Two remarkable things happened at the Japanese nuclear power station
in the spring of 2011.
The first was the catastrophic damage to the
reactor caused by the tsunami which followed an earthquake.
The earthquake had caused the reactor to shut itself down but the
tsunami wrecked the safety system making the plant extremely dangerous.
The second remarkable happening was the ultimate success of the heroic
workers who faced death in bringing the system under control.
Father McDonagh makes much of the first – considerably less of the second.
In common with many millions of people, he sees Fukushima as
convincing proof that mankind must cease to use nuclear energy to
generate electricity. He presents the case with his usual lucidity
and, whatever a reader’s standpoint, the book is extremely interesting.
It is full of horror stories, perhaps none less significant than the
degree of ineptness shown by some governments and the appalling and
truly dangerous level of secrecy imposed in the sacred name of Security.
His chapter on ‘The Catholic Church and nuclear power’ introduces
topics much less well known than the more highly publicised reports on
the problems of the industry. He quotes bishops or bishops’ conferences
in six countries who demand shut-downs of existing facilities.
The Holy See, on the other hand, has been a consistent advocate of
nuclear power and responded to Fukushima with a reasoned plea for
greater care.
Father McDonagh shares with a great many people, religious and lay,
scientists and those without any scientific background, a feeling that
nuclear power is a tragic development with inherent dangers of disaster
sooner or later.
Others see tragedy in the efforts of so many good and sincere mortals
to stifle a development which has already saved the world from a degree
of atmospheric pollution and has the potential to tide us over the gap
which will exist until renewables take over the entire spectrum of power
production.