Bellona nuclear digest. July 2024
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
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Publish date: September 20, 2002
Written by: Erik Martiniussen
News
The British government-owned nuclear company British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL), admits now that we might see as much as eight such plutonium transports annually in the future. The reason for these transports is the scandal-ridden facility on the Sellafield plant, which produces plutonium fuel (MOX) for commercial use.
Major protests
The disclosure is made on the same day as BNFL receives five tonnes of MOX fuel from Japan. The plutonium fuel was originally sold and transported to Japan in 1999, but after it was revealed that BNFL had falsified the security analysis of the MOX fuel, BNFL was requested to bring it back.
The transports have been subject to massive international criticism. A number of countries have denied the transport ships admission to go by their economical zones, and Greenpeace’s largest ship, Esmeralda, has followed the transport almost on its entire route from Japan. When the transport entered the Irish Sea it was met by a large fleet of small boats showing their opposition to the transport. Ireland is of the opinion that the British has infringed their commitments settled by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and the transports represent a serious disagreement between the two countries.
Starts with Switzerland
Now even more transports to and from the Sellafield plant are likely to take place. According to the Director General of BNFL, Norman Askew, 40 percent of the forthcoming agreements of the MOX plant are with foreign countries. The first transport will go to Switzerland in mid-2003. According to the British daily the Guardian, Germany, Belgium and France are next on the list, but new contracts with Japan is also expected.
So far Norway has not filed a formal complaint against the planned transports. Protests from Norway are however expected to arise if BNFL is to take use of the Northeast-passage and the Barents Sea as transport route for their controversial nuclear transports.
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
Transport on the Northern Sea Route is not sustainable, and Kirkenes must not become a potential hub for transport along the Siberian coast. Bellona believes this is an important message Norway should deliver in connection with the Prime Minister's visit to China. In an open letter to Jonas Gahr Støre, Bellona asks the Prime Minister to make it clear that the Chinese must stop shipping traffic through the Northeast Passage.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has published a new report on its efforts to ensure nuclear safety and security during the conflict in Ukraine, with the agency’s director-general warning that the situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station remains “precarious and very fragile.”
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution and climate change.