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Alarm as Taiwan wants to extend life of oldest nuclear plant
Taipei (AFP) Oct 20, 2009 Taiwan wants to extend the life of its oldest nuclear power plant for another 20 years, the government said Tuesday, triggering alarm among activists who fear it could put public safety at risk. State-owned Taiwan Power Company has asked to keep using the Chinshan plant, operational since 1978 in a coastal area of north Taiwan, after the licenses of its two reactors expire in 2018 and 2019, the Atomic Energy Council said. "The application is for extending the life of the plant's two generators from 40 to 60 years," the cabinet-level council said in a statement. Conservation activists Tuesday voiced severe concerns about what they called a risky plan, also citing a shortage of space to store the nuclear waste. "We strongly oppose the measure... We cannot afford taking such as risk," Gloria Hsu, a National Taiwan University professor, told AFP. "Imagine a car originally designed for use for 10 years or so. Now people hope to use it for 30 years. Wouldn't you have safety concerns while driving such a car?" said Hsu, former chief of the Taiwan Environmental Protection Union. The Atomic Energy Council pledged to screen the application for the two nuclear reactors according to "stringent standards". "We will not approve the license renewal unless safety of the plant is ensured during the extended period," it said in the statement. The issue has sparked a debate here as some favour renewing licenses for the plant, citing high fuel prices and global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. Taiwan's carbon dioxide emissions could be 7.3 million tonnes lower each year if the nuclear power plant is allowed to keep running after 40 years of operation compared with shutting it down, government officials say. Taiwan Power operates three nuclear power plants, while a fourth is being constructed. Share This Article With Planet Earth
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Finland will not build three new nuclear plants: PMHelsinki (AFP) Oct 20, 2009 Finland, which is building its fifth nuclear reactor, has yet to decide how many reactors it will need in the next decade but it will be fewer than three, Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said Tuesday. "I don't believe that based on calculations (on future energy needs) the government could decide (to accept) all three nuclear reactor applications," Vanhanen wrote on his blog. Three utility ... read more |
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