Friends of the Earth Adelaide sent a letter to Chris Bowen, Minister for Climate Change and Energy, before a series of important meetings in the lead up to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP31). A special climate event took place in Palau at the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting from 30 August to 4 September. That will be followed by pre-COP preparatory meetings in Fiji and Tuvalu (5-8 October). COP31 itself will take place from 9 to 20 November 2026 in Antalya, Türkiye.
Adelaide was vying to host COP31, but we missed out when Türkiye wouldn’t back down. The compromise was that Chris Bowen got to be President of Negotiations.
We thought it would be good idea to warn him that the nuclear industry lobby would be up to its usual tricks, trying to con negotiators into endorsing nuclear energy as the solution to climate change. We want him to resist their pressure.
Türkiye itself does not yet have operating nuclear reactors, but it has nuclear reactors under construction (by Russia). Unsurprisingly, construction is running well behind schedule. The current plan is to start up the first reactor late this year — i.e. about when COP31 will be taking place. It could be a big propaganda opportunity for the nuclear industry, or an embarrassment if start up is delayed even further.