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Allegations of corruption against Pakistan’s nuclear scientist Khan

Pakistani nuclear scientist Khan accused of graft, The National, Tom Hussain, Jul 9, 2011 ISLAMABAD  The disgraced Pakistani nuclear scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, allegedly embezzled money from the country’s clandestine programme, and sought to sabotage technology acquisition deals for personal financial interest, a former chief diplomat said.

“He siphoned off a lot of money from every deal,” said Akram Zaki, the secretary general to Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs from 1992 to 1993, and a former senator.

“And the deals in which he didn’t get his finger, he tried to scuttle … even if they were national-interest [projects].”

His comments, in a recent interview with The National, were made before a Washington Post report on Thursday saying Mr Khan had leaked 1998 documents purporting to show Pakistani generals accepted more than $3.5 million (Dh12.9m) in bribes to allow the export of nuclear weapons technology to North Korea.

Mr Khan, the founding father of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons programme, was arrested in December 2003 after a shipment of nuclear weapons-making equipment, bound for Libya, was seized off the coast of Egypt. He was pardoned after making a televised apology to Pakistanis, but kept under house arrest until 2009.

International investigators and Pakistani officials have said Mr Khan had illegally exported some 200 uranium enrichment centrifuges to Iran and North Korea…….http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/south-asia/pakistani-nuclear-scientist-khan-accused-of-graft.

July 9, 2011 Posted by | Pakistan, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Climate change and nuclear power – a lethal mix?

The mix of extreme climate changes around the planet plus nuclear weapons, nuclear waste and nuclear power could very easily be a lethal mix.

Fires and floods, We need more information from governments about nuclear power, By Judith Mohling e Colorado Daily 07/07/2011 , Aweek ago, 700 miles apart, evacuations of heavily populated areas took place as people moved to safety from possible nuclear disasters — two flooded nuclear power plants in Nebraska, Fort Calhoun and Cooper, and a raging wildfire near the nuclear lab at Los Alamos, New Mexico.

………….Today, the dangers to the Los Alamos labs and the flooded nuclear power plants have subsided and many people have been able to sleep in their own beds again. ……..

As climate change worsens, extreme, yet unpredictable weather may befall the earth. Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Atomic Energy Society of Japan critical of govt’s lack of transparency on Fukushima

Japan nuclear group says vital info still has not been released, such as temperatures of the molten nuclear fuel and lower section of pressure vessels, ENE News July 8th, 2011 , Nuclear accident disclosure, Japan Times, July 8, 2011:

The Atomic Energy Society of Japan […] issued a statement criticizing the government, Tokyo Electric Power Co. and other related institutions for delays and insufficiency in their disclosure of information concerning the accidents at Tepco’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant […]

Since the Atomic Energy Society of Japan is regarded as close to Japan’s nuclear power establishment, the criticism bears importance all the more. […]

The following point is especially important. The society notes that there is the possibility that the damage to people’s health from radiation exposure has increased because the government, Tepco and other related institutions did not properly disclose information on the status of the nuclear accidents and the environmental contamination by radioactive substances. […]

The society notes that such vital information as the temperature of the lower section of the pressure vessels, the volume and temperature of the coolant water in the lower part of the pressure vessels, and the temperature of the molten nuclear fuel have yet to be released. […]http://enenews.com/japan-nuclear-group-vital-info-released-temperatures-molten-nuclear-fuel-lower-section-pressure-vessels

July 8, 2011 Posted by | Japan, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

France will consider exiting from nuclear power

An energy ministry official told Reuters one scenario would consider a total exit from nuclear by 2050, or even 2040……A poll last month showed three quarters of the French people interviewed wanted to withdraw from nuclear energy, 

France includes nuclear power exit among options, Reuters, Jul 8, 2011 Reporting by Emmanuel Jarry, Writing by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Anthony Barker)

* France mulls full exit by 2040-2050, not govt’s choice

* Option part of wider study on French future energy mix

* Poll showed three quarters of French want full exit

PARIS, – France raised the possibility for the first time of pulling out of nuclear power Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | France, politics | Leave a comment

Japanese government far too involved in nuclear industry

Too Much Government Support Distorted Nuclear Industry: Inquiry Panel Member, FOX Business News, By Mitsuru Obe,  July 08, 2011,  Dow Jones Newswires

— Government continues to play overbearing role in nuclear industry, inquiry panel member says

— Generous state assistance, protection encouraged exaggerated move by power companies into nuclear power

— Power plant operators failed to learn lessons from Chernobyl disaster

TOKYO -(Dow Jones)- The Japanese government’s heavy involvement in the nuclear power business has distorted the decision-making of plant operators and led to the construction of nuclear plants without regard to real economic costs, indirectly contributing to the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi complex, a member of a fact-finding committee said Friday……

“This has distorted the economic incentives and risk profile of nuclear power. Without massive government assistance, utilities would never have gotten into nuclear power so heavily,” Yoshioka said at the second meeting of the committee, which was set up to investigate the causes of the worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

The 10-person panel was launched early last month and is set to produce an interim report by the end of the year and a final report by next summer……..http://www.foxbusiness.com/industries/2011/07/08/too-much-government-support-distorted-nuclear-industry-inquiry-panel-member/

July 8, 2011 Posted by | Japan, politics | Leave a comment

The end of nuclear, an economic boon for Germany

a shift to a renewable energy powered economy comes with costs. However, this price tag is modest in comparison to the heavy burden that nuclear brings. Over the last 40 years, the German nuclear industry has been pampered with more than 200 billion Euros in subsidies.  In comparison, renewable energy technologies have been incentivized by about 4.8 billion Euros in 2010. By replacing fossil fuel imports and avoiding health costs, renewables already pay off today. 

Auf Wiedersehen! Germany’s goodbye to nuclear power will accelerate the transition towards a low-carbon economy, THE HILL, By Arne Jungjohann: Director for the Environment Program of the Heinrich Böll Foundation-07/08/11 ……….A decade ago, Germany started transitioning towards a low carbon economy. The share of renewable power has tripled. Wind farms, solar modules, biogas, and hydro power provide 18 percent of Germany’s power supply. Today, renewables are a reliable and indispensable pillar of Germany’s power supply that keep trains running and factories humming. The sector is fast growing and provides 370,000 good-paying jobs – much more than the 22,000 jobs in Germany’s lignite coal industry. Many of these jobs are within traditional industries, such as steel workers, farmers and the ceramic and glass industries. Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Germany | Leave a comment

German Parliament seals nuclear exit plan

German parliament backs nuclear exit by 2022, Google News, (AFP) 8 July 11, BERLIN — The German parliament sealed plans Friday to phase out nuclear energy by 2022, making the country the first major industrial power to take the step in the wake of the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima plant.

The nuclear exit scheme cleared its final hurdle in the Bundesrat upper house, which represents the 16 regional states, after the legislation passed the Bundestag lower house with an overwhelming majority last week.

Germany’s seven oldest reactors were already switched off after Japan’s massive March 11 earthquake and tsunami knocked out cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, causing reactors to overheat and radiation to leak.

A further reactor has been shut for years because of technical problems.

The nine reactors currently on line are due to be turned off between 2015 and 2022, an even faster pace than envisaged when Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the decision in May.

Polls indicate a large majority of Germans oppose nuclear power due to fears of a reactor catastrophe and unresolved issues on the long-term storage of highly radioactive atomic waste……http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gnJH-sZ9D1lD39l-ekmBrnx2xuyg?docId=CNG.789d47896547d432d46c547221e2b880.461

July 8, 2011 Posted by | Germany, politics | Leave a comment

Too late for a well-managed shutdown of Indian Point nuclear plant?

Three options to replace Indian Point stand out. One, local fossil fuel sources such as natural gas could generate more electricity. Two, excess hydroelectric power or wind power generated upstate or in Canada could be transported downstate. And three, consumers could drastically cut their electricity use.

All appear relatively simple and, together, offer promise. But closer inspection shows there is a great deal of complexity involved……

Has Time Run Out to Replace Indian Point’s Nuclear Power? Reuters, 8 July 11, By Alice Kenny, SolveClimate News   Editor’s Note: In this three-part series, SolveClimate News examines the feasibility of closing the Indian Point nuclear facility in Buchanan, N.Y. The plant, now up for relicensing, faces demands for a shutdown by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and many environmental groups. This is part two.

Renewed backlash against New York’s Indian Point nuclear plant in the wake of Japan’s disaster has forced politicians and energy experts in the state to again confront tough questions about how to permanently replace the facility’s electricity.

Now, with the plant up for relicensing, some observers warn that time may have run out for a well-managed and gradual shutdown of the complex, located just 24 miles from America’s most populous city…… Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | technology, USA | Leave a comment

Australia sets up new renewable energy agency

Global green energy investments up as Australia consolidates action, Voxy News, NZ,  8 July, 2011 , Investments in renewable energy globally are up 32% increase in in 2010, according to a new United Nations report. Significantly, developing nations spent more on renewable energy utility projects, $72 billion, than developed ones, at $70 billion.

China led all nations with $49.8 billion in investments in 2010, ahead of German spending of $41 billion and U.S. spending of $29.6 billion.

The report has been released at the same time Australia has announced new independent statutory body, to be named the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), to lead the Australian Government’s investments in renewable energy…. http://www.voxy.co.nz/business/global-green-energy-investments-australia-consolidates-action/5/94521

July 8, 2011 Posted by | AUSTRALIA, renewable | Leave a comment

Pros and cons of moving nuclear wastes from pools to casks

Haste vs. Procrastination on Nuclear Waste, NYT By MATTHEW L. WALD  7 July 11 “…….safety concerns arise in moving the fuel to casks, too. The details, pro and con, get interesting. Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | technology, USA, wastes | Leave a comment

Russia’s nuclear-powered ice-breaker ship

The Soviet Ship That Cuts Through Ice Like a Nuclear-Powered Knife Through Butte, Wired.com, By Andrew Tarantola, Gizmodo.com  , July 8, 2011 ………who else would think to pack two nuclear reactors into a ship and set it loose in the Arctic breaking ice? The North Koreans? Psshhh, not likely…….”

…..Breaking with the Soviet tradition of intuitive, straightforward design, the reactors are used to power Rube Goldberg propulsion system. The reactors power boilers which generate high pressure steam to power 12 dynamos which in turn power electric motors attached to each of the three propeller screws. These motors provide each screw with roughly 25,000 horsepower or 55.3MW. With that much power, the Yamal punches through ice up to 2.3m thick at a speed of 3 knots. And though the Yamal’s maximum rated ice thickness is 5m, it has been recorded smashing individual ice ridges as thick as 9m…

….Despite its ability to break through 20 vertical feet of ice at a time, the Yamal is effectively trapped in the Arctic. Because the reactors use the area’s frigid water for cooling, the Yamal is physically incapable of traveling near (and definitely not past) the equator without overheating and melting down its fuel supply.  ….

July 8, 2011 Posted by | Russia, technology | Leave a comment

India wants USA to agree to it enriching uranium

Hillary Clinton to visit India, nuclear waiver, AfPak tops agenda, The Economic Times, 8 July 11–– NEW DELHI: Amid anxieties about new guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), India will press the US for the transfer of sensitive technologies to enable full civilian cooperation when secretary of state Hillary Clinton comes to New Delhi for a strategic dialogue July 18.

Clinton will be on a three-day visit for the second strategic dialogue, with external affairs minister S.M. Krishna, said well-placed sources…. Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | India, politics international | Leave a comment

Nuclear power a tragic cause of global warming, rather than a solution?

That which cannot be controlled must be prevented. Today, that means preventing the threat of climate change and eradicating nuclear weapons. But we cannot afford efforts to address one challenge that end up aggravating the other. Attempting to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions through nuclear energy, thereby fueling the dangers of the ultimate global incendiary – nuclear war – could be the most tragic of all miscalculations…….

From Fukushima to disarmament, BY MALCOLM FRASER,  ABC Environment | 5 JUL 2011 In our rush to find a solution to climate change, nuclear energy has again been promoted. But the disaster at Fukushima reminds us of just how devastating nuclear can be.

MONTHS AFTER THE devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, the ongoing nuclear disaster at Fukushima compounds the humanitarian tragedy and impedes recovery. The damaged reactors and spent-fuel ponds contain around 10 times as much nuclear fuel as did the Chernobyl reactor that exploded in 1986. In three reactors, the fuel has melted, almost certainly through the reactor vessels; primary containment structures have been breached; explosions have torn away the secondary containment (the buildings); radioactive releases continue; and closed-loop cooling has not been re-established.

Fukushima has highlighted how vulnerable spent-fuel ponds are to direct damage or disruption of power, water, or pumps for cooling. Continue reading →

July 6, 2011 Posted by | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Global warming will bring increased wildfire threats to nuclear installations

While there are a range of findings, the majority point toward greatly increased stresses upon western North American forests due to climate change. There are even detailed studies, nearly all of them, indicating that climatic changes will increase the number and severity of fire events beyond the parameters reconstructed through paleodendrological evidence. Wildfires are likely be the punctual culmination of various stresses, in one quick moment transforming forests into deserts where trees may never again grow in any great numbers…….While building nuclear weapons might not quite be fiddling, you get the idea. While America burns, its leaders are busy pouring scarce money and manpower into nuclear weapons. The fire in New Mexico is both symbolic and literal in this sense.. 

Nuclear Fiddling, While Los Alamos Burns, The 4th Media, DARWIN BOND-GRAHAM | BeiJing Time, July 5, 2011 LANL is not just any government lab. LANL is the epicenter of the US nuclear weapons program. It is the home base of the weaponeers, the thousands of Department of Energy employees and subcontractors who have tethered their careers, livelihoods, and identities to the atom bomb’s continuing role in American foreign, and domestic policy. In this respect LANL is the brain trust (or moral pit, if you prefer) of US nuclearism. LANL is also now the center of US plutonium manufacturing for nuclear weapons; the Lab is host to billion dollar factories dedicated to storing, milling (one could even say supplicating to) this most deadly material. Expansions are underway Continue reading →

July 6, 2011 Posted by | climate change, USA | Leave a comment

Global warming causes jellyfish surge, causes nuclear plant shutdowns

Increasing fishing activity and global warming are giving jellyfish populations a boost, scientists said, potentially making jellyfish invasions at nuclear power plants located near the open sea more common in the future

Jellyfish keep UK nuclear plant shut, Reporting by Karolin Schaps; editing by Jason Neely),  Scientific American ,| June 29, 2011 An invasion of jellyfish into a cooling water pool at a Scottish nuclear power plant kept its nuclear reactors offline on Wednesday, a phenomenon which may grow more common in future, scientists said. Continue reading →

July 6, 2011 Posted by | climate change, UK | Leave a comment

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