Concept of Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel in the EU Law. Advantages of Using Spent Nuclear Fuel

The formation of the unified legal terminology “radioactive waste”, “spent nuclear fuel” and the legal regulation of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel management in the European Union law started in 1992 and was completed in 2011 with Directive 2011/70/Euratom, which became the key legal act for further development of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel management as an object of legal regulation in European Union law. The methods of scientific knowledge based on dialectical and historical materialism, the methods of logical, system-structural and comparative legal analysis were used in the research. With a unified legal toolkit, Directive 2011/70/Euratom has created a legal framework for a more intensive integration of the Member States of the European Union in the nuclear power industry, which further strengthens the unified European nuclear industry. At the same time, it exposed the contradictions between the Member States of the European Union in their approach to the use of spent nuclear fuel. The struggle between the proponents of a closed and open nuclear fuel cycle in European Union law continues. These different approaches are reflected in the laws of the Member States of the European Union, which apply them in their nuclear industries. A compromise has been reached through Directive 2011/70/Euratom. However, proponents and opponents of a closed nuclear fuel cycle continue to argue about its economic and environmental feasibility. At the same time, new technologies for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel have already demonstrated their tangible economic benefits and environmental safety in practice.