Tripartite Contract Signed Between Bulgaria, Japan and IAEA to Help Develop Environmentally Friendly Technology in Bulgaria

A formal agreement was signed today in Tokyo setting the stage for the provision of Japanese radiation technology to help tackle the problem of clearing flue gas emissions in Bulgaria.
The use of electron beam treatment of flue gases that are released, for example, by conventional coal-burning power stations has already been demonstrated successfully in Japan and Poland. The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) has played a major role in developing this technology, through which not only sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions are curbed, but also the injection of ammonia can turn the residues into agricultural fertilizer.
The signing today in Japan involved the Bulgarian Minister of Transport, Mr. Wilhelm Klaus, the President of JAERI, Mr. Masaji Yoshikawa, and a representative of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) based in Vienna. Under the agreement, a pilot electron beam treatment plant using an accelerator provided through JAERI under the auspices of IAEA's Technical Cooperation programme will be constructed in Bulgaria. This will extend the fruitful cooperation already existing between JAERI and the National Electricity Company of Bulgaria, where high sulphur lignite coal is burned, and further establish the utility and flexibility of this unique nuclear technology in the cause of environmental protection.
It is estimated that the burning of fossil fuels results in the emission of over 50 million tons of sulphur dioxide and 20 million tons of nitrogen oxides worldwide each year.