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Secrecy surrounding laser uranium enrichment technology, with its risks of nuclear weapons spread

Commercialization of the SILEX technology has sparked concerns of nuclear proliferation. Arms control advocates fear that commercialization could lead other countries to follow suit, raising concerns about the technology falling into the wrong hands.

Uranium enrichment plant meeting to be closed to public Star News, By Wayne Faulkner  July 10, 2012  The last major review before a revolutionary laser uranium enrichment plant could be built in Castle Hayne will take place behind closed doors.

The unusual step in closing the hearing Wednesday is because the discussions will include non-public information about GE Hitachi Global Laser Enrichment but also the sensitive technology that would be used at the plant, said David McIntyre, spokesman for the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission.

The hearing, before a panel of administrative judges at the NRC’s headquarters in Maryland, is being conducted by the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, which then would make recommendations to the NRC for possible approval of a 40-year license to operate the plant….
The NRC on Feb. 29 approved the plant’s environmental-impact statement.

There will be no more public comment about the plant or technology, McIntyre said.

The facility on GE’s Castle Hayne campus near the intersection of Interstate 140 and Castle Hayne Road would be the nation’s first laser-based commercial uranium enrichment operation, using an Australian technology called SILEX, or Separation of Isotopes by Laser
Excitation. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | secrets,lies and civil liberties, USA | Leave a comment

Never mind Iran; NO COUNTRY can be trusted with nuclear weapons

The notion that Iran can’t be trusted with such a weapon obscures a larger point: given their power to destroy life on a monumental scale, no individual and no government can ultimately be trusted with the bomb.

The only way to be safe from nuclear weapons is to get rid of them – not just the Iranian one that doesn’t yet exist, but all of them. It’s a daunting task. It’s also a subject that’s out of the news and off anyone’s agenda at the moment, but if it is ever to be achieved, we at least need to start talking about it. Soon.

Beyond nuclear denial, Aljazeera,   William D. Hartung is the director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy, a TomDispatch regular, and the author of Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial Complex. 
How a world-ending weapon disappeared from our consciousness, but not our planet.  : 10 Jul 2012  There was a time when nuclear weapons were a significant part of our national conversation. Addressing the issue of potential atomic annihilation was once described  by nuclear theorist Herman Kahn as “thinking about the unthinkable”, but that didn’t keep us from thinking, talking, fantasising, worrying about it, or putting images of possible nuclear nightmares (often transmuted to invading aliens or outer space) endlessly on screen.

Now, on a planet still overstocked with city-busting, world-ending weaponry, in which almost 67 years have passed since a nuclear weapon was last used, the only nuke that Americans regularly hear about is one that doesn’t exist: Iran’s. The nearly 20,000  nuclear weapons on missiles, planes and submarines possessed by Russia, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, China, Israel, Pakistan, India and North Korea are barely mentioned in what passes for press coverage of the nuclear issue. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | 2 WORLD, history | Leave a comment

Big nuclear powers annoyed at the idea of ASEAN nuclear free zone treaty

 Nuclear-armed countries will try to make things difficult because, simply put, they don’t want any restrictions on the option of transporting weapons material anywhere. They will obfuscate, delay, harangue and act superior, but don’t let that derail a good treaty.

Asean nuclear stance irks bigger powers
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/Asean-nuclear-stance-irks-bigger-powers-30185870.html  Ken Albertsen,  Chiang Rai. July 11, 2012   Critics bash Asean for its habit of holding meetings that usually wind up accomplishing not much more than playing golf, staying and eating at fancy resorts, and receiving nice shirts from host countries.

Now, with news from its most recent meeting, as reported in The Nation – “Nuclear states shun Asean treaty” – it appears the grouping is endeavouring to do something worthwhile.

Regarding Asean’s attempts to hammer out a treaty that forbids the transport or use of nuclear weapons or materials in Southeast Asia, my message to Asean reps is: Stick with it!

Don’t be disheartened by resistance from representatives of nuclear-armed countries. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Book claims that Israel’s Mossad killed Iranian nuclear scientists

Israeli agents assassinated Iranian scientists Jerusalem Post, By YAAKOV LAPPIN07/11/2012 New book says foreign mercenaries not behind attacks; Co-author to ‘Post:’ Targeted killings damaged Tehran’s nuclear program. The shadowy men on motorcycles who were behind the assassinations of four Iranian nuclear scientists in recent years were Mossad agents, not foreign mercenaries, according to a new book on the history of Israeli intelligenceservices.

The book, co-authored by veteran Israeli intelligence correspondent Yossi Melman and CBS journalist Dan Raviv, is called Spies Against Armageddon: Inside Israel’s Secret Wars, (Levant Book). It was published this week…….

Both ex-Mossad chief Meir Dagan – who apparently oversaw much of what occurred in Iran – and former Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin have warned against a current military strike on Iran, with Diskin going as far as accusing Prime MinisterBinyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak of being “messianic.”…… http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=277016

July 11, 2012 Posted by | resources - print | Leave a comment

Tsunami affected areas can redevelop with renewable energy

The goal of the Kesen project is to generate at least 50 percent of the region’s electricity through solar and other renewable-energy sources

Rice paddies that were inundated with seawater in March 2011 can yield more profit if they’re covered with solar panels than if they’re rehabilitated as agricultural land.

Tsunami Cities Fight Nuclear Elites To Create Green Jobs By Stuart Biggs – Jul 10, 2012  Bloomberg  Rikuzentakata, like many cities on Japan ’s rugged northeast Pacific coast, was in decline even before last year’s tsunami killed 1,700 of its 24,000 inhabitants and destroyed most of its downtown buildings.

With two-thirds of the remaining residents homeless, Mayor Futoshi Toba questioned whether the city could recover, Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its August issue. Damage to infrastructure and the economy, he said, would force people to move away to find jobs. Sixteen months later, the city is trying to rebuild in a way that Toba says would reinvent the region and provide a model to overcome obstacles that have hobbled the Japanese economy for more than 20 years: the fastest-aging population in the developed world, loss of manufacturing competitiveness toChina  and South Korea  and reliance on imported fossil fuels.

Rikuzentakata is part of a government program to create one of the country’s first so-called ecocities.

They would be smaller and more self-sufficient and would lower costs through technology and create new jobs in renewable energy to replace those lost to the decline of agriculture and fisheries……. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | Japan, renewable | Leave a comment

Btitain’s dilemma of its massive stockpile of plutonium at Sellafield

Sellafield is where all storage of radioactive materials and nuclear reprocessing in the UK takes place. It was once at the heart of plutonium manufacturing for the British atomic weapons program. Despite the controversy that surrounds the plant, there are plans to build new reactors at Sellafield. The government has approved initial plans to build a fast PRISM reactor on the site. Most locals are against it. They want the UK government to commission a safety study into Sellafield’s effects on the health of the local population.

A study in the 1980’s found that over ten times the national average of childhood Leukaemia’s occurred near Sellafield. Thirty families tried to take the company who then ran the site to court and lost. “There has never been a proper investigation into the environmental impact of the plant and there should be.”

Sellafield: The dangers of Britain’s nuclear dustbin RT, 10 July, 2012 Britain’s nuclear industry is again the center of controversy. The UK has the biggest stockpile of Plutonium in the world, but there are no definite plans for how to get rid of it – and the delays are costing the UK taxpayer billions.
A record number of radioactive particles have been found on beaches near the Sellafield nuclear plant, in North West England. The authorities who run it admit it’s the most radioactive place in Western Europe but insist it’s safe. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | - plutonium, UK | Leave a comment

Jordan’s nuclear and uranium programmes not economically viable

lawmakers and activists cast doubt over the economic feasibility of the nuclear drive, accusing the JAEC of deliberately underestimating reactor construction costs to “mislead public opinion”.

Participants also called into question the country’s uranium mining ambitions, claiming that the feasibility studies carried out by French firm AREVA, which is currently carrying out an exploration of uranium deposits in the central region, have revealed that the Kingdom’s
reserves are “commercially unviable”.

Nuclear programme ‘in violation of parliamentary motion’ [Jordan Times, Amman] By Taylor Luck,   July 10–AMMAN –– Lawmakers and activists have called on the government to suspend the country’s nuclear programme, accusing officials of violating a parliamentary motion calling for halting the project. Continue reading →

July 11, 2012 Posted by | Jordan, opposition to nuclear | Leave a comment

Huge copper/uranium mine plan might be abandoned, trend towards recycling metals adds to poor market prospects for BHP’s Olympic Dam

Olympic Dam is surely under review,” said UBS mining analyst Glyn Lawcock. “It’s not an issue of finding the cash,” he said, but rather ensuring a good return on the investment……

Further curbing the appetite for refined copper, BHP now sees recycled scrap meeting up to 50 percent of China’s overall demand in the coming year for the metal, up from 35 percent now.

there is a much bigger question mark over it [Olympic Dam new mine] now

BHP Olympic Dam delay would tighten copper supply Reuters, By James Regan SYDNEY | Fri Jul 6, 2012 “….. A 25 percent drop in benchmark international copper prices since early 2011 has eroded potential returns from the project, and the economic slowdown in top base metal consumer China has dampened the demand outlook.

BHP’s scheme to quadruple output from Olympic Dam – the fourth-largest known copper deposit and largest uranium source in the world – is one a growing number analysts believe likely to be shelved until markets stabilize…. London copper prices have fallen to around $7,650 a metric ton (1.1023 tons) from a peak over $10,000 in early 2011 as big copper buyers such as car and computer manufacturers slow consumption… Continue reading →

July 10, 2012 Posted by | AUSTRALIA, business and costs | Leave a comment

Fukushima Report castigated governments for poor attention to radiation and health issues

Comments from  Report of  The Diet’s Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission    “…... The report prodded the central and local governments to address health issues on grounds that exposure of even 100 millisieverts or less could lead to problems.

It said the 20-millisievert standard for reviewing evacuation zones was too high, especially when considering the health of children and pregnant women.

The commission also castigated the central and Fukushima prefectural governments for not taking steps to assess health problems caused by internal radiation .”exposure”….”   http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201207060088

July 10, 2012 Posted by | health, Japan | Leave a comment

“Community owned nuclear power stations” suggested to solve problem of public distrust

Perhaps the government simply accepts no-one will ever trust it on nuclear power. 

How not to solve nuclear power’s trust problem  http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2012/jul/09/nuclear-power-energy-secrecy?newsfeed=true    Continued secrecy, shown in stupidly brief minutes of official meetings, and entrenched attitudes lead to daft ideas like community-owned reactors The public does not trust the government to be objective on nuclear power, a committee of MPs conclude today .

This is hardly surprising, as the MPs note: “The government’s position as an advocate for nuclear power makes it difficult for the public to trust it as an impartial source of information . Continue reading →

July 10, 2012 Posted by | marketing, UK | 3 Comments

Strike and problem of decaying concrete at Canada’s nuclear power plants

those employees should also be demanding safety in their workplace as well. At least one Candu plant – Gentilly-2 in Quebec – is decaying .

The plant is one of many that regulators say is operating well past its expected life of 25 to 30 years

Major Problems Facing Canada’s Nuclear Sector http://www.care2.com/causes/major-problems-facing-canadas-nuclear-sector.html#ixzz20GmGP3Pi by Amy Boughner July 9, 2012 Canada’s nuclear industry is once again facing major issues. More than 800 Candu Energy employees  are on strike as of the morning of July 9, looking for higher wages. The scientists, engineers and technologists work at Candu plants in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Continue reading →

July 10, 2012 Posted by | Canada, employment, safety | Leave a comment

Further tests to investigate possible radioactive polonium murder of Yassa Arafat

Swiss experts asked to test Arafat’s remains for radiation poisoning, Scotsman.com  10 July 2012  Swiss radiation physicists who recently investigated the death in 2004 of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat are being invited to a West Bank mausoleum to take samples from his actual remains for further tests.

The invitation to specialists from the Switzerland Institute of Radiation Physics came as the Palestinian Authority received permission for the autopsy from family members. Mr Arafat’s nephew, former UN ambassador Nasser al-Qidwa, who was initially cool to the idea, made it clear yesterday he would not object.

In an investigation commissioned by the Qatar-based al-Jazeera television and broadcast last week, researchers from the Swiss institute found elevated levels of the radioactive substance polonium on belongings used by Mr Arafat during his final days in a French military hospital that they had been given by his widow, Suha.

The researchers said the high levels may have been the result of poisoning, but stressed they would need to exhume the remains to confirm this. Senior Palestinian officials said Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas was determined that the tests take place….

..  because polonium decays rapidly, experts are divided over whether testing the remains
can bring such closure and will produce a clue eight years after the event. Polonium was used to kill Russian former spy Alexander Litvinenko in London six years ago.

Talal Awkal, a columnist for the al-Ayyam newspaper, predicted that Israel would try to prevent the Swiss team from carrying out its mission. But Yigal Palmor, an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman, said: “Israel is not going to influence in any way any measure the
authority wants to take to investigate Mr Arafat’s death.”
http://www.scotsman.com/news/international/swiss-experts-asked-to-test-arafat-s-remains-for-radiation-poisoning-1-2401668

July 10, 2012 Posted by | MIDDLE EAST, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

SAFECAST monitors nuclear radiation in Japan

News Summary: American praised for radiation data
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-technology/news-summary-american-praised-for-radiation-data-20120710-21s6x.html July 10, 2012 –  The Associated Press NUCLEAR WINDS: Japanese seeking information on radiation levels in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster are turning to a volunteer group founded in the U.S. that has created a detailed and constantly updated visual database online. Sean Bonner, one of the founders of the group called Safecast, http://blog.safecast.org/about/ said nothing could have been more natural than to jump in and fill the need.

FEARFUL AFTERMATH: Many Japanese were terrified about the health effects of radiation in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, and had no idea whether their homes, schools and offices were safe. They were also frustrated by the lack of government or other official data on
radiation. Geiger counters were selling out.

FILLING THE NICHE: Within weeks, Bonner and his team created a handmade Geiger counter connected with a GPS feature that he calls “bGeigie,” a reference to Japanese-style “bento” lunchboxes. It is attached to cars and takes a reading every five seconds, resulting in
a massive store of data. There are 30 to 35 such mobile devices traversing Japan and 320 fixed devices. Safecast made the technology and the data open, sharing the design and findings, and has now collected more than 3 million measurements across Japan. Other
volunteers have developed online maps with the data.

July 10, 2012 Posted by | Japan, technology | Leave a comment

Production stops at AREVA’s Niger uranium mine, as workers strike

Niger Areva uranium workers begin 72-hour strike, NIAMEY,  Jul 9,  (Reuters) – About 1,200 workers at Niger’s Akouta uranium mine owned by COMINAK, a subsidiary of France’s Areva, have began a 72-hour strike to demand higher wages, a union official said on Monday. Inoua Neino, secretary general of the SYNTRAMIN union, said production had stopped at the over 1,600 tonnes a year mine in the north of the west African nation after the workers downed tools.

“We embarked on a strike after our demand for a 3 percent raise in salaries, even though insignificant, was not met with satisfaction by management,” Neino told journalists.

“Workers did not go down into the mine today and if they are not down there, it means that there was no extraction, and if there was no extraction, there is no production,” he said.

The company was not immediately available for comment….. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/09/niger-areva-strike-idUSL6E8I9CEF20120709

July 10, 2012 Posted by | employment, Niger, Uranium | Leave a comment

BHP Billiton likely to shelve grandiose Olympic Dam copper/uranium mine plan?

BHP (NYSE:BHP) Reports It Will Make Tighter Worldwide Copper Supply- USA Election News, 9 July 12  By: Jessica Honsinger   BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE:BHP) reported on Friday that it will make tighter worldwide copper supply from late 2013 onward if it delays work on its single-biggest project, the $30 billion growth of the Olympic Dam mine in Australia.
A 25% decrease in benchmark international copper prices since early on 2011 has eroded possible returns from the project, and the economic delay in top base metal consumer China has dampened the demand viewpoint. BHP’s system to quadruple output from Olympic Dam the fourth-biggest known copper deposit and biggest uranium source in the world is one a growing number experts consider probable to be shelved until markets stabilize….. http://uselectionnews.org/bhp-nysebhp-reports-it-will-make-tighter-worldwide-copper-supply-bhp-pcx-vale-anr-aci/

July 10, 2012 Posted by | AUSTRALIA, business and costs | Leave a comment

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