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World Health Organisation under the thumb of International Atomic Energy Agency

Nuclear apologists play shoot the messenger on radiation, The Age, Helen Caldicott, April 26, 2011  ”…..In the early days of nuclear power, WHO issued forthright statements on radiation risks, such as its 1956 warning: ”Genetic heritage is the most precious property for human beings. It determines the lives of our progeny, health and harmonious development of future generations. As experts, we affirm that the health of future generations is threatened by increasing development of the atomic industry and sources of radiation.”

After 1959, the organisation made no more statements on health and radioactivity.

What happened?

On May 28, 1959, at the 12th World Health Assembly, WHO drew up an agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency. A clause of this agreement says the WHO effectively grants the right of prior approval over any research it might undertake or report on to the IAEA – a group that many people, including journalists, think is a neutral watchdog, but which is, in fact, an advocate for the nuclear power industry. Its founding papers state: ”The agency shall seek to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity through the world.” 

The WHO’s subjugation to the IAEA is widely known within the scientific radiation community,.. http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/nuclear-apologists-play-shoot-the-messenger-on-radiation-20110425-1du2w.html#ixzz1KfXmalLq

April 26, 2011 Posted by | 2 WORLD, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Nuclear Safety Commission – hourly Fukushima Radiation forecasts

Nuclear Body To Issue Hourly Radiation Forecasts, TOKYO (Nikkei)   April 26–The Nuclear Safety Commission said Monday that it will start issuing forecasts of how airborne radioactive material may be spreading out by the hour from the Fukushima Daiichi power plant.

Starting Tuesday, the commission’s Web site will show hour-by-hour data from SPEEDI, a system that analyzes and predicts dispersal of radioactive material in the event of a nuclear emergency.

Run by the government-affiliated Nuclear Safety Technology Center, the system has taken flak for publishing results just twice since the Fukushima crisis began, despite 11.3 billion yen in development and operating costs……..http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110426D25JFA23.htm

April 26, 2011 Posted by | - Fukushima 2011 | Leave a comment

Radioactive hazard of forest fires around Chernobyl

If there is a catastrophic or “crown” fire (a high-intensity wildfire affecting a large part of the CEZ) radionuclides could be dispersed over a wide area; a big fire could send radioactivity as far as Britain

Forest fires around Chernobyl could release radiation, scientists warn,  Patrick Evans in Chernobyl, The Guardian, Tuesday 26 April 2011 A consortium of Ukrainian and international scientists is making an urgent call for a $13.5m (£8.28m) programme to prevent potentially catastrophic wildfires inside the exclusion zone surrounding Chernobyl’s ruined nuclear power plant. Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The power of community decentralised renewable energy

Reach Clean Energy Goals Faster and Cheaper With Community Power, Renewable Energy World, By John Farrell , 25 April 2011 Reaching our renewable energy goals can be met cost-effectively, more quickly, and with greater economics benefits if Californians focus on decentralized renewable energy.

That’s the powerful conclusion in the recently released report, Community Power: Decentralized Renewable Energy in California, and the lessons are applicable in every state across America. These lessons are attracting attention, as large-scale desert solar projects and new transmission lines meet stiff resistance from an increasingly broad-based opposition. The cost-competitiveness of renewable energy is not news to anyone familiar with the industry, but Weinrub shows that for the most prominent decentralized renewable energy source – solar power – decentralized production from photovoltaics (PV) has better economics than centralized solar thermal power plants.  His research is reinforced by data from the California Solar Initiative that shows that large majority of decentralized solar PV’s economies of scale are captured by projects as small as 10 kilowatts.  Research from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance shows that wind economies of scale are similarly limited for larger wind projects.

Weinrub also shows that California has plenty of decentralized renewable energy potential – with rooftop solar alone – to meet its ambitious renewable energy target (33% by 2020).  As he notes, the actual potential far exceeds the necessary amount required to meet the state standard:…. http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2011/04/reach-clean-energy-goals-faster-and-cheaper-with-community-power

April 26, 2011 Posted by | decentralised, USA | Leave a comment

German government under pressure from huge anti nuclear rallies

Demonstrators in Germany Demand End of Nuclear Power, New York Times, By JUDY DEMPSEY, April 25, 2011 BERLIN — An estimated 120,000 people demonstrated across Germany on Monday, protest organizers said, demanding an end to nuclear power and increasing pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to speed up the closing of the country’s 17 nuclear plants.

Demonstrations that take place each year over the Easter holidays have tended in the past to be pacifist, for instance, calling for the end of the war in Afghanistan. But this year, because of the 25th anniversary of the nuclear accident at the Chernobyl plant in Ukraine, in addition the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan, the rallying theme was nuclear power.

Some of the biggest protests took place in the western state of Lower Saxony, where, according to the organizer’s spokesman, Peter Dickel, more than 20,000 demonstrators gathered near the Grohnde nuclear plant.

In the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, 17,000 protested at the Krümmel nuclear plant, Mr. Dickel said.

In Bavaria, which has three nuclear plants, more than 15,000 people gathered near the Grafenrheinfeld power plant and thousands of others marched toward the Isar 1 and Isar 2 plants. “We are many, we will be more and we will not keep quiet until the last nuclear power plant is shut,” said Martin Heilig, an organizer of the demonstrations there…….http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/26/world/europe/26iht-germany26.html

April 26, 2011 Posted by | Germany, politics | Leave a comment

Al Qaida plot to use nuclear weapon?

WikiLeaks unveils Al-Qa’ida plot, Montreal Gazette, BY HOLLY WATT, LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH APRIL 25, 2011 LONDON – Guantanamo interrogators have uncovered a determined attempt by Al-Qa’ida to attack Western countries using chemical or nuclear weapons, according to files made public through WikiLeaks…
… One of the terrorist group’s most senior figures warned that Al-Qa’ida had obtained and hidden a nuclear bomb in Europe that would be detonated if Osama bin Laden was killed or captured. Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | 2 WORLD, safety | Leave a comment

“Star” computer virus joins “Stuxnet” attack on Iran’s nuclear program

Iran: Country under attack by second computer virus, The Washington Post, By Thomas Erdbrink and Joby Warrick, , April 25, TEHRAN —An Iranian military official revealed on Monday that the country had been attacked by a new computer virus apparently aimed at nuclear facilities, an acknowledgment that seemed to suggest a broader campaign by foreign saboteurs to undermine Iran’s atomic energy program.

The new computer worm has been dubbed “Stars” by the Iranians and described as an “espionage virus,” although few details were made public. In the same announcement, the military also confirmed continuing problems with an earlier virus, “Stuxnet,” which began wreaking havoc on Iran’s main uranium enrichment facility in 2009…………..http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-country-under-attack-by-second-computer-virus/2011/04/25/AFudkBjE_story.html

April 26, 2011 Posted by | Iran, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Scotland’s Greens demand end to nuclear power

Greens demand end to nuclear power at energy plan launch, STV, 25 April 11, The Scottish Greens claim that the country could generate over 100% of its power from renewable sources within nine years. Scotland could generate more than 100% of its power from renewable sources such as wave and tidal generators by 2020, the Scottish Greens have said. Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | politics, UK | Leave a comment

San Onofre Nuclear Plant sits on earthquake area

How safe is San Onofre? Los Angeles Times,25 April 11, Edison and federal regulators must stop the continuing deterioration of the safety culture at the nuclear power plant.  By Najmedin Meshkati, April 26, 2011, The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station sits on a beach in a seismically active area of Southern California, just three miles south of San Clemente. Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | safety, USA | Leave a comment

Scepticism about the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission

The NRC was responsible — along with industry — for sitting nuclear power plants on earthquake zones in California, close to major population centers such as Indian Point near New York City and in coastal areas such as Seabrook. What were they thinking?

 Time to phase out nuclear power plants, Newbury Port News,  BRUCE SKUD, 25 April 11, Japan’s nuclear crisis — amidst an earthquake and tsunami — has reignited the public’s concerns about living within a 10-mile radius of Seabrook nuclear power plant and about the safety of nuclear power generally. But the Seabrook operators, the nuclear industry, and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission continue to whistle past the graveyard. Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | politics, USA | Leave a comment

Apparently, Pakistan’s nuclear program is “safe”

IAEA declares Pakistan nuclear program safe, Tehran Times, ISLAMABAD (APP) 25 April 11,  — International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday declared the nuclear program of Pakistan as safe and secure and appreciated the obvious dedication to the safety and security of the regulators as well of operators.

Talking exclusively to APP on the sidelines of “International seminar on nuclear safety and security”, held here from 21-23 April, Deputy Director General IAEA Denis Flory said the IAEA emphasizes the importance of national responsibility for security, which Pakistan takes seriously. In fact, Pakistan has had an Action Plan in place to strengthen nuclear security since 2006, he added.
Giving details he said this plan covers such items as Management of Radioactive Sources; Nuclear Security Emergency Co-ordination Center (NuSECC); Locating and Securing Orphan Radioactive Sources.
Pakistan has worked with the agency to implement that plan and to provide resources for its implementation, he maintained. ….. http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=239445

April 26, 2011 Posted by | Pakistan, politics | Leave a comment

Anti Nuclear Protests in Austria


Anti-nuclear protesters demonstrate in Austria on eve of Chernobyl disaster anniversary
VIENNA, April 25 (Xinhua) — Two anti-nuclear protests took place in two cities of Austria on Monday, on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and after Japan’s nuclear accident at Fukushima…….A number of Austrian politicians, including Austrian chancellor and chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Austria Werner Faymann, chairman of the Austrian Green Party Eva Glawischnig and officials of the Austrian People’s Party participated in the demonstration.

On the rally site, Faymann criticized that the opinion of nuclear power as a controllable technology was “cynical” and pointed that the nuclear lobby would just wait until the issue of nuclear disasters disappears.Glawischnig said the demonstration was a joint and international movement reflecting the general will. She also expressed the hope that the nuclear accident in Fukushima could become a turning point of the European energy policy. “The nuclear industry must be stopped,” she said.

April 26, 2011 Posted by | EUROPE, opposition to nuclear | Leave a comment

Decentralised renewable energy a key to growth in India

There are several assumptions and beliefs that are implicit in Chavan’s statement that are worth examining. I have listed the four key ones below. Each of these statements is either patently false or at least extremely contentious:

India’s nuclear fixation is not smart strategy, Apr 26, 2011, By Samit Aich | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA   “……The Maharashtra chief minister Prithiviraj Chavan  is resorting to the time-tested art of making statements that are dodgy, Continue reading →

April 26, 2011 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Pueblo County Commission says NO to nuclear power proposal

Pueblo County Commission rejects land proposal for nuclear power plant, By Mark Jaffe, The Denver Post, 25 April 11, PUEBLO — The plan to build a nuclear power plant on the outskirts of this industrial city was rejected by the Pueblo County Commission due to “a significant lack of material information.”

The proposal by prominent, local attorney Don Banner would have taken 24,000 acres and turned it into a planned unit development area for energy development.

The 3-0 vote brought cheers and applause from the audience of about 100 people.

“This decision should send a message to nuclear everywhere,” said Ross Vincent, chairman of the Sierra Club Sangre de Cristo Group.

Banner sought rezoning, planned unit designation and a guarantee those land-use changes could not be rescinded……. Commissioner Jeff Chostner, a Republican said the demands the plant would make on the region’s limited water supply was the main reason for opposing the plan….Commissioner Anthony Nunez, a Democrat, also expressed concerns about nuclear wastes building up at the site since the federal government has yet to come up with a long-term storage plan.

“Before we get into this business we want to ask some questions so we don’t get into trouble later,” Nunez said……http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_17925855

April 26, 2011 Posted by | politics, USA | Leave a comment