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Letter to the Irish Times |
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Written by David Sowby
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Thursday, 25 January 2007 |
Madam,
It’s not a minute too soon to have an open and vigorous debate about
the nuclear power option (January 25). However, a worthwhile debate
should avoid the use of specious arguments such as the following
mentioned by you: known supplies of uranium fuel are expected to run
out in 50 years; the use of nuclear power leads inevitably to arms
proliferation; it is a dangerous energy source and damages the
environment. All three of these objections are baseless and fallacious.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and
the International Atomic Energy Agency in June 2006 estimated that the
amount of uranium available today is 4.7 million tonnes, which is
enough to fuel the present fleet of reactors for 85 years. However,
geological evidence indicates that some 35 million tonnes are available
for exploitation. By 2025 the world nuclear energy capacity is expected
to grow by between 22% and 44%, and the OECD believes that the
currently identified resources are adequate to meet this expansion.
In the longer term, the next generation of reactors will allow
substantially better utilisation of these resources: reactors will be
capable of extracting some 50 to 60 times as much energy from the
uranium as present-day reactors do. Thus, there will be sufficient
uranium available to power nuclear reactors for the foreseeable future;
also, it is expected that other elements, such as thorium, will be used
to fuel fission reactors.
There is no reason to assert that the use of nuclear power leads
inevitably to arms proliferation. To date proliferation has been via
the easier and more secretive route of uranium enrichment rather than
the difficult and more obvious route of reprocessing power reactor. The
effective operation of international anti-proliferation treaties and
protocols has worked well in preventing the use of power reactors as a
means of proliferation. Nuclear materials in nuclear power plants, fuel
cycle installations and in transit are safeguarded using methods that
have been tried and tested over fifty years. In fact, most of the
countries currently using nuclear power have foresworn nuclear weapons.
The claim that nuclear power is a dangerous source and harms the
environment is chiefly based on the exceptional event that occurred at
Chernobyl, a first generation reactor poorly designed, built, operated
and regulated. Let us remember that: the use of gas, oil and coal is
causing global warming; natural gas explosions have killed large
numbers of people, some of them in this country and over four hundred
power reactors are currently operating safely and economically
worldwide.
We welcome the initiative taken by Irish Congress of Trade Unions, and
supported by yourself, to discuss this important issue rationally,
objectively and soon.
Yours etc,
David Sowby |
