waiting for the nuclear renaissance: exploring the nexus of expansion and disposal in europe
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Waiting for the Nuclear Renaissance:
Exploring the Nexus of Expansion and Disposal in Europe
Jane I. DawsonWeinmann Professor of Government &
Environmental Studies
The Nuclear Doldrums1979-2003
Popular Opposition in U.S. & Western Europe
Cost
Three Mile Island & Chernobyl
Nuclear Power: The Answer to Climate Change?
The new “low-carb” alternative
A “Renaissance” for Nuclear Power?
• Currently 443 nuclear reactors – 30 countries
• 29 new reactors under construction -
majority in Asia
• Europe: Finland’s Olkiluoto-3 and plans for new builds across Europe
• U.S: First licensing applications for new reactor construction since 1979
Impact of the GHG Crisis:
• Unraveling united front of environmental ngos – Splits emerging on nuclear issue
• Governments recalculating pros & cons of nuclear energy
Kyoto, Copenhagen, & Beyond
Promising Signs of Impending Climate Change Action in the U.S.A.
U.S. Legislation:• Waxman-Markey Bill of 2009
EPA & the Clean Air Act
GHG Protocols & Targets
WAITING for the Nuclear Renaissance
Nuclear Waste:
The Industry’s “Achilles’ Heel”
The principle of “national responsibility”
• Public opposition and failed siting attempts
• The European Union’s failed “Nuclear Package”
Two Small Countries Leading the Way
• KBS-3 Technology
Environmental Justice
• Standard Definition:
A fair and equitable distribution of environmental benefits, burdens, and decision-making power across all members of society
Finland’s Onkalo Facility: “Not just a hole in the ground”
Lessons?
• Siting Process: Voluntarist
• Nuclear Oases vs. Virgin Sites
• Democracy & Veto Power
• TRUST
How universal a model?
U.K. & the Voluntarist Approach
Wanted: Communities to volunteer to host a giant underground nuclear bunker. Guaranteed jobs for thousands of years; attractive annual payment package; should be in geologically stable area.
Need to know: 10bn plus construction package will involve excavation of hundreds of millions of tonnes of rock, and the building of new roads, railway lines and workshops. Site may attract terrorists; potential safety risk for one million years or more.
The London Guardian, June 26, 2007
The Nuclear Nexus
• Finnish Parliament approves Onkalo Repository (May 2001)
• Finnish Parliament approves fifth reactor (May 2002)
The Yucca Mountain Debacle
A New Day for Nuclear?
Will it be this? Or this?
Thank you!
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