Nuclear power plant

 

The government wants to build a nuclear power plant. But, do we really need this thing?

What's going to happen if this thing is to be built near my house?

There are two kinds of reactions in response to the building of a nuclear plant.

Some say it is a good thing, a high-tech and efficient energy source.

In addition, it will not emit waste gases that will pollute our air and is therefore a whole lot more environment-friendly than coal or petroleum.

Others call it a devil. Other than exorbitant cost, it will also produce radioactive waste which if leaked will mean an environmental catastrophe.

While many can forget the numerous earthquakes and volcano eruptions that have taken place on this planet, few will not shudder at the thought of the Chernobyl meltdown in Ukraine 24 years back.

Good thing or bad, we will leave the scientists to argue about it, but having debated over this issue for over half a century, 11 answers could come out from ten top-notched scientists--none a standard one.

Let's put aside safety concerns now and concentrate the its economic implications.

Lim Guan Eng said the country's electrical energy reserves have reached a high of 40%, double the rational level of 20%, and this coupled with the massive amount of power to be supplied in the future by Bakun and Murum dams in Sarawak, will easily make Malaysia a country with an enormous power surplus, and therefore construction of a nuclear plant is redundant.

Of course, it is also logical that the government intends to cut down the use of coal and petroleum as fuels for power generation, and substitute part of them with nuclear power.

Having said that, any potentially polluting activity will have to face a mountain of problems before it can come to Malaysia.

What's going to happen if this thing is to be built near your house?

Let's put aside nuclear plants. Even much lower grade garbage incinerators have met with bumpy fates in this country.

The government wanted to build a few garbage incinerators here more than ten years ago, but do we see any of them today?

Controversies and protests have risen over the tendering procedures right up to the choice of location. In the end, the project died a premature death.

At a time when neighbouring Singapore is already having four incinerators, we are still scrambling to find new dump sites!

This is, as a matter of fact, an issue of public sector efficiency.

This efficiency is reflected not on the size of police force we could mobilise, but whether the government's actions could gain the recognition and support of the public.

Public recognition and support are derived from their trust towards the government, as well as their satisfaction towards public policies.

If the tenders are awarded in a transparent and equitable manner, social backlash will be minimised.

If the government could communicate with local residents on the choice of location, offering safety assurances, then the public's fears and suspicion will be allayed (By TAY TIAN YAN/Translated by DOMINIC LOH/Sin Chew Daily)