ID :
182633
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 10:26
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/182633
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Lee calls for transparent information disclosure on nuclear safety
(ATTN: UPDATES with Lee's remarks in interview with French newspaper in last 4 paras)
SEOUL, May 17 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak visited a state nuclear safety agency Tuesday, stressing the importance of transparent disclosure of safety-related information to gain people's trust in atomic power plants, his office said.
Lee's first visit to the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety in the central city of Daejeon, about 150 kilometers south of Seoul, came amid heightened concerns in the wake of Japan's nuclear crisis.
The agency briefed Lee on the results of atmospheric radiation checks and safety inspections on South Korea's nuclear power plants, saying it would carry out thorough oversight of power plants so that they will pose no safety risks, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said in a release.
During lunch with researchers at the agency, Lee stressed the importance of "transparent information disclosure" so as to build people's trust in nuclear power plants, the office said.
Lee also held a video conference call with the chief of South Korea's oldest Gori-1 nuclear reactor, calling for thorough preparations for any safety contingencies. The reactor has resumed operation after suffering an emergency shutdown due to a minor mechanical glitch last month.
Atomic power plants are an important source of energy for South Korea. The country has 21 nuclear reactors and gets about 40 percent of its total electricity needs from the plants.
In an interview with the French daily Le Monde published Tuesday Lee said that the nuclear accident in Japan reminded the world of the importance of nuclear safety, but the disaster won't lead to any change in South Korea's nuclear power policy.
"Our nuclear power plant policy will go ahead as planned, as South Korea relies on imports for 100 percent of its energy needs and we need to diversify energy sources in view of the fact that atomic power is clean energy," Lee said in the interview held on May 14 during his visit to Paris.
Lee said the country's reliance on atomic power could decrease only when renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, become readily available to replace nuclear power. Otherwise, it would be difficult to lower the reliance for the time being, he said.
Lee also stressed that South Korea's nuclear power plants are among the safest in the world and that is why the country was able to win a massive deal to construct atomic reactors in the United Arab Emirates in December 2009.
jschang@yna.co.kr