Analyses performed within the European Safety and Environmental Assessment of Fusion Power (SEAFP)

The Safety and Environmental Assessment of Fusion Power (SEAFP) was set up by the European fusion programme in response to recommendations made by a Fusion Programme Evaluation Board, that fusion potentially possesses “inherent environmental and safety advantages over all current alternatives for base load electricity generation”, but that a “convincing demonstration” of those potential advantages is necessary. The project began in April 1992 and reported in December 1994. The work has embraced the conceptual design of fusion power stations and the safety and environmental assessment of those designs. This paper gives very brief information on the designs but concentrates on the safety and environmental analyses. Detailed work has been performed on the identification and modelling of conceivable accident sequences, the potential hazards of normal operation, waste management, the long-term availability of materials, and other issues. Provisional and preliminary results suggest that the reality of fusionʹs safety and environmental advantages will be confirmed, and placed on a firmer footing, by the detailed SEAFP analyses, which also emphasize that the advantages do not come automatically but are dependent upon appropriate design provisions.