The Wall Street Journal Japan looks at a Japanese economic impact of their nuclear choices on Japanese workers and finds various estimates, but all of them concerning:
The Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, a domestic nuclear industry body, puts the total number of those employed in nuclear power, including utilities and parts makers, at 46,882, as of the end of fiscal 2010. The Radiation Effects Association, meanwhile, gives a much higher figure of 75,988 for the same year. This government-affiliated organization registers workers involved in radiation-related jobs, but its figure for the nuclear sector may include people who remain registered despite no longer working in the industry.
But an international comparison suggests both numbers are on the low side, especially considering nuclear power accounted for about 30% of Japan’s total power generation before the Fukushima Daiichi accident…
If these figures suggest a fairly sizable impact on employment if reactors stay offline, the nation’s premier believes the overall effect could be even bigger.
And at the same time CBC news looks at the entire state of Nuclear power generation world wide:
Sixteen months after the nuclear disaster in Japan, electricity generation from nuclear power worldwide has reached record levels, with a reactor construction boom likely to push those levels steadily higher.
“Fukushima has delayed nuclear development by three or four years,” as countries re-evaluate safety around nuclear power, says Luis Echávarri, the director general of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA). “But construction continues.”
The article then focuses on the larger world-wide picture of nuclear power activity and new construction:
The World Nuclear Association, an industry group representing companies involved in nuclear power, says there are some 435 active nuclear power reactors operating in 30 countries. That number is expected to grow steadily. More than 81 reactors are currently under construction or being upgraded around the world.China, Russia and South Korea lead the pack with 26, 10 and 5 reactors under construction, respectively, all slated for completion this year. In all, more than 150 new reactors will be completed by the end of 2016, with another 330 proposals awaiting approval, mostly in China and India. Twenty of those proposals are for reactors in the U.S., another four in the U.K.
They are both great articles worth checking out and sharing…
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