Nuclear facilities in Japan are listed in Table A1-1, the details of which are described in Section D.<br/>The overview of spent fuel management and radioactive waste management and the current<br/>status of the preparation of radioactive waste disposal regulation system are shown in Table<br/>A1-2 and Table A1-3 respectively.

This report demonstrates how Canada continues to meet its obligations under the terms of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management. A collaboration by government, industry and the regulatory body, this document focuses specifically on the progress of long-term management initiatives for spent fuel and radioactive waste in Canada, revisions and updates to Canada’s Third National Report and comments and issues raised at the Third Review Meeting.

Ireland became a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency in 1970. In March, 2000, Ireland was the 25th State to ratify the IAEA Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, thus bringing the Convention into force.

On 29 September 1997, the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management was open for signature at the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. Brazil signed the Convention on October 11th, 1997 and ratified it by the Legislative Decree 1019 of November 14th, 2005. Brazil deposited the instrument of ratification with the Depositary on 17 February 2006.

Historically, electricity generated in Switzerland came exclusively from hydropower without any recourse to fossil fuels, the latter not being available as a natural resource in the country. In the mid 1950's, an interest in the relatively new nuclear energy technology was manifested to cover an increasing electricity demand. In accordance with the general policy concerning the production of electricity, the promotion and use of nuclear energy was left to the initiative of the private sector.

This report is established by France in accordance with Article 32 of the Joint Convention on the implementation of<br/>the obligations of the Joint Convention. It presents more<br/>particularly the latest developments in the management of<br/>spent fuel and radioactive waste in France in the<br/>framework of the fourth review meeting of the Joint<br/>Convention.

The United States (U.S.) of America ratified the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel<br/>Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management (Joint Convention) on<br/>April 9, 2003. The Joint Convention establishes an international peer review process among<br/>Contracting Parties and provides incentives for nations to take appropriate steps to bring their nuclear activities into compliance with general safety standards and practices.

On 10 March 1999, the Netherlands signed the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, which was subsequently formally ratified on 26 April 2000 and entered into force on 18 June 2001. The Joint Convention obliges each contracting party to apply widely recognized principles and tools in order to achieve and maintain high standards of safety during management of spent fuel and radioactive waste.

Questions and Answers to the National Report of the Czech Republic

On 25 March 1999 the government of the Czech Republic approved the Joint Convention which came into effect in the Czech Republic on 18 June 2001. In agreement with the obligations resulting from its accession to the Joint Convention the Czech Republic has drawn already the fourth National Report for the purposes of review meetings of the contracting parties, which describes the system of spent fuel and radioactive waste management in the scope required by selected articles of the Joint Convention.