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From The Week
That Was (April 10, 2004) brought to you by SEPP
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3. Sweden reconsiders nuclear power
On April 4, Sweden's Liberal party (Folkpartiet), currently in opposition, announced a new nuclear policy. They now want to reverse the decision of a 1980 referendum to phase out nuclear reactors. Says Jan Björklund, vice chairman of the Liberal party: "In 1980 the voters were told sun and wind would replace nuclear power. Now we see that oil and gas are the realistic alternatives. This is not acceptable." The main reason given for the new policy is concern for global warming, as Sweden is about to increase its output of carbon dioxide with new fossil-fuel powerplants. The party also points out that more than 50% of Sweden's current population is too young to have voted in 1980. The liberals want keep the current 11 reactors and also restart the reactor Barsebäck-1 (closed in 1999). They also want to change the Swedish nuclear-technology law to allow construction of more reactors. They envision 13-15 reactors in the future. The exact number should be decided by the market and economical realities, not by politicians, they say. ------------------------------------------------------------------ SEPP Comment: This is a first, in a country where thinking about a future for nuclear power is against the law. Political opposition to this policy will be tremendous. But it's sad they do not promote nuclear power on its own merits, without referring to the scientifically flawed theory of catastrophic global warming. However, slowly, slowly we see the negative attitude changing, which also can be seen in polls. Of course, Finland's construction of a 5th reactor helps a lot. |