Nuclear weapons makers excluded from Norway Oil Fund
Norway Oil Fund Excludes Nuclear Weapon Producers, Reverses
Exclusions, WSJ, 11 Jan 13
Norway’s Ministry of Finance found Babcock & Wilcox operates
facilities producing fissile material for nuclear warheads, while
Jacobs Engineering Group is part of a company developing, producing
and maintaining nuclear weapons… (subscribers only)
http://blogs.wsj.com/corruption-currents/2013/01/11/norway-oil-fund-excludes-nuclear-weapon-producers-reverses-exclusions/
NASA’s drones will explore climate change effects below the tropsphere
NASA To Use Drone For Climate Research, Information Week Government, Patience Wait, 11 Jan 13, NASA this month will begin using a drone capable of flying 12 miles above the Earth’s surface in an effort to understand how atmospheric changes affect climate…… NASA’s new project is called the Airborne Tropical Tropopause Experiment, or ATTREX. The tropopause is the atmospheric layer between the troposphere, which is the lowest portion of the atmosphere, and the stratosphere. “There are vortices in the atmosphere that spin off the North Pole over the Pacific,” said Don Sullivan, a NASA employee working on the IT portion of ATTREX. “A lot of stuff that originates in Asia winds up in North America. We don’t know if it’s original material” or chemically compounded in the atmosphere.
The Global Hawk is capable of flying at 65,000 feet and staying aloft for 30 hours, allowing for air sampling over an extended period. It has been outfitted with about a dozen scientific instruments and sensors to measure trace gases, temperature, water vapor, radiation and other cloud properties…..
Six ATTREX flights are scheduled to take place between mid-January and mid-March. Those will be followed by flights over Guam and Australia next year.
Drones are a cheaper way for NASA to pursue some aspects of its mission, compared to rocket launches. ATTREX is an example of the agency’s Venture-class projects, which are designed to be implemented rapidly and at lower costs…. http://www.informationweek.com/government/information-management/nasa-to-use-drone-for-climate-research/240146117
Reviewing latest book on the state of the nuclear world
Book Review Podcast: The State of the Nuclear World, January 11, 2013, Arts Beat, By JOHN WILLIAMS This week in The New York Times Book Review, Bill Keller reviews three new books that address the current thinking about nuclear weapons. Mr. Keller writes:
Fear of nuclear weapons spiked for a time after 9/11, when we confronted the possibility of fissile material in the hands of stateless enemies, and you can find a reservoir of existential fear today in Israel, as it contemplates a nuclear Iran. The nuclear weapons of fragile Pakistan and inscrutable North Korea preoccupy large sectors of our intelligence community. But for most of us anxiety has given way to a kind of complacency. The longer we have gone without seeing nuclear weapons used, the more we assume they will not be used. Three new books challenge that complacency, from three different directions.
This week, Mr. Keller discusses those books…. http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/11/book-review-podcast-the-state-of-the-nuclear-world/
Full radiation decontamination of Fukushima region an impossible task
Asahi: We are reminded anew of the huge scale of contamination released from Fukushima plant — Impossible to recover pre-disaster environment — Radiation levels not dropping in certain areas http://enenews.com/asahi-reminded-anew-huge-scale-contamination-released-fukushima-plant-impossible-recover-pre-disaster-environment-radiation-levels-dropping-areas
(Subscription Only) Title: EDITORIAL: More data needed to make decontamination work effective
Source: Asahi
Date: January 09, 2013
Decontamination work is in progress in areas affected by the March 2011 accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, but cases have been uncovered of workers dumping contaminated soil, vegetation and water into nearby rivers or other places without properly collecting them.
[…] One problem is that radiation levels are not dropping in certain areas. Another problem is that additional manpower is required, but hiring more workers isn’t financially viable.
Thinking about those problems, we are reminded anew of the huge scale of contamination caused by the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
It is impossible to recover the pre-disaster environment, and it is unrealistic to think that all affected areas can be decontaminated. […]
Poor conditions, poor morale of Fukushima radiation clean-up workforce
Fukushima ‘decontamination’ workers threatened — We were punished if we tried to resist http://enenews.com/fukushima-decontamination-workers-threatened-we-were-punished-if-we-tried-to-resist
January 9th, 2013
(Subscription Only) Title: CROOKED CLEANUP: Decontamination workers say cutting corners came naturally
Source: THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
Author: Compiled from reports by Tamiyuki Kihara and Toshio Tada
Date: January 09, 2013
[… Workers] cited a lack of training, unreasonable deadlines, threats of isolation, and persistent feelings that their efforts were pointless. […]
Asahi Shimbun reporters and the company have received more than 100 e-mails and phone calls from people involved in the decontamination project in Fukushima Prefecture. […]
50-year-old worker involved in decontaminating Tamura between Nov. 5 and Dec. 28 who was born in Fukushima Prefecture and graduated from Waseda University in Tokyo
“We were pressed to finish the work as quickly as possible”
“If we tried to resist, we would become isolated from other workers, although it did not reach the extent of losing the job”
“With sub-zero temperatures in the mountains, being placed in such circumstances would have led to feelings of loneliness among many people”
“Radiation levels returned even after we completed the work, so there was a sense that what we were doing was worthless”
“There will be no end to the shoddy work even if oversight is strengthened”
Japan’s nuclear phase-out has already happened:will it really phase-in again?
several fundamental nuclear-policy questions await answers—answers that could have significant consequences for the communities hosting Japan’s nuclear facilities, broader Japanese society and, to some extent, the global nuclear order. Beyond Japan’s two operating reactors, how many more of Japan’s fifty viable reactors will be allowed to restart? Will Japan continue its current effort to close the nuclear fuel cycle? What is the future for the industry’s fuel-cycle facilities in Aomori Prefecture and the nuclear materials currently stored there and at reactor sites around the country?
nuclear energy continues to be deeply unpopular in Japan, with opposition remaining well above 70 percent
the phase-out has already happened. The prescient concern would be a nuclear phase-in,
Japan’s Nuclear Muddle, The National Interest Ryan Shaffer | January 10, 2013 Japan’s December election put an end to the brief rule of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). It also handed an overwhelming victory and lower house majority to Japan’s traditional political leaders, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). However, still lacking a majority in the upper house, the LDP’s ability to push through legislation is dependent on its alliance with New Komeito, a party with significant policy differences on some of the immediate questions facing the LDP.
Between now and the next scheduled elections for Japan’s upper house in July 2013, the LDP’s first priority will be posturing for an upper house majority in the next election, not taking hard stands on controversial policy issues. One such issue concerns the country’s heated debate on nuclear energy. Continue reading
UK govt will have to fix a consumer price, to get a deal to construct nuclear reactors
a deal is
unlikely to be clinched before the French utility and the U.K.
government agree on a guaranteed price that consumers will pay for
power generated from Hinkley Point
Centrica is likely to withdraw from the construction of new reactors
because it fears that there will be cost overruns and that indirect
subsidies being negotiated with the British government will be
insufficient to justify the investment
EDF and French nuclear-reactor vendor Areva SA AREVA.FR 0.00%
are struggling with rising costs and delays in the construction of
next-generation European pressurized reactors. Costs at Areva’s
project in Finland have more than doubled to €8 billion ($10.5
billion), and the plant is five years behind schedule.
EDF and Chinese Firm Enter Talks to Build U.K. Nuclear Plants, WSJ, 10
Jan 13, By SELINA WILLIAMS in London and GÉRALDINE AMIEL in Paris
Electricité de France SA EDF.FR -1.84% is in talks with state-owned
China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co. on forming a partnership to
build nuclear-power plants in the U.K., people familiar with the
matter said.
The deal could replace EDF’s partnership with British utility Centrica
CNA.LN -0.39% PLC for new plants in Britain and dispel some doubts
about whether the French company has sufficient funds for its nuclear
ambitions in the U.K., the people said…..
A new U.K. partnership with China Guangdong would provide EDF with
much-needed financing as it struggles with difficult market conditions
in France and prepares to unveil a cost-cutting plan that it has said
could threaten the company’s British investments.
A deal would give the Chinese utility, which already collaborates with
EDF on new reactors in China, a foothold in a new market Continue reading
VIDEO Uranium mining in Virginia, and its risks for North Carolina
Hawood suggested the General Assembly write and pass a strongly-worded
resolution against uranium mining to try and influence Virginia’s
lawmakers in Richmond
VIDEO Uranium mining in Virginia would affect NC Rivers
http://myfox8.com/2013/01/10/uranium-mining-in-virginia-would-affect-nc-rivers/
January 10, 2013, by Mitch Carr EDEN, NC —
Virginia’s General Assembly is considering lifting a moratorium on
mining uranium that has been in place since 1982, and doing so could
have a dramatic effect on North Carolina’s recreational waterways.
The potential mine is on a farm near Gretna and Chatham in
Pittsylvania County, Virginia. The company attempting to mine the ore
that contains the uranium, Virginia Uranium, Inc., estimates the lode
to be 119 million pounds.
…….., many of the locals don’t support it, and an hour and a half
southwest of Chatham in Eden, NC, the Dan River Basin Association
definitely does not support it.
Tiffany Hawood is the executive director, and she agrees mining
uranium will bring jobs to the area.
“If you’re talking about jobs for cleaning up environmental risks,
then yeah, maybe,” Hawood said.
Hawood believes the mining puts the Dan and Smith Rivers, which run
through Rockingham County and are popular for tubing and canoeing, at
risk.
“I can’t think of one good reason to do this,” Hawood said.
North Carolina would experience the fallout of a mining disaster but
has no authority to stop Virginia from getting rid of the ban.
Hawood suggested the General Assembly write and pass a strongly-worded
resolution against uranium mining to try and influence Virginia’s
lawmakers in Richmond…. http://myfox8.com/2013/01/10/uranium-mining-in-virginia-would-affect-nc-rivers/
The risks of “accidental” nuclear war between USA and Russia
Analyzing and reducing the risks of inadvertent nuclear war between the United States and Russia. Insititute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies
Seth Baum, 10 Jan 13 “…..Background: Inadvertent Nuclear War
Inadvertent nuclear war as defined in this paper occurs when one nation mistakenly concludes that it is under attack and launches nuclear weapons in 
what it believes to be a counterattack. A US-Russia nuclear war would be a major global catastrophe since these countries still possess thousands of nuclear weapons. Despite the end of the Cold War, the risk remains. This paper develops a detailed mathematical “fault tree” model to analyze the ongoing risk of inadvertent US-Russia nuclear war. Continue reading
VIDEO Michael Moore on violence and USA
VIDEO Filmmaker Michael Moore: US Leaders ‘Are a Violent People’
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/01/10#.UO-Ii6PzCpc.twitter
Man who produced ‘Bowling for Columbine’ over a decade ago says he is
‘heartbroken’ that film did so little to stem culture of gun violence
Common dreams, 10 Jan 13- Jon Queally, Filmmaker and
progressive activist Michael Moore says that people concerned at the
level of gun violence in the US—particularly in the aftermath of the
Sandy Hook massacre that claimed the lives of twenty young children
less than a month ago—should recognize that US leaders, who willingly
wage war on others across the globe, are among the most violent people
in what is an extremely violent culture.
“We are a violent people,” Moore said to reporters while attending a
film event this week.
“We as Americans believe it’s OK to kill people. We believe it’s OK to
invade a country that had nothing to do with 9/11. We think it’s OK to
invade a country where we think Osama Bin Laden is and he’s in the
other country. So we just go in and we just kill,” he said…..
Inadequate radiation checkups for population near Fukushima area
As radiation fears dwindle, so do checkups Doctor wants more residents
to get followup full-body scans, Japan Times, By MIZUHO AOKI, 10 Jan
13, “……..As residents have come to understand more about radiation
and that their internal exposure levels are low, an air of calm has
been noticeable. At the same time, residents’ interest in knowing
their exposure levels has waned.
“I’m surprised to see such a dramatic loss of interest in just about a
year and a half,” said Tsubokura, 30, who works several days a week at
Minamisoma hospital and the rest of the week at the University of
Tokyo. “The biggest issue we have now is finding ways to secure
continuous checkups for internal radiation exposure.” Continue reading
Incident at Hanford nuclear site meeting
Paper: Engineer files police report after incident at nuclear site — Says she was grabbed, physically prevented from leaving meeting http://enenews.com/paper-engineer-files-police-report-after-incident-at-nuclear-facility-says-she-was-grabbed-physically-prevented-from-leaving-meeting
January 9th, 2013
Title: DOE engineer files police report alleging incident at meeting
Source: Tri-City Herald
Author: By Annette Cary
Date: January 9, 2013
A Department of Energy engineer has filed a police report alleging she was physically prevented from leaving a Hanford meeting in December.
[…] The confrontation reportedly happened between two DOE employees and involved a disagreement about how much money should be paid to Bechtel National, which is building the Hanford vitrification plant.
The woman reported that as she tried to leave the meeting someone grabbed her arm to keep her from walking out, said Capt. Mike Cobb of the Richland police. […]
“The Department of Energy will not tolerate harassment, intimidation or other inappropriate behavior from its employees,” DOE said in a statement when asked about the police report. “Any and all allegations will be investigated promptly and thoroughly.” […]
See also: Battle over Bechtel clean-up at Hanford escalating after police reports filed -Enformable
Gun toting nuclear plant operator disappears
Nuclear plant operator accused in carjacking vanishes By Clifford
Tribune
January 10, 2013
“……..Prosecutors seek to hold trial in absentiaAuthorities
wondered why a well-paid nuclear plant operator might steal a
12-year-old car at gunpoint. But an even more pressing question arose
when Buhrman disappeared after posting bond. A GPS device that had
been attached to his leg was found Sept. 28 in his deserted Coal City
house, its strap sliced in half, authorities said. Continue reading
The United States: Exposing the hypocrisy of a nation -Yuram Abdullah Weiler
Yuram Abdullah Weiler
09 January 2013
TehranTimes
On the Fourth of July in 1852 in the American city of Rochester, New York before a celebratory crowd that included then president of the United States Millard Fillmore, the abolitionist, former slave and gifted Black orator Fredrick Douglass, in what was perhaps the most caustic speech he ever delivered, spelled out in no uncertain terms what the American Independence day meant to slaves ensnared in the so-called empire of liberty.
“There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States,” declared Fredrick Douglass and this was in 1852! Over the next century and a half, the United States would add a plethora of abominations, unknown to Mr. Douglass, to its ever-expanding list of condemnable practices, including the following to name but a few: being the first nation to attack another with nuclear weapons; invading and occupying sovereign nations in defiance of international law; using depleted uranium weaponry; firebombing civilian population centers with napalm and other incendiary munitions; spraying carcinogenic chemical defoliants; engaging in assassination drone warfare; starving half a million children to death by economic sanctions; overthrowing democratically-elected governments by covert operations; detaining foreign citizens indefinitely in concentration camps; torturing detainees during interrogation and legally justifying the practice; leading the world in incarcerating prisoners and privatizing the prison industry; and spying without cause on peace activists, corporate protestors, Muslims, and other minority groups.
But one need not look any further than the racist American republic’s subjugation of its non-white population to understand the atrocities Mr. Douglass was condemning over 160 years ago. Popular patriotic mythology narrates the saga of the American Civil War (1861-1865) in terms of a group of rebellious racist southern states of the Confederacy clinging tenaciously to the morally repugnant institution of slavery against the collective will of the “progressive” northern states of the Union, however the truth is quite different. Consider, for example, the sacrosanct American national myth every schoolchild knows that the enlightened President Abraham Lincoln “freed the slaves” by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863.
|
Gov’t apologizes to Fukushima residents for sloppy decontamination work -JT
JAN. 10, 2013 – 01:20PM JST
TOKYO —
Senior Vice Environment Minister Shinji Inoue visited Fukushima on Wednesday and apologized to local residents, following disclosures of sloppy decontamination work.
Inoue said the government will clamp down on contractors cleaning up radioactive material around the ruined Fukushima nuclear plant.
The Environment Ministry hired the nation’s leading contractors to cleanse towns and villages near the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi power plant, starting with four relatively uncontaminated areas.
But the Asahi Shimbun reported last week that dirty soil, leaves and water have been dumped directly into rivers. The paper cited workers as saying they were told to sweep only around radiation monitoring sites.
The head of the ministry’s special office in Fukushima admitted Monday that the authority had confirmed at least two cases in which dirty water was allowed to escape directly into the environment during decontamination work.
Water used to hose down buildings is supposed to be collected and sent for purification before it is released, while soil and leaves should be collected for storage.
1 This Month
22 June – Virtual Event –Climate Change: New Data, New Debate
Monday, June 22, 2026 2:30 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. CT
YouTube. Register here
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25 June- THE PUKE ON NUKES
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From NRC & DOE Deregulation to Techno-Fascist Billionaires Going Nuclear, Plus a Few Songs from Atomic Cabaret REGISTER
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Cuba Is Not a Failed State – It Is a Besieged State
PETITION: “Global Appeal to Endorse Palestinian Right of Return of Refugees”
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