May 14th, 2002 in Paris
Presentation given by Bruno Comby
President of EFN, Environmentalists For Nuclear Energy
This paper (text of the presentation given at the OECD annual Forum 2002) gives the point of view of an environmentalist on Environmental Security.
First of all, let me say a few words about who I am to let you understand where I come from. My father was an oil exploration geologist, and so I grew up in close contact with nature. Because oil fields are remote and quickly exhausted, we moved every few years and lived in exotic places. In the African jungle in Gabon, at the age of two, I made my first steps as an environmentalist, then we lived in Canada, United States, etc. By travelling to these different places with my parents, brothers and sisters, I had, since my youngest age, a global view of our planet.
Returning to France for my secondary and university studies a few years later, I graduated from Ecole Polytechnique, and received a higher degree in nuclear engineering. I then decided to devote my life to promoting healthy living and protection of the environment, and wrote a number of books published in 10 languages.
Energy is the key of economic development, and economic development implies consumerism which unfortunately affects our environment at all levels : pollution of the atmosphere, rivers, oceans, reduction of biodiversity, and deforestation.
Therefore, the question of our energy supply is at the heart of environmental security.
The highly developed countries consume great amounts of energy : North America, Europe, and Japan. Today, 20% of the world population consumes 75% of the world's energy. This situation is bound to change. Developing countries such as Brazil, India, and South East Asia are already beginning to consume large amounts of energy. However, the poorer regions such as Africa, Central Asia and most of South America, consume very little energy, but this too is bound to change.
The world energy consumption has considerably grown by one hundred fold in the last 150 years, and especially so in the last 50 years. In the next half century, the energy consumption is expected to again double. As an environmentalist, I am very worried about the impact of this on the environment, and especially on the atmosphere.
The world population has increased by a factor 4 since 1850, and is expected to continue to rise, and perhaps stabilize at about 10 billion inhabitants. This also has contributed, and will continue to contribute to a sharp rise in energy consumption, with possibly devastating effects on our atmosphere.
The energy produced today is provided by various sources : 3% hydro, 7% nuclear and 90% fossil fuels, that is coal, oil, and gas, totalling 7.5 billion tons of carbon per year. This represents 3 MILLION tons per HOUR of carbon dioxyde, dumped into the atmosphere.
In 1981, my military service took me to the Persian Gulf, where I served as officer of the deck on board of a French navy escort vessel. Our mission was to protect international shipping, mainly oil super-tankers navigating the Hormuz Strait. This was at the time of the Irak-Iran war, and I learned there how fragile our lines of supply are.
Two thirds of the oil production in the world passes through the Hormuz Strait which is controlled largely by Iran. I would like to draw your attention again to this highly sensitive area.
Until now, the Hormuz Strait has been spared the obvious destructive acts that we can easily imagine. If the Strait were blocked, the physical and environmental consequences, and the economic disruption of our civilization would be much greater than those which followed September 11th.
It is clear that the United States, Europe, and Japan, are dangerously dependent on fossil fuels.
The greenhouse effect is probably the biggest environmental challenge that we have to face. For the first time in history, mankind is significantly and globally changing the environment. This is mainly the result of our addiction to burning fossil fuels. The amount of carbon dioxyde in the atmosphere has increased by 30% since 1850, bringing it to levels higher than ever seen in 400 000 years.
The IPCC has recently confirmed that this is due to human activities. The temperature of the atmosphere has already increased by more than half a degree Celsius, and is expected to continue to rise between 1.4 to more than 5 degree Celsius in the course of the 21st century. Now, let us suppose that mankind suddenly stopped all C02 emissions. Then, due to the long carbon cycle in the biosphere, the atmospheric temperature would continue to rise for a century or two, due to the carbon already dumped into the atmosphere. Not many people are aware of this time lag. It implies of course, that we are already in the soup. Urgent action is necessary.
The major contributors to the greenhouse effect are coal, oil, and natural gas. Natural gas contributes a little less than coal and oil, but it should be noted that 20% less than a lot is still a lot. On the other hand, renewable energies (wind, solar, and hydro) as well as nuclear energy, emit very little. But only nuclear energy is able to meet the vast requirements of our industrial economies.
Among the environmental advantages of nuclear energy, we must speak about the waste. Nuclear energy is one million times more concentrated than fossil fuel. Therefore, nuclear waste is a million times smaller in volume and mass. Because the volume is so small, nuclear waste can be confined, reprocessed, and safely deposited. Nuclear waste, unlike stable chemical waste which may last forever, sees it 's initial toxicity decrease rapidly, in an exponential manner.
France today is to a large extent independent of imported fossil fuels. The independence fell until the 70 's, due to increase in consumption and lack of domestic reserves. After the 1973 oil crisis, France decided to develop its nuclear program, and increased its independence to 50%, at the same time reducing its CO2 emissions in the same proportion. If France had not made this choice, as was the case for Italy, the dependence would have continued to increase. The cost of electricity in Italy today is about 50% higher than in France, which exports large amounts of electricity to Italy as well as to its other neighbors.
Another important factor for the future is the amount of the reserves. We usually speak of oil and gas reserves in terms of decades. Coal is more abundant, but more polluting. Known reserves of uranium will last several centuries using current PWR and BWR reactors. The long-term future lies in the development of fast neutron reactors, which produce up to a hundred times more energy from the same amount of natural uranium. And these reactors can also burn thorium, which is twice as abundant as uranium.
Renewable energies should not be opposed to nuclear energy. As an environmentalist, I am in favor of energy conservation, energy efficiency, and the development of renewable energies. Clean energies (including renewable AND nuclear) should replace fossil fuels wherever possible. Wind mills and solar energy can usefully contribute for a small percentage of our energy production. However, for electricity generation, nuclear energy is by far more reliable, cheaper, and with much less impact on the landscape, than wind and solar energy.
James Lovelock who is, as you know, the historical father of environmental thinking since the 1960 's supports my views completely and considers well-built and well managed nuclear energy as a clean source of abundant energy.
Let me now introduce our association of Environmentalists For Nuclear Energy. I created EFN in 1996 to provide complete and straightforward information about energy and the environment. Today, EFN gathers over 5000 members and supporters, with local correspondents in more than 40 countries.
Here is a brief description of our activities :
In conclusion, I would like to make three points :
- First : the key to environmental security is a clean and safe energy supply for all inhabitants of the planet.
- Second : well designed, well built and well operated nuclear energy is safe, clean, and essential for our future.
- Third : environmental opposition to nuclear energy will be seen in time to have been an error of historic proportions.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for your attention.
For more information, you may visit EFN's web site : http://www.ecolo.org