Astrid reactor: the brutal collapse of a myth

Initially published on September 24, 2019 by 'Alternatives Economiques' magazine, this article on the implications for the French nuclear industry of abandoning the Astrid project is the final contribution of the author to the public debate on France's energy policy. In it, the author explains how the decision to halt ongoing research into this new fast-neutron reactor puts an abrupt and definitive end to the myth of the 'closed cycle', which for sixty years has served as a major alibi for the pursuit of nuclear power, by countering concerns about an exponential build-up of nuclear waste with the conviction of the industrial feasibility of virtually total recycling of all the various radioactive nuclear materials contained in spent fuel. The conclusion drawn by the founder of Global Chance is incontrovertible: 'The abandonment of Astrid, [...] by postponing until the Greek calends the prospect of using [radioactive] materials that are said to be recoverable but in fact not recovered, brings down the house of cards patiently built by the nuclear state'. This has two major consequences: the need to reformulate France's radioactive materials and waste management strategy from A to Z, and the imperative need for a rapid phase-out of nuclear power, the only way to stabilize these radioactive stocks