Nuclear power in Uruguay

In July 2011 the government announced that Uruguay was soon to enter Phase 1 of an evaluation of nuclear energy,[a] providing 10 million Uruguayan pesos from the national budget to hire specialist advisers, consulting the population and reviewing the human resources and technology available.

[11][14] In 1964 the United States government organized, in the US, a conference titled "Atoms for Peace", to which was brought a small low-powered reactor for research purposes.

[2][19] Half of the building was intended for the reactor, manufactured by Lockheed Nuclear Products of Marietta (Georgia), purchased with a state investment of two million Uruguayan pesos of that time,[19] including installation costs.

[20][21] Law 13640, article 259 established that the reactor was the property of Uruguayan government and remained under the purview of the National Atomic Energy Commission.

[20][22] This reactor was operational from the late 1970s to 1985, until it was shut down due to corrosion problems; fuel elements were removed from the core and put into dry storage, waiting to be transported to United States.

[26] Even though the installation of a nuclear power plant was not mentioned in the agreement, the second article of a report - signed by all political parties and elevated to consideration by the House of Representatives at the regular meeting on August 18, 1992 - established that the installation of nuclear power plants that could result from the implementation of article 215 of Law 16.226 based on the agreement, would require approval by law.

[27] The 1992 announcement of the possible construction of a nuclear power plant with loans from the International Atomic Energy Agency in Paso de los Toros caused concern and generated various social movements,[24][26] which was partially attributed to the proximity of the Chernobyl disaster.

[27] Even children of Paso de los Toros sent letters to senators and representatives of the Uruguayan parliament to vote against the installation of a nuclear power facility.

[20][23] After that, 1.2 million Uruguayan pesos from national budget of 2001 were assigned for the disassembly of the facilities which housed the reactor and for the management and disposal of radioactive waste generated by past use of the device.

[13] In 2004, Senator Sergio Abreu Bonilla submitted a bill to repeal this law in order to allow an investigation into the feasibility of using nuclear power, but this was unsuccessful.

[32] Meanwhile, Laiz said: "A nuclear power plant has many advantages, has zero pollution, but also has a risk, and before taking the decision it should be studied if a country has conditions to provide a system with maximum security.

IAEA helps countries by providing expertise and training if a state decides to create a nuclear power plant with all guarantees.

[13] In 2010, none of the Tribunal Ciudadano's members were in favor of the possibility of launching a nuclear-electric plan from 2030; however, they said that they would accept it if technological advancements minimized the risk associated, or if future studies provided information not currently available.

[36] In addition, the growing investment in renewable energies and exploration of the presence of oil in Uruguay have pushed the nuclear debate to the background.

It is a high risk, because even though Fukushima has not caused death, that's true, four reactors were worth $20,000 million was rendered useless.As early as 1937, there was legislation on the matter in regards to retirement benefits for people who, by nature of their work, must perform tasks that expose them to X-ray or other forms of radiation, or are required to manipulate those elements.

[38] In the context of the obligations assumed by the country internationally, Uruguay signed or ratified the following treaties about nuclear energy and related issues: Due to its proximity, the government of Uruguay is closely monitoring Atucha I Nuclear Power Plant, located only 70 kilometers from Colonia del Sacramento and 295 km from Montevideo,[47] which began operating in 1974.