China Seeks to Reassure Its Public on Nuclear Power
“In the wake of nuclear radiation following the devastating tsunami in Northeast Japan, there has been a surge of media coverage in China concerning both the nuclear emission from Fukushima and its implication on China,” says Asia Society Associate Fellow Shen Dingli. “The Chinese government quickly decided to suspend all future nuclear power projects if they had not already been approved. But given that 40 percent of new power reactors in the world are being built in China, mostly concentrated along China’s coast, public concern over their safety is apparent. China needs to employ more advanced nuclear power technology, including fourth-generation technology – the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor – to assure the future of nuclear energy in the country. Such inhabitant-safe technology, once adopted and proven, would hopefully help the world rebuild confidence in nuclear energy.”
Shen Dingli, a physicist by training, is director of Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai. To arrange an interview, contact the Asia Society communications department at 212-327-9271 or [email protected].
And for more on the debate over nuclear power across the region, see comments on India, Australia and Southeast Asia here.