(548.5268) WISE Amsterdam - Over 500 participants, including Ministers and other high-level officials as well as representatives of the 5 groups identified by the UN as important stakeholders (business and industry, local authorities, scientific community, labor unions and NGO's), attended the session reviewing, amongst others, the issues of energy/atmosphere and transport. For the first time at the UN/CSD process so-called multi-stakeholder dialogues were held - dialogues should be understood as having to listen to speeches of the different pressure groups with, if you're lucky, some response from a participating government.
As the experts in February at the preparatory meeting did not reach agreement on the paragraph on nuclear energy in the papers to be prepared for this meeting (see WISE News Communique 545.5257, "Nuclear bracketed to CSD") substantive disagreements were still on the table to be discussed.
Although it was clear from the beginning that nuclear energy would not get the full credits for being a sustainable energy source as some of the countries (US, Canada) wanted, the danger of unclear language, supportive for nukes but taking into account some "minor problems which can be easily solved" (waste, safety, economics...) persuaded several NGO's to be there and have talks with delegates, representatives of the local authorities, labor unions, media and negotiators.
Despite the fact that only a few anti-nuclear NGO's were around we managed to make it into one of the major issues, urging the other NGO's (energy, women, indigenous people etc.) to strongly support the case of exclusion of nuclear energy in the framework of a global meeting on sustainable development.
In the first session of the multi-stakeholders dialogues the NGO's urged governments to, inter alia, immediately phase out nuclear energy, place a moratorium on the extraction of fossil fuels from environmentally sensitive areas, impose a carbon-based fuel tax, cease building large-scale dams and support the creation of a new UN Agency to promote renewable and sustainable energy.
The NGO's also stressed the point that consensus on the important issue of the future role of the United Nations in the global move towards sustainability would never be reached as long as nuclear energy is mentioned, even in the weakest form, as being part of a sustainable energy policy.
On the second day, which again started with a dialogue session, WISE presented, also on behalf of the other initiators NIRS, Helio and EarthDay!, the petition with a list of 750+ organizations against the role of nuclear energy in the CSD (click here for full list). The fact that the chair of the session, Mr. Moldan from the Czech Republic, agreed to accept the petition during the plenary dialogue session was considered as a strong signal that he opposes nuclear language in the framework of "his" process.
Strongly dissatisfied with the whole process, in which countries' sovereign interests were given precedence over engagements in frank discussions on sustainable development, some NGO's decided to organize a small demonstration outside the UN building on Friday. While preparing for the demonstration by making banners and other props, three people got arrested inside the UN-building, including one WISE-staffer. These three people were, after 6 hours of "investigative talks", thrown out of the building and their access passes were confiscated for the rest of the CSD discussions.
Whilst the strongest positions and statements were made against nuclear energy (Denmark, Ireland, Poland, AOSIS, Germany, New Zealand) and the pro-nuclear countries seemed to back off, sit back and wait, only lobbying behind the scenes, at the end it was clear that reaching consensus was far from possible. And so the CSD ended up with a far from clear statement on the role of nuclear power in the road to sustainability and the Rio+10 meeting to be held next year in Johannesburg.
The final text appears below. It was approved after some marathon sessions in the last hours of the CSD, when many delegations had already dropped out, highly confused and frustrated and simply on their way back to their home country.
It is clear several countries will be using this text to legitimize their choice for the further development of clean and safe nuclear energy. In a few weeks we'll see which parts of the text will appear in the energy plan to be presented by US Vice-President Dick Cheney.
Sources:
- WISE Amsterdam
- Earth Negotiations Bulletin, Vol. 05 No.183, 30 April 2001
- United Nations web site www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd9/energy.htm
Contact: WISE Amsterdam
CSD on nuclear energy:
Challenges
Nuclear power currently accounts for 16 per cent of the world's electricity generation. However,
nuclear energy is associated with a number of concerns, in particular regarding nuclear safety,
spent fuel, waste management, transboundary consequences and decommissioning. The choice of nuclear
energy rests with countries.
Some countries have been using nuclear energy technologies safely and see no inordinate concern in using and developing additional technology for properly managing and controlling spent fuel and other nuclear materials, and some of these countries consider that the use of nuclear energy should be increased. From their perspective, nuclear power is a sustainable energy source with both economical and environmental advantages. In their view, the removal of the option of nuclear power would remove an important element of flexibility and diversity in energy supply. For those countries that choose nuclear energy, the challenge lies in ensuring environmentally sound, socially acceptable and cost-effective solutions and in addressing nuclear safety and spent fuel and waste management as well as public concerns on these issues. Many countries seek the promotion of international cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Some other countries have decided to phase-out nuclear energy from their energy supply mix. Other countries, including several developed countries as well as Small Island Developing States (SIDS), do not use nuclear energy and do not consider nuclear energy as an appropriate or acceptable source of energy. Many of these countries are of the view that nuclear energy is not compatible with the objectives of sustainable development, and that risks related to safety, waste management and transport and stranded costs remain unsolved. Some are also of the opinion that the use of nuclear energy in general should be phased-out as soon as practically possible.
Recommendations
Governments, taking into account their national circumstances, are encouraged to:
- Support their national efforts, including research and international cooperation as an effective tool in addressing the issues of nuclear safety and spent fuel and waste management;
- Strengthen independent national regulatory agencies and promote international cooperation in nuclear safety;
- Promote a high level of nuclear safety;
- Improve the transparency of nuclear safety-related decisions inter alia, through public participation, where appropriate;
- Promote public education and participation as well as capacity building of human resources, in the areas of nuclear energy and waste management;
- Further develop technological solutions for long-lived radioactive waste;
- Address the safety of their nuclear energy installations, as deemed appropriate after assessment by national regulatory authorities, including consideration of the option of phasing out and closing, as appropriate, such installations;
- Recalling paragraph 8 of IAEA Governing Council resolution, GC (44)/RES/17, and taking into account the very serious potential for environment and human health impacts of radioactive wastes, make efforts to examine and further improve measures and internationally-agreed regulations regarding safety, while stressing the importance of having effective liability mechanisms in place, relevant to international maritime transportation and other transboundary movement of radioactive material, radioactive waste, and spent fuel, including, inter alia, arrangements for prior notification and consultations done in accordance with relevant international instruments.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |