Experience with Contamination Protection of Spent Fuel Transportation Packages in Germany Since 2000/2001

On April 30, 1998 just a frew days before the PATRAM 1998 conference at Paris, the French Nuclear Installations Safety Directorate (DSIN now DGSNR) published a press release, that during the year before some 35% of the spent fuel transports to the reprocessing plant of COGEMA at La Hague have had non-fixed surface contamination in excess of the regulatory standard [1]. A few days in advance DSIN informed the French Ministries and the competent foreign authorities of the customer countries of COGEMA. The consequences of this publication were multi-fold and perceived by the public as an act of negligence of the nuclear industry. Because of concerns aboaut additional radiation exposure to the railway workers by the unions the French Railway company SNCF suspended all transports by May 6, 1998 until implementation of corrective measures.