nuclear-news

France’s campaign to win public over to nuclear power

 state-controlled Electricite de France SA, the world’s biggest reactor operator, is stepping up a campaign to make the French better appreciate nuclear power……..

“French public opinion after Fukushima has become increasingly anti-nuclear,” …EDF’s efforts to reassure the French public

Just last year, there were 1,107 incidents at French nuclear plants, with 143 requiring public notification, 

France Opens Doors to Nuclear Sites to Woo Public Post-Fukushima, By Tara Patel, Sept. 16 (Bloomberg)  Every year at a weekend-long “heritage” event, France throws open doors to centuries-old castles and monuments. This year, for the first time, the list will include an unusual entry: nuclear plants.

During the “journees du patrimoine” this weekend, France’s 58 nuclear plants will share the glory with President Nicolas Sarkozy’s official residence, the Elysee Palace, and the crypt under the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, offering the public a chance to tour the power-generating sites.

After the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, six months ago, state-controlled Electricite de France SA, the world’s biggest reactor operator, is stepping up a campaign to make the French better appreciate nuclear power……..

“French public opinion after Fukushima has become increasingly anti-nuclear,” Corinne Lepage, an environmental lawyer and member of the European Parliament, said in an interview. “EDF has its work cut out for it.”

An explosion at a nuclear-waste site owned by EDF this week that killed one person and hurt four others hasn’t helped. The incident spurred calls to beef up safety tests begun by France’s nuclear watchdog in the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that caused three reactor meltdowns at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi station…..

The average age of French nuclear reactors is 24 years. Nineteen of the reactors are about 30 years old. The oldest in Fessenheim, located 1.5 kilometers — or less than a mile — from the German border, began operating in 1978. Protesters in Germany and two Swiss cantons have called on France to shut the plant in the wake of the Fukushima accident.

EDF’s efforts to reassure the French public about an energy source that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to exit come ahead of France’s presidential elections next year.

Socialist Francois Hollande, who polls indicate is a leading contender against Sarkozy, has said France should reduce its dependence on nuclear power. Sarkozy, meanwhile, has thrown his support behind future investment in the industry…..

‘High Sensitivity’ Just last year, there were 1,107 incidents at French nuclear plants, with 143 requiring public notification, according to the regulator Autorite de Surete Nucleaire.

Although EDF and the regulator said there was no chemical or radioactive leak from the Sept. 12 incident at the plant in the town of Codolet in southern France, the accident showed the potential dangers of nuclear installations, anti-nuclear groups and the opposition Socialist Party said.

“People were worried and that’s understandable,” said Jean-Christophe Niel, ASN’s director. “There’s a high degree of sensitivity about nuclear among the public and the government after Fukushima. I think these worries will last for a long time.”

Sixty-two percent of French people want a “progressive halt” to the country’s nuclear energy program in the next 25 or 30 years, while 15 percent want a rapid withdrawal, according to an Ifop opinion poll published in June. The poll shows dwindling backing for the energy compared with surveys in March, shortly after the Japanese accident, when Ifop found 51 percent said the nuclear energy policy should be phased out in the next 25 years….

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-09-15/france-opens-doors-to-nuclear-sites-to-woo-public-post-fukushima.html

September 16, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, politics