Helen Peters, Senior Legal Counsel at AWE, recently presented on UK nuclear decommissioning at the prestigious International Nuclear Law Association (INLA) biennial conference in Washington, USA.
The INLA’s purpose is to promote the study of legal issues associated with the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to encourage the exchange of information in this field. Every two years, it organises a Congress called “Nuclear Inter Jura” in which nuclear lawyers and specialists worldwide participate.
The theme for this year’s Congress was, ‘The Nuclear Industry: The Next 50 Years,’ to mark the INLA’s 50th anniversary. Lawyers from the IAEA, the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency, various governments and government regulators were present.
Helen’s presentation provided an overview of the international nuclear liability conventions and the legal challenges faced by the UK when removing decommissioned nuclear installations from the application of the international nuclear liability regime.
Helen was part of a steering group that supported the Government’s Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) when they prepared their consultation on the regulation of nuclear sites in the final stages of decommissioning and clean-up in 2018 before joining AWE.
Helen said: “It was a great privilege to present at such a distinguished conference and share internationally the progress which is happening to the UK decommissioning law and practice.”
The INLA was founded in Brussels in late 1970 by a group of nuclear lawyers and now has about 600 members worldwide who represent international or government agencies, nuclear-oriented corporations, and educational institutions, such as universities or think-tanks. Members are required to demonstrate expertise in the field of nuclear law and associated activities before being accepted as a member to the Association.