Environment Minister Wants to Declassify Information Concerning Nuclear Energy

Bratislava, September 22 (TASR) - Environment Minister Jan Budaj (OLaNO) stated on Tuesday at a press conference that he wants information about nuclear energy in the country to be declassified, explaining that his ministry intends to achieve this goal by presenting an amendment to the law on the peaceful use of nuclear energy. According to Budaj, the previous government adopted an amendment to the law in question that increased the quantity of classified information. The Environment Ministry as well as its institutions thus lack access to information of this kind. "This change didn"t go unnoticed in Europe. It really was a step in the opposite direction that the whole of Europe decided to follow," noted Budaj, explaining that the monitoring committee of the Council of the European Union has warned Slovakia that change infringes the Aarhus Convention. According to the minister, the convention can"t be breached and it"s supposed to be superior to the national law. The minister continued to note that he intends to meet with the head of the Nuclear and Decommissioning Company (JAVYS) to discuss the incineration of nuclear waste produced by the nuclear power plant at Jaslovske Bohunice (Trnava region). zel/mcs