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Iran’s Supreme Leader adopting a cautious path, about nuclear weapons

  Instead of treading a straight Roman Road to a nuclear weapon, he has twice veered off course.

Could Iran’s Supreme Leader be more cautious than we think?
Telegraph, By David Blair   November 1st, 2012 My interview with Ehud Barak  in London on Tuesday attracted a good deal of attention and comment. The Israeli defence minister’s most striking statement concerned Iran’s decision to convert much of its stockpile of 20 per cent enriched uranium into harmless fuel rods. Without that event, Barak confirmed that the crisis over Iran’s nuclear ambitions would “probably” have peaked about now. Instead, Iran’s decision “allows contemplating delaying the moment of truth by eight to ten months”. Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Iran, politics international | Leave a comment

That obsoltee, expensive, dangerous technology – nuclear power

Nuclear power: stuck in the past in more ways than one Greenpeace,  by Justin McKeating – November 8, 2012 “….. The nuclear industry continually claims the developing world needs nuclear reactors to be able to realise their potential.

We’re told nuclear power is a magic bullet for the creation of jobs and growth. This amounts to little more than propaganda as part of the sales pitch to build new reactors. Nuclear companies bring their own workers and keep the profits.

Look at Bulgaria where Russian, Chinese and Vietnamese workers were imported to work on nuclear projects there. Look at Niger that fulfils 40% of France’s uranium demands and yet languishes at the bottom of the United Nations Human Development Index  which measures life expectancy, education, and incomes.

We’re told that nuclear power will provide “energy security”  and independency to those countries adopting it. But here we see starkly how that is a lie – countries buying nuclear reactors are dependent on a handful of

suppliers and countries who control the technology as well as the nuclear fuel supply.

Nuclear power is an old technology – its fundamental principles have hardly evolved since the 1950s. It looks like much the same could be said for some of its supporter’s views about nuclear power’s potential “customers”. http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/nuclear-reaction/nuclear-power-stuck-in-the-past-in-more-ways-/blog/42921/

November 9, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

US military leaders plead Congress to pass Bills against nuclear terrorism

Senate, Grassley must take lead on preventing nuclear terrorism
http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/266845-senate-grassley-must-take-lead-on-preventing-nuclear-terrorism By Retired Maj. Gen. Roger R. Blunt (U.S. Army)  – 11/08/12  We need every tool available to prevent nuclear terrorism.

Unfortunately, two treaties that have been awaiting Congressional approval for more than half a decade that will enhance our ability to protect nuclear materials and go after terrorists intent on using them are stalled in Congress. This is unacceptable.

Now that the election is over, one of the first orders of business when Congress returns
should be to get past the bickering and pass these two nonpartisan treaties our military leaders have been pleading for. Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | politics, safety, USA | Leave a comment

NRC refuses environmentalists’request to amend SanOnofre’s operating license

 The NRC has said the approval process will continue into 2013, meaning the nuclear plant will not be restarted anytime soon.

Feds deny group’s request for San Onofre nuclear plant license amendment 89.3 KPCC By Ed Joyce | November 8th, 2012,  The Nuclear Regulatory Commission turned down a request Thursday from an environmental group that wanted the operating license for the San Onofre nuclear plant amended.

Friends of the Earth  said the license granted to Southern California Edison (SCE), which operates the plant, should have been amended when new generators were installed two years ago. Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Russia sends radioactive products back to Japan

TV: 200% as many radioactive products returned to Japan this year than
in 2011 says Russian report (VIDEO) http://enenews.com/200-more-radioactive-products-sent-back-to-japan-this-year-than-in-2011-says-russian-report-video
November 7th, 2012 Title: Russia ShipBack #Radiation
Detected Goods from #Japan
Source: TBS/JNN
Translation & Subtitle: Jo2Rayden
Date Aired: Oct 25, 2012
Date Published: Nov 6, 2012
h/t junebloke

[…]

According to the Russian news agency Prima Media, from January to
September in this year, the radiation dose exceeded of Russia standard
value was detected from 319 goods,　such as used car, food, medical
supplies and others which were imported from Japan, to the Russian Far
East ports.

The Russia customhouse did not accept importing 284 goods, then, send
back to Japan.

145 goods send back to Japan in whole last year, due to the radiation
dose exceeded of standard value was detected in the Russian Far East
area.

But, It will reach almost double compared to 2011 with this year, even
until September.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWy3BkF7tQ4

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Japan, Russia, safety | Leave a comment

Update: Emergency shutdown after water level inside NY reactor dropped — NRC: Cause unknown; Recovery procedures in effect http://enenews.com/emergency-shutdown-after-water-level-inside-new-york-reactor-dropped-unknown-recovery-procedures-effect
  
November 6th, 2012 
Title: Event Notification Report
Source: Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Date: Nov. 5, 2012
AUTOMATIC SCRAM ON LOW REACTOR WATER LEVEL
“On November 3, 2012 at 0823 EDT, Nine Mile Point Unit 1 experienced an automatic reactor scram on low reactor water level. All control rods fully inserted and all plant systems responded per design following the scram. Prior to the automatic scram, an unexpected high Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) water level was experienced, followed by a turbine trip and subsequent lowering of RPV water level to the RPV low level scram set point. The cause of the water level transient is unknown. […]

“Nine Mile Point Unit 1 is currently in Hot Shutdown, with reactor water level and pressure maintained within normal bands. Since the scram, there have been no anomalies observed with feedwater system operation. Decay heat is being removed via steam to the main condenser using the bypass valves. The offsite grid is stable with no grid restrictions or warnings in effect. The unit is currently implementing post scram recovery procedures.

“The licensee has notified the NRC Resident Inspector.” […]

“A scram or SCRAM is an emergency shutdown of a nuclear reactor” – –Wikipedia
See also: TV: Problem during reactor restart process at New York nuclear plant damaged by Sandy

November 9, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Tepco: Cooling system suspended at Fukushima Spent Fuel Pool No. 3

Tepco: Cooling system suspended at Fukushima Spent Fuel Pool No. 3 — Will not resume until weekend http://enenews.com/tepco-cooling-system-suspended-at-fukushima-spent-fuel-pool-no-3-will-not-resume-until-weekend   Title: Daily Report
Source: TEPCO : Press Release
Date: November 6, 2012

At 9:53 AM on November 6, Unit 3 spent fuel pool alternative cooling system was stopped in order to check the change of visibility inside the spent fuel pool (clarity of the pool) during system suspension as a preparation for debris removal from the pool (The pool water temperature when the system was stopped: 17.5℃). The system will be suspended until November 10. Since the pool water temperature increase rate is estimated to be approx. 0.17℃/h and there will be a sufficient margin to the maximum allowed temperature of 65℃, there will be no problem with the pool water temperature control.

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Plant Parameters  as of 5:00 on November 7, 2012: Alternative cooling equipment of the Fuel Pool of Unit 3 is stopped. Therefore, Temperature in the spent fuel pool and FPC skimmer surge tank level of Unit 3 show close data. The expected temperature increase at the SFP water is around 0.166℃/h

November 9, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

Foodstuffs from Japan – safe?

Occupy the NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) We have a major problem. Japan doesn’t care what they send out. They will send out whatever to continue pushing their economy. They are trying to pretend their economy has not been destroyed by the nuclear disaster there. NEWSFLASH: THIS INCLUDES FOOD AND IT IS COMING TO YOUR FOOD SUPPLY TOO… http://www.newsforyourfamily.blogspot.com/2011/08/corporate-responses.html
A quote from the blog above from PEPSICO, parent company to Quaker products, Frito-Lay, Gatorade, etc.

“With specific reference to you concerns about ingredients which may be sourced from Japan; * PepsiCo’s Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs team is closely monitoring any potential issues related to the safety of raw material we purchase from Japan. * PepsiCo has taken proactive steps to further ensure the safety of raw materials we purchase from Japan, including strict surveillance of all food and beverage ingredients produced near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. * Our  suppliers have confirmed that despite the recent disaster, the materials we purchase are safe and suitable for consumers.”

THIS REALLY NEEDS TO STOP: http://www.change.org/petitions/mr-president-us-senate-congress-tell-us-where-our-food-is-from
Screen capture from this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWy3BkF7tQ4&feature=player_embedded #!

November 9, 2012 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

U.S. sues Fluor over misuse of nuclear site funds for lobbying

11/8/2012COMMENTS (0)

 

By Braden Reddall

Nov 8 (Reuters) – The U.S. government has taken over a lawsuit alleging that engineering company Fluor Corp misused federal funds to lobby for more money for a nuclear materials training facility that it managed.

The Justice Department said on Thursday it had intervened in the case brought by whistleblower Loydene Rambo in federal court against Fluor Hanford Inc and its parent company. Fluor had a prime contract at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Hanford Nuclear Site in southeastern Washington state from 1999 to 2008.

Under the False Claims Act that authorizes people to sue on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery, Rambo says Fluor breached contractual restrictions by using DOE money to lobby officials for more funding for the Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response (HAMMER) Center in Hanford.

Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

USA -Prairie Island tribe to air concerns over nuclear storage

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Tribal members have a chance to tell federal regulators their concerns about nuclear waste storage at the Prairie Island power plant.

The Prairie Island Indian Community says more safety measures are needed for the waste, which is stored in casks on a concrete pad. Tribal members live just blocks from the twin reactors along the Mississippi River in Goodhue County.

Members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will be in St. Paul Thursday to listen to the tribal members’ concerns. Xcel Energy recently won permission to operate the plant for another 20 years, but it needs approval to store waste there longer.

Indian Community attorney Phil Mahowald tells Minnesota Public Radio the NRC is ignoring the government’s failure to find a permanent nuclear waste repository.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49752752/#.UJxkNm-l58E

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Unexpected Shutdown of Cernavoda Nuke Plant in Romania -Registered radiation in Switzerland

“Switzerland registered a 2 microsievert/hour peak before 10.00 am 08/11/2012

There is a suspicious switch off on the monitor for the day before..

The emissions from this plant were lofted high and reached the Swiss alps”

[…]

“did not effect the safety of the population or the environment”, says the Government

[…]

8 November 2012

The same refrain (or the famous last word), the world over.

Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant has two CANDU pressurized heavy water reactors.

The reactor 2, which unexpectedly shut down on Wednesday, will be restarted on Friday. The report is due in 48 hours (that’s Friday).

According to the Romanian report below, “the unit shut down automatically as a result of an automatic rapid closure system having unexpectedly gone up”. (Now, do I have to study CANDU reactors, too? I have no idea what this means.)

From ACT Media (11/8/2012):

Unexpected shutdown of Cernavoda n-plant’s unit 2 did not affect safety of people or the environment

The unexpected shutdown on Wednesday of unit 2 of the Cernavoda nuclear-power plant did not effect the safety of the population or the environment, the Ministry of the Environment and Forestry (MMP) reports in a press release.

‘Information coming from the National Environmental Protection Agency indicates that the automated gamma radiation monitoring devices do not show any increase in the normal values, while the results of the measurements fall within the limits of the natural fund,’ reads the release.

The devices monitor the radiation 24/7, and in this instance the normal radiation level was not exceeded.

Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Uncategorized | 1 Comment

“Astonishing”: Thyroid abnormalities found in Fukushima kids declared ‘ok’ by gov’t — Officials ordered doctors to stop examining patients

http://enenews.com/astonishing-thyroid-abnormalities-found-in-fukushima-kids-declared-ok-by-govt-officials-ordered-doctors-to-stop-examining-patients

Published: November 8th, 2012 at 3:34 pm ET
By 

Title: White Paper: Fukushima Health Survey Occupies Medical & Legal Conundrum
Source: SimplyInfo
Date: November 8th, 2012

[…] Dr. Suzuki who has been running the Health Survey along with Dr. Yamashita […] claimed it is unlikely thyroid cancer rates would rise and that the results found so far where over 43% of children had abnormalities were “ordinary”. […]

 

Source: Ian Thomas Ash

These statements by Suzuki defy the evidence. Over 43% of the children with abnormalities is quite different from the 1.6% or less of children in the Nagasaki study. Suzuki has also held the opinion that thyroid cancers won’t show up for 4 or more years citing Chernobyl. This conflicts with Suzuki’s claim that is it unlikely cancer rates would rise. Further evidence shows thyroid damage was actually occurring right after Chernobyl, it just took years for studies to actually be done. […]

While the Health Survey claims everything is fine in Fukushima, parents are documenting quite a different reality. Ian Thomas Ash has been producing a serial documentary series on life after the Fukushima disaster. In his most recent filming he has been interviewing parents in Fukushima City and Date City. What he found is astonishing. Children with considerable thyroid abnormalities, some were declared “ok” by the Health Survey only to find out otherwise when they obtained a second opinion from a doctor. That is for those lucky enough to obtain a second opinion, some were denied treatment by doctors after the central government ordered them to stop examining patients for thyroid disorders. […]

See also: Fukushima Mothers: Daughter has so many thyroid cysts doctor can’t count them all — Hospital told not to test kids

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

UC San Francisco Researchers: “Chernobyl cleanup workers had significantly increased risk of leukemia”

EX-SKF

even with the cumulative radiation exposure of less than 100 millisieverts, asNikkei reports (quoting Kyodo), supposedly from the paper published on November 8, 2012 in the journal Environmental Health Perspective. (I haven’t found the paper yet.)

Here’s from Eurekaalert.org (11/8/2012; emphasis is mine), UCSF Press Release:

 

 

 

Chernobyl cleanup workers had significantly increased risk of leukemia

Findings may help estimate cancer risk from low-dose exposures like CT scans

A 20-year study following 110,645 workers who helped clean up after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident in the former Soviet territory of Ukraine shows that the workers share a significant increased risk of developing leukemia. The results may help scientists better define cancer risk associated with low doses of radiation from medical diagnostic radiation procedures such as computed tomography scans and other sources.

In the journal Environmental Health Perspectives this week, an international team led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and the Chernobyl Research Unit at the Radiation Epidemiology Branch of the National Cancer Institute describes the increased risks of leukemia among these workers between 1986 and 2006. The risk included a greater-than-expected number of cases of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, which many experts did not consider to be associated with radiation exposure in the past.

Continue reading →

November 9, 2012 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

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