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print versionPublic opinion determines national policies on nuclear power in democratic countries
Austria built a 700 MWe nuclear power reactor at Zwentendorf in 1978, but it was never operated after completion. Following anti-nuclear demonstrations, the Austrian parliament imposed a ban on using nuclear reactors. Had the government sought the opinion of the people before starting construction of the nuclear reactor, it could have saved nearly 1 billion euros (at current prices) and avoided the embarrassment of not operating the reactor after completion.
Of the 253 nuclear power reactors ordered in the United States from 1953 to 2008, only 104 units are now in operation. Some of the orders were cancelled during planning or construction stages, and some plants were closed down for decommissioning at the end of their economic plant lives. The cancellations were partly due to a fall in power demand, and partly to significant cost overruns for delays attributed to complex regulatory requirements and public opposition. Only five reactors are now reported to be under construction in the US, but all the projects have announced delays and budget overruns.
Sweden initiated a nuclear phase-out program in 1980 after the Three Mile Island accident in 1979, and was followed by Italy after the Chernobyl accident in 1986. Belgium followed suit in 1999. Spain enacted laws not to build new nuclear power plants. Japan closed all of its nuclear power plants after the Fukushima incident in 2011. Germany and Switzerland decided to phase out nuclear power after 2011. These examples show how public opinion determines national policies on nuclear power in democratic countries.
Bangladesh is going ahead with its plan to construct two 1000 MWe nuclear reactors at Rooppur with Russian technical and financial assistance without having any public hearing or debate whether people want nuclear power or not. The people have been told that the nuclear plant will create job opportunities for them and the economy of the region will get a boost due to the huge investment in the project. This is fair enough but have they been told the other side of the story?
Are they aware about nuclear radiation and safety, and the environmental issues of the plant? Have they heard about the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear accidents and the evacuation of a large number of people from around the two nuclear plants? Do they know that if a similar situation arises, they too will have to evacuate? Will it not be wise if we tell them the whole story now and not wait till the last moment like the Austrians did, paying a significant penalty?
The government opened a Nuclear Information Centre at Bangabandhu Novo Theatre last year in Dhaka. The centre is supposed to disseminate information on the proposed nuclear power plant at Rooppur. The objective of a nuclear information centre is to provide full information to the public about nuclear power, including its safety and environmental issues, to remove their apprehensions and thus pave the way for smooth implementation of the projects.
I visited such an information centre in early 1976. It was built by American Electric Power (AEP) near the Cook Nuclear Plant built along Lake Michigan’s eastern shoreline. The information centre, now known as the Cook Energy Centre, is situated in a beautiful natural setting with parks, recreational facilities, and several high-tech theatres. Theatre 1 shows a video that explains how a reactor produces electricity, what makes nuclear energy safe, and how radioactive waste is managed. Theatre 2 displays a 26ft three dimensional rotating model of a nuclear power reactor and its components. Theatre 3 shows alternative methods of electricity production.
I also visited another nuclear information centre near Pickering Nuclear Generating Station in Canada. All information centres in the US are situated close to the nuclear power plants because the purpose of building an information centre is to provide information to local residents so that they may not raise objections and thus delay the construction of the plant.
First of all, the Nuclear Information Centre in Dhaka is a mere toy compared to those I saw in North America. One may wonder what purpose it will serve in disseminating information to the people around Rooppur. I hope the policymakers will be realistic and construct a nuclear information centre like the Cook Energy Centre, close to Rooppur. The people around Rooppur should know what they will be living with for a few generations.
Besides information centres, there are other ways for dissemination information, like holding seminars, public debates, talk shows on TV, and publishing articles and special supplements in newspapers. Has the government taken any step in this direction? The Ministry of Science and Technology and the State Atomic Energy Corporation of Russia (ROSATOM) organised a two-day seminar in Dhaka in May, 2013. Only invited papers, mostly from among the proponents of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Project (RNPP), were presented. Most of the papers in the seminar were of general nature and hardly addressed any issue relating to the proposed Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
It is apparent from the questions asked from the floor, and also from the opinions expressed in the media that there are some real concerns regarding the RNPP, particularly regarding the shortage of trained manpower, safety, the environmental impact of the plant, the management of the project, and its total cost.
These issues need to be discussed openly and thoroughly before we proceed with the construction of Bangladesh’s first nuclear power plant. There should be more seminars and public debates, not just in Dhaka, but also at Rooppur. The people of Rooppur should be told the whole truth, not just part of it. The views of the locals must be known before construction of the plant begins. Nuclear power cannot be sustained without the support of the people. Let us be transparent and face the truth now.
See more at: http://www.dhakatribune.com/op-ed/2014/may/03/understanding-rooppur-better
