Questions for Eskom
1. How does Eskom justify its lack of commitment to developing renewable energy sources? Why is Eskom’s budget for renewable energy sources less than a tenth of its budget for nuclear energy? Eskom’s vision statement says that sustainable growth and development is its aim. Why, then, does Eskom have such a small budget for renewable energy source development?
2. Does Eskom do environmental impact assessments for powerlines? Yes/No
3. From Erica Drive in Belhar, one can see a major powerline above houses. Is this safe? Yes/No
4. What happens to Koeberg’s nuclear waste?
5. The Eskom advert that has been run in the Mail & Guardian newspaper says “Planning for the future since 1923.” In the light of this, how does Eskom explain the recent power shortages, load shedding, etc.?
6. According to reports, Eskom has a R6 billion budget for nuclear power. How much of this money is being spent on ensuring the safe disposal of the nuclear waste? None, 0—20%, 20—40%, 40—60%, 60—80%, >80%. Lickert
7. Does Eskom consider the location of water and sewage pipes and telephone lines during the planning of a new powerline? Yes/No
8. Does Eskom consider it acceptable practice to allow planned power outages to extend beyond the time that the residents were informed the power would be on again by? Yes/No
9. Is Eskom retrofitting coal-fired power stations for carbon capture and the reduction of sulfur emissions? Yes/No
10. Do the plans for new coal-fired power stations include carbon capture and sulfur emissions control? Yes/No
11. How does Eskom justify paying huge performance bonuses to its CEO when the quality of the company’s customer service is declining and it is threatening price increases?
12. What has Eskom done towards using solar energy?
13. Why is the use of wind power still only in the experimental stage?
14. What solutions does Eskom have for people who are too isolated for powerlines to be economical?
15. What is Eskom’s policy regarding indigenous vegetation under powerlines?
16. Rank the following in order of importance when planning a new powerline. Minimising the price of a powerline. Avoiding protected areas. Minimising damage to natural vegetation. Avoiding fly ways for birds.
17. What steps has Eskom taken to minimise the impact of heat pollution from Koeberg on the ocean?
18. In the light of the power shortages, why is the Athlone power station being dismantled? In the light of the power shortages, why has the Athlone power station been allowed to fall into disrepair such that it is no longer able to produce power?
19. Does Eskom do any site rehabilitation after putting in power lines or power stations? Yes/No
20. Is it Eskom policy not to report damaging water pipes? Does Eskom consider it acceptable to damage water pipes and not report this damage to the relevant authorities? Yes/No If no, explain why damage to the water pipes in Eersterivier (such that the residents of Penhill had no water) was not reported by Eskom workers.
The chance of a meltdown may be eliminated with a pebble bed nuclear reactor but are there not other hazards?
There was a lag of about years between the planning of a power line passing Eersterivier and its construction in 2007. Why was there such a long delay between the planning of this power line and its construction?
Pebble bed Germany…