nuclear-news

Poor security of enriched uranium around the world

the countries with active enrichment programs…… claimed the plants they are building or expanding are producing fissile materials only for use in civilian applications.

But the materials themselves [enriched uranium] can be shifted from one of these purposes
to the other, either by national government or by terrorists 

Fissile materials remain poorly protected, 1/12/12 By R. Jeffrey Smith, iWatch News A new industrial plant producing a key nuclear weapons ingredient, enriched uranium, opened in China last year, near the Sichuan city of Hanzhong. Other such plants opened last year in France and Japan. Argentina is trying to get one started, the Dutch are expanding theirs, and the United States has recently approved construction of such a plant in Idaho and the expansion of another in New Mexico.

The production of highly-enriched uranium is expanding in some countries, in short, even though arms control experts and government officials frequently depict stocks of the material as a troublesome invitation to nuclear weapons proliferation…..
Most of the countries with active enrichment programs have said they
support starting negotiations on a global treaty that would halt the
production of enriched uranium and an alternative ingredient,
plutonium, for use in nuclear weapons. They also have claimed the
plants they are building or expanding are producing fissile materials
only for use in civilian applications.

But the materials themselves can be shifted from one of these purposes
to the other, either by national government or by terrorists — and
according to a report released Wednesday, many of the nations involved
in adding to their stockpiles are not working hard enough to safeguard
the materials from such a diversion….
The new report comes from the Nuclear Threat Initiative,…..
One problem is that no international standards exist about precisely
how to best protect such materials from theft or diversion. “We are,”
Nunn said, “in a race between cooperation and [the] catastrophe” that
would ensue if such materials fell into the wrong hands.

After grading nations according to their security and control
measures, transparency, stability, level of corruption, respect for
international norms, and the capability of key institutions, the NTI
group ranked North Korea, Pakistan, and Iran at the bottom of the list
– meaning they have the poorest nuclear security. Vietnam, India, and
China came next, followed by Uzbekistan, Israel, and Russia.

India and Pakistan continue to make fissile materials for their
military programs. North Korea has built a new uranium enrichment
plant at its Yongbyon site, although its operating status is unclear.
The new Chinese plant, one of two started in the past two years, will
boost the nation’s overall production capacity by 25 percent. Of the
other countries that are expanding their uranium enrichment
capabilities, Argentina ranked in the middle of the group of 32, with
France ranked at 19, Japan at 23 and the Netherlands at 6….
One problem is that no international standards exist about precisely
how to best protect such materials from theft or diversion. “We are,”
Nunn said, “in a race between cooperation and [the] catastrophe” that
would ensue if such materials fell into the wrong hands.

After grading nations according to their security and control
measures, transparency, stability, level of corruption, respect for
international norms, and the capability of key institutions, the NTI
group ranked North Korea, Pakistan, and Iran at the bottom of the list
– meaning they have the poorest nuclear security. Vietnam, India, and
China came next, followed by Uzbekistan, Israel, and Russia.

India and Pakistan continue to make fissile materials for their
military programs. North Korea has built a new uranium enrichment
plant at its Yongbyon site, although its operating status is unclear.
The new Chinese plant, one of two started in the past two years, will
boost the nation’s overall production capacity by 25 percent. Of the
other countries that are expanding their uranium enrichment
capabilities, Argentina ranked in the middle of the group of 32, with
France ranked at 19, Japan at 23 and the Netherlands at
6…http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-center-for-public-integrity/fissile-materials-remain_b_1202421.html

January 13, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, safety