2/8/2017 The Department of Labour Inspection of the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance has prepared and releases for public consultation a draft law and regulations, transposing into the national legislative framework the provisions of Council Directive 2013/59/Euratom of 5th December 2013 laying down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation, and repealing Directives 89/618/Euratom, 90/641/Euratom, 96/29/Euratom, 97/43/Euratom and 2003/122/Euratom.
A relevant announcement in Greek is available
here.
Any interested party is kindly requested to send to the Department of Labour Inspection (fax 22662785, e-mail address: mtzortzis@dli.mlsi.gov.cy) any comments/suggestions on the text of the draft legislation by 1 September 2017.
1/8/2017 The Radiation Inspection and Control Service (RICS) of the Department of Labour Inspection (DLI) participated to the 7th Review Meeting of the Convention on Nuclear Safety, which took place at the Headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, Austria, from 26 March to 7 April 2017.
The Convention on Nuclear Safety entered into force on 24 October 1996. Cyprus ratified the Convention in 1999 and since 2002 submits relevant national reports and participates to the Review Meetings of the Convention every three years.
Seventy-seven out of the eighty Contracting Parties took part in the Meeting. During the Meeting, the Cyprus national report was presented to Group 1 parties and relevant questions raised by the parties before and during the Meeting were answered. This group included apart from Cyprus, the United States of America, Argentina, Belgium and Mexico (nuclear parties), Jordan, Kazakhstan, Poland and Austria (parties embarking to nuclear energy or with research reactors) and Estonia, Malta and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (non-nuclear parties).
The
national report of Cyprus, submitted in the framework of the 7th Review Meeting, as well as the
Country Review Report for Cyprus, as approved by the Group 1 parties, are attached.
1/8/2017 The Radiation Inspection and Control Service (RICS) of the Department of Labour Inspection (DLI) publishes the
final report of the peer review of the Competent Authority and of the Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety system in Cyprus. The peer review mission conducted by the International Atomic Energy Agency took place in Cyprus in the period 13-22 February 2017.
The above peer review was carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 18C(2) of the Protection from Ionizing Radiation and Nuclear Safety Laws 2002 to 2017 and of the Directive 2009/71/Euratom establishing a Community framework on the nuclear safety of nuclear installations.
Part of peer review report recommendations or suggestions will be implemented by amending the existing legislation for the transposition of the Directives 2013/59/Euratom laying down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation and 2014/87/Euratom amending Directive 2009/71/Euratom establishing a Community framework on the nuclear safety of nuclear installations.
The main challenges arising from the report for RICS/DLI are as following:
- Establishing a documented national policy and strategy on safety.
- Strengthening the capacity of RICS/DLI with a sufficient number of qualified and trained personnel, so that it can fulfill its duties resulting from its regulatory responsibilities and the relevant legislation.
- Establishing a system for developing and retaining skills and competences of all parties involved in the protection from ionising radiation and safety system.
- Establishing and maintaining an integrated management system, leadership for safety and safety culture, both within the competent authority and other stakeholders involved (authorised parties, undertakings, employers, self-employed persons, qualified experts (RPE), medical physics experts, dosimetry services, education and training services etc.).
RICS/DLI has prepared an action plan for the full implementation of the peer review recommendations and suggestions, with a view to invite a follow-up peer review mission within three to four years from the 2017 evaluation.
1/8/2017 The Protection from Ionising Radiation and Nuclear Safety (Amendment) Law of 2017, Law 122(I)/2017, has been published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of 28 July 2017 (Annex I - Part (I), No. 4616). This amendment Law transposes to national legislation the applicable for Cyprus, as a non-nuclear member state, provisions of the Council Directive 2014/87/Euratom of 8 July 2014 amending Directive 2009/71/Euratom establishing a Community framework on nuclear safety of nuclear installations.
12/04/2017 The
notification of the Minister of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance with number 178/2017 concerning the delegation of a number of her powers under Article 3(2) of the Delegation of the Exercise of Powers Deriving from a Law Law of 1962 and of the Protection from Ionizing Radiation and Nuclear Safety Laws of 2002 to 2011 has been published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of 24.3.2017 (in Greek).
06/03/2017 The Radiation Inspection and Control Service has issued a new leaflet titled "Exposure of the population to ionizing radiation from radon and other natural sources of radiation", which is accessible through the
relevant section.
01/03/2017 The Department of Labour Inspection has prepared a draft law proposal titled "The Protection from Ionizing Radiation and Nuclear Safety (Amendment) Law of 2017", a copy of which is
attached (in Greek), which transposes in the national legal framework the Directive 2014/87/Euratom of 8 July 2014 amending Directive 2009/71/Euratom establishing a Community framework for nuclear safety of nuclear installations, a copy of which is also
attached (in Greek). Anyone interested is requested to send to the Department of Labour Inspection (fax 22662785, email: mtzortzis@dli.mlsi.gov.cy) any comments/suggestions on the draft text, at the latest by April 3, 2017. For further information on this matter you may contact Mr. Michael Tzortzis, Labour Inspection Officer, tel. 22405652/623 or at the above email address.
23/02/2017 An international peer review of the competent authority and the Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety system of Cyprus (IRRS mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)) has been completed. The peer review took place from 12 to 22 February 2017. A press release, which was posted on the official website of the IAEA and a picture of the peer review group and the Cyprus counterparts are attached.
06/02/2017 The Radiation Inspection and Control Service has published new information material in Greek, which is available at the relevant section, with titles:
- Radiation in our live (updated).
- National Plan "Electra" for Preparedness and Response to a Nuclear or Radiological Emergency.
- Environmental radioactivity measurements in Cyprus (2010-2015).
- Protection of persons at work from risks arising due to exposure to Electromagnetic Fields.
05/02/2017 An international peer review to be held by experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), focusing at the assessment of the competent authority and the radiation protection and nuclear safety system in Cyprus, will be conducted in the period from 12 to 22 February 2017. The mission is organized by the Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) of IAEA, after invitation of the Republic of Cyprus, in fulfilment of the national legislation and the European Directive 2009/71/Euratom on nuclear safety.