German nuke waste disposal key to pull-out -Prodi

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

German nuke waste disposal key to pull-out -Prodi

BERLIN, April 20 (Reuters) - EU Commission President Romano Prodi has 
urged Germany to tackle the disposal of nuclear waste before pushing 
ahead with a controversial plan to abandon nuclear power. 

``The Commission is preparing a statement on this matter which will 
be issued during the year,'' Prodi wrote to Bavarian state premier 
Edmund Stoiber, who opposes the withdrawal. 

``The question of nuclear waste disposal must be considered in 
connection with Germany's possible withdrawal from nuclear power,'' 
he said in the letter, dated April 19 and obtained by Reuters on 
Thursday. 

However, Prodi distanced himself from German media reports suggesting 
that he saw legal obstacles to Germany's nuclear pull-out, a key 
pledge of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's centre-left coalition. 

``Our position is clear, we do not wish to interfere in the German 
government's decision,'' Prodi told German television. 

The Commission chief said it was up to each individual country to 
decide what energy form it used. Nuclear energy provides around one 
third of Germany's electricity needs. 

NUCLEAR WASTE TRANSPORT BAN 

In the letter, Prodi said any future definitive ban on the transport 
of nuclear waste would have to be examined to see if it contravened 
European regulations on free movement of goods. 

Germany currently disposes of nuclear waste by sending it to France 
or Britain for reprocessing, or to intermediate storage facilities. 

However, the transport of nuclear waste has been banned for two years 
since it emerged that nuclear fuel containers had been leaking 
radiation for years. The government plans to lift the ban in August. 

GREENHOUSE GASES 

Prodi said Germany would have to replace nuclear power with 
sufficient renewable energy sources so as not contravene the Kyoto 
protocol on cutting greenhouse gases -- a risk if the lost power were 
replaced by coal or other carbon-based sources. 

``One presumes that closing German nuclear stations would make 
necessary increased efforts in areas such as renewable energy and 
energy efficiency, in order to meet the Kyoto goal of a decline of 
eight percent,'' Prodi said in the letter. 

The government has not come up with anything firm on how it will 
replace nuclear power, although junior coalition partners, the 
Greens, have said renewable energy sources will be used. 

Horse-trading between German energy chiefs and the government over 
phasing out nuclear power is continuing. 

Four major utilities, RWE, Veba AG, Viag AG and EnBW, are taking part 
in talks. Together they produce around a third of Germany's power 
needs. 

The government favours a 30-year timeframe, while industry wants a 
more gradual exit. It has threatened huge legal claims for any 
damages caused by being forced to abandon nuclear power. 

The government has said it expects a deal before the summer, but 
RWE's Muelheim-Karlich plant, which has only been running for two 
years, was still a sticking point in negotiations. 

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Sandy Perle					Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100   				    	
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