New Nukes
Pressure on the government to organise an independent inquiry into a new generation of nuclear power stations will intensify today with a call for action from a group of 90 high-ranking academics, politicians and technical experts. The huge lobby says the “climategate” email scandal and other events have shaken public trust in the scientific governance of environmental risk, making a wider assessment of nuclear power more important than ever. Paul Dorfman, an energy policy research fellow at Warwick University who has been coordinating support for an inquiry, said more debate was needed for a decision on nuclear to have full democratic backing. “The kind of consultation we have had so far has been flawed and inadequate. The government has put the cart before the horse by wanting endorsement before either the design of the reactor and the way waste will be treated has been decided. There is a democratic deficit here that needs correcting,” he said.
Guardian 11th Mar 2010 more >>
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMech) has today warned that the government’s plan for a “renaissance” in low carbon nuclear power is in danger of stalling as a result of skills shortages, planning barriers and funding issues.
Business Green 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Nuclear Build: A Vote of No Confidence?
IMechE Report, 10th March 2010 more >>
National Policy Statements
The final Energy and Climate Change Select committee session saw energy Minister Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – or Phil, as Paddy Tipping MP called him – flanked by two of his officials Adam Dawson and Anne Stuart, give evidence.
Bircham Dyson & Bell 5th March 2010 more >>
Cumbria
A temporary port and better infrastructure would be needed if west Cumbria is to host a deep-storage repository for nuclear waste, MPs have heard. Dr Joe McHugh, head of Radioactive Substances Regulation at the Environment Agency, said the move would allow big items to be transported by water and take pressure off local roads. Giving evidence before the North West regional committee looking into the future of nuclear power across the region, he said: “For a repository to happen a lot of the infrastructure would need to be upgraded and enforced in Cumbria.
Cumberland News 10th Mar 2010 more >>
LAND further away from Sellafield than Longlands, near Gosforth, might prove suitable for burying higher levels of radioactive waste, MPs have been told. Longlands Farm near Gosforth was the preferred option in the 1990s until Nirex failed to get approval to build an underground rock laboratory to test if the geology was safe. The inspector at a public inquiry into the rock lab application considered that the Longlands site was flawed. This week a House of Commons Select Committee examining the future of the nuclear industry in the North West heard that Copeland might throw up another potential site.
Whitehaven News 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Hinkley
AN electrical storm is brewing in Sedgemoor over plans to turn part of a world-famous beauty spot into a corridor of giant pylons. Anger is building in communities across Mark and the Huntspills, after National Grid this week announced more consultation events over its pylon proposals, which would see electricity taken away from a new nuclear plant at Hinkley Point across the Somerset Levels. But – as our front-page picture shows – placard-wielding villagers believe the scenic flat countryside would be ravaged by the 46-metre pylons and are demanding National Grid considers underground or undersea cables.
This is the West Country 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Calder Hall
Letter from David Lowry: I was surprised to read in your articles on covering nuclear waste management projects at the Sellafield and Dounreay nuclear complexes that you describe Sellafield as hosting the world’s first “commercial nuclear power plant [station].” To describe the Calder Hall plant as a commercial reactor is misleading. The Times on 17 October 1956 described Calder Hall as the “first full scale” nuclear plant, not the world’s first “civil” nuclear power plant. It pointed out: “As well as the generation of electricity, it serves a military purpose the production of plutonium.”
New Civil Engineer 11th Mar 2010 more >>
Sellafield
EXPOSING bus drivers to radiation while taking children and elderly people to places of safety has blown a hole in Sellafield’s emergency plans. Emergency planners were told this week that drivers would be at risk taking coaches into a radiation plume in order to evacuate or rescue children from schools and residents of care homes.
Whitehaven News 10th Mar 2010 more >>
COUNCILLORS are to ask Sellafield if a route can be created through the nuclear site to alleviate long-standing traffic problems on the A595. The move to create a diversion comes after years of complaints from drivers who face lengthy detours when the road between Calderbridge and Gosforth is closed by roadworks or accidents. A number of alternative routes have been proposed, and councillors have decided that the Sellafield plan – to provide a fenced route through the site for traffic in a convoy system under escort – is top of their list.
Whitehaven News 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Companies
A decommissioning project at Sellafield helped construction and engineering company Costain to achieve ‘excellent’ results.The Berkshire company said the region is of increasing performance, particularly the nuclear sector, and that it now employs nearly 1,000 people in the North West.
Business Desk 10th Mar 2010 more >>
The boom in school and hospital building is over and the future of civil engineering is nuclear, according to Costain, the engineering and construction group.
Times 11th Mar 2010 more >>
Europe
EU pushes worldwide binding standards on nuke plant builds while France leads way with possible Chernobyl II. The head of the European Commission, Jos Manuel Barroso began a European Union-wide push on Monday to enforce European nuclear safety standards on the building of atomic energy plants to become the binding worldwide standard, while French president Nicolas Sarkozy chastised international banks’ reluctance to invest in nuclear power. The development is seen by analysts as something that could clear the path for France to sell its expensive technology and expertise to other countries. But French environmental groups are warning that the wares its country have on sale are catastrophes waiting to happen.
Bellona 8th March 2010 more >>
Brussels is against member states exporting their nuclear waste to countries outside the EU or to store it in joint sites, energy commissioner Gunther Oettinger said, as the commission is working on a set of common safety standards for this dangerous material.
EU Observer 10th March 2010 more >>
Market watchers have today downplayed speculation that the EU could drive up the price of carbon in its emissions trading scheme, after leaked documents revealed plans to cancel the auction of emission allowances during the next phase of the scheme if prices reach “abnormally low” levels. Two documents leaked to Reuters last week showed that officials are working on plans for how emission allowances (EUAs) for the third phase of the scheme, which comes into effect in 2013, should be auctioned.
Business Green 10th Mar 2010 more >>
The European Union and Russia have agreed to enter into a “nuclear partnership agreement” to assist in nuclear trade and safety-oriented transactions. Russian nuclear technology is now considered to be advanced. As such, it has become a leading global supplier of nuclear fuels as well as materials and equipment to Europe. With the exception of a few European nations such as Austria, Germany and Sweden that have expressed opposition to more internal nuclear development, the continent as a whole is working to expand the technology. Member states are free to pursue their own policy, although they are obligated to abide by international carbon treaties.
Commodities Now 10th Mar 2010 more >>
France
French state-controlled utility EdF has reconnected the 1,300MW unit 1 at its Nogent nuclear plant. The unit went off line unexpectedly during the night of 2-3 March as a result of a fault on an item of non-nuclear equipment. The plant’s 1,300MW unit 2 is off line for maintenance. The reconnection leaves EdF’s total unavailable capacity at 10.8GW, or 17.3pc of the total.
Argus Media 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Turkey
South Korea’s plans to become a global player in the nuclear industry were boosted yesterday by the signing of a co-operation agreement betweenKorea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) and Turkey’s Elektrik retim (EUAS), the two countries’ state power companies.
FT 11th Mar 2010 more >>
Aldermaston
With the launch of a powerful laser facility, Britain’s most secretive lab is opening up to academics.
Nature 10th Mar 2010 more >>
Renewables
UK small wind turbine manufacturers say they will lose out to foreign solar panel manufacturers in the race to cash in on the UK government’s new feed-in tariff scheme. They claim their products will be penalised because solar panel owners will receive higher government subsidies than wind turbine buyers. As the arrangement stands, a wind turbine would qualify for 26.7-34.5p per KWh in government subsidies, while solar panels would typically bring in 41p per KWh. Alex Murley, RenewableUK’s head of small systems, said: “Small wind is the only microgeneration technology which UK manufacturers dominate the market for. If we don’t get this right we could be shooting ourselves in the foot and killing off a burgeoning UK success story.”
Guardian 11th Mar 2010 more >>
