---- Forwarded Message -----
  From: ASlater <aslater@gracelinks.org>
  To: nirsnet <nirsnet@nirs.org>
  Subject: Model Sustainable Energy Agency statute
  Dear Friends,
  At the CSD on April 16th, NGOs presented the statement below and engaged in
  the
  dialogue with government representatives, representatives of Local
  Authorities,
  Labor Unions, Scientists and Business reps. The NGOs were aligned with the
  labor reps and local authorities. Individual speakers rebutted forcefully the
  unfounded assertions of business reps from the nuclear and fossil
  industries as
  well as some of the hired-hand "scientists". We had an Alaskan indigenous
  elder who spoke against the proposed scandal to drill in the Alaskan Arctic
  Wildlife refuge. Governments at the session heard about the proliferation
  perils of nuclear power, the unreported carbon costs associated with nuclear
  power (thanks to the enlightening report of Jan-Willem Storm van Leeuwen and
  Phil Smith of INES at http//home.trouwweb.nl/stormsmith) and we announced that
  the Abolition 2000 Sustainable Energy Working Group's Model International
  Sustainable Energy Statute would soon be available for general circulation,
  urging governments to support its adoption. (It will be posted by next week
  after we receive feedback on the draft during the CSD.) IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO
  CONTACT YOUR GOVERNMENT AND ASK THAT NUCLEAR POWER NOT BE CLASSIFIED AS A FORM
  OF SUSTAINABLE ENERGY AT THE CSD. Regards, Alice Slater




  NGO STATEMENT, DIALOGUE 1
  MULTI-STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUES
  UN Commission on Sustainable Development, Ninth Session, 16 April 2001
  Sustainable and Unsustainable Energy
  Sustainable energy can ideally be defined as energy with positive impact on
  the
  healthy functioning of ecological systems, including the global ecosystem.. A
  working definition of sustainable energy is energy with minimum negative
  social, health and environmental impacts, and which can be supplied
  continuously to future generations on earth. On this basis, we can only
  conclude that energy systems using nuclear power, fossil fuels, and
  large-scale
  hydropower are unsustainable.
  Both current and advanced nuclear energy systems pose serious, scientifically
  established dangers centered on the operation of nuclear facilities and the
  proliferation of fissile material. Nuclear waste is the most long-lasting
  toxic
  material on earth, which remain toxic for more than 250,000 years. The
  industry
  has never achieved a cost-effective and safe solution to these problems,
  nor is
  there any indication that such solutions are scientifically possible.
  Although the nuclear reactor of a nuclear power station does not in itself ,
  produce CO2, the nuclear fuel chain is a significant source of such emissions.
  It causes radioactive contamination of air, water and land, especially
  affecting workers in the nuclear industries and Indigenous Peoples on whose
  lands nuclear power is tested and produced.
  Uranium is not an infinite resource, unlike renewable sources of energy
  such as
  solar and wind. Nuclear power is capital intensive and, especially in the case of developing
  countries, is likely to create long-term increases in international debt and
  will not produce growth in jobs nor benefit local economies
  Since nuclear power is totally unsustainable, governments should mandate the
  immediate phasing out of all nuclear power plants.
  Regarding fossil fuels, from exploration to production and consumption, there
  are, at each stage, negative ecological, social, and economic impacts. Fossil
  fuel extraction over the years has created an ecological debt in petroleum
  producing areas for which the system of excessive consumption of the
  industrialised countries and the extractors should be held responsible. Local
  populations and indigenous peoples suffer from pollution, and destruction of
  their communities and local economies. Attempts to gain access to petroleum
  lead to revolts, repression, displacement, and even international wars. Also,
  the most advanced extraction technologies have been proven to be unsafe, where
  transport, refining and end use cause damage to water, soil and air. As a
  result, local population and indigenous peoples suffer from pollution, and
  destruction of their communities and local economies.
  Governments must mandate an immediate moratorium on exploration and extraction
  in environmentally and socially and sensitive areas. Governments and the
  corporate sector must shift toward renewable technologies, relying heavily on
  conservation in order to avoid the entire chain of damage that it oil
  production and consumption cause at every step. For example, countries should
  implement a tax based on carbon content to induce a shift away from coal and
  oil.
  Small-scale hydropower is a sustainable source of energy. But large-scale
  hydropower, although renewable, is not sustainable. Its sheer size has caused
  not only very serious negative environmental impacts, including soil erosion
  and loss of biodiversity, but also negative social impacts on peoples
  living in
  dam areas, especially on indigenous peoples. These peoples lose their sources
  of livelihood or are even displaced from their traditional homes, lands and
  communities. The recent global review of large-scale dams by the World
  Commission of Dams, has confirmed these negative impacts and huge capital
  costs
  involved in the implementation of large-scale dam projects. Governments should
  mandate a moratorium on the construction of large-scale dams.
  Increasing Access to Sustainable Energy
  Increased access to sustainable energy is realized only through the
  participation of the poor, women, indigenous peoples, the disabled, the
  elderly, and other under represented groups in civil society. These groups and
  the two billion rural poor who lack access to “modern energy” should have key
  institutionalized roles in energy decisionmaking at all levels and in all
  sectors producing and using energy, both public and private. For instance,
  present energy consumption patterns place inequitable burdens upon women,
  especially in rural areas in developing countries. Women spend long hours
  gathering cooking fuel, time that could be spent in more productive
  activities. Throughout the world, generations of indigenous peoples and their
  lands and other life forms have been especially negatively impacted by the
  production of unsustainable energy. Unsustainable energy industries
  operate in
  indigenous peoples territories without their consent, and displace them from
  their lands, thereby violating their human and collective rights. Imposed
  exposure to industry toxins and uranium has caused disproportionately high
  rates of cancer and other diseases among indigenous peoples.
  The primary obstacle to the use of more sustainable forms of energy is the
  enormous amounts of government economic subsidies that perpetuate the myths of
  so-called “cheap” fossil fuels and large-scale hydropower or so called “clean”
  nuclear power. Some examples of “hidden” government subsidies are: deficiency
  payments for producer losses; operating grants to producers; consumer
  subsidies
  via retailers; tax exemptions, and deductions; tax rate relief; tax deferrals;
  preferential treatment in local rates and franchise fees; provision of
  infrastructure such as land appropriation for roads and plant sites; government research and development expenditures;
  preferential loans; price
  regulation; and import/export tariffs/quotas.
  If external costs related to energy production, such as health, environmental,
  and social costs are included, it will become apparent that allegedly
  “expensive” renewable sources of energy are in fact much cheaper than the
  existing non-sustainable technologies. Government subsidies for the production
  and consumption of harmful, unsustainable forms of energy should be phased out
  under a five-year time frame, and along with this, incentives and funding
  should be provided for conservation and the development of renewable energy
  sources.
  Some of the resources supporting harmful energy subsidies from industrialized
  countries should be redirected to finance the establishment and
  functioning of
  a new UN agency called the International Sustainable Energy Agency or
  Organization. Worshops should be held at the country level to assist countries
  in identifying, planning and implementing the phasing out of unsustainable
  energy subsidies and in the calculation of full costs.
  Access to sustainable energy is critical to the reduction of poverty, as well
  as to the promotion of equitable development between and among countries. Renewable energy sources, as opposed to nuclear
  energy and fossil fuels,
  naturally foster the decentralization of the provision of energy. The poor,
  especially from the South, should be able to access, develop and control
  information, appropriate technologies, and required skills for the production
  and marketing of energy. The interests of global trade should not override
  this right, and the implementation of the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights agreement should not amount to a
  deprivation of access to sustainable
  energy technology.
International Sustainable Energy Model