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New nuclear plants will produce far more radiation

New nuclear plants will produce far more radiation Industry documents reveal modern reactors more dangerous in an accident than the ones they replace THE INDEPENDENT By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor 8 Feb 09

New nuclear reactors planned for Britain will produce many times more radiation than previous reactors that could be rapidly released in an accident, The Independent on Sunday can reveal.

The revelations – based on information buried deep in documents produced by the nuclear industry itself – calls into doubt repeated assertions that the new European Pressurised Reactors (EPRs) will be safer than the old atomic power stations they replace.

Instead they suggest that a reactor or nuclear waste accident, althouguh less likely to happen, could have even more devastating consequences in future; one study suggests that nearly twice as many people could die……………………Until now the reactors have been widely thought to be less dangerous than those already in operation, largely because they contain more safety features and produce less waste. But the information in the documents shows that they produce very much more of the radioactive isotopes technically known as the “immediate release fraction” of the nuclear waste, because they could get out rapidly after an accident.

New nuclear plants will produce far more radiation – Green Living, Environment – The Independent

February 16, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, safety