Lymphoid tissue inducer cells

A model for other countries? Politicians and concerned citizens in other countries will observe Germany’s movements closely, as it is the first example of a high technology country turning its back on nuclear energy after using it for more than half a century. Around the world, many old and new users of nuclear reactors are sticking to their plans and policies, only adding a safety inspection here or there. At the EU level, the UK and France warned of any hasty decisions when Germany pressed for an EU-wide rethink. China, which has 13 nuclear reactors running and 28 being built, announced it would not change its plans, but ordered safety inspections and updates to the regulations in the light of the Fukushima accident. However, as nuclear security researcher Yun Zhou wrote in a report for the Harvard Kennedy School, awareness of nuclear risks is only beginning to emerge. “More and more people are just learning of China’s ambitious nuclear energy plan, which they did not pay much attention to before the Fukushima nuclear incident. Public concerns about nuclear safety could lead to questions about whether China can maintain sound nuclear safety culture and practices in light of China’s poor construction safety record,” Zhou concluded. South Korea and India, each running around 20 nuclear plants and building additional ones, appear to be more worried, given their possible exposure to tsunamis. However, neither is seriously considering a change of policy. Similarly, Russia is sticking to its nuclear plants and hoping that other countries that have agreed to buy power stations from its company Rosatom will keep the faith in nuclear power as well. Some of the new members in the nuclear club, exposed as they are to natural and man-made disasters, would have good reasons to worry, though. An analysis carried out by Nature and Columbia University at New York revealed that more than 200 nuclear power plants have more people living within a 30 km radius than Fukushima-Daiichi had. In Japan, 172,000 people living less than 30 km away from the stricken reactor had to be evacuated. The record holder is a plant in Karachi, Pakistan, where 8.2 million people would have to flee in similar circumstances. Two large nuclear plants in Taiwan are less than 30 km away from the capital Taipei, which means that each has around 5 million people living within this critical radius. So far, Switzerland is the closest to following the lead of its neighbour. The country currently produces more than half its electricity from hydroelectric generators, 40% from five nuclear plants, and small percentages from waste incineration, solar and wind power. In the wake of the Fukushima incident, the Swiss government has commissioned its environment ministry to explore a range of options, including phasing out nuclear power when the existing plants reach the end of their lifespan, and switching off nuclear plants even before their time runs out. The ministry’s report is due in June and will then be subject to parliamentary debate. As immediate measures, the Swiss government has frozen all three projects for new nuclear plants and ordered safety inspections for the existing ones. And what about Austria? In 1978, the country held a referendum deciding not to use nuclear power. Since then, it has become Europe’s leading producer of renewable energies, with 69% of its electricity produced from renewable sources, mostly hydroelectricity. If and when Germany and Switzerland switch off their reactors, Europe could end up with an enclave of German-speaking nuclear refuseniks on its map. Maybe it’s something to do with the German language. People in other countries just don’t have a word for ‘Energiewende’.