Mongolia Training and Tutoring Feedback DAMDINSUREN ZUZAAN General Agency for Specialized Inspection

Brief Introduction to the country Mongolia Mongolia, located on the northern plateau of Central Asia, is a landlocked country, bounded on the north by Russia and on the east, south and west by China. The climate is harsh, with extremes of both heat and cold. The country is sparsely populated, around 3 million inhabitants. The country is slightly larger than the State of Alaska, or approximately the size of Western Europe, which makes it the seventh largest country in Asia and 18th largest in the world. Mongolia is the non-nuclear country since there are no nuclear facility in the territory of the Mongolia.

In compliance with resolution of the Government of Mongolia on “Forming regulatory and executor agency of the government” the Nuclear Energy Agency performs its duties under the competence of the Prime Minister as a Regulatory Agency of the Government of Mongolia in 2008. In Dec 2014, status of Nuclear Energy Agency of Government of Mongolia is demolished by governmental resolution act No.387. according to this act, NEA is reorganized into Nuclear Energy Commission and Regulatory body is shifted into General Agency for Specialized Agency. The Nuclear Energy Commission is responsible for the coordination of peaceful uses of radioactive minerals and nuclear energy, research and development of nuclear technology and nuclear and radiation safety.

General Agency for Specialized Inspection The General Agency for Specialized Inspection, GASI, is the state centralized institution that implements all specialized inspections to organize the inspections of implementation of legislations and other regulations, procedures and standards, to provides local specialized inspection institutions with guidance and professional support, to train and re-train qualified workers, to improve their work conditions and social security. The GASI has also established procedures for authorization, inspection and enforcement for practices and control of radiation source users. System of notification, authorization, inspection and enforcement for radiation sources are generally in place, but need upgrading. Enforcement actions are well established and effectively implemented in Mongolia.

STATE POLICY AND NUCLEAR ENERGY LAW Regulatory Framework STATE POLICY AND NUCLEAR ENERGY LAW State Policy of Mongolia on the Exploitation of Radioactive Minerals and Nuclear Energy /Parliament Resolution No.45, 25 June, 2009/ Nuclear Energy Law of Mongolia /Parliament of Mongolia, 16 July, 2009/ “… Mongolia will pursue a complex policy aimed to study its radioactive minerals resources and its exploitation, processing and exporting for peaceful purposes and further the utilization of nuclear energy and production of electricity and power through the introduction of technology friendly to human health and environment; ..” “… The purpose of Nuclear Energy law shall be to regulate relations pertaining to exploitation of radioactive minerals and nuclear energy on the territory of Mongolia for peaceful purposes, ensuring nuclear and radiation safety, and protecting population, society and environment from negative impact of ionizing radiation. ...” Functions and powers of Regulatory Authority have been described in the Nuclear Energy law.

Radioactive Minerals in Mongolia Uranium resources Exploitation of radioactive mineral particularly, uranium mining increases annually worldwide. Mongolia stands in 15th by known uranium resource and might advance to 5th place if anticipatory predictions will be approved. Divers in uranium mining: • “Cogegobi” LCC (the Areva Group, the French Republic) • “Emeelt Mines” LLC (CNNC, The People’s Republic of China) • “Gurvan Bulag” LLC (Denison Mines, Canada) • In total 13 foreign and national invested companies in uranium exploration

Radiation applications in Mongolia Radioactive source users Although Mongolia is the non-nuclear country, radiation applications in medicine, industry, geology and etc, are increasing year by year. produce agriculture medicine geology mining environment education scientific nuclear technology nuclear safety research & security

Cooperation Projects in T&T 2014-2015 - EUROPEAN COMMISSION PROJECTS The Initiation of Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Commision and Mongolia took place on 20 December 2010 in Ulaanbaatar. Following project is implemented under the Nuclear Safety Cooperation Instrument of European Commission. “MN3.01/11, Establishment of a Regulatory Framework for Uranium Mines and Milling Operations in Mongolia”

Implementation of MN3.01/11 - Establishment of a Regulatory Framework for Uranium Mines and Milling Operations in Mongolia Purpose of this project is to develop nuclear and radiation safety related regulations on uranium mining exploration and exploitation, and to train and prepare radiation safety and protection officers who are responsible for ensuring nuclear and radiation safety. Works being implemented through this project are listed as follows: Organized training course on “Basic Introduction to uranium mining and processing facilities” on 10-14 Nov 2014 in Ulaanbaatar. Organized training course on “Radiation Safety in uranium mining and Environmental Impact Assessment” on 24-28 Aug 2015 in Ulaanbaatar.

Implementation of MN3.01/11 - Establishment of a Regulatory Framework for Uranium Mines and Milling Operations in Mongolia (Cont.) Steering Committee Meeting is held on 27 Aug 2015 in Ulaanbaatar in which past activities and the way forward are discussed. Organized Training courses on “Regulatory System and Management Activities related to radioactive minerals” and “Security, Emergency Preparedness and Record to the Radioactive materials” in Ulaanbaatar.

Cooperation Projects in T&T 2014-2015 Cooperation Projects in T&T 2014-2015 - IAEA projects Cooperation Projects in T&T 2014-2015 Mongolia has been participating in International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) technical cooperation programmes since 1975. The following projects are ongoing: MON9006 Strengthening of Regulatory and Radiation Protection Technical Capabilities /2012-2014/ MON9007 Upgrading Regulatory and Radiation Protection Technical Capabilities /ongoing/ Within the scope of these projects: Human resources in Regulatory and Radiation Protection are strengthened through the many valuable training courses and fellowships Technical capacity in Radiation control laboratory is improved heavily by receiving new analytical equipment Experts from IAEA are invited several times in Mongolia to evaluate and recommend Regulatory and Radiation Protection system of Mongolia.

Future Needs in the present Training and Tutoring Catalogue Depending on radioactive mineral exploitation and radiation application increase, as mentioned before, some specific fields are highlighted in the future: Basic nuclear safety concepts, regulatory functions, licensing Nuclear fuel cycle and uranium mining from a regulatory perspective Radiation source in medical, industrial and research related applications Transport of radioactive material and Radioactive waste management Inspection of environmental and occupational radiation protection U mining Safety Training for decision makers Training in technical discipline INSC coordination meeting on T&T

Lessons Learned: Good Practices Within scope of project “MN3.01/11, Establishment of a Regulatory Framework for Uranium Mines and Milling Operations in Mongolia”: Four specialists participated in on the job training in Germany and Hungarian regulatory authorities on Jan 2016. Six specialists from different authorities participated in on the job training (OJT) in Canadian and Australian regulatory authorities on Apr 2016 to study these countries’ experience on inspection for uranium mining and license giving process. Above mentioned OJTs are evaluated as valuable practices which has been providing effective results in Mongolian regulatory authorities. Therefore, we are highly appreciated these OJT experiences.

Lessons Learned: Good Practices (Cont.) Within scope of project “MN3.01/11, Establishment of a Regulatory Framework for Uranium Mines and Milling Operations in Mongolia”: Many training courses are organized in Mongolia between local regulatory authorities and related organizations to upgrade and strengthen their knowledge in uranium mining and milling, environmental impact assessment, and nuclear and radiation safety and etc. As results of training courses, not only their knowledge in these fields are improved but also cooperation between local regulatory authorities are strengthened significantly. Regional courses: Practical work