France's Nuclear Policy: A Question of Generations
- Protests against the industrial center for geological storage Cigéo.
- France seeks long-term solutions for nuclear waste.
Eulerpool News·
France's energy supply relies heavily on the use of nuclear power, which accounts for a significant 75% of the country's electricity needs, making France one of the largest net exporters of electricity worldwide. However, this advanced technology also brings challenges, particularly in managing the resulting radioactive waste.
Jean-Michel Hoorelbecke, Deputy Head of Safety at the French National Agency for Radioactive Waste (ANDRA), emphasizes the obligation not to leave the burden of nuclear waste to future generations. This responsibility necessitates the development of safe and active solutions today.
Recently, the ARTEMIS review service of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) concluded an 11-day mission to assess France's management of spent nuclear fuel. The report praised ANDRA's comprehensive commitment to safety, but also recommended several improvements, including speeding up the decommissioning of nuclear power plants.
While most nuclear fuels in France are reprocessed, they must be cooled in four-meter-deep water pools for years due to their heat. This process generates both intermediate and high-level waste, which ultimately need to be vitrified and cooled for decades before they can be permanently stored.
Greenpeace recently expressed concerns about potential attack scenarios on the spent fuel pools of EDF and Areva. Areva dismissed these concerns, emphasizing the already significantly cooled fuels and the vigilance regarding terrorist threats.
Like many other nuclear energy-producing countries, France does not yet have a long-term solution for the permanent disposal of high and intermediate-level waste. Current efforts are focused on the Industrial Centre for Geological Storage (Cigéo), an underground laboratory intended to provide the safest disposal solution in the long run.
However, the project has not met with universal approval. Numerous protests have taken place in the region of the planned site, supported by nuclear power opponents, some of whom have even lived in treehouses to oppose the facility.
Despite this controversy, the necessity for a safe and long-term solution for radioactive waste remains. France plays a pioneering role in this regard, incorporating both technological innovations and societal debates to fulfill the responsibility towards future generations. Modern Financial Markets Data
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