China's top legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), on Tuesday deliberated the motion on acceding to the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management.

Accession would be conducive to the safe management of the spent fuel and radioactive waste and promote the healthy development of the country's nuclear industry, said Zhang Yunchuan, director of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence.

Zhang told the 21st session of the 10th NPC Standing Committee convened on Tuesday that 40 nations had signed up to the convention since it came into effect in June 2001.

"As an important international legal document in the nuclear industry, the convention aims to establish a universally applicable legal framework for the safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste," said Zhang.

The convention would help maintain safety standards in spent fuel and radioactive waste disposal through strengthening management and international cooperation, he said.

The convention only applies to the management of spent fuel generated from civil nuclear reactors and radioactive waste from civil operations, but excluded military and national defence applications.

It sets requirements for the location, design, construction, safety evaluation, operation and retirement of disposal facilities.

Every signatory country should adopt legislative, supervisory and administrative measures under its own legal framework to meet the requirements.

Zhang said China's civil use of nuclear power has developed rapidly, after the government made it a priority in the 1980s. Its huge potential development required more stringent safety management of spent fuel and radioactive waste, making accession to the convention a necessity.

Source: Xinhua