2018 September 26 « nuclear-news

Magical thinking about nuclear waste – but that doesn’t solve the problem

A conversation with Dr. Gordon Edwards: contemporary issues in the Canadian nuclear industry, and a look back at the achievements of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR), http://www.ccnr.org/ Montreal, August 25, 2018, Nuclear waste management: an exercise in cynical thinking. DiaNuke.org, 24 Sept 18, Dennis Riches (DR): Instead of a question I thought we would ask you to comment on something that has been published by an organization called Waste Management Symposia (Waste Management Symposia Inc. http://www.wmsym.org/wm2019 ). They are a non-profit organization, but they seem to be something that was set up by the nuclear industry so that different players in the field could get together and talk about waste management issues. They have a symposium coming up in March of 2019

Gordon Edwards (GE): Well it’s an exercise in cynical thinking……….Of course, the problem is that there’s no way of destroying this stuff. There’s no way of getting rid of it that is technically or economically feasible, so all we’re really doing is repackaging. We’re not getting rid of it, and of course the packages do not last forever, so you can’t eliminate this liability by simply repackaging it and moving it from one place to another. It may be justified on the basis of environmental protection—for example, moving it away from waterways and so on so as to have less opportunity for the material to be dispersed, but once again you really can’t get rid of it. So the with language itself, they talk about “disposal.” Disposal implies that you somehow magically eliminate or get rid of this waste when in fact all you’re doing is reconstituting it in a different form, a different physical form, a different chemical form, but generally not changing the nature of the problem fundamentally.

2. Private solutions for public problemsSo when the last government approached this problem they decided, being Conservative, that it’s better to get private enterprises to look after these things, so they hired a consortium of multinational corporations to solve the problem for us, and in the absence of any policy—the trouble is that Canada has absolutely no policy regarding any nuclear waste except for the irradiated nuclear fuel itself………..

3. Early days: ignorance about nuclear wasteBut if we just back off on all this, the way my organization sees the picture, my organization being the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, which formed in the early 1970s—Well, basically in 1974 we formed, and from our view, the first thirty years of the nuclear age were characterized by a total ignorance about nuclear waste. That is, the public was not informed that there was such a thing as nuclear waste and the decision-makers who authorized the spending of billions of dollars in building a nuclear infrastructure and nuclear reactors were also not informed that this was a major unsolved problem. So it was basically a lie

Nuclear energy was presented as an absolutely clean energy source and people interpreted that to mean, “Hey, no problem. There is no waste.” When it became clear that it is, in fact, the most dangerous industrial waste ever produced on the face of the earth, in the form of the irradiated nuclear fuel, the industry then embarked upon a second lie which was, “Yes, we do have this waste product, the irradiated fuel, and it is very dangerous, and it is essentially indestructible, but we know exactly what to do with it. We know how to solve the problem, and the solution is simply to stick it underground in an undisturbed geological formation and then it’s all safe. We just walk away from it, and no problem.”

4. Belated realization of the problemWell, of course, that was then and this is now, and in the light of experience in the intervening years… In the mid-1970s there was a series of reports in Canada, the United Kingdom, the USA and other countries calling attention to this nuclear waste problem and basically saying quite plainly that unless this problem could be adequately solved that there should be no more nuclear power plants built. So I call this the nuclear ultimatum. It was really an ultimatum to the nuclear industry: You do not have a future if you don’t solve this problem. And because the industry said that they knew what to do with it, the expectation was that they could solve it in ten or twenty years. It would only take ten or twenty years……….

DR: But it seems like they want to keep up the impression that the solution is being worked on. It’s underway. As long as they can keep doing that, the nuclear plants can keep running.

GE: That’s correct, and people have been bamboozled by this empty promise really, and of course it’s become increasingly clear. There have been eight attempts in the United States to locate a high-level waste repository, all of which have failed. There have been two underground repositories in Germany which have failed, for low-level and intermediate-level waste. There’s no facility anywhere in the world which is operational for high-level waste, although there are some that have been built like the one in Finland, for example, near Olkiluoto.

5. Barbaric plans for nuclear wasteAnd now we have this consortium of private companies that has come into Canada to deal with not the irradiated nuclear fuel, but the decommissioning waste and the other post-fission waste, and they have come up with what we consider to be barbaric suggestions.One of them is to, just less than one kilometer from a major river—the Ottawa River which flows into the St. Lawrence River and which comes right down here to Montreal flowing through the nation’s capital—they wanted to build a gigantic mound, basically a surface facility, which is simply a landfill, nothing more than a glorified landfill, and put all the low-level and intermediate-level waste into this one facility which would be five to seven stories high and cover an area which would be equivalent to 70 major-league hockey rinks, and this would basically have no solidity to it. It would be just a mound, an earthen mound of radioactive waste, about million cubic meters.

There has been a massive outcry over this. For example, the twenty-eight communities which make up the municipality of Montreal, as an agglomeration of municipalities, have all come out unanimously against this project. And there are over a hundred municipalities up and down the Ottawa River.

DR: How about Ottawa itself?

GE: No, not Ottawa itself, unfortunately. Most of the opposition has come from the Quebec side of the border. There has been far, far less opposition on the Ontario side. Of course, Ontario is also largely dependent upon nuclear power and so that may be the reason why.

We do not find that Canada has produced any enviable plans for nuclear waste disposal. On the contrary, we feel that they’re setting a terrible example for the rest of the world, and we are fighting to stop it cold in its tracks. We actually had a press conference just last week in Ottawa, just the last few days, in fact, and a march and a demonstration and so on, calling upon the federal government to stop these plans which are underway right now.

6. In situ abandonment of nuclear facilitiesIn addition to piling up the waste on the surface, as I was mentioning, in a huge mound, they’re also planning to take four prototype nuclear reactors, or at least two of those four (they haven’t talked about the other two), and use a process of entombment whereby they will simply dump all the radioactive waste from the reactor itself into the sub-basement and then flood the interior of the building with concrete and turn it into a concrete mausoleum, very close to various rivers, including the Ottawa River, and the Winnipeg River in Manitoba. This they call in situ decommissioning. What it means is that you are taking a facility which was originally licensed to house a nuclear reactor, and you’re turning it into a permanent nuclear waste repository, even though it was never chosen with that in mind. It never went through the examination, the scrutiny, and the qualification that would be associated with a permanent waste repository. And yet that’s what they’re planning to do: just wave their magic wand and turn it from a reactor into a waste repository. We are totally opposed to this, and we’re mobilizing citizen opposition to it……….

7. Wrong people in charge, telling rather than consultingThe nuclear industry wants to abandon these wastes because they cannot possibly look after them for the period of time we’re talking about. Who can really? But we feel that they’re the wrong people to be in charge of this because they have a clear conflict of interest, and this conflict of interest manifests itself in many different ways.

There has been no consultation with Canadians to arrive at these plans. These plans have been announced, and then there have been meetings to inform the public of what they’re planning to do, with no opportunity to change those plans other than to criticize them. Basically it is regarded as a fait accompli.

DR: Yeah, in Japan they call those setsumeikai—explanatory meetings, which means it goes in one direction—we’re explaining to you what’s going to happen.

GE: Yeah. This is by no means a consultation. And we’re calling upon the Canadian government to actually stop these plans and to launch true consultations with Canadians and with First Nations, and to follow up on the recommendations that have been made by several independent bodies in Canada, all of which have recommended that there should be a nuclear waste agency completely independent from the nuclear industry and which has on its board of directors major stakeholders, including First Nations people, in order to ensure that the sole efforts of this organization should be the protection of the public and the environment, and not the furtherance of the nuclear industry, the promotion of expansion of the nuclear industry, which is what the consortium is interested in……….https://www.dianuke.org/a-conversation-with-dr-gordon-edwards-contemporary-issues-in-the-canadian-nuclear-industry-and-a-look-back-at-the-achievements-of-the-canadian-coalition-for-nuclear-responsibility-ccnr-http-ww/

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, wastes | 1 Comment

Vogtle nuclear project: another multibillion-dollar cost overrun, owners vote to continue

ATLANTA (AP) — The Latest on budget overruns in construction of a Georgia nuclear power facility U.S.News 24 Sept 18

The nation’s only major nuclear power plant under construction appears to still be alive after the owners voted to push forward despite another multibillion-dollar cost overrun.

But Oglethorpe Power says they’re only willing to move forward with the construction of two new reactors at the Vogtle nuclear power plant near Waynesboro, Georgia if cost-control measures are implemented.

It is unclear how the other utilities that own a stake in the project will respond to the conditions.

The Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Georgia Power, the other two primary owners of the project, had previously said they’re willing to move forward.

The project is billions of dollars over budget and years behind schedule.

A similar project in South Carolina died in July 2017 when the V.C. Summer plant was abandoned after going billions of dollars over budget.The board of a Georgia utility has voted to continue the expansion of a nuclear power plant that’s years behind schedule and billons of dollars over budget.

The Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia’s board voted unanimously Monday to continue building two new reactors at the Vogtle nuclear power plant near Waynesboro.

That leaves one co-owner, Oglethorpe Power, left to decide whether to move forward or abandon the project.

A third owner, Georgia Power, already indicated it’s ready to push forward.

The critical votes came after a new $2.3 billion cost increase was recognized, bringing the total estimated cost to $27 billion. That triggered a clause in the ownership agreement where 90 percent of ownership needs to agree to forward.

A down vote from Oglethorpe Power could sink the project. Oglethorpe Power is expected to vote on it later this week…….https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/georgia/articles/2018-09-24/the-latest-georgia-nuclear-plant-gets-tentative-up-vote

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | Leave a comment

Japan’s push for nuclear energy – court allows a reactor restart, but other legal actions are pending.

Japan Court Allows Nuclear Reactor to Reopen in Boost to Abe’s Energy Push, Bloomberg, By Stephen Stapczynski and Chisaki Watanabe, September 25, 2018,

Shikoku Elec.to restart Ikata No. 3 reactor on October 27 Government seeks to restore industry after Fukushima disaster

A Japanese court paved the way for the nation’s ninth nuclear reactor to restart, boosting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to bring dozens of plants back online following the 2011 Fukushima disaster.

The Hiroshima High Court on Tuesday removed a temporary injunction against Shikoku Electric Power Co.’s Ikata No. 3 reactor, the company said in a statement. While the injunction ordered in December would end this month — meaning the utility could have restart the plant from Oct. 1 — the ruling is a symbolic victory for the government, which has often seen the courts stymie efforts to accelerate nuclear restarts.

Policy makers are seeking to restore the nation’s nuclear industry amid efforts to reduce reliance on costly fossil-fuel imports and cut carbon emissions. The battle in Japan over nuclear power has moved mostly to the courts, which have been used by groups opposed to the technology to keep plants shut. Seven of the nation’s 39 operable nuclear units are currently online, while one is under planned maintenance.

…….. There are roughly three dozen lawsuits pending against Japan’s nuclear facilities and the decision in favor of the utility may have some influence on future rulings, according to Datsugenpatsu Bengodan, a group of lawyers who oppose nuclear power. A nationwide survey by Mainichi Newspaper in February show the restart of nuclear reactors was opposed by almost half of the respondents, while about a third of them approved.

Last year, in a separate case, a Japanese high court overturned an injunction in place since March 2016 that barred Kansai Electric from operating two reactors at its Takahama facility in western Japan. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-25/japan-court-rules-shikoku-electric-can-restart-nuclear-reactor

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, legal | Leave a comment

Six hundred Lake Superiors needed to dilute nuclear waste to a safe level

A conversation with Dr. Gordon Edwards: contemporary issues in the Canadian nuclear industry, and a look back at the achievements of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR), http://www.ccnr.org/ Montreal, August 25, 2018, Nuclear waste management: an exercise in cynical thinking. DiaNuke.org, 24 Sept 18, 2. “……. Six hundred Lake Superiors needed to dilute nuclear waste to a safe levelThe Ontario government had a Royal Commission on electric power planning back in the 70s, and they made this comparison. They said, “Look, just to try and get an idea or try to communicate the toxicity of this material, let’s ask this question: If you took one year’s worth of spent fuel from one CANDU reactor only, and if you wanted to dissolve this in water to the point where the water was contaminated to the maximum legal degree permitted, the maximum degree of contamination for drinking water, how much water would you need for one year’s worth from one reactor?” And the answer is approximately the volume of Lake Superior. So now you multiply that by 600 because we have 20 reactors operating each for 30 years, so it’s 600 times. 600 Lake Superiors! Well, nobody has that much fresh water, so the only purpose of that calculation is simply to highlight the disparity between what we normally think of as toxic and what we must acknowledge as toxic in this setting.

13. No solution assumedSo in my organization, the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, we feel that it is wrong to assume that there is a solution. We do not know that there is a solution. These proposed solutions are really untested ideas, and in fact, there is not even a scientific definition of the word disposal. If you look at the IAEA, at the nuclear industry’s definition of disposal, all it says is they have no intention of retrieving it. That’s a political definition, not a scientific definition. There is no scientific criterion which allows you to say, if you check the boxes, “Yes, disposal has been achieved.” In other words, that we have achieved this goal of disposal. We’re really conducting experiments on the planet on the assumption that we can achieve a goal which has never been achieved by the human race ever before. We’ve never actually disposed of anything in the whole history, and now we think that we can dispose of the most toxic material we’ve ever created. So how come we can do it now when we never could before, to truly dispose of this material?………..https://www.dianuke.org/a-conversation-with-dr-gordon-edwards-contemporary-issues-in-the-canadian-nuclear-industry-and-a-look-back-at-the-achievements-of-the-canadian-coalition-for-nuclear-responsibility-ccnr-http-ww/

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, wastes | Leave a comment

Don’t miss this conversation with Dr Gordon Edwards – about Canada’s nuclear wastes

A conversation with Dr. Gordon Edwards: contemporary issues in the Canadian nuclear industry, and a look back at the achievements of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR), http://www.ccnr.org/ Montreal, August 25, 2018, DIANUKE.ORG, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
Introduction.

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Reference | Leave a comment

Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge is now open, but radiation fears remain.

Colorado wildlife refuge at old nuclear plant is open – for now, Euro News, By Reuters• last 25/09/2018 By Keith Coffman, ROCKY FLATS, Colo. (Reuters) – “….Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge since it opened on Sept 15.

The unique prairie ecosystem, is home to 239 wildlife species, ranging from elk and mule deer to black bears, cougars, numerous bird species, and monarch butterflies, Lucas said.

It’s unclear how long the refuge will remain open.

Five environmental and community activist groups have sued the government, arguing the Rocky Flats refuge should be closed until more testing is done. A judge last month rejected their request to delay the opening while the lawsuit is heard.

The suit is pending in Denver federal court.

The Rocky Flats plutonium plant had a history of fires, and radioactive spills during its 37 years in operation before shutting down permanently in 1989 during a criminal investigation into environmental violations.

Now that it’s a refuge, its 10.2 miles (16.4 km) of trails are open to naturalists, hikers, cyclists and equestrians. About 1,300 acres (526 hectares) immediately surrounding the old production facility is permanently closed off to the public……

REMNANT PLUTONIUM

In the lawsuit, pending before U.S. District Judge Philip Brimmer, opponents of the refuge argue that a $7.7 billion Superfund cleanup overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency was flawed and a new environmental study should be conducted.

“Our case will clearly demonstrate that the government does not have an up-to-date assessment of risks to the environment and human health from allowing unlimited public visits to the refuge,” Randall Weiner, an attorney for the coalition, told Reuters.

Human activity could stir up remnant plutonium, which if ingested by refuge visitors or residents downwind can cause cancer, Weiner said………

Rocky Flat’s demise began in 1989, when FBI agents and EPA investigators raided the plant based on a whistleblower’s tip that contractors were illegally disposing of hazardous materials.

The contractor at the time, Rockwell International Corp., pleaded guilty to violating environmental laws and paid $18.5 million in fines. In 2015, Rockwell and the plant’s previous contractor, Dow Chemical Co., paid $375 million to 12,000 homeowners downwind from the plant after a federal jury found the companies were liable for devaluing their properties due to plutonium releases.

It is unknown when Judge Brimmer will rule on the current lawsuit, but it may not end the controversy. The losing party could appeal and a lawsuit filed by the nearby town of Superior seeking to close the refuge is in its early stages. https://www.euronews.com/2018/09/25/colorado-wildlife-refuge-at-old-nuclear-plant-is-open-for-now

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | legal, USA | Leave a comment

Russia and USA will talk about extending New START nuclear weapons treaty

US and Russia to discuss nuclear weapons treaty extension in October https://www.ft.com/content/b26d62fe-c0a1-11e8-95b1-d36dfef1b89a, Henry Foy in Moscow

Russia and the US will hold talks on a potential extension to the New START nuclear weapons treaty in Geneva in October, a Russian official said on Tuesday. The future of bilateral treaties that govern the use of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles is one of the most critical issues in US-Russia relations. Experts have warned that the recent breakdown in relations between Washington and Moscow could jeopardise longstanding agreements on so-called ‘strategic stability’ that were designed to prevent nuclear armageddon.

New START, a 2010 agreement that limits the number of nuclear warheads held by both countries, expires in February 2021. Separately, both capitals have accused the other of breaching the 1987 INF Treaty, which limits the use of long-range missiles. “It is absolutely realistic to reach an agreement on an extension [to New START], if there is political will on the part of the American side. There are readiness from the Russian side,” said Vladimir Yermakov, director of the department of non-proliferation and arms control at the Russian foreign ministry. “We have given suggestions on how to do this, and in a couple of weeks we will meet in Geneva within the framework of a bilateral advisory commission,” he added, in comments reported by local newswires.

The US and Russia possess 13,300 nuclear warheads between them, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, 92 per cent of the world’s stockpile. New START’s terms allow for a five-year extension, and experts have suggested that writing a whole new agreement would not be possible before its expiry. Regarding the INF Treaty, Mr Yermakov said Russia was “ready to discuss any issues relating to the treaty with our American partners, in any format.” Mr Yermakov added that there was “not a very big possibility” of Russian signing any brand new arms control agreements in the next few years.

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics international, Russia, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Extremely high radiation doses threaten the plan to colonise Mars

Can humans survive on Mars? Scientists fear RADIATION threatens NASA Mars missions

NASA astronauts who could one day head to Mars will be exposed to incredibly high doses of radiation – a risk that could jeopardise the safety of future Mars missions.

Express, UK, By SEBASTIAN KETTLEY Sep 23, 2018 Intense levels of radiation on Mars could expose the first astronauts on the Red Planet to at least 60 percent of the recommended radiation dose limit.

Here on Earth, the planet’s magnetic field and atmosphere protect humans from absorbing deadly cosmic rays and atoms speeding through space.

Mars, however, has not had a magnetic field of its own since it collapsed for unknown reasons billion of years ago.

This could expose astronauts and Martian colonisers to radiation sickness, increased risk of developing cancer, degenerative diseases and central nervous system problems.

Jordanka Semkova of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, who leads a team of scientists manning an orbital Liulin-MO dosimeter over Mars, said the future of all Mars missions depends on how space agencies can combat this.

She said: “One of the basic factors in planning and designing a long-duration crewed mission to Mars is consideration of the radiation risk.

“Radiation doses accumulated by astronauts in interplanetary space would be several hundreds times larger than the doses accumulated by humans over the same time period on Earth, and several times larger than the doses of astronaut and cosmonauts working on the International Space Station.

“Our results show that the journey itself would provide very significant exposure for the astronauts to radiation.”

The findings were presented this week at the European Planetary Science Congress 2018 in partnership with the European Space Agency.

The journey itself would provide very significant exposure for the astronauts to radiation

Jordanka Semkova, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

According to the results, a 12-month-long round trip to Mars and back would expose astronauts to about 60 percent of the recommended radiation dosage for their entire career.

In space, millions of atoms and particles from the Sun and from outside of the solar system barrel through space at near the speed of light.

When exposed to unprotected human bodies, the particles violently tear through DNA, causing all sorts of genetic problems to arise.

Damaged DNA molecules can trigger cancers cells to grow, impair vision and cause the heart to fall ill.

During the course of just one week on the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts are exposed to roughly the equivalent of one year of radiation on Earth.

According to the ESA, astronauts who have been going into space since the 1960s have been reporting flashes of light even when they close their eyes.

These flashes are believed to be cosmic rays passing through the eye and triggering a response in the retina……….https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1021623/NASA-Mars-mission-can-humans-survive-radiation-space

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, technology | Leave a comment

Despite huge delays and cost overruns Britain’s nuclear weapons consortium paid itself £70m of dividends

Sunday Times 23rd Sept 2018 , Aldermaston, The consortium that runs Britain’s nuclear weapons factory paid itself
£70m of dividends last year despite huge delays and cost overruns on a key
project. AWE Management paid the dividends to its shareholders — the
giants Serco, Jacobs and Lockheed Martin — which have a long-term
contract to run the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE).

AWE, which develops and builds the nuclear warheads that arm the navy’s Trident submarine
fleet, came under fire from the government’s spending watchdog in May.
The National Audit Office said an upgrade to AWE’s warhead assembly
facility in Berkshire was six years late and costs had spiralled from
£734m in 2011 to £1.8bn.

AWE has also been at loggerheads with the
nuclear safety watchdog, which, in July, prosecuted the company over an
incident last year in which an electrician was injured. At a court hearing
last week, AWE admitted failing to ensure the safety of its staff. It is
due to be sentenced in November.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/business/navy-nuke-maker-awe-pays-70m-dividend-lvthpcwkj

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, UK, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nations continue to work on nuclear security

Washington Post 21st Sept 2018 WHILE MUCH of the world is justifiably anxious about North Korea’s rise
as a nuclear weapons power, and the doomsday talk can be jarring, there is
a glimmer of good news in the latest biennial index of nuclear security
prepared by the Nuclear Threat Initiative, published Sept. 5. The report
shows that, though the last nuclear security summit was two years ago,
nations are continuing to work toward properly securing fissile material
and vulnerable nuclear sites.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/gdpr-consent/?destination=%2fopinions%2fthe-nuclear-threat-is-real–but-at-least-many-governments-are-taking-it-seriously%2f2018%2f09%2f21%2febe379e6-b13e-11e8-9a6a-565d92a3585d_story.html

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, safety | Leave a comment

Protest at Faslane, Scotland, against nuclear weapons

The National 23rd Sept 2018 ,SUNSHINE and a rainbow reflected the positive vibes at the Nae Nukes
Anywhere’ peaceful protest march from the peace camp in Faslane
yesterday, led by Scottish makar Jackie Kay. More 600 people from around
the world and of all ages gathered at Trident’s military base at the
gates of HMNB Clyde to urge governments around the world to ban nuclear
weapons.
http://www.thenational.scot/news/16897005.more-than-600-anti-nuclear-campaigners-stage-peace-walk-at-faslane/

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | opposition to nuclear, UK | Leave a comment

Suggestions that Europe may develop its own nuclear weapons

Express 23rd Sept 2018 THE European Union may try to adopt its own independent nuclear deterrent
following the apparent breakdown of its relationship with Donald Trump,
experts warned last night. It follows comments by French president Emmanuel
Macron that the EU must be in a position to guarantee its own territorial
security, amid fears that the US has become “Europe-weary” over its
Nato commitment.
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1021456/eu-nuclear-power-security-brexit-politics-uk-us-france

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | EUROPE, weapons and war | Leave a comment

China drafting laws to promote marketing of nuclear reactors overseas

Euro News 22nd Sept 2018 , China will provide more support for its nuclear firms to go overseas and strengthen their position on the international market, according to new
draft legislation submitted to the industry for consultation on Friday.
“The state will encourage and support the positive and orderly
participation of its enterprises in the international market” and promote
the export of nuclear equipment, fuel and services, the draft Atomic Energy
Law says.

China aims to bring its total installed nuclear capacity to 58
gigawatts (GW) by the end of 2020, up from 37 GW at the end of June this
year, but it also has ambitions to dominate the global market and has
created a unified third-generation reactor brand known as the “Hualong One”
to sell overseas. China has already signed a series of preliminary
agreements with countries like Brazil, Argentina, Uganda and Cambodia and
it is also undergoing a technical approval process for the Hualong One in
Britain.
https://www.euronews.com/2018/09/22/china-drafts-new-nuclear-energy-law-focus-on-international-market

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | China, marketing | Leave a comment

French film docuementary – “Nuclear power – the end of a myth”

Public Senat 22nd Sept 2018 By 2028, 34 of the 58 reactors will be celebrating their fortieth
anniversary, the maximum operating age set during the construction of the
park. EDF over-indebted does not have the means to replace these reactors
at the end of their life.

This film tells how France, by political choice,
became totally dependent on nuclear energy until it got into a dangerous
impasse. This film also shows that, at the same time as the aging of
nuclear power plants, several strategic dams at EDF are showing some
worrying signs of weakness.

Who were the players in this nuclear power
strategy? How was it imposed behind the scenes of the State, what were the
key moments? What are the real reasons and risks today for extending the
life of the fleet in operation? A rigorous investigation at the heart of
the French nuclear machine with the testimonies of the various actors of
the sector.
https://www.publicsenat.fr/emission/documentaires/nucleaire-la-fin-d-un-mythe-132557

Liberation 21st Sept 2018, [Machine Translation] The utopia of French nuclear energy dismantled, from
the “Messmer plan” to the EPR. Public Senate broadcasts this Saturday night
“Nuclear, the end of a myth”, a new docu supported on the flaws of the atom
industry. A useful light at a time when the government must decide on the
future of its reactors. The demolition of the French nuclear “model” and
its national narrative has become a popular subject. After the Big Lie seen
on Arte (who attacked the taboo of an attack on power plants) and Impasse
broadcast by France 5 (which told how the damn shipyard EPR reactor is
“sinking” EDF), here is Nuclear, the end of a myth, that we can discover
this Saturday at 9 pm on Public Senate.
https://www.liberation.fr/france/2018/09/21/l-utopie-du-nucleaire-francais-demantelee-du-plan-messmer-a-l-epr_1680417

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, Resources -audiovicual | Leave a comment

Argentina’s nuclear power industry in trouble

FT 24th Sept 2018 , Argentina’s long-established nuclear power industry is facing financial
difficulties as the government seeks to balance the budget. This could
delay important projects, not least as Argentina aims to be a player in
what may well develop into a growing global market for small-scale
reactors. The national industry began much thanks to a German scientist
described by some as a fantasist and a scammer. In the late 1940s, Ronald
Richter convinced Argentina’s President Juan Domingo Perón to underwrite
research, at a secret lab in Patagonia, into building what he called a
Thermotron. After three years and spending about $410m in today’s money,
the project proved a failure that eventually landed Richter in jail for
fraud.
https://www.ft.com/content/d138b4a8-95b4-11e8-95f8-8640db9060a7

September 26, 2018 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, SOUTH AMERICA | Leave a comment

nuclear-news

The News That Matters about the Nuclear Industry Fukushima Chernobyl Mayak Three Mile Island Atomic Testing Radiation Isotope