Alberta faces hot debate on nuclear power
Paula Simons
Times Colonist
March 29, 2009
It certainly doesn't look explosive. Unlike most recent Alberta government reports, with their glossy photo spreads and snappy names, the Nuclear Power Expert Panel Report on Nuclear Power and Alberta comes bound in a blue-and-grey cover as dull as its title.
No pretty children -- just charts and graphs, with line illustrations that look like they came from a 1973 high school science text.
But don't be misled. This is a report with the potential to ignite a firestorm, nowhere more than in the Peace River region, where Bruce Power is considering building Canada's first nuclear power plant in almost 20 years. (The site is about 125 miles from the B.C. border, giving British Columbians an interest in the decision, if not a voice.)
Just how radioactive could this report be? Well, Alberta Energy took care to release it when the legislature was not sitting, Energy Minister Mel Knight was out of the country and Premier Ed Stelmach was "unavailable for comment."
You might wonder why a report that looks so apolitical has to be handled so delicately. The expert committee, chaired by Harvie Andre, the former federal PC cabinet minister and former professor of chemical engineering, made no recommendations. Its members simply tried to write a straightforward, unemotional summary in clear, accessible English of the mechanics of nuclear reactors, and of the pros and cons of nuclear power.
But when it comes to nuclear power, there's no such thing as neutral.
Every scientific "fact" can be interpreted differently.
The committee's makeup didn't help to give it broad credibility. Apart from Andre, the panel included two respected business professors, a professor of engineering physics and a board member of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., whose expertise is nuclear safety. There were no environmental scientists, physicians or biologists on the committee.
Without such perspectives for balance, the report can hardly help but come across as pro-nuke. It strongly stresses the environmental upsides of nuclear power, and downplays the risks by assuming that new recycling techniques, some of which, the report acknowledges, don't yet exist, will take care of nuclear waste.
It also downplays the health risks of nuclear power, citing as undisputed fact a controversial 2006 epidemiological study by the International Atomic Energy Agency and the World Health Organization that found only 56 people had died in the Chornobyl nuclear accident, even though that number has been hotly disputed.
Of course, no report on nuclear power could have failed to create political fallout.
The debate has always been passionate and divisive -- especially now, when fears over global warming are giving a fresh environmental push to the pro-nuclear argument. But passionate -- even divisive -- debate is just what is needed. And if this not-quite-so-neutral report starts that debate, then it will have served a valuable purpose.
Albertans have an extraordinarily important choice before them.
Do they embrace nuclear power, with its potential to produce bountiful, reliable electricity without the carbon emissions and air pollution of coal-fired plants?
Or do they opt to stay away from a controversial technology, with its high costs, its potential for rare but deadly accidents and its hard-to-handle radioactive waste?
Finding truly neutral information on the subject isn't easy.
And this isn't a simple right/left, blue/green argument anymore. There are plenty of environmentalists who now champion nuclear power as an important tool to fight global warming, and plenty of traditional, conservative rural Albertans who fear the consequences of a technology with the potential to create long-lasting environmental havoc.
Has the provincial government made up its mind already? Is nuclear power in Alberta a done deal?
I don't think the answer is a simple yes. Mel Knight, the energy minister, comes across as bullish on nuclear energy, but the read I get off Stelmach is that he's treading carefully, doesn't want to be pushed into nuclear by anyone -- including the Harper government, which is dead keen to kick-start Canada's flagging nuclear industry.
So to give itself plenty of political cover, the government will now embark on a round of stakeholder consultations and focus groups and polls.
It plans to create an online forum, where we can all chime in -- though it's not up yet.
Alberta Energy says it wants the views of all Albertans. And I think they should oblige. Some decisions are too important to be left to politicians
News Release
March 26, 2009
March 26, 2009
Alberta government releases Nuclear Power Expert Panel report
Process to gather views from Albertans begins next month
Edmonton... The Alberta government has released the report of the Nuclear Power Expert Panel. Albertans will now be asked to share their views on the issues covered in the report and the option of nuclear power generation in Alberta.
“The Expert Panel has provided a factual report that provides the basis for a fully informed discussion in Alberta on this issue,” said Energy Minister Mel Knight. “I would like to thank the members of the Expert Panel for their work.”
Beginning in April, the Alberta government will conduct extensive public consultations to gather views of Albertans on nuclear power in the context of the province’s electricity system. The Nuclear Power Expert Panel report and a consultation workbook and questionnaire being developed will serve as the basis for these consultations.
“The views of Albertans will be important in developing a provincial approach on the issue of nuclear power generation,” Knight added. “The Alberta government has been clear that the province will not take a position until we hear from Albertans.”
The public consultation process will be managed by an independent research firm that will collect the data and provide a summary of the findings to the government after the completion of the public consultation process.
The Nuclear Power Expert Panel was appointed in 2008 with a mandate to gather information and present the facts on nuclear energy to Albertans. The report does not offer any recommendations. The report presents factual information to help provide a clear understanding of the nature of nuclear power generation, its relative risks and benefits and comparisons to other forms of electricity generation.
For more information or a copy of the Nuclear Power Expert Panel Report visit www.energy.alberta.ca.
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Media inquiries may be directed to:
Jason Chance
Director
Alberta Energy
Communications
780-422-3667
Jason.chance@gov.ab.ca
To call toll free within Alberta dial 310-0000.
Backgrounder
March 26, 2009
Overview of the Nuclear Power Expert Panel report
The report is written to provide an overview of the issues specifically related to adding nuclear-powered plants into the province’s inventory of electricity generating facilities and covers the following topics:
1. Electricity in Alberta
Analysis of the electricity supply and demand situation in Alberta indicates that significant additional electrical power will be needed in the future to maintain and improve the standard of living of Albertans. The decision to build a plant - whether powered by thermal combustion, water, wind, biomass, or nuclear - is a private-sector decision taken by a company based on its assessment of the project’s economic viability.
2. Options for meeting Alberta’s needs
Options for addressing the need of increased electricity supply include more fossil-fuel-burning power plants, more renewable sources such as hydroelectricity, biomass or wind, greater energy efficiency, as well as nuclear power. Each technology has trade-offs associated with it. Such trade-offs include the availability of technology, environmental impacts, costs and operating implications for Alberta’s electricity system.
3. An overview of nuclear power
The way a nuclear power plant generates electricity is very similar to a fossil power plant where heat produces steam that drives a turbine and generator. The main difference is that the initial heat is produced from nuclear fission. Nuclear power has been in use for generating electricity for more than 50 years, and more than 400 units are in operation worldwide. Nuclear power has attracted renewed interest recently because it does not release carbon dioxide or other air pollutants during operation.
4. Nuclear fuel management
The ‘nuclear fuel cycle’ includes the how fuel is mined and milled, how it operates in a reactor, and how it is disposed. Once fuel is discharged from the reactor, it is highly radioactive and continues to produce heat. In an open cycle, the fuel is placed in a reactor only once. After discharge, it is stored prior to ultimate disposal. In a closed cycle, 99 per cent of this material can be recycled to be reused as nuclear fuel while the remaining waste fission products decay comparatively quickly.
5. Nuclear safety
Safety issues specific to radioactivity, including radiation’s impacts on health and the environment; the safety goals and approaches related to nuclear power plants; plant design related to safety; lessons learned from past nuclear incidents; and issues associated with low-level waste.
6. Nuclear electricity in Alberta
A nuclear generating plant would have implications related to integration into the Alberta transmission grid as well as regional and provincial impacts associated with communities, infrastructure needs and the economy. Any nuclear generating plant would be a major construction project and have social impacts on schools, hospitals, transportation infrastructure, Aboriginal communities, local economies, housing and so on, much like other large industrial projects.
7. Nuclear regulation in Canada
In Canada, the Federal Government has the authority and responsibility for approving and regulating all nuclear facilities and nuclear-related activities. The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission regulates the process for licensing new nuclear power plants and provides the necessary licences for site preparation, construction, operation, decommissioning, and abandonment. Normal provincial approvals required for any major project would also be required, based on the province’s constitutional responsibility for land and resources.
Nuclear Power Generation Public Consultations
The Alberta government is launching a multi-faceted public consultation process to hear the views of Albertans on nuclear power.
Albertans will be presented with the information gathered by the Expert Panel and asked for their feedback. The public consultation process will be managed by an independent research firm (selected by an open, Request for Proposals process) that will collect the data and provide a summary of the findings to the government after the completion of the public consultation process.
Albertans will be able to provide their views in a number of ways.
* Albertans can review and complete an interactive online workbook and feedback form that will cover the themes of the Expert Panel report (available in April).
* Alberta citizens may also review and complete a paper copy of the workbook and feedback form, available by phoning toll-free 310-0000, then 780-427-0265. Albertans can also print off a copy at the local public library or local office of the Member of the Legislative Assembly.
* Discussion groups with stakeholder groups, representative of environmental, business, energy, and other interests will be held.
* Discussion groups with randomly selected Alberta citizens will be held in 10 communities across Alberta.
* A public opinion survey representative of Albertans will be conducted.
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Media inquiries may be directed to:
Jason Chance
Director
Alberta Energy
Communications
780-422-3667
Jason.chance@gov.ab.ca
To call toll free within Alberta dial 310-0000.
Posted by Arthur Caldicott on 29 Mar 2009