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Nuclear waste debate "a charade"

16th May 2005

Following a packed meeting at the Chantry, Thornbury to discuss the future of Britain's radioactive waste stockpile, Bristol Green Party has described the consultation exercise as a charade.

The Committee On Radioactive Waste Management (CORWM) [1] called the meeting to explain how they hope to meet scientific and public concerns before reaching any conclusions.

Afterwards, Green Party spokesman Peter Goodwin said:

"This committee have been given an impossible task. They're expected to decide the best way to manage the waste for thousands of years to come - but they don't know how much waste there will be, and they can't consider particular sites. This really is a charade"

The government is considering a huge new investment in nuclear energy to compensate for its failure to control greenhouse gases. It daren't risk another confrontation with communities desperate to prevent nuclear waste dumps being sited near their homes. So siting issues are being kept off the agenda.

"The craziest thing about all this is that the Government seems set on building more of these horribly uneconomic stations and lumbering our grandchildren and their grandchildren with the problems of managing the poisonous wastes that they produce. As one man said - " it's one thing helping them get rid of the body - another thing to encourage a serial killer"

The Greens are confident that an aggressive programme of energy conservation and investment in renewable energy - not least the shamefully neglected R&D - can meet all our needs far more cheaply and safely than any nuclear programme.

"Whilst we agree that the problems of nuclear waste must be faced up to, we cannot accept any recommendation unless it includes the vital commitment to stop producing more waste"

FURTHER INFORMATION: Peter Goodwin, 01275 543280

NOTES:

1. The meeting was the second phase (until June 27) of an extensive consultation being carried out by CORWM, the Committee On Radioactive Waste Management. CORWM is charged with the management of all radioactive wastes from civil and military sources - but not with its generation or with the decommissioning of nuclear contaminated materials and weapons. An 'independent' body, its members are nominated by the Dept of the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to recommend solutions to this embarrassing 50-year old problem.

   For further information, including how to add comments, see www.corwm.org.uk