The draft new convention includes a permanent ban on dumping radioactive waste at sea. The UK argues that dumping is safe and does not harm the environment. In Oslo last month there were several unsuccessful attempts to reach a compromise, but fortunately the other countries are taking an equally strong stand, and Iceland, Norway, Denmark and Spain in particular are insisting on including the ban in the new convention. The disagreement will now have to go to the Ministers' meeting in Paris and every effort should be made to persuade France and the UK to drop their opposition. The other governments are being encouraged to remain firm in refusing to sign a convention which does not include a ban.
Any compromise means a weaker convention and a backward step in marine protection.
In June 1991 the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Mr Thorvald Stoltenberg, and the UK's Oslo Ambassador, Mr D. J. Ratford, signed an agreement concerning a contract between the Institute for Energiteknikk in Norway and AEA Technology, the Dounreay operators, acting as agents for Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear. The pins are then to be returned to the UK for post irradiation examination and eventual reprocessing at Sellafield. Norway has two research reactors, at Kjeller and Halden, south of Oslo. Halden plays an important role in helping improve the efficiency and reliability of reactors mainly in OECD countries. Halden does work for the nuclear industries in Finland, Italy, Germany, Japan, Sweden, Belgium, Denmark, the UK, USA, Canada and Czechoslovakia.