Sep 18 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Mohammad Ben Hussein Jordan Times, Amman

Environmentalists have called on officials to carefully consider the environmental impact of building the Kingdom's first nuclear reactor.

Officials from the Jordan Nuclear Energy Commission (JNEC) are currently mapping out areas to find a suitable location to construct the nuclear reactor, which they hope will provide Jordan with more than 30 per cent of its electricity needs by 2016.

The Jordan Environment Society, however, argued that it is irresponsible not to include environmentalists on the committee entrusted with finding a suitable location for the reactor.

"This is a very serious issue that deals with the lives of millions of people, but the commission decided to do without civil society when appointing members of the committee," Ahmad Kofahi, executive director of Jordan Environment Society, told The Jordan Times on Wednesday.

The environmentalist cautioned that any location must have enough water for the reactor's cooling system to work properly.

"Jordan is a small country and any nuclear problem will harm the entire population, unless the right decision is made," Kofahi warned.

"Choosing a place for a nuclear reactor is a very complicated process because we must study the impact on the environment surrounding the area, and this needs specialists," he added.

Yet according to JNEC nuclear fuel cycle commissioner Ned Xoubi, the project will be environmentally safe.

"This is a zero-tolerance industry; this is how we are developing and building every aspect of Jordan's nuclear energy programme. Thus, safety is on top of our agenda and we are looking at the best international standards in terms of safety and security," he told The Jordan Times earlier.

Xoubi added that the nuclear power plant "will not have any adverse effect on the environment", noting that many nuclear power plants are built on the shores of lakes and rivers across world.

The demand for electricity is expected to reach approximately 4,000MW by 2020, while the first nuclear power plant to be built in Jordan is slated to produce 1,000MW.

Jordan currently imports 95 per cent of its energy needs.

Jordan Nuclear Energy Commission (JNEC) President Khalid Touqan said Jordan's nuclear programme, under development to boost energy independence and ease the conventional energy bill burden, could transform the Kingdom into an energy exporter by 2030, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Touqan told reporters earlier this year that the Kingdom will float an international tender to invite bids for a strategic partner to begin designing and building a reactor by the end of the year, with an ongoing search for a suitable location for the plant.

Jordan has signed several deals with international parties to build its nuclear energy programme, including memoranda of understanding with the US, Canada, France and the UK. An agreement is expected with Russia this summer.

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