Enresa has established a commitment to the environmental improvement in all its activities, including saving resources, preventing contamination and protecting the environment as part of its strategic vision. Environmental Management Systems are implemented in all activities where significant environmental impacts might occur, controlling emissions, discharges, noise pollution, land alterations and resource consumption.
Environmental Commitment
Enresa is aware of the implications of its activities with regard to the safety of people and the protection of the environment.
Because of this, and ultimately to deliver environmental solutions. Enresa undertakes to:
- Develop environmental solutions for society in the field of radioactive waste;
- Integrate environmental management into corporate policy, taking environmental criteria into account in processes, projects and activities, as well as in decision-making, and implementing management systems that facilitate continuous improvement mechanisms and include environmental aspects as a quality parameter;
- Optimise control and monitoring actions for potential impacts, ensuring that the relevant environmental protection measures are taken;
- Promote environmental training, awareness and education for employees and regular partners, and the understanding that these aspects are fundamental tools;
- Involve suppliers and contractors in the implementation of our environmental commitments, including environmental aspects in the work of engineering professionals;
- Disseminate the objectives and actions deriving from environmental policy with complete transparency;
- Use resources rationally in order to contribute to sustainable development;
- Provide the means and pave the way for environmental excellence;
- Maintain a precautionary approach which favours the environment;
- Encourage initiatives that promote good practice and, therefore, greater environmental responsibility;
- Encourage the development and dissemination of environmentally-friendly technologies.
Environmental Management Systems
Environmental Management Systems ensure the achievement of the goals intrinsic to our corporate purpose, within the margins of environmental safety and reliability required by legislation and good practice, both now and in the future.
Environmental Activities
El Cabril
El Cabril Disposal Facility site covers an area of 1,126 hectares, of which only a small part is allocated to the disposal of radioactive waste.
Since 1986, when ownership of the site was transferred to Enresa, the company has maintained a policy of conservation, restoration and improvement of the facility’s natural environment.
This policy is implemented through activities in three specific and corresponding areas: forestry work, which aims to preserve and extend the vegetation and woodland, with particular focus on the prevention of forest fires; habitat improvement, by means of actions to encourage the preservation and recovery of species; and land restoration, by means of spontaneous colonisation by the more resistant species and by native vegetation.
Vandellós I
An Environmental Management System is in place at the Vandellós I facility, located on the Tarragona coast. One of its main objectives is ongoing improvement, and in line with this, we are working on optimising efficiency in the consumption of goods and reducing waste.
Environmental Monitoring Programmes
Environmental Monitoring Programmes consist of measures for carrying out in-situ checks to verify that the environmental impact of activities is within established limits.
This involves measuring air quality, the quality of discharges, groundwater and surface water, and the level of noise pollution, etc.
These programmes set out the parameters that must be monitored, the location of the control points, the procedures for sampling, methods of analysis to be employed and the frequency with which checks must be carried out. Currently, Environmental Monitoring Programmes are being implemented at El Cabril Disposal Facility and the Dismantling Project for the José Cabrera nuclear power plant.
The competent authority, councils, provincial governments and the regional ministries of the environment are regularly informed of the test results.
Environmental Radiological Monitoring Programmes
Environmental Radiological Monitoring Programmes verify that Enresa activities do not alter the level of natural radiation at the sites.
For this purpose, control points are established, where the radiological impact of each activity is assessed by means of sampling.
Currently, Enresa is implementing Environmental Radiological Monitoring Programmes at El Cabril Disposal Facility, the Vandellós I nuclear power plant and the Dismantling Project for the José Cabrera nuclear power plant. There is also radiological monitoring of water and foodstuffs in the vicinity of the former Andújar Uranium Mill. In addition to this, the pre-operational Environmental Radiological Monitoring Programme has been implemented at the Centralised Temporary Storage (CTS) facility. These programmes involve taking more than 1,700 samples of water, air, vegetation and foodstuffs per year, and more than 5,700 analyses of natural and artificial radioactive isotope are performed.
The results of the tests are sent to the local councils, regional governments and the Nuclear Safety Council on a regular basis.
The authorisation processes for all of the projects and the facilities of Enresa comply with the nuclear and radiological legislation specific to this type of activity. This includes defining Environmental Radiological Monitoring Programmes for the duration of a facility’s operational life and beyond.