Greenpeace will risk imprisonment to keep public informed of secret nuclear ships
Greenpeace published today images and details from the surveillance of a BNFL ship in North Scotland loading a consignment of weapons-usable plutonium. The BNFL-owned ship the MV Arneb was photographed by Greenpeace investigators on the evening of Friday (16th) at the port of Scrabster loading highly radioactive fuel made of plutonium and uranium. The plutonium fuel had been transported to Scrabster by road from the Dounreay nuclear site. The fuel was then shipped to Germany where it arrived on Sunday (18th). The shipment is believed to be the first in a series to be completed by the end of the year and poses significant risks to human health and the environment. There are 82 fuel 'assemblies' in total to be moved, each containing enough plutonium to make a nuclear bomb.
The publication of this information will shortly become illegal if the Government's Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill becomes law within the next few weeks. The bill would prevent publication of information that might 'prejudice the security of any nuclear site or any nuclear material' and carries a sentence of up to seven years for offenders. Greenpeace has already pledged to continue publishing information concerning nuclear facilities and transport after the bill becomes law so long as such publication is in the public interest.
Emma Gibson, Greenpeace nuclear campaigner said, "If anything happened to this ship, whether deliberate or accidental, the consequences would be catastrophic. There's enough plutonium on board to make several nuclear bombs and any radioactivity released in to the environment would contaminate the seas around Britain for thousands of years to come".
"People have a right to know if highly dangerous nuclear material is being transported through their towns and shipped along the coast. Greenpeace will continue to reveal any information we have about these or any other nuclear shipments."
Greenpeace is running a national campaign against the measures in the Terrorism Bill because it believes that the public has a right to know about the dangerous practices of the nuclear industry. On Monday (19th), Greenpeace published a newspaper advert showing a map of nuclear waste train routes through central London, with Internet links to the train timetables. Greenpeace has vowed to continue publishing material that is in the public interest whether or not the Act becomes law and will be releasing the results of other investigations on its UK website, www.greenpeace.org.uk throughout the week.
The plutonium fuel has been stored at Dounreay since the early 1990's, having been flown into Dounreay from Germany. Originally it was intended be either used in a fast breeder reactor, or for it to be reprocessed at Dounreay. Both options proved unworkable - the fast reactor project was abandoned, and the reprocessing plant was closed down. Under the terms of the contract the fuel is now being returned to Germany.
The MV Arneb, which is owned by BNFL is not designed specifically to carry nuclear materials. It is described by it owners as a 'multipurpose vessel' which can be used as a roll on-roll off car transporter or grain carrier. It is not accompanied by an armed escort vessel, as has happened with other plutonium shipments around the world. The flasks that contain the fuel have not been tested in realistic accident conditions and were not designed to withstand terrorist attack. The flasks were collected from Dounreay in an armoured truck, which was loaded on board the MV Arneb for the voyage to Germany. The ship docked at the German port of Bremerhaven from where the truck was driven to a nuclear plant at Hanau.
During its long-running campaign to expose the threats from the nuclear industry Greenpeace has revealed numerous safety scandals at nuclear power stations, landfill sites used as nuclear waste dumps and the routes of secret nuclear shipments from Sellafield to Japan. Greenpeace investigations have also revealed the routes of plutonium road convoys, spent nuclear fuel deliveries that have made regular stops for tea-breaks at motorway service stations and highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel being transported on a roll on-roll off ferry with ordinary freight trucks and their drivers on board.
Emma Gibson added, "It is lunacy to ship this deadly material around the world, especially at a time of huge global insecurity. The safest thing to do is to keep it contained at Dounreay".
Notes to Editors:
- Background briefing on the Dounreay shipments available from the Greenpeace Press Office.
Another clause of the Act prohibits disclosures of 'uranium enrichment technology'. Highly enriched uranium can be used in nuclear weapons. However, enriched uranium, which would be covered by the clause, is the material used as normal fuel for use in power stations. This Bill as it stands would make it illegal to talk about the process by which nuclear fuel is made, where it is made or the potential problems of using it.
The relevant part of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill, which had it's second reading on Monday 19th November :
Clause 79 Prohibition of disclosures in relation to nuclear security 79(1) A person is guilty of an offence if he discloses any information or thing the disclosure of which might prejudice the security of any nuclear site or any nuclear material-
(a) with the intention of prejudicing that security; or
(b) being reckless as to whether the disclosure might prejudice that security "nuclear material" means
a) nuclear material held on a site or
b) nuclear material anywhere in the world which is being transported to or from a nuclear site or on Board a British ship
This offence is punishable with up to seven years imprisonment.
Clause 80 Prohibition of disclosures of uranium enrichment technology Applies to
a) any information about the enrichment of uranium or
b) any information or thing which is, or is likely to be, used in connection with the enrichment of uranium
It provides that the Sec of State may through regulation prohibit the disclosure of information and this will be punishable by up to 7 years imprisonment.
Further information:
Contact:
Greenpeace press office on 020 7865 8255
Related stories:
The MV Arneb and nuclear shipments
