Session 2.1
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Roundtable - Nuclear Disaster Preparedness
Session Information
Date and Time: Tuesday 10 May 2011, 12.00 – 13.15 - Room 2
Chair/Moderator/Faciliator: Mr. Rashid Khalikov, Director, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva
Reporters: Marine Bourgeois (Summary), James McBrien (Key Words), ICVolunteers.org
Editor: Poppy Willard, ICVolunteers.org
Speakers
- H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations
- Ms. Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Reduction
- Ms. Elena Buglova, Acting Centre Head, Incident and Emergency Centre, International Atomic Energy Agency
- Mr. Tibor Tóth, Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization
- Dr. Geoffrey Love, Director, Weather & Disaster Risk Reduction Services, World Meteorological Organization (TBC)
- Dr. Maria Neira, Director, Public Health and Environment, World Health Organization
- Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov, Director of the International Cooperation Department, Head of Russian National Emergency Response Corps, Ministry for Civil Defence, Emergencies & Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters, Russian Federation
- H.E. Mr. Kenichi Suganuma, Ambassador, Deputy Permanent Representative of Japan, Chief of Consulate of Japan in Geneva
- Mr. Laurent Michel, General Director for Risk Reduction, Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing, France
Description
The roundtable will draw attention to what has been learnt from responses to nuclear accidents in Chernobyl, Three Mile Island and now Fukushima. It is clear that preparedness for response to incidents and emergencies at nuclear power plants should be part of overall national, regional and international preparedness for response to different types of emergencies. As is the case of all critical and sensitive industrial infrastructures, preparedness for and response to incidents and emergencies at nuclear power plants requires specialized expertise. To boost preparedness, however, requires that authorities recognize that specialty knowledge is not the property of any sector in society. It must be treated as a public good and integrated in national preparedness for response. Likewise, given its cross border impact, elements of an integrated preparedness system provide the basis for regional and international cooperative frameworks. Essentially, the roundtable would share existing experiences, and propose a way forward for strengthening cooperation on an international and regional basis in the area of emergency preparedness for and response to nuclear incidents and emergencies.
Key Questions for discussion
- How well integrated are national, regional and international disaster management organizations in the knowledge and competence to respond to and manage these types of accidents?
- Do we need regional/international knowledge and capacity mapping to identify gaps and requirements?
- How can institutional cooperation and specialized knowledge sharing between regional/international organizations be maximized and fostered?
- How to best utilize existing global monitoring systems deployed by several organizations in accordance with their respective thematic areas?
- How well integrated is specialized knowledge with broader preparedness planning?
- How do we ensure that a critical chain of authoritative public information exists and is available in a timely manner?
- What do we do in the area of regional and international cooperation?
Summary
This session brought together a very impressive panel of speakers, all strongly committed to Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in relation to the nuclear risk. It was intended to establish whether national, regional and international cooperation is useful in order to control disaster risk and to better reduce it. All members agreed on the need for an integrated approach, by sharing information, knowledge and resources.
Mr. Rashid Khalikov, Director of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), began by inviting the United Nations Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon, to give a comprehensive speech on the importance of nuclear risk control. He highlighted that nuclear capacity has many advantages, such as in the medical field, and proposed a framework for risk management strategies in concordance with the Five-Point Plan presented to the United Nations in 2008. He further spoke of the need for independent regulatory oversight, and presented the floor with an important question, in asking whether the current safety standards and regulations are sufficient.
The Russian representative, Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov, pointed out that lessons extracted from the Chernobyl disaster are being used as a starting point for Russia's policy at both the national and international level. He further emphasized the need for a multilateral mechanism, characterized by a high level of integration at all levels (national, regional and international), and the need for fast reactions at the initial stages of a nuclear disaster.
Mr. Laurent Michel, General Director for Risk Reduction at the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing, and H.E. Mr. Kenichi Suganuma, Ambassador to Japan in Geneva, both reiterated the need for an integrated approach to protect the people and the nuclear structures, and suggested periodic regional exercises in order to test the response capacity.
Mr. Suganuma particularly pointed out Japan's recent success in avoiding an even worse disaster, and stressed the need for a soft response through educating the public and providing constant information in order to avoid panic. In his view, the multiple disasters that struck on March 11 are Japan's greatest challenge since WW2. However, the Japanese government is making all efforts possible to deal with the disaster at the earliest possible date, and plans on shifting from the emergency response phase to the stabilizing action phase imminently. Japan remains reassured by the fact that Fukushima Daiichi's reactors shut down immediately during the earthquake, and that the power station was not affected until the tsunami hit. They are, therefore, currently reviewing the tsunami protection system. To this effect, the Southern Tokyo power plant of Hamaoka has also been shut down temporarily until protection is adequately increased.
Experts from the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), World Health Organization (WHO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) came forward to explain how their respective agencies are concerned by nuclear disaster risk reduction.
Mr. Tibor Tóth, Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the CTBTO, presented the "look over the horizon" concept to prepare for the future through new systems, values and actions, and was one of the major points of the roundtable. He called for communities to gather and spread information in planning for the future for the next 20 or 30 years.
Dr. Geoffrey Love, Director of the Weather & Disaster Risk Reduction Services Departement at the WMO, and Ms. Elena Buglova, Acting Head of the IAEA's Incident and Emergency Centre, both explained their agency's preventive systems through informative means. Ms. Neira of the WHO reminded the floor of the importance of a strong program on radiation and health, hoping this would be put at the center of the agenda.
Finally, Ms. Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Reduction, concluded with a call for risk assessments to be location-specific, and for an all-society approach.
As the panel presentations carried on for longer than expected, the floor was opened to very few questions. A participant from Palestine, expert in disaster management, was particularly concerned about a nuclear facility built on a transform fault, and asked how its vulnerability could be reduced. Unfortunately, this remained unanswered.
Many panel members gave strong closing statements, such as Dr. Love's who reminded us that “after every disaster, a window opens when you can make changes”. Ms. Wahlström asked people to remain engaged, and to avoid basing future planning on yesterday's emergencies.
Use of Key Words
Capacity - The need to test response capacity was underlined by Mr. Laurent Michel and Mr. Kenichi Suganuma.Capacity – There is the need to increase the capacity for preparedness for nuclear disasters. (Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov)
Disaster - The earthquake in Japan was the strongest on record and was a disaster. (Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov) We need to learn lessons from recent disasters. (Mr. L. Michel)
Early Warning System – There have been systems created to include nearly 400 monitoring systems fo conduct radioactivity in clouds, atmospheric monitoring and sniffing technology. (Mr. T. Toth)
Emergency Management – There has been an emergency plan developed by 13 international organizations. (Ms. E. Buglova) To manage fear there must be education, integration of systems and crisis management. (Ms. M. Wahlstrom)
Five-Point Plan: Mr. Rashid Khalikov mentioned the Five-Point Plan presented in 2008 as a tool for risk reduction.
Forecasts – It is possible to forecast/model where a cloud will move. (Dr. G. Love)
Multilateral mechanism and Integrated approach: Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov emphasized the need for a multilateral mechanism, characterized by a high level of integration at all levels (national, regional and international), and the need for fast reactions at the initial stages of a nuclear disaster. H.E. Mr. Suganuma of Japan also mentioned the importance of such an approach.
Natural Hazard: H.E. Mr. BAN Ki-moon stated that multiple hazards can be prevented through better safety standards, staff training and international regulatory oversight.
Preparedness – Preparedness can reduce the impact of a nuclear disaster. Environmental risk preparedness often forgets about threats of technology. Knowledge received from events such as Chernobyl, Three-Mile-Island and Fukushima allow for better preparedness during nuclear disasters that may occur from radiation, fire, chemicals, floods, etc… It is essential to prepare a multi-lateral mechanism. (Mr. Yuri Brazhnikov) Complex emergency preparedness should be promoted. Preparedness was very important during the nuclear accident that effected Japan. Multiple disasters occurred to include the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster. There is a need to discuss disasters in order to think of a way to minimalize secondary damage. (H.E. Mr. K. Suganuma) There needs to be a manner of testing preparedness as how to deal with nuclear emergencies. (Ms. E. Buglova) There is a need to strengthen our preparedness and response to avoid health consequences. (Dr. M. Neira)
Prevention – “Prevention and management are closely linked.” (Mr. L. Michel) The system needs to organize a manner in which to prevent different disasters. (Mr. T. Toth)
Public Awareness – Providing the latest information through various channels (i.e. diplomatic corps, tv, media, the international community down to a local level) is important. (H.E. Mr. K. Suganuma)
Resilience – Countries have to make decisions on energy that will improve safety and create a resilience framework. (Ms. M. Wahlstrom)
Response – As to preparedness and response, there is a system in place to provide information 24/7 and is password protected. In response to Fukushima we have activated an automatic response plan. “ We must further strengthen preparedness and response.” (Ms. E. Buglova)
Risk Assessment – Risk assessment is necessary for sighting of facilities. (Dr. G. Love) Risk assessment needs to be proliferated. (Ms. M. Wahlstrom)
Vulnerability – We may be richer and smarter but vulnerability is increasing. (Ms. M. Wahlstrom)
LIST OF KEYWORDS
- Capacity
- Integrated approach
- Meterological Hazards
- Multilateral mechanism
- Natural hazard
- Risk Management
See the full list of main key words
