Century of Jihad (12 page)

Leaving Scotland Yard, Lisa drove home, alone again, through the night. She’d rung Chris before she left and was glad he was already at home waiting for her. She thought about her outburst in the car with Ed, still surprised. Where had it come from? It was very unlike her – she tended to keep things to herself. Obviously she was open with Chris about her experiences and thoughts relating to work, but never before with colleagues, and definitely not the boss. Nevertheless, she felt a lot better for it, and Ed seemed almost pleased with her. Despite the events of the day, she felt much less stressed going home than she had of late.

Ed got into his car and a wave of exhaustion swam over him. He rubbed his eyes, popped a piece of chewing gum in his mouth and opened the windows a fraction. Firing up the engine, he shot out of the underground car park and into the cold, dark night. As he drove, he thought about his team. Lisa had done well tonight, and he was pleased she’d ‘let go’. There was nothing to worry about there.

He hoped that Stuart and Theo had enjoyed their unexpected time off. Two very different personalities, but they worked well together, and Lisa appeared to work well with either of them. He detected no tensions or friction, but he did occasionally worry that Theo might over-react. It was nothing tangible, nor had he any evidence that this had ever happened in the past. It was simply a gut feeling, and his ‘gut’ had been right, more often than not in the past.

He had the same feeling about these terrorist incidents. He was sure this was a lead up to something major. This in turn led to him thinking about the family Christmas plans. He’d have to tell Sue that he definitely wouldn’t be able to make the planned Christmas with her family in East Anglia. He wanted her and the kids to go though – it had become something of a family tradition, and was a great opportunity for the kids to meet with their cousins, and spend a truly traditional country Christmas.

Arriving home, he was surprised to see the lights still on. Walking in, he found Sue on the living room floor, surrounded by wrapped presents and remnants of wrapping paper and plastic bags. She got up, kissed him, and he followed her through to the kitchen. Pouring two glasses of wine, Sue said,

‘Sit down, I want to say something. But before I start, I want to make it clear that it’s not up for discussion. The kids and I are staying here for Christmas. We’ve been out today and bought a load of food, ordered the turkey and sent letters to Santa letting him know we’re staying here. I’ve also phoned the parents and everyone understands. The kids and I will go to East Anglia on the 27
^th
for a few days. ‘Right, before we go to bed, can you help me put all these prezzies away?’

That night Ed had probably the best night’s sleep he’d had in days. Yes, he had plenty of worries and concerns, but family was not one of them.

The Public Meeting in the town hall in Thornbury was set to be a crowd-puller. Doctor Paul Prentice, a representative from the nuclear power industry, was to address a large gathering of interested parties, ranging from members of the general public through to environmental activists and the anti-nuclear lobby. The press, local and national, would also be present.

This was just one of a series of public meetings organised around the country now that all the enquiries into the future sources of energy had been completed. The Government had, after years of prevarication, finally addressed the issue. Furthermore, it had become convinced of the necessity to include nuclear energy as a necessary part of its plan for future energy supplies and had, as a result, agreed that Britain’s ageing nuclear plants needed to be replaced as a matter of urgency. The consultation process now complete, construction work was getting underway across the country to create the nuclear power plants necessary for the nation’s needs. Much of this development was to be at the location of previous nuclear power stations, such as the one at Oldbury, which was ten minutes’ drive from Thornbury. Not before time, in Paul’s opinion. And very much at the eleventh hour, if the country’s predicted demand for electricity was to be met and sustained.

Faced with a nation still very much uneasy about the concept of ‘nuclear’, the industry had embarked on a massive nationwide public relations exercise. Paul was part of this effort to explain the benefits of nuclear power to the masses.

Dr Paul Prentice was a nuclear physicist, and had worked in the nuclear industry since graduating from university. In his mid-forties, he did not have the appearance of an academic, and he was quite comfortable with this. Whilst short in stature, he had a strong wiry build, and kept fit with a combination of running and cycling.

Paul hated these meetings. He was unnerved by the often naïve questions that came from the general public, and driven to despair by the often ignorant and arrogant histrionics which came from the Green movement and the anti-nuclear lobby.

As the crowd gathered in the auditorium, he found himself looking into the faces of the throng, as he always did, trying to assess their mood. Was this group going to be any different from the others? Was this going to be an easy one this evening? He felt he had become quite a good judge of human character, having attended a number of such gatherings over the years. He would look into the assembly, trying to spot the troublemakers – the Colonel Blimps, who wanted to retain England’s green and pleasant land as it had always been, in their blinkered view of such things.

Then there were those who were against everything, and turned it into a career. You could guarantee their presence at any protest, for or against any cause. Their only tangible achievement was to cost the poor British taxpayer a fortune in policing their all too often illegal activities. They offered no viable alternatives to anything, just obstruction. He thought to himself how ironic it was that so-called environmental groups were now aligned squarely with big businesses, which were falling over each other to cash in on the often unscientific arguments surrounding ‘climate change’. These arguments were being promoted by the ruling elite and left wing media, who had created a mindless mantra with all the ignorance that usually goes with religious fervour, which indeed ‘saving the planet’ had become over the years.

Paul knew all too well what a powerful weapon ‘saving the planet’ gave the ‘intelligentsia’ in terms of power over the people. The ruling elite were now interfering in almost every aspect of human activity. These often shallow and mediocre individuals had given themselves the standing of high priests. Scientists were unable to get grants to pursue research, unless it was to prove man’s responsibility for global warming, even though this was still disputed by many within the scientific community. Some disputing the very idea of global warming. The debate, if it could be called that considering all alternative theories were stifled or vilified, failed to mention that Britain had, in times past, been part of the ice cap and also a tropical paradise. All this, before man had even set foot on the planet. In fact, Paul felt there was a degree of arrogance in the belief that something as insignificant as mankind could be responsible for the changes in climate, which he agreed were at once irrefutable and, at the same time, so obviously part of the wonders of the natural environment. It was ironic that here he was again, having to defend the nuclear industry which was the only viable alternative and secure source of energy capable of generating power in the quantities required, at little cost in terms of pollution, to replace the insecure supply and polluting fossil fuel sources of energy generation. It was an insult to be defending it against the much eulogised, alternative blight on the landscape – wind farms – which would, in time, prove to be totally unreliable, unable to cope with demand, and would have to have a back-up supply from another source of power generation anyway.

Quite suddenly he was brought back to the present, as the local dignitary stood to introduce the visitor to the now packed hall.

‘Ladies and gentlemen, we have the pleasure this evening of having, in our midst, one of the country’s most eminent, scientific brains.’

‘Bullshit!’ thought Paul. ‘Let’s bloody get on with this farce!’

‘Let me introduce Doctor Paul Prentice, representing the Nuclear Power industry.’

Paul rose and moved forward to face his audience. ‘I would, first of all, like to say how pleased I am to have been invited to speak here this evening.’ In truth, he just wished it was over.

‘I have worked in the nuclear industry for many years and am, therefore, very familiar with it. I do appreciate, however, that for many the word ‘’nuclear” conjures up feelings of unease and, in some cases, real fear. I do hope that by the end of this evening, I will have been able to explain the benefits of nuclear power and allay any fears regarding safety you may have. I’m sure we will all agree on one issue – Britain’s energy consumption is increasing year on year. Fossil fuels are polluting, costly to source, and supplies limited. Britain requires a source of energy which is secure, sustainable long term, efficient and environmentally friendly.’ As he paused for breath, he thought, ‘I’m beginning to sound like one of those environmentalists.’

‘Not in my name!’ came a shout from the audience.

He continued, ignoring the long-haired and unkempt individual in the second row.

‘Over the coming decade, most of the old nuclear power plants on which the national grid relies for fifteen percent of the nation’s energy supply, will be going off-line, as they come to the end of their working lives. It is vital that Britain replaces this essential source of power. There is no doubting that the nation needs to have a variety of energy generating sources to power our industry, work places, and homes. After much research and discussion, nuclear energy has been identified as being a vital component in Government plans for the future of power supplies in Britain. In today’s environment, it can offer a reliable, non-polluting and sustainable source of energy to meet the nation’s needs, both now and well into the future. Nuclear power stations are built in remote areas on contained sites so, therefore, do not blight landscapes. Furthermore, nuclear power generation is not air polluting, so there is a reduction in acid rain and global warming.’

‘Bollocks!’ came a retort from a heavily-tattooed, individual in the third row.

Ignoring the interruption, Paul continued. He felt he was on a roll now. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, if you would now refer to the handout, I would like to introduce the workings of a nuclear power plant, for those amongst us who may not be conversant with the behind-the-scenes activities and the materials used to generate the power in a nuclear power plant.’

‘Yeah, mate! Let’s hear what really goes on behind the scenes in the nuclear power industry!’ shouted the long-haired individual in the second row.

Paul just smirked to himself and continued, ‘Uranium is a highly concentrated energy source, available throughout the world in large quantities. One tonne of uranium can produce as much electricity as 200 tonnes of coal. Once uranium has been used, it can be reprocessed and recycled to make more fuel. During the reprocessing, plutonium is given off as a by-product, and this can be used to generate power in fast reactors. Uranium is delivered to the power station in the form of solid ceramic pellets, packed into long metal tubes. Bundles of these tubes are placed inside the nuclear reactor. There, the uranium is bombarded by neutrons.’

‘Yeah, just as you are bombarding us with shit!’ came another contribution from an unidentified, male voice, somewhere out in the audience.

Paul continued, ‘The uranium 235 atoms, which are naturally fissile, split and release their own neutrons, which strike other atoms and split these. Once the chain reaction has begun, the process is self-sustaining.’

‘That’s what’s so fucking worrying!’ shouted a female from the first row.

Paul was unphased. ‘Each time an atom is split, heat is released. The fuel tubes are surrounded by water or CO2, which is turned, instantaneously, to steam. The steam turns a turbine, which generates electricity. This electricity is fed into the National Grid, which is the means of transporting electricity from the generators to the regional suppliers all over the country. It is essential to monitor the temperature of the reactor.’

‘Who’s monitoring you people?’ came a shout from a female voice somewhere towards the back.

An unruffled Paul continued, ‘The rate of fissile activity can be increased, or decreased, by a set of control rods, which are lowered inside the reactor to slow the reaction down, and raised to accelerate it. Reactors also have a separate set of emergency control rods that can be dropped to shut the reactor down completely. To minimise the risk of human error, UK reactors are equipped with a computerised system that automatically implements shut down, if necessary, to prevent overheating. It is also possible, in an emergency, to flood the reactor with nitrogen or water, which will absorb the neutrons and, therefore, bring the process of nuclear fission to a full stop.’

‘That’s what we’re trying to do now,’ came another voice.

‘Not long to go now,’ thought Paul. He carried on, ‘In essence, a reactor is the nuclear equivalent of the furnace in a steam-raising boiler.’ With that, Paul came to the end of his presentation. Taking a sip of water, he continued, ‘Thank you for listening. I appreciate there’s a lot to take in. Are there any questions?’

‘What would happen if an aeroplane crashed into the reactor building?’ was the first question from an elderly lady on the front row.

Paul answered, The reactor itself is very well protected. The structure around the reactor core is typically a metre thick, and made of concrete and steel. Tests have shown that it is unlikely, in such circumstances, that damage would be sustained by the core of the reactor.’

The elderly lady didn’t look convinced by Paul’s assurance, but didn’t press him further.

Paul asked, ‘Any other questions please?’

‘What if there is a terrorist attack?’ asked a middle-aged man from the rear of the hall.