SINGAPORE, Oct 16 ? The government of Singapore has decided, after recently concluding a pre-feasibility study, that ?nuclear energy is not yet suitable for deployment in Singapore?, said Second Minister for Trade and Industry S Iswaran in Parliament yesterday.
A plant in China. While nuclear technology is safer than before, the risks outweigh the benefits here. ? Today
This is because the current designs of nuclear power plants, while much safer than older designs, still pose more risks than benefits for Singapore, a densely populated city, he said in response to Member of Parliament (Nee Soon GRC) Lee Bee Wah, who asked for an update on the pre-feasibility study.Two years ago, Mr Iswaran announced in Parliament the decision to embark on a pre-feasibility study on nuclear energy, as part of efforts to diversify Singapore?s energy mix and ease energy constraints in the long term.
?As we are planning for the very long term and not for our immediate energy needs, we prefer to wait for technology and safety to improve further before reconsidering our options,? Mr Iswaran told the House yesterday.
But given that two-thirds of nuclear power plants under construction today are in Asia, Singapore has to continue to monitor the progress of nuclear energy technologies and strengthen its capabilities to understand nuclear science and technology, he noted.
The Government will, therefore, support research in relevant areas of nuclear science and engineering, and a pool of scientists and experts will be trained in local and overseas universities.
?This will also strengthen our operational preparedness and our existing capabilities in radiation and incident response,? said Mr Iswaran.
He added that Singapore will be playing an active role in global and regional nuclear safety. As an existing member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Singapore is working closely with other member countries to implement that IAEA Action Plan on Nuclear Safety.
Experts Today spoke to emphasised the need for Singapore to monitor nuclear energy developments.
Said Dr Eulalia Han, a Fellow specialising in energy security at the National University of Singapore?s Energy Studies Institute: ?As a result of Singapore?s high urban density, it will be difficult for Singaporeans to escape the effects of a potential nuclear accident in the region.?
?In order to prevent a potential nuclear fallout, it is important for ASEAN to engage in nuclear energy cooperation prior to countries acquiring nuclear energy,? she added.
Mr Konstantin Foskolos, a consultant in nuclear technology and project advisor for Singapore?s pre-feasibility report, also suggested Singapore establish up-to-date, monitoring and early warning systems ?in case something goes wrong? in one of the neighbouring countries.
To deal with potential radiological threats, Mr Foskolos, who is the former deputy head of the Nuclear Energy and Safety Research department in Switzerland?s Paul Scherrer Institut, suggested complementing the warning systems with Singapore?s existing emergency preparedness system. ? Today
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