Nuke plant plan 'premature and unbalanced'

By FMT Staff
KUALA LUMPUR: Klang MP Charles Santiago has slammed the federal government's decision to approve a nuclear power plant in Malaysia.
He described the government’s decision as “premature and unbalanced”. He has also drawn attention to the fact that decision was made without public debate and consultation.
Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water Peter Chin, when announcing the decision, was quoted in the media as saying that the government was not eager in debating (the issue) with critics.
Chin said the Economic Council had approved the nuclear power plant based on the fact that “Malaysia was too dependent on coal and gas and that although nuclear power could be costly at first, it will eventually provide more cost-and energy-efficient supply once operational”.
Chin also claimed that nuclear energy was renewable and the only long-term viable option, a view that Santiago dismissed.
“Actual renewable energy comes from the sun, wind, water and plants... the minister should stop believing that nuclear energy is 'renewable'.
“Also, Malaysia has several factories working on world-class solar panels. The government should focus on utilising this capacity from Malaysia.
“I call on the minister to have an open and forthright debate with me on this urgent matter of national interest,” he said.
According to Santiago, the nuclear industry had a tainted track record.
“It is extremely spotty on matters of safety, efficiency, cost and its environmental impact,” he said, adding that last year a top official in charge of British nuclear safety issues had admitted to a five-year cover-up involving regulators of a nuclear plant situated 50km from the centre of London, which had been leaking radioactive waste for 14 years.
“The Malaysian government still has a strong policy in terms of official secrecy, as such there is reasonable justification to fear the results of the combination of secrecy and poor safety culture,” he said.
TNB being irresponsible
On the astronomical start-up cost involved, Santiago said the government was distracting the public by telling them nuclear power plants had low operational costs.
“But nuclear plants incur massive cost for safe decommissioning and the disposal of waste. In fact, financing for decommissioning is often poor or non-existent even in the United States.”
He accused Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) of being irresponsible when it reportedly said last year that it was ready to operate a nuclear power plant despite not having a proper waste management plan.
“It is fundamentally irresponsible to go ahead with nuclear power without detailed assessment and discussion on the impact of nuclear waste.
“The people need to know where and how the waste will be disposed of.
“Malaysians have the right to know of the risks involved when dealing with nuclear energy, but the federal government has made all its decisions at the Cabinet level without consulting and debating the issue with the public,” he said.
He reminded the public of the Asian Rare Earth case in Perak, which reflected the federal government's lacklustre track record in dumping radioactive waste on poor communities.
Confusing signals
Santiago also lashed out at the government for sending a confusing message over the nuclear plant.

He said that while Chin had said that he had been given approval by the Economic Council to identify suitable locations, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak however stated that he wanted a comprehensive study on it.

“If a "comprehensive study" is required before embarking on nuclear, then why has the Economic Council given the go ahead,” asked Santiago.

“Either the prime minister and his ministers are operating on different policy blueprints or else this talk of comprehensive study is meant to assuage and distract the public when a policy decision has already been made,” he said.
Not in Selangor, says MB

In SHAH ALAM Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim said that Selangor will not support any move to set up a nuclear power plant in the state.

He said the state government has decided against the idea after weighing the pros and cons of such a move.

“We also studied other options. There are other alternatives to setting up a nuclear energy plant,” he said.

Khalid was of the opinion that the nation could for the time tap on existing energy resources, such as solar power.

“There is no need for the state to support any move to develop nuclear energy. We have also decided not to allow the construction of a nuclear power plant in Selangor.

“We don’t see a necessity for nuclear energy when we can draw on solar energy,” he said.

Najib wants feedback
Meanwhile, in another development, Najib said that he would like to find out public opinion on the future of electricity generation in the country, especially the use of nuclear energy.
"Are there alternatives not yet considered that could firmly establish Malaysia as a global green revolution leader?" he asked in his blog www.1malaysia.com.my.
Najib said that as such, the government was undertaking feasibility studies on nuclear energy use for electricity generation.
"I am eager to understand better and to know the findings. If we press ahead with nuclear (power), 12 to 15 years could elapse before energy is produced using small reactors," he said.
The prime minister said nuclear power was arguably efficient and cost effective, but the question was whether it was the right one for Malaysia.
"Of course, if we do go down the nuclear energy route, we would not be alone. And this is why we are looking around globally to learn from other countries and take note of the advancement in technology of this industry/sector," he said.