Environmental impact assessments and long-term operation of nuclear power reactors: Increasing importance of environmental protection in the European Union?

Over the last decades, the world has become increasingly mindful of the potential impact of human activities on the environment and many governments have recognised the need to better assess the potential impacts of such activities prior to their authorisation. Legal requirements to perform environmental impact assessments (EIA) for activities likely to have environmental effects have been enacted under national, European and international law and have gained the status of international customary law.1 Due to the nature of the risks posed by the civilian use of nuclear energy on human health and the environment, it has become a requirement in most – if not all – countries that an EIA be performed prior to authorising the construction and operation of any nuclear installation, including nuclear power reactors.