Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Plutonium ship steams past protests Date: Sun, 8 Nov 92 15:50:37 EST Message-ID: \SE A \SS (WS) \HD Plutonium ship steams past protests \SH Nuke ship slips out of harbor \BY ASSOCIATED PRESS \DT CHERBOURG, France CHERBOURG, France (AP) - A Japanese freighter laden with the largest known cargo of lethal plutonium slipped out of port last night after a day of clashes between French naval commandos and environmentalists. The Akatsuki Maru left Cherbourg's military harbor escorted by French warships. It was to join an armed Japanese coast guard boat for the two-month voyage home. A Greenpeace boat outside the port gave chase as the Akatsuki Maru and its 1.7 tons of plutonium, the main ingredient in nuclear weapons, steamed into the English Channel at about 9 p.m., Greenpeace spokesman Damon Moglen said. Greenpeace said its vessel, the Solo, had been boarded briefly by commandos. It then resumed tracking the freighter and was pursued by a French coast guard vessel until it entered international waters, the environmental group said. Industry and External Trade Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn had said Greenpeace would not be prevented from tracking the ship. The Solo's chase concluded a day of confrontation in which 2,000 police, commandos and frogmen vastly outnumbered environmentalists opposed to the Akatsuki Maru's voyage. Before dawn yesterday, riot police dispersed about 100 protesters trying to block a convoy of trucks carrying the plutonium to Cherbourg. The trucks were traveling from a nuclear-fuel reprocessing plant run by France's state-owned nuclear agency, COGEMA, in nearby La Hague. Greenpeace protesters in speeding dinghies then tried to disrupt loading of the Akatsuki Maru. Police and frogmen fended them off. Japan says the plutonium will be used to fuel a new generation of nuclear reactors. Critics fear the highly toxic chemical could spill or be stolen by terrorists. France insists the material is not weapons-quality, but Greenpeace contends the Japanese cargo could make 120 crude nuclear bombs. France, a leader in nuclear technology, treats nuclear fuel for several countries. Minutes before the Japanese ship arrived, naval commandos seized a Greenpeace boat, the Moby Dick, and ran down two inflatable rafts escorting it toward the harbor mouth, Mr. Moglen said. Commandos boarded the Moby Dick and kicked in doors, smashed windows and pointed guns at people's heads, Mr. Moglen said. One activist's wrist was cut by a propeller and another suffered a possible concussion, he said. Greenpeace said 16 protesters were held for several hours by police before being released as the freighter left port. Ten other activists and seven journalists aboard the boats were detained briefly and released. Mr. Strauss-Kahn said the Moby Dick struck a police boat and was steaming toward the Akatsuki Maru when stopped and boarded. "We used all the force that was necessary to avoid problems," he said. Six Greenpeace rafts later sped into Cherbourg's ferry harbor and hung a banner denouncing nuclear energy. Police stopped two rafts, and a military helicopter and boats chased the rest back to sea. As night fell, about 200 protesters gathered on a jetty under a sign of a mushroom cloud. They marched across town before dispersing. The plutonium shipment is the first of 30 tons extracted from spent Japanese nuclear fuel that will be returned to Japan this decade under a $4 billion contract. The cargo is bound for Yokohama. The Akatsuki Maru had been steaming secretly for a week in international waters since leaving the French port of Brest, where it took on fuel and supplies. Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Malaysia and several other nations have barred the 324-foot freighter from their waters. U.S. Defense Department officials said the vessel would be monitored by U.S. warships, planes and military intelligence from the time it leaves French waters until it docks. French and Japanese officials say the steel containers holding the plutonium can withstand intense heat and sea pressure up to 33,000 feet deep. ****BOX PROBLEM PLUTONIUM Here are some facts and figures about plutonium and shipments of the substance: PLUTONIUM: Once considered useful in cutting oil consumption, the radioactive substance is now seen as a nuclear albatross. It is highly toxic; a speck inhaled by a human can cause cancer. THE SHIPMENT: The planned two-month voyage from Cherbourg to Yokohama has inspired fears of a hijack attempt by terrorists, or a Chernobyl-at-sea accident. The shipment has focused attention on what could be a major cause of nuclear proliferation in coming decades - international trafficking in plutonium. PLUTONIUM STOCKS: Back in the 1970s, the price of uranium - the main fuel used in nuclear reactors - was prohibitively high. Plutonium, an alternative fuel, while not as safe was far cheaper. But uranium prices have plunged, and fast-breeder reactors that use plutonium are no longer economically necessary. Also, plutonium stocks have grown due to nuclear disarmament as the substance is removed from warheads. The IAEA has recommended the termination of plutonium extraction operations. FUTURE SHIPMENTS: The Akatsuki Maru's cargo is only the first of 30 tons of plutonium scheduled to be returned to Japan this decade under a $4 billion contract. France's European neighbors have received an estimated 5 tons in secret overland shipments. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM