Russia’s environmental groups demand an end to secrecy about Russia’s nuclear wastes
Russian environmentalists demand transparency from the country’s nuclear waste industry http://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2018-06-russian-environmentalists-demand-transparency-from-the-countrys-nuclear-waste-industry
Environmentally significant information about radioactive waste should never be secret and concealing information about the disposition of this waste from those who live closest to it is unacceptable, said a joint statement from three Russian ecological non-profits. by Bellona
Environmentally significant information about radioactive waste should never be secret and concealing information about the disposition of this waste from those who live closest to it is unacceptable, said a joint statement from three Russian ecological non-profits.
The statement was issued last week by the group Radioactive Waste Safety, Greenpeace and Bellona.
In the 70 years since Russia began applying nuclear technology, millions of tons of radioactive waste have been accumulated. This poses a now and future threat for hundreds and thousands of years. The negligent or thoughtless handling of radioactive waste could lead to accidents and catastrophes, as well as environmental consequences that will impact future generations – all while we are still struggling with past nuclear accidents, such as the Kyshtym disaster at the Mayak Chemical Combine in 1957 to name just one
“We are convinced that information on the total quantity and condition of radioactive waste, as well as on projects and programs related to handling and disposal of radioactive waste is environmentally significant, and that it is the constitutional right of Russian citizens to have access to that information. This information affects the interests of people living near installations wirer radioactive wastes is handled and stored,” said the three groups.
“Recently, we and other environmental activists have been denied the provision of environmentally relevant information on the disposal of hazardous radioactive wastes, specifically relative to the practice of injecting liquid radioactive waste into deep geological formations in the Krasnoyarsk, Tomsk and Ulyanovsk Regions” said Alexander Kolotov, program director for Radioactive Waste Safety. “This practice is not permissible an leads to a deepening distrust between local residents and the nuclear industry.”
“As is well known, Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom has a long list of information it considers commercial secrets and classified. This list compulsory across all divisions and subsidiaries of the company, said Alexander Nikitin of Bellona. “Therefore, Rosatom doesn’t permit one or another division within its ranks to disclose information when it is requested by the public.”
“We are certain that enterprises and organizations in Russia, which handle radioactive waste should maintain transparency with the public about the dangers of these activities and their possible impact on the environment and public health,” said Ivan Blokov, program director of Greenpeace.
“Ecologically significant information on radioactive waste should be included in the annual environmental reports of the relevant enterprises and organizations, and should be published on their official websites and be provided by them at the request of citizens and public organizations.”
In addition to presenting environmentally relevant information on radioactive waste, environmentalists call upon Russia’s nuclear waste disposition industries to to immediately inform the public and local residents about any significant incidents or accidents associated with hazardous radioactive waste.
France’s anti nuclear activists not imprisoned
Greenpeace France 28th June 2018 The verdict of the trial of Privas, where Greenpeace France, one of his employees and 22 activists were judged on May 17 following an intrusion into the Cruas-Meysse nuclear power plant, fell. Despite EDF’s will to attack our activists, none of them have been sentenced to imprisonment.
Yannick Rousselet, a nuclear campaigner prosecuted for complicity, was released. EDF’s strategy to demand heavier prison sentences and colossal damages to Greenpeace to dissuade us from denouncing nuclear risk has failed.
The lawsuit against Greenpeace France, his campaign campaigner, Yannick Rousselet, and 22 activists of the organization was held May 17 at the tribunal de grande instance Privas in Ardeche. The verdict was made public six weeks later.
https://www.greenpeace.fr/proces-nucleaire-privas-verdict/
UK’s nuclear lobby appears to be winning, but the Tidal Lagoon Energy movement has not given up
BBC 29th June 2018 Developers hoping to pitch new tidal power stations to the UK government
have vowed to carry on with their plans despite the rejection of the
Swansea Bay lagoon.
One called on ministers to set up a competitive
tendering process. Energy Secretary Greg Clark said he was “enthusiastic”
about the technology if it could prove to be value for money. The company
behind the Swansea Bay scheme is considering its next steps.
Tidal Lagoon Power’s (TLP) £1.3bn “pathfinder” project, touted as a world-first, was
turned down by the UK government on Monday. after it was deemed too
expensive. The aim was for it to lead to a fleet of larger, more powerful
lagoons in Cardiff, Newport, Bridgewater Bay, Colwyn Bay and off the coast
of Cumbria. The decision came 18 months after an independent review,
commissioned by the UK government, had urged ministers to plough ahead.
Other developers also looking to build lagoons have been following the
situation closely. Henry Dixon, chair of North Wales Tidal Energy (NWTE)
said the government had made the “wrong decision” but that would not deter
his company from “continuing to develop and promote” its own plans. He
claimed NWTE’s proposal for a £7bn lagoon, stretching from Llandudno
eastwards towards Talacre in Flintshire, would stack up in terms of costs
as it could generate more energy and revenue than the much smaller Swansea
scheme. There were also added benefits in terms of flood prevention, he
claimed. Dale Vince, who founded Ecotricity, one of the UK’s biggest
providers of renewable energy, believes he can build cheaper lagoons in the
Solway Firth. This approach differs to TLP’s as the lagoons would be
entirely offshore, instead of being attached to the coastline. “There is
plenty of time to have a competitive tender and to get this right – as the
government have said this week,” Mr Vince said. “Swansea Bay was too
expensive and it doesn’t make sense to do it, especially when not just
other forms of renewable energy are much cheaper but other approaches to
tidal energy are too.” “We’re hoping that the government now turns round,
on the back of this decision, and creates a proper competitive process for
tidal lagoons.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-44642037
Norwegian anti nuclear protest ship “Nora” sails to Sellafield to campaign for the closure of the nuclear plant.
Fraserburgh Herald 28th June 2018 ,The ‘Nora’ is an open-decked wind-powered wooden Norwegian boat which
has been sailing along the Norwegian coast for the last three years
bringing attention to claims of radioactive discharge from the Sellafield
nuclear plant.
Nora is sailing under the direction of the Neptune Network,
a private foundation established in April 2001 with the aim of stopping the
destruction of environment and nature. The crew arrived in Fraserburgh on
Monday morning after a tough voyage over the North Sea having left Bergen
on June 15. While in port they met up with fellow Norwegian Anders Blix who
lives at Memsie and who kindly took pictures for the Herald. After making
some small repairs and picking up supplies,
Nora left Fraserburgh crewed by
skipper Frank-Hugo Storelv along with Øystein Storelv and Roger Jenssen on
Tuesday afternoon heading for Inverness. Their plan is to sail through the
Caledonian Canal towards their destination at Sellafield to campaign for
the closure of the nuclear plant.
https://www.fraserburghherald.co.uk/news/nuclear-campaigners-dock-in-fraserburgh-1-4761098
Halden nuclear reactor shut down not just for safety reasons, more because it lost so much money
Halden Reactor to be decommissioned, WNN, 28 June 2018
“In conjunction with the licence renewal process for the Halden Reactor, IFE has over the last year carried out a strategic review of reactor operations, including a financial and operational risk assessment. Based on this review, IFE’s Board concluded that operation of the reactor beyond the current licence period is not viable, as this would imply business risks in excess of what IFE is capable of handling on its own,” IFE said.
Over the past seven years, IFE has lost more than EUR18 million on its nuclear operation and has this year relied on extraordinary funding from the Norwegian government. As a self-owning foundation, IFE said it is not able to manage the financial risk of operating the reactor. ……
Britain’s Planning Inspectorate has accepted Hitachi unit Horizon’s application for the Wylfa nuclear power station in Wales
Reuters 29th June 2018 , Britain’s Planning Inspectorate has accepted Hitachi unit Horizon’s
application for the Wylfa nuclear power station in Wales, it said, one of
several new plants aimed at replacing the UK’s ageing fleet of atomic
reactors and coal plants. “We have considered very carefully the
application submitted by Horizon Nuclear Power and decided that it meets
the required tests set out in the legislation to be accepted for
examination,” Sarah Richards, chief executive of the Planning
Inspectorate, said in a statement. “Of course, this does not mean that
consent will be given for the project to go ahead – acceptance of the
application simply means that the Examining Authority can begin to make
arrangements for the formal examination of the application,” she added.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-nuclear-horizon/uk-inspectorate-accepts-hitachi-units-planning-bid-for-wylfa-nuclear-plant-idUKKBN1JP0VV?rpc=401&
UK’s nuclear power bigwigs want “community engagement”, but exclude critics of Sizewell nuclear project
Ipswich Star 28th June 2018 , Sizewell C boss under fire for meeting Suffolk business leaders – but not
campaign groups. EDF Energy chief executive Simone Rossi is addressing
Suffolk Chamber of Commerce members at their annual general meeting in
Ipswich on Friday, June 29.
But Theberton and Eastbridge Action Group on
Sizewell (TEAGS), Minsmere Levels Stakeholder Group (MLSG) and the B1122
Action Group said he should show his commitment to community engagement and
meet with them too. “Despite being in post for eight months and speaking
about Sizewell regularly to the national media, Simone Rossi appears
surprisingly reluctant to visit us,” said Paul Collins of TEAGS and MLSG.
“If EDF really wants to show its commitment to engagement, Simone Rossi
will make it a priority to come and meet the community that is on the
frontline of Sizewell C and D and that will suffer a cumulative and
disproportionate impact during construction. He owes it to the people of
east Suffolk to come and hear our concerns face to face and ensure that EDF
meets its stated obligations before the next round of consultation.”
http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/sizewell-c-edf-suffolk-teags-leiston-suffolk-chamber-of-commerce-1-5583182
Putin: Russia making a quantum leap in nuclear weaponry
Putin says new Russian nuclear weapons are decades ahead of foreign rivals, 58 WGJT Milwaukeee, By: Justin Thompson-Gee , 28 June 18 MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin boasted about his country’s prospective nuclear weapons Thursday, saying they are years and even decades ahead of foreign designs.
The nuclear weapons connection: Why Hinkley Point C nuclear station gets go-ahead, and Tidal Lagoon energy doesn’t
David Lowry’s Blog 27th June 2018 , The question asked in the Guardian leader: “Hinkley Point C got the
go-ahead despite its cost. So why not Swansea Bay?” has a number of
credible answers.
Firstly, you cannot warheads for nuclear weapons of mass
destruction form any by-products of a tidal lagoon as you can from Hinkley
C’s plutonium.
Indeed, when Hinkley A was being developed in the late the
Ministry of Defence issued clear statement on: “the production of
plutonium suitable for weapons in the new [nuclear ] power stations
programme as an insurance against future defence needs…” (17 June 1958)
http://drdavidlowry.blogspot.com/2018/06/you-cannot-fuel-nuclear-proliferation.html
UK govt launches pro nuclear campaign, pushes for women in the nuclear industry
UK government unveils £200m nuclear sector deal, The Engineer, Business secretary Greg Clark launches deal including commitment to new technology development and increased role for women in the nuclear industry ……. Details of the deal include up to £44m funding to develop advanced modular reactors, a commitment to reduce the cost of nuclear new build by 30 per cent by 2030, and to cut the cost of decommissioning old sites by 20 per cen% in the same period. There will be a new review into ways of accelerating the cleanup of old sites. Clark also signalled an increased commitment to fusion energy research, with the establishment of a national fusion technology centre at Culham in Oxfordshire, the site of the Joint European Torus (JET) fusion experiment and the home of Tokomak Technologies, which is developing fusion reactors based on the spherical tokomak principle. This fusion centre will be supported by £86m funding from the government.
“The UK is the home of civil nuclear technology and with this investment in innovation and our commitment to increasing diversity in an already highly-skilled workforce, I want to ensure we remain the world leader,” Clark said.
The NSD was announced at Trawsfynydd in Snowdonia, the site of a decommissioned nuclear reactor (the only one in the UK not on the coast) and a mooted site for the first small modular reactor project. “This site reflects both the past of our nuclear industry and an exciting future as the potential site for the new generation of small reactors, placing Wales at the centre of a UK arc of the nuclear industry,” said Alan Cairns, secretary of state for Wales.
The advanced modular reactor project will see eight designs go forward to detailed commercial and technical visibility studies. This phase 1, £4m has been allocated, and three or four of the designs will then go forward to a second phase for further development, with a possible £40m of further funding subject to a value for money approval from the Treasury. Up to £5m will be made available to regulators to support this, and up to £7m will fund capability and capacity to assess and licence small and novel reactor designs…..https://www.theengineer.co.uk/nuclear-industry-sector-deal/
Norway makes a choice for the environment – shuts down Halden nuclear research reactor
Bellona 27th June 2018 , In a major victory for radiation safety in Europe, the Norwegian government announced Wednesday that it would be permanently shutting down the financially and technically troubled Halden research reactor, which experienced a leak in 2016. The 25 megawatt installation, which is the world’s oldest heavy-water reactor, is located in a mountain cave in the southern Norwegian town of Halden, and has been under a temporary closure since March due to a valve failure. It is the second of Norway’s two reactors, the first of which is the Kjeller reactor, near Oslo, which began operations in 1951.
Bellona has for three decades questioned the Halden reactor’s sometimes hazardous operations, and demanded that the government stop subsiding its continued use.
http://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2018-06-in-victory-for-the-environment-norway-will-shut-down-halden-reactor
UK’s Tidal Lagoon energy project – would be costly to build, but very cheap for 120 years thereafter
Times 28th June 2018 , Professor Chris Binnie: Greg Clark says that the Swansea tidal
lagoon was rejected as it is three times as expensive as Hinkley C, but his
calculations are suspect. The tidal lagoon would be expensive to build, but
once built it could go on for 120 years with minimal refurbishment cost.
And letter Prof Roger Kemp: The government’s rejection of the Swansea tidal
lagoon is extremely disappointing. Greg Clark says that wind energy is
cheaper, bu t it’s a false comparison: we can predict the tides years in
advance but it is difficult to look more than a week ahead with wind.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/comment/adhd-and-the-rise-in-the-use-of-medication-d2bjsnc6f
Theresa May’s UK govt rejects renewables, promotes nuclear – and cancels promising tidal energy project
Bloomberg 27th June 2018 The U.K. government earmarked 200 million pounds ($262 million) to smooth
the way for the next nuclear power plants just two days after rejected the
case for an experimental project that would generate power from the tides.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said its
Nuclear Sector Deal will fund technology and skills needed to maintain the
industry that the government is backing to be part of its future energy
mix. About 56 million pounds will go to help eight vendors of modular
reactors carry out technical studies.
The decision puts further distance
between Prime Minister Theresa May’s administration and the possibility
of government support for cutting-edge renewable technologies. May’s
government has scaled back subsidies for wind and solar, halted onshore
wind farms and declined to back Tidal Lagoon Power Ltd.’s proposal for a
1.3 billion pound project to demonstrate its technology.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-06-27/u-k-earmarks-262-million-to-bolster-its-nuclear-power-industry
USA’s General Electric and France’s EDF getting together to market to India huge and costly nuclear station
France’s EDF, GE to co-build reactors for huge Indian nuclear plant, Reuters Staff, NEW DELHI (Reuters) 28 June 18- GE and French utility EDF have agreed to team to build six reactors for a nuclear power project in western India, which is due to be the world’s biggest when finished……… The six European Pressurised Water reactors will be for a 9,900 mw nuclear power project at Jaitapur, south of Mumbai in the state of Maharashtra, GE and EDF said in a joint statement released on Tuesday…….
EDF will be responsible for engineering integration of the entire project, while GE Power will design the critical part of the plant and supply its main components, the companies said.
GE will also provide operational support services and a training programme to meet the needs of the state-run Nuclear Power Corp. of India Ltd, the plant’s owner and operator.
Reporting by Nidhi Verma; Editing by Alexander Smith https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-nuclear-ge/frances-edf-ge-to-co-build-reactors-for-huge-indian-nuclear-plant-idUSKBN1JM1J8
Chemical spill at the Sellafield nuclear plant
Whitehaven News 26th June 2018 , Firefighters were called to deal with a chemical spill at the Sellafield
nuclear plant. Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service was called to the spillage,
which involved about 25 litres of nitric acid, at 3.13pm yesterday. The
service sent three crews, who joined two Sellafield fire service engines
already at the scene. Two CFRS and two Sellafield firefighters wearing
gas-tight suits and breathing apparatus applied sodium bicarbonate to
neutralise the acid. They were at the scene for about two hours. A
Sellafield spokesman said the spill did not involve any radioactive
chemicals, the material stayed within a bund designed to contain spillages
and the incident posed no risk or harm to anybody.
http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk/news/firefighters-called-to-Sellafield-4731973a-e10d-480c-8b3f-222c18dfc449-ds
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