The role of nuclear power in the fight against climate change is the subject of constant debate. The opposite question, that of the effects of global warming on safety and electricity production, is much less discussed – even if the examination of the bill on the acceleration of nuclear power, combined with the winter drought, has contributed in recent weeks to put her back in the center of attention. The Court of Auditors, which looked into the subject, presented its conclusions and recommendations on Tuesday March 21, the day after the publication of the summary report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and then that a conference was opening in the United States aimed at raising awareness of the global water crisis.
“The consequences of climate change will affect, and are already affecting, to varying but increasing degrees, the reactors in the current fleet, pointed Annie Podeur, the president of the second chamber of the Court of Auditors, before the Senate Finance Committee, which had commissioned this report. They will affect even more the construction projects of new reactors likely to enter service from 2035. The government intends to start work on six EPR 2 type reactors and is studying the possibility of building eight units additional.
Temperatures, average and minimum flows of rivers, sea level… If climate change acts on several parameters, the question of water appears to be the major issue for the nuclear fleet, which depends on it to cool the part power plants. At present, it raises questions of production, more than safety. “We need a lot of water to generate electricity, but a very small amount of water to ensure safety” and provide cooling when production drops, explain to Monde Cécile Laugier, environment director of EDF’s nuclear production division. ” A very low flow is enough to cool a reactor »confirms Rémy Catteau, director of nuclear power plants at the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN).
Beyond certain temperature or flow thresholds, power plants must however reduce or cease production to limit their impact on the environment. These losses are currently concentrated on six sites (Saint-Alban, Tricastin, Bugey, Blayais, Golfech and Chooz) and have, on an annual scale, only a limited impact (less than 1%) on production total fleet, according to the work of the manager of the electricity transmission network (RTE). In July 2019, however, these simultaneous outages reached nearly 6 gigawatts, or around 10% of installed capacity.
You have 68.08% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.