As part of the implementation of its non-media communication plan, the Moroccan Agency for Nuclear and Radiological Safety and Security (AMSSNuR) organized, on April 29, 2021, a webinar on the theme of environmental protection: the role and responsibilities of the actors concerned, an online meeting for the community of professionals and specialists in nuclear and radiological safety and security and environmental protection.
The first in a series of thematic webinars planned by AMSSNuR, this event aimed to present the national institutional and regulatory framework in the field of environmental protection and to highlight the efforts made by the ministerial department concerned, by AMSSNuR for the radiological protection component, by operators and by international experts in this field.
In his opening remarks, Dr. Khammar Mrabit, Director General of AMSSNuR, who chaired the webinar, outlined the achievements of AMSSNuR as part of its 2017-2021 strategic plan. He recalled that AMSSNuR has set up a national strategy for radiological monitoring of the environment, which it implements in collaboration with other actors involved in order to monitor the levels of radioactivity in the environment and, therefore, adequately counter any abnormal rise in these levels.
Taking part in this webinar, Mr. Fouad Ziadi, Inspector General at the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Environment, focused his intervention on the legal and regulatory framework relating to environmental protection in the Kingdom of Morocco.
For her part, Mrs. Lamia Fathi, Head of the Environmental Radiological Monitoring Service at AMSSNuR, dwelt on AMSSNuR’s activities in the field of radiological protection of the environment, in particular on the national network of radiological monitoring of the environment set up by AMSSNuR.
In his speech, Mr. Mohamed Zaryah, Head of the Division of Laboratories and Monitoring Networks at the National Center for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (CNESTEN), looked at the steps taken to ensure the self-monitoring of the environment around the facilities of the Maamora Nuclear Studies Center, in particular the research reactor.
This webinar was also marked by the intervention of Mr. Grégory Delécaut, Head of the IRE Lab Department of the Belgian Institute of Radioelements (IRE), one of AMSSNuR’s foreign partners working in the field of radiological monitoring of the environment. Mr. Delécaut presented the analysis and monitoring of radioactivity as part of the activities of the IRE laboratories, and highlighted the cooperation between Belgium and the Kingdom of Morocco in this field.
The upcoming thematic webinars will cover issues related to AMSSNuR’s areas of competence and expertise, including radiation safety, medical exposure optimization, nuclear or radiological emergencies, nuclear security, nuclear safety, safety of radioactive waste management, and nuclear safeguards. These webinars aim to maintain contact, to communicate about AMSSNuR’s activities and to inform the public and professionals of the latest developments in the sector, in terms of organization and regulations to ensure the safe and secure use of nuclear techniques in our country.
It should be recalled that AMSSNuR is committed to the promotion of a solid and sustainable culture of nuclear and radiological safety and security in all activities involving ionizing radiation through the implementation, in addition to regulatory control actions, of various communication actions. Indeed, AMSSNuR aims to strengthen the culture of nuclear and radiological safety and security not only among professionals, but also among the general public, in order to achieve its mission, that of protecting humans, society and the environment against the risks inherent in ionizing radiation.