Published time: February 01, 2014
UK media organizations have warned that if a government bill authorizing police to seize journalists’ notebooks, photos and digital files is passed Monday, it could seriously endanger press freedom in the country.
Currently, requests for reporters’ notebooks and files must be made in open court, and representatives of news organizations are allowed to be present in the courtroom. However, if Clause 47 in Cabinet Office Minister Oliver Letwin‘s deregulation bill is passed February 3, secret hearings could authorize the seizure of journalists’ files.
Under the bill, the police will be basically given carte blanche to access journalists’ information without their consent.
Although the rules stating whether police can have access to material or not will remain unaltered, without media groups present at hearings judges could be more easily persuaded to authorize police seizures of journalistic material, The Guardian reported.
The voice of Britain’s media, the Newspaper Society, which represents 1,100 newspapers, 1,600 websites and other print, digital and broadcast channels, has protested against the controversial bill’s provisions.
“Reporters are put at risk, whether reporting riot or investigating wrongdoing, if perceived to be ready sources of information for the police and media organizations too vulnerable to police demands for journalistic material,” the society warned in a statement.
The Newspaper Society said it strongly opposes Clause 47 of the Deregulation Bill because “it would take away important statutory safeguards for journalistic material against unlawful seizure by the police, through repeal of important provisions in the Police and Criminal Evidence (PACE) Act 1984. The Bill would remove the mandatory statutory procedural safeguards in PACE itself, which allow the media to have advance notice of police applications for production of journalistic material by the media and guarantee inter partes hearings.”
The society has pointed out that the deregulation bill’s provisions could enable the current statutory safeguards to be “removed completely, reduced, weakened or otherwise radically altered at any later time, without prior consultation of the media affected nor detailed parliamentary scrutiny of the effect.”
“We are alarmed that the removal of such important statutory protections of freedom of expression is put forward as a deregulatory measure,” the society’s statement concluded.
However, a Cabinet Office spokesman told The Guardian that every measure in the deregulation bill was only meant to “remove unnecessary bureaucracy.”
“Clause 47 would bring the Police and Criminal Evidence Act into line with other legislation in this area and would allow the criminal procedure rules committee to make procedure rules that are consistent and fair,” he said.
In November, the Metropolitan Police ordered journalists to hand over confidential information in secret courts. The case involved a former SAS officer accused of leaking information to a Sky News defense correspondent. Sky News has been ordered by the secret court to hand over emails and any other information passed between the soldier and the journalist. The High Court ruled that seeking production orders in closed courts was unlawful, and the charges against the SAS man and a second soldier were later dropped. However, London’s Metropolitan Police is seeking to overturn the High Court’s decision so they will be allowed to use secret courts to force journalists to hand over documents in future, the Press Gazette reported.
February 2, 2014
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Waste containers were shipped away following a path of least resistance and weakest governance, ending up in remote areas of countries such as Equatorial Guinea, Lebanon, Somalia and the Congo. Toxic waste was dumped on Nigerian and Haitian beaches.
http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2014/02/the-mob-is-secretly-dumping-nuclear-waste-across-italy-and-africa/
Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan
1 February 2014
Organised crime is famously good at exploiting time-sensitive industries like construction, fishing, and — of course — garbage removal. But revelations about millions of tons of toxic waste buried haphazardly and illegally by the mob are causing an uproar in southern Italy, where cancer rates are nearly 50 per cent higher than the average in certain areas.
It all began in the 1980s, when the Camorra mafia — one of Italy’s oldest and largest groups — took control of garbage removal in the southern Italian state of Campania. Further south, in Calabria, another mob organisation — the ‘Ndrangheta — was getting into the same business. You see, trash is the perfect racket for the mob: It’s easy to infiltrate, it’s a desperate necessity for every citizen, and it’s not terribly hard to do. As Michelle Tsai explained in a post called “Why the Mafia Loves Garbage,” this holds true for criminal organisations all over the world, from Taiwan to New Jersey to Italy.
In Italy, where as many as one in five businesses is controlled by mafia, the long-term effects of the garbage racket weren’t immediately clear, although it caused periodic crises that filled the Naples streets with trash. But over time, further north, the rural Casal di Principe region has become known for the massive amount of garbage strewn across its once-beautiful landscape.
Campania is now known as “the Land of Fires,” for the garbage fires that regularly ignite. In his 2006 book about Naples’ organised crime, Gomorrah: A Personal Journey into the Violent International Empire of Naples’ Organised Crime System, Roberto Saviano describes the region as a place where “any space with an owner can become a dump site.”
In this world, the land is so unstable from dumping that concrete scaffolds must be built to hold up houses and buildings, and empty space is thought of us “a giant carpet” to sweep things — specifically, industrial chemicals and radioactive waste — under:
Desperate landowners sell off their fields, and the clans acquire new landfill sites at low — very low — costs. Meanwhile, people are constantly dying of tumors. A slow and silent massacre, difficult to monitor since those who want to live as long as possible flee to the hospitals in the north.
The lungs fester, the trachea starts to redden, a trip to the hospital for a CAT scan where the black spots betray the presence of a tumour. Ask the ill of Campania where they’re from and they’ll often reveal the entire path of toxic waste.
The rates of cancer in some parishes are 47 per cent higher than the national average — and that’s how the region acquired its second nickname, after “the Land of Fires”: The Triangle of Death. According to The New York Times’ new report on the dumping, some 10 million tons of toxic and nuclear waste have been buried here, from as far away as Germany.
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February 2, 2014
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31/01/14
http://www.adjacentgovernment.co.uk/local-energy-news/uk-and-france-in-nuclear-energy-agreement/
Image source : http://eandt.theiet.org/news/2012/feb/france-uk.cfm
The French and UK Government have agreed to:
- Engage constructively with the European Commission’s State aid consultation on Hinkley Point C to demonstrate that the project meets State aid rules;
- Work together to maximise opportunities for SMEs in nuclear supply chains;
- Develop skilled workforces through investing in joint training programmes and in research and development;
- Enhance capabilities in civil nuclear emergency planning and security.
The UK and French governments have issued a joint communique declaring their commitment to developing safe nuclear energy, commercial opportunities and skills…
The declaration, which comes ahead of national leaders’ discussions over the EU’s 2030 energy and climate policy framework, reiterates the two Governments’ shared view that nuclear power has a critical role to play in a cost-effective low carbon transition.
The move is the latest in a string of UK-French initiatives on energy and climate policy, including successfully pushing for the European Commission to propose a 40% EU domestic emissions reduction target for 2030, reflecting the importance of giving national governments flexibility over their own energy mixes and securing reform of the Emission Trading System.
The declaration paves the way for the two Governments to collaborate on constructing new nuclear power stations, to maximise opportunities for SMEs in nuclear supply-chains and to fund joint training and skills centres.
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February 2, 2014
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The report is based on the ideas that the Cape heavily relies on tourism and real estate and that a potential disaster at the nuclear power plant could affect the region’s main source of revenue
February 01, 2014
SOUTH WELLFLEET — The Cape Cod National Seashore Advisory Commission on Monday will discuss a new report on the economic effects on Cape Cod of a public safety emergency at the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth.
A subcommittee of the commission has initiated creation of the report, which was researched and written by a University of Massachusetts Amherst student pursuing a doctorate in economics, according to commission member Maureen Burgess, who represents Truro.
The nine-member commission represents the six Cape Cod towns within the boundaries of the Seashore along with county, state and federal representatives.
The commission wrote to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in March 2012 stating its opposition to the relicensing of Pilgrim because of the potential threat to public safety and the environment.
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February 2, 2014
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What’s worse, the agreement stacks the deck against UK taxpayers leaving French-owned EDF very little risk and all the big profits
http://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/en/News/2014/EU-investigation-calls-Hinkley-nuclear-deal-into-question/
Press release – January 31, 2014
Commenting on the European commission’s investigation into UK plans to subsidise the construction and operation of a new nuclear reactor at the Hinkley nuclear plant, Greenpeace UK chief scientist Dr Doug Parr said:
“The Commission’s investigation into the new Hinkley reactor is likely to turn food into ashes in Cameron and Hollande’s mouths at their pub lunch today. The EU executive has blown a hole in their multi-billion-pound nuclear stitch-up by showing it’s a rubbish deal for consumers, will damage the prospects for clean energy technology, and will leave the UK taxpayers to shoulder the burden of risk. By questioning whether the huge subsidies promised to EDF are justified, the commission is casting a shadow over the whole project.
“The commission also warns nuclear energy is far from being ‘clean’ because of the enormous risks involved in storing huge amount of radioactive waste for very long periods of time. This is a problem Cameron promised needed to be solved before new nuclear plants could be built, but he now seems to have forgotten this pledge. The Sellafield site is a testament to what happens when politicians want to forge ahead before knowing what to do with the nuclear waste.
“The investigation shows that whatever Cameron and Hollande may want, the Hinkley deal is bad for energy bills, bad for the environment, and bad for genuinely clean energy. What’s worse, the agreement stacks the deck against UK taxpayers leaving French-owned EDF very little risk and all the big profits.”
February 2, 2014
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Both colleges would be jointly funded by the government and the nuclear industry.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-25992504
1 February 2014
A Devon MP wants Plymouth to bid for a college to train atomic technicians.
Having such a college would remind people of the nuclear capability at Devonport naval base, Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Oliver Colvile said.
Plans for an “elite” college to provide high-level technical training for the nuclear industry were set out earlier this week by Skills and Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock.
Mr Colvile said Plymouth would benefit greatly from having the college.
The base at Devonport is the site for refitting the Royal Navy’s nuclear powered submarines.
‘Vital opportunities’
“Plymouth has a low-wage, low-skills economy and one of the things I’m trying to make sure happens in the course of my time as the Member of Parliament, is to make sure we do something about that.
“This [college] seems a really good way,” he told BBC News.
“If we can campaign to have a nuclear further education college here, that is going to improve our skills base.
“We could actually become the centre for the nuclear industry – and I think that would be a really good thing.”
New nuclear power stations are expected to generate thousands of jobs in the future in the UK. However, some employers have already voiced their concerns about skills shortages.
Mr Hancock said a growing nuclear sector offered vital opportunities for highly skilled workers, and the UK had to ensure it was at the forefront of the industry.
The minister also unveiled plans for a software engineering college to respond to the needs of the information technology sector.
Both colleges would be jointly funded by the government and the nuclear industry.
More here….
“Of course, apart from making a tidy profit they get control of the studies and research as well as corrupting a generation of engineers that learn science according to the principles and restrictions of Corporate Law.”
https://nuclear-news.net/2014/01/13/insurance-investment-in-the-uk-nuclear-to-corrupt-science/#more-61879
February 2, 2014
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http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/01/are-we-ready-for-nuclear-consequences
As more countries develop nuclear arsenals, an ever larger group of people must be trusted with power to trigger catastrophe
How have we not had a nuclear war? It is hard to maintain much faith in the long-term safety of our nuclear deterrent with each glimpse of the all-too human flaws of those with their finger on the button. Thirty-four Air Force officers in charge of launching nuclear missiles have been suspended over accusations that they cheated in proficiency tests about their knowledge of how to operate the weapons. The cheating, uncovered during a probe into the use of drugs by nuclear launch officers, betrays the complacency and boredom of men and women whose job is to refrain from doing the one thing they are trained to do.
Officials have been quick to reassure the public that these suspensions pose no risk of nuclear accident, but it’s hard to be convinced. Consider the types of incidents that we now know happened during the cold war era: bombs almost detonating by accident and military exercises being twitchily misunderstood by officers on the other side. The pattern has been one in which the government reassures the public that no danger exists, while privately acknowledging their fears that human and technical error could conspire to catastrophic effect. The classification of military documents will hide current blushes for decades to come.
In 1961, a B-52 Stratofortress fell apart midair in an incident above North Carolina. The crash resulted in the release of two nuclear bombs, described at the time by a US Department of Defense spokesman as being unarmed and incapable of exploding. In 2013, declassified documents revealed that only one of the four safety mechanisms on the bombs worked.
The minutes from a now-declassified meeting with Secretary Of State for Defense Robert McNamara in 1963 says that he complained that this was one of two air crashes – the other in Texas – where “by the slightest margin of chance, literally the failure of two wires to cross, a nuclear explosion was averted.” McNamara was demanding an end to the delegation of responsibility for launching nuclear weapons by anyone other than the president, noting that “despite our best efforts, the possibility of an accidental nuclear explosion still existed.” Publicly, the military had no option but to reassure the public, whilst privately acknowledging the real risk created by the possibility of technical failure and human error.
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February 2, 2014
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NHK broadcaster quits in protest over nuclear issues — Professor censored after 20 years on air — Was to reveal ‘extraordinarily high’ damages — Newly installed NHK chief ‘enthusiastic’ to help spread gov’t messages to audience tinyurl.com/lna4lk9 31 Jan 14
Asahi Shimbun,: A veteran radio show commentator quit his job at [NHK] after the public broadcaster told him to drop the subject of nuclear power during the Tokyo gubernatorial election, sources said. For about 20 years, Toru Nakakita, a professor of economics at Toyo University, had been in charge of the “Business Outlook” segment of the “Radio Asa Ichiban” show aired weekdays from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. on NHK Radio Daiichi. […] the Jan. 30 program pointed out the increase in costs for the resumption of nuclear reactor operations, saying “damages to be paid in the wake of a nuclear plant accident are extraordinarily high.” […] Nakakita, formerly with the Foreign Ministry, served as the deputy chairman of the Council for the Asian Gateway Initiative in the first Shinzo Abe Cabinet.
Japan Times,, Jan. 30, 2014: [Nakakita] resigned from the program in protest over the public broadcaster’s demand that nuclear power not be discussed until after the Feb. 9 Tokyo gubernatorial election. [He] said the director of the “Radio 1″ morning news program told him Wednesday to change the subject of his commentary […] the director of the news program told him to wait until after the election, on grounds his comments “would affect the voting behavior” […] Last week, Peter Barakan, a freelance radio show host, revealed […] he had been pressured by “two broadcasting stations” not to touch on nuclear power issues until after Feb. 9. He didn’t identify the stations, but he works for NHK FM Radio and NHK World, as well as other private TV and radio stations.
Prof. Nakakita: “The director kept insisting that people vote based on ‘impressions.’ But I wonder if it’s OK to say we can talk about (contentious issues) at length only after the election. What if I had talked about welfare? Wouldn’t that have affected the voting behavior? The media should choose various issues especially during the campaign […] If they don’t, voters will go to the polls with no information to base their judgments on. Isn’t it the mission of the news organizations to have the guts to give more information to the public?”
Asahi Shimbun, , Jan. 28, 2014: “The highly controversial remarks made by Katsuto Momii, the new chairman of Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK), have raised serious concerns […] In his inaugural news conference as chief of the public broadcaster on Jan. 25, Momii expressed views and opinions that sounded like a faithful echo of the government’s positions. He showed enthusiasm for the idea of using NHK […] as a means to relay to overseas audiences the government’s positions […] “It would not do for us to say ‘left’ when the government is saying ‘right,’” Momii said. […] Momii indicated his willingness to accept the government’s argument for the [state secrets] legislation. […] his green light will be needed for any program on a controversial subject […] If its programs are regarded as government propaganda, NHK will lose credibility with overseas audiences.”
See also: “Shock & Outrage”: Japan TV host reveals being told he cannot discuss nuclear power until pivotal Tokyo election ends — “Somebody needs to bring these issues into the media” — #2 in trending news
February 2, 2014
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New study finds that depleted uranium particles are long-lived in environment http://www.bandepleteduranium.org/en/new-studies-on-du-environment New research from the UK has found that DU particles can persist in the environment for 30 years and that short-term studies cannot accurately predict the corrosion of penetrators. 31 Jan 14
ICBUW Campaigners have long argued that DU residues from conflict present a long-term risk to civilians. Not only is this due to the rate of radioactive decay from the isotopes in DU – and indeed DU gets more radioactive for thousands of years due to the in-growth of decay products – but also because of the rate at which DU dust particles and intact or fragmentary penetrators corrode.
Two new studies from the UK have now shed more light on the processes that impact on DU’s environmental persistence. The studies were undertaken at the UK’s two DU firing ranges,Kircudbright in Scotland, where DU rounds are fired into the sea, and Eskmeals in England, where DU was fired into hard targets to examine its effectiveness against different types of armour. Continue reading →
February 2, 2014
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“The Japanese government is very much negative,” said Tetsunari Iida, director of the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies in Japan. “Local government like the Fukushima prefecture or the Tokyo metropolitan government are much more active, more progressive compared to the national government, which is occupied by the industry people.”
A recent survey found that 53% of Japanese people wanted to see nuclear power phased out gradually, and 23% wanted it scrapped instantly.…….
Fukushima to use 100% renewable energy by 2040 RTCC 31 January 2014 Japanese province hit by nuclear disaster aims to generate all its own energy within 30 years By Sophie Yeo
The Japanese province of Fukushima has pledged to switch to 100% renewable energy by 2040, turning its 2011 nuclear disaster into an opportunity to tackle climate change. Continue reading →
February 2, 2014
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Hundreds file lawsuit against makers of Fukushima nuclear plantRt.com January 30, 2014 About 1,400 people have filed a joint lawsuit against three companies that manufactured Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, saying they should be financially liable for damage caused by its 2011 meltdowns.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs, who are seeking compensation of 100 yen ($1) each, say the lawsuit is meant to set a new legal precedent on current regulations, which give big corporations immunity from liability in the event of nuclear accidents.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday at the Tokyo District Court, AP reported.
The plaintiffs, comprised of Fukushima residents and some 400 other petitioners from around the globe, say the manufacturers — GE, Hitachi and Toshiba — failed to make the necessary safety adjustments to the reactors at the Fukushima plant, which was first commissioned in 1971.
The operator of the plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), has been the only company held accountable for the nuclear accident, the largest such event since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and the second (along with Chernobyl) to measure Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale…….
This month, Yoshitatsu Uechi, who worked at the devastated nuclear power plant between July 2 and December 6, 2012, revealed shocking cost-cutting measures, such as using duct tape to seal leaking pipes at the plant.
Uechi also said that wire nets were used instead of reinforcing bars during the placement of concrete for storage tank foundations.
“I couldn’t believe that such slipshod work was being done, even if it was part of stopgap measures,” Uechi told the Asahi Shimbun.
February 2, 2014
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European partnership could signal a new direction for renewable energy Berkley education Patrick Donnelly-Shores, Environmental Science, Policy, and Management student | 1/30/14 | President Francois Hollande of France announced a new renewable energy partnership between the French and German governments last week. The idea, modeled on the Airbus partnership, would expand cooperation between the governments on renewable energy projects……
A new renewable energy partnership might offer European corporations the ability to pool resources and achieve global parity in manufacturing and deployment…..
indeed the nuclear sector offers a glimpse into why a renewable energy partnership could signal a new direction in the sector. While aided by renewable energy mandates and subsidies, renewable energy has largely been the domain of the private sector. Nuclear energy, on the other hand, was originally deployed through government-led initiatives and investment. If the French-German partnership signals greater direct involvement from national governments in renewable energy deployment, it could be a watershed moment in the gradual global shift to renewables.
http://blogs.berkeley.edu/2014/01/30/european-partnership-could-signal-a-new-direction-for-renewable-energy/
February 2, 2014
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The only sane thing is to stop making the stuff
Plans to move nuclear waste by road branded ‘dangerous’.BBC News 31 Jan 14The government wants to transport waste from Oldbury power station near Bristol, to Hinkley A in Somerset and Berkeley in Gloucestershire.
Anti-nuclear groups say the waste should be stored in-situ and “properly looked after” rather than driven.
The industry claims road transport is standard practice and it would be “business as usual”…..
‘Stop making more’
Nickki Clark, from the pressure groupStop Hinkley, said that the waste “needs to stay where it is [at Oldbury] and be properly looked after”.
“If people don’t like having it in their backyard then the answer is quite simply – stop making more,” she said……
Last week, West Somerset Council said it was opposed to the proposals. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25961326
February 2, 2014
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We Are Giving Ourselves Cancer http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/opinion/we-are-giving-ourselves-cancer.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0
By RITA F. REDBERG and REBECCA SMITH-BINDMANJAN. 30, 2014 DESPITE great strides in prevention and treatment, cancer rates remain stubbornly high and may soon surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in the United States. Increasingly, we and many other experts believe that an important culprit may be our own medical practices: We are silently irradiating ourselves to death.
The use of medical imaging with high-dose radiation — CT scans in particular — has soared in the last 20 years. Our resulting exposure to medical radiation has increased more than sixfold between the 1980s and 2006, according to the National Council on Radiation Protection & Measurements. The radiation doses of CT scans (a series of X-ray images from multiple angles) are 100 to 1,000 times higher than conventional X-rays.
Of course, early diagnosis thanks to medical imaging can be lifesaving. But there is distressingly little evidence of better health outcomes associated with the current high rate of scans. There is, however, evidence of its harms.
The relationship between radiation and the development of cancer is well understood: A single CT scan exposes a patient to the amount of radiation that epidemiologic evidence shows can be cancer-causing. The risks have been demonstrated directly in two large clinical studies in Britain and Australia. Continue reading →
February 2, 2014
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Sellafield radiation alert is powerful reminder of nuclear dangers Company has chance to prove wider industry has shunned past secrecy and misinformation for greater safety and transparency Terry Macalister, energy editor theguardian.com, Saturday 1 February 2014 The radiation alert at the Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria is a powerful reminder of the physical dangers associated with nuclear power, with the event coming at a critical time for the industry.There has to be action when an alarm detects “elevated levels of radioactivity” on the perimeter fence at the north of a site which is home to the world’s largest civil plutonium stockpile.
It now seems that naturally-occurring radon was responsible for triggering the alarms, but the private sector managers were right to keep thousands of non-essential staff at home while they investigated…….The bulk of the Sellafield work now being performed by upwards of 10,000 staff is to reprocess fuel and decommission plants such as the world’s first provider of commercial nuclear power, Calder Hall, as well as look after atomic waste storage ponds and plutonium, the latter a legacy of bomb-making during the cold war………http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jan/31/sellafield-radiation-alert-reminder-nuclear-dangers
February 2, 2014
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