Anti-nuclear organisations launch ‘alliance’ to stop nuclear dumping in Wales

A new “united front” of non-government-organisations will launch at a Green Nuclear Free Wales conference next weekend.

It will bring together CND Cymru, the NFLA Welsh forum, CADNO, and PAWB to launch the Welsh Anti-Nuclear Alliance (WANA), which will campaign against the threats to Wales from nuclear power.

Supporters said the aim will be to oppose the building of a new Nuclear power stations Wylfa B, on Ynys Mon, and the dumping of possibly radioactive mud from Hinkley Point C in Somerset outside Cardiff Bay.

Tim Richards, Secretary of the South Wales Anti-Nuclear Alliance, said the move was essential after the Westminster Government backed the continued development of the nuclear power industry.

“We believe that Wales is being treated with contempt as the Westminster Government is determined to press ahead with Nuclear power despite the fact that has largely been abandoned in the rest of the world, because of the risks involved,” he said.

“In fact, Nuclear power is the technology of the past because it needs massive subsidies compared to renewable sources which are coming down in price all the time.

“But the Welsh Labour government is trying to help the nuclear establishment by funding a unit in Bangor University with Hitachi-GE to provide technical expertise and support, to establish a joint Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) Research Hub, the type of reactor which Hitachi is planning to build at Wylfa.”

He said that they were also investigating plans to dump nuclear waste in a deep geological repository somewhere in Wales.

WANA has invited anti-Nuclear power activists from England and councillors from Nuclear-Free Local Authorities (NFLA) in Wales to the conference in at the conference in Machynlleth on Sat. April 14^th.

They will be welcomed by Cllr. Elwyn Vaughan of Powys County Council and Cllr. Sue Lent the Chairwoman of the NFLA’s Welsh forum.

“The aim of the conference is to tell political leaders in Wales that they need to wake up the worries of many people in Wales about the impact of the plan to develop new Nuclear power stations in and around Wales, including a proposal to build new Small Modular Reactors in Trawsfynydd,” Tim Richards said.

The conference will end up with workshops to discuss how to build up community energy in Wales, to build a South Wales campaign against the radioactive mud dumping in Cardiff and it will end with a declaration of opposition to a Nuclear future for Wales.