European health and safety standards

The Euratom Treaty states in article 30 that “basic standards shall be laid down within the Community for the protection of the health of workers and the general public against the dangers arising from ionizing radiations”. Ionizing radiation causes the cells of the human body to mutate which can cause cancer.

Basic health and safety standards
With ‘basic standards’ the Treaty means
a) maximum permissible doses of radiation compatible with adequate safety,
b) maximum permissible levels of exposure and contamination, and
c) the fundamental principles governing the health surveillance of workers.

European Council and ‘basic standards’
The ‘basic standards’ have been established by the European Council. The European Council decided that, amongst other basic standards:

• persons under 18 years of age may not be assigned to any work which would expose them to ionizing radiation (article 8)
• the limit on effective dose for exposed workers shall be 100 millisieverts (‘mSv’) in a consecutive five-year period, subject to a maximum effective dose of 50 mSv in any single year (article 9)
• the limit on effective dose for the general public shall be 1 mSv in a year (article 13)

International Convention on Nuclear Safety
Euratom has acceded the Convention on Nuclear Safety. By doing so, the EU reaffirms the necessity of continuing to promote a high level of nuclear safety worldwide and desires to promote an effective nuclear safety culture. The convention does not, however, provide specific basic health and safety standards.