‘Recent Fukushima leaks cast more doubt on UK Government nuclear policy’ – Ritchie

SDLP MP for South Down Margaret Ritchie has stated that the most recent problems reported from Fukushima show the risks posed if the UK pushes ahead with the new nuclear program.

Ritchie stated, “While the UK government may find it convenient that the Fukushima nuclear disaster is no longer on the front pages the latest reports indicate that the plant is experiencing ongoing safety issues with steam being emitted from the reactor and the operators admitting that contaminated waste is being released into the sea.

“It also appears that engineers are unaware exactly what is happening to the reactor to cause these problems.

“This makes it all the more worrying that the UK government were so persistent in their attempts to have the new waste storage facility located near the coast in West Cumbria, a move which was thankfully stopped by the local council.

“As always the safety dangers and true cost of nuclear are downplayed by governments and energy companies. The UK government seem determined to push on with the new nuclear build programme with a guaranteed strike price for energy companies that amounts to yet another subsidy for the nuclear industry.

Ritchie added, “My constituents have had to live in the shadow of the Sellafield plant for a generation and it is unacceptable for them or for people in Britain to have to put up with another ticking time bomb on their doorstep.

“Fukushima shows that nuclear is never one hundred per cent safe and the government only needs to see what happened in Japan as a stark reminder of this danger.”

Short URL: https://newrytimes.com/?p=33298

Posted by Newry Times News on Jul 27 2013. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry