Nuclear: “Stress Tests” for nuclear power plants of European Union
13 May The "stress tests" are a set of additional safety criteria drawn up in the light of the nuclear accident in Fukushima. These EU wide criteria will be in addition to safety standards already being in place at national level. Their aim is to assess whether the safety margins used in the licensing of nuclear power plants were sufficient to cover unexpected events. The criteria are defined and approved by both the European Commission and the European Nuclear Safety Regulators' Group (ENSREG), which represents the 27 independent national authorities responsible for nuclear safety, as decided by the European Council on 23rd and 24th March 2011. The assessments will be done by the Independent National authorities and through the “peer reviews” who will produce reports that will be examined by a group of “peers for consistency” . The Commission who has got the mandate for the implementation of “stress tests” intends to publish the final assessments on the power plants for transparency towards European citizens. Stress tests according to the mandate are not obligatory and the participation of member states is on a voluntary basis.