Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-05-02-Speech-3-143"
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"en.20010502.10.3-143"2
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"Mr President, honourable Members, the Chernobyl accident in 1986 was a tragedy on a global scale and we continue to feel strongly for the victims this tragedy has caused, both among those involved in the clean-up and plant workers, and among people not directly involved, including innocent children. We also recognise the huge economic burden this accident has put on Belarus, Russia and Ukraine and other countries and the problems for the population in contaminated regions to restore normal living conditions.
The consequences of the accident on EU territory were comparatively minor but nevertheless important efforts continue to be made for monitoring levels of radioactivity in the environment and in foodstuffs: controls on the import of foodstuffs were even recently strengthened. The commemoration of this event provides us with an opportunity to reflect upon nuclear safety in the region. On 15 December 2000, Ukraine shut down definitively the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The Commission welcomed this decision as a major contribution to the improvement of nuclear safety in Europe. We also appreciate that by deciding to close the Chernobyl plant before the end of 2000, Ukraine lived up to the commitment it made under the international agreement signed with the governments of the of the G7 countries and with the European Commission.
The European Union has provided considerable support to Ukraine over the last few years in addressing and overcoming the consequences of the Chernobyl accident, which had such devastating effects on the population and the environment. Over EUR 340 million have been granted in assistance today, not taking into account technical assistance provided for other nuclear installations in the Ukraine. For Chernobyl, important EU support is related to turning the sarcophagus into an environmentally acceptable system and addressing social needs.
The Commission will soon adopt the formal proposal for a Council decision on a second contribution to the Chernobyl shelter fund at the EBRD which will then be submitted to the Council and to Parliament for decision. Nuclear safety is a priority for the European Union. Since the beginning of the political and economic reforms that took place in the former Soviet Union, the European Union has actively assisted the countries of the region in improving the safety of their nuclear installations.
The strategy followed by the EU was in line with the G7 multilateral programme of action. This included support for short-term measures for nuclear safety improvements as well as longer-term measures to replace unsafe reactors by alternative energy sources. In the particular case of the candidate countries of central and eastern Europe, the PHARE Programme has helped and continues to help improve nuclear safety there as well as to develop economically and environmentally sound energy strategies for the replacement of the less safe nuclear reactors.
As requested by the Council, the Commission has given a high priority to nuclear safety in the accession partnerships and in using pre-accession funds to pursue these priorities. Important landmarks are: the agreement to close non-upgradeable units in Lithuania, Slovakia and Bulgaria; the support that the programme has given to the nuclear regulators; the short-term urgent safety improvements made to some reactors; the design and operational improvements in upgradeable reactors and also considerable assistance to tackle the problems related to radioactive waste and spent fuel.
The case of the Russian Federation is particularly important. Russia is the only state of the former Soviet Union involved in all aspects of nuclear power, from uranium mining to plant design, power generation and spent fuel reprocessing. Some 15% of electricity in Russia is generated by nuclear power. Russia's civil nuclear industry is also a major source of employment accounting for approximately 300 000 people in direct jobs. Given the limited size of the available EU budget, the large number of operating reactors and the special economic conditions in Russia, it would be impossible for the European Union to offer Russia financial assistance equivalent to that made available to the candidate countries and to Ukraine. Nonetheless the basic policy orientation is the same: to use the technical and financial resources available to the European Union to help the Russian Federation improve safety levels.
With regard to Russia, we also pursue an active cooperation in spent fuel and radio active waste management in north-west Russia. An enormous quantity of spent fuel from nuclear submarines is stored under very poor conditions. This poses a major threat to the Barents Sea and the Arctic environment. The Community is not party to the Arctic monitoring and assessment programme, but is nevertheless closely involved in the work related to environmental radioactivity in the Arctic. We are at present involved in active negotiations on a specified multilateral agreement, the MNEPR, which should allow us to set up and implement a large international effort.
To conclude, the Commission has undertaken an active policy in assisting our partner states in their efforts to increase nuclear safety. We are committed to continue this policy and hope very much that together we can ensure a secure and safe energy supply consistent with sustainable development and respect for the environment."@en1
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