’Fear of nuclear energy is not well-founded’

By Kim Tae-gyu

It would take guts to brave the general criticism and say nuclear power is the future for mankind to replace fossil fuels in the wake of the Fukushima disaster in Japan earlier this year.

Yet a Korean expert, who leads the nation’s nuclear promotion institute, voiced such an opinion at a global forum Monday, co-hosted by the Korea Nuclear Energy Promotion Agency (KONEPA) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

``As you already know, a vague fear of nuclear energy has expanded due to the Fukushima accident in March,’’ KONEPA Chairman Rhee Jae-hwan said in a workshop at the Lotte Hotel Jamsil in Seoul.

``Environmentalists in particular are helping to magnify the fear by neglecting the efficiency of nuclear energy and exaggerating the dangers and negative sides. There is no doubt that nuclear energy is the most realistic alternative to the current fossil fuels to prevent climate change.’’

IAEA Deputy Director General Alexander Bychkov was by and large on the same page as Rhee, saying nuclear power would be significant even for states reluctant to embrace or expand it.

``After the severe accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, public confidence in the safety of nuclear power has been seriously shaken,’’ Bychkov said.

``However, nuclear power will remain important for many countries. This is also true for countries that decided to phase out their nuclear power programs but whose plants will continue to operate for many years until their operations cease and for those that postponed the introduction of new nuclear power projects.’’

The one-off conference, the International Workshop on Public Information and Understanding to Introduce a New Nuclear Power Plant, began Monday and continues through Friday.

A total of 30 experts from 14 countries, including Indonesia, Japan, China, Malaysia, Mongolia, the Philippines, Thailand, Pakistan, Vietnam, France, Lithuania, Argentina and South Africa, are taking part in the five-day event.

Participants will hold talks until Thursday to raise people’s acceptance of nuclear energy and are scheduled to go on a field trip Friday to facilities such as the Kori nuclear power plant in South Gyeongsang Province.

Rhee said that the workshop would focus on ways to increase people’s awareness of nuclear power.

``KONEPA and IAEA are cooperating to develop a social model to improve the public acceptance of nuclear energy, conduct research on socio-psychological effects, and start a joint-venture on nuclear energy human resource cultivation,’’ he said.

``The IAEA International Workshop started from recognition that the major obstacle facing the government would be the issue of public acceptance in the process of nuclear energy policy implementation.’’