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“Occupy” joins forces with clean energy movement, against dirty politics

Occupy Asheville marching in solidarity with renewable energy conference this afternoon Mountain Express By David Forbes on 11/06/2011 Occupy Asheville Stands in Solidarity with SE Student Renewable Energy Conference Asheville, NC- Occupy Asheville is participating in a solidarity action on Sunday, Nov. 6th with the Southeastern Student Renewable Energy Conference that was held this weekend at UNCA.

Occupy Asheville will be fielding a group of ‘1%ers’ and a radical cheerleading squad.
The march is gathering on Montford Ave., next to Todd’s Tasties , at 12:45 pm.

Occupy Asheville recognizes the correlation of our struggles. Dirty energy is inextricably linked to the dirty money influencing our political structures. Our common goals will be won together or not atall.
Occupy Asheville will hold an emergency General Assembly at Pritchard Park following the action to discuss Saturday’s arrests and our reaction.

Occupy Asheville is dedicated to liberating public space in peaceful protest and coordinating networks of resistance to corporate dominance with our sister cities across the nation and globe. http://www.mountainx.com/article/37191/Occupy-Asheville-marching-in-solidarity-with-renewable-energy-conference-this-afternoon

November 7, 2011 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Japan, and USA, have practical and profitable alternatives to nuclear power

  Lovins and colleagues, in a new book, extend the argument to the U.S. as well:

For the United States, Rocky Mountain Institute’s new synthesis “Reinventing Fire: Bold Business Solutions for the New Energy Era” shows how to run a 2.6-fold bigger 2050 economy with no oil, no coal, no nuclear energy, one-third less natural gas, and $5-trillion lower cost than business-as-usual. 

DOES JAPAN REALLY NEED NUCLEAR?, New Yorker,  by , November 4, 2011 “……….As I described in the magazine last month, polls show mounting opposition to nuclear power, but many of Japan’s most influential thinkers and politicians have concluded that the country simply cannot afford to give it up. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | resources - print | Leave a comment

Finally some justice for Spokane Tribe uranium workers

a recently completed epidemiology study of the 2,700-member tribe conducted by the state Department of Health and the Northwest Indian Health Board concluded there were high rates of cancer among tribal members who worked at the mine. 

Women of the tribe have contracted cancer from cleaning the clothes of the men who worked in the mines,

Progress made toward cleaning up uranium mine, Canadian Business By AP  | November 06, 2011 SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The Spokane Tribe of Indians has recently won big victories in its long fight against uranium contamination, including a deal reached this fall between the federal government and mining companies to clean up the long-closed Midnite Mine on the reservation.

In addition, tribal members in September became eligible to receive federal compensation if they became sick while working at the mine. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | indigenous issues, Uranium, USA | Leave a comment

Scotland’s opposition to depleted uranium weapons testing

The Labour MP for North Ayrshire and Arran, Katy Clark, said she would be concerned if DU tests resumed. “There remain health concerns about these weapons and we should be concentrating on getting an international ban on their production and use,” she said.

Anger as depleted uranium shells to be test-fired again Depleted uranium shells are blamed for causing radioactive and heavy metal pollution and are used by Challenger tanks, HERALD SCOTLAND EXCLUSIVE BY ROB EDWARDS ENVIRONMENT EDITOR, 6 Nov 2011 HIGHLY controversial depleted uranium shells are set to be test-fired in Scotland again, the Sunday Herald has learned. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | depleted uranium, politics, UK, Uranium | Leave a comment

In Washington, huge and costly lobbying by nuclear company Entergy

 glimpses into Entergy’s extensive lobbying efforts in Washington.

It’s impossible to tell how much Entergy spent on its efforts to try to get the NRC and Justice Department to intervene in the Vermont Yankee case

Entergy Services reported spending $670,000 on lobbying in the second quarter of this year, when the question of government intervention in the Vermont Yankee case was most in play, and that Entergy Nuclear Northeast, another company unit, spent $90,000…..

The reports do not include money the company spent on lawyers involved in the Vermont Yankee matter; the documents indicate that involvement was extensive…..

Documents show heavy Entergy lobbying on Vt. nuke, Boston.com By Dave Gram, Associated Press / November 6, 2011 MONTPELIER, Vt.—Entergy Corp. heavily lobbied multiple federal agencies last spring as it unsuccessfully pleaded with them to join its lawsuit against the state of Vermont’s efforts to close the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, internal Nuclear Regulatory Commission documents show. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | politics, USA | Leave a comment

A British warning against an attack on Iran

Iran is a far more sophisticated and divided society than the picture generally painted in the west.

An attack on Iran would halt and reverse moves to reform. The Arab spring would become an Arab winter with disastrous consequences for US and European interests as well as Arab societies, including Saudi Arabia. The alternatives are many – to continue to apply economic sanctions, a policy of carrot and stick, but with much more emphasis on the carrot. Embraces are far more difficult to withstand than attacks…

An attack on Iran would be disastrous Britain must resist US pressure for military action. Even if Iran had nuclear weapons, engagement is the only course to take, Guardian UK 6 Nov 11

“Would a British prime minister ever refuse a plea from a US president to join America in a controversial military operation?” This was the response, rhetorical and unanswerable as far as they were concerned, by Whitehall mandarins whenever they were asked why Tony Blair agreed to invade Iraq. It was not a matter of whether the invasion was wrong or right; it was that the occupier of 10 Downing Street would simply not turn down such a request from the White House.

For the US, Britain could offer not only political and “moral” support but a juicy physical asset – Diego Garcia, the base conveniently placed for American bombers, on the British Indian Ocean Territory.

This is what so worries Whitehall, and Britain’s top brass in particular – a growing fear that Barack Obama will find it difficult to oppose increasing pressure for military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities within the next 12 months. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | Iran, politics international | 1 Comment

Brakes put on Colorado uranium mining

in the rush to develop this infamous resource (again), there was a rare moment of rationality two weeks ago when a federal judge ordered DOE officials to halt permits for exploring and mining in Colorado. U.S. District Judge William Martinez said the agency “acted arbitrarily and capriciously in failing to analyze site-specific impacts” on the people and places in the path of the mining boom. He said the DOE violated environmental laws, including the Endangered Species Act, by failing to consult U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service scientists about the potential impacts of the extractions.

In the rush for uranium, cooler heads prevail — for now High Country News, By Heather Hansen, Red Lodge Clearing House, 4 Nov 11 Greens got what seemed like a rare bit of good news when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) last week released their Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Northern Arizona Proposed Withdrawal. The report looks at the potential impacts of removing federal lands near the Grand Canyon from mining consideration for the next two decades. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | Legal, Uranium, USA | Leave a comment

8 months after Fukushima nuclear disaster, dangerous radiation level

Tepco Finds Dangerous Level of Radiation at Fukushima Station, , Bloomberg, By Chris Cooper,  Nov. 6 — Tokyo Electric Power Co. found a dangerous level of radiation at its wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant, eight months after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that caused the worst atomic crisis in 25 years.

Workers at the company usually called Tepco detected 620 millisieverts of radiation an hour on the first floor of Reactor 3 on Nov. 3, the highest level found in that unit, it said.
The level of radiation is more than the 500-millisievert short-term dose recommended as the maximum for emergency workers in live-saving situations, according to the World Nuclear Association. The company and government officials are trying to contain the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl in 1986 after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami caused a loss of cooling and the meltdowns of three reactors.

Tepco will today start taking radiation out of water used to cool spent fuel rods, spokesman Hiroki Kawamata said today by phone…..http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-06/tepco-finds-dangerous-level-of-radiation-at-fukushima-station.html

November 7, 2011 Posted by | - Fukushima 2011 | Leave a comment

Republican presidential candidate warns against use of military “drones”

“For every one you kill, you create 10 new ones who hate our guts and want to do us harm,” Mr. Paul said…..

Paul Says Drone Strikes ‘Make More Enemies’, WSJ, 6 Nov 11 By Julian E. Barnes, Presidential candidate Ron Paul said Sunday that the CIA’s drone campaign in Pakistan was making the U.S. less safe. Continue reading →

November 7, 2011 Posted by | weapons and war | Leave a comment

Favourable report for Scotland’s renewable energy

Report backs Scottish renewables under independence, BBC News 6 Nov 11
A new bank report has backed Scotland’s renewable energy policies, just days after a major finance company warned businesses against investing in the renewables sector in Scotland. Citigroup had said the independence referendum process would create huge uncertainty when major decisions on green projects were needed.

But investment bank Altium Securities dismissed the warning. Energy Minister Fergus Ewing welcomed the Altium report….. In its report, Altium Securities said it “did not share recent competitor analysis that utilities developing renewable energy assets were exposed to stranded asset risk from an independent Scotland”.

It also argued Scotland had the potential to be the lowest-cost generator of wind energy in Europe due its “unique wind characteristics”….. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-15608107

November 7, 2011 Posted by | renewable, UK | Leave a comment

TEPCO nuclear company makes $8 billion loss, gets $11.5 billion in public funds

Japan Approves Billions in Aid to TEPCO, Voice of America, 5 Nov 11 Government agreed Friday to a deal giving $11.5 billion in public funds to the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) to cover costs in the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that crippled its Fukushima nuclear power plant.

The government said the funds would help TEPCO with cleanup and dismantling of the plant and compensation payments to residents of the area. The money comes from a fund made up of all Japanese nuclear plant operators and the government. In return, the utility must reduce its operating costs by more than $32 billion over the next 10 years and lay off more than 7,000 workers.

Engineers at Fukushima are still trying to bring the reactors to a stable cold shutdown by the end of this year. News of the bailout came on the same day TEPCO forecast a nearly $8 billion loss for the current fiscal year, ending in March.  http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/11/04/japan-approves-billions-in-aid-to-tepco-2/

November 7, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Japan, politics | Leave a comment