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Timothy Mousseau dismisses radiation as cause of giant wolffish

wolffishNO, THIS WOLFFISH IS NOT A FUKUSHIMA RADIATION MUTANT,
BY SARAH KEARTES SEPTEMBER 17 2015
 When images of a “mutant” wolffish caught off the coast of Japan started making the rounds this week, panic ensued. But like a fictional “Godzilla”, this fish is actually nothing to be worried about. For starters, it’s not as big as it looks. Remember last year’s “giant” mantis shrimp? Just like in that photo, what you’re seeing here is the result of forced perspective. By bringing the fish closer to the camera’s lens, fisherman Hiroshi Hirasaka is creating an optical illusion. For that very same reason, trees often look like they’re growing out of the back of a subject’s head in family photos and Frodo Baggins looks so small in Peter Jackson’s Lord of The Rings trilogy.

As for the idea of giant, mutant Fukushima fish … there is no scientific evidence to support claims that fallout from the Fukushima disaster has, or will, cause this to happen. Even right after the disaster, a swim in nearby waters would have dosed you with just 0.03% of the daily radiation an average Japanese resident receives. And much of that fallout has disappeared because of natural decomposition and decay.

Besides, even in the extremely unlikely event that radiation was the culprit here, we would actually expect to see smaller, not larger, fish. “Very, very few mutations lead to extra-large size,” explains University of South Carolina radiation specialist Dr Timothy Mousseau. “[Instead], they grow less efficiently, they’re less capable of catching food and they tend to not live as long.

All that said, this catch is still an impressive one. Wolffish (family Anarhichadidae) average about three feet in length (110 cm), but can get bigger. What Hirasaka has landed is a very old and very healthy specimen. “If you look hard and long enough there’s always a few that manage to survive long enough to achieve these large sizes,” says Mousseau.   http://www.earthtouchnews.com/wtf/mutants-and-freaks/no-this-wolffish-is-not-a-fukushima-radiation-mutant

September 19, 2015 Posted by | Fukushima 2015, oceans, spinbuster | 2 Comments

Even pro nuclear ‘experts’ want to scrap Hinkley ( are they pushing for ‘small nuclear’?)

text-cat-questionUK’s most aggressive nuclear lobby is pushing for Small Modular Nuclear Reactors and Thorium Reactors. They’ve even got themselves classed as a Charity!!!  So, is the veiled co-operation between the old Big nuclear camp, and the new geewhiz Little nuclear camp now wearing thin in Britain?

NUCLEAR LOBBY DISPUTE

Pro-nuclear environmentalists in call to scrap Hinkley C plans
Three leading experts urge government to end nuclear project saying delays will create panicked scramble back to fossil fuels, Guardian, , 19 Sept 15 Three leading environmentalists who broke ranks to give their support to a new generation of nuclear plants have now urged the government to scrap plans for Hinkley Point C.

The call comes as George Osborne and Amber Rudd, the secretary of state for energy and climate change, head off to China, where they will discuss Beijing’s proposed investment in the new nuclear plant in Somerset.

George Monbiot, Mark Lynas and Chris Goodall say the soaring cost and delays to the Hinkley project leave ministers with no option but to pour the estimated £24.5bn worth of investment into other low-carbon technologies

“Hinkley C bears all the distinguishing features of a white elephant: overpriced, overcomplicated and overdue. The delay that was announced recently should be the final straw. The government should kill the project,” they write in a comment piece for the Guardian.

“The new delay should not surprise anyone who’s aware of the technological issues,” said Tony Roulstone, who runs the masters programme in nuclear engineering at Cambridge University. He argues that the plan for Hinkley C is like “building a cathedral within a cathedral”. It is, he concludes, “unconstructable”………

EDF, the French energy group, promoting Hinkley, has already won a generous financial aid package from the government through its “contract for difference” mechanism but has yet to sign the definitive deal it needs with Beijing investors.

This is expected to happen when the Chinese premier visits the UK next month, leaving EDF in a position to finally give the green light to the first nuclear plant to be built in the UK for 20 years.

But the energy company and its French engineering partner, Areva, have been beset by problems, leaving a growing number of former supporters from the world of energy and the City to question the viability of the whole project…….http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/sep/18/nuclear-environmentalists-scrap-hinkley-c-plans

September 19, 2015 Posted by | business and costs, politics, UK | Leave a comment

New CEO for CANDU Nuclear Reactor Marketer Lavalin – Amid corruption scandal

text-cat-questionIs this crooked Canadian nuclear company the one that is advising South Australia’s
Nuclear Fuel Chain Royal Commission?
SNC-Lavalin replaces CEO amid more allegations,  Company says departure “completely unrelated” to flag-canadacorruptioncivil lawsuit allegations by ex-VP Riadh Ben Aissa
CBC News, By John Nicol, Dave Seglins, CBC News Posted: Sep 14, 2015 SNC-Lavalin Inc. announced this morning it has replaced president and CEO Bob Card with Neil Bruce, and told CBC News the move is “completely unrelated” to new allegations, published today, in a civil suit that claims giving bribes to win contracts was part of the past practices of the company.The Montreal-based engineering firm, which Card took over in the spring of 2012 to clean up past issues, faced new allegations Monday from a former executive who claims the company has made him a “scapegoat,” and alleges other top executives for years endorsed bribes and lavish gifts — including a yacht and even prostitutes — to win contracts from Libya’s Gadhafi regime.The serious allegations by Riadh Ben Aïssa, SNC’s former executive vice-president of construction, are contained in a newly filed court pleading as he defends himself against one of a number of civil lawsuits by the company, which itself is facing criminal charges of foreign corruption.

“SNC is only trying to use Ben Aïssa as a scapegoat by presenting him as solely responsible for acts that SNC was fully aware of, accepted and encouraged,” the court pleading states, naming a list of former CEOs, executive vice-presidents and the former chief financial officer.

“After having behaved as such for many years, SNC now tries to escape unscathed by blaming all its acts on Ben Aïssa.”……..

Bribes won billions in workBen Aïssa is back in Canada after serving 2½ years in a Swiss jail, having admitted to corruption and money laundering tied to SNC projects in Libya. He’s awaiting trial alongside former CEO PierreDuhaime on charges of fraud for $22.5 million in alleged bribes paid to win SNC the contract to build a Montreal superhospital……….

Ben Aïssa sets out a long list of SNC contracts in Libya, worth billions, that arose from the partnership and that he alleges were won through kickbacks paid to side agents.

“Most of SNC’s senior executives knew that the so-called agency contracts were in reality bribes paid to Libyan foreign officials in exchange for the award of the sole-source contract,” the former construction executive alleges.

What’s more, Ben Aïssa declares the money was “fraudulently charged back” to the Libyan government by embedding the costs in the project before SNC submitted its offers.

Gifts: yacht, prostitutes, Spice Girls……… http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/snc-lavalin-card-bruce-1.3226097

September 19, 2015 Posted by | Canada, Legal, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Court upholds Belgium’s tax on nuclear power stations

judge-1Utility must pay 2013 nuclear tax, Belgian court rules, World Nuclear News, 8 September 2015 Belgium’s Constitutional Court has rejected Electrabel’s appeal against the legality of the nuclear tax contribution imposed by the government for 2013. The company maintains that the level of tax does not reflect deteriorating market conditions in which it operates.

In 2008, the Belgian government announced that the country’s nuclear power plant operators would have to make a one-off payment of €250 million ($338 million). However, in 2009 it said it would postpone its planned nuclear phaseout but would charge nuclear operators an annual tax of €215 to €245 million ($245-280 million) over the period 2010-2014. In 2012, the government passed laws doubling the level of tax…..http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Utility-must-pay-2013-nuclear-tax-Belgian-court-rules-1809154.html

September 19, 2015 Posted by | EUROPE, politics | Leave a comment

Sweden tightens rules on drones flying near nuclear stations

drone-near-nuclear-plantFlouting Nuclear Drone Ban in Sweden Will Land You in Jail, Bloomberg,  , 18 Sep 15,

    • No-fly zones start Oct. 15 to protect national security
    • Swedish police focus on tackling pilots on the ground
If you’re planning a drone fly-by at any of Sweden’s reactors, think again.

The Nordic region’s biggest producer of atomic energy will from Oct. 15 add nuclear plants to a list of sites including airports and hospitals with no-fly zones in an effort to preserve national security. If caught, drone pilots face as long as 6 months behind bars, according to the Swedish police.

Sweden is tightening its rules amid growing international concern about the security threat posed by drones, which have buzzed French nuclear reactors, landed on the White House lawn and even crashed into the stands at this month’s U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York. While France is backing research into tracking and destroying illegal unmanned craft, Sweden is opting to pursue the pilots on the ground……

Greenpeace flew a piloted paraglider over Ringhals in 2013, dropping balloons on the roof of one of the reactor buildings, according to Vattenfall.
While environmental activists have parasailed, hurdled fences and climbed buildings at Swedish nuclear plants in attempts to demonstrate poor security, seaweed and jellyfish have been more effective in cutting output by blocking flows of cooling water.

 For Ringhals, the main concern is drones taking photos illegally or accidentally injuring staff rather than halting the reactors, Staalnacke said.
  • Flying a drone over banned areas would void any form of insurance to cover damages caused by the craft, according to Claes Wahlund, the chairman of the Swedish Model Airplane Association.“Flying over a nuclear power plant is not a hobby,” he said by phone on Thursday. “Without insurance, pilots could really be in deep trouble.”Illegal drone flights near Swedish airports forced air traffic to halt at least 10 times this year, Ulf Wallin, spokesman for Swedavia AB, the manager of 10 of the nation’s airports, said Thursday by phone. Two Lithuanian men that flew a drone over a military airport in Lidkoeping, Sweden, in May were fined 2,000 kronor ($240) each, Swedish news service TT reported.
  • While Ringhals views any breach of the no-fly zone as a police matter, it’s still assessing ways of detecting drones, Staalnacke said, without being more specific.Under existing law, anyone who destroys a drone, even the police, would be liable to pay the owner to replace it, police spokesman Fuxborg said.Ringhals and Forsmark, another plant owned by Vattenfall on Sweden’s east coast, were granted a temporary flight ban from Sept. 7 until the permanent no-fly zone takes effect Oct. 15. EON SE’s Oskarshamn reactor in the southeast also gets the permanent ban from Oct. 15, Emmy Davidsson, a spokeswoman for the plant, said Tuesday by phone. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-17/flouting-nuclear-drone-ban-in-sweden-will-soon-land-you-in-jail

 

September 19, 2015 Posted by | safety, Sweden | Leave a comment

Great Lakes risk disaster with Nuclear waste site near Huron

Lake-Huron,-Bruce-County,-ONuclear waste site near Huron spells disaster for Great Lakes By State Sen. Hoon-Yung Hopgood, D–Taylor Burying radioactive nuclear waste less than a half-mile from one of the Great Lakes is a really bad idea.

Ontario Power Generation is proposing an underground, radioactive nuclear waste repository near the shores of Lake Huron in Kincardine, which is less than a mile inland and about 120 miles upstream from the main drinking water intakes for southeast Michigan.

A review panel has approved the utility’s proposal, which awaits a decision by Leona Aglukkaq, Canada’s Minister of the Environment. Aglukkaq has until Dec. 2 to make a final decision.

It is my belief that this project must be immediately stopped. The Great Lakes are a precious water resource, and the health of Michigan’s citizens must be protected — this dangerous proposal simply puts too much at risk.

The nuclear waste to be buried at this location — which is the only location under consideration — includes chemically hazardous materials, some of which can remain radioactive for nearly 100,000 years.

The waste would be buried in water-soluble shale limestone, a material that is entirely untested and unproven for the disposal of nuclear waste. In fact, this method is so uncertain that there is not a single scientist or geologist who can guarantee the nuclear dump will not contaminate the Great Lakes.

Despite these concerns, Canadian officials continue to move forward in reviewing the project, even though state and federal elected officials, members of the medical community, and more than 15 broad-based Michigan industrial and environmental groups — along with the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, and other Canadian organizations — are opposed to this dangerous plan.
According to the Canadian nonprofit Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump Inc., as of Aug. 26, 170 resolutions — representing nearly 23 million people — have been passed expressing opposition to the plan, which could be economically devastating to Michigan.

The potential impact of nuclear waste contaminating the Great Lakes is nothing short of catastrophic. It could discourage visitors and disrupt our tourism and agricultural industries.

In addition, millions of Michigan and Canadian citizens live downstream from this proposed repository. The potential for contamination of the water that our livelihoods depend upon is a very real, and extremely serious, risk.

Yet, contaminated drinking water is just one way that Michigan citizens could be negatively impacted……..http://www.mlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/09/nuclear_waste_site_near_huron.html

September 19, 2015 Posted by | general | Leave a comment

North Korea warned by USA – ‘severe consequences’ if it flouts nuclear ban,

Flag-USAflag-N-KoreaUS threatens North Korea with ‘severe consequences’ if it flouts nuclear ban Guardian, 18 Sept 15 
The US secretary of state, John Kerry, says his country’s position is clear: ‘We will not accept North Korea as a nuclear weapons state’ North Korea would face “severe consequences” if it continued with its announced decision to restart a nuclear reactor, the US secretary of state, John Kerry, has said.

Pyongyang has said it is restarting the long-mothballed Yongbyon reactor, which is capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium, and has threatened to launch a rocket, a move seen internationally as a test of ballistic missile technology.

Asked whether Washington could respond credibly to North Korea after striking a deal to allow Iran’s nuclear program to continue, Kerry insisted it could.

“There will be severe consequences as we go forward if North Korea does not refrain from its irresponsible provocations that aggravate regional concerns, make the region less safe, and if it refuses to live up to its international obligations,” he said.

“Our position is clear: we will not accept a DPRK – North Korea – as a nuclear weapons state, just as we said that about Iran.”

Asked what the US could do if North Korea continued to flout bans on its nuclear and missile programs, Kerry said Kim Jong-un’s regime was already experiencing growing diplomatic isolation………

North Korea mothballed the Yongbyon reactor in 2007 under a six-nation aid-for-disarmament accord but began renovating it after its latest nuclear test in 2013.

When fully operational the reactor is capable of producing about 6kg (13lb) of plutonium a year – enough for one nuclear bomb, experts say. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/17/us-threatens-north-korea-with-severe-consequences-if-it-flouts-nuclear-ban

September 19, 2015 Posted by | North Korea, politics international, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Farewell to Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station?

nuclear-costs3Say goodbye to Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station? By Kristin Toussaint @kristindakota Boston.com Staff | 09.18.15 Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station—officially one of the worst-ranked nuclear plants in the country—might soon close if officials can’t afford to make it safer, according to The Boston Globe .

The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission downgraded the Plymouth facility earlier this month, marking it as one of the three least-safe plants in the country. The multimillion-dollar repairs required to improve safety might be out of reach for Pilgrim officials, the Globe reports, meaning the 43-year-old plant may close……..http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2015/09/18/say-goodbye-pilgrim-nuclear-power-station/ZHcZ4Y5gnhhGkXltyzQmbN/story.html

September 19, 2015 Posted by | general | Leave a comment