31 July 2006: for immediate release
In response to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management’s (CoRWM) report, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament called for an immediate halt to any plans to build new nuclear power stations. The CoRWM Report makes it quite clear that the question of what to do with deadly radioactive waste has not been solved. According to CoRWM, given the processes and procedures that have to be undertaken, it would not be possible even to begin the underground burial of radioactive waste until at least 2045, with the burial sites sealed in 2120. CoRWM’s timeline only deals with radioactive waste from existing nuclear power stations. If new nuclear power plants are built, creating new radioactive waste, additional burial sites will likely have to be found, extending the timeline even further into the future.
Kate Hudson, Chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said, “An obvious conclusion arises from the discussion about what to do with our current deadly radioactive waste: don’t create more of it. This Report makes it absolutely clear that there is no completely effective solution to this deadly problem. After 50-plus years of commercial nuclear power, no reliable storage solution has yet been found. It is madness to consider building new nuclear power plants when we are unable to deal with the waste we already have.”
The CoRWM report also states that “the implications of climate change, including sea level rise, increased risk of periodic flooding and coastal erosion, will have to be taken into account.”
Ms Hudson said, “New nuclear power stations cannot offer a solution to combating climate change, as they will take approximately 15 years to come online – climate change is happening now. But it is completely clear that climate change presents great dangers for the storage of nuclear waste. There will be effects for water table levels, geological structures, and coastal contours, which will impact upon waste storage in ways previously undreamed of. At a time when no safe storage options have been found, it would be irresponsible in the extreme to build new nuclear power stations to add to this deadly toxic legacy.”
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Notes to Editor:
1. For further information and interviews please contact Rick Wayman, CND’s Press & Communications Officer, on 0207 7002350 or 07968 420859
2. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is one of Europe’s biggest single-issue peace campaigns, with over 32,000 members in the UK. CND campaigns for the abolition of all nuclear weapons everywhere.