Petition and letter to Secretary General UN: NO to pro-nuclear energy lobbying at the UN

Global governments agreed on banning Nuclear Weapons, but at the United Nationsduring its Sustainable Development summit were panels falsely promoting nuclear energy as a sustainable energy source

26.07.2017 |

Panels at the UN falsely promoting nuclear energy as a sustainable energy source

Global governments recently agreed on banning Nuclear Weapons, but at the United Nations during its Sustainable Development summit HLPF17 and occupying the biggest exhibition space, were panels falsely promoting nuclear energy as a sustainable energy source.

The Women's Major Group and WECF therefore issued a petition to send the following message to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr Antonio Guterres, to call on him to dismantle the pro nuclear energy exhibition at the Sustainable Development summit this week, and to entirely review the mandate of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and begin a process that would convert its sole purpose to inspections and safety, and to drop the promotion, of nuclear energy.

A letter (PDF) with the petition to not tolerate pro-nuclear lobbying at the UN, was send to the Secretary General from the Women's Major Group members at HLPF.

Why nuclear energy is unsustainable?

Nuclear energy waste (spent fuel) can continue to be used to make dirty bombs.
Despite 50 years and billions of subsidies, the Nuclear industry has not found a way to safely dispose of its radioactive waste, which remains extremely hazardous 100,000 years in the future
Nuclear radiation even in extremely low levels is bad for human health, in particular for women and children. Studies in the US and Germany have shown that children living close to nuclear energy plants have higher risks of cancer.
Uranium mining, which mostly takes place in indigenous territories has lead to death and disease of local workers and their families such as in the case of the Navajo tribe.

Nuclear industry itself counts with severe nuclear accidents every few decades. In reality we have had very bad nuclear accidents every decade, which have destroyed livelihoods and made use of land for living and agriculture impossible for years to come. The victims of these accidents have suffered discrimination and not been sufficiently supported and they and their children life in fear of cancer and other diseases. (see: Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, Fukushima)

Finally, the tax payers end up with the bill for the full costs of nuclear energy, which is heavily subsidised. Solar and Wind energy are already cheaper. It makes no economic sense at all to invest in nuclear energy.

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