nuclear-news

Nuclear news – week to 16 November

As in last week. the media continues to be preoccupied with the American presidential situation, and after all, that IS pretty important.  The really big global stories are the global coronavirus and climate change.

Still, nuclear issues continue – simmering tensions in nuclear weapons states, and the remarkably co-ordinated promotion of Small Nuclear Reactors to governments around the world, in both rich and developing countries.  The nuclear-news.net  site will now have to stick to just NUCLEAR news.

 Some bits of good news –          Vaccine Alliance Raises $2 Billion to Buy COVID Shots for Poor Nations. Renewable Energy Defies COVID-19 Downturn To Hit Record Growth in 2020.

Hibakusha renew their push for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

Julian Assange ‘targeted as a political opponent of Trump administration and threatened with the death penalty’.

Topics in today’s “Nuclear” headlines on Google News.

JAPAN.   TEPCO claims it is running out of space to store radioactive water and simply must discharge it into the Pacific.  Over one million tons of radioactive water will be discharged into the sea from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Disposal plan all at sea? apan’s nuclear regulator maintains view on Fukushima reactor 3 blasts.  Radioactive Isotopes Measured at Olympic and Paralympic Venues in Fukushima Prefecture and Tokyo, Japan.

Governor of Miyagi Prefecture approves plan to restart Onagawa nuclear reactor. Japanese govt rules out new nuclear reactors for 10 years.

USA.

• Biden and Harris include fantasy of ”small nuclear reactors” in an otherwise progressive climate policy.  Harris and Biden – what are their views on nuclear power? Joe Biden’s Transition Announcements largely skirt nuclear power, waste issues. Predicting Biden’s attitude and actions on the big nuclear weapons issues.
• The nuclear perils of Trump’s last days. We should require a second voice when it comes to ordering first use of nuclear arms.
• American universities in the US nuclear weapons complex.   Kings Bay Plowshares peace activists get lighter sentences than expected.  The human impact of ”Trinity” and a thousand other nuuclear bomb tests on American soil. Project Pluto – The USA devised an apocalyptic nuclear weapon – the Supersonic Low Altitude Missile or SLAM.
• U.S. nuclear security administrator resigns – lost the confidence of Donald Trump?
• Ohio Attorney General takes legal action to stop nuclear bailout. –Federal utility fined $900K for nuclear violations, coverup.
• In New Jersey, ratepayers form Association to stop the bailing out of nuclear power.  Quite a lot of hurdles for NuScam’s Utah project, and only 27 of UAMPS members signed up.
• Long-delayed remediation of a nuclear waste site near Pittsburgh.

UK.

• Rolls Royce and Exelon get together to market ‘small’ nuclear reactors.  Small nuclear reactor plan by Rolls Royce consortium – not likely to be economically feasible.  Relentless lobbying by Small Nuclear Reactor companies still doesn’t make them economic or safe.
• Suffolk County Council raised over 50 concerns about the Sizewell nuclear project, but UK govt going ahead anyway?  UK’s Royal Society for the Protection of Birds condemns the Sizewell nuclear project. Guardians of UK’s precious habitat in Suffolk are fearful of government decision on Sizewell nuclear plan.
•  Consortium wants to take over Wylfa nuclear power project – includes Bechtel, Southern Comapny and Westinghouse.
• China’s ambition to build Bradwell nuclear plant in Essex will likely fail on  national security grounds.
• Hunterston nuclear reactor allowed to restart, despite increasing cracks in the graphite core.
• Dismantling of Trawsfynydd nuclear power plant held back due to coronavirus outbreak.

MIDDLE EAST.  Financial problems, proliferation concerns put the brakes on nuclear development in the Middle East.

EUROPE.  U.S and Russia battling it out to market new nuclear reactors to Eastern Europe countries.
Source: UxC Research.  New European Court of Auditors report has concerns about the EU’s nuclear fusion project.

BELARUS.  Belarus shuts down its newly inaugurated nuclear power plant to replace equipment.

IRAN. Iran’s president calls on Biden to return to nuclear deal.  Iran moderates hail Biden win, but any nuclear talks expected to be fraught.

SOUTH AFRICA. NuScam pushing to sell its ”small” nuclear reactors to South Africa.

INDIA. Nuclear lobby gets its tentacles into education in India

RUSSIA. Putin and officials discuss huge new underground bunker almost completed.   Russia shuts down West Russian nuclear reactor.

CANADA.  Canada’s Greens call on federal government to abandon nuclear and invest in renewables.

AUSTRALIA.  Senate dumps on the Australian government’s radioactive waste plan.

November 16, 2020 - Posted by Christina MacPherson | Christina's notes