Irish National Trust loses court bid to stop UK’s Hinkley nuclear power plant
An Taisce loses bid in UK High Court to block nuclear plant plans http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/1220/494160-taisce-nuclear-appeal/, 20 December 2013 An Taisce has lost its bid in London’s High Court to overturn plans for a new nuclear power station on the west coast of England.
An Taisce brought a challenge over the legality of the decision in March by the UK Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to grant development consent for the project at Hinkley Point in Somerset, which is around 150 miles from Ireland.
Its lawyers told Mrs Justice Patterson that there was a failure to undertake “transboundary consultation” with the Irish people beforehand as required by the European Commission’s Environmental Impact Assessment Directive.
Mrs Justice Patterson found against An Taisce’s claim, and refused leave for Judicial Review.
An Taisce Policy Director James Nix commented: “We are studying the judgment with our legal team and considering our options.”
Court rules that company must pay uranium clean-up costs
Company held liable for uranium clean up costs on Navajo Nation http://www.daily-times.com/four_corners-news/ci_24745579/company-held-liable-uranium-clean-up-costs-navajo
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Allan Gropper decided last Thursday that Anadarko Petroleum Corp. is liable for billions of dollars in environmental cleanup costs, including uranium mines and mills that were once operated on the Navajo Nation by the Kerr-McGee Corp. However, Anadarko officials say the decision is not final and have indicated they will appeal. Continue reading
US Navymen lose federal case on Fukushima radiation
Judge dismisses sailor radiation case UTS San Diego Door open for follow-on lawsuit; attorney says he will refile with more plaintiffs
By Jeanette Steele.DEC. 17, 2013 A San Diego federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit alleging that U.S. sailors were exposed to dangerous radiation during the humanitarian response to the March 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami.
But Judge Janis L. Sammartino left the door open for a follow-on lawsuit, and the attorney representing several sailors from the San Diego-based aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan said he intends to refile. The judge dismissed the case Nov. 26 on jurisdictional grounds, saying that it was beyond her authority to determine whether the Japanese government had perpetrated a fraud on its American counterpart.
The defendant in the December 2012 case was Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
The lawsuit argued that power company officials lied about the amount of leakage from the damaged plant, in concert with the government of Japan. It says the Navy used those reports in its own calculations about the safety of U.S. sailors in the relief effort, called Operation Tomodachi……http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/dec/17/reagan-radiation-lawsuit-dismissed-tomodachi
Indian families lose legal case over land taken for nuclear
HC rejects PIL for jobs for land losers in Nuclear plant TNN | Dec 15, 2013, AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat high court has turned down a PIL demanding jobs for families whose land had been taken over for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Kakrapar in south Gujarat. The court rejected the PIL on the ground that the petition was filed 24 years after the project took off and nearly 40 years after the land was acquired.
Residents of Moticher and Unchamata villageshad filed the PIL and sought the high court’s direction to the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) to give jobs to members of the families whose land was acquired for the project in 1976. They cited a resolution passed in 1989 that the project-affected families will be benefited by granting members jobs in the plant. ………http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/HC-rejects-PIL-for-jobs-for-land-losers-in-Nuclear-plant/articleshow/27419606.cms
Probable illegality of Britain’s nuclear subsidy throws doubt on global nuclear industry
In the wider context the deal is important because the nuclear industry’s revival in democracies depends on it being classed as a low carbon generator, which can benefit from carbon credits and other subsidies in the same way as renewables. This has already been ruled out in most democratic countries outside Europe.
Without state aid the large capital expenditure needed to build nuclear plants is hard to find from the private sector, and the time it takes to build reactors makes the return on capital long-term. Two stations being built in Finland and France are both up to seven years late and construction budgets have already doubled. They are the same design as the reactors intended for Britain.
‘Illegal UK state aid’ probe hits nuclear plans Eco Business, 14 Dec 13, An EU investigation into the UK’s financial support for new nuclear power stations is dividing Europe, with critics saying London is flouting EU rules by offering illegal subsidies.A full-scale investigation is being launched into whether Britain’s deal with French nuclear giant EDF, backed with money from Chinese nuclear generators, to build new stations at Hinkley Point in the west of England, is illegal state aid.
The investigation by the European Commission is a serious blow to the nuclear industry in Europe and across the western world, because it delays any expansion of the industry for at least a year and may possibly permanently damage its prospects. Continue reading
More USA sailors afflicted by exposure to Fukushima radiation
Another 20 Navy Sailors: USS Ronald Reagan crew with thyroid cancers, leukemia, brain tumors, bleeding, blindness after Fukushima disaster — Young kids developing problems — Gov’t and Tepco involved in major conspiracy (AUDIO) http://enenews.com/another-20-navy-sailors-uss-ronald-reagan-crew-with-thyroid-cancer-leukemia-brain-tumors-bleeding-blindness-children-becoming-sick-after-responding-to-311-crisis-japan-govt-and-tepc
Nuclear Hotseat #129, Dec. 10, 2013:
Charles Bonner, attorney representing sailors from the USS Ronald Reagan: They’re not only going to the rescue by jumping into the water and rescuing people out of the water, but they were drinking desalinated sea water, bathing in it, until finally the captain of the USS Ronald Reagan alarmed people that they were encountering high levels of radiation. As a result of this exposure, the 51 sailors that we represent right now have come down with a host of medical problems, including cancers and leukemias, all kinds of gynecological problems […] people who are going blind, pilots who had perfect eyesight but now have tumors on the brain. These service men and women are young people 21, 22, 23 years old and no one in their family had ever (inaudible) any of these kinds of illnesses before…
Bonner: These sailors had none of these kind of medical problems, now they have back pains, memory loss, severe anxiety. They have testicular cancer, they have thyroid cancers, they have leukemias, they have a host of problems, rectal and gynecological bleeding, a host of problems that they did not have before […] And it’s only been 3 years since they went in. […] The Japanese government is in a major conspiracy with Tepco to hide and conceal the true facts….
Bonner: We’ll be adding approximately 20 sailors, bringing the total number in the lawsuit to 70 to 75…
Bonner: 21 and 22 year-olds who are just beginning to start their lives, start their families, and many have little children and now they’re sick. They are going constantly to the doctors, their children are sick — we even have small children as some of our plaintiffs, because they too have developed problems.
Full interview available here
Tokyo court accepts withdrawal of libel suit against journalist
NUCLEAR INDUSTRY BUSINESSMAN WITHDRAWS LIBEL SUIT AGAINST FREELANCER HTTPS://EN.RSF.ORG/JAPAN-NUCLEAR-INDUSTRY-BUSINESSMAN-16-08-2013,45056.HTML 16 AUGUST 2013. Reporters Without Borders welcomes the decision by Shiro Shirakawa, the head of the nuclear security systems company New Tech, to withdraw a libel suit against freelance journalist Minoru Tanaka. A Tokyo court has accepted the withdrawal, announced on 12 August.
“This libel suit was an attempt by an influential member of Japan’s nuclear industrial complex, known as the ‘nuclear village,’ to harass and intimidate Tanaka into silence and self-censorship,” Reporters Without Borders said. “We are pleased that it did not work but we continue to be concerned for other journalists who try to cover the sensitive issue of Japan’s nuclear industry. There are still too many cases of reporters being pressured or censored when they try to provide information about the Fukushima disaster and its aftermath.
“The damages award Tanaka was facing if found guilty of libelling Shirakawa was clearly out of all proportion. We urge the courts to reject such ‘gag suits’ or ‘SLAPPs’ if they continue to be filed, and to propose proportionate alternatives such as the publication of a response.”
Shirakawa sued Tanaka, 52, over a December 2011 article for the weekly Shukan Kinyobiheadlined “The last big fixer, Shiro Shirakawa, gets his share of the TEPCO nuclear cake” – TEPCO being the owner of the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant that suffered meltdowns after a tsunami in March 2011.
Using information in the public domain, the article accused Shirakawa of making a lot of money by acting as an intermediary between TEPCO, construction companies, politicians such as the leading parliamentarian Kamei Shizuka, and even clandestine organizations.
Ever since the Fukushima-Daiichi disaster, freelance journalists who cover the nuclear industry have had their access to information restricted and have, for example, been prevented from covering anti-nuclear demonstrations. Reporters Without Borders issued several press releases condemning the judicial harassment of Tanaka, who was sued for 67 million yen (600,000 euros) in damages.
UK government wins case to keep secret of Litvinenko radiation poisoning
The Guardian and other media groups had intervened in the case at an earlier stage to argue that open justice would be damaged if relevant material was not released.
There is due to be a pre-inquest review on Friday to prepare for further hearings if there is to be no public inquiry.
Alexander Litvinenko inquest: high court halts lifting of secrecy order http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/27/alexander-litvinenko-inquest-secrecy-order William Hague successfuly argues that airing secret documents about former KGB spy would harm national security Owen Bowcott, legal affairs correspondent theguardian.com, Wednesday 27 November 2013 Lawyers for the Foreign Office have succeeded in overturning a coroner’s ruling that secret documents should be released for the inquest into the death of the former Russian dissident and KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko.
In a unanimous decision, three judges at the high court accepted that the foreign secretary, William Hague, should not have to reveal material relating to the 2006 poisoning of Litvinenko on the grounds that it would be a risk to national security.
Litvinenko, 43, consumed radioactive polonium-210 while drinking tea during a meeting with former Russian security colleagues at the Millennium hotel in Grosvenor Square, central London. He died three weeks later.
In May this year, the assistant coroner Sir Robert Owen agreed to exclude material from the inquest that suggested Russian state agencies were involved in Litvinenko’s death. He also agreed to keep secret evidence that considered whether or not the UK authorities could have prevented Litvinenko’s 2006 murder.
- But he said summaries of other documents should be disclosed despite an application by the Foreign Office that they should all be subject to a public interest immunity (PII) certificate. The coroner ruled that disclosure was necessary for a “fair and meaningful” inquest. Continue reading
Another delayed hearing about Rapid City uranium mining plan
Water board delays Rapid City uranium mine hearing http://www.seattlepi.com/news/science/article/Water-board-delays-Rapid-City-uranium-mine-hearing-5010884.php, November 25, 2013 PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A second state panel has delayed hearings on a proposed uranium mine in the Black Hills until two federal agencies decide on the project.
The South Dakota Water Management Board on Monday postponed its second week of hearings scheduled for the week of Dec. 9 in Rapid City.
The Board of Minerals and Environment earlier delayed its second round of hearings on Powertech Uranium Corp.’s application for a mine near Edgemont.
Both state boards say they’ll reschedule after the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Environmental Protection Agency rule on the project and establish financial surety. The Water Management Board says the delay was in response to a request from Powertech and other parties. The panel must decide whether to grant water rights permits and a groundwater discharge plan.
Power companies awarded $235M In Nuclear Waste Disposal Dispute
Federal Judge Awards Nuclear Power Sites $235M In Disposal Dispute By BRIAN DOWLING, bdowling@courant.comThe Hartford Courant November 15, 2013 A federal judge has awarded three New England nuclear power companies $235.4 million in damages in the second of three cases against the U.S. government for failing to dispose of the plants’ nuclear waste.
The federal government has 60 days to appeal.
The companies operated the Connecticut Yankee nuclear plant in Haddam, and two plants in Maine and Massachusetts, which have been deactivated for decades. If the judgment from U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judge James F. Merrow stands, the millions of dollars in damages will head to ratepayers. The suit was filed over the U.S. Department of Energy‘s failure to remove nuclear waste from the plants. This phase of damages covers disposal costs from 2002 to 2008……..
Connecticut’s share of the millions is unclear. It depends on a number of factors, including how much of the energy for all the plants was delivered to the state.
Damages awarded in the first case totaled $160 million, and the state’s share amounted to $75 million. In February, the federal government reimbursed the nuclear power companies for the first time, following the Energy Department’s lack of challenge to a U.S. Court of Appeals decision.
The company has filed for a third phase of damages for the period covering 2009 to 2012.http://www.courant.com/business/hc-nuclear-plant-connecticut-yankee-lawsuit-20131115,0,3448137.story
Setback for UK and others’ nuclear projects, as EU rules against subsidies
Blow to nuclear projects as Brussels drops plan for subsidy rules Ft.com By Alex Barker and Joshua Chaffin in Brussels, 9 Oct 13 Nuclear power projects in Europe face a legally uncertain future after Brussels heeded German concerns and ditched plans to issue specific guidelines on permitted state subsidies.
In a blow to the UK, France and countries in central and eastern Europe eyeing 
new nuclear programmes, the European Commission decided informally on Tuesday to carry on investigating programmes on a case-by-case basis. High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4bf0e37e-3033-11e3-9eec-00144feab7de.html#ixzz2hHtwoX29
This puts Britain in the uneasy position of acting as a test case for EU public subsidy rules on the next generation of nuclear plants when it seeks clearance from Brussels in the coming months.
The UK is offering various support mechanisms, including a guaranteed price for nuclear power and a financing “guarantee”, to entice the private sector into building a series of nuclear reactors.
The UK Treasury is locked in talks with EDF, the French energy group, over a price mechanism for energy from its proposed reactor at Hinkley Point in southwest England.
Brussels issued separate state-aid guidelines governing renewable forms of energy, as well as energy efficiency projects, in 2008. Joaquín Almunia, the EU competition commissioner, considered extending these to the nuclear sector under a broader review of the regime for policing state subsidies.
Ontario hearings on nuclear wastes: US officials unhappy about plan
U.S. officials demand Ontario clarify plan for nuclear waste http://www.macombdaily.com/environment-and-nature/20131003/us-officials-demand-ontario-clarify-plan-for-nuclear-waste By Gina Joseph, The Macomb Daily 10/03/13, Plans by Ontario Power Generation to bury its low- and intermediate-level nuclear waste underground may be a Trojan horse.
On Monday, state Sen. Hoon-Yung Hopgood, D-Taylor, and state Rep. Sarah Roberts, D-Taylor, traveled to a public hearing in Ontario to voice their concerns before a Joint Review Panel on the matter of the Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) on the shore of Lake Huron. Today, Hopgood and Roberts joined other prominent officials in submitting a formal written Request for Ruling regarding the plan, which appears to have a much larger scope than what is detailed in the project report.
In the request, the signatories demanded a suspension of the hearings if the Joint Review Panel and OPG cannot confirm that all highly radioactive wastes are prohibited in this or any future repository on the site. The facility would be located under the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant and about 440 yards below the Great Lakes basin.
“As if the proposal of this radioactive waste repository less than a mile from the shores of Lake Huron wasn’t threatening enough, it is now becoming clear that those fears are just the beginning,” said Sen. Hopgood. “With the hearings underway, information is coming out regarding the actual scope of the project and the potential to include highly radioactive wastes. This isn’t just for the mops and rags that OPG often speaks of, and could include everything short of spent nuclear fuel. If that is the intent, it is absolutely essential that we go back to the drawing board or, better yet, scrap the idea altogether.” Roberts concurred.
“The merits of this debate must be founded on the assumption that we have all of the correct information regarding this (DGR),” said Rep. Roberts. “Otherwise, the potential for negative impacts on our Great Lakes could be far worse than we ever imagined.”
Roberts and Hopgood attended day 12 of the hearings to be held through Oct. 12.
30 years gaol for USA’s 83 year old anti nuclear nun?
Nun faces up to 30 years in prison for protesting at nuclear weapons facility District judge denies appeal of Sister Megan Rice, 83, and two other activists, citing their intent to ‘disarm’ Oak Ridge Karen McVeigh theguardian.com, Saturday 5 October 2013 An octogenarian Roman Catholic nun, jailed for breaking into a nuclear weapons facility in Tennessee, is facing up to 30 years in prison after losing her plea for the most serious charge to be dropped.
Sister Megan Rice, 83, and two fellow peace activists staged a non-violent protest to symbolically disarm the Oak Ridge Y-12 nuclear weapons facility, home to the nation’s main supply of highly enriched uranium, in July. They were initially charged with trespassing, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison, but felony charges quickly followed. They were eventually convicted of interfering with national security and damage to federal property.
This week, a judge denied a motion to acquit them of interfering with national security under the sabotage section of the US criminal code, which carries the harshest prison sentence of up to 20 years. Rice and her two fellow activists, Greg Boertje-Obed, 57, a carpenter, and Michael Walli, 68, a veteran, now face up to 30 years in prison, although the ruling by district judge Amul Thapar, in the eastern district of Tennessee, suggests their sentences will be more lenient than the maximum allowed. Continue reading
India is NOT watering down its Nuclear Liability Law to suit USA’s nuclear salesmen
India in 2010 passed a law making suppliers of nuclear reactors and other equipment liable for any accidents. This spooked companies that wanted to sell nuclear technology
Local media last month reported that the government may dilute the nuclear-liability law in order to push through the deal with Westinghouse.
“No compromise of any kind has been made,” said the official at the Department of Atomic Energy. “All these reports are false.”
India Official: Won’t Relax Nuclear-Liability Rules Nuclear Power Corp. of India, Westinghouse Sign Preliminary Contract WSJ, By BIMAN MUKHERJI 2 Oct 13
NEW DELHI—India won’t relax a law holding suppliers of nuclear-power equipment responsible for accidents, a senior government official said Thursday, denying media reports that suggested it could bend rules to allow a reactor-supply deal with Westinghouse Electric Co. to go through.
State-run Nuclear Power Corp. of India Ltd. signed a preliminary contract with U.S.-based Westinghouse late last month, the Indian company said. Westinghouse didn’t reply to emailed questions. Continue reading
Legal opinion on Iran’s right to uranium enrichmen
Iran’s right to uranium enrichment unquestionable: Intl. lawyer An international lawyer tells Press TV that Iran’s right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes is unquestionable under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).Press TV 30 Sept 13
Alfred Lambremont Webre said Monday that Iranian officials have made it clear that they will not go after weapons-grade uranium enrichment, citing Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s fatwa on the prohibition of nuclear arms production and development.
“I think things are very clear that statements have been made that Iran will not be going forward to enrich at weapons grade, which is over 90 percent. It will be doing under 20 percent down to 5 percent, which is enough for power enrichment,” he said.
“There is no question that under the NPT Iran has the right to enrich uranium of non-weapons grade, that is, of power-station grade, which you would say would be between 5 percent and certainly under 20 percent,” he added.
He said that there was no evidence that Iran was intending to develop nuclear weapons, adding the Islamic Republic was enriching for nuclear power as its “basic legal right.” …..http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/09/30/326923/iran-right-to-enrichment-unquestionable/
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