Radioactive waste and transport

The radioactive waste produced in Italy derives from the dismantling of nuclear power plants and other fuel cycle facilities, from the use of radioactive sources and materials in the industrial, research and healthcare sectors, as well as from the remediation of sites contaminated by artificial or natural radionuclides. Then there is the legacy of “historical” waste produced by previous nuclear activity.

The transport of radioactive materials, including radioactive waste, is regulated by international technical standards implemented by Italian legislation and operators carrying out transport activities must be authorised as “carriers” pursuant to art. 43 of Legislative Decree no. 101/2020. ISIN carries out the technical investigation and adopts binding technical opinions with requirements for the exercise of the activity for the purposes of issuing the Interministerial Decree authorising transport by the competent Ministries.

Upon request of already authorized operators, ISIN issues validations of the suitability certifications of packaging used for the transport of radioactive materials and safety certifications for the admission to road transport of radioactive materials.

In these investigation procedures, ISIN carries out inspection and surveillance activities to verify that transports are carried out in compliance with the authorization provisions, requirements and national and international standards.