China Nuclear Safety Chief Warns Of Over-Rapid Growth – Planet Ark

China Nuclear Safety Chief Warns Of Over-Rapid Growth Planet Ark 21-Apr-09Country: CHINA : REUTERS BEIJING – China will face safety issues and environmental hazards involving nuclear waste disposal if the nuclear power sector is expanded too fast, the country’s nuclear safety chief said on Monday……………………

“At the current stage, if we are not fully aware of the sector’s over-rapid expansions, it will threaten construction quality and operation safety of nuclear power plants,” Li Ganjie, director of National Nuclear Safety Administration, told the International Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Energy.

It would also undermine the country’s plan to use more domestic technology and pose problems in the disposal of nuclear waste, said Li, who is also a vice minister of Ministry of Environmental Protection

World Environment News – China Nuclear Safety Chief Warns Of Over-Rapid Growth – Planet Ark

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, China | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radioactive | Leave a comment

A new Yucca Mountain in New Mexico?

A new Yucca Mountain in New Mexico?By Lisa Mascaro Las Vegas Sun April 21, 2009 ·

WASHINGTON — Is a salt formation in New Mexico the new Yucca Mountain?

A trade industry publication reports today that discussions are underway to promote an existing facility in New Mexico as an alternative to storing the nation’s spent nuclear fuel in the desert north of Las Vegas..

The Obama administration has promised to “scale back” funds for the Yucca Mountain project, and the president has vowed it will not open as a waste dump. A report last week indicated the fiscal 2010 funding cut would be severe……………………………

“Nuclear industry officials and policymakers are quietly mounting support for constructing a permanent nuclear waste repository inside a large New Mexico salt formation already used for permanent storage of low-level transuranic waste,” Energy Washington Week reports.

The publication reports former Republican Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico, a longtime leader in nuclear issues, recently mentioned the idea……………………Transporting the nation’s civilian nuclear waste to WIPP has its own legislative obstacles. Current law now restricts what can be dumped there and would need to be altered.

A new Yucca Mountain in New Mexico? – Politics: The Early Line – Las Vegas Sun

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, wastes | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radioactive | Leave a comment

Deadlier thyroid cancers more common after radiation exposure, study suggests

Deadlier thyroid cancers more common after radiation exposure, study suggestsLast Updated: Monday, April 20, 2009 | 6:15 PM ET Comments5Recommend9CBC NewsThyroid cancer seems to be more aggressive in patients who were exposed to radiation at work or for treatment of another condition, a Canadian study says.Survivors of atomic bombs and children living near areas contaminated by the 1986 nuclear reactor accident in Chernobyl, Ukraine suggest radiation is linked to both benign and malignant thyroid tumours, according to the study in the April issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery…………………..

Over an average of 10.6 years of followup, the radiation-exposed group was more likely to:

Have their thyroid removed (83 per cent versus 38 per cent in the group that wasn’t exposed to radiation).

Need more surgery (23 per cent versus two per cent).

Have advanced stage IV disease (16 per cent versus five per cent).

Have distant metastases, or spread far from the original site (nine per cent versus two per cent).

Have thyroid cancer at followup (eight per cent versus three per cent).

Have died of the disease (four per cent versus 1.5 per cent)……………………………..Last week, the Canadian Cancer Society noted that more cases of thyroid cancer are being diagnosed, particularly among young people. The uptick in cases, which was estimated to be 4,300 in 2008 across the country, is attributed to improvements in diagnostic technology.

Deadlier thyroid cancers more common after radiation exposure, study suggests

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, environment | Leave a comment

The European roots of Somali piracy

The European roots of Somali piracy euobserver.com LEIGH PHILLIPS21.04.2009 @ 10:49 CETEUOBSERVER / FEATURE – As global powers ratchet up the naval pressure off the coast of Somalia and the European Union this week prepares to play host to a major international conference on the growing scourge of piracy, very little attention is being paid to the other ‘piracy’ in the area – the decades of European illegal fishing and dumping of toxic waste in Somali waters……………………This irregular, self-styled coast guard also set out to put an end to widespread use of their waters as essentially an exceedingly cheap landfill, scrap yard, toilet and nuclear storage site all rolled into one by foreign ships that have been dumping industrial, medical and even radioactive waste.

As early as 2005, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) warned that the vicious tsunami of the previous December had broken up tonnes of rusting barrels of such waste illegally that had been dumped in the country’s waters for years.

Some 300 people died at the time from contact with the waste, while others, according to a UN report, notably in the regions near the northeastern coastal towns of Hobbio and Benadir, were afflicted with a range of respiratory and skin infections, mouth ulcers and bleeding, and abdominal haemorrhages at rates far above normal………………

………Over a decade ago, from 1997 to 1998, Greenpeace Italy and the Famiglia Cristiana newspaper uncovered evidence that Swiss-based Achair Partners and Progresso, an Italian waste broker had signed agreements with warlord Ali Mahdi to dump hazardous waste in Somali waters.

EUobserver

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | EUROPE, secrets,lies and civil liberties | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radioactive | Leave a comment

Greens vow to stop nuclear power plant

Greens vow to stop nuclear power plant North West Evening Mail Tuesday, 21 April 2009

A NUCLEAR power plant near Millom would leave Cumbria open to “catastrophic accident or terrorist attack”, resulting in huge loss of life and leaving large parts of the county uninhabitable, green campaigners have warned.

Political group the Green Party has vowed to block plans to build a new plant a Layriggs Farm in Kirksanton.

The defiant stand was announced after a list of 11 potential sites across the country was released by the government on Wednesday (15).

The list also includes land at Braystones, near Egremont, and a plot near Sellafield……………………………

Green Party member Peter Cranie said: “The Green Party has long campaigned against nuclear power due to its high cost and the unsolved problems with radioactive waste and risks of radioactive discharges. There also remains a small, but real, risk of a catastrophic accident.

“New nuclear power stations should not be built on green field sites on the Cumbrian coast, and not at Sellafield either. Sellafield should devote itself to decommissioning and dealing with the radioactive waste already produced.”

The party has expressed concern that a final decision could also be snatched away from “local communities” and handed to a specialist government commission.

North West Evening Mail | News | Greens vow to stop nuclear power plant

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, radioactive | Leave a comment

Nuclear power Earth Day’s focus

Nuclear power Earth Day’s focusENERGY: Ontario Clean Air Alliance hosting meeting tomorrowPosted By DAN MCCAFFERY, THE OBSERVERP 22 April 09 Ontario’s controversial nuclear power proposals will be front and centre when Sarnia marks Earth Day tomorrow.That’s because Jack Gibbons of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance will address the subject while taking part in a Town Hall-style meeting at the Lochiel Kiwanis Centre at 7 p. m.

Gibbons will also discuss key features of the provincial government’s proposed Green Energy Act in a speech entitled ‘Ontario’s Green Future: How we can build a 100 per cent renewable electricity grid by 2027……………….

……………..Celebrated every April 22 since 1970, Earth Day has grown into the biggest environmental event on the planet. In fact, some six million Canadians took part in activities last year, including most of the country’s school children. Across the globe, an estimated one billion people staged various events and projects to mark the day.’

Nuclear power Earth Day’s focus – The Sarnia Observer – Ontario, CA

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, politics | Leave a comment

Bulgaria opposition urges freeze of nuclear project | Reuters

Bulgaria opposition urges freeze of nuclear projectTue Apr 21, 2009 – “………………….. SOFIA, April 21 (Reuters) – Bulgaria’s rightist opposition urged the government on Tuesday to freeze a multi-billion project to build a new nuclear power plant due to problems with funding in times of a global economic crisis…………..

…………sources close to the project say the state-owned utility NEK, which has a 51 percent stake in the project, has problems raising funding and Belene faces a delay. The government has estimated costs at 4 billion euros ($5.16 billion) but analysts and sources have said the price tag was more likely to be 6 billion. ………………………

“Bulgaria is the only European Union country which intends to build a nuclear power plant and take such huge loans in times of financial crisis,” UDF’s chairman Martin Dimitrov said.

He said such loans would only add to the economic pain Bulgaria was now experiencing and urged parliament to interfere and try to stop taking loans from Russia.

Bulgaria opposition urges freeze of nuclear project | Reuters

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, EUROPE | Leave a comment

Australia to shun UN racism talks | theage.com.au

Australia to shun UN racism talks * The Age Daniel Flitton * April 20, 2009AUSTRALIA will boycott a United Nations forum on racism in Geneva starting today over fears that the meeting could be used as a platform to air anti-Semitic views…………………………………human rights groups were disappointed by Australia’s decision to pull out.

The National director of Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation, David Cooper, said that while he deplored racism of any kind, Australia stood to gain from the forum.

“It’s a great disappointment that countries like Australia, the US and Canada that have got significant indigenous populations are not going to be participating,” he said, adding that the forum offered the first chance to discuss the international declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples.

The president of the United Nations Association of Australia, John Langmore, said Australia’s failure to attend the racism forum was inconsistent with its support for the indigenous rights declaration, signed earlier this month.

Australia to shun UN racism talks | theage.com.au

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Malawi church group says Australian uranium miner back tracks

Malawi church group says Australian uranium miner back tracks Ecumenical News Blantyre (ENI). Malawi’s Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace has accused Australian-based uranium miner Paladin Energy of back tracking on pledges to the people of the Karonga region where it operates the Kayelekera Uranium Mine

ENI

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

theage.com.au – The Age

BHP Billiton Production Report – Period Ended 31 March 2009 Uranium – Production was lower than the quarter and nine months ended March 2008 due to lower grade at Olympic Dam (Australia).

theage.com.au – The Age

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Spying by French nuclear company?

GOING NUCLEAR

UN Dispatch Morning Coffee – 21 April 2009

<!–

–> Lindsay Beyerstein – April 21, 2009 – 6:30am

Morning Coffee

– A judicial inquiry in France is trying to determine whether the state-run electricity generation and distribution company, EDF, broke the law by paying spies to infiltrate anti-nuclear groups across Europe.

A security officer testified that he organized surveillance of Greenpeace and other groups starting around 2002, but did not seek to hack into their private networks. This is a particularly sensitive issue in France as memories are still fresh from the 1985 sinking of Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior by French intelligence officers. Brits likely perked up at the news too, as EDF just bought British Energy, the UK’s nuclear operator. Link

Morning Coffee – 21 April 2009 | UN Dispatch

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Lehman Brothers and yellowcake

Lehman Brothers and Yellowcake BIZMOLOGY by Larry Bills, April 20th, 2009 “………It turns out that Lehman Brothers, the powerful investment bank which collapsed last year and signaled the beginning of the economic meltdown, owns 500,000 pounds of uranium “yellowcake,” slightly less than what’s needed to make one nuclear bomb……………….. I don’t know if I’m crazy about a bankrupt company — struggling to pay off creditors — stockpiling uranium.
Bizmology » Blog Archive » Lehman Brothers and yellowcake

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

UK to study health of nuke test veterans

UK to study health of nuke test veterans Sydney Morning Herald April 22, 2009 – 12:24AMVeterans of Britain’s nuclear tests in Australia during the 1950s and their descendants will be the subject of a health study by the Ministry of Defence (MOD).The MOD announced on Tuesday it would join representatives of the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association and MPs in a working group to finalise details of the research and identify a sample group to study……………………The MOD also plans to follow up on a New Zealand study that showed an apparent link between changes to veterans’ chromosomes and their participation in tests at Christmas Island…………………..

From 1952-58 the UK conducted atmospheric nuclear tests in Australia and at Malden Island and Christmas Island in the Pacific Ocean.

Some 28,000 UK Service personnel were involved in the testing programme.

Many veterans say they suffered health problems as a result of their exposure to radiation, leading to claims for compensation.

The British government has frequently denied there is any evidence of excess illness or mortality amongst the veterans which could be linked to their participation in the tests or exposure to resulting radiation.

UK to study health of nuke test veterans

April 22, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Nuke waste dumping: Are Somalia’s pirates reacting to international abuses?

secret-agent

Are Somalia’s pirates reacting to international abuses? Somali UK 21 April 09 “…………………………The coast remains an easy dumping ground for toxic and nuclear waste.

“It’s a real problem,” said Roger Middleton, a Somalia expert and researcher for the London-based think tank, Chatham House.

“There are very shady goings-on, mostly involving the Mafia.”

The force of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami pulled up dozens of toxic-waste containers, leaving a lethal trail along the Somali coast.

A UN report found as a result many residents suffered “acute respiratory infections, heavy coughing, bleeding gums and mouth, abdominal haemorrhages, unusual skin rashes, and even death.”

Two years later, a team of specialists discovered nine toxic waste sites along 700 km of coastline in southern Somalia.

“Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there,” Nick Nuttall of the UN’s Environment Program told the television channel Al-Jazeera, echoing similar findings from other reports.

“And the waste is many different kinds. There is uranium radioactive waste. There is lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes – you name it.”

The waste came from European companies, which paid shady intermediaries as little as $2.50 a tonne to dispose of it, compared with about $1,000 a tonne in Europe…………

………. http://www.somaliuk.com/Indepth1/Fullarticle.php?IndepthID=483

April 21, 2009 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, Somalia | antinuclear, nuclear, radioactive, Somalia | Leave a comment

Sellafield: the most hazardous place in Europe

The Guardian 21 April 09 Last week the government announced plans for a new generation of nuclear plants. But Britain is still dealing with the legacy of its first atomic installation at Sellafield – a toxic waste dump in one of the most contaminated buildings in Europe. As a multi-billion-pound clean-up is planned, can we avoid making the same mistakes again?

………………………… “It is the most hazardous industrial building in western Europe,” according to George Beveridge, Sellafield’s deputy managing director.

Nor is it hard to understand why the building possesses such a fearsome reputation. Piles of old nuclear reactor parts and decaying fuel rods, much of them of unknown provenance and age, line the murky, radioactive waters of the cooling pond in the centre of B30. Down there, pieces of contaminated metal have dissolved into sludge that emits heavy and potentially lethal doses of radiation.

It is an unsettling place, though B30 is certainly not unique. There is Building B38 next door, for example. “That’s the second most hazardous industrial building in Europe,” said Beveridge. Here highly radioactive cladding from reactor fuel rods is stored, also under water. And again, engineers have only a vague idea what else has been dumped in its cooling pond and left to disintegrate for the past few decades.