The European Parliament,

- having regard to the EURATOM Treaty of 25 March 1957 and, in particular, Articles 40, 76, 85, 90 and 203 thereof and to the proposed revisions of the Treaty put forward in 1964, 1970 and 1982, as amended in 1984,

- having regard to the Community's last illustrative nuclear programme periodically published by the Commission under Article 40 of the EURATOM Treaty,

- having regard to Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 concerning the impact of certain public and private projects on the environment,

- whereas the cooperation procedure established under the 1986 Single Act has not been extended to the nuclear sector,

A. aware that there is a need to maximize the benefits and minimize the hazards involved with all sources of energy, while giving priority to the rational use of energy and respect for the environment,

B. whereas the management of radioactive waste must increasingly meet safety and environmental criteria,

C. concerned about the technological safety of nuclear installations and the right to information of the communities situated across the border from a prospective site of a nuclear plant,

1. Calls on the Commission, in order to reduce the democratic deficit, to submit formal proposals to the Council in the nuclear sector with a view to replacing the present consultation procedure with the cooperation procedure;

2. Calls for the implementation of an official common European strategy on radioactive waste management;

3. Takes the view that the location of storage sites for radioactive waste must be the subject of long-term planning in cooperation with the Member States and the bodies provided for in the EURATOM Treaty;

4. Calls on the Commission to look into the possibility of setting up a European radioactive waste agency pursuant to Article 203 of the EURATOM Treaty;

5. Calls on the Commission to propose detailed and uniform safety standards on the basis of Article 203 of the EURATOM Treaty involving the gradual standardization of components and establishment of standardized 'European' nuclear installations, i.e. installations acceptable to all the Member States' authorities responsible for nuclear safety;

6. Notes that Directive 85/337/EEC does not make adequate provision for the communities concerned to receive information about nuclear installations and calls on the Commission to revise that Directive;

7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission.