Forum urges Blair to scrap nuclear proposals

A group representing councils in the Republic and the North today urged Tony Blair to bin proposals to build a new generation of nuclear power plants in the UK.

In its response to the UK government’s energy review, the All-Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities Forum (AINFLAF) also called on the British government to give a specific commitment that no power plant will be built in the North.

Michael O’Dowd, a Fine Gael county councillor in Louth and the chairman of AINFLAF, said: “The British government does not need to build new nuclear power stations to meet its future energy needs.

“Radiation does not respect international boundaries and a new nuclear programme in the UK would pose unnecessary risks to people and the environment in the Republic of Ireland.”

Mr Blair is believed to favour a combination of new nuclear power stations and renewable energy to make up the predicted energy shortfall in the UK which could result in major electricity blackouts over the next decade.

Last November a panel of 150 experts attending a two-day conference under the auspices of the Geological Society of London warned within a decade the UK could be generating only about 80% of the electricity it needs.

With one third of the UK’s generating capacity needing replacement by 2020, the Confederation of British Industry has pressed the government for a firm decision on a new generation of nuclear stations.

Former Labour energy minister, Brian Wilson has urged the government to give a clear steer in favour of nuclear power stations.

However former Environment Secretary Michael Meacher has said while the government needs to act quickly, he has also argued: “I think we need nuclear like a hole in the head.”

AINFLAF warned today more nuclear power stations in the UK would heighten the risks the North and the Republic of Ireland would face from a potential disaster.

The group expressed particular concerns that new power stations could be built on the UK’s west coast at Wylfa in Anglesey, Heysham in Lancashire, Sellafield in Cumbria and Hunterston in Ayrshire.

They also highlighted the fact that Wylfa is 60 miles from Dublin.

The councils also argued more could be done to create opportunities for the use of renewables and the local generation of energy, particularly through investment in Ireland’s electricity grid.

AINFLAF claimed the liberalisation of the electricity market could potentially allow the sale of electricity generated from renewable sources in the Republic of Ireland and the North to be exported to customers in England, Scotland, and Wales.

The SDLP's Down District Councillor Margaret Ritchie, a member of the forum, said: “Our response is not just about making the case against nuclear power but also about stressing the positive contributions that renewable energy and energy conservation can make towards filling any energy gap.

“Our island has been blessed with the renewable resources of wind energy and tidal energy, and by harnessing these we have the potential to become an exporter of green electricity.”

The councils who take part in the All-Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities Forum are Louth County Council, South Dublin County Council, the Dublin Regional Authority, Monaghan County Council and Bray Town Council, Down District Council and Newry and Mourne District Council.