nuclear-news

Another worrying week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news:Photos show increasing numbers of rare one-horned rhinos in Indian national parkBritain’s butterflies bolstered by conservation efforts.     Indigenous rangers program doubles with $636 million boost .   Back from the brink: Tiny bush carnivore gets a new lease on life.       Ancient rock art site returned to Aboriginal owners — and they’re keen to share it, on their own terms. 

On the nuclear and military scene –   what a mess !  Yes, the Russian invasion is illegal and wrong. And yes, atrocities are being committed, and the Ukrainian people are suffering terribly.  But, I hope that people are becoming aware of the very carefully managed anglophone media coverage, which is emphasising human emotional stories, while not really covering the progress of the war, nor the USA resistance to peace talks..  No other invasion, such as those in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, has been media-manipulated in this way.

Meanwhile – inexplicably, Western governments are pushing for new nuclear reactors at the very time when Ukraine is demonstrating how terribly dangerous they are!

Julian Assange’s family tirelessly advocate for his freedom.

The information war that precedes and complements kinetic war — Anti-bellum .     Ukraine: Transfer of Power Balance from West to East.

. Chernobyl: radiation sickness in soldiers, theft of radioactive materials, wildfires – a frightening case of the multiple dangers of nuclear power. Ukraine Negotiations: No Fly Zone, Nukes, Neutrality, and Disarmament. Chris Hedges On Ukraine, Russia & NATO Urgent need to bring about new arms control agreements. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I6ZkPi6NSI

Depicting Putin as ‘Madman’ Eliminates Need for Diplomacy.      What is the current nuclear arms pact between Russia and the US?           The Red Scare, Viewpoint by Alice Slater.          Frenzy for selling bunkers, but they might not be much use, really.     How would a nuclear winter impact food production?

 Coastal communities across the world already feeling the impacts of climate change.    Climate crisis worsened by population and economic growth.  Nuclear on the ”frontline of climate change” – and not in a good way!

War in Ukraine has produced a new energy crisis. Energy efficiency is the fastest way to address this..

ANTARCTICA. Scientists caught off guard by massive ice shelf collapse in ‘coldest, driest’ part of Antarctica Hotter Antarctic summers posing increasing threat to stability of world’s largest ice sheet.

UKRAINE. Media coverage of the nuclear dangers in Ukraine often poorly informed and downplayed due to the influence of the pro nuclear lobby.       Ukraine, Poland discuss NATO “peacekeeping” force in Ukraine — Anti-bellum.    Russian troops pull out out of Chernobyl after suffering ”acute radiation sickness”.     Wide reporting on Russian soldiers affected by radiation, leaving Chernobyl.     Anxieties at Varash nuclear power station, and other ones in Ukraine – ”town smells of fear.”.

 Nuclear catastrophe threatened, as fires sweep through forests towards Chernobyl site.   7 wildfires in Chernobyl Exclusion zone exceed Ukraine’s emergency classification tenfold.        Head of IAEA to visit Chernobyl, as Russians withdraw from the site. Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense warns on radioactivity danger from the Chernobyl Excusion Zone.    UN nuclear watchdog chief in Ukraine for safety talks. U.S. ambassador incites Georgians to confront Russia — Anti-bellum.

Zelensky: Russia will be driven out of Caucasus, Transnistria, Crimea, all post-Soviet space — Anti-bellum

JAPAN. Construction projects surge at Fukushima nuclear plant despite decommissioning progress.

UK. 

•  Why UK Labour’s green policies are fatally undermined by its ‘nuclear first’ stance. New nuclear reactors will pose a bigger, hotter, more long-lasting waste problem. Getting bigger but not safer or cheaper – the myth of Rolls Royce and its very big non-modular reactor. UK government’s nuclear dream likely to fade away, as private investors resist that risky call. UK Business Secretary Kwarteng boasts about new nuclear plants, but admits that local consent will be needed.    Boris Johnson’s fixation on nuclear power is not justified by the facts, as Britain’s electricity demand continues to fall. UK’s energy security strategy delayed, as Cabinet split on nuclear power, and the Regulated Asset Base plan to pay for it. 
•  Hinkley Point C nuclear project faces more delays, increased costs. And more Hinkley delays. UK’s Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer srongly resisting Boris Johnson’s push for costly nuclear power. Boris Johnson beholden to the nuclear industry. That’s going to cost UK bigtime – Chancellor Sunak not happy. 
•  To wean UK off Russian gas – the key is energy efficiency + wind projects – not nuclear power, says new research.
• Spending £4bn on a new nuclear station at Sizewell will not solve the government’s energy problems. Stop Sizewell C campaigners query the government’s planning judgment , especially on costs. Sizewell new nuclear will not solve the government’s energy problems, but will punish the poorest. 
•   BAE shipyard – home to nuclear submarine construction ‘set to flood’ due to impact of climate change. Nuclear Free Local Authorities highlight the threat to Britain’s nuclear reactors, of rising sea levels and coastal erosion. Low-lying Dungeness threatened by climate change – sea level rise. 
•  Plaid Cymru Party in Wales sticking firmly to their anti-nuclear position.

USA. 

•   THE MADNESS OF THE RESURGENT US COLD WAR ON RUSSIA. Biden’s Reckless Words Underscore the Dangers of the U.S.’s Use of Ukraine As a Proxy War.    Caitlin Johnstone: The Target is China. Nearly half of Americans concerned about nuclear war amid Russia-Ukraine invasion. 
•  Progressive Lawmakers in US and Japan Demand No-First-Use Policy on Nukes. 
•  Pentagon: NATO executes military deployments to Russian border with unmatched speed. USA cancels ICBM missile test due to Russia nuclear tensions. 
•  Those yearning for regime change in Russia rarely consider what might come next. 
•  How corporate media has put the American public in a state of Ukraine-Russia psychosis.
• Nuland leads first U.S.-EU High-Level Dialogue on Russia meeting. Belarus, China also targeted. New Maidans planned. — Anti-bellum.
•   Biden administration shuts down Trump-era nuclear cruise missile program. Annual military spending approaching $1 trillion and U.S. still feels insecure.   Washington Should Think Twice Before Launching a New Cold War. Caitlin Johnstone: Re-Visiting Russiagate in Light of Ukraine War.        
• Air Force transforming away from ”unnecessary” aircraft towards more nuclear weapons. Space Force Gets Roughly 40% Increase in Biden Request. 
• Two sailors reportedly injured in accident on docked nuclear submarine. 

• Promoting nuclear risks to reduce greenhouse emissions is the classic jump from the frying pan into the fire! 
•  43rd anniversary of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident. 
•   NuScale’s small modular nuclear reactor – ”too late, too expensive, too risky and too uncertain” –  Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Nuclear is not the key to energy independence.

EUROPE. European Union lawmakers move to reject inclusion of nuclear energy as ‘green‘. NATO . concludes 30-nation strike force exercise in Norway — Anti-bellum . Growing resistance to EU proposal to label gas and nuclear as ”sustainable” energy .

FRANCE. Greenpeace activists storm French nuclear plant. Macron rubbing hands with glee as UK energy crisis means EDF poised for ‘£30bn payday‘. France pays the steep cost of inflexible and ageing nuclear as electricity prices soar.

NORWAY. Norway: NATO continues largest drills since Cold War off Russia’s coast — Anti-bellum

AFRICA. African nations condemn Ukraine’s recruiting mercenaries for “international legion” — Anti-bellum

GEORGIA. U.S. ambassador incites Georgians to confront Russia — Anti-bellum

ISRAEL. EU advisers urge full NATO membership for Israel — Anti-bellum

SWITZERLAND. . Scrutiny on Switzerland’s nuclear power industry- it gets uranium from Russia. Switzerland’s nuclear-war-readiness – bunkers for all.

CHINA. China call USA the ”Leading Instigator” of the Russia/Ukraine conflict.

NORTH KOREA. North Korea says Seoul ‘crazy’ to talk of preemptive strike on ‘nuclear power’ .

PORTUGAL. Portugal to speed up switch to renewable power in wake of Ukraine war .

AUSTRALIA. Australia’s Parliament has little control over military matters, and Prime Ministers kow tow to USA and the White Anglosphere to go to war.  Weapons corporations infiltrate our schools and charities, promoting war-mongering to our youth.    NATO Enhanced Opportunities Partner Australia to deliver armored vehicles to Ukraine — Anti-bellum.

April 4, 2022 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes