Participating in the annual general conference of the world's nuclear watchdog, IAEA, Chairman of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) informed the agency that this country needs to build more nuclear power plants to overcome its severe energy crisis. Pakistan, he said, possesses the experience, credentials, and potential to become a recipient as well as a supplier of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. Arguing his case, he went on to aver that the first nuclear power plant, Kanupp, set up in 1972 has been operating safely for more than 40 years, providing confidence to the PAEC to pursue further the option of nuclear power plants. And that the performance of the Chashma power plant's two units had made policymakers realise that the cost of electricity produced by nuclear plants was lower than that from all other means except hydropower projects.
True, based on its good safety record, Pakistan has a right to pursue nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. True also that nuclear energy is relatively cheap, and the country is in dire need of using every available source. But nuclear power plants are dangerous, too, because of potential accidents and other hazards having both short and long-term consequences for affected populations and the environment. Major accidents have happened even in some of the most technologically-advanced countries, such as the 1979 Three Mile Island mishap in the US. The 1987 disaster at Chernobyl in Ukraine not only made the place inhabitable, radiation escaping from the badly-damaged plant spread to many parts of Europe. Japan is still struggling to cope with its 2011 Fukushima disaster triggered by a tsunami. The number of smaller reported cases of accidents is close to 60. The danger in Pakistan's case is quite high considering many of its regions are prone to earthquakes. Karachi, where Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated a nuclear power project last December is vulnerable to earthquake-produced tsunamis. Heavy seasonal floods pose yet another problem. Installing nuclear plants in these conditions is a risky business - all the more so given the existing levels of preparedness in dealing with disasters.
Then there is the issue of safe disposal of radioactive waste. In the absence of transparency, careless dumping of such materials can be a serious problem. Even if properly buried, harmful radiation from nuclear waste stays in the soil for decades. It can find its way out through the food chain onto the tables of people living nearby or distant from dumping sites. Clearly, the dangers far outweigh the benefits of acquiring energy from this cheap source. That is why the trend in many European countries is to give up nuclear plants and go for green technologies. Several European countries, such as Austria, Germany, Italy, and Spain are in the process of phasing out their nuclear power plants. It makes little sense for this country to adopt an unpopular course at a time it is still in the process of making choices. Pakistan's energy policy must assign preference to environmentally-friendly cleaner, renewable sources of energy.
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