Revised emergency zones to be implemented at Swedish plants

Emergency planning zones and distances are areas in which protective actions are prepared. These preparations give capacity for implementation of effective protective measures for the general public in connection with an emergency. During an emergency situation, prepared protective actions may be implemented in full, in part or not at all, depending on the event and the actions' feasibility.

In October 2015, the Swedish government commissioned SSM to perform a review of emergency planning zones and distances applying to activities involving ionising radiation. This was done in consultation with the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, relevant county administrative boards and the other authorities and stakeholders concerned.

In November 2017, SSM presented a report to the government in which it proposed that the emergency planning zones and distances for activities involving ionizing radiation should be changed. It called for Swedish nuclear power plants to be surrounded by a precautionary action zone (PAZ) and an urgent protective action planning zone (UPZ) as well as an extended planning distance (EPD), extending about 5, 25 and 100 km, respectively. For Westinghouse's fuel fabrication plant in Västerås, SSM recommended a UPZ of about 700 m around the plant. The regulator also said there should be a two-kilometre EPD around the Clab central interim storage facility for used nuclear fuel. SSM said the changes are important "in order to improve the feasibility of implementing effective protective actions in the event of a nuclear accident".

The government has now adopted a new Civil Protection Ordinance, which means that the emergency planning zones and distances for nuclear facilities are to be changed in accordance with SSM's proposal. The new emergency planning zones and distances are to be implemented in Swedish contingency planning no later than 1 July, 2022.

"It's good that the emergency planning zones and distances are being changed and that the issues identified in the 2017 report are being addressed," said Jan Johansson, a specialist at SSM. "It will improve the possibilities of implementing effective protective actions in the event of a nuclear accident."