Almaraz nuclear power station site visit - 'there will be no statement to the media'

The Portuguese delegation that visited the Almaraz Spanish nuclear plant today, left the site early this evening.

The nine-hour visit, including lunch, was made by representatives from Portugal, Spain and the European Union as part of what is being pitched as a 'joint agreement' between the two countries that in reality was insisted on by the European Commission whose president is keen to see the argument resolved over the expansion of the plant.

The Iberian Anti-Nuclear Movement said today that the visit of the delegation was superficial and a thorough inspection could not be carried out in the time allowed by the Spanish.

Portugal's ZERO environmental association, sniffing an obvious rat, publically has complained about the banning of specialists from non-governmental organisations on today's visit.

On Friday, a source from Portugal’s Ministry of Environment said the Portuguese delegation would be made up of 16 members including technicians from the ministries of Environment, Health and Foreign Affairs.

The delegation was led by the president of the Portuguese Environment Agency, Nuno Lacasta, and included experts from the Order of Engineers and the University of Coimbra specialising in nuclear energy, environmental impact assessments and hydrogeology - all of whom are reliant on the government for their salaries.

The other experts attending the site visit, in addition to observers from the European Commission, were from public bodies involved in water resources, nuclear energy and environmental impact assessments.

The Ministry of Environment, led by the poorly-performing proven liar, João Matos Fernandes, announced last Friday that there would be no statement to the media.

A report on the visit is expected to conclude that the Spanish power plant is totally safe, its equipment well-maintained and in good working order and that there is no chance at all of a leak of radioactive material into the river Tagus.

The concern from Portugal is that Spain has decided to build a warehouse for radioactive waste at Almaraz, which already uses water from the river Tagus for its cooling systems.

Portugal lodged a complaint with the European Commission that there had been no cross-border environmental impact study for the new fuel dump at a power station that is due for decommissioning in 2020.

The implication is that the new fuel dump will enable to plant to operate beyond its planned life, with an increasing risk of pollution leaking into the Tagus which crosses the border after 100 kilometres and becomes to Tejo as it flows through Portugal to the sea.  

The European Commission has announced that the Portuguese and Spanish governments have reached an "amicable settlement" in the dispute over the Almaraz plant, resulting in Lisbon withdrawing its complaint to Brussels.

In fact, the European Commission bullied Portugal into withdrawing its complaint and the resulting whitewash has now begun with this cursory site visit.

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