Nuclear News Dounreay discharges; Japanese accident 4 German demos; Transport ships to Japan _ 5 Swedish phase out; French leukaemia cluster; US Mox 6 Bubble trouble; Nuclear safety 7 Features Energy in Newcastle __ 8 Party energy policies _ 10 Green electricity in Sweden 13 Sellafield and Nirex 14 Gordon Proven's 100% renewables 16 Safe Energy News Nffo; SRO 18 Climate change talks; MoD and wind 19 VAT on energy saving; Electricity shopping __ 20 European electricity liberalisation 21 Reviews . 22 Little Black Rabbit __ 24 ANNOUNCEMENTS 12th Low Level Radiation and Health Conference Subscriptions 11Scientific and Cultural Approaches to Nuclear Risk" 19/20 July An annual subscription to the Speakers include: Safe Energy Journal is: • Prof Lewis Wolpert, UCl, Chair of Public Understanding of £40 ORGANISATIONS Science, biologist • Prof Bryn Bridges, Sussex, Chair of Committee on Medical £16 INDIVIDUALS Aspects of Radiation in the Environment • Dr Rachel Western, Nuclear Spokeswoman, Friends of the Earth £8 UNWAGED • Or Helen Wallace, Nuclear Spokeswoman, Greenpeace Send cheques, payable to Safe Energy, to • Dr Chris Busby, Nuclear Spokeswoman for the Green Party, 72 Newhaven Road, Edinburgh EH6 SQG, or pay by chemical physicist credit card over the telephone. 0131 554 9977 • Maurice Frankel, Director, Freedom of Information Campaign • Dr Alan lrwin, Brunei, Reader in Sociology, sociologist Special offer for 1997, free • Dr John Adams, UCl, 'Risk Expert, geographer • fan Welsh, Cardiff, sociologist illustrated A2 map poster of • Paul Mobbs, environmental scientist renewables in the UK and maybe ... • Prof Jean-Francois Veil, Besancon, epidemiologist/statistician with every new subscription. • Prof Alexey Yablokov, Director of the Russian Centre for Environmental Policy Venue Advertising University of the West of England, Bristol Cost REACH Full page (190 x26Smm) £200 Circa £40 individuals, £80 institutions-for B&B, two lunches, one evening Half page (190 x130mm) £100 meal, tea & coffee (or bring sandwiches and beer money- its only £12 YOUR per night for a room) Quarter page (90 x130mm) £SO AUDIENCE Contact Above prices for camera ready copy Paul Dorfman - UWE, FBE, Frenchay Campus, Coldharbour lane, Bristol CALL NOW (Discounts may be available to non-profit organisations) BS16 1QY. Tel: 0117 656 261 ext. 3372 INGLIS ALLEN Qy,ality Printers ARE PROUD TO BE SUPPLIERS TO FRIENDS OF THE EARTH SCOTLAND '· . '.- . .•· - '- - ' .. ·' 1# are specialists zn printing on a wide; range of recycled .- and:envirortmentallyftiendly. materials - .- For competitive quotes and quality service phone 01324 633281 or Fax 01324 632904 MIDDLEFIELD ROAD, FALKIRK FK2 9AG 2 Safe Energy Journal112 March- May 1997 EDITORIAL Gurnrner says no to Nirex S we go to press, the Environment Secretary, John Gummer, has rejected Nirex's "While the plans for a rock characterisation facility (RFC) adjacent to the giant Sellafield A nuclear complex, throwing the UK's nuclear waste management programme environment into chaos and dealing a heavy blow to the whole industry's private prospects. In a letter to Nirex, Gummer could scarcely conceal his contempt: " ... your company does movement can not understand the regional hydrogeological system well enough." Further, Gummer "notes with some concern that your company's site selection process ... has singularly failed to impress claim a major the inspector in terms of its transparency and the rigours of its technical and scientific logic." After over 15 years and around half a billion of the tax payer's money, Nirex must now victory ... it must accept failure and abandon the proposal entirely. While it can appeal the decision, it i.s difficult remain vigilant to see on what grounds. No part of its programme has survived a joint shredding from Gummer and the public inquiry inspector. lt must surely now be dumped, consigned to a over nuclear deep hole somewhere in Whitehall. While the environment movement can claim a major victory, including Friends of the waste. The Earth, which, after spending considerable sums of money, stripped Nirex bare at the public inquiry into the proposal, it must remain vigilant over nuclear waste. The industry will now industry will try to find the cheapest solution to the long-term storage problem. Attention must now be turned to the problem of mounting stockpiles of nuclear waste. now try to find lt exists and must be safely managed. For now that means above ground in monitored stores. Over the longer term no-one is really prepared to say, except that our current level of the cheapest scientific knowledge excludes finding a perfect solution -we must simply wait and see. As for the rest of the industry, from power stations to reprocessing plant, Safe Energy solution to the would once again like to remind the government - any government - of the words of Sir long-term Brian Flowers, who in the 1976 Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution said, it is "irresponsible and morally wrong to commit future generations to the consequences of storage fission power unless it has been demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that at least one method exists for the safe isolation of these wastes for the indefinite future." problem." The green vote ASTING your vote isn't so easy this time. Comfy party distinctions have been shattered The Safe Energy Journal is of late. The party for the status quo has instigated the world's biggest shake up of the international magazine .industry. The party of the worker has shed its trade union image, and the middle of the of Friends of the Earth C Scotland's Safe Energy road party is, compared to the other two, way out on a limb on taxation and the environment. "The Tories now have an enthusiastic champion in John Gum mer. Labour, as yet, has no Unit. Views expressed are not necessarily those of FoE one," was said not by the association for hunting, shooting and fishing, but by the director Scotland. of Friends of the Earth (England, Wales and Northern Ireland), while the leader of the opposition has an admirer in Maggie Thatcher. Editor: Helen Snodin Confused? If we no longer know the parties, the only option is examination of their policies. Contributors: Tomas Energy policy isn't just a stand alone single issue. UK originated acid rain continues to Kaberger, Gordon Proven, strain European relations a decade on from the 'dirty old man of Europe' tag, while global David Ross, Adrian Smith, warming is increasingly straining international relations. Graham Stein, Mike Recent 'industry restructuring' in the energy sector, or a haemorrhaging of the workforce, Townsley, Rachel Western has cost an estimated 59% of total employment in the sector. And if renewables are not developed with haste, we have the choice of burning a lot more coal, building more nuclear Design & layout: George Baxter stations or being dependent on Russia's gas. Proofing: Graham Stein Its clearly an election issue. So what's the response? Real World, a coalition of environmental and human rights groups, has a check list of C-over photo: UK AEA. twelve policies by which to judge a party. Can your candidate promise a UK C02 reduction of Dounreay waste shaft after at least 20% by 2005, a Bill of Rights and an ecological restructuring of taxation, for instance? an explosion in 1977 A simple comparison of the Real World manifesto with each party's pledges rates the Liberal Democrats as the party most in tune with the group's ideals. Labour isn't too far Printed on recycled paper away, while there is little in the manifesto to interest the Tories. John Major agrees with "very few" of Real World's proposals, arguing the economic Published by Friends of the proposals alone will "undermine Britain's economic competitiveness". Labour, for all its Earth Scotland, pledges, has yet to fully convince some on its green credentials- all we can do is wait and 72 Newhaven Road, Edinburgh EH6 5QG, see. And while the environment is perhaps the only issue which will win Liberal Democrats Scotland, UK the otherwise die-hard Labour vote, like Labour, we have no recent experience of their governance, and the first past the post system is not in their favour. Tel. 0131 554 9977 When 1 May comes, some will vote for the least worst candidate, others will vote for Fax 0131 554 8656 their first preference regardless of tactics, some will vote for the leader that looks most like E-mail foescotland their dad and a good many more won't vote at all. @gn.apc.org Whoever wins, the job they are paid to do is reflect our best interests. As environmental problems increasingly encroach upon everyone's lives, the clamour to do something about it will intensify, and they will have to listen. ISSN 1350-5114 "Nirex case doesn't hold water," p14; "The energy for an election," p10 Safe Energy Journal112 March- May 1997 3 Dounreay: return to sender in 10 years OUNREAY'S plans to continue Dounreay reiterated its position as responsible for the Dounreay site, to Doverseas research reactor laid out in the application: that it had reject Sepa's plan to have waste returned reprocessing have been dealt a been carrying out such reprocessing to client countries within ten years. The significant blow by the Scottish work for over 30 years and that around DTI is understood to be concerned about Environmental Protection Agency 400 jobs on-site were dependent on it the setting of a precedent which could (Sepa). being allowed to continue. then be applied to BNFL at Sellafield. In granting new radioactive However, Forsyth was responsible for discharge authorisations for the site - Economics establishing Sepa as a tough new which could still see massive increases pollution watchdog and would face in discharges-Sepa is demanding that Those opposing the continued considerable political embarrassment if foreign waste from reprocessing should reprocessing on site - including he was to over turn its first tough be returned "as soon as practicable and Highland Council, Highland Health decision.