Renew On Line (UK) 34

Extracts from the November-December 2001 edition of Renew
These extracts only represent about 25% of it

15. Nuclear News

Nuclear Phase Outs and diversification

The UK’s plan to phase out its nuclear plants as they reach their retirement date and not replace them, may be under threat, as rumours abound of plans for new plants. Certainly its ‘diminishing reliance policy’ means that, unless new renewable capacity was put in place, or other carbon dioxide emission reduction actions taken, net emissions would increase. Earlier this year, Larry Whitty, then Under Secretary of State at the DETR, commented (Guardian Feb 9) that this had already been taken into account: ‘our projections include a 15% reduction in output from nuclear energy by 2010. Even if the Wylfa and Oldbury nuclear power stations closed before 2010, that would only add 0.6% to our total C02 emissions - compared to estimated cuts of 19%. I can confirm that the UK's climate change programme will reduce the UK's greenhouse gas emissions by up to 23% below 1990 levels in 2010. This is considerably beyond our legally binding Kyoto target of a 12.5% cut’. Sounds convincing. And, as noted in Renew 133, two days before the election, Tony Blair did say that ‘We have absolutely no plans to expand nuclear power’. But that’s maybe not the same thing as not having plans to replace retiring plants.

Just before the news of the PIU Review emerged, Patrick Wintour commented (Guardian 19 June) ‘A number of senior government ministers privately believe that a revival of nuclear power is inevitable if Britain is to maintain security of energy supply’ and added that in effect ‘Labour has shelved a manifesto commitment not to build nuclear power stations’. But a policy shift would be very unpopular not least since it could mean a new tax: according to the FT (July 2 ), ‘Bankers say there is little prospect of the market financing a rebuild programme without substantial support from the government in the form of subsidies or taxes on other energy sources’. So maybe Labour will have to stick to its phase out policy- and push renewables .

Elsewhere, nuclear phase out plans may be even harder to balance with carbon saving measures. For example, at present more than half of Belgiums electricity comes from nuclear plants. In 1999, the federal government introduced a moratorium on the development of nuclear power, including the use of MOX, and there are plans to deactivate existing nuclear plants as soon as they are 40 years old. This means that the first will be closed down in 2014, and that Belgium will have phased out nuclear by 2025. The federal plan for Sustainable Development 2000-03 includes proposals to increase the use of renewables so that they contribute over 2% of primary energy by the year 2003. The Flemish government set a goal to generate 3% of electricity from renewables by 2004, and 5% by 2010.

The overall target set for Belgium in the EU’s indicative plan for renewables was a 6% contribution from renewables to electricity supply by 2010. That should be compared with the UK’s target of 10%- itself one of the lowest in the EU. For example, France has been given a target of 15%, Spain 25%, Sweden 60% and Austria 78%. Clearly Belgium has even further to catch up than the UK: currently it only has just over a 1% contribution from renewables. The Belgian government has however launched a quite ambitious programme to support renewables and other sustainable technologies, looking at offshore wind for example. Belgium did in fact build one of the first major causeway mounted wind farms at Zeebrugger harbour. Soon it looks likely to push ahead to try to catch up with the rest of Europe.

Meanwhile, the German government, which recently got agreement with the leading German energy producers that all nuclear power stations would be removed from operation over the next two decades, has unveiled plans for massive development of offshore wind power to help the country reconcile its climate protection goals with its nuclear phase-out policy. The aim is to obtain between 75 and 80 terrawatt hours of electricity annually from offshore wind parks by 2030. This is equivalent to nearly 60% of the nuclear electricity produced last year in Germany. Two areas of the North Sea had been identified as appropriate for the construction of turbines which would total 4,000 by 2030. The areas were claimed to be compatible with wildlife conservation.

http://www.bmu.de/download/dateien/offshore01.pdf

‘No need for nukes’

The UK can and should cut its carbon emissions without recourse to new nuclear generating capacity, according to the Forum for the Future. As mentioned in Renew 133, the Forums new report ‘The UK’s Transition to a Low carbon Economy’ is based on modelling of greatly enhanced state backing for renewable energy, combined heat and power (CHP), greater household energy efficiency, or a combination of all three. They claim that not only must the government be bolder in this respect, but it must also remove obstacles to sustainable energy use, including “excessively low energy prices”. The results of the models, it claims, “emphatically demonstrate the economic and technical viability of a non-nuclear strategy,” since the UK “can gain both economic and environmental benefits from moving boldly towards a low-carbon, non-nuclear energy future”.

Without decisive government action of the sort it proposes, the Forum acknowledges, British carbon emissions are likely to rise back up to their 1990 level by 2020, at least in part due to closure of most of the country’s nuclear capacity by then. We’ll review the report in Renew 135.

Chernobyl Fifteen years on

Nuclear fallout from the Chernobyl accident on April 26 1986 spread radioactive contamination over Europe, with Wales being particularly badly affected. The levels of contamination led to Government restrictions being imposed on sheep holdings in North Wales. Hundreds of square kilometres of land in Wales are still operating under these restrictions because of the continuing high levels of contamination in sheep - the most recently published figures for Wales show approximately 530 square kilometres of land under Government restrictions, covering about 359 whole and partial holdings.

Meanwhile, environmental organisations in Wales are warning that safety problems at the Wylfa nuclear power station on Ynys Môn mean that the area would live under the threat of another nuclear accident if the station is ever allowed to restart. They are calling for its permanent closure. The station was shut in April 2000 following the discovery of defects in welds on pipes inside the reactor pressure vessel. BNFL plans to get permission to restart the reactors by fitting ‘restraints’ to the outside of the pressure vessel. However, the nuclear industry’s safety regulator admits that this measure would not stop the defective welds from breaking open, it would merely limit the extent of a radioactive release if they did break. A report commissioned by Greenpeace from independent consultant engineers Large & Associates concluded that a failure of the welds could ultimately lead to a severe accident and significant releases of radioactivity.

‘Review of Ageing Processes and Their Influence on Safety and Performance at Wylfa Nuclear Power Station’, Large & Associates, March 2001

AEA & Harwell

AEA Technology, the diversified and privatised version of the old UK Atomic Energy Authority, which has been facing profitability problems, is being broken up. Its nuclear business is being sold off to a subsidiary of a German utility RWE, with the epic name of Nukem Nuclear, for around £34m. Some staff at the AEA’s once world famous Lab at Harwell will be dispersed to Sellafield, and overall AEA Technology would become just 30% of its original size.

* Meanwhile, Russia seems to be trying to make money by offering its services as a final resting place for the worlds nuclear waste- despite massive opposition from environmental groups and the bulk of the public. But there’s even talk of Russia challenging BNFL for spent fuel reprocessing contracts.

Finally, for a little light relief see www.britishnuclearfuels.com