Hillary Clinton urging Burma to come clean on nuclear research
Clinton seeks a nuclear surety from Burma, SMH, Lindsay Murdoch, December 2, 2011 BANGKOK: Hillary Clinton has made Burma’s purchase of missile technology from North Korea the highest priority of the first visit by a US secretary of state to the impoverished south-east Asian nation in 50 years.
Mrs Clinton is seeking an assurance from Burma’s leaders they are not receiving nuclear technologies from North Korea and wants them to agree to more vigorous inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, according to a senior State Department official.
US officials travelling with Mrs Clinton say there are no signs of a ”substantial” effort by Burma to develop nuclear weapons but they are worried by the increased pace of military contact with Pyongyang……..
It was reported that Mr Thein Sein spent much of the meeting giving a detailed 45-minute presentation about further change, including the adoption of international agreements on nuclear programs to allay suspicions about the Burma-North Korea weapons trade.
Burma insists that any nuclear-related activities are purely for civilian research purposes. But Senator Richard Lugar, the top Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said this week that resolving questions about Burma’s illicit nuclear research were fundamental to the US’s improved relations with Burma. A UN report released in November last year said North Korea was supplying banned nuclear and ballistic equipment to Burma as well as Iran and Syria. Burmese army defectors have claimed the country has been researching weapons of mass destruction since 2001. http://www.smh.com.au/world/clinton-seeks-a-nuclear-surety-from-burma-20111201-1o98b.html#ixzz1fSBFMTcq
Japan sets radiation level limit for childrens’ school meals
The threshold is one-fifth of the current provisional limit on radioactive cesium for items of general consumption — 200 becquerels per kilogram for drinking water, milk and dairy products. The maximum allowable amount for rice, vegetables, meat and fish is set at 500 becquerels per kilogram.
The officials of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology said they newly set the criteria for school meals as the government plans to lower the upper limit of annual internal exposure to radioactive cesium through food and drink consumption to 1 millisievert from the current provisional threshold of 5 millisieverts. The 17 prefectures include Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, Ibaraki, Tokyo, Niigata, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka.
The ministry has earmarked about ¥100 million in the third extra budget for the current fiscal year to cover part of the cost to purchase dosimeters to detect radiation amounts in meals at schools in the 17 prefectures, according to the officials.
Under the directive, municipal governments are requested to buy equipment that can detect radiation levels in food and drink below 40 becquerels and to stop serving items with radioactive substances that exceed the upper limit, the officials said. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20111202a1.htm
Japan trying out a giant washing machine for radioactive cleanup
Japan looks to giant washer to clean Fukushima debris, MY sinchew.com,TOKYO, December 2, 2011 (AFP) – Japan is looking to launder tsunami debris in a giant washing machine to get rid of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear accident, a researcher said Friday.
In a scheme they hope will result in finally being able to dispose of contaminated waste left by the waves that crushed towns on the country’s northeast coast, a cleaning plant will be built near the Fukushima Daiichi power station. Shredded waste — including the remains of houses and cars destroyed by the tsunami — will be put inside a huge water-filled drum where steel attachments will scrub away radioactive particles, the researcher told AFP.
The plan is a joint scheme between Tokyo-based construction company Toda Corp. and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency…..Government planners have said radiation-contaminated debris could be stored in a facility in Fukushima prefecture for at least 30 years until its final destination is determined. http://www.mysinchew.com/node/67283
Arms control experts doubt report that China’s nuclear arsenal is very large
US experts skeptical over China nuclear force report, By Dan De Luce (AFP) –2 Dec 11 WASHINGTON — Arms control experts are dismissing a report by US university students that suggests China’s nuclear arsenal may be much larger than previously estimated, saying the research is shoddy and unreliable. Continue reading
Wind power growing in importance in South Korea
South Korea’s drive for renewable energy By Lucy Williamson, BBC News,1 Dec 11 South Korea “…..Wind power is becoming increasingly important to South Korea – not just as a way to help meet ambitious targets on greenhouse gas emissions, but also as a way to boost the economy.
“Green Growth” has been a key national strategy since President Lee Myung-bak took office four years ago……..South Korea is relatively late to the green technology market. Europe is the established leader in wind turbines – and even China is judged to be steaming ahead.
Korea completed its first wind farm five years ago. Spread across a beautiful series of hills in Gangwon Province, near the country’s eastern coast, the wind farm produces an impressive 240MW per year….. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15984399
Russia calls on North Korea to stop nuclear program
Russia Urges North Korea to Halt Nuclear Activities, VOA, December 1st, 2011 Russia has urged North Korea to halt its uranium enrichment program and re-admit United Nations nuclear monitors to pave the way for international disarmament talks.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that consistent implementation of the uranium program in North Korea cannot but create serious worry. It called on Pyongyang to announce a moratorium on all of its nuclear activities including the uranium enrichment program.
Moscow is also urging its communist neighbor to invite inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency to examine its nuclear program and verify that it is purely peaceful. The call comes after North Korea Wednesday announced progress in producing enriched uranium for its light-water nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on North Korea Wednesday to take concrete steps to abandon its nuclear program and promote peace and stability….. http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/12/01/russia-urges-north-korea-to-halt-nuclear-activities/
Governor calls for scrapping of all of Fukushima’s 10 nuclear reactors
Scrap all 10 Fukushima nuclear reactors: Governor, Straits Times, Nov 30, 2011,TOKYO (AFP) – The governor of Japan’s Fukushima prefecture called on Wednesday for all 10 of the area’s reactors to be scrapped as it attempts to recover from an ongoing nuclear crisis.
Yuhei Sato said he would include the demand in the prefecture’s reconstruction plan to be compiled by the end of this year following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that sparked the nuclear disaster.
The Fukushima prefectural assembly has already adopted a petition to seek the decommissioning of the 10 reactors housed at Fukushima’s Daiichi and Daini plants, both run by Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco).
‘I decided to stipulate the reactor decommissioning in the reconstruction plan so that young people can live here without worries,’ Mr Sato told a news conference. http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_739689.html
TEPCO admits complete meltdown of nuclear fuel rods in Fukushima reactor No.1
Tepco Details Nuclear Fuel Damage, WSJ, By MITSURU OBE, 30 Nov 11 TOKYO—The stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear-power plant came a lot closer to a full “China Syndrome” meltdown than previous company analyses had indicated, though there is no danger of further damage now, plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Wednesday.
The nuclear-fuel rods in reactor No. 1 likely melted completely, Tepco and the Japanese government said for the first time—burning a hole through one surrounding vessel and eating through up to three-quarters of the concrete base at the bottom of a second containment vessel meant as a last barrier between the radioactive core and the outside
world. Continue reading
USA now saying that Burma is not pursuing nuclear weapons
“We’ve looked at this fairly carefully and we do not see signs of a substantial effort at this time” on nuclear arms, the official told reporters accompanying Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on a landmark visit.
While Clinton will raise concerns about links to North Korea, the State Department official downplayed accounts by defectors that Burma has worked with Pyongyang to develop an advanced nuclear weapons system…..
A UN report released in November 2010 said North Korea was supplying banned nuclear and ballistic equipment to Burma, along with Iran and Syria. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/no-sign-of-major-burma-nuclear-drive-us-20111130-1o77j.html
India’s government just doesn’t ‘get it’ on popular opposition to nuclear power
Koodankulam struggle: Western nations are learning from their mistakes, India is not, The Weekend Leader, By Nityanand Jayaraman & Sundar Rajan, Chennai, 30 Nov 2011, Since August 2011, Tamil Nadu has witnessed renewed protests against the commissioning of the first of two 1,000 MW power plants as part of the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP).
While protests have been ongoing against the project since the proposal was mooted in 1988, the impending commissioning of the reactors in light of the devastating and uncontrollable nuclear meltdown in Fukushima, Japan, has rightly triggered a wave of concern among thinking people in India.
The protest against nuclear power plants is not isolated to Koodankulam. Even as we speak, fisherfolk and farmers in Jaitapur, Maharashtra, and farmers and residents of Gorakhpur, Haryana, are saying a loud “No” to nuclear power plants in their area. Haripur, West Bengal, which was to be a site for Russian reactors, will no longer be on the nuclear map, as the state government bowed to local sentiment and declared West Bengal a nuclear-free state.
Wise people do learn from others’ mistakes. Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and Japan have all announced that they will move away from the nuclear option, and explore clean and sustainable forms of electricity generation.
But India’s chest-thumping “nucleocracy” wants to play the death game, with peasants and fisherfolk as pawns in the gamble.The staunch and united protests by farmers, traders and fisherfolk in Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Thoothukudi have scared the nuclear establishment.
Faced with the real prospect of having to abandon the project, the Congress-led UPA government is doing what it does best — divide and rule; communalise the issue and allege that foreign hands are at play….. http://www.theweekendleader.com/Causes/833/Nuking-myths.html
Nuclear project in Jaitapur opposed by Shiv Sena Party
Jaitapur plant debate goes ballistic Daily Bashkar.com 30 Nov 11 Mumbai: Declaring his party’s solidarity with the people of Konkan, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday said if they do not want the atomic power project in Jaitapur, then his party will not let it happen….. Continue reading
Political opposition to nuclear power in Japan
Nuclear Conflict: Utility, Mayor Face Off in Japan WSJ, By MARI IWATA, 29 Nov 11 TOKYO—Kansai Electric Power Co. is likely to come under more pressure to reduce its use of nuclear power under new Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto.
Mr. Hashimoto won Sunday’s election after a campaign in which he pledged to lower the use of nuclear power Continue reading
Indian nuclear officials met with jeers and boos
Villagers boo officials at talks on Jaitapur safety, Business Standard, BS Reporter / Mumbai November 30, 2011, Supported by the Opposition Shiv Sena, residents of a few villages of southwestern Maharashtra today stepped up their strong opposition to the proposed 9,900-Mw plant in their area of Jaitapur.
As former Atomic Energy Commission chief Anil Kakodkar shared the dais with its current chairman Srikumar Banerjee for the first time in the locality, protesters jeered officials of the Department of Atomic Energy, Atomic Energy Commission, Nuclear Power Corporation and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. Continue reading
India’s poor nuclear safety record
Koodankulam struggle: Western nations are learning from their mistakes, India is not The Weekend Leader, By Nityanand Jayaraman & Sundar Rajan, 30 Nov Chennai “………The claim that Indian nuclear plants are safe is contrary to the facts. Safety breaches in India’s nuclear establishments seldom come to light because of the shroud of secrecy surrounding the institutions. But what little we know gives serious cause for concern.
Just take the case of Kalpakkam. The following violations have come to light, including some that were acknowledged more than six months after the incident.
• 1987: A refuelling accident ruptured the reactor core
• 1991: Workers were exposed to radioactive heavy water
• 1999: 42 workers were exposed to radiation
• 2002: 100 kg of radioactive sodium was released into the environment
• 2003: 6 workers were exposed to high levels of radiation
Other very serious incidents have happened in other reactors. In November 2009, more than 55 workers at the Kaiga nuclear plant, Karnataka, were exposed to excessive levels of radiation when they drank water laced with radioactive tritium…. http://www.theweekendleader.com/Causes/833/Nuking-myths.html
Japanese government underestimates radiation risks
Fukushima Radiation Risks “Severely Underestimated“: Greenpeace, November 29, 2011 Tokyo- (PanOrient News) Greenpeace today renewed its demand for the Japanese government to keep its nuclear reactors offline as simulation maps of potential accidents at Japan’s nuclear plants – used in the development of nuclear emergency response efforts – “are completely inadequate, and have not been updated since the Fukushima disaster.” Continue reading
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