print this page

International marine conventions

Since this feature was written both France and the UK has agreed to accept a ban on dumping radioactive wastes at sea and also agreed a proposal for a timetable to reduce radioactive discharges into the seas from reprocessing plants. Other important decision to control radioactive discharges can be found on our Latest News pages.

Controlling pollution of our seas

The main inter-governmental convention to regulate and control marine pollution in the North Sea and North Atlantic is the OSPAR Convention which was signed in 1992 and enters into force in 1997. This is a combination of the two existing conventions: the Oslo Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping from Ships and Aircraft, first signed in 1972, and the Paris Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Land-Based Sources signed in 1974. These are regional conventions for the North Atlantic area - see map. There are similar regional conventions for other areas. such as the Baltic, around the world. There are also global conventions or agreements under the auspices of the united Nations. The London Convention is a global convention controlling pollution at sea and a new global land-based sources programme was agreed last year.

Like most international bodies, it can take many many years to achieve significant change - those with vested interests are able to delay decisions and actions and often it is the lowest standards that are adopted as the initial international standards. It has been the work of the Nordics in particular and the environmental groups with observer status, such as Greenpeace and Seas at Risk, which have achieved what changes have been made. After many years of argument and resistance from the UK and France OSPAR is now undertaking several studies which are likely to seriously undermine the international creditability of reprocessing.

The rather poorly reproduced map opposite shows the result of a survey conducted by the Icelandic Government in 1985 into the spread of caesium-137. Discharges of caesium from Sellafield and Dounreay can be seen at the bottom of the map being spread up the west coast of Scotland by the Gulf Stream. OSPAR is now investigating the value of reprocessing as a method of managing spent fuel compared with other forms of management. Reprocessing will be compared directly with dry storage, for example, and these studies are likely to show reprocessing is not compatible with the standards of Best Available Techniques (BAT), the Precautionary Principle, or with keeping discharges As Low As Reasonable Achievable (ALARA). OSPAR has also called for a report on comparison between discharges from existing reprocessing plants and the now abandoned German Wackersdorf plant. Member states of the new OSPAR Convention are: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the European Community. OSPAR, like the other conventions referred to on this page, are administered by the United Nations' International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

A new programme to reduce marine pollution from land-based sources was approved at a inter-governmental conference in Washington in November 1995 at a conference organised by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as part of the recommendations in the 1992 Agenda 21. There is little radical or new proposals to worry the nuclear industry in the new agreement, although the adoption of the precautionary principle in another inter-governmental forum, for example, will be welcomed by environmental interests.

The Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Environment, approved by 110 governments, is designed "to assist States in taking practical actions to maintain and improve the productive capacity of the marine environment, to ensure the protection of human health and to promote the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity."

The Programme's objective/target is "to reduce and/or eliminate emissions and discharges of radioactive substances in order to prevent, reduce and eliminate pollution of the marine and coastal environment by human-enchanced levels of radioactive substances". It is proposed setting a timetable "to minimise and limit the generation of radioactive wastes" and ensure the safe storage, transportation and disposal of waste. Best available techniques and best environmental practice are to be used to reduce or eliminate emissions.

States should "not promote or allow the storage or disposal of....radioactive wastes near the marine and coastal environment" unless scientific evidence shows it posed "no unacceptable risk to people and the marine and coastal environment or does not interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea, making...appropriate use of the concept of the precautionary principle." Among the regional actions is a proposal for the preparation of environmental assessments of the effect of historical and current discharges of radioactive substances.

It was this convention which first introduced a temporary ban on dumping radioactive waste at sea, after action by trades unions and Greenpeace, which the UK and other states were carrying out mainly in the North Atlantic. The UK was eventually forced to accept this moratorium on dumping which has now been changed into a permanent ban on dumping radioactive waste at sea - or into the seabed - which will be reviewed after 25 years. The incineration of industrial wastes at sea has also been banned by the London Convention.