AIE Almaraz-Trillo NPP’s commitment to respect the Environment is expressed in the organisation’s Environmental Policy.

The Environmental Policy drives the application of the Environmental Management System and its continuous improvement, reflecting the Board’s commitment and constituting the starting principles on which the programme of annual objectives is based, and in more general terms, the activities of the company in relation to the Environment.

The mission of A.I.E. CENTRALES NUCLEARES ALMARAZ-TRILLO is to produce electricity in a manner which is safe, reliable, economic, respectful of the environment and which guarantees production over the long term, by optimum operation of the Almaraz and Trillo nuclear power plants, and an Environmental Policy has been defined appropriate to its nature, magnitude and environmental impact, which serves as a reference for the establishment and review of objectives and environmental aims, and based on this, it commits to:

• Guarantee compliance with the environmental legislation in force and other voluntarily accepted requirements, maintaining an attitude of ongoing adherence.

• Operate the installations with respect for the environment, identifying, preventing, controlling and minimising, as far as possible, the environmental impact of its activities.

• Continually make improvements to all processes which could have environmental repercussions.

• Controlling and reducing, as far as reasonably possible, leakages, and conventional and nuclear waste.

• Motivating and training staff in respect to the environment, stimulating development of an environmental culture and communicating the Environmental Policy within and outside the Organisation.

• Introducing and maintaining updated a Standard Environmental Management System.

Almaraz-Trillo Nuclear Plants continued to develop significant activities in relation to environmental issues during 2016, which are incorporated in the Environmental Management Programme, the most significant of which are detailed below:

Both Plants have continued design modifications to eliminate the use of fluorinated gases which can potentially affect the ozone layer. Since this programme began, approximately 130 items of equipment have been replaced at both Plants.

At Almaraz NPP, the fillings in the cooling towers of the Turbine Building Cooling Water System have been replaced, an improvement directed against Legionella.

In addition, a major improvement in management of the waste toner has been undertaken by prior segregation, which has resulted in a reduction of a factor of about 5 in the quantities generated.

Trillo NPP has begun a design modification to install a floating barrier at the dam, to minimise the impact on the Tagus river of intake clean-ups. Installation is scheduled for 2017.

Also, at Trillo NPP, testing of the treatment with chlorine dioxide against Legionella has continued in the main cooling towers.

At the corporate level, actions have been taken aimed at reducing paper consumption in the organisation, by replacing the traditional distribution with electronic distribution.

Regarding high level waste constituted by the spent fuel extracted from the reactor, Almaraz NPP has obtained favourable decision regarding the Environmental Impact Statement issued by MAGRAMA and the corresponding administrative authorisation from MINETAD to construct an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI), which will be implemented in 2017.

From 26 September to 30 September 2016, the third-cycle of the Environmental Management System Audit (ISO 14001) was carried out by the Spanish Association for Standardisation and Certification (Asociación Española de Normalización y Certificación - AENOR), after the Certificate had been in force for eleven years, and was found to be compliant.

The auditors inspected the Almaraz and Trillo plants and the activities at the Power Plant Offices. Previously, in April, an internal audit of the System was performed, an obligatory part of the verification process.

There were several inspections by the Nuclear Safety Council on subjects related to the environment at both plants.

Almaraz and Trillo Plants have historically run several environmental monitoring programmes, with the aim of verifying the absence of significant environmental impacts as a consequence of their activities, whether of a radiological or conventional type.

Basically, two environmental studies are carried out in the surroundings of Almaraz NPP, which includes the Arrocampo and Torrejón reservoirs: an ecological study of the aquatic ecosystem and a thermal study of the reservoirs.

These surveillance studies are far reaching because the Arrocampo must also be considered as another Plant system, as it was built exclusively for industrial use to cool Almaraz NPP, and is used for final heat dissipation and therefore it is necessary to have as accurate as possible knowledge of its characteristics in terms of its ability to perform its cooling function, in both the short and long/term. This requires intensive monitoring and surveillance of both physical and chemical parameters, especially temperature, as well as biological factors.

The environmental study of the aquatic ecosystems carried out near the Trillo plant consists currently of monitoring the river Tajo, where the thermal surplus discharge is made after cooling in the towers, and the general physico-chemical condition of the Plant, and the Entrepeñas reservoir, located downstream in the proximity of the Plant.

This study includes evaluating the water quality from the physico-chemical viewpoint, and its content of metals and other undesirable substances, as well as the characteristics of other elements of the aquatic ecosystem such as sediments, benthic algae, phyto and zoo plankton and ichthyofauna.