nuclear-news

UK concerns about safety of French European Pressurised Reactor (EPR).

“the design of the EPR presents a serious risk of a major nuclear accident – a risk deliberately taken by EDF to increase its profitability.”

Design flaws in new nuclear reactors ‘could lead to UK’s Chernobyl’ | Ekklesia, 9 March 2010, Local authorities have written to the nuclear watchdog following new concerns over the design safety of nuclear reactors planned for the UK and of fears about a Chernobyl-type accident.

Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) sent a letter today (9 March) to the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) following the emergence of new allegations over the safety of the proposed European Pressurised Reactor (EPR).

The French nuclear group ‘Sortir du Nucleaire’ (French Network for Nuclear Phase-out) raised concerns in a press release yesterday over the safety of the proposed European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) design by EDF /Areva, which will be used to build a number of nuclear reactors in the UK.

In a press release issued on the 8th March, Sortir de Nucleaire said that they had received documents from an insider working in EDF. Sortir de Nucleaire claims that they show that “the design of the EPR presents a serious risk of a major nuclear accident – a risk deliberately taken by EDF to increase its profitability.”

It further claims that the reactor is “potentially vulnerable to a situation which could have uncontrollable consequences.”

Experts are quoted in the press release warning that some operating modes could cause the EPR reactor to explode. These operating modes are mainly related to an ‘objective of economic efficiency’, requiring the power of the reactor to adapt to electricity demand.

They say that the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) has been kept in the dark about the issues.

“So the EPR reactor design seems to increase the risk of a Chernobyl-type accident, which would lead to the destruction of the confinement and mass dispersion of radionuclides in the atmosphere” the experts are quoted as saying.

Design flaws in new nuclear reactors ‘could lead to UK’s Chernobyl’ | Ekklesia

March 10, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, UK | antinuclear, EDF, France, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radiation, reactor