nuclear-news

UK government at legal risk from its “Nuclear Justification” process

leaves the government open to legal challenge and leads to hostility and mistrust of any future energy policy decision

Why nuclear “Justification” isn’t enough New Statesman , by Paul Dorfman – 23 April 2010 New build nuclear reactors will escape proper Parliamentary scrutiny. That cannot be right.
Nuclear “Justification” is a high level assessment about whether the benefits of new nuclear build outweigh the health detriments. Justification is a legal regulatory requirement under EU law – it must be done before reactors can be approved.

Once the Justification decision has been taken it will be all but impossible to re-open nuclear policy.This will not be subject to any Parliamentary scrutiny until after a decision has been made. However, if you don’t know the reactor design and can’t prove you can dispose of the radioactive waste, how on earth can you know the release?And if this is so, which it is, how can you expect to be in compliance with the law?

Unfortunately this is the position that the Office of Nuclear development at the Department of Energy and Climate Change find themselves.This means that government is about to take a decision on the “Justification” of more nuclear power when significant “what if” issues that are tied to health impact – such as reactor design and siting, vulnerability to attack, radiation waste, radiation risk, reactor decommissioning – have not been resolved. Failure to do this leaves the government open to legal challenge and leads to hostility and mistrust of any future energy policy decision. New Statesman – Why nuclear “Justification” isn’t enough

April 24, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Legal, UK