Welcome

It wouldn’t be surprising, given the amount of government and industry propaganda, if people actually started to believe new nuclear reactors are an essential solution to climate change. The media gives the impression the public has already reluctantly accepted the need for nuclear power, but opinion polls still show a healthy scepticism. Building more reactors is one of the worst possible responses to climate change, and there is growing evidence it will actually worsen the problem compared with spending the same money and time on alternative options.

The Government has stated its intention to promote the construction of new reactors and hopes construction of the first batch will start in 2013. But anti-nuclear groups are springing up around the anticipated sites. At the same time groups are also being established around proposed new coal-fired power stations, open cast coal mines. Our view is that both new coal stations, without carbon capture, and new reactors would be a disaster for the climate.

This website aims to show why we should not learn to love, or even reluctantly accept nuclear power, because it will seriously damage efforts to tackle climate change. The site is designed to provide information for everyone from committed anti-nuclear campaigners to people who may be campaigning on other climate issues who just want to dip in occasionally.

August 2009

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Current Actions

Please sign this new petition http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/NuclearNo

The draft Justification decision and the draft Nuclear National Policy Statement (NNPS) – along with a range of other energy-related national policy statements were published on 9th November 2009, and are open for consultation until 22nd February 2010.

Details of current actions >>

News

Daily News Roundup

A daily digest of nuclear news.

Latest news roundup >>

 

NuClear News

NuClear News is a free monthly newsletter designed to keep climate campaigners informed about nuclear developments in the UK, and anti-nuclear campaigners about climate issues.

March 2010 issue >>

 

Safe Energy No 47, June 2009

The latest issue of the e-Journal >>

 

Comment

Editorial: Long live the local energy revolution

Pete Roche criticises the Government’s energy plans for a lack of commitment to small-scale renewables.

Editorial >>

 

New Nuclear at Bradwell is not Inevitable

Andrew Blowers argues that Bradwell is not a suitable site for a new nuclear power station.

More >>

 

Information

Edinburgh Combined Heat and Power

Scottish Power has been running a consultation about the idea of replacing Cockenzie coal-fired power station with a CCGT gas-fired station. This would be an ideal time for the City of Edinburgh Council to dust off the CHP feasibility study produced by a consortium, formed in 1984, of various organisation, including Edinburgh District Council. So we thought we'd dust off the SCRAM Safe Energy Journal article Edinburgh Heat Plans written by Councillor Richard Kerley in 1987.

Building new reactors damages attempts to tackle climate change

The risk associated with building new reactors is much worse than simply increasing the risks associated with nuclear power. The danger is that nuclear investment will crowd out investment in renewables and undermine energy efficiency. If we divert attention, political effort and resources from the urgent programmes needed to effectively tackle climate change not only will we miss our targets, but as past experience suggests we could end up with carbon emissions still rising in 2025 because the nuclear programme has been hit by problems and delays.

More on new reactors >>

French EPR – an absolute disaster

Greenpeace has condemned French President Nicolas Sarkozy's announcement of plans to build a second European Pressurised nuclear Reactor (EPR) in France: “Only a blind man could fail to see that the EPR has been an absolute disaster. Sarkozy's announcement is nothing short of lunacy. He should be cancelling the construction of France's current EPR, not ordering a new one.”

More on EPR >>

The Civil Nuclear Power Revival and Nuclear Proliferation

Our latest briefing looks at the nuclear weapons proliferation risks of a revival in civil nuclear power.

Briefing >>

 

Wise up to nuclear folly

A classic article by Green Guru Amory Lovins from Green Futures, March 2006, has made it onto the magazine’s re-vamped website. Investing in nuclear power, says Lovins, is the worst thing we can do for climate change. Nuclear is a once-significant but now dying industry already fading from the marketplace, overtaken and humbled by swifter rivals. Efforts to ‘revive’ this moribund technology will only waste time and money.

Green Futures 8th Match 2006 >>

 

The Convenient Solution

Greenpeace has just launched a new film about nuclear power and climate change, called The Convenient Solution. We all know that, to stop climate change, we need to stop burning fossil fuels. The Government says we need nuclear power to do this. This new film explains why nuclear power can’t stop climate change – and lays down a better, cheaper, more convenient solution.

See the video >>

 

Intelligent Energy Futures

There is a growing number of reports showing how it is possible to make the deep cuts in CO₂ emissions that are needed using conservation of energy and renewable sources of energy, and without nuclear power. (See a list of some of them with a summary of each and a link for downloading.)

 

Books

 

We have selected a range of books which we think may be of interest to visitors to this site.

You can browse by category and get further information and make purchases on the Amazon website.

Books >>