Read our fact sheet on the Reach Implementation [pdf]

Origin of the French nuclear program

In the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, France decided to invest in nuclear energy ? a compact source of energy ? in order to reduce its energy dependence. France launched the most comprehensive nuclear energy program ever which has led in less than 30 years to the construction and current operation of 58 industrial-sized pressurized water reactors (PWR) at 19 sites throughout France.

French nuclear power stations

All PWR reactors in operation are of Generation II type. France is currently building one AREVA EPR™ in Flamanville and plans for one more in Penly. AREVA is also working on other ongoing construction projects in Finland, China and upcoming ones in the USA, the United Kingdom, and Italy. This Generation III+ reactor model combines enhanced safety features, improved fuel utilization and economics and limited waste production. Furthermore, with a 1,650 megawatts output, it is economically competitive with fossil fuel plants.

Nuclear production and safety

Reaching a power capacity of 63 gigawatts, the nuclear plants operated by the French utility EDF account for nearly 80% of French generated electricity. The competitiveness of nuclear electricity and the large volume of baseload electricity generated in France enable exports to other European countries, making EDF the world’s largest net exporter of electric power.
The 40 year experience of industrial operation of nuclear energy has provided France with a demanding and high quality safety culture. The Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN), which is responsible for regulating nuclear safety and radiation protection in order to protect workers, the public and the environment from the risks involved in nuclear activities, was established as an independent body.

Recycling

France has always been sensitive to nuclear waste management issues and aware of the risk of exhaustion of uranium resources. It has developed for many years a strategy for recycling its spent nuclear fuel ? fuel that cannot sustain nuclear reactions anymore ? instead of considering them as waste to be disposed. About 85% of EDF’s spent fuel is reprocessed today at the La Hague plant in Normandy. Plutonium is recycled in MOX fuel and ultimate waste is vitrified and stored in small buildings, in La Hague, awaiting for final disposal. This process currently allows saving of up to 25% of uranium resources and diminishes the volume and level of radioactivity of final waste awaiting underground disposal by a factor of respectively 5 and 10. Additionally, final waste after recycling doesn’t raise proliferation concerns and is hence relieved from safeguard obligations.

Environmental and GHG benefits of nuclear in France and potential for the United States: how cap and trade can support nuclear energy.

The environmental footprint of nuclear plants is very small, since they do not generate the pollution and CO2 byproducts of regular fossil fuel plants. Mostly due to nuclear energy, total pollution from the country’s energy system dropped by more than 80% during the 1980 to 1990 period where France tripled its nuclear energy capacity. Over the same period of time, French overall CO2 emissions (energy, transportation…) were cut off by 25%.
If the United States were to adopt a cap and trade system, with an hypothesis of about $20 per metric ton of CO2 emitted, each new nuclear reactor on the basis of the EPR™ reactor in project in Calvert Cliffs, Maryland, would allow saving 5 million metric tons/year of CO2 emissions and $100 million/year in permits purchase, compared to a gas powered station; 11.5 million metric tons/year CO2 emissions and more than $230 million compared to a coal powered station.

Although with 531 MtCO2 emitted in 2007, France ranked 24 out of 27 within the European Union in terms of absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, it also ranked 8th in terms of emission per capita with 8.6 tCO2eq per capita and 2nd, behind Sweden, in terms of emission per GDP, with 206 tCO2eq per M$ of GDP. The following charts provide relevant comparisons.

GHG Emissions per capita in 2007 tCO2eq/cap

GHG Emissions per GDP in 2007 tCO2eq/G$

A very low-carbon electricity mix, based on nuclear (80% of electricity) and hydro energies (10% of electricity), and ambitious low-carbon policies are the main causes of such figures.
For example, French emissions per new car sold ranks 2nd in Europe, behind Portugal, and renewable energy share ranks 11th in Europe, with 10.3 % of final energy consumption in 2005. Policies that have driven this trend are explained in paragraph 2.

II – A situation resulting from policies adopted as early as the 1970s

The 1973 oil shock resulted in France in a series of State policies aiming at enhancing energy efficiency and reducing France’s dependence on imported oil and gas. These policies have been carried out and improved for the last 40 years.

Among the different policies adopted, the following can be singled out for their efficiency:

• Green buildings: reducing emissions associated with building heating and cooling require two kinds of policies, whether new or existing buildings are at stake. France has set standards for new buildings since 1976, with a consumption rate for new buildings set since 2005 at a third of the actual average (1).  Several subsidies to households have been implemented to improve existing buildings’ insulation.

• Public transportation: improving train transportation has been a major policy of the French Ministry of Transport for decades, this solution being particularly adapted to the French geography. The launch of the TGV (High Speed Train) in the 80s and massive investments since in the technology and the rail network rank France second in terms of length of the system, after Japan, with 1180 miles and first in terms of commercial speed, which reaches 124 miles/h.

• Passenger cars: the low diesel fuel taxes and an annual tax based on the power of cars adopted in the 80s has resulted in the mass diffusion of small and average diesel cars and small gasoline cars, making the average emissions of new cars drop. French car manufacturers are among the world leading diesel engines providers.

• Biofuels: a mix of biofuel content binding objectives for fuel distributors and fiscal incentives has resulted in a soar of biofuel content in diesel and gasoline. In 2008, the biofuel content reached 5.7 % of diesel and gasoline in volume.

• Renewable energy: subsidies through feed in tariffs, call for tenders and direct subsidies have resulted in a renewable energy share of 10.3% in 2005, with more than 80% from hydropower and biomass.

• Nuclear energy: nuclear energy represents 80 % of the French electricity mix. (cf the specific fact sheet on this topic).

III – The Grenelle de l’Environnement: France confirms its commitment to green its economy

With the Grenelle de l’Environnement, launched in 2007 by President Sarkozy and driven by French Minister Borloo, France has drawn a consensus between stakeholders and with civil society to further green its economy. As a result, laws have been adopted and will soon be enforced with a specific emphasis on reducing carbon emissions. The policies adopted include:

• Green buildings: the objective is to generalize low energy consumption buildings. As soon as 2012, ambitious new consumption rate will be set(2).

• Emissions from cars: France has implemented a “fee bate” for new car purchases, associated with a “cash for clunker” scheme. This policy has driven the demand for low carbon cars, which explains why France is one of the two European countries whose average CO2 emissions from new cars are below 0.5 poundsCO2/miles in 2008, an objective all cars manufacturers were supposed to meet in 2008/2009. This scheme includes a $7450 (€5000) subsidy for the purchase of electric vehicles.

• Renewable energy objective: in the framework of the Grenelle de l’Environnement, France has adopted ways and means to reach its 23% objective set in the European Renewable Energy objective. The French plan includes a suppression of administrative barriers, a $1.5 billion scheme to support the production of renewable heat via a call for proposals, a call for proposals for the building of biomass power plants adding up to 250 MW (850 MBTU/hr) and a call for proposals for the building of photovoltaic power plants adding up to 300 MW (1000 MBTU/hr) before 2011.

• Public transportation: massive public investments in urban public transportation ($37 billions by 2020), build 1200 additional miles of high speed train by 2020, invest in railroad and sea fret transportation, in particular to Italy, Spain and Portugal and implement a pay as you drive tax on heavy duty vehicles to finance investments in transportation infrastructure.

• Carbon tax: in order to achieve France’s domestic emission reduction objective by 2020, for sectors not included in the carbon market (transportation, buildings, agriculture), France will implement a new fiscally neutral taxation scheme aimed at rewarding low carbon behaviors.

On nuclear energy, investing in the 4th generation / EPR will lead to greater efficiency in nuclear electricity generation.

1- Standard set between 25,000 BTU/feet²/year and 78,000 BTU/feet²/year depending on the latitude and the energy mix compared to 87 000 BTU/ feet²/year in 2007. (BTU = British Thermal Unit)
2- Standard will be set between 2,390 to 41,000 BTU/feet²/year for commercial buildings and 10,000 to 24,000 BTU/feet²/an for residential buildings, depending on the latitude and the energy mix.

Author : Olivier Pairault.
Photo Credit : Robert C

By Amy Serafin and Heather Stimmler-Hall

It might be true of Copenhagen or Vancouver, but “green” isn’t the first adjective that springs to mind when one thinks of Paris.

The lush vertical garden at the Musée du Quai Branly, an inspiration for similar plantings throughout the city.

That may soon change, says French journalist and tourism consultant Josette Sicsic, sitting on a café terrace overlooking a row of newly planted trees on the Place d’Italie. “The French always take a long time to be convinced of something. We have a rebellious nature. Then all of a sudden, there’s a collective intelligence. Ecological awareness has been a long time coming, but in less than two years, we’ve caught up; now we’re as mindful of the problem as the Scandinavians or Germans.”

Here as in other parts of the world, scientists and environmentalists are finally getting their message across. Since 1990, TV personality and veteran ecologist Nicolas Hulot has run a foundation that has doggedly labored to modify individual and collective behaviors. A shift in public attitudes was evident during the 2007 presidential campaign when Hulot circulated a “Pacte Ecologique” pledging to make the environment a priority. It was signed not only by some 733,359 citizens but also by all the major candidates.

Other national environmental milestones have included the French government’s introduction in 2004 of its “Plan Climat” to reduce carbon emissions in accordance with the Kyoto protocol agreement, and the 2008 passage of the “Grenelle de l’environnement,” a bill based on a series of roundtable discussions about environmental policy and sustainable development. This past June, the well-organized Europe Ecologie party received more than 16 percent of the French vote during the European Parliamentary elections (Parisians gave them 28 percent of their vote), and the save-the-planet documentary Home by French aerial photographer Yann Arthus Bertrand filled big and small screens around the world, quickly topping the list of best-selling DVDs in France.

Located on the site of a former auto factory, the modernist Parc André Citroën reflects Paris’s commitment to making green spaces an integral part of contemporary city life.

On the municipal level, Paris has been going green ever since the 2001 election of Bertrand Delanoë, a Socialist who became mayor thanks to an alliance with Les Verts (he was re-elected in 2008). In 2005, the French capital established its own Plan Climat, pledging a 30 percent reduction in emissions and energy consumption of public buildings by 2020. The city has also given the label “Agenda 21” to a number of local projects, signifying that they respect a U.N. blueprint for sustainable development. These initiatives run the gamut from future éco-quartiers, or green neighborhoods, to issuing uniforms made from fair-trade cotton to sanitation workers.

The difference is already visible. Sicsic gestures at the greenery all around her. “Here on the avenue des Gobelins, cars were parked on the sidewalk just 10 years ago. Since then, the city has widened the pavement and created an alley of trees; it’s completely different now.” Paris is one of the most densely treed cities in Europe, with new plantings and old growths totaling some 485,000 in all. More than half are in the Bois de Boulogne and Bois de Vincennes; 36,500 are in parks and gardens, and another 96,500 line the streets. Resident associations are also contributing to the greening of their city by creating community gardens with the help of City Hall. And Parisians can write to the mayor’s office and suggest blank walls as candidates for vertical gardens, the hippest thing in horticulture since the Musée du Quai Branly created its dramatic mur végétal. Read the end of this article on France Magazine’s website.