Expert insight, analysis and comment on key public policy issues
By Francis Livens Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The case against nuclear power is weakened by simplistic arguments that don’t stand up to scrutiny, argues Professor Francis Livens. I was recently involved in a public debate on nuclear energy. One of my opponent’s arguments against nuclear power was that the UK has no way of dealing with its huge quantities of radioactive waste. […]
By Juan Matthews Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The future of the nuclear industry could lie with small reactors, argues Professor Juan Matthews. In the beginning, all reactors in nuclear power stations were small. Calder Hall, Britain’s first power station which went on-line in 1956, consisted of four reactors each generating just 50 MW of electricity. The next generation of Magnox reactors averaged […]
By Stephen Wearne Filed Under: All posts, Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
Stephen Wearne explores lessons to be learnt from the similarities and the differences between the start of the nuclear power era in the 1950’s and now. The structure of utilities, suppliers and contractors for engineering and constructing new nuclear power stations in the UK today is very different to the structure at the start of […]
By Andrew Gale and Nawal Prinja Filed Under: All posts Posted:
Many workers in the nuclear industry are poised to retire – just as a major new nuclear building programme gets underway. Professor Andrew Gale and Professor Nawal Prinja consider the implications. The nuclear industry is facing a severe skills and technology management shortfall. Five new stations – Oldbury, Sizewell, Moorside, Wylfa and Hinkley – are […]
Faced by the challenge of energy security, the UK nuclear industry is recognising the need to engage with society on the case for nuclear power. Professor Andrew Sherry explains. Many areas of science and engineering are difficult to discuss with the public. This is particularly true where views are entrenched and polarised. Nuclear energy […]
By Francis Livens Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The UK is to get its first new nuclear power station in a generation. Professor Francis Livens reflects on a policy shift that has seen nuclear power emerge from the wilderness to become a much-hailed clean source energy that will ‘help keep the lights on’. But, he warns, if nuclear is to be our future, […]
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
I don’t usually do media commentary, but the coverage of the aftermath of the quake and tsunami in Japan forces me to make one point: the coverage of the nuclear problems at Fukushima are out of all proportion to the scale of the problem itself or, more importantly, the very real scale of the catastrophe […]
By Maria Sharmina and Timothy Capper Filed Under: All posts, Energy and Environment, Renewables, Science and Engineering Posted:
Energy is a key resource enabling the functioning of modern societies. Arguably, the fast-paced technological advances in the past 200 years have been based on plentiful supply of cheap energy. But cheap and plentiful are no more. In this article, from our publication On Resilience, Professor Maria Sharmina and Timothy Capper explore how to strengthen the […]
By William Bodel Filed Under: All posts, Energy and Environment, Science and Engineering Posted:
The UK is currently storing around 140 tonnes of plutonium, mostly arising from its civil nuclear programme over the past 60 years. What should we, as a nation, do with it? Should we use it as fuel for future reactors, or dispose of it as waste? The latest position paper from the Dalton Nuclear Institute […]
By Katherine Joy and Thomas Harvey Filed Under: All posts, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology Posted:
Extraction of Earth’s resources is vital for the advancement of modern infrastructure and technology. However, Earth’s resources are limited, and their continued use for the expansion and growth of humanity has resulted in their depletion. Mining is often destructive, we have little control over the global distribution of economically viable reserves of rare materials, and […]