French confirm nuclear contamination

PARIS — The French government confirmed on January 23 that it knew about, but did not release information concerning, radioactive contamination from its 1995 nuclear testing program in the South Pacific, according to Greenpeace. Greenpeace has called on the French government to fully disclose the contamination data, immediately stop any further nuclear tests and forge ahead with talks in Geneva to ban all nuclear weapons tests. According to Alain Barthoux, the director of the French nuclear agency CEA, French officials monitored the presence of radioactive iodine 131 after one of the nuclear weapons tests in 1995. "The radioactive contamination found around Moruroa atoll is clear evidence that radioactivity from France's controversial nuclear tests has escaped into the environment", Greenpeace said. The stunning revelation was made in the course of "closed door" talks in Washington last November about the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty currently being negotiated in Geneva. "The French government has lied to the public and concerned governments around the planet", said Greenpeace's Damon Moglen. "Rather than spending time and energy in trying to erase the facts, President Chirac should now commit to a nuclear testing moratorium while the Comprehensive Test Ban is being negotiated." Although France has promised to honour an international test ban, it stills plans to conduct at least one more nuclear test in the next few days or weeks.

From GLW issue 217