AUA Acopian Center Hosts IAEA Interregional Training

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YEREVAN, Armenia — From July 28 to August 2, the government of the Republic of Armenia through the American University of Armenia (AUA) Acopian Center for the Environment hosted the “Interregional Training Course on Sustainability and Circularity in Decommissioning and Environmental Remediation Projects.” This training course was organized in collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

AUA President Dr. Bruce Boghosian opened the training with welcome remarks addressed to the 30 participants and trainers from Argentina, Armenia, Belgium, Brazil, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia, Italy, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Romania, the Russian Federation, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and Uzbekistan. In his remarks, Dr. Boghosian, whose academic achievements include a degree in nuclear engineering, emphasized that AUA is keen to organize such international training programs on campus. “This is exactly why we are here and what we want to do more of,” he emphasized, adding that such initiatives fit the University’s agenda to deepen its research and educational networks globally.

The participants in the weeklong training represented various nuclear agencies or research facilities of their countries. From Armenia, the participants included representatives of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority, the National Polytechnic University of Armenia, and several environmental experts. 

The training focused on approaches to applying sustainability and circular economy concepts when decommissioning nuclear facilities and implementing environmental remediation projects. This approach considers economic, social, and environmental dimensions, promoting holistic thinking and a lifecycle perspective in decision-making.

There is an acute demand globally for qualified individuals and organizations involved in Decommissioning and Environmental Remediation (D&ER) activities. Currently, there are 416 nuclear power plants in operation globally. One hundred thirty of these are more than 40 years in operational age, and 245 are more than 35 years old. The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant falls in the 41-45 age category, and discussions are underway regarding its decommissioning. Although the first civilian nuclear power plant was put into operation 70 years ago, the existing ones are not older than 55.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The training emphasized a comprehensive approach to executing D&ER projects, focusing on dismantling, decontaminating, and demolishing buildings, alongside cleanup and waste management tasks. Participants learned to incorporate sustainability indicators into project design and execution, ensuring a balanced focus on safety and sustainability.

AUA Acopian Center and other Armenian experts also made presentations during the training. Alen Amirkhanian, director of the center, presented an overview of the circular economy, sustainable development goals, and planetary boundaries within the context of nuclear power and the overall energy industry. Harutyun Alpetyan, circular economy expert at the AUA Acopian Center, presented Armenia’s efforts to introduce extended producer responsibility and the implications of this for the energy sector. The AUA Acopian Center also invited World Bank Armenia’s energy specialist Gor Khachatryan, who discussed some of the power-sector projects underway in Armenia, including high-voltage distribution networks, and the circular economy and sustainability approaches adopted in them.

Sessions were conducted by expert trainers from Austria, Brazil, Belgium, Italy, and England. As a final task in the training program, participants conducted group projects, where they developed approaches to decommissioning or remediation projects considering circularity and sustainability requirements, identified potential risks, and suggested solutions to address the risks. All groups then presented their final project for critical review by the training instructors and their peers. This collaborative and interactive approach provided valuable hands-on experience and fostered international cooperation and knowledge sharing in the field of sustainability and circularity in D&ER projects.

Videos of the training lectures are publicly available at the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment’s YouTube channel.

The AUA Acopian Center for the Environment, a research center of the American University of Armenia (AUA), promotes the protection and restoration of the natural environment through research, education, and community outreach. The AUA Acopian Center’s focus areas include sustainable natural resource management, biodiversity protection and conservation, greening the built environment, sustainable energy, as well as information technology and the environment. Visit http://ace.aua.am