| Nuclear power has key role in fight against climate change |
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| Alternative Energy - Nuclear Power |
| Monday, 05 January 2009 09:32 |
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Age Wednesday 31/12/2008 Page: 11 THE Rudd Government"s white paper on the final design of it"s emissions trading scheme has triggered a vigorous debate that will certainly continue into the new year. In defending the 2020 emission reduction target range of 5-15%, Climate Minister Penny Wong said she was "acting in the national interest" and protecting jobs and reducing energy costs on behalf of Australian industry and all energy consumers. It would appear that the recent Poznan negotiations have achieved very little to further the United Nations" climate change agenda, which is aimed at having developed countries cut their emissions by 25-40% below 1990 levels by 2020. Without a sensible energy policy in place, Australia will continue to be challenged by this. By contrast, the nuclear energyed European Union is laughing all the way to the global carbon bank. It is in Australia"s national interest to follow the EU"s example. Professor Ross Garnaut"s final report - released at the end of September - concedes that nuclear energy could supply more than a quarter of Australia"s electricity by 2050 if a proposed policy based on "clean coal" and "renewables" fails. But he questions the technology on economic grounds and restates his earlier convictions that Australia is "not the logical first home of a new nuclear capacity". In this, he and the Rudd Government are completely at odds with expert world opinion. Of all countries, Australia has the most to gain from domestic nuclear energy and a nuclear industry to serve the world. Last week in Canberra, Australian business leaders met Poland"s new ambassador, Andrzej Jaroszynski, to discuss the former communist country"s efforts to reduce carbon emissions. Unlike the Australian Government, which at times acts almost like the mouthpiece of the fossil fuel industry, Poland"s Government proposes an energy policy revolution that will gradually reduce chemical combustion by introducing nuclear fission. The Polish ambassador indicated that Poland would be following the example of the European Union and anticipated a significant nuclear energy component in the national energy program by 2025. This has been the strategy followed by many polluting nations - with the exception of Australia - over the past few decades. Indeed, nuclear energy has the pivotal role in any battle against climate change. The Poznan delegates have already had some reassurance from the United States, the world"s No. 2 polluter. President-elect Barack Obama has set a target of reducing US greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and by a further 80% by 2050, with nuclear energy playing the major role. In the US there are now 25 applications for new nuclear energy stations to add to the existing 104 that have been brought on line over the past 50 years. And many of these are licensed for another 30 years of operation and produce electricity at half the cost of fossil fuel generators. In November, the chairman of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Ziggy Switkowski, gave the annual Essington Lewis Memorial Lecture in Adelaide and endorsed domestic nuclear energy for Australia. He said: "I and concerned that the exclusion of nuclear energy from our national conversation and energy debate represents a triumph of political pragmatism over good policy." The Rudd Government should heed the opinions of ambassador Jaroszynski and Dr Switkowski and incorporate them into Australian energy policy without delay. At the December 2007 Bali climate conference, Yvo De Boer, executive secretary of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said: "I have never seen a credible scenario for reducing emissions which did not include nuclear energy." Including nuclear energy into an Australian energy policy would transform the token political gesture of ratifying the Kyoto Protocol to the practical and ethical high ground of a real contribution to the global climate change problem. Leslie Kemeny is the Australian foundation member of the International Nuclear Energy Academy. |
Sweden ready to change course over nuclear powerAdelaide AdvertiserSaturday 7/2/2009 Page: 70THE Swedish Government has agreed to scrap a three-decade ban on building nuclear reactors, saying it needs atomic power to avoid producing more greenhouse gases. Though Sweden is a leader on renewable energy, it is struggling... Read more Nuclear Power | | Februaryonday, 9 February 2009 |
Sweden to replace old atomic reactorsSummaries - Australian Financial ReviewFriday 6/2/2009Yesterday, the government of Sweden announced that they would allow the construction of up to 10 new nuclear reactors on existing plant sites. Last year, the European Union said that Sweden would be required to... Read more Nuclear Power | | Sunday, 8 February 2009 |
Nuclear power has key role in fight against climate changeAgeWednesday 31/12/2008 Page: 11THE Rudd Government"s white paper on the final design of it"s emissions trading scheme has triggered a vigorous debate that will certainly continue into the new year. In defending the 2020 emission reduction target range of 5-15%,... Read more Nuclear Power | | Januaryonday, 5 January 2009 |
Russians To Sell Nuclear Technology To VenezuelaThe Times has a report on Russian moves to sell nuclear technology to Venezuela, as they look for payback for the recent Georgian incident - Russia to build missile defence shield and renew nuclear deterrence. It seems the outcome of... Read more Nuclear Power | | Friday, 26 September 2008 |
Do You Prefer Insulation or Radiation ? TreeHugger notes that Homer without the donut"s plan to cover AMerica in nuclear reactors isn"t feasible from a financial point of view or a practical one, as the industry just doesn"t have the capacity - Insulate! Insulate! Insulate!.Bloomberg suggests, and... Read more Nuclear Power | | Septemberonday, 15 September 2008 |
Nuclear power can cut emissions and still maintain supplyAgeMonday 21/7/2008 Page: 11THE unseemly haste associated with the implementation of Australia"s emission trading scheme seems to be driven more by political aspirations and the pseudo-science of special interest groups than sound environmental concern.On a recent visit to Australia, Jeffrey... Read more Nuclear Power | | TUSEDAY, 12 August 2008 |
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