This week in Nuclear and Climate News – Australia
As always, the silence in Australia about nuclear issues belies the truth: the Abbott government remains firmly pro nuclear. According to Industry Minister Ian MacFarlane, nuclear energy is “off the table”. But it’s well and truly there, under the table, in the new Energy White Paper Green Paper 2014 (confusing isn’t it – that title – means that it is not the final White Paper). And – the government has been duplicitous, pretending that Friends of the Earth Australia supports nuclear power – actually using FOE in its pro nuclear section!
Nuclear security. While pontificating about terror threats, Abbott quietly lessens the security at Lucas Heights nuclear power plant. As the Americans say – “Go figure!” Police surrounded it the other day – it was a false alarm, but shows how jittery they are about the nuclear reactor as a terrorist target.
Climate change. Ha ha – climate change denialism is so rife in Australia’s Abbott government, that they’re not able to use climate change as an argument for nuclear power. (It’s a spurious argument, but the lying and immoral nuclear lobby is using it extensively world-wide, at present – having run out of other arguments). The new Energy White Paper is just another blueprint for Quarry Australia.
Australia distinguished itself by being the country of scorn, at the UN climate Change meeting in New York last week. Only Canada can rival us for being internationally on the nose about climate change inaction. I admit that I had a nice moment of schadenfreude, seeing our Foreign Misnister speak her weasel words to an empty UN conference room.
On the home front, Australians participated magnificently in the global People’s Climate March , Melbourne kicked off first, then rallies in many cities and towns across the nation.
Renewable Energy. Later in the week, rallies to keep the Renewable Energy Target (RET) were held in many areas, with protests embarrassing politicians right at their offices. Several highly reputable national organisations wrote to Abbott urging the importance of keeping the RET as it is.
Meanwhile, despite the lobbying success of the fossil fuel utilities to get Abbott to crush the renewables industries. – well- those industries are still happening! New solar businesses for Melbourne and Moree. Good predictions for our solar market. ANU and ClimateWorks show the way to 50% renewable energy by 2050
New book. Crisis Without End , Much awaited report from the 2013 New York Symposium The Medical and Ecological Consequences of the Fukushima Nuclear Catastrophe
Australian govt’s Energy White Paper misrepresents Friends of the Earth Australia, on nuclear power
to Energy White Paper Taskforce
Department of Industry ,
from D Jim Green
The White Paper misrepresents Friends of the Earth in relation to nuclear power and I am seeking immediate clarification on a couple of points.
The WP states: “However, the relative safety of nuclear power is reflected in a 2013 study commissioned by Friends of the Earth, which concluded that, “overall the safety risks associated with nuclear power appear to be more in line with lifecycle impacts from renewable energy technologies, and significantly lower than for coal and natural gas per MWh of supplied energy.”
Question 1: Why does the WP not specify that the study was commissioned by Friends of the Earth UK?
Question 2: Why does the WP fail to note that the commissioned paper raised multiple objections to nuclear power, and that FoE UK retained its anti-nuclear policies as a result of the review process, e.g. from the article below ‘The non-nuclear energy pathway that Friends of the Earth advocates is credible …’
http://www.foe.co.uk/news/nuclear_40884
Please provide immediate answers to the above questions since the misrepresentation is a matter of great concern.
Please also advise if the Department or the Minister will immediately issue a media release correcting the mirepresentation. Alternatively, will the Department put a note on the relevant webpage noting that the WP fails to specify that the Friends of the Earth group in question is FoE UK and that FoE UK retained its anti-nuclear policies as a result of the review process.
Jim Green
——————————————–
Jim Green B.Med.Sci.(Hons.), PhD
National nuclear campaigner – Friends of the Earth, Australia
Dear Dr Green
Thank you for your email to the Energy White Paper Taskforce regarding the citation of the Tyndall Centre report.
To clarify, the paper released is the interim Green Paper, which is the basis for consultation on policy issues. Submissions received until 4 November will help inform the development of the Energy White Paper. We expect to release the Energy White Paper later this year.
On the referencing of the report, we note that the quotation is accurate, and the footnote referencing provides enough detail to clarify that the report is based on a UK analysis, and allows for easy access to the online report in full, including the report origins and relevant disclaimers, as would be normal practice.
We acknowledge your preference that the report be linked to Friends of the Earth UK more explicitly in text, rather than through accessing the commissioning and disclaimer detail of the report itself. Given that concern, should the reference be used in the Energy White Paper, we will ensure that the body of our text includes the distinction. We would appreciate your guidance as to whether the preference is to use UK, or the full ‘England, Wales and Northern Ireland’ as per the report cover.
Regards
Energy White Paper Taskforce
Department of Industry
GPO Box 9839, Canberra ACT 2601
Email: ewp@industry.gov.au
Internet: www.ewp.industry.gov.au
Don’t be misled by Industry Minister MacFarlane. Govt still plans for nuclear power
Energy White PaperAttachment 3: Nuclear energy issues p. 71 ………– In 2013, the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics found that, over the projection period to 2050, nuclear remains cost-competitive with both renewable and non-renewable technologies on a levelised cost of energy basis. …….
Friends of the Earth UK clearly and unequivocally oppose nuclear power
A hard-headed look at nuclear power Mike Childs 02 August 2013 http://www.foe.co.uk/news/nuclear_40884All the evidence is that we are facing a planetary emergency, especially with rapidly rising greenhouse gases and warnings from scientists of the potential breaching of tipping points. This isn’t a reason to panic but it is a reason to take a hard-headed approach in assessing and reassessing positions on technologies and practices. It also requires an ability to think out of the box and imagine a different future; or as Friends of the Earth’s strap-line says, see things differently.
It was with this hard-headed, seeing things differently, approach that we embarked on a review of the evidence for and against new nuclear power stations in the UK. The review could have thrown up information or evidence that would require us to change our current opposition to new nuclear power, but we undertook this review because we consider, objectively and without prejudice, the facts on the issues we work on. This is an important guiding principle given the planetary emergency context we are operating in.
To help us in our reassessment of the evidence we commissioned the Tyndall Centre at Manchester University to carry out a review. We commissioned them because they do not have a position for or against new nuclear power, they have expertise in nuclear power, and they are leading academics on climate change, especially carbon budgets. Their review was peer reviewed by academics in favour of nuclear power and against.
After receiving the Tyndall Report, and after considering it properly, we are of the view that continued opposition to new nuclear power stations in the UK is still a credible position.
The Tyndall Report found:
- The non-nuclear energy pathway that Friends of the Earth advocates is credible and compatible with the capabilities of a future electricity grid. The researchers suggested we should regularly review our energy pathway to take into account technological developments, particularly if higher levels of electricity are needed than modelled due to faster roll out of electric cars and heat pumps than the already very ambitious levels within our energy pathway. We will of course do so but given that the UK is particularly blessed with large amounts of renewable energy it is our current view that the resources are likely to be adequate to fulfil any potential extra demand.
- The health impacts of coal are worse than nuclear power – as Friends of the Earth has said in the past – and that recent life-cycle research also suggests this is the case for gas, including gas with CCS. It also suggests that life-cycle health impacts for renewables are broadly comparable to nuclear, but cautions that the life-cycle assessments have not accounted for all the health impacts resulting from nuclear accidents (e.g. mental health impacts as a result of relocation).
- Nuclear waste management remains an “unresolved issue” in the UK with no safe repository in place. A new build nuclear programme would not add significantly to the quantity of waste but could increase the overall radioactivity of the waste inventory by around 265 per cent.
- Higher estimates of the cost of nuclear power are more plausible than estimates of low costs, stating that “claims that nuclear power is cheaper than other low carbon options (including CCS and wind) are unlikely to be borne out in reality”.
The researchers urged us to advocate changes in energy use, supply and storage that are commensurate with reducing the UK’s emissions as fast as possible, and with the aim of securing a carbon intensity of electricity below 50g/CO2/KWh by 2030.
Since receiving the report we have updated our position paper. We continue to oppose the construction of new nuclear power stations, promote the rapid introduction of renewable energy – particularly offshore wind – and oppose the provision of subsidies to nuclear power as they are reducing the amount of money available to more sustainable energy saving and renewable energy technologies.
BBC misrepresented UK Friends of the Earth’s position on nuclear power
Friends of the Earth UK’s position on nuclear power Nuclear Monitor #791, 18 Sept 2014 http://www.wiseinternational.org/nuclear-monitors Authors: Jim Green (Nuclear Monitor editor; national nuclear campaigner − Friends of the Earth Australia) and Peer de Rijk (WISE Amsterdam)
Recent media reports have claimed that Friends of the Earth UK (FoE-UK) has changed its position on nuclear power. The reports followed a September 10 BBC interview with FoE-UK’s campaigns director Craig Bennett.1
The BBC’s Roger Harrabin reported: “Today a [FoE-UK] spokesman revealed the group’s new stance – it’s no longer against nuclear power in principle although it still opposes new nuclear power stations because they’re too expensive and, intriguingly, take too long to build.” Harrabin called it “a huge and controversial shift.”2
Bennett said on the BBC: “The biggest risk of nuclear power is that it takes far too long to build, it’s far too costly, and distorts the national grid by creating an old model of centralised power generation.” Asked about the “risks from radiation”, Bennett responded: “Of course, there are real concerns about radiation, particularly around nuclear waste… but I think it is important how this debate has shifted down the years. The real concern now is how we get on fast with de-carbonising our electricity supply. It’s very clear that nuclear can’t deliver big changes fast. That’s a huge risk if we’re trying to tackle climate change. With renewable technologies and with energy efficiency we could be making a difference within three or four years.”1,3
The BBC’s claims were in large part a beat-up. Bennett said FoE-UK had always deployed a suite of arguments against nuclear power, with the emphasis shifting over time. Continue reading
It’s on the cards that Japan’s nuclear reactors will never restart
Rocky road ahead for Japan’s nuclear restart, Ecologist Jim Green and Peer de Rijk / Nuclear Monitor 26th September 2014 Japan’s government is trying to get its failing nuclear power industry up and running, write Jim Green and Peer de Rijk. But in the post-Fukushima world, it faces formidable obstacles. Experts believe most reactors will never restart – and Japan’s stricken utilities may have to find $30 billion or more to finance their decommissioning……… Continue reading
Pro renewable energy protest targets office of Luke Hartsuyker, Nationals Member for Cowper
Renewable energy target supporters march on Cowper MP office http://www.coffscoastadvocate.com.au/news/renewable-energy-target-supporters-march-cowper-mp/2401463/ September 27, 2014
THE SECOND stage of last weekend’s Coffs Coast march for climate action took place outside the office of The Nationals Member for Cowper, Luke Hartsuyker, on Friday.
Renewable energy workers, businesses, solar owners and climate action supporters came together to protest the Federal Government’s faltering support for the Renewable Energy Target (RET).
Spokesperson Marnie Cotton said the Coalition is likely on Tuesday to make changes to the RET as recommended by the Warburton Review.
“With the decision probably just a few days away it is absolutely critical that voices in support of the RET are heard and people really understand what changes could mean,” she said.
The Coalition has indicated it will make cuts and possibly abolish the small-scale targets, affecting the cost of putting solar panels on residences or businesses.
Phasing out small scale targets or carrying out the other recommendation of reducing the size of eligible installations from 100kW to 10kW could mean an increase of 30-50% in the cost of a installing solar.
“With Coffs Harbour home to approximately nine solar businesses, the impact on them and the wider impact on the local area cannot be underestimated,” Ms Cotton said.
“An estimated 9000 jobs in the Australian solar industry are under threat by changes to the RET and as Assistant Minister for Employment, Mr Hartsuyker should support the industry which provides local employment to our region.”
Coffs Harbour residents have demonstrated support for solar with some of the highest number of panels installed per head of population.
Large scale projects are increasing with the installation of a 65kW system at a local golf club now underway.
“We are determined to keep campaigning until full bipartisan support for the Renewable Energy Target is restored by our politicians so jobs, growth and investment can continue for the good of our nation and the climate,” Ms Cotton added.
OLd energy systems in “death spiral” but are fighting back against renewable energy
Australia’s Queensland has ruled out a solar tax but promised to re-jig energy pricing so that everyone – solar-reliant or otherwise – pays the same. But that removes the incentive to go solar, and leaves customers at the mercy of later price rises by the utilities.
From Sydney To Spain, Old Energy Is Doing Everything It Can To Hold Back The Rise Of Solar, Business Insider Australia TRACY RUCINSKI, BYRON KAYE MADRID/SYDNEY (REUTERS) 29 SEPT 14
“……….Halfway across the globe, in the “sunshine state” of Queensland, Australia, electrical engineer David Smyth says the war waged by some governments and utilities against “distributed energy”, the term used for power generated by solar panels, is already lost.
“The utilities are in a death spiral,” he told Reuters by telephone while driving between a pub where he helped set up 120 solar panels to cut its $53,000 annual power bill and a galvanizing plant which was also adding solar panels to reduce costs.
In Australia, he said, solar panels have shifted from being a heavily subsidized indulgence for environmentally-conscious households to a pragmatic option for businesses wanting certainty about what their running costs will be next year.
“Not many people are doing it because of emissions or the environment,” Smyth said. “It’s about the cost.”
Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels constitute the fastest growing renewable energy technology in the world since 2000. Global capacity has exploded from 1.5 gigawatts at the turn of the century to 136 gigawatts currently, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency. Meanwhile, the price of solar panels has plummeted 80 per cent since 2008 thanks to generous state subsidies aimed at promoting clean energy.
It’s still less than one per cent of energy capacity worldwide, but the surge in installations of rooftop solar panels is beginning to hit utilities and their business model of charging customers on the basis of consumption.
Joined by traditional energy companies, they are lobbying governments to reverse decades of subsidies to green, renewable energy such as solar and, in some cases, to tax them.
In Europe, Australia and in the United States, energy companies have powerful lobbies that argue that they form a cornerstone of the economy and provide jobs to tens of thousands. Governments are forced to pay heed and in some cases they have acted. Continue reading
Highly reputable organisations call on Tony Abbott to keep Renewable Energy Target
Groups fight for renewable energy target, Herald Sun AAP SEPTEMBER 29, 2014
CUTTING the renewable energy target (RET) will leave Australians reliant on natural gas and drive up electricity bills, a group of consumer and community advocates say.
THEY have written to Prime Minister Tony Abbott urging him to reject the recommendations of a review that called on the government to cut the target.
The economic, environmental and social impacts of the RET scheme were well-documented and overwhelmingly positive, states the letter from groups including the Australian Council of Social Service, the Brotherhood of St Laurence, the Consumer Utilities Advocacy Centre and the Clean Energy Council.
“If the RET is cut, Australia’s greater reliance on gas-fired power will increase the cost of power for all energy users,” they say…….http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/groups-fight-for-renewable-energy-target/story-fni0xqi4-1227073457547
Unlimited free solar energy coming to your planet
The coming era of unlimited — and free — clean energy http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/09/19/the-coming-era-of-unlimited-and-free-clean-energy By Vivek Wadhwa September 19 In the 1980s, leading consultants were skeptical about cellular phones. McKinsey & Company noted that the handsets were heavy, batteries didn’t last long, coverage was patchy, and the cost per minute was exorbitant. It predicted that in 20 years the total market size would be about 900,000 units, and advised AT&T to pull out. McKinsey was wrong, of course. There were more than 100 million cellular phones in use 2000; there are billions now. Costs have fallen so far that even the poor — all over world — can afford a cellular phone.
The experts are saying the same about solar energy now. They note that after decades of development, solar power hardly supplies 1 percent of the world’s energy needs. They say that solar is inefficient, too expensive to install, and unreliable, and will fail without government subsidies. They too are wrong. Solar will be as ubiquitous as cellular phones are.
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 