Nuclear Subsidies
Environmental campaigners have accused the Government of preparing to allow a multi-million pound “handout” to firms building nuclear reactors. Greenpeace said the move went against assurances given by ministers that the nuclear industry would not receive handouts to help build new nuclear power stations. A study commissioned by the group claimed that firms would not be liable for dealing with the waste from new reactors, leaving the taxpayer with bills running into billions. The report, written by Ian Jackson, an associate fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, said dealing with waste from each new reactor will cost around £1.5bn, but under current plans being considered by the Government, energy companies would “walk away”, having contributed as little as £500 million.
Independent 21st June 2010 more >>
Four Labour MPs have started a petition calling on the government to reinstate an £80m loan to Sheffield Forgemasters.
The engineering firm has been told it will not get the money to buy equipment needed for the nuclear power market. Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central), David Blunkett (Sheffield Brightside), Clive Betts (Sheffield SE) and Meg Munn (Sheffield Heeley) back the petition.
BBC 20th June 2010 more >>
Radioactive Waste
The development of the Olympic site in east London after the Games have finished could be in jeopardy because of radioactive waste buried beneath the site, experts have warned. According to a Guardian investigation, any development of the site risks unearthing a hundred tonnes of radioactive waste dumped at the former landfill site decades ago. Documents obtained under Freedom of Information (FOI) rules reveal that, contrary to government guidelines, waste from thorium and radium has been mixed with very low-level waste and buried in a so-called disposal cell under, or close, to the Olympic stadium.
Guardian 21st June 2010 more >>
Pylons
A public consultation is already underway about how to carry power from the new nuclear power station planned for Hinkley Point in Somerset and connect it to the existing grid 37 miles away at Avonmouth. It would supply much of Devon and Cornwall.
A second line would run 17 miles from Bramford, Suffolk, to Twinstead, Essex, to link up with another new nuclear power station at Sizewell on the east coast.
Telegraph 21st June 2010 more >>
Pakistan
A row is looming between Beijing and Washington over China’s proposed sale of two nuclear power-generating reactors to Pakistan. This would appear to break the guidelines set by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a gathering of countries who export civil nuclear technology.
BBC 20th June 2010 more >>
Telegraph 21st June 2010 more >>
Sweden
Sweden’s parliament, in defiance of a 1980 referendum when the electorate voted to phase out nuclear power, has repealed the legislation that followed the referendum and will now allow the building of new nuclear power plant to maintain its existing fleet.
Modern Power Systems 21st June 2010 more >>
Geoffrey Lean: Nuclear energy has received an important psychological boost with a decision by Sweden – one of the first countries to reject the atom – to allow the building of new reactors. The Riksdag, the country’s parliament narrowly voted late last week to allow the building of new nuclear power stations, overturning a referendum 30 years ago that voted to phase them out. It may, however, prove to be more of a psychological boost than a practical one. It will only allow existing reactors to be replaced, and so will not permit an expansion of nuclear power. They can only be built on current nuclear sites and cannot start up until their old counterparts stop. And none of the existing fleet is likely to need replacing before 2030. Furthermore public support has begun to ebb again, and opposition parties have sworn to overturn the decision if and when they gain power.
Telegraph 20th June 2010 more >>
Iran
Iran has banned two UN nuclear inspectors from entering the country, a state media report said today. The report, posted on the website of the state broadcasting company, quotes Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran’s nuclear department, as saying the Vienna-based International Agency for Atomic Energy, the UN nuclear watchdog, has been informed of the decision to ban the two inspectors. He did not name them.
Evening Echo 21st June 2010 more >>
Trident
Shirley Williams: We need a wider debate on Trident, which has been excluded from Liam Fox’s forthcoming strategic defence review. Some military leaders support him because they do not want Trident’s future to be discussed in the same context as are troop numbers and conventional equipment. But Trident cannot be excluded from the painful examination of public expenditure in all departments of government. The agreement between the partners in the UK’s new coalition government states that Britain’s nuclear deterrent will be maintained, that its renewal will be scrutinised to ensure value for money, and that the Liberal Democrats will continue to make the case for alternatives. As a Lib Dem, let me take the opportunity so helpfully offered.
Guardian 21st June 2010 more >>
Renewables
MONSTER wind turbines with blade spans that dwarf the London Eye could be the shape of future green power, it was revealed yesterday. An offshore turbine more than 500ft tall with a diameter of 475ft is already due to make an appearance in British waters within the next two years. But the 10 megawatt machine, dubbed Britannia, may only mark the start of a growing trend, according to the project’s leader Bill Grainger. He sees no reason why offshore turbines should not get even larger, since greater size and power make economic sense.
Scotsman 21st June 2010 more >>
