New EIA analysis shows nukes don’t help reduce carbon emissions under EPA’s Clean Power Plan
The Environmental Protection Agency has not yet released the final version of its Clean Power Plan (CPP), but reportedly has sent it to the White House for final review and the public release is expected in August.
But the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA), which typically has vastly underestimated and under-projected the growth of renewables over the years, recently released projections of how much carbon emission reductions the EPA’s Clean Power Plan would produce, based on several different scenarios.
And, as analyzed by Utility Dive, perhaps the most significant finding is that nuclear power does not help achieve greater carbon emission reductions. Even a scenario meant to encourage new nuclear power would have no effect on the reduction of carbon emissions (although it would have a large effect on the increase of radioactive emissions). So much for the nuclear industry’s pitch for nuclear power as a climate…
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June 3 Energy News
World:
¶ Lights flick on across a sleepy hamlet in Kenya, thanks to the efforts of more than 200 Maasai women at the frontline of a solar power revolution. Trained in solar panel installation, they use donkeys to haul their solar wares from home to home in the remote region, giving families their first access to clean and reliable power. [TODAYonline]
Massai village in Tanzania. Photo by David Berkowitz. Wikimedia Commons.
¶ Tokyo-based firm Juwi Shizen Energy started construction of a 25-MW solar park in Hirono, Japan, to be put online in the spring of 2016. This is the biggest engineering, procurement, and construction deal in Japan for the joint venture between German developer Juwi AG and Japanese firm Shizen Energy Inc. [SeeNews Renewables]
¶ A report, Under the Rug: How Governments and International Institutions Are Hiding Billions in Support to the Coal Industry, reveals that governments…
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Independent Radiation Monitoring in Cumbria – WHY THE HELL NOT?
Please come along and support us in Carlisle on Thursday 4th June 10am Committee Room 2. We will have a demo outside to meet the councillors going in from 9am
Or if you cannot come along please do write a short note to the Cabinet asking that independent radiation monitoring is reinstated in Cumbria. ( see sample letter below)
We’ve been collecting letters addressed to both Cumbria and Lancashire CC
asking that independent radiation monitoring is reinstated. Both areas
used to do this but both have stopped due to council cuts. Radiation Free Lakeland spoke to the scientist at Lancashire CC who said all the Radiation Monitoring equipment is there ” in case of emergency” ….but they no longer do continuous regular monitoring. Here in Cumbria radiation checks used to be carried out in Cumbria by Barrow Town Council from the 1980s to 2007.
According to council officials, it was established to…
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US NRC Approves Holtec Certificate of Non-Compliance with Scientific Method & ASME
“The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is confirming the effective date of June 2, 2015, for the direct final rule that was published in the Federal Register on March 19, 2015“. While the NRC, Holtec’s Kris Singh and other members of the nuclear industry constantly use and abuse ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) standards and fervently wave them hither and yon, the NRC states “Regarding the ASME certification issue, the NRC’s regulations in 10 CFR part 72 do not require DCS system canisters to be ASME-certified.”
https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/06/01/2015-13081/list-of-approved-spent-fuel-storage-casks-holtec-hi-storm-floodwind-system-certificate-of-compliance
Once more, they have made it abundantly clear that nuclear engineering is a fake degree, which gives BS a different meaning than Bachelors of Science, for they demonstrate no understanding of science or scientific method. And, how many graduated from the US Nuclear Navy school where there was at least 7 years of…
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June 2 Energy News
World:
¶ The Global Apollo Program aims to make the cost of clean electricity lower than that from coal, worldwide, within 10 years. It calls for £15 billion a year of spending on developing green energy and energy storage. In today’s money, it is the same cost as the Apollo Program that put astronauts on the moon. [The Guardian]
Earthrise. NASA photo, taken by Apollo 8 crew member Bill Anders. Wikimedia Commons.
¶ A Japanese industry ministry projection shows Japan’s oil use is likely to fall by 33% by around 2030 to about 2.5 million barrels per day as Tokyo pushes for a return of nuclear power, suspended after the Fukushima Disaster, and boosts renewable use. Japan is the world’s fourth-biggest importer of oil. [THE BUSINESS TIMES]
¶ Spanish developer Enerfin is developing a wind project of up to 100 MW in southwestern Ontario. The company…
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US NRC – “Beyond Design Basis” as Excuse for Ignoring Risks: Revising Pressure/Temperature Limits as “Non-Significant Hazard” at the TVA’s Brown’s Ferry 3 Nuclear Reactor; Hidden Beneath Cybersecurity changes, June 4th 11.59 deadline
One of the US NRC’s tricks for ignoring risks seems to be saying that reactor pressure vessel (RPV) fracture and the subsequent catastrophic release of radioactive materials into the environment is a “beyond design basis accident”. They then sneak these changes through in a laundry list of what they call “Non-Significant Hazards”. This change for Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Power Station is found below Cybersecurity changes on the same page, suggesting that it is intentionally hidden.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) sites owned by the US Federal government
Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Power station was the site of what was considered a major fire and near miss for nuclear disaster, which was widely reported, in 1975. It seems that cable fires have become fairly routine in the aging “fleets” of nuclear reactors world-wide.
It was a manager at Brown’s Ferry who took a bribe or kickback on behalf of Kris Singh of Holtec…
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June 1 Energy News
World:
¶ Renewable power produced 49.9% of the Spain’s electricity in the 29 days of May to Friday, grid operator Red Electrica de Espana said in its monthly report. Wind power was 25% share of total power. Hydroelectric plants generated 14.9%. The share of all major renewable sources grew in comparison to April. [SeeNews Renewables]
Wind turbines in Spain. Author: petter palander. License: Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic.
¶ French utility EDF will increasingly become a nuclear and renewable energy company, according to its new chief executive. Asked whether EDF has plans boost wind and solar as Germany has, he said the main question was how quickly EDF can boost its renewable assets and how much resources it can use. [Reuters Africa]
¶ The 630-MW London Array offshore wind farm has generated 5 TWh in its first two full years of operation. The facility in the…
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May 31 Energy News
Book Review:
¶ In a new book, noted environmentalist Lester Brown says the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy will happen much faster than expected.“I think we’re going to see a half-century of change compressed into the next decade,” he says. “And this is partly because the market is beginning to drive this transition.” [PRI]
An electricity power plant smokestack in Berlin, Germany. Photo by Jorge Royan. Wikimedia Commons
Science and Technology:
¶ After several weeks of delays, a solar plane took off from China Saturday for a historic crossing across the Pacific that organizers hope will end in Hawaii in five days. Solar Impulse 2, with André Borschberg manning the controls, was supposed to fly May 4, but repeated bouts of poor weather delayed it. [CBS News]
¶ The Frankfurt School–UNEP Collaborating Centre for Climate & Sustainable Energy Finance has published a new study on…
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“Time to Remember Why We Were Opposed to Nuclear Power in the First Place” revised and updated
(This is an expanded version of something I had previously posted.)
When the idea of expanding the South Texas Nuclear Project (I refuse to acknowledge the PR-driven name change that dropped the word Nuclear) was first proposed, Austin had a chance to buy into the new units, and declined. The biggest reasons for not entering the project were cost, safety and the fact that we don’t know what they’re going to do with the reactors’ waste. Given that none of those factors have changed, why then is the City Council considering entering into an agreement with the plant’s owners, NRG, to buy a share of the electricity from the new reactors?
Nuclear reactors are the most complex and expensive way known to humanity to boil water. If they made economic sense, people with money would be falling over themselves to invest capital for their construction. Everyone from bond rating agencies…
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Radioactive Blues in Mississippi and Beyond
“A historic marker has been placed in Port Gibson, Mississippi, by the Mississippi Blues Commission, as part of the Mississippi Blues Trail. This commemorates the enormous contribution the Rabbit’s Foot Company made to the development of the blues in Mississippi.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rabbit%27s_Foot_Company
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi_Blues_Trail
Grand Gulf Nuclear Reactor near Port Gibson, Mississippi
“Why is Mississippi the “Cradle of the Blues?” I wish I knew. I read [that] most of the blues people, like myself, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, and many, many blues singers, all were born within a hundred miles of each other.” B.B. King oral History: http://www.pbs.org/americanrootsmusic/pbs_arm_oralh_bbking.html
When a man was recently found hung near Port Gibson Mississippi, it made news around the world. When the late, great, King of Blues, B. B. King passed away, it made international news, as well it should. (The King of Rock and Roll, Elvis, was also a Mississippian, 10…
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South Korea agrees to talks over food import ban
https://youtu.be/tUZ8UzzG1bA?list=PLXoGEAuG5VBfwPnRIno_O8if-uN0Anckq
Japan’s fisheries minister has expressed hope that South Korea will lift its ban on fishery imports from areas affected by the 2011 nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant.
South Korea has banned all imports of fishery products from 8 Japanese prefectures, including Fukushima, since September 2013.
On Tuesday, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters that South Korea informed Japan last Friday that it will agree to bilateral talks in Geneva, Switzerland, based on a World Trade Organization agreement. Japan requested the meeting last month.
Hayashi said under the WTO rules, negotiations should start within 30 days of a request.
He added that the government will step up efforts to get South Korea to lift the ban, even as a date for the talks is being arranged.
Source: NHK
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20150602_20.html
“WE NEED HELP FROM THE WORLD COMMUNITY” Akiko Morimatsu’s speech at the UN Disaster Prevention Convention in Sendai City, Japan, March 15, 2015
Akiko Morimatsu with her children
“WE NEED HELP FROM THE WORLD COMMUNITY”
Akiko Morimatsu’s speech at the UN Disaster Prevention Convention in Sendai City, Japan, March 15, 2015
translated by Yoko Chase, Ph.D.
Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to express my personal gratitude for the worldwide support given to us on this occasion.
1. East Japan suffered catastrophic damage by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the consequent accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant owned by Tokyo Electric Company on March 11, 2011. Immediately after the disasters occurred, people all over the world sent kind messages as well as necessary commodities for survival, thus helping us both mentally and materially. I thank you all sincerely for the kindness.
2. However, the Japanese government has never been able to put the nuclear power plants under control since the 3 11 accident. The plants have contaminated the ocean, the air, and lands which are, without boundaries, connected throughout the world. The TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident has never been put under control and I personally think we must apologize for this fact to the people of the world. The contaminated water has kept leaking and polluting the ocean for four years and no Japanese citizens think Fukushima is under control. It is a shame that we have not apologized to the world for the fact. I, therefore, would like to apologize personally now to all the people in the world on this occasion. I am very sorry that Japan has kept contaminating the beautiful earth.
3. Now in Japan, many people have evacuated the contaminated areas to avoid radiation exposure. The number of registered evacuees in June 2012 reached 347,000 according to the government’s Reconstruction Agency. Moreover, many people have stayed in the contaminated areas due to the lack of the government’s financial support. Most evacuees are families with little children who are vulnerable to radiation. My own case is one of them.
Our two children were a three-year-old infant and a five-month-old baby at the time of the disaster. Since the nuclear accident, my husband who is the father of the children, has stayed in Fukushima but our children and I fled to Osaka. We are dislocated and forced to live in 2 separate locations. Such dislocation to protect children is called, boshi hinan, or “mother and child(ren) evacuees” and there are still many of us.
4. We need to protect ourselves from the radiation contamination which has leaked from TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Evacuation is a natural human act to flee from radiation and to enjoy healthy living. I regard the nuclear evacuees like ourselves as people of “Internal Displacement” referred to in the Guiding Principle on Internal Displacement in the 1998 UN Human Right Commission Report.
The second article of the above principle states: “Certain internally displaced persons, such as children, especially unaccompanied minors, expectant mothers, mothers with young children, female heads of household, persons with disabilities and elderly persons, shall be entitled to protection and assistance required by their condition and to treatment which takes into account their special needs.” The Japanese government, however, has not put this principle into action its policies for the internally displaced people due to the nuclear accidents. The Japanese government has not learned lessons of the social protection of victims from Chernobyl nuclear accident.
5 Moreover, the Japanese government has objected and rejected the UN Special Rapporteur Anand Grover’s advice given in 2013.
6. In other words, rights pertaining to human life and health have been continuously violated by the Japanese government since 3.11. Human beings have had the historical experience of the nuclear accident in Chernobyl in the former Soviet Union and have had many witnesses from Chernobyl mothers. The Japanese government, however, has not learned the lessons from “the social protection of victims” in the Chernobyl nuclear accident. By the government ignoring the lessons, many people in Fukushima and other contaminated areas in Japan are still forced to have unnecessary radiation exposure today.
7. I would like to protect life, health, and the future of the children living in Japan. Without evacuating from nuclear contaminated areas or ensured regular recuperation opportunities, we cannot follow the 24th article of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, which Japan has ratified, “the right to enjoy the highest level of health reachable.” We need help from the world community.
8. The Preamble of the Japanese Constitution declares “the right to live free form fear and deprivation and to live in peace” (right to peaceful life).
9 The right to live free from the fear of radiation exposure and to live in peace should be given equally to all people. We cannot make any more “hibakushas” if we have learned the lessons from Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Fukushima.
10. To be free from radiation exposure and to enjoy health is a basic human reaction to protect life. It is a human right directly concerning to human life and health. It is the most important and universal human right. Can you think of anything else which is more precious than human life?
11. We need help from the world community to help all the victims and evacuees of nuclear accident disasters. Please take action and tell the Japanese government to act in compliance with international laws, and respect the guiding principles and recommendations of the United Nations.
Please help us protect the people, especially the children, in Fukushima and East Japan from radiation exposure.
Thank you very much.
Akiko Morimatsu
Thanks & Dream, The Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster Evacuees Association http://sandori2014.blog.fc2.com/
Email: sandori2014@gmail.com
東日本大震災避難者の会 Thanks ＆ Dream （サンドリと呼ばれてます）
避難者が避難者のために主体的に活動し、 お支え下さる方々へ感謝することを忘れず、 避難者の「今」を真摯にお伝えすることによって 社会貢献につながる活動を自発的に行う 避難当事者団体です。 参加メンバー随時募集中(^^) sandori2014@gmail.com
sandori2014.blog.fc2.com
A Letter to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori from Akiko Morimatsu, a Fukushima Evacuated Mother
A Letter to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori from Akiko Morimatsu, a mother who voluntarily evacuated from Fukushima so she could raise her two small children in an area free from radioactive contamination.
(Translated by Yoko Chase, Ph.D.)
To: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori
Dear sirs,
My name is Akiko Morimatsu. I have been living a life of “boshi hinan,” or “mother-child evacuation” with my two children in Osaka ever since we evacuated Fukushima four years ago.
I believe that the right to enjoy a healthy life in a radiation-free area is one of the most important human rights concerning human life and health. The right should be respected equally among all people.
It is only natural for human beings to wish to avoid radiation exposure as much as possible. This wish should be granted equally to all people.
It is also natural for parental psychology to want their children with future to grow up with as little health risk as possible. All parents want their children’s healthy growth. There should be absolutely no shadow of radiation fear nor heath risks.
Would it be reasonable if only some lucky people could flee from radioactive areas because they happened to have relatives or supporters in other areas? Would it be appropriate for a civilized society if only wealthy or lucky people could leave the radiation-contaminated areas?
It seems you announce one appalling new policy after another. Take, for example, the new policy of cutting housing support for Fukushima evacuees, while giving generous support exclusively to Fukushima returnees. Were you aware of the extreme suffering of those parents whose only choice was now to unwillingly return to the contaminated areas even though they strongly hope to stay away for the sake of their little children? Would you call this a truly fair policy? Would you be able to call this right?
I wonder, to begin with, if both the central government and Fukushima government have made policies for the last four years with the proper understanding that many households simply have not been able to evacuate the contaminated areas even when they wanted because there were no appropriate, supportive public policies for them to choose evacuation to continue their life in a safe environment.
If you have not been aware of such people’s struggles, I must question your ability as political leaders to hear the silent voices of the common people living their common lives. I don’t mean to sound impudent, but I cannot help wondering if this failure is as grave as the incompetence of our past political leadership.
Please reflect upon the fact that the “Nuclear Accident Child Victim Support Law” was made in 2014 but has been shopworn. The law has not been activated nor have the victimized children been helped by it at all. What do you think of this fact?
I have never thought harshly of those people who have been obliged to remain in Fukushima or those who have chosen to live with radiation contamination. I deeply care about them and feel strongly empathic with them for their difficult situation as parents raising young children.
However, we evacuees are also the same Fukushima people. Even though we have evacuated to far away places with children, we sincerely wish to be able to return to Fukushima if only Fukushima returns to the uncontaminated state as before 3.11 without any health risks or anxieties of losing health. If only Fukushima could get rid of all the radiation contamination as before 3.11, we would be very happy to return with all of our family members. We have wished this for four years now.
I sent a letter to the former Fukushima Governor, Yuhei Sato and also a copy of my book entitled Evacuating Fukushima with my Children: Mental Locus to Reach the Family Decision to File a Law Suit to plead evacuee support. I, however, wonder if he heard the silent voices of Fukushima evacuees. I also would like to plead to the current Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori also not to abandon those who chose to evacuate Fukushima; they are Fukushima people after all. Please, respect the basic human rights of the people regarding to their life and health protection. Also, please give generous support and keep practicing concrete, compassionate support policies for evacuees.
I am afraid, more than anything else, of the possible easing the way for infringing numerous human rights in the future if the governmental responses so far after the nuclear accident have become established as common devious methods to do away with problems.
Can there be anything more precious than human life and good health? Japanese people and Fukushima people as well, have, all equally, the right to protect their own lives and enjoy good health.
I implore you, hereby, to give the minimum legally guaranteed protection to the people who have chosen to take the fundamentally human action to protect precious lives and health.
Unfortunately, we have had nuclear accidents. I would like to, therefore, take action which we can hand on for posterity with pride in the future as citizens working together with the Fukushima Prefecture government. The same position and hope can be referred to our national government, as well.
Therefore, please listen not only to those partial groups of people interested merely in economic gain, but also to this sincere mother, a hard-working life supporter, a loving prefectural citizen, and a true Japanese citizen.
Thank you for reading my humble letter written as a Fukushima citizen, wishing the recovery of Fukushima and as a Japanese citizen also wishing for the true reconstruction of the entire East Japan from the earthquake and tsunami disasters.
May 26, 2015
Akiko Morimatsu Author of: ‘Evacuating Fukushima with my Children: Mental Locus to Reach the Family Decision to File a Law Suit’
(translated into English by Yoko Chase, Ph.D.)
Source: http://www.kamogawa.co.jp/kensaku/syoseki/ha/0676.html
Greenpeace releases confidential IAEA Fukushima-Daiichi accident report
The International Atomic Energy Agency report fails to accurately reflect the scale and consequences of the Fukushima disaster.
The International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors meets on June the 8th to discuss its confidential Fukushima-Daiichi Accident Summary Report. The report describes itself as ‘an assessment of the causes and consequences of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan that began on 11 March 2011.’
Greenpeace has received a copy of the report and we made it public last week. We’ve also conducted an initial analysis of the report and our findings are not good.
Yukiya Amano, the IAEA Director General says the report is ‘an authoritative, factual and balanced assessment, addressing the causes and consequences of the accident, as well as lessons learned.’
Yet our experts find it to be full of inaccuracies, uncertainties, and that it fails to address several highly important issues. We’ve sent our findings to Mr Amano.
Here are some examples.
- The IAEA admits that radiation monitoring was not working properly in the days immediately after the Fukushima disaster began.
- Despite this uncertainty, the report downplays the health risks to the disaster’s many victims.
- This means that the estimates of the levels of radiation the people of Fukushima were exposed to cannot be trusted.
- The IAEA’s analysis of the new safety regulations in Japan are superficial at best, and they offer no evidence in the report that the Japanese nuclear industry is operating to the global highest standards of nuclear safety.
- The reality is that there are major flaws in nuclear regulation in Japan with seismic and other threats to nuclear plants safety ignored or underestimated.
- The report dismisses the environmental impact of the disaster on animal life despite scientific investigations finding measurable effects on the region’s fauna.
- The report fails to acknowledge the uncertainties that still surround the causes of the disaster. Much of the critical systems inside the reactors that melted down have not yet been inspected.
These are just some of our initial findings. There are more to come.
(You can read our full analysis of the report here. The five part IAEA report is here: part one, part two, part three, part four, part five.)
So we see, as we saw in the aftermath of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, the IAEA trying to create a narrative that minimizes the health and environmental impacts of Fukushima, while emphasising that lessons are being learned, including in making nuclear safety regulation more effective.
In short, the IAEA is moving to protect the nuclear industry instead of the people whose lives have been destroyed by the Fukushima disaster and those who may be affected by future nuclear accidents.
This is not a surprise, a central role of the IAEA is to promote the global expansion of nuclear power. The fact that all commercial nuclear reactors in Japan – 43 in total – remain shutdown is a direct challenge to the IAEA’s mission. That is the context in which the IAEA report must be seen.
After four years, the disaster in Fukushima is still unfolding and will take many decades to address. If the work to clean up the massive damage done is to be carried out effectively and future accidents avoided as much as possible, the IAEA must demonstrate that it can change the way it operates and quickly.
The IAEA at present serves only the interests of the nuclear industry and its drive for profit at the expense of the people who have pay the ultimate price for nuclear power’s failures.
Greenpeace is calling on Mr Amano and the IAEA to suspend their consideration of the report’s findings. An open and transparent process must be established that considers the views of the people of Japan, as well as independent scientists. We stand ready to meet with representatives of the IAEA to discuss our serious concerns.
Source: Greenpeace
1 This Month.
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REGISTER AT Massachusetts Peace Action Education
New book – https://www.amazon.com/dp/1923372157?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Now until to February 10, 2026 Radioactive waste storage in France: the debate is finally open! How to participate?
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