nuclear-news

Anti nuclear protest, by thousands, in South Korea

Thousands protest at S. Korean nuclear complex Bangkok Post: 16/11/2012  AMOnline news: Asia Thousands of villagers staged a protest outside one of South Korea’s largest nuclear power plants Thursday, voicing growing public concern over safety standards after a series of scares and scandals.

Yonhap news agency said 2,500 local villagers took part in the protest outside the Yeonggwang complex on the southwest coast, where three of the plant’s six nuclear reactors are currently in shutdown.

Media photos of the event showed protesters burning an effigy
representing the state-run nuclear operating agency KHNP and holding
up placards saying: “We feel uneasy!”

They are calling for an overall safety review of the plants.

Hundreds of riot police and security officers were sent to the
demonstration but there were no reports of any violence.

Last week, the government shut down two reactors at Yeonggwang to
replace thousands of “non-core” parts that had been provided with
forged quality and safety warranties……
Last month, authorities temporarily shut down two 1,000-megawatt
reactors at separate nuclear plants after system malfunctions which
were also blamed for another reactor at Yeonggwang being tripped into
automatic shutdown in July.

In May, five senior engineers were charged with trying to cover up a
potentially dangerous power failure at the country’s oldest nuclear
plant.

The Gori-1 reactor, built in 1978 near the southern city of Busan,
briefly lost mains power on February 9 and the emergency generator
failed to kick in. The power cut caused cooling water to stop
circulating. …
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/321555/thousands-protest-at-s-korean-nuclear-complex

November 16, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | opposition to nuclear, South Korea