Today, 138 organizations, including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, U.S. Public Interest Research Group and Public Citizen, demanded that the Clinton/Gore Administration change its current position in support of allowing nuclear power to obtain clean air credits through the Kyoto Climate Agreement. The U.S. has stated it will walk away from climate talks in the Hague this November, known as Conference of the Parties (COP) 6, if the outcome excludes nuclear power from receiving credits through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Agreement.
This stubborn pro-nuclear stance is contrary not only to the European Union’s position, but also to the positions of many across the globe. In a letter sent today to President Clinton, Vice-President Gore and other policymaking members of the administration, the NGOs said, “Citizens of many nations, including African, Indian, and Canadian NGOs, the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and 12 Latin American countries, have publicly stated their opposition to CDM credits for nuclear power.”
The letter states that the U.S. position smacks of neo-colonialism because “…western nuclear companies, unable to get contracts at home due to safety, environmental and cost concerns, would be attempting to dump their unwanted and failing technology on developing countries.” Further, “…many smaller developing nations fear nuclear power CDM credits would favor high-growth nuclear projects in developing countries over smaller, sustainable projects in non-nuclear developing nations,” since the current U.S. position would not only give credits to nuclear power, but give nuclear credits on par with renewable energy.
The letter points out that the Department of State position that the CDM ensure sustainable, cost-effective development should defacto exclude nuclear power from clean air credits because nuclear power is neither clean nor cheap, and that the nuclear fuel chain produces significant greenhouse gas emissions itself. “At the very least, the U.S. position would support exporting nuclear power and its dangers (including nuclear waste, huge economic costs, nuclear weapons material, chronic radioactive releases, and abuse of democratic principles) all over the world. This is a legacy the Clinton/Gore administration would not wish to leave,” said the environmental groups.
The letter was signed by organizations from 20 countries, including France, Japan, Russia, Canada, Ukraine, Malaysia, Mauritius, Iran, Sweden, South Korea, Georgia, Armenia, Azberbaijan, Turkmenistan, Belgium, Australia, The Netherlands, Bulgaria, Taiwan, and the U.S.
More than 120 individuals signed the letter as well, including singer Bonnie Raitt, actor Alec Baldwin, and numerous academics, doctors and concerned citizens from across the country.
The COP6 meeting, which is being held to determine implementation details of the Kyoto climate change Protocol, will be held in The Hague, Netherlands, from November 13-24, 2000. Large demonstrations are expected throughout the meeting; actions on November 13 will focus on the nuclear issue, with support actions expected in cities around the world.
Copies of the letter are available upon request, and it is also on NIRS’ website, www.nirs.org. Background information on nuclear issues and the COP6 conference are available in the nuclear power and global warming section of the NIRS website and at www.antenna.nl/wise and www.climateconference.org.