Nuclear dilemma facing Japan
Japan’s nuclear energy dilemma Alex Thomson, 17 July 13 Everything about nuclear power is divisive…..
(at left – Japan- solar-powered radiation monitor) ….even as they continue to pour tonnes of water daily into the reactor fuel rods at Fukushima to stop a full-scale meltdown; even as they struggle to isolate why the place is leaking radioactive water into the Pacific; even as they cannot explain why caesium levels near to Reactor 2 are now higher than at any time since the earthquake struck the plant – even as all this is gong on, the Japanese nuclear industry is rousing itself from idling offline and looking to generate power once again.
Ten nuclear power plants are actively lobbying to restart full operations, and most are sited at or near the coast, as is the Japanese way. Many – like Fukushima – are old plants now and desperate to get back into the game after sitting offline for this long period of national Japanese soul-searching.
Yet a recent demonstration against the nuclear industry brought more than 30,000 onto the streets of Tokyo. That is a big number in Japan…… Even as they struggle to contain what is going on in the plant (and nobody really knows the full extent of that) debate rages across Japan and beyond……
For now though, they are still crisis-managing at the stricken plant itself. Indeed whether they really are managing it at all is another level altogether of raging debate. Meanwhile, there are permanent-looking radiation monitors which have spring up for miles around the plant itself, displaying to the public the background radiation levels twenty-four seven.
Nobody much notices them nowadays. But I cannot help seeing they are powered by solar panels. http://blogs.channel4.com/alex-thomsons-view/japans-nuclear-energy-dilemma/5381
18 Arab nations pressure UN for Israel to come clean about nuclear weapons
Arab States Demand Focus on Israeli Nuclear Capacities http://www.nationaljournal.com/global-security-newswire/arab-states-demand-focus-on-israeli-nuclear-capacities-20130716 By Global Security Newswire Staff July 16, 2013 Syria and 17 other Arab nations on Monday sent a top U.N. nuclear official a proposal aimed at pressuring Israel to come clean about its presumed nuclear arsenal, the Associated Press reported.
The measure is intended for consideration at a September meeting of International Atomic Energy Agency member nations.
“Israel alone possesses nuclear capabilities, which are undeclared and not subject to international control thus constituting a permanent threat to peace and security in the region,” the countries said in a statement accompanying the draft resolution sent to IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano.
The measure itself “expresses concern about the Israeli nuclear capabilities, and calls upon Israel to accede to the [Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty] and place all of its nuclear facilities under comprehensive IAEA [inspections].”
Arab governments are pushing to focus attention on Israeli atomic activities because they hold Tel Aviv and Washington responsible for a missed 2012 deadline for holding talks on a potential Middle Eastern WMD ban, according to one insider.
World Bank will no longer fund coal power
World Bank Shuns Funding Coal Fired Power, Renewable Energy news, 18 July 13 by Energy Matters The World Bank has affirmed it will only provide financial support for new greenfield coal based power generation in rare circumstances. Those circumstances will be where there are no feasible alternatives to meeting basic energy needs.
In a new Energy Sector Directions Paper (PDF), the body has stated it will make every effort to “minimize the financial and environmental costs of expanding reliable energy supply”.
It will continue to finance all forms of renewable energy and will support more expensive clean energy options where there is strong client ownership, or if concessional climate finance can be sourced.
Commenting on the Paper, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim says affordable energy is needed to help end poverty and to build shared prosperity. “We will also scale up efforts to improve energy efficiency and increase renewable energy—according to countries’ needs and opportunities.”
The World Bank recognises the rapidly declining costs of wind and solar power are making these technologies competitive with fossil fuel based power generation in some settings. …. http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3846
Nevada still in danger of hosting unsafe Yucca nuclear waste dump
Let’s clear up a few things about the ‘nuclear option’ Las Vegas SunBy Brian Greenspun (contact)Sunday, July 14, 2013 “…..The new words are “nuclear option” and — even though it’s hard for me to understand why — they are being conjoined in reference to the future of Nevadans and Yucca Mountain.
Because, make no mistake, the desire by the nuclear power industry to dump tens of thousands of tons of the deadliest radioactive garbage known to man 90 miles from Las Vegas has grave implications for the future of every person living in Clark County and every business looking for a future here.
If you think the recession was bad, just imagine what a high-level nuclear waste accident will do to the tourist industry — and it will happen because that’s what accidents do!
Whatever your thoughts about President Barack Obama — obviously Nevadans think highly of him since they re-elected him by a wide margin — when it comes to Yucca Mountain, the man has kept his word. He closed Yucca Mountain just like he said he would.
Unfortunately, in the world of political realities, the overwhelmingly deep pockets of the nuclear power industry are paying big bucks to re-open Yucca. Nevadans are forced to live and re-live what amounts to an awful zombie movie. No matter how often we kill it, it keeps coming back.
How this story ends remains unclear because Nevada’s congressional delegation, which used to be united against Yucca Mountain, is no longer the shield we need to protect us. Some congressmen are either wavering or have gone to the other side.
The really good news is that Nevadans have Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. That means we have a fighting chance to win this war…… http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/jul/14/lets-clear-few-things-about-nuclear-option/#ixzz2ZLImsZAt
Electromagnetic radiation could be hazardous, too, as well as ionising radiation
Instant Expert: Electromagnetic radiation Green Lifestyle, By Caitlin Howlett,16 July Breaking down the buzz of a shock-worthy pollution.
What is electromagnetic radiation?
Electromagnetic radiation (EMR), sometimes called electrosmog or electromagnetic pollution, is emitted by all electrical and wireless technologies. Radiofrequency EMR is invisible but it’s everywhere – it is naturally produced by all matter in the Universe, with high levels produced by the Sun, and low levels by your body. However over the past 100 years or so, radio, television, power-lines, computers and, more recently, telecommunications (in particular mobile phones), have changed the way humans, plants and animals are exposed to EMR.
What do we know about it?
Naturally occurring levels of EMR probably have little or no effect on humans, but the proliferation of appliances in the 21st century has raised questions about setting safe levels of exposure. Unnaturally high levels of EMR – as used by microwave ovens or radio transmitters – have been suggested to cause cancers, miscarriages, genetic damage and other health problems, but there is no firm scientific evidence…….
Does it affect all living things?
Birds and bees use the Earth’s natural magnetic field for navigation, but magnetic interference from power lines and mobile phone technology may alter their ability to do this. Studies suggest wildlife is affected by radiofrequency (which is emitted by all wireless technology, from WiFi and cordless phones to phone masts) and there have been calls to ban the installation of phone masts in protected natural areas and where endangered species are present…..
Some statistical links were found between high phone use and brain tumours, and in May IARC classified mobile phone radiation as possibly carcinogenic.
How can I avoid it?
“To avoid electromagnetic radiation in the home it’s important to use wired connections wherever you can and avoid wireless connections,” says Lyn McLean, author of The Force: Living safely in a world
of electromagnetic pollution.
While she advises avoiding “long-term exposure while you’re sleeping”, Dr Lindsay Martin of the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency says sensible precautions should be weighed against advantages of technology that could provide security and health benefits.
McLean says there are safer alternatives to using a phone as an alarm clock, such as battery-operated or electric devices, and she suggests using non-bluetooth hands-free on a mobile, and texting instead…….
Dr. Lindsay Martin, Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency
“While there is little evidence of widespread health effects or environmental impact from EMR, there is enough circumstantial evidence to justify precaution in regard to prolonged exposure to magnetic fields from electrical infrastructure such as power lines and children’s use of mobile phones.” http://www.greenlifestylemag.com.au/2947/instant-expert-electromagnetic-radiation
Bad luck for nuclear obby, Dept of Energy favours burial of wastes, not reprocessing
DOE’s Spent Fuel Strategy: Disappointing for Nuclear Advocates, The Energy Collective, Steve Skutnik January 17, 2013 There is a hallowed tradition in Washington known as the 
“Friday Document Dump,” in which news and announcements the government wishes to bury are strategically timed for Friday afternoons, when such announcements tend to fall through the cracks of the typical news cycle (i.e., assuming reporters are even present to cover the event, the strategic timing tends to ensure it will miss the weekend papers, thus effectively “burying” the story by the time the new week rolls around).
In this storied tradition, the Department of Energy released the Obama administration’s response to the Blue Ribbon Commission report last Friday to relatively scarce media coverage. In fact, one would be hard-pressed to find any coverage in many of the major papers; what little coverage there was can be found in the Washington Times, Platts(an energy publication), and the Las Vegas Review-Journal. (Needless to say, the timing appears to have had its intended effect)……..
Some of the major highlights:
- An emphasis upon a flexible, staged, consent-based process for locating a permanent geologic repository for used nuclear fuel designed to be adaptive to potentially changing circumstances.
- A new, independent waste disposal organization charged with overseeing used fuel management and disposal, along with legislative action to reform allocation of the Nuclear Waste Fee paid by operators to allow for greater operational flexibility and independence.
- Short-term emphasis upon siting a pilot interim storage facility for used nuclear fuel, with a triage priority of relocating fuel from decommissioned reactor sites first. Operations would begin in2021.
- Transitioning toward an operational interim storage site with sufficient capacity to meet the existing federal government’s liabilities under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982; operations to begin in 2025.
- Making “demonstrable progress” toward locating and characterizing a potential geologic repository with a target operations date of 2048…….
Perhaps to the disappointment of the AREVA (who emphasized reprocessing as a viable fuel cycle strategy in their blog response), the report seems to go out of its way to minimize the potential role of reprocessing in a future U.S. fuel cycle strategy – in fact, one point which stuck out to me was in that the DOE report recommended that the scope of the waste management organization (referred to as a “management and disposal organization, or “MDO” – because if there’s one thing Washington loves, it’s acronyms…) should be explicitly constrained to explicitly exclude reprocessing. Here’s the relevant quote:
In addition, the mission of the MDO will need to be carefully defined. For example, funding made available to the MDO should be used only for the management and disposal of radioactive waste. While this could include the management and disposal of waste resulting from the processing of defense materials, the MDO itself should not be authorized to perform research on, fund or conduct activities to reprocess or recycle used nuclear fuel. These limitations on the MDO mission are consistent with the recommendations of the BRC.
Trident nuclear weapons not necessary -UK public ahead of politicians
Trident: nuclear platitudes? No thanks, Guardian UK Editorial 16 July 13 “……. Credible nuclear and non-nuclear alternatives to continuous at-sea Trident nuclear submarines do exist. Most countries in the world do not have this form of defence. Many of them nevertheless remain leading global powers. So it is right to debate those alternatives here too. Even Mr Blair, in his 2010 memoir, concedes the point. And many of the options were set out in today’s 64-page government review of alternatives.
The most important of these, though not the only one, is that the UK genuinely has the option of scaling down its nuclear weapons capability from the present four submarines based on the Clyde to three or even two. This is a possibility that deserves a serious public debate, free from the old scaremongering……….
it is absurd that the Conservatives, plus some Labour ex-defence secretaries, should treat the possibility of Britain taking a small step down the nuclear ladder as taking a risk with national security. The public’s views on nuclear weapons are far more nuanced than this. They are ahead of the political class. The Tories and Labour should join the Lib Dems in treating the issues seriously, not wallowing in the lazy nonsense that the status quo is the only option. it is absurd that the Conservatives, plus some Labour ex-defence secretaries, should treat the possibility of Britain taking a small step down the nuclear ladder as taking a risk with national security. The public’s views on nuclear weapons are far more nuanced than this. They are ahead of the political class. The Tories and Labour should join the Lib Dems in treating the issues seriously, not wallowing in the lazy nonsense that the status quo is the only option.
Hypocrisy – the West and Israel hold nuclear weapons, but Iran should not?
Nuclear policy: hypocrisy and inevitability?, 4 News, 16 July 13
“…… the nuclear powers wrestle with their nuclear futures. As they do so, another nation, Iran, stands accused of seeking to join them. Stand in Tehran and consider that country’s security and it is an unenviable picture. Its neighbouring states of Afghanistan and Iraq deeply upheaved by western military intervention; nuclear Israel and her sophisticated military systems just two countries away; the entire Arab world destabilised by the Arab Spring – Saudi Arabia and Qatar just across the Persian Gulf.
Couple that with the Sunni/Shia tensions within Islam, and life for ostracised Iran might make even the UK generals and former defence secretaries think that a country in such a position might seek a nuclear deterrent. We still do not know for sure whether Iran seeks either the bomb itself, or the technology to build one. Indeed the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei, recently repeated his belief that the possession of a nuclear bomb would be against the teachings of the Koran.
‘We can have a bomb, you can’t’
Threaded beneath these facts there lurks the whiff of international hypocrisy. “We can have a bomb – you can’t – because we say so,” doesn’t always wash, particularly when some of those who have the bomb refuse either to join or submit to the inspection of the NPT regime. Britain’s present bomb, indeed the US bomb, has never been subjected to the inspections to which Iran’s system has been subjected under the NPT. And no inspection of any kind has ever been permitted by Israel….. http://blogs.channel4.com/snowblog/nuclear-trident-policy-bomb-britain-military-defence/20769
Christian Peacemakers Team protest depleted uranium weapons
The CPT will hold a public educational forum at 1 p.m. July 27 at the Jonesborough Visitors Center.
Protesters cite study that reveals depleted uranium near Jonesborough’s Aerojet Ordnance Johnson City Press, July 16th, 2013 by GARY B. GRAY A moral and educational crusade?Sure, that’s a fair description of the Chicago-based Christian Peacemakers Teams’ demonstration and pronouncement Monday that Jonesborough’s Aerojet Ordnance Tennessee’s use of depleted uranium has contaminated surrounding soil and water supplies.
In 2011, members of the organization spoke at East Tennessee State University and warned that tests would confirm that fact. About one dozen members, including members of Appalachia Peace Education Aerojet Action Project, gathered Monday across the street from the facility.
A table held pipes used for gathering soil and test tubes to show methods used in a Northern Arizona University study that revealed that “results clearly indicate the presence of DU (depleted uranium), evidently originating from Aerojet Ordinance Tennessee in water, soil and sediment samples.”
The study, headed by Michael Ketterer, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry and dated April 18, revealed that DU was found in water in Little Limestone Creek downstream from the facility, sediments in the creek, and from soils from off-site locations near the facility, located at 1367 Old State Route 34.
“The extent of physical damage cannot yet be nailed down,” said John Mueller a CPT delegation member and former chemist. “But the fact is that contamination has been found. The problem of uranium contamination is a world problem, not just a Jonesborough problem.”DU is a heavy metal that is both radioactive and chemically toxic, according to the Institute for Energy & Environmental Research. Depleted uranium is a by-product of the enrichment process. It has been used by the U.S. Military to make armor-piercing weapons and tank armor plating……….
CPT members believe prayer vigils and public witness brings the search for truth into the public arena — a tradition inspired by the word of God, practiced by Jesus and carried on by Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
“We believe we must take our Christian faith from the pews to the public space,” CPT’s website announces.
Though Mueller, and the study’s author, call it an “interim report,” 25 samples taken over the past 2 years within a 2-mile radius of the plant showed the 17 samples closest to the plant showed contamination from processed uranium; samples further away did not……..
CPT member Rosemarie Milazzo, an 81-year-old nun from New York City, said the group believes all weapons are immoral and their use is incompatible with the most basic principles of humanity and environmental health protection.
“How can we, as a civilized society, continue to harm others by disregarding our responsibility to care for and protect our land?” she asked.
CPT member and Amarillo, Texas, resident Rusty Tomlinson said uranium weapons have been used in a number of nations and they each exhibit high rates of severe health problems. …..
The CPT will hold a public educational forum at 1 p.m. July 27 at the Jonesborough Visitors Center.http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/article/109500/protesters-cite-study-that-reveals-depleted-uranium-near-jonesboroughs-aerojet-ordnance
Texas old nuclear weapons bunker radioactive
Army probes radiation in bunker at Texas base WFAA 8 by JUAN CARLOS LLORCA Associated Press July 16, 2013 FORT BLISS, Texas (AP) — Army investigators have detected radiation in a former nuclear weapons bunker at Fort Bliss and are trying to determine if anyone on the West Texas post may have been contaminated, officials said Tuesday.
Post leaders said an investigation that began about two months ago revealed levels of radiation in the igloo-like bunker that was used for the assembly and storage of nuclear weapons at the height of the Cold War in the 1950s and 1960s.
Fort Bliss spokesman Maj. Joe Buccino said epoxy paint was applied to the interior of the bunker years ago to contain the radioactivity, but that over the years the paint has become chipped, allowing the radioactive surface to become exposed…….The investigation was triggered by a call from a man who worked at Fort Bliss in the 1950s when it was operated by the Air Force. He told post leaders that contaminated residue such as rags and other items had been buried there and expressed concerns that any new housing at the sprawling base could dig up the contamination.
It’s not clear where the residue, apparently long forgotten, is buried.
Officials did not identify the former worker who contacted officials about two months ago. But they said he was likely exposed to the contaminated residue. http://www.wfaa.com/news/texas-news/Army-probes-radiation-in-bunker-at-Texas-base-215725431.html
Nevada politicians want answers on radioactive trash transport
Nevada Politicians Push DOE for Info on Uranium Transport Plan http://news.yahoo.com/nevada-politicians-push-doe-uranium-transport-plan-150209553.html Global Security Newswire Staff 16 July 13
Governor Brian Sandoval in a July 12 letter to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz noted that “I have received no official communication from your office” regarding the Nevada chief executive’s previous request for a meeting “and now write again to request this important meeting as soon as possible.”
Sandoval is concerned about an Energy plan to lower the budget for a program that financially supports states’ supervision of radioactive waste activities.
Nevada could see its oversight funding reduced by 30 percent or approximately $300,000 under the initial DOE budget plan, according to Nevada Conservation and Natural Resources Department Director Leo Drozdoff.
Energy plans to transport 403 containers filled with weapons-usable uranium from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to Nevada, which objects to the planned transfer.
More U.S. Military Reveal Radiation-related Illnesses after Fukushima
Published on 17 Jul 2013
Regulators inspect fault under Monju reactor
Japan’s nuclear regulator has asked the operator of a fast-breeder reactor on the Japan Sea coast to widen a fault survey site.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority is checking the country’s six nuclear power plants built over faults.
Utility applies to restart 2 reactors
Kyushu Electric Power Company has filed an application to restart 2 reactors in western Japan under new nuclear safety regulations.
The utility handed in papers for 2 reactors of its Genkai plant in Saga Prefecture to the Nuclear Regulation Authority on Friday.
The step brought the number of reactors under NRA review to 12, at 6 plants.
http://enenews.com/25-times-as-many-p…
http://enenews.com/growing-number-of-…
http://enenews.com/japan-biologist-ra…
http://enenews.com/msn-publishes-repo…
http://enenews.com/tv-journalist-offi…
http://www.nuclearhotseat.com/109-kin…
We can live forever unless we try to be god
Posted by Mochizuki on July 17th, 2013
http://fukushima-diary.com/2013/07/co…
Tokaimura Criticality Accident
In 1999 three workers received high doses of radiation in a small Japanese plant preparing fuel for an experimental reactor.
The accident was caused by bringing together too much uranium enriched to a relatively high level, causing a “criticality” (a limited uncontrolled nuclear chain reaction), which continued intermittently for 20 hours.
http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Saf…
Published on by Birdhairjp Jul 16, 2013
A spider with yellow & black caution stripe was being swayed by wind on his web.
————————————–
Cesium have a low boiling point. Aprox.700 degrees Celsius, 1300 degree Fahrenheit.
Garbage incineration easily make Cesium gasification.
Gasification; Cesium cannot be caught by bag filters of the incineration facilities.
Chimney discharges radioactive Cesium.
In wet days, cesium is cooled by rain and fallen immediately beneath.
Serious polutions are brought to the surround of the incineration facilities.
—————————————- ———–
On 15th of July 2013, I measured radiation around “Fukuyama clean center”, Koriyama city, Fukushima pref. Japan
I monitored 0.39 or 0.46 micro Sievert per ain air at chest hight, 10.73 on the ground level, on road side mud.
The monitorinig place is 60 km from Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear power plant.
Measuring instrument is made of Ukraine, ECOTEST MKS-05.
10.72μSv/h 郡山市富久山 ごみ焼却場近く歩道の泥 2013.7.15
source video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab5Zw…
Fukushima – Mr. K
Published on by AlternativeNews4U4 Jul 16, 2013
Fukushima – Mr. K
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Construction firm’s loans saved business–and post–of pro-nuclear mayor
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_n…
Tornadoes Inflate Nebraska Nuke Plant’s Bond Risk: Muni Credit
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07…
New water leak found at nuclear plant
Allegan County —
The Palisades Nuclear Power Plant had a small water leak last week, about a month after the facility went back in service after a 43-day outage.
Read more: http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/x…
It’ll take months to determine any violations stemming from radioactive leak at Palisade
http://www.michiganradio.org/post/it-…
Trimming Exposure Data, Putting Radiation Workers at Risk: Improving Disclosure and Consent Through a National Radiation Dose-Registry
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/artic…
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