【英语中国】大亚湾核电站泄漏事故令香港担忧

The Hong Kong government said a radioactive leak occurred last month at a nearby nuclear power plant in mainland China, raising concerns about safety and transparency at a facility 50 kilometers from the city's border.

The incident, which the government on Tuesday said involved 'a very small leakage' at a fuel rod in the Guangdong Daya Bay nuclear power station, occurred close to Hong Kong and the mainland Chinese metropolis of Shenzhen, one of China's most populous cities.

Hong Kong's government said it didn't learn of the May 23 incident until it was alerted by the media on Monday, and followed up with Hong Kong's CLP Group, which led the development of the project and continues to hold a 25% stake in the plant. CLP Holdings Ltd., a Hong Kong-listed entity also known as China Light & Power, confirmed there was a 'small increase' in radioactive iodine and noble gases in the reactor's cooling water but that the radioactivity level has remained stable in the past two weeks.

CLP said a task group was monitoring the situation but that the reactor's cooling water had been 'sealed in completely and isolated from the external environment, thus causing no impact to the public.' Because the increase in radioactivity was small, CLP said, the incident didn't meet the International Atomic Energy Agency's reporting threshold.

Chinese state radio on Tuesday said the leak doesn't affect the public or the plant's operations. It also cited Li Chengge, a former vice head and chief engineer of China's nuclear security administration, as saying there have been no safety issues with the country's 11 nuclear plants.

Calls to the plant, the plant's operation and management company and the Guangdong government Tuesday weren't answered. Wednesday is a public holiday in China, and many government offices were also closed Monday and Tuesday.

The Daya Bay power plant, commissioned in 1994, was the first commercial nuclear power station in mainland China and one of the earliest and largest joint ventures in the opening up of China's economy, according to CLP. The plant produces around 14 billion kilowatt hours of electricity a year, 70% of which is imported into Hong Kong. China's Guangdong Nuclear Investment Co. holds a 75% stake in the project.

In the lead-up to construction, the Daya Bay plant prompted criticism among Hong Kong residents, with the then-British colony skittish over the management of a nuclear station in what was then a very early-stage developing economy.

Christine Loh, a public policy advocate and former Hong Kong legislator, said the public is owed a 'full disclosure' of what had happened.

Hong Kong's government defended the company's delayed reporting, saying the lack of 'any impact on nuclear safety' meant that no immediate notification was required under the current system.

香港政府说，中国内地毗邻香港的一处核电站上个月发生泄漏事故，此事引起人们对核电站安全性和透明度的担忧。中国内地这座核电站离香港边境仅50公里。

政府周二说，大亚湾核电站的一根燃料棒出现轻微泄漏。大亚湾核电站靠近香港和中国内地人口最多的城市之一深圳。

香港政府说，其直到周一媒体报导此事前一直不知道发生于5月23日的泄漏事故，并随后与香港中电集团(CLP Group)跟进此事。中电集团主导了大亚湾项目的开发，并持有该核电站25%的股价。在香港上市的中电集团证实大亚湾核电站二号机组反应堆冷却水发现放射性碘核素和放射性气体均有轻微上升，不过过去两周辐射水平保持稳定。

中电集团说，一个专案小组正在监控形势，不过反应堆的冷却水已被完全封闭，与外界环境隔离，因此不会对公众有任何影响。中电说，由于放射性上升轻微，以国际原子能机构(International Atomic Energy Agency)的标准，此次事故无需即时通报。

中国国家广播电台周二说，泄漏事件不会对公众或核电站运行造成影响。报导还引述中国核安全局前副局长、总工程师李成葛（音）的话说，中国11座核电站没有安全问题。

记者周二致电大亚湾核电站、负责电站经营管理的公司以及广东省政府，电话均无人应答。周三是中国的公众假期，许多政府部门周一和周二也都放假。

中电集团说，大亚湾核电站于1994年投入商业运行，是中国内地首座商业化核电站，也是中国实施改革开放以来最早、最大的对外合资项目之一。这座核电站年发电量约140亿度，其中70%输入香港。中国广东核电投资有限公司(Guangdong Nuclear Investment Co.)持有该项目75%的股份。

大亚湾核电站在建设之前曾引起香港居民批评，当时香港还在英国管辖之下，很不放心中国这个经济刚刚起步的发展中国家对核电站的管理。

香港公共政策倡导者、前香港立法委员陆恭蕙说，公众有权获知事件的全部真相。

香港政府为中电迟迟未能报告泄漏事件辩护，说此次事件没有对核安全造成任何影响，因此按照现行制度无需即时通报。