Looking Back to 2014: Highlights of IAEA Achievements and Activities

Combating malnutrition in children, establishing best practices for sustainable uranium mining, increasing the safety of nuclear power plants — these are some of the achievements of the IAEA in 2014, under its motto, Atoms for Peace.

Below are some of the highlights of the IAEA’s activities this year in nuclear safety and security, in non-proliferation and in the peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology.

January

• In a continuation of initiatives related to the IAEA Action Plan on Nuclear Safety, the Agency delivered the final report on remediation in Fukushima to the Government of Japan
   
• The importance of seismic evaluations to the site and design safety of nuclear installations, as well as how the IAEA’s site and external events design (SEED) review service can help, was stressed at a five-day meeting in January organized by the International Seismic Safety Centre.  
   

February

• The IAEA remains committed to participating in global efforts to combat cancer, confirmed speakers at a conference on World Cancer Day.
   
• On 8 and 9 February, the IAEA and the Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran) reached agreement on seven practical measures to be implemented by Iran by 15 May 2014 within the November 2013 Framework for Cooperation.
   
• Participants at the 8th Annual Technical Meeting on Topical Issues in the Development of a Nuclear Power Infrastructure agreed that strong government support, a firm road map, stakeholder support and financing are key issues for sustainable new nuclear power projects.
   
• The IAEA delivered a report to the government of Japan describing the findings of a two-part review of the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

March

• After four days of discussion, the IAEA's International Experts' Meeting (IEM) on Severe Accident Management in the Light of the Accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant noted that while much progress has been made, there is still more to be done to strengthen the nuclear industry's ability to significantly reduce the impact of nuclear accidents.
   
• IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano urged world leaders to further strengthen the international nuclear security regime by passing the Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials to protect nuclear material in domestic use, transport and storage, and to protect nuclear facilities against acts of terrorism. Amano spoke at the Nuclear Security Summit held from 24 to 25 March in the Hague, the Netherlands.
   

April

• Scientists from the FAO/IAEA Insect Pest Control Laboratory contributed to cracking the genetic code of the bloodsucking tsetse fly, prompting hope that the breakthrough will help future efforts to control one of the most devastating livestock diseases in sub-Saharan Africa spread by the insect. 

May

• Capacity building remains key to ensuring the continued availability of competent personnel for the safe, secure and sustainable use of nuclear power, concluded participants at the International Conference on Human Resource Development for Nuclear Power Programmes that was held in Vienna from 12 to 16 May.
   
• Over 300 delegates that met in Vienna for the IAEA International Symposium on Understanding Moderate Malnutrition in Children for Effective Interventions agreed that strong government commitment and country ownership of initiatives to address moderate malnutrition are essential to improving nutrition in children.
   
• Continuous improvement of the national and international emergency preparedness and response arrangements is crucial to the global nuclear safety regime. This was again stressed in a biannual meeting of representatives of Competent Authorities identified under the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident and the Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident of Radiological Emergency.

June

• From 2 to 6 June, experts from around the world decided to push ahead with a technical cooperation project on Assessing the Impact of Climate Change and its Effects on Soil and Water Resources on Polar and Mountainous Regions. The project aims to improve understanding of the impact of climate change on fragile polar and mountainous ecosystems on both a local and global scale, in order to help enhance agricultural water and soil management.
   
• The IAEA's contribution to a turnaround for the Washington State oyster industry in the face of ocean acidification was highlighted in a United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) publication, How Oceans — and Seas-related Measures Contribute to the Economic, Social and Environmental Dimensions of Sustainable Development.
   
• Sustainable uranium production is essential for nuclear energy, according to participants at the International Symposium on Uranium Raw Material for the Nuclear Fuel Cycle: Exploration, Mining, Production, Supply and Demand, Economics and Environmental Issues, held from 23 to 27 June at the IAEA. Also known as URAM-2014, the symposium analyzed uranium supply-demand scenarios and presented new developments in uranium geology, exploration, mining and processing, as well as in environmental requirements for uranium operations and site decommissioning.
   

July

• For States to effectively respond to the challenges of crime and terrorism, increased collaboration is essential. This was just one of the main conclusions of the International Conference on Advances in Nuclear Forensics: Countering the Evolving Threat of Nuclear and Other Radioactive Material out of Regulatory Control held at IAEA headquarters in Vienna from 7 to 10 July. 

 August

• The Vienna International Centre, site of the Agency’s headquarters, marked its 35th anniversary.
   

September

• The Uranium 2014 Report, also known as the Red Book, noted a continued rising demand for uranium despite declining market prices. The IAEA and the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) jointly publish the Red Book.
   
• The 58th Annual IAEA General Conference took place in Vienna with a strong focus on radioactive waste management.
   
• A two-day Scientific Forum, entitled Radioactive Waste: Meeting the Challenge — Science and Technology for Safe and Sustainable Solutions, was organized during the IAEA General Conference. The meeting emphasized the need for a comprehensive, integrated cradle-to-grave approach for management of radioactive waste.
   
• Awards honouring teams of scientists who have helped increase food security by using radiation to breed better crop varieties were presented at a ceremony held on the sidelines of the IAEA General Conference.
   
• The 30th meeting of senior nuclear regulators from Member States, held on the margins of the IAEA General Conference, emphasized the importance of a properly established legal and regulatory framework in order to ensure continued strengthening of nuclear safety and nuclear security.
   
• On 29 September, the IAEA Nuclear Applications Laboratories in Seibersdorf saw a gathering of ambassadors, Member State representatives and IAEA staff for the symbolic groundbreaking ceremony of the Renovation of the Nuclear Applications Laboratories (ReNuAL) project. This ceremony was held in conjunction with a celebration to mark the 50th anniversary of the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture.
   

October

• The IAEA announced that it will provide specialized diagnostic equipment to help Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea in their efforts to combat an ongoing Ebola virus disease outbreak.
   
• The world's authorities on nuclear safeguards and verification examined current and future challenges facing the nuclear verification regime at a five-day international symposium held in October. 

November

• Comparative results of sea water analysis showed that the data provided by Japanese laboratories on radioactivity levels in sea water exhibited a high level of accuracy, the IAEA found.
   
• Science and technology need to be recognized as a central part of the global development agenda, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano told the United Nations General Assembly in his annual address.
   
• A global research effort supported by FAO and the IAEA finally resolved a major biosecurity issue: four of the world’s most destructive agricultural pests are actually one and the same. 
• The IAEA’s 2014 edition of the Climate Change and Nuclear Power report examined the role of nuclear power in mitigating global climate change and how it contributes to other developmental and environmental challenges. 

December

• Scientists working in an IAEA-led project to study groundwater in South America have provided an answer as to how helium — the light noble gas that sends balloons floating in the air — enters the atmosphere. 

• Protecting medical workers and those exposed to naturally occurring radiation, such as air crew and miners, is the next frontier in occupational radiation protection, learned participants of a conference on the subject in Vienna. 
• At its meeting in December, the IAEA Board of Governors endorsed a request for the Agency to extend its monitoring and verification activities in Iran under a Joint Plan of Action agreed between Iran and six other countries. 
• A mix of solar and wind energy, carbon capture storage technology and nuclear power could provide a viable solution to countries seeking to decrease their carbon footprint by lowering the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) of their energy sector. This was the message from the IAEA at the 2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference — COP20 — held in Lima, Peru.