Where “the European eggheads” work
To directly experience a Europe that is close to citizens, and that aims at the hoped-for “results”, it is enough to visit one of the five sites of the Common Research Centre of the European Union. Today the CRC is a General Directorate of the Commission and represents its technological and scientific point of reference, its back up for the legislative and political activities of the 27. But the origins of the CRC can be traced back to the founding Treaties whose 50th anniversary is now being celebrated: not only the CRC, but also the European Atomic Energy Community, were established on 25 March 1957. TIMES ARE CHANGING, MISSION BEING UPDATED. The EAEC, better known as EURATOM, was aimed at responding to the needs for energy independence of the six founding countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Holland) through the exploitation of nuclear energy. This was something of a gamble, given that EURATOM’s foundation coincided with the most acute phase of the Cold War, in which the superpowers – USA and Soviet Union – confronted each other menacingly with their arsenals of atomic weapons. Times have changed since then, of course, but EURATOM has survived, adjusting its mission to the changing times. In its headquarters in Brussels a spokesman explains that it is “aimed at the formation and development of European nuclear industries”; “at the same time, it guarantees a high level of security for the population and also provides safeguards to ensure that nuclear materials destined for civil purposes are not diverted to military use”. EURATOM’s first “base” was established at Ispra, near Varese (Northern Italy): there it ran a reactor that had hitherto belonged to the Italian agency for research in this sector. EURATOM’S ANNIVERSARY. Today the first reactor at Ispra is merely a “monument” and the second, created in the 1960s, is in the process of being decommissioned. “In the 160 hectares covered by the site – explains the German BERTA DUANE , of the external relations service – three institutes are present: that for the protection and security of the citizen; that for the environment and sustainable development; and that for the health and safety of consumers”. Ispra is still devoted to atomic research, but no longer exclusively and in any case from other perspectives: security, non-proliferation, medical applications. “Some 1,700 people work here; two thirds of them are researchers from all over Europe”, she explains. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of EURATOM, a symposium with the European Commissioner for Research, the Slovene Janez Potoènik, is planned for the 11 May and an “open doors day” for 12 May. FIVE RESEARCH INSTITUTES IN EUROPE. The CRC, which employs altogether a staff of 2,700, is spread through the territory of the EU. Its General Directorate is in Brussels. The institute of materials and measurements is situated at Geel, in Belgium. That for trans-uranium elements is at Karlsruhe, in Germany; it works on the security of the nuclear fuel cycle and the management of nuclear waste. Petten, in Holland, is a focus of particular attention at the present time due to its institute for energy, in a phase in which the EU is trying to create a common energy policy. Studies on “technological prospects” are the competence of the institute located in Seville, in Spain. All CRC activities are incorporated in the EU Framework Programme for Research 2007-2013. PREVENTION OF TUMOURS, COMBATING FOOD FRAUD. While preparations continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of EURATOM, the usual activity of research continues at Ispra. The variety of branches in which European “eggheads” now work is surprising: current programmes involve the production of F-FDG, important radioactive drug used for the diagnosis of tumours. Another programme is dedicated to measuring atmospheric pollution in the fight against climate change. In the nanotechnologies laboratory, cures to various diseases are sought. Other programmes are devoted to experimenting methods to test chemical substances (in pursuit of the REACH Directive); to realise vibration-proof buildings; and to prevent animal epidemics, food fraud, food adulteration, and allergies. AT THE SERVICE OF CITIZENS. The Italian researcher GRAZIANO AZZALIN began his career in EURATOM in 1972 by studying nuclear energy: now he works in the institute for the protection of citizens. He is the inventor of Sesamonet, a safe mobility system for the visually impaired. “The idea is based on the use of microchips, with an elementary and low-cost technology, to seek routes for the blind or those with reduced vision in buildings, urban centres or in parks. Using a stick equipped with bluetooth transmitter and cell phone, the visually impaired can acquire greater autonomy of movement, or access an external database that furnishes information in real time on the chosen route, on building works or on the rooms of a museum”. Science, in short, applied to the service of the citizen.
