Seismic lines are vital in nuclear plans, prince says

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey has to bear in mind the seismic activity of its geography if it wants to build a nuclear plant, Prince Albert II of Monaco, known for environmental activism through his personal foundation, said Nov. 7.

“Nuclear energy is clean energy if it is done in the right way; it is a different system and process. If you want to build a nuclear power plant, you have to bear in mind that there is seismic activity in your country. Building upon the seismic lines should be avoided,” he said.

The prince has been visiting Turkey with a large delegation of Monacan businessmen. He held talks with Turkish President Abdullah Gül, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yıldız during his visit.

He also gave a conference on climate change at Boğaziçi University in Istanbul on Nov. 8.

The prince said he had the chance to speak with the Turkish leaders about energy issues and that Turkey was making an effort to diversify serving energy needs. “There are huge energy needs for your community which are developing rapidly. In the next 10 years, there is a projection that your population will be over 80 million. This is a very difficult and complex issue, so it is very important to diversify energy services as much as possible,” he added.

Tremendous opportunities in Turkey

The prince said he also talked about the international situation of Turkey, its infrastructure and development projects and plans for the future with the Turkish leaders, adding that the multitude of small and medium-size enterprises functioning in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and service industries in Monaco would be very interested in undertaking business with Turkey. “The Monacan delegation visiting Turkey is one of the largest delegations; that alone says a lot. Monacan businessmen see tremendous opportunities in Turkey.”

The prince, who is a member of the International Olympic Committee, said Istanbul’s bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics also came up during the talks, “I cannot give support openly to any country, but it is certain that all of the three candidates have great things to say.”

Referring to Hurricane Sandy, which devastated portions of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States in late October, the prince said it was clear that the Atlantic hurricanes were becoming more powerful, frequent and dangerous to human life.

He said that before the climate change phenomenon became so clear, these kinds of hurricanes were occurring every 15 or 20 years along the U.S. coast. “Now, it is almost every year. It is pretty clear that climate change is driving acceleration of this phenomenon around the globe.”