French Greenpeace held a protest in front of the headquarters of the fuel company Orano against the export of spent uranium to Russia.
According to Reuters, Greenpeace posted a picture on Twitter showing activists sitting in white protective suits near fake containers of radioactive waste. The posters read “Russia is not a trash can”, “Stop radioactive trade” and “Nuclear is not green”.
Greenpeace urged the French Ministry of the Environment to stop using Siberia as a place for storing hazardous waste, as it can cause significant harm to the environment.
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Fuel company Orano said it sold over 1,000 tonnes of spent uranium fuel to Russia's Rosatom at the end of last year for further processing. It can be used, for example, in power plants and nuclear weapons projects.
However, Greenpeace activists insist that the bulk of the uranium that is sent to the Russian Federation will remain with no reuse, and the transportation of nuclear waste is "environmental, social and economic nonsense."
France gets about 70% of its electricity from 56 nuclear reactors, but the government aims to reduce this figure to 50% by 2035. At the same time, other European countries have advocated the development of nuclear power in order to overcome the energy crisis.
Photo: Victor Point / Greenpeace / Handout via REUTERS