safety « nuclear-news

AREVA in trouble in Niger: Paladin uranium gets out

Paladin Energy Ltd: Defeating Conditions Triggered Regarding Bid for NGM Resources Ltd – MarketWatch, 25 Sept 10, ” On September 16, 2010, forces associated with al-Qaida in the Magreb (North Africa) (AQIM) entered the town of Arlit in Niger’s uranium mining region and abducted seven people, employed by the French uranium company Areva and its construction contractor, Vinci. Continue reading →

September 25, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Niger, safety, Uranium | antinuclear, AREVA, France, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, uranium | Leave a comment

Niger kidnappings induce uranium company Paladin to leave

Niger kidnappings puts Paladin Energy off NGM bid. Sep 24, 2010 SYDNEY, (Reuters) – Australia-based uranium miner Paladin Energy is to drop its A$27 million ($26 million) bid for NGM Resources (NGM.AX: Quote), it said on Friday, citing worries that kidnappings in west Africa would hamper NGM’s exploration work in the region. Continue reading →

September 25, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Niger, safety | antinuclear, AUSTRALIA, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, uranium | Leave a comment

AREVA’s nuclear workers kidnapped by al-Qaida in Niger

Six of the seven hostages worked at a huge uranium mine in northern Niger run by French state-owned nuclear power giant Areva. The seventh was married to an Areva employee…….

France’s Sarkozy calls Niger kidnappings worrying By JENNY BARCHFIELD (AP) – 23 Sept 10, PARIS — French President Nicolas Sarkozy vowed on Wednesday to mobilize his government to free five French people abducted last week by an al-Qaida affiliate in Niger, calling it a “very serious and worrying affair,” Continue reading →

September 23, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Niger, safety, Uranium | antinuclear, AREVA, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, uranium | Leave a comment

UK govt report reveals safety problems with nuclear submarines

Exercise at nuclear submarine yard exposes serious safety failings BAE Systems to rerun mock accident after mistakes at Barrow dockyard that could have put lives at risk Rob Edwards guardian.co.uk, 22 September 2010 Continue reading →

September 23, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Workers contaminated with radiation at South African nuclear plant

The Democratic Alliance has accused Eskom of mishandling the contamination and risking the health of workers.

Koeberg workers contaminated, News24: South Africa: News, 2010-09-20 Koeberg shut down due to corrosion Johannesburg – A total of 91 Eskom workers were contaminated with a small amount of radiation while doing maintenance work at the Koeberg power plant, the parastatal said on Monday. Continue reading →

September 21, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, South Africa | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Hurricane forces shutdown of Mexican nuclear plant

Nuclear Shutdown The storm also forced Mexico to suspend operations at its Laguna Verde nuclear power plant in eastern Veracruz State, according to the national electricity commission.

Hurricane Karl Nears Mexican Coast, Closes Oil Wells – Bloomberg, By Brian K. Sullivan – Sep 18, 2010, “………Karl was the strongest storm ever to form in the Gulf of Mexico’s Bay of Campeche, Continue reading →

September 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, SOUTH AMERICA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, reactor | 1 Comment

In Niger, AREVA’s nuclear workers kidnapped

Seven nuclear workers kidnapped as they slept, The Guardian, 16 Sept 10, French people working in Niger have been kidnapped along with one from Togo and one from Madagascar Associated Press in Paris
Five French people working in Niger have been kidnapped along with one from Togo and one from Madagascar, France’s foreign ministry said today.

The seven, who were employees of the French nuclear reactor builder Areva and a subcontractor, were seized near the uranium-mining town of Arlit as they slept.

Seven nuclear workers kidnapped as they slept | World news | The Guardian

September 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Niger, safety | antinuclear, AREVA, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, uranium | Leave a comment

Delhi University teachers demand action on radiation scandal

Exposure to radioactive Cobalt-60 in the scrap market in Mayapuri in West Delhi had led to the death of one person and injuries to ten others in Delhi in April this year. The material landed there after an auction of some items from the DU chemistry lab.

VC Subverting Radiation Exposure Probe: DU Teachers, news.outlookindia.com , 16 Sept 10, The association of Delhi University teachers today accused Vice Chancellor Deepak Pental of trying to subvert an inquiry into the disposal of radioactive material by the institution and demanded that he be arrested to make way for an “unbiased” probe. Continue reading →

September 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, safety | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear weapons, radioactive | Leave a comment

Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s lack of commitment to worker safety

In addition to NRC approval, Entergy must also receive an OK from the Vermont State Legislature and the Vermont Public Service Board to continue operation past 2012.In February, the state Senate voted 26-4 against the continued operation of the plant beyond its current operating license…

Report raps VY on worker safety – Brattleboro Reformer, By JOSH STILTS September 15, 2010 BRATTLEBORO — The results from an audit by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission state that although Vermont Yankee met all safety regulations, there were problems with the nuclear plant’s implementation of regulatory commitments………….. Continue reading →

September 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | AUSTRALIA, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment

USA has no strategic plan for nuclear detection

Senators demand a better plan for nuclear detection GovExec.com, By Norah Swanson nswanson@govexec.com September 15, 2010 Senators on Wednesday blasted a nuclear detection unit for failing to develop a strategic plan, and asked officials to produce one as soon as possible.The Homeland Security Department has spent nearly $4 billion on aspects of a system to find illicit radiological and nuclear materials, but has yet to complete a comprehensive strategy for the project, the Government Accountability Office testified during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing…….

Senators demand a better plan for nuclear detection (9/15/10) — GovExec.com

September 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

The nuclear energy Quick Fix reactors are sitting ducks for terrorism

These countries, exactly like China and India, are however committing themselves to the same gleaming high-tech Quick Fix nuclear solution to power shortages, to keep their economies growing at record rates. This will vastly extend the Doomsday threat of large reactors being treated as sitting duck military targets in regional conflicts……..Each new large-sized civil reactor is potentially a Chernobyl-type Dirty Bomb

Nuclear Renaissance or The End of Nations ? : The Market Oracle, By Andrew McKillop, 15 Sept 10, NUCLEAR RENAISSANCE T he 2010-2020 decade marks the world’s “Nuclear Renaissance” according to triumphal industry spokesmen. Continue reading →

September 15, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, safety | antinuclear, depleted, nuclear, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, plutonium, radiation, radioactive, reactors, uranium | 2 Comments

Anti-radiation pills irrelevant in case of nuclear accident

In other words, if there’s an accident at McGuire and you live within 10 miles of it, you are essentially screwed: the roads are going to be clogged and probably at a standstill, so getting away in one, four, eight, or probably even 24 hours, is not real likely.

Poor nuclear evacuation plans offset KI pills’ benefits | theCLog, September 14th, 2010 by John Grooms in Boomer with Attitude, “……..Health departments in five counties, including Mecklenburg, will hand out potassium iodide (aka KI) to folks living within 10 miles of our area’s two nuclear plants, McGuire and Catawba. Taking the KI is supposed to reduce the risk of thyroid cancer resulting from radiation leaks during what is delicately termed a “nuclear emergency.” It’s a shame – and we mean that literally – that the whole thing is a charade. Continue reading →

September 15, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive, reactors | Leave a comment

Airport screening staff should wear radiation measurement badges

Why do dentists, doctors, med techs, etc.. who work in other x-ray environments gladly wear these exposure detectors on their clothing but TSA employees do not or cannot?

Airport Screeners: Denied radiation badges? | The Science Friday Blog. September 13, 2010 by Ira Flatow I continue to wonder why those TSA folks who stand by x-ray machines for a whole day do not know how much radiation they are exposed to. Last weekend, one of them told me she asked for a common radiation badge and was told she could not wear one. Continue reading →

September 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

America’s rickety old nuclear reactors becoming dangerous

As reactor owners petition to extend operating licenses for decades to come, the rickety, embrittled old plants become increasingly dangerous.

Is the “Nuclear Renaissance” Dead Yet?, HUFFINGTON POST, Harvey Wasserman: 13 Sept 2010, “……America’s aging fleet of first generation reactors is leaking profusely. Indian Point, north of Manhattan, has suffered seven unplanned shut-downs in two years. In recent months serious emissions of tritium and other radioactive substances into the air and water have been found at Vermont Yankee, Indian Point, New Jersey’s Oyster Creek and many more. Ohio’s infamous Davis-Besse, where boric acid ate virtually all the way through a reactor pressure vessel, has sprung some two dozen leaks which cannot be explained by its owner, First Energy. In Vermont, leaks from pipes the operators said did not exist have seeped contaminated water into the Connecticut River. As reactor owners petition to extend operating licenses for decades to come, the rickety, embrittled old plants become increasingly dangerous.

Harvey Wasserman: Is the “Nuclear Renaissance” Dead Yet?

September 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

South Carolina nuclear reactor shut down for third time this year this year

SC nuclear plant shut down by turbine problem BusinessWeek, 10 Sept 10, HARTSVILLE, S.C.A control problem with a turbine at a nuclear power plant in South Carolina has shut the reactor down until the issue can be fixed. It’s the third shutdown this year.Raleigh, N.C.-based Progress Energy Inc. reported Thursday’s incident at the H.B. Robinson plant in Hartsville to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.Plant spokesman Andy Cole says the shutdown was triggered by a control problem with a turbine unrelated to the nuclear side of the plant. The reactor shuts down as a safety precaution during certain conditions at the plant.Earlier this year, two fires in Robinson’s electrical system led to a nearly four-month shutdown of the plant that included a planned refueling outage and some needed repairs. The reactor was restarted in mid-July….

SC nuclear plant shut down by turbine problem – BusinessWeek

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment