Nuclear remains the wrong option
The Sustainable Development Commission today (10 January) criticised the Government for its inadequate response to the legitimate concerns expressed by the general public over new nuclear power, which echo those identified by the SDC in its 2006 report The role of nuclear in a low carbon economy.
These include:
• Concern over waste and decommissioning arrangements
• Unease over the role of the private sector, particularly with a technology that has a history of cost over-runs, and where public liabilities extend for many thousands of years
Professor Tim Jackson, Economics commissioner at the Sustainable Development Commission, said:
"Some of the most crucial questions around nuclear energy, cited as major concerns by people on all sides in the recent consultation, remain unanswered. It would be totally irresponsible to commission a new generation of nuclear power stations when there is no clear consensus on how to deal with the nuclear waste they will produce. And we have serious concerns over the role of the private sector, with the ever-present risk that the British taxpayer will be asked to pay for any cost over-runs that may occur - particularly considering the history of over-optimism in the nuclear industry.
"Unless the country can reach a real consensus, with solid answers to legitimate concerns over waste and liabilities, the SDC believes that a new generation of nuclear power stations remains the wrong option. The Government should instead be focusing on delivering more sustainable methods of generating electricity, and on absolute reductions in our demand for energy."
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