Health, environment as important as plant safety: Bench
The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to spell out how nuclear waste/spent fuel will be handled or transported after the Kudankulam plant in Tamil Nadu becomes operational.
A Bench of Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra on Wednesday wanted to know from the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL), how it intends transporting the nuclear waste out of the plant and store it in a safe place without affecting environment.
“Where would the nuclear waste go and what impact would it have on environment and people’s health if it is transported to other places? How much and how long can such waste be stored?” asked Justice Radhakrishna. Even as Solicitor General Rohinton Nariman, appearing for the NPCIL, asserted that the plant was safe, the Judge told him, “Issues pertaining to health and environment are as important as [is] safety of the plant.”
Mr. Nariman, citing reports of various committees, said the petitioners, who raised safety concerns, had misinterpreted the Atomic Energy Regulation Board’s statement that 17 safety measures needed to be implemented before the Initial Fuel Loading (IFL) stage in the Kudankulam plant. Pointing out that the 17 measures were intended to be carried out in a phased manner, he said these were additional steps formulated after the Fukushima (Japan) nuclear accident.
Mr. Nariman said the AERB was satisfied that the 17 safety measures could be implemented in a phased manner and accordingly permitted IFL. The NPCIL was taking steps to implement the safety measures and the AERB had noted that seven out of the 17 had already been taken. .
On spent fuel, he said it was not a total waste and it could be recycled for use in nuclear plants. Only recycled spent fuel would become waste.
TNPCB clearance
To a question from Justice Radhakrishnan whether the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board had given clearance for the plant, Mr. Nariman said clearance was issued subject to certain conditions.
The Bench then asked Additional Advocate-General for Tamil Nadu Guru Krishnakumar to submit the relevant documents.
Arguments will continue on Thursday.
Keywords: Kundankulam nuclear power project, TNPCB clearance, pollution control board, Nuclear Power Corporation of India
@ Donta :"Gandhi would have said NO." He had also said small is beautiful and campaigned ceaselessly for simple living, wearing home spun khadi cloths and million other things. Humanity has not reached the point of civilization to make the ideals of Gandhian life feasible. No point in quoting him!
I think Justice Radhakrishnan and Justice Misra inquired about
disposal/appropriation of waste not about the its recycle-ability. I
don't know whether Rohinton Nariman answered that question or not. This
is an important question and requires an answer.
Why not, should the Supreme Court not be asked by public, why the
Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu, so regarded that they are elected, are
in the unenviable situation they find themselves in, when elected?
This should be a query, when the people want to know, why the nuclear
plant is so important, to the govt., when it is to be located in a
fishing village. The Hon. courts, must be invoked, to ask the Chief
Ministers, only so that the public know, the cause, and the Supreme
Court does know, whether the people in the area, thereafter, after the
consideration, want the plant.
We are all being converted to nuclear wastes as the problem of contamination of the biosphere by nuclear wastes is insoluble because of its extremely long-lived nature: For example uranium 238 has a half life measured in billions of years. Uranium has got into our bodies(many of us) and will remain indefinitely within us. Many regions of India are so seriously contaminated with uranium and its daughters that cancers due to it are becoming epidemic and so is birth defect and genetic mutation of our offspring. The situation of the truth is horrendously illustrated by the tragedy inflicted on the people around Jaduguda Uranium mines. So far this was explained by invoking the false ICRP Risk Recommendations which serves the nuclear industry, by maintaining that the radiation emitted by the mining wastes was too small to cause the tragic effects on the families there. Thus nuclear wastes from the Hyderabad fuel fabrication facilities were also dumped at Jaduguda tailings dump.
Gandhi would have said NO to nuclear power.
Read the past headlines and forums on www dot enenews dot com to see how dangerous nuclear power has been for Japan!/
Invest in renewable energy instead, which is truly clean and green!
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