XN000022-1986-07-16 — Page 12

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 1986

+THIS IS A RESPONSIBILITY WHICH THE GOVERNMENT CANNOT AVOID,+ HE SAID.

HE DESCRIBED THE ACTION TAKEN TO SEND DELEGATIONS OF LEGISLATIVE COUNCILLORS TO EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES AS +REALISTIC AND RESPONSIBLE+, AND HOPED THE PUBLIC WOULD VIEW THEIR REPORT WITH AN OBJECTIVE AND UNBIASED ATTITUDE.

+HONG KONG IS A CITY WITH A REASONABLY HIGH LEVEL OF DEVELOPMENT AND MATURITY IN CULTURE AND EDUCATION.

+WITH THEIR INTELLIGENCE AND EAGERNESS TO LEARN, THE PUBLIC HAVE A STRONG POWER OF OBSERVATION SCIENTIFICALLY, AND THE ABILITY TO DRAW CONCLUSIONS, HE SAID.

HOWEVER, AS A STUDENT OF NATURAL SCIENCE AND AN INDUSTRIALIST, MR WONG PERSONALLY CONSIDERED THAT NUCLEAR SCIENCE WAS ONE OF MANKIND'S GREATEST SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE 20TH CENTURY AND THAT NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS REPRESENTED AN OUTSTANDING SUCCESS IN APPLYING NUCLEAR POWER TO PEACEFUL USES.

HE SAID THAT UP TO THE END OF 1985 THERE WERE 536 NUCLEAR POWER UNITS IN THE WORLD WITH A TOTAL CAPACITY OF 413 281 MEGAWATTS. ANOTHER 116 WERE PLANNED.

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NEED TO PROMOTE EDUCATION ON NUCLEAR ENERGY STRESSED

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THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD PROMOTE EDUCATION ON NUCLEAR POWER AND IMPLEMENT PROPOSALS BY THE UNITED KINGDOM ATOMIC ENERGY AUTHORITY TO ALLEVIATE THE WORRIES OF HONG KONG PEOPLE OVER THE SAFETY ASPECTS OF THE DAYA BAY POWER PLANT, THE HON YEUNG PO-KWAN SAID TODAY (WEDNESDAY).

SPEAKING AT THE ADJOURNMENT DEBATE ON THE DAYA BAY ISSUE, MR YEUNG ALSO SUGGESTED CHINA TO PROMPTLY ANNOUNCE IN DETAIL THE SAFETY REGULATIONS FORMULATED, IN ADDITION TO HER ASSURANCE OF IMPLEMENTING THE POLICY OF SAFETY FIRST, QUALITY FIRST'.

CHINA MIGHT SEND NUCLEAR EXPERTS TO HONG KONG TO HOLD EXHIBITIONS ON THE SAFETY ASPECTS OF THE POWER PLANT, HE SAID.

MR YEUNG CALLED ON THE PUBLIC TO KEEP CALM AND TO PLACE THEIR HOPES ON THE LEGCO FACT-FINDING DELEGATIONS TO THE UNITED STATES AND EUROPE, WHICH WOULD COLLECT INFORMATION ON SAFETY MEASURES AND CONTINGENCY PLANS OF NUCLEAR PLANTS THERE.

+ IT IS HOPED THAT AFTER GOING THROUGH AN OBJECTIVE ANALYSIS AND ASSESSMENT, THE INFORMATION COLLECTED WILL BE USEFUL TO ALL PARTIES CONCERNED IN MAKING A WISE DECISION, HE SAID.

/MR YEUNG

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