LES ACTIVITÉS NUCLÉAIRES : RAYONNEMENTS IONISANTS ET RISQUES POUR LA SANTÉ ET L’ENVIRONNEMENT Accounting of BNI discharges The rules for accounting discharges, both radioactive and chemical, are set in the general regulations by amended ASN resolution 2013DC-0360 of 16 July 2013 relative to control of the detrimental effects and the impact of BNIs on health and the environment. These rules were set so as to guarantee that the discharge values declared by the licensees, notably those considered in the impact calculations, will in no case be under-estimated. For discharges of radioactive substances, accounting is not based on overall measurements, but on an analysis per radionuclide, introducing the notion of a “reference spectrum”, listing the radionuclides specific to the type of discharge in question. The principles underlying the accounting rules are as follows: ∙radionuclides for which the measured activity exceeds the decision threshold for the measurement technique are all counted; ∙the radionuclides of the “reference spectrum” for which the measured activity is below the decision threshold (see Highlight No. 8) are counted at the decision threshold level. For discharges of chemical substances with an emission limit value set by an ASNR binding requirement, when the concentration values measured are below the quantification limit, the licensee is required by convention to declare a value equal to half the quantification limit concerned. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are substances which degrade very slowly and are highly persistent in the environment, which poses many questions regarding their toxicity, both for human health and for the environment. Following the action plan initiated by the Government in January 2023 to reduce PFAS-related hazards and improve the awareness of the population regarding exposure to these substances, ASNR asked the BNI licensees whose activities are liable to be the cause of PFAS emissions to draw up a list of the PFAS used, produced, processed or discharged by their facility and then to carry out a campaign to search for and quantify their presence in the aqueous discharges from their facility. Although the industrial processes employed in the BNIs do not use any PFAS, certain equipment (seals, greases or oils, mechanical packings, fire-fighting foam) present in the BNIs is liable to contain them. In 2024, the licensees of the BNIs concerned therefore carried out measurement campaigns, first of all on samples taken from the non-radioactive liquid discharge networks in their installations. These initial results confirm the absence of PFAS in the discharges in the majority of cases. In October 2025, ASNR published on its website all the results communicated by the licensees as part of these campaigns. The occasional presence of PFAS was detected on certain sites, particularly in rainwater that had run off fire training areas where emulsifiers containing PFAS had been used. The licensees concerned have undertaken to supplement their campaign with one or more measures. They are also required to assess the risk of contamination of groundwater and soil, in particular by conducting a search for PFAS in the piezometers surrounding the aforementioned exercise areas in 2026. The results of additional campaigns to be performed on radioactive discharges are also expected by the end of 2026. Following these campaigns, and if PFAS are confirmed as being present in BNI discharges, ASNR could issue prescriptive requirements to regulate these discharges by setting emission limits and appropriate monitoring procedures. Monitoring of discharges in the field of small-scale nuclear activities Pursuant to ASN resolution 2008-DC-0095 of 29 January 2008, radioactivity measurements are taken on the effluents coming from the facilities that produce them. In hospitals that have a nuclear medicine department, these measurements chiefly concern iodine-131, lutetium-177 and technetium-99m (see chapter 5). In the small-scale industrial nuclear sector, few facilities discharge radioactive effluents apart from cyclotrons (see chapter 6). The discharge permits stipulate requirements for the discharges and their monitoring, which are subject to particular scrutiny during inspections. For nuclear medicine units and research laboratories, ASNR proposes a graded approach to monitoring of radioactive discharges into the public sewer system. This approach could consist of sampling and measurement protocols, as well as guideline levels to be compared with the results of these measurements in order to decide whether any corrective measures are needed. 5.1.2 – Evaluating the radiological impact of nuclear activities The automated monitoring networks managed nationwide by ASNR (Téléray, Hydrotéléray and Téléhydro networks) offer real-time monitoring of environmental radioactivity and can highlight any abnormal variation. In the case of an accident or incident leading to the release of radioactive substances, these measurement networks would play an essential role by providing data to inform the decisions to be taken by the authorities and to inform the population. In normal situations, they contribute to the evaluation of the impact of BNIs. On the other hand, there is no overall monitoring system able to provide an exhaustive picture of the doses received by the population as a result of nuclear activities. Consequently, compliance with the population exposure limit (effective dose set at 1 mSV/year) cannot be controlled directly. However, for BNIs, there is detailed accounting of radioactive effluent discharges and radiological monitoring of the environment is implemented around the installations. On the basis of the data collected, the dosimetric impact of these discharges on the populations in the immediate vicinity of the installations is then calculated using models simulating transfers to the environment. The dosimetric impacts vary, according to the type of installation and the lifestyles of the chosen representative persons, from a few microsieverts to several tens of microsieverts per year (μSv/year). An estimation of the doses from BNIs is presented in Table 11 which shows, for each site and per year, the estimated effective doses received by the most exposed representative persons. The radiological impact of effluents produced by medical activities and small-scale nuclear activities The impact of radioactive discharges on sanitation workers (sewerage workers and wastewater treatment plant workers) and on workers responsible for removing and spreading wastewater treatment sludge can, since 2019, be evaluated using the CIDRRE tool (Calculation of impact of radioactive discharges into the networks), developed by IRSN. The CIDRRE tool can be used to potentially estimate the annual dose based on quantitative data: activity administered annually for each radiopharmaceutical, annual wastewater flow at the facility’s outfall and at the inlet to the wastewater treatment plant. Freely accessible on the Internet and requiring only a small amount of input data, it enables those in charge of nuclear medicine departments and remediation systems to easily assess the potential radiological exposure of remediation workers. 162 ASNR Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2025
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