nuclear-news

“Four state agencies request that Federal Energy Regulatory Commission halt construction of the Algonquin Pipeline until the independent risk review is completed,” as requested by Governor Cuomo: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-directs-immediate-independent-safety-analysis-algonquin-pipeline-near-indian



Yellow highlight added. Original PDF is here: https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/governor.ny.gov/files/atoms/files/FERC_AIM_LetterFinal.pdf

Thanks to FC for the heads up. See: “Indian Point Protesters Stop Pipeline Across Failing Nuke Plant” https://flyingcuttlefish.wordpress.com/2016/02/29/indian-pt-5/

World:

¶ Work is nearing completion on what will soon be Europe’s largest floating solar power farm. But few are likely to see the 23,000 solar panels on the Queen Elizabeth II reservoir near London. It is invisible to all but Heathrow passengers and a few flats in neighbouring estates. [The Guardian]

Divers fix anchors onto the bed of the reservoir.
Photograph: Martin Godwin for the Guardian

¶ SunEdison and a subsidiary of the state-owned Chinese company Jinneng Group, Jinergy Clean Energy Technology Company, are partnering for the creation of a 1.5 gigawatt integrated N-type mono-crystalline hetero-junction solar cell production facility in Shanxi, China. [CleanTechnica]

¶ The 56 MW Moree Solar Farm is feeding electricity into Australia’s National Electricity Market network. Spain’s Fotowatio Renewable Ventures developed and constructed the project. It deploys single axis tracking and is the largest solar project using crystalline silicon PV modules…

Former TEPCO executives were indicted on Monday, 29 Feb., 2016, over TEPCO’s Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, and are expected to be put on trial next year. This is upon insistence by a Japan Citizens’ Panel. Japan’s Citizens’ Panels were “introduced after World War Two to curb bureaucratic overreach“, according to Reuters (29-Feb-2016).

“Former Tepco execs indicted over Fukushima nuclear disaster
Posted:Mon, 29 Feb 2016 07:31:00 GMT
TOKYO (Reuters) – Three former Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco) executives were indicted on Monday for failing to take safety measures to prevent the nuclear disaster at Fukushima Daiichi plant in 2011, a Tokyo District Court official said.” http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/environment/~3/jkWFVh88ty0/story01.htm
[Update: According to this article the trial could be as soon as 6 months: https://miningawareness.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/tepco-boss-indictment-major-step-for-justice-trial-may-reveal-hidden-info-about-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/%5D

Is this the opening of a new period of justice? Is the period of flagrant impunity of bureaucrats and corporate executives coming to an end? Bad people beware!…

On Friday, the District of Columbia’s utility regulators dealt what may end up being a fatal blow to Exelon’s bid to buy local utility Pepco and become the largest utility in the country. Or maybe not. In a complex decision that almost literally gave those of us in the room whiplash, the Public Service Commission:

• Rejected a controversial deal submitted by the corporations and DC’s Mayor, Muriel Bowser, and agreed to by several other parties. To which the whole room cheered.
• And then immediately after, the commission offered amended terms by a 2-1 vote. If all of the parties accept the terms within two weeks, the PSC would automatically approve Exelon’s purchase of Pepco, with no further review or vote required.

This set off a lot of speculation about how quickly or easily the deal would be approved. We are happy to report that hasty judgments that Exelon…