Strategic Research Agenda to guide future work and to maintain and/or broaden the competencies and to ensure inclusiveness will be published early 2023 and should be an important input for defining a follow-up programme to EURAD, if this will happen.

The ambitious goals of EURAD require a profound engagement of RWM actors on a long-term perspective over another ten or more years. The building of confidence, trust and common understanding among the various categories of actors is a cornerstone of future success with the implementation of disposal solutions.

Presenting Author: Louise Théodon ANDRA

Presenting Author Biography: After obtaining from a Master's degree in European project management, Louise THEODON started to work as European and investments grants policy officer in a French local authority. For 5 years, she worked as National, European and International Projects Manager in a private non profit RTO. She was responsible for the setup and negotiation of all kind of projects: B to B with industries, European and national projects for 15 research centres.
She is now working at Andra (Agence Nationale pour la gestion des déchetsradioactifs) as European and national reserach and innovation projects engineer. She is the Coordinator of EURAD
programme (European Joint Programme on Radioactive Waste Management)