Does the Ministry of the Environment cover Repository Authority?

Press Release of Platform Against Deep Repository dated October 17, 2017

Open letter to Minister of the Environment Richard Brabec

The Radioactive Waste Repository Authority (RAWRA/SÚRAO) has decided to carry out geophysical and other exploratory work on sites selected for deep geological repository, despite the expiration of the exploration areas designated for this purpose at the end of 2016. However, the accountable Ministry of the Environment does not act. Therefore, the Platform Against Deep Repository addressed Richard Brabec, the Minister of the Environment, in an open letter requesting an explanation as to why his office had left RAWRA to carry out the same geological works for which established exploration areas for geological work had expired.

It was the leaving minister Brabec who dismissed the appeal of municipalities and associations in all seven sites and who confirmed the establishment of exploration areas for geological work in 2015 ^[1]. To this date, the courts have not ruled on lawsuits by 18 municipalities and 6 associations that have challenged the illegality of this decision. However, the planned geological works did not take place during the exploration period. 

This year, RAWRA has begun to assert that the planned geological works can be carried out without established exploration areas, and that the same works will be carried out as research. He then announced the launch of a key part of the geological works - geophysical works on the territory of the municipalities. 

The Calla NGO has filed a complaint with the Ministry of the Environment to initiate the inspection of RAWRA's activities under the Geological Works Act. The check was carried out in June, but the written record have not been prepared since then and the results are unknown to us. As the ministry's spokesman said, the notes are still being prepared ^[2]. The ministry either covers the illegal activities of RAWRA today, or the previous decision of the Minister on the establishment of exploration areas was not in compliance with the law. 

Petr Nohava, a spokesman for the Platform Against Deep Repository said: “The declared transparency of the site selection process remains a blank phrase. If geophysical works at the sites can be carried out as a research, the main purpose of determining the exploration areas was to allow financial incentives for municipalities to buy their consent.“

The Platform Against Deep Repository consists of 35 members (23 municipalities and 12 municipalities) to promote a way to find a solution to the problem of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste management that is open, transparent, and in which municipalities and the public will have the rights guaranteed enough to defend their legitimate interests. http://www.platformaprotiulozisti.cz

In order to emphasize close cooperation on a common issue, the Platform decided on Rotation of its Speakers every six months. Jiří Popelka, Deputy Mayor of Jistebnice, and Chairman of the NGO Zachovalý kraj from the Magdaléna site, was replaced by Petr Nohava, Mayor of Pluhův Žďár from the Čihadlo site. 

Further information can be provided by:

• Ing. Petr Nohava, Mayor of Pluhův Žďár and spokesman for the Platform Against Deep Repository - tel.: 725 972 632, e-mail:pnohava AT gmail DOT com^[3]

Attachment: Open letter by the Platform Against Deep Repository addressed to the Minister of the Environment Richard Brabec of October 16, 2017

1. ↑ All decisions of the MofE and legal actions by municipalities and associations are available at http://www.nechcemeuloziste.cz/ for each site in the "Legal Status/Právní stav" section. For instance, the Březový potok site: http://www.nechcemeuloziste.cz/cs/lokality/brezovy-potok/pravni-stav-brez/
2. ↑ Response of the Ministry of the Environment dated 9th October 2017 to the request for information submitted by Calla pursuant to Act No. 106/1999 Coll., On Free Access to Information:
   On 26th September 2017, the Ministry of the Environment has received your request for information pursuant to Act No. 106/1999 Coll., On Free Access to Information, as amended, concerning the provision of information, "whether and with what result the Ministry of the Environment carried out the inspection of the activity of the Radioactive Waste Repository Authority pursuant to Section 2 (6) of Act No. 62/1988 Coll., on geological works which was requested by Calla - Association for the Preservation of the Environment. You also request a protocol or other form of record that the check has been carried out. If there is no protocol or other form of record, you request an explanation as to why it is so.v
   To the above, we are writing you the following: Based on the Calla’s request, the inspection was carried out in mid-June 2017. The Ministry of the Environment is currently preparing a report from this inspection.
3. ↑ For protection against automatical email address robots searching for addresses to send spam to them this email address has been made unreadable for them. To get a correct mail address you have to displace "AT" by the @-symbol and "DOT" by the dot-character (".").