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All our expertise to protect you
IRSN : all our expertise to protect you
IRSN, a public expert with industrial and commercial activities, was set up in 2001. Learn more about who we are and our missions.
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Annual Report 2021
The annual report offers a comprehensive panorama of the year’s key events.
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Health consequences of a nuclear accident
Numerous research programs and epidemiological studies were and are being conducted on the health consequences for first responders, workers, and affected populations following the Chernobyl accident in 1986 and the Fukushima Daiichi accident in 2011. This in-depth feature provides a summary of these studies.
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Presentation
IRSN – Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety – is the French national public expert in nuclear and radiological risks.As a research and expert appraisal organization, IRSN contributes to the implementation of public policies concerning nuclear safety and security and health and environmental protection against ionizing radiation.
Nuclear safety
IRSN contributes to the safety of existing and future nuclear facilities through a wide range of activities: examining the files submitted by Operators of facilities in operation or under construction, supporting inspection teams from the French safety authority, contributing to the process of updating national and international regulations, developing research programs regarding the prevention of accidents...
Radiation protection
With ionizing radiation being found in such wide-ranging applications, radiation protection for workers and the public is an essential aspect of IRSN’s activity.
IRSN is responsible for performing radiological monitoring of the environment throughout France, carries out research and analysis to better understand the exposure of workers exposed to radiation, and works to improve the conditions of patient exposure.
Emergency, post-accident situations
In the event of an incident or accident involving sources of ionizing radiation, IRSN provides guidance to public authorities on the technical, public health and medical measures to be taken to protect the population, workers and the environment, while restoring safety at facilities. IRSN's emergency response center can be called in at all times.
Security and non-proliferation
IRSN contributes to national and international efforts to control nuclear and sensitive materials and protect facilities against malicious acts, through the enforcement of treaties on control of nuclear and sensitive materials, and the escort of international and national inspection teams.
A global partner
North & South America
51 partnerships with American, Canadien and Cuban organizations.
Contracts and cooperations with NRC, DOE...
Africa & the Middle-East
3 partnerships with local authorities.
Contracts with NNR, FANR, STEG, CNESTEN...
Asia & Oceania
39 agreements with organizations from 6 countries.
European Union
153 agreements with organizations from 19 countries.
Contracts with BNRA, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, GEN-Energija...
Outside European Union
42 partnerships with organizations from other European countries.
Contracts with SNRIU, Novarka...
IRSN is a global player with 329 active cooperation agreements and contracts in 47 countries.
As a technical safety organization (TSO), IRSN is also operating scientific partnership and providing scientific cooperation and services through agreements with international organizations, and is a founding member or partner in 14 organizations and networks. More
Latest newsAll the news
Assessing, researching, protecting, anticipating, and sharing: these are IRSN's missions at the service of public authorities and the population. Discover the main strategic directions and projects that have marked our year in the 2021 annual report.
The European Partnership for Radiation Protection Research will contribute to improving the protection of the public, workers, patients and the environment from environmental, occupational and medical exposure to ionizing radiation.
VUEZ and IRSN have been collaborating for 20 years on one aspect of long-term cooling of a nuclear reactor during an accident situation, specifically the efficiency of the sumps, the ultimate means for protecting the core in these situations.
On Wednesday, April 6, CEO Jean-Christophe Niel welcomed to Cadarache a delegation from the Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) led by Tommi Nyman, Vice President of the Nuclear Energy Division.
In a press release on 21 March 2022, the Ukrainian safety authority SNRIU indicated that forest fires had been burning in the Chernobyl exclusion zone since 11 March, mainly in the central and west areas of the exclusion zone created after the accident in 1986.
Fields of activity
IRSN contributes to the safety of existing and future nuclear facilities, and to radiological monitoring of the national territory and workers exposed to ionizing radiations.
IRSN offers its expertise and services in nuclear safety, human radiation protection and protection of the environment to authorities and industrials across the world.
Research
IRSN’s research focuses not only on acquiring new scientific knowledge, but also on developing technical tools required to control risks and help expand the Institute's expertise capabilities. These programs are adapted to take into account normative, regulatory, technological, industrial and social issues.