Today, on the anniversary day of the tragedy at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, CAN EECCA takes a stand against the construction of new nuclear power plants in the region. Together with the experts, we have collected 16 impressive arguments that should make the governments of the EECCA countries reconsider their plans.
Among them are the high risks of nuclear accidents, loans and subsidies, the lack of technology for long-term disposal of nuclear waste, the duration of the implementation of projects, and proximity to the nuclear weapons industry.
Over the past two years, the state corporation “Rosatom” has been actively negotiating in the countries of Central Asia on the construction of nuclear power plants. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan got into the zone of interest.
Unfortunately, in the process of signing cooperation agreements between Rosatom and the countries of Central Asia, the public of these countries practically did not have the opportunity to receive complete information about the plans and risks associated with the construction of nuclear power plants, as well as express their opinion or influence the process.
Today, with our network members from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, we sent official letters to these countries’ responsible Government organizations (Ministers). We want to understand whether the government is aware of all the risks that constructing a nuclear power plant in their state can bring.
According to our observations, many public discussions and discussions in the media regarding nuclear energy are accompanied by many stereotypes and inaccuracies. That is why in our position, we provide enough facts so that decision-makers and the public can see that the development of nuclear energy in the EECCA region has already created more problems than solutions, including the resolution of the climate crisis.
CAN EECCA consider it necessary to abandon new projects in nuclear energy and fossil fuels, as well as their direct and indirect subsidies? We call on Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia countries to reorient funding and other support measures towards a fair energy transition to renewable energy sources (RES), develop international cooperation in the field of RES, and strive for climate justice.
- CAN (Climate Action Network) EECCA is the most significant climate NGO network in Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia. Our network has existed since 2008 and is part of the Climate Action Network International, which brings together more than 1800 public organizations in 130 countries.
At the moment, 58 civil society organizations in 11 countries of the region (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Ukraine) are members of the network.
Our work is to support, strengthen and develop civil society organizations in the EECCA region to more effectively confront the climate crisis and develop and implement climate policies leading to climate justice.
Link to the position.
Experts:
- Andrey Ojarovsky, NPP expert
https://t.me/AndreyOzharovsky - Aleksei Ovchinnikov, Green Belarus
being.svana@gmail.com
For more information please contact
Baktygul Chynybaeva
Communication Manager of CAN EECCA
