Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant construction to start on 14 April
MERSİN (DİHA) - The construction of the infrastructure of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant is to be started on 14 April with a ceremony attended by the Energy Minister Taner Yıldız, despite protests and court complaints.
The report assessing the environmental impact of the nuclear power plant was approved, but appealed by many NGO’s, including Greenpeace, TMOBB (Chamber of Architects and Engineers), the Turkish Medicine Organisation, Platform against Nuclear Plants, several deputies as well as the Akkuyu municipality. While the court process is still to be completed, the start of the infrastructure work has attracted protests from environmental organisations.
A Greenpeace lawyer, Deniz Bayram, said the shortcomings of the environmental impact report as well as its contravention of existing laws, have been shared by the public many times and drew attention to the fact that 64% percent of the population is against the construction of the nuclear power plant in Akkuyu. Bayram drew attention to the possibility of an accident and said: “In case of an accident it is not clear who can be held responsible. Moreover, it has been proved that the power plant will harm Mediterranean seals and Caretta Caretta (turtles). The construction of the marine hydro-technic structure also contravenes the law”. Bayram said the construction of the plant is completely against the law and that the project had been developed in an untransparent way.
The head of the Mersin Medicine Chamber, Ful Uğurhan, also criticised the fact that construction will start before the appeal process on the environmental impact has been completed, adding that those who are building the plant are putting future generations under threat, recalling the Chernobyl disaster. Ugurhan said building this plant in Akkuyu is an abuse of children’s rights as it will mostly harm children.
(nt)
