To introduce the HERCA WENRA approach for a better cross-border coordination of protective actions during the early phase of a nuclear accident, HERCA and WENRA held a side event during the 59th IAEA General Conference in Vienna.

At the side event, Chair of the HERCA Working Group on Emergencies Georges Piller presented the approach, which introduces a common European emergency preparedness and response approach on coordination, independent of the scenario of the accident.

Subsequently, a panel consisting of WENRA Chair Hans Wanner and HERCA Chair Sigurður Magnússon, the current and previous Chair of the HERCA Working Group on Emergencies Georges Piller and Patrick Majerus and the Chair HERCA-WENRA Task Force on Emergencies, Philippe Jamet discussed issues of emergency planning and coordination. 

"This is a very important step in improving the coherence of the response and enabling cross-border cooperation in the unlikely event of a nuclear accident " says Chair of the HERCA Working Group on Emergencies Georges Piller. "The next challenge is now to implemented these principles at national level and make sure that other relevant stakeholders such as civil protection are included."