Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – Any second thoughts about nuclear power for the United States resulting from Japan’s damaged reactors were obvious Thursday at a congressional hearing.
Expert witnesses and congressmen blamed other countries and the Obama administration for policies they said could make another nuclear disaster inevitable.
They spoke in Washington, D.C., while Japanese military helicopters made desperate efforts to cool Japan’s earthquake and tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant by dumping ocean water on it.
Meanwhile, German and Italian political leaders announced Thursday they were reconsidering their plans to expand use of nuclear power plants to generate electricity.
Congress is trying to figure out its next steps to avoid worldwide nuclear proliferation that could blow up in the face of the United States.
“Russia and France are the most irresponsible in this regard, with their most senior officials acting as salesmen for their state-owned nuclear corporations,” said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, chairwoman the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
France gets about 80 percent of its electricity from 58 nuclear power plants. It is second only to the United States in electrical generation from nuclear power.
“But we are not innocent ourselves,” Ros-Lehtinen said. “At a minimum, we should not be contributing to the problem with politically-driven nuclear cooperation agreements.”
She was referring to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, which set standards for development, regulation and disposal at nuclear facilities.
The law authorized private companies to develop nuclear energy and allowed information exchanges with other countries on nuclear power.
Since the law took effect, proliferation of dangerously substandard power plants and the risks that nuclear material could be converted to weapons has grown, Ros-Lehtinen said.
“Over the years, tougher provisions have been written into the [Atomic Energy] Act, but the situation remains far from satisfactory,” she said.
A controversial issue in the treaties is a requirement that the United States transfer nuclear energy technology to other countries, Ros-Lehtinen said.
Some of the treaties set timetables that were written years ago for the technology transfer, despite changing politics that mean it no longer is secure, she said.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee is considering legislation that would require congressional approval for nuclear cooperation agreements. The proposal also would strengthen non-proliferation provisions of the agreements.
Several witnesses spoke about the danger that nuclear material could be used for weapons by countries antagonistic to the United States, such as Iran, North Korea and Syria.
“All three states have conducted nuclear activities for extended periods of time in breach of their [agreements to allow international inspections of their nuclear power plants],” said Olli J. Heinonen, a former nuclear inspector for the International Atomic Energy Agency.
He recommended that any future nuclear non-proliferation treaties broaden the authority of the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect power plants to ensure they are safe and non-militarized.
The Government Accountability Office largely agreed with Foreign Affairs Committee leaders in a report released Thursday.
The International Atomic Energy Agency fails to adequately limit technical assistance to countries with irresponsible and antagonistic nuclear ambitions, the GAO reported.
As a result, the U.S. government should consider withholding at least part of the 25 percent it contributes to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s budget until better safeguards are arranged, the report said.
Withholding the funds “would foster a more consistent and cohesive U.S. policy toward such nations that the United States chooses not to engage directly in trade, assistance and other forms of cooperation,” the GAO report said.
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