Pave: Une nation qui rayonne dans le monde Redux

Le jour 424 de Sarko

More unintentional French rayonnant.

RIVER USE BANNED AFTER FRENCH URANIUM LEAK

PARIS July 10, 2008 (Guardian) - Residents in the Vaucluse, a popular southern French tourist destination, were banned yesterday from drinking well-water or swimming or fishing in two rivers after a uranium leak from one of France's nuclear power plants.

Nuclear officials yesterday revised down the amount of untreated liquid uranium that spilled from the Tricastin nuclear power centre in Bollene, saying it was limited to 75kg and ranked grade one on the one-to-seven scale of nuclear accidents. But the spillage of waste material containing uranium in the picturesque area of Provence, 30 miles from Avignon, which is currently hosting an arts festival, embarrassed the government.

Nicolas Sarkozy has prioritised exporting nuclear expertise worldwide [and here and this],* including to Britain. Nuclear power comprises 87% of France's electricity production, but yesterday anti-nuclear groups renewed their criticisms of the nuclear power policy.

Nuclear power is a tricky proposition. Unless the West is prepared to continue its wealth transfer to unproductive but oil-rich countries run by sand princes and pocket Marxists, nuclear power needs to become a bigger part of today's energy mix, as it is in France. As commercial nuclear power becomes more widespread, the competitive dynamic will produce cleaner energy and tidier plants.

As for spent fuel, Greenies will never be happy. They will hector the nuclear industry for ever better solutions. So that actually is a good thing. [Pause.] Maybe ship it to the moon.

No, our concern with greater use of nuclear power, more particularly French nuclear power, is threefold.

• Accidents are such PR disasters that the government -- especially a government with holdings in the major media -- cannot be trusted to be forthcoming (and here).

• And where money must be spent, the French government is notoriously cheap (and this).

• Spreading the technology, spreads the risk of sabatoge or expropriation by bad guys.

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Officials from the Socatri safety agency, a subsidiary of nuclear giant Areva, said groundwater, wells and rivers had shown no effects yesterday. The nuclear safety authority said radioactive levels detected in rivers and lakes in the region were decreasing.

The French environmental group, the Committee for Independent Research and Information on Radioactivity [Commission de Recherche et d'Information Indépendantes sur la Radioactivité, CRII-RAD], said that the radioactivity released into the environment was at least 100 times higher than the fixed limit for that site for the entire year.

The prefecture of Vaucluse said the leaked uranium should only be found in very small quantities and the risk was low but the ban on drinking, fishing and swimming would continue.

Greenpeace International nuclear campaigner, Aslihan Tumer:

Given the restrictions on the consumption and use of water in the area, it is clear that the leak poses a risk to the local population and to the environment.

As the government reassures the locals that today's radiation is nothing compared to yesterday's radiation, it is hard to argue with Mr. Turner.

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* And Then-Jack before him.

PFFT (What is this?): Tout va très bien ½ | Rayonnement français ½