Canada’s Harper govt increases nuclear operators’ liability to just $1 billion
Nuclear power plants to be on the hook for $1-billion in event of meltdown GLORIA GALLOWAY OTTAWA — The Globe and Mail, Jun. 10 2013, The Harper government says Canada’s nuclear operators should not have to pay more than a billion dollars in total compensation in the event of a catastrophic incident at one of their reactors.
Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said Monday he will introduce legislation in the fall to increase the liability limit from the current $75-million – an amount set four decades ago and one that is widely recognized to be grossly inadequate….. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/nuclear-power-plants-to-be-on-the-hook-for-1-billion-in-event-of-meltdown/article12446956/
San Onofre nuclear closure an added blow to nuclear industry’s investment hopes
“It’s difficult to get Wall Street to loan money against so much uncertainty,” “The four closures this year make Wall Street more apprehensive, not less apprehensive.”Other facilities are nearing the end of their projected lifespans and may need costly renovations while cheap natural gas has siphoned off market share. Potentially expensive regulations to bolster safety in response to a triple meltdown at Japan’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant in 2011 have raised the concerns of investors.
“The decision to shut down San Onofre is another sign that the economics of nuclear are under pressure given the low cost of alternative sources,” Travis Miller, a Chicago-based analyst forMorningstar Inc. (MORN), said in a phone interview. “Just five years ago, nuclear power plants looked like a gold mine.”…..
Dominion Resources Inc. (D) and Duke Energy Corp. (DUK) have announced in recent months that they will retire a unit each. Exelon Corp. (EXC) of Chicago plans to shut its 44-year-old Oyster Creek reactor, the oldest in the U.S. fleet, at the end of 2019.
The economic climate, coupled with an increase in renewable energy sources like solar and wind generation, may not bode well for new units, said David Lochbaum, director of the Nuclear Safety Project for the Union of Concerned Scientists, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based environmental group.
“It’s difficult to get Wall Street to loan money against so much uncertainty,” he said in a phone interview. “The four closures this year make Wall Street more apprehensive, not less apprehensive.”…….
“The decision to shut down rather than retrofit the San Onofre nuclear plant shows the changing economics of the power market,” Howard Learner, executive director of the Environmental Law and Policy Center, a Chicago-based advocate of cleaner energy, said in a telephone interview. “We suspect other nuclear plant owners may start reaching the same decision.” http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-10/san-onofre-seen-as-latest-setback-for-u-s-nuclear-power.html
USA’s secret 21 nuclear bombs in Netherlands
Cold War nuclear bombs remain in the Netherlands : http://www.smh.com.au/world/cold-war-nuclear-bombs-remain-in-the-netherlands-20130611-2o15v.html#ixzz2Vz2EnXos June 11, 2013
BRUSSELS: Twenty-two American nuclear bombs remain housed in underground bunkers at a Dutch airbase, a Cold War legacy described as “pointless”.
Ruud Lubbers, Dutch prime minister from 1982 to 1994, broke a taboo of European politics by confirming the presence of the weapons at Volkel airbase.
“I would never have thought those silly things would still be there in 2013,” Mr Lubbers told De Tijd Vliegt, or Time Flies, a National Geographic television documentary. “They are an absolutely pointless part of a tradition in military thinking.” Continue reading
Urging Prime Minister Abe to stop promoting nuclear power
Mr. Abe should stop promoting nuclear energy. Even if the Rokkasho plant becomes fully operative, the resulting plutonium production will increase the danger of nuclear proliferation. If Japan and France wish to cooperate on nuclear energy, they should focus their efforts on cleaning up the areas contaminated by the Fukushima disaster and decommissioning the damaged reactors.
Cease promoting nuclear power http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/06/11/editorials/cease-promoting-nuclear-power/#.UbghOudwo6I 11 June 13, Meeting in Tokyo on June 7, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and French President Francois Hollande agreed to cooperate on the development of a nuclear fuel cycle and the export of nuclear power technology. Mr. Abe’s decision to push forward with nuclear power technology is deplorable given the damage caused by the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. Continue reading
Shared Renewable Energy Bill in California an exciting development
California Shared Renewable Energy Bills Gain Momentum, http://theenergycollective.com/rosana-francescato/236241/california-shared-renewables-bills-gain-momentum by Rosana Francescato June 11, 2013 Momentum is building for shared renewable energy in California. Late last week the two bills we’ve been following there, SB 43 and AB 1014, passed with strong margins in their chambers of origin — marking the first time this legislation has moved beyond committee to pass in either chamber.
The author of SB 43, Senator Lois Wolk, worked late into the night to draft last-minute amendments that would address concerns expressed by both Senator Alex Padilla and several utilities. The concerns were about an issue that’s been hounding the bill since its previous incarnation last year as SB 843: that there be no cost-shifting to utility customers not participating in the bill’s program.
The program allows for 500 MW of renewable energy projects that are ideal for utility customers who can’t put solar on their own roof. When they subscribe to energy produced by these shared renewable projects, customers get a credit on their power bill for that energy.
While this may sound great to customers, especially renters, utilities are sceptical. They want to ensure that the method used to calculate the bill credit be fair to all customers, including those who don’t sign up for shared renewables projects. Whether or not the utilities’ concern is disingenuous (remember the debate about net metering?), the bill’s sponsors have focused on addressing this point to ensure both fairness to all customers and passage of the bill.
And pass it did last week, with a vote in the California Senate of 27 – 9. The bill’s current version includes carve-outs that have been key requests of environmental justice and community power organizations: at least 20% of the program is set aside to be built in environmental justice areas, and at least 20% is set aside to be available to residential customers.
Less dramatic was the passage of AB 1014, which sailed through the Assembly with no debate and a vote of 55 – 17. Authored by Assemblyman Das Williams, this bill creates a voluntary program that allows utility customers to opt for 100% renewable energy, through their utility. As with SB 43, an important component of this bill was avoiding any cost-shifting to non-participants.
The bills have distinct approaches, but according to Tom Price, California Shared Renewables Policy and Market Strategies Director, “both solve the same problem — letting people who can’t buy renewable energy because they don’t have a place to physically install it to instead virtually install it on their power bill.”
As currently written, each bill would generate about 500 MW of new clean energy, 6,500 jobs, $60M in new taxes, and $2B in economic activity — all without a penny of state incentives.
At some point, SB 43 and AB 1014 are expected to be reconciled into one. No one knows yet how or when that will happen. Given that some still view SB 43 as pricing mechanism with cost shifts, there may be a convergence toward AB 1014’s PG&E-approved pricing structure. Wolk and Williams are working together to ensure the bills are supportive of each other.
The bills are now set to go through the policy committee of the opposite chamber, and then that chamber’s appropriations committee, before moving on to the whole floor. They’re likely to reach the policy committees by early July.
For the moment, the bills are on pause. But it won’t be long before it’s once again time for action. Keeping both bills moving forward requires showing as much support as possible. To receive updates and find out how you can get involved, sign up at the California Shared Renewables site.
Shortage of Fukushima cleanup workers will be worse if Japan’s nuclear power push goes ahead
Stricken nuke plant struggles on, Yahoo 7 Finance, AAP Jun 10, 2013“…….One Fukushima Dai-ichi worker, who has gained a big following on Twitter because of his updates about the state of the plant since the meltdowns, said veteran workers are quitting or forced to cut back on working in highly radiated areas of the plant as their cumulative exposure rises…………. Known as Happy-san to his 71,500 Twitter followers, he has worked in the nuclear industry for 20 years, about half of that at Fukushima.
He has worked at bigger contractors before, but is now at a mid-level contractor with about 20 employees, and has an executive level position.
“If things continue the way they are going, I fear decommissioning in 40 years is impossible. If nuclear plants are built abroad, then Japanese engineers and workers will go abroad. If plants in Japan are restarted, engineers and workers will go to those plants,” he said in a tweet………..
Other jobs are already so plentiful that securing enough workers for even the more lucrative work decontaminating the towns around the plant is impossible, according to Fukushima Labour Bureau data.
During the first quarter of this year, only 321 jobs got filled from 2,124 openings in decontamination, which involves scraping soil, gathering foliage and scrubbing walls to bring down radiation levels……….
“We’re headed toward a real crisis,” said Ryuichi Kino, a freelance writer and photographer who has authored books about the nuclear disaster and has reported on TEPCO intensively since March 2011.
Under the worst scenario, experienced workers capable of supervising the work will be gone as they reach their radiation-exposure limits, said Kino.
He believes an independent company separate from TEPCO needs to be set up to deal with the decommissioning, to make sure safety is not being compromised and taxpayer money is spent wisely. http://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/stricken-nuke-plant-struggles-000105277.html
Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful, says Russia’s Putin
Russia’s Putin says Iran nuclear push is peaceful (Reuters) 11 June -by Alexei Anishchuk, and Steve Gutterman, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he has no doubt that Iran is adhering to international commitments on nuclear non-proliferation but regional and international concerns about Tehran’s nuclear programme could not be ignored.
Putin, whose country is among six world powers seeking to ensure that Iran does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, also said Iranian threats to Israel’s existence were unacceptable.
His remarks appeared aimed to strike a balance between the interests of Iran, on the one hand, and on the other, Israel and global powers seeking to ensure Tehran does not acquire nuclear weapons…………http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/06/11/nuclear-iran-russia-idINDEE95A0E920130611
Questions on San Onofre’s radioactive trash disposal
FAQ: How will San Onofre store its spent nuclear fuel? 89.3 KPCC, Sanden Totten | June 8th, 2013 Southern California Edison announced it will permanently close the remaining reactors at the San Onofre nuclear power plant. The spent nuclear fuel will be stored on site “for a very long time,” said Edison chief executive Ted Craver during a press conference on Friday.
According to Craver, the company has a $2.7 billion fund to help shut down the site. That will include decommissioning the reactors, disposing of equipment and moving radioactive spent fuel to storage units.
The shutdown raises questions about how the potentially hazardous materials will be stored and what risks are involved. We have some answers below.
Q: What will happen to the spent fuel at San Onofre nuclear plant? ……
Q: How much spent fuel is there at San Onofre?……
Q: What is the spent fuel made of?……
Q: How long will the waste be stored at San Onofre?…..
Q: What are the risks involved with storage at San Onofre?…… http://www.scpr.org/news/2013/06/08/37631/faq-how-will-san-onofre-store-its-spent-nuclear-fu/
Closure of Sann Onofrenuclear plant opens opportunity for renewable energy
Sad Saga of San Onofre Nuclear Is Good News for Renewables ”The demise of the San Onofre nuclear facility HERMAN K. TRABISH: JUNE 10, 2013 The eighteen-month struggle of the just-shuttered San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) has been chronicled in detail by GTM…………. The final straw was last month’s call by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif) for a Justice Department investigation after letters were discovered showing that SCE purposely misrepresented the renovations to regulators as “like-for-like” (though it knew they weren’t) in order to avoid the costly license review…………. Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies Executive Director V. John White observed that “the prudent economic thing is to recognize the plant is out of the money and it is time to move on.”……….. “Thanks to consumer conservation, energy efficiency programs and a moderate summer, the region was able to get through last summer,” SCE President Ronald Litzinger said, but any 2013 “generation outages, soaring temperatures or wildfires impacting transmission lines would test the system.”
San Onofre staff is expected to be cut from 1,500 to 400 employees by the end of this year. SCE intends to pursue recovery of damages from MHI and NEIL.
The CPUC promised to protect ratepayers by quickly determining financial responsibility and by leading the effort for “energy efficiency and demand response programs, as well as transmission upgrades and enhancements and some new generation resources.”
“This opens up the market to renewables to fill the gap,” former utility official Freeman said. http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/Sad-Saga-of-San-Onofre-Nuclear-is-Good-News-for-Renewables?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GreentechMedia+%28Greentech+Media%29
Legal fights loom, as USA’s nuclear plant dominoes fall
The news in both the California and Kentucky cases also goes to show that the Attorney Age has banished the Atomic Age. The most important line in the SCE news release is the last one: “SCE intends to pursue recovery of damages from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the supplier of the replacement steam generators … ” Likewise, USEC filed suit against the Department of Energy on May 30. Nuclear energy, once billed as providing unlimited power, is fulfilling its promise—the power of lawyers. “Don’t radiate: Litigate!” may be coming soon to a button or bumper-sticker near you.
Nuclear Dominoes Fall in California and Kentucky Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative http://ecowatch.com/2013/nuclear-dominoes-fall-in-california-and-kentucky/ By Geoffrey Sea 7 June 13, [Read Part I, Part II, Part III and Part IV of this series] Southern California Edison (SCE) has abandoned plans to restart its two nuclear reactors at San Onofre. The announcement this morning comes exactly one week aftertermination of operations at the Paducah, Kentucky, uranium enrichment plant, which for decades had provided the fuel for San Onofre. It drops the number of operating nuclear reactors in the U.S. below one hundred for the first time since the early 1980s.
The San Onofre decision ends 18 months of wrangling between the utility and environmental opponents, after serious leaks were detected in a steam generator that had been newly installed. The news release by SCE has a detectable tone of relief that the company will no longer have to defend the indefensible. Similar tones have emanated from the Washington headquarters of the Department of Energy (DOE) around the Paducah decision, sending a message that the era of illegalities involving USEC privatization may be nearing an end. Continue reading
Opposition by villagers has stalled another Indian nuclear power project
Residents oppose nuclear plant at Kovvada http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/residents-oppose-nuclear-plant-at-kovvada/article4797223.ece 9 June 13, Officials unable to continue land acquisition for the project
Officials of Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited and the State government are unable to continue the land acquisition process in Kovvada and surrounding villages of Ranasthalam mandal, Srikakulam district, following strong resistance from locals against the construction of the nuclear power plant.
The government identified about 1,500 acres of land but it has not been alienated to NPCIL so far. In addition, it has to acquire 499 acres in Kovvada, Ramachandrapuram Tekkali and Kotapalem villages.
It set up a land acquisition unit in the AP NGOs Home in Srikakulam but could not begin as a majority of the villagers did not accept the ‘packages’ offered by the government.
With the support of all the opposition parties, the villagers have been continuing their relay hunger strike for the last six months.
The villagers are not convinced with the argument in favour of setting up a nuclear plant in their vicinity, though officials have been repeatedly telling them that it would be safe on the lines of the one in Kalpakkam.
CPI (M) leaders Bhaviri Krishnamurthy, V.G.K. Murthy, Panchadi Paparao and others extended their moral support to the villagers saying that Kovvada nuclear plant would be a threat to the environment. Meanwhile, the relay hunger strike entered the 172 day.
Co-ordinator of all Opposition parties, Kalisetty Appalanaidu, has also threatened to intensify the movement if officials resorted to land acquisition. Former panchayat president of Kovvada, Mylapalli Polisu said that fishermen would lose their livelihood as restrictions would be imposed on fishing activity after construction of the nuclear power plant.
Hanford nuclear facility – a radioactive horror story
Paper: U.S. nuclear site “a true horror story” — Officials should be screaming at top of their lungs in outrage — “Problems could lead to explosions or nuclear reactions” #Hanford http://enenews.com/paper-u-s-nuclear-site-a-true-horror-story-officials-should-be-screaming-at-top-of-their-lungs-in-outrage-problems-could-lead-to-explosions-or-nuclear-reactions-hanford
Title: Time is of the essence at Hanford site
Source: Kingston Community News
Author: MARYLIN OLDS, Columnist
Date: June 6, 2013
[…] Hanford’s 56 million gallons of the most contaminated nuclear waste in the western hemisphere is a true horror story. […]
In February, officials announced that six single-shell tanks were leaking. These are not the first leaks; there have been decades of earth contamination. […]
Bechtel National is contracted by DOE to oversee the construction of a vitrification plant. Vitrification means processing the waste into glass logs […]
The decision was made to begin construction of the plant before the design had been vetted. Consequently, there are design problems that could lead to explosions or nuclear reactions. […]
Senators Murray and Cantwell, et al., should be screaming at the tops of their lungs in outrage. Instead, it appears it’s up to us to make our voices heard. Surely they’d all want to hear from their constituents.
See also: ‘Amazing’: Plutonium leak at U.S. nuclear site hidden from public — Official: “A very deliberate cover up… I will use the word that we were lied to” (VIDEO)
Hundreds of corporate whistleblowers targeted by USA cyber attacks
Obama ordered hit-list of Targeted Individuals worldwide to cyber-attack EXAMINER, JUNE 8, 2013 BY: DEBORAH DUPRE Barack Obama ordered national security leaders to compile a new targeted individual hit-list, this one consisting of possible “adversaries” overseas and, in emergencies in the U.S., for his regime to cyber-attack with “little or no warning,” a top secret document reveals. The 18-page, classified document, entitled Presidential Policy Directive 20, outlines plans for
Offensive Cyber Effects Operations (OCEO), cyber-attacks that would target US adversaries globally……The directive also includes the potential use of cyber-attacks on Americans and others in the US, though any such operations must be conducted with prior authorization of the White House — unless “it qualifies as an Emergency Cyber Action.”……
A target accustomed to internet communications and business could be be isolated, financially ruined, unable to seek help from family and friends without internet capacity.
Each of hundreds of self-identified Targeted Individuals who have contacted this author since 2005 have complained about being cyber-attacked. Most of their accounts related their targeting to corporate whistle-blowing or actively working to end high-level crime.
Young whistleblower standing up against might of USA government
NSA spy scandal whistleblower refuses to be bullied by U.S. EXAMINER JUNE 9, 2013 BY: DEBORAH DUPRE Edward Snowden, a young former CIA employee, leaked this week’s spy intelligence and says he refuses to be bullied into hiding. “I’m not going to hide,” Snowden, 29, said Sunday afternoon after news reports of his being the whistleblower of America’s spy scandal, a major rights violation.
“Allowing the U.S. government to intimidate its people with threats of retaliation for revealing wrongdoing is contrary to the public interest,” he asserted.
Snowden has been identified as the source who leaked the information to the Guardian‘s Glenn Greenwald this week, according him and Greenwald and confirmed by The Washington Post.
In a Guardian story posted Sunday afternoon, Greenwald and two other reports revealed Snowden as the whistleblower, who works for the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton but has contracted for years with the NSA.The Guardian named Snowden at his own request, the article said.
Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr. announced Saturday that the NSA launched a Justice Department investigation into who leaked the information……. http://www.examiner.com/article/nsa-spy-scandal-whistleblower-refuses-to-be-bullied-by-u-s?CID=examiner_alerts_article
Prime Minister Abe increases drive to export Japanese nuclear reactors
JAPAN PM TO STEP UP NUCLEAR EXPORT DRIVE: REPORT Yahoo 7 News, 8 June 13, TOKYO (AFP) – Japan’s prime minister is expected to sign a nuclear cooperation deal with the Czech Republic this month, a report said Saturday, as Tokyo looks to build up its exports of the technology.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Czech President Milos Zeman have all but agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding on mutual nuclear technology cooperation when they meet in Poland on June 16, the Nikkei business daily said.
Nuclear power has been a sensitive issue in Japan since a quake and tsunami wiped out the Fukushima atomic plant in 2011, sparking the world’s worst nuclear disaster in 25 years, but Abe has been keen to promote the industry since taking office in December. The memorandum is expected to include a statement that the Czech Republic will use Japanese nuclear technology.
It will also make US nuclear plant builder Westinghouse Electric, a unit of Japan’s Toshiba Corp., the top candidate to win a $10 billion contract to build two nuclear reactors in the Central European country, the daily said.
Abe is due to meet the leaders of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary in Poland while on his way to the June 17-18 Group-of-Eight summit in Northern Ireland, the Nikkei added…….
After talks in Tokyo on Friday, Abe and French President Francois Hollande said they would cooperate in developing nuclear power technologies and promoting the sector’s exports to emerging economies. http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/17529581/japan-pm-to-step-up-nuclear-export-drive-report/
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
Protect Sazan Island from the Trump family! https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/protect_sazan_island_from_the_trump_family_loc/?bqFCVab&v=174511&cl=22707147157&_checksum=5e9dde668860e8231c33699735e16a1fbf22ab2cb01da50c999fe8732b9775ef&utm_source=email&utm_medium=blast_email&utm_campaign=174511
25 June- THE PUKE ON NUKES
Thursday, June 25, 2026
7pm Central Time (8pm ET, 6pm MT, 5pm PT) UTC – 5
From NRC & DOE Deregulation to Techno-Fascist Billionaires Going Nuclear, Plus a Few Songs from Atomic Cabaret REGISTER
26 June – Radiation Trainwreck at the NRC / Join the Protect Better Campaign – https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4ZlZ5_qLSHGiLSCg8FF6Bg#/registration
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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