Vorauseilender Ausstieg aus der Kernenergie an den deutschen Hochschulen und Forschungszentren? Arbeitsplätze und Studienangebote im kerntechnischen Bereich

The energy policy objectives of the present German federal government include the regulated, not-to-be-indemnified termination of the use of nuclear power for electricity generation in Germany. This objective was initialed in an agreement between the federal government and the operators of nuclear power plants in June 2000. The criterion it contains for the residual life of existing nuclear power plants are the residual electricity volumes to be generated by existing plants. According to present data, the first nuclear power plant would be decommissioned in late 2002, the last one, in early 2021. A report by an evaluating committee established by the competent German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology published in January 2000 indicates that, even in the light of this medium-term perspective for the use of nuclear power for electricity generation, sufficient competence in terms of manpower in this field must be maintained and promoted in all areas of research, industry, expert consultant organizations, and regulatory authorities far beyond 2021. This makes government support indispensable in the light of the political criteria requiring the preservation of competence in this sector. The Kompetenzverbund Kerntechnik (Association for Nuclear Technology Competence) was established within the framework of the Energy Research Division of the Hermann von Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft Deutscher Forschungszentren. Its mandate outlines its objectives as follows: Irrespective of political decisions establishing criteria for terminating the use of nuclear power in Germany, it is necessary that competence in nuclear safety be preserved for the next few decades. Only this will ensure that the government's provident duties can be fulfilled, and the safety of nuclear installations and waste and spent fuel management pathways can be ensured in accordance with the international state of the art.