Financial start for renewable energy, energy efficiency, in 10 Spanish regions
Spain Launches Fund To Promote Energy Efficiency And Renewables In 10 Regions, by: Eurasia Review, July 2, 2011 The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Spanish Energy Saving and Diversification Institute (IDAE) have concluded a finance agreement to launch a JESSICA holding fund designed to finance energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in an innovative use of EU structural funds. …… http://www.eurasiareview.com/spain-launches-fund-to-promote-energy-efficiency-and-renewables-in-10-regions-02072011/
Fort Calhoun Nuclear Reactor is Safe, well Sort Of
The plant faces two other challenges, however. One is that the flowing water, four feet deep in some spots around the plant, may have undermined some structures. Already, plant workers have stopped moving heavy vehicles over paved surfaces because they may have been weakened, the managers say….
A Long Road Ahead for a Flooded Reactor, NYT, By MATTHEW L. WALD, 28 June 11, Federal officials say that the Fort Calhoun nuclear plant, which is surrounded by floodwaters from the Missouri River, is safe for now, as I wrote in Tuesday’s Times. But it may be a very long way from reopening. Continue reading
Legal battle- South Carolina’s nuclear waste not to go to Nevada
A federal report issued early in June said the U.S. has generated more than 82,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste, which it was storing at 80 sites in 35 states.
The amount of waste is expected to double by 2055, the Government Accountability Office said.
Appeals court dismisses nuclear waste suit, Macon.com By NEDRA PICKLER and DINA CAPPIELLO – Associated Press, 1 July 11, WASHINGTON — The Obama administration won a legal battle Friday in the long-standing fight over where to bury the nation’s nuclear waste, but it’s not likely to be the last. The federal appeals court in Washington ruled against South Carolina, Washington state and others that want to ship radioactive spent nuclear fuel they are temporarily storing to a repository 90 miles from Las Vegas at Yucca Mountain. Continue reading
Evacuation not really practical in the case of nuclear meltdown
What Would It Take To Evacuate A Nuclear Meltdown? Gizmodo By Kwame Opam on June 28, 201 1 Nuclear plants in the US are getting older and becoming more unstable with age, even as we demand more power of them. Meanwhile, population growth around these powerhouses has skyrocketed, by as much as a factor of four in some places. Say you live in one of these cities. In the event of an emergency, how likely is it that you’ll get out in time? Continue reading
Desmond Tutu warns on the system of nuclear weapons apartheid
We must not tolerate a system of nuclear apartheid, in which it is considered legitimate for some states to possess nuclear arms but patently unacceptable for others to seek to accquire them. Such a double standard is no basis for peace and security in the world. The NPT is not a license for the five original nuclear powers to cling to these weapons indefinitely. The International Court of Justice has affirmed that they are legally obliged to negotiate in good faith for the complete elimination of their nuclear forces…
Ending nuclear evil, Pakistan Observer, Desmond Tutu 3 July 11 , ELIMINATING nuclear weapons is the democratic wish of the world’s people. Yet no nuclear-armed country currently appears to be preparing for a future without these terrifying devices. In fact, all are squandering billions of dollars on modernisation of their nuclear forces, making a mockery of United Nations disarmament pledges. If we allow this madness to continue, the eventual use of these instruments of terror seems all but inevitable. Continue reading
Vermont citizens rally to support closure of Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor
Vermonters rally to support their state’s efforts to close VermontYankee, Greenpeace, by Jarred Cobb – June 27, 2011 Entergy Nuclear’s efforts to run their aging and dangerous reactor past its scheduled closure date were rebuffed again in Vermont last week. Citizens rallied outside the federal courthouse where Entergy is seeking an injunction to keep Vermont Yankee operating despite the state’s decision to close it down. Many of the folks present at the vigil live within the 10-mile evacuation zone, and know firsthand of Entergy’s incompetence and Vermont Yankee’s history of accidents. From carpenters to mothers and teachers to activists, Vermonters stood shoulder-to-shoulder todeclare: “We Support Vermont.”
Entergy’s refusal to accept Vermont’s decision to close the reactor is an affront to the democratic process and the demands of a majority of Vermonters. Last year, after an ongoing tritium leak, lies about underground piping, and a desire for a renewable energy future, the state senate voted overwhelmingly (26-4) to close Vermont Yankee as scheduled in March 2012. But now, the multibillion-dollar energy company has turned to high-priced lawyers and a federal court…. http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/news-and-blogs/campaign-blog/vermonters-rally-to-support-their-states-effo/blog/35460
Things just keep getting worse for the nuclear industry
Ricky Thomason lists the safety failures of TVA’s nuclear power plants
We’re playing with a nuclear Beelzebubba, HUNTSVILLE, Alabama _ We are playing with the devil’s own fire – but the devil ain’t playing, and even if he were he plays for keeps.Al.com By Ricky Thomason , July 03, 2011,
That’s easy to forget when the Tennessee Valley Authority warms and cools our homes and powers industries that buy our groceries. It’s also easier kept out of sight and mind when powerful nuclear energy concerns downplay, minimize, hide and deny clear and present dangers. Mama Nuke rocks us sweetly with low energy prices and soothes, “Shhhhh – everything is all right. TVA will save the day. Go back to sleep.”….. Continue reading
Persistent lying by governments, regulators, and nuclear power companies
true in America and elsewhere – governments, regulators, and power companies suppressing vital truths, instead of shutting down inherently unsafe plants, making all of them ticking bombs.
Lies, Damn Lies, and Safe Nuclear Power – by Stephen Lendman, 1 July 11
“……..Anti-nuclear activist/expert Professor Karl Grossman agrees, calling “Atomic Energy: Unsafe in the Real World” in his June 29 article, saying: Continue reading
Nuclear weapons goal of new al-Qaeda leader
New al-Qaeda Chief Zawahiri Has Strong Nuclear Intent, Forbes, 29 Jule 11“………We should be especially worried about the threat of nuclear terrorism under Zawahiri’s leadership. In a recent report titled “Islam and the Bomb: Religious Justification For and Against Nuclear Weapons”, which I researched for and contributed to, lead author Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, former director of intelligence and counterintelligence at the U.S. Department of Energy, argues that al-Qaeda’s WMD ambitions are stronger than ever. And that “this intent no longer feels theoretical, but operational.”……
Los Alamos nuclear facility threatened by wildfires
Bushfire reaches Los Alamos nuke lab
ABC News, Jun 28, 2011
- Video: Fire threatens US nuclear lab (ABC News) A raging bushfire has briefly entered the property of the pre-eminent US nuclear facility, Los Alamos National Laboratory, a vast complex that houses research laboratories and a plutonium facility.A mandatory evacuation was ordered for the town of Los Alamos, which has a population of about 12,000. The speed at which the fire has grown surprised fire officials.
The laboratory, which ensures the safety and reliability of the US nuclear stockpile, is a national security research facility located in the Jemez mountains of northern New Mexico. It was set up in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to create the first atomic bomb and still maintains the nation’s largest nuclear weapons arsenal.
Firefighters were able to douse flames on a 4,000-square-metre “spot fire” just inside the south-western boundary of the lab site, about 40km outside Santa Fe, authorities said….
“This fire is going to be with us for a while. It has the potential to double and triple in size,” Los Alamos fire chief Doug Tucker said.
Nuclear watchdog groups are keeping a close eye on the fire, said Jay Coughlin, executive director of Nuclear Watch New Mexico…….
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2
US govt part of the system that rubber stamps nuclear plant relicensing
AP IMPACT: NRC and industry rewrite nuke history
By JEFF DONN, AJC NewsThe Associated Press, 29 June 11 ROCKVILLE, Md. — When commercial nuclear power was getting its start in the 1960s and 1970s, industry and regulators stated unequivocally that reactors were designed only to operate for 40 years. Now they tell another story — insisting that the units were built with no inherent life span, and can run for up to a century, an Associated Press investigation shows.
By rewriting history, plant owners are making it easier to extend the lives of dozens of reactors in a relicensing process that resembles nothing more than an elaborate rubber stamp.
As part of a yearlong investigation of aging issues at the nation’s nuclear power plants, the AP found that the relicensing process often lacks fully independent safety reviews. Records show that paperwork of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission sometimes matches word-for-word the language used in a plant operator’s application.
Also, the relicensing process relies heavily on such paperwork, with very little onsite inspection and verification.
And under relicensing rules, tighter standards are not required to compensate for decades of wear and tear.
So far, 66 of 104 reactors have been granted license renewals. Most of the 20-year extensions have been granted with scant public attention. And the NRC has yet to reject a single application to extend an original license. The process has been so routine that many in the industry are already planning for additional license extensions, which could push the plants to operate for 80 years, and then 100………………………………NUCLEAR LIFE RENEWED
Relicensing is a lucrative deal for operators. By the end of their original licenses, reactors are largely paid for. When they’re operating, they’re producing profits. They generate a fifth of the country’s electricity.
…..INDUSTRY, GOVERNMENT AS PARTNERS
Despite the aging problems, relicensing rules prohibits any overall safety review of the entire operation. More conservative safety margins are not required in anticipation of higher failure rates in old plants, regulators acknowledge.
The approach has turned relicensing reviews into routine approvals……..
http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/ap-impact-nrc-and-990073.html
Nuclear plants at risk if flooding in Nebraska gets worse
Any new rain episode could worst the flooding, especially in Nebraska, …..
Fort Calhoun is not the only power plant that is threatened by the flooding. Cooper Nuclear Station is in a similar position, but the risk is higher if the water’s level is rising. In the worst case, the Fukushima’s situation could repeat here.
Nuclear danger in Nebraska because of the flooding News In A Box by Kelley Jeanie , 22 June 11 On Tuesday, June 21st 2011 A power plant from Nebraska, Fort Calhoun, was threatened to become a new Fukushima after several dams from around it broke because of the flooding on the Missouri River. The power plant was close to be under the water after the Missouri River got at 45 centimeters around it, according to dailymail.co.uk. If the water’s level got at 274,9 meters above the sea’s level in Brownville, the officials would have been forced to close the nuclear plant that is situated at 275,2 meters. Continue reading
30 years radiation health monitoring for 2 million Fukushima residents
Residents in the Fukushima region have expressed growing concern surrounding the possible longterm health risks, in particular for children, triggered by the on-going nuclear power plant crisis.
Two million Fukushima residents to undergo radiation health checks Telegraph By Danielle Demetriou in Tokyo, 21 June 11 More than two million residents living in the region surrounding Japan’s damaged nuclear power plant will undergo longterm health checks starting from this month. 20 Jun 2011 The health of residents in Fukushima prefecture in northeast Japan will be monitored over the next 30 years in order to ease growing concerns surrounding radiation contamination. Continue reading
UK government held gravest fears about Fukushima crisis
A substantial number of documents were withheld on grounds that they contained “information which, if disclosed, would adversely affect international relations,” the government’s civil contingencies team said…….
UK government’s Fukushima crisis plan based on bigger leak than Chernobyl As Japan’s nuclear emergency unfolded, scientists devised a worst case scenario involving issuing iodine pills to Briton. Ian Sample, science correspondent. guardian.co.uk, 20 June 2011
The British government made contingency plans at the height of the Fukushima nuclear crisis which anticipated a “reasonable worst case scenario” of the plant releasing more radiation than Chernobyl, new documents released to the Guardian show. Continue reading
1 This Month
of the week – Shut Down Drone Warfare!
Tell the Ukrainian Government to Drop Prosecution of Peace Activist Yurii Sheliazhenko
Petition to revoke the licensing of the Near Surface Nuclear Disposal Facility (NSDF) at Chalk River. https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7247
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
-
Archives
- April 2026 (34)
- March 2026 (251)
- February 2026 (268)
- January 2026 (308)
- December 2025 (358)
- November 2025 (359)
- October 2025 (376)
- September 2025 (257)
- August 2025 (319)
- July 2025 (230)
- June 2025 (348)
- May 2025 (261)
-
Categories
- 1
- 1 NUCLEAR ISSUES
- business and costs
- climate change
- culture and arts
- ENERGY
- environment
- health
- history
- indigenous issues
- Legal
- marketing of nuclear
- media
- opposition to nuclear
- PERSONAL STORIES
- politics
- politics international
- Religion and ethics
- safety
- secrets,lies and civil liberties
- spinbuster
- technology
- Uranium
- wastes
- weapons and war
- Women
- 2 WORLD
- ACTION
- AFRICA
- Atrocities
- AUSTRALIA
- Christina's notes
- Christina's themes
- culture and arts
- Events
- Fuk 2022
- Fuk 2023
- Fukushima 2017
- Fukushima 2018
- fukushima 2019
- Fukushima 2020
- Fukushima 2021
- general
- global warming
- Humour (God we need it)
- Nuclear
- RARE EARTHS
- Reference
- resources – print
- Resources -audiovicual
- Weekly Newsletter
- World
- World Nuclear
- YouTube
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS
nuclear-news 