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Canada’s nuclear agency a money pit for tax-payers

flag-canadaBudget watchdog says nuclear agency a major drain on public purse The Canadian Press, May. 17 2013 Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. is continuing to be a money pit for taxpayers.

The parliamentary budget officer’s latest analysis of the government’s spending estimates shows the Crown corporation will cost the public purse an additional $236-million this year, bringing the total to $362-million for 2013-14. The additional money is for AECL’s research and development program.

The federal budget watchdog says although Ottawa’s support for the troubled nuclear agency has decreased by 60 per cent over the last four years, the booked savings in terms of direct support for operations is misleading.

At the same time, AECL’s losses have ballooned: from $300-million in 2009-10 to $3-billion over the first three quarters of 2012-13.

“As a wholly-owned Crown corporation, the government of Canada is ultimately responsible for AECL’s liabilities,” the PBO points out.

Overall, the report calculates that the government will spend $1.1-billion more during the current fiscal year than what was contained in the main estimates issued in early March. That will bring spending for the 2013-14 fiscal year to about $253.6-billion…… http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/budget-watchdog-says-nuclear-agency-a-major-drain-on-public-purse/article11988610/

May 18, 2013 Posted by | Canada, politics | Leave a comment

‘Near miss’ at Chalk River nuclear reactor

Atomic Energy of Canada playing down ‘near-miss’ at Ontario nuclear reactorBy  | Daily Brew – Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) is playing down the danger caused by a so-called “near-miss” at its nuclear reactor in Chalk River, Ont., but says it’s still being taken seriously.

An operator mistakenly shut off a pumping system that supplies coolant to the reactor’s core, officials of the Crown corporation told the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission on Wednesday…….

Unless there’s a release of radiation, the public rarely hears about accidents at nuclear facilities, so AECL’s session before the commission provided a rare glimpse into what can happen.

The Chalk River site, about a two-hour drive northwest of Ottawa, is Canada’s foremost nuclear research facility. It’s also the oldest, first established during the Second World War as part of the atomic bomb program. After the war it transitioned into research on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and production of isotopes used in medicine.

The facility was the scene of two nuclear accidents in the 1950s, the first in 1952, severely damaging a reactor and creating 4,500 tons of radioactive water that was dumped in ditches near the Ottawa River. A 1958 incident involving the NRU reactor contaminated the reactor building and surrounding area.

The NRU reactor, which went online in 1957, was temporarily shut down in 2007 to deal with safety issues, raising concern about a worldwide shortage of medical isotopes during the year-long closure. It also suffered a radioactive water leak in 2008. The reactor was shut down again in 2009 for more than a year after the water leak recurred.

The latest incident seems trivial by comparison but could have had serious consequences……

According to a 2011 article in the Guardian newspaper, there have been 33 serious incidents and accidents at nuclear power plants since the first Chalk River meltdown in 1952. That one was rated a Level 5 incident on an ascending scale of 1 to 7…..

A 2011 post on the website of the environmental Bellona Foundation warned of an alarming number of emergency shutdowns, or scrams, and unscheduled repairs at Russian nuclear power stations…..http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/dailybrew/atomic-energy-canada-playing-down-near-miss-ontario-185900047.html

May 18, 2013 Posted by | Canada, incidents | Leave a comment

Crash go earnings and share price for uranium miner Cameco

cliff-money-ACameco Profit Trails Analysts’ Estimates as Uranium Price Drops  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-01/cameco-profit-trails-analysts-estimates-as-uranium-price-drops.html By Christopher Donville – May 1, 2013  Cameco Corp. (CCO), the world’s third- largest uranium producer, reported first-quarter profit and revenue that trailed analysts’ estimates after a decline in the price of the raw material in nuclear-reactor fuel.

Net income fell to C$9 million ($8.9 million), or 2 cents a share, from C$129 million, or 33 cents, a year earlier, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based Cameco said today in a statement. Profit excluding one-time items was 7 cents a share, missing the 8-cent average of 14 estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales declined to C$444 million from C$466 million, less than the C$473 million average of six estimates.The price of uranium for immediate delivery has slumped 40 percent since the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami in Japan led to a meltdown at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant. In response to the disaster, Japan suspended its fleet of reactors while Germany canceled license extensions, shut down some of its oldest nuclear plants and ordered the others close by 2022.

“Fukushima is still a major factor in the uranium market,” Rob Chang, a Toronto-based analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald LP, said in a telephone interview before the results were released. “On top of that, commodity prices around the world have been dragged down by worries about global growth and Chinese demand for raw materials.”

Kazatomprom, Kazakhstan’s state-owned producer, and Paris- based Areva SA (AREVA) are the biggest uranium miners, according to the World Nuclear Association.

(Cameco scheduled a conference call to discuss results at 1 p.m. New York time at +1-877-240-9772or +1-416-340-8530.)

May 3, 2013 Posted by | business and costs, Canada, Uranium | Leave a comment

93% fall in earnings so far this year, for uranium mining company

exclamation-Earnings down for Saskatoon uranium giant   CBC News May 1, 2013   Lower sales, lower prices and higher costs pushed down first quarter results at Cameco.

So far this year, the Saskatoon-based uranium company earned $9 million — down 93 per cent from the $129 million Cameco made in the first quarter of 2012……

The company recently laid off a number of staff at its Saskatoon headquarters.

Cameco said most of the power utilities that buy its nuclear products are locked into contracts until 2016….. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2013/05/01/saskatoon-cameco-earnings.html

May 3, 2013 Posted by | business and costs, Canada, Uranium | Leave a comment

Ontario’s high electricity bills due to nuclear costs, not renewables

money-lobbyingMad about your hydro bill? Blame nuclear and gas plants flag-canadahttp://www.thestar.com/business/personal_finance/2013/04/18/mad_about_your_hydro_bill_blame_nuclear_and_gas_plants.html

Payments to nuclear and gas-fired generators are the main ingredients in the largest component on Ontario hydro bills By:  Business reporter,  Apr 18 2013 Payments to nuclear and gas-fired generating plants — not to renewable energy suppliers — are the main ingredients in the biggest component of your hydro bill.

That’s the conclusion of a study done for the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), which runs Ontario’s power market.

Renewable power has frequently been the whipping boy for hydro price increases, because of the highly visible prices it commands. It’s also a political flashpoint: the provincial Progressive Conservatives have presented a bill in the Legislature that would gut the renewable energy policies adopted by the Liberals.

But a study by Navigant Consulting Ltd. shows that payments to nuclear and gas-fired generators are responsible for two-thirds of the “global adjustment” charge, which is the biggest part of the “electricity” line in your hydro bill. Continue reading →

April 20, 2013 Posted by | business and costs, Canada | 1 Comment

Now three Canadian provinces halt uranium mining

Quebec becomes third province to impose uranium moratorium Mining.com Vladimir Basov | April 4, 2013 Quebec became the third Canadian province, after Nova Scotia and British Columbia, to establish a moratorium on uranium development.Environment minister Yves-Francois Blanchet announced last Thursday no permits for exploration or mining will be issued until an independent study on the environmental impact and social acceptance of extracting uranium has been completed…..

April 5, 2013 Posted by | Canada, Uranium | 1 Comment

Moratorium on uranium development in Quebec

“It’s a little bit like asbestos — people have come to the conclusion that there are certain minerals that are so dangerous that they’re not worth mining, they’re better to leave underground,” Edwards said. “One is asbestos, and one is uranium

logo-NO-nuclear-SmQuebec imposes moratorium on uranium development, Montreal Gazette, By Kevin Dougherty and Monique Beaudin, March 28, 2013
QUEBEC — No permits for the exploration or mining of uranium in Quebec will flag-canadabe issued until an independent study on the environmental impact and social acceptance of extracting uranium has been completed, Environment Minister Yves-François Blanchet announced Thursday. Continue reading →

March 29, 2013 Posted by | Canada, Uranium | 1 Comment

Canada’s tax-payers up for increased costs for nuclear wastes

flag-canadaNuclear waste cleanup liability cost up by $2.4B, Ottawa told Andy Johnson,   CTV News, , Mar. 20, 2013  The cost of cleaning up Canada’s nuclear program has risen dramatically in recent years and Ottawa is being warned another $2.4 billion is needed, bring the total to $6 billion.

nuke-reactor-deadAtomic Energy of Canada Limited posted a statement Tuesday saying liability costs will go up by $2.4 billion from $3.6 billion in March of last year.

The estimate represents the cost associated with “decommissioning, managing and disposing of its radioactive waste in a manner that will ensure long-term health, safety, security and environmental responsibility.” “The main reason for the liability adjustment is an increase in the indirect costs attributed to the decommissioning and waste management over the period of up to 70 years of the program,” said a statement posted on the AECL website. Continue reading →

March 21, 2013 Posted by | Canada, decommission reactor | 1 Comment

Ontario shutting down coal fired power, going for renewables

Ontario to add renewable energy, shut coal-fired power plants Mar 1,
2013     (Reuters) – Ontario’s power grid operator expects more than
3,200 megawatts (MW) of renewable capacity to be connected to the
transmission system, while the province’s remaining coal-fired plants
will shut over the next 18 months.
In a report published on Thursday, the Independent Electricity
System Operator (IESO) said the renewable capacity
includes the Canadian province’s first two transmission grid-connected
solar projects.
By August 2014, the IESO said total wind and solar generation
connected to the transmission and distribution systems is expected to
reach about 6,800 MW.
“Integrating renewable resources into Ontario’s changing supply
mix has been a learning process for both us and the renewable
generators,” Bruce Campbell, IESO Vice-President of Resource
Integration, said in the release.
“Everything we’ve learned will be applied in the coming months as
wind and solar gain even more prominence on the grid,” he
said……..http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/01/utilities-ontario-ieso-idUSL1N0BT5TX2013030

March 2, 2013 Posted by | Canada, renewable | Leave a comment

Medical isotopes from non nuclear sources – no nuclear reactor needed

nuclear-medicineCanada to fund non-nuclear sources for medical isotopes By Randall Palmer and David Ljunggren | Reuters –28 Feb 13, 
  OTTAWA – Canada expects to be able to make enough medical isotopes through non-nuclear methods by 2016 to replace those now produced by an aging reactor and better assure an uninterrupted supply for medical imaging, a government minister said on Thursday.

To that end, the federal government will fund three research institutes developing cyclotron and linear accelerator technologies for production of isotopes on a commercial scale, Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said.

Canada’s only current source of the isotopes is a problem-plagued reactor at Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd’s facility at Chalk River, Ontario. The reactor is licensed to run until 2016.

“Our challenge now is to prove that cyclotron and linear accelerator production can be commercially viable. … We envision a future where isotope production will no longer require highly enriched uranium — a weapons-grade material,” he said.

The government will give a total of C$25 million ($24.3 million) to the three facilities for this goal…. http://news.yahoo.com/canada-fund-non-nuclear-sources-medical-isotopes-190403191–sector.html

March 1, 2013 Posted by | Canada, health | 1 Comment

Media keep mum about barrels in Lake Superior – ?radioactive

Paper: News blackout over mystery barrels in Lake Superior — Purplish ooze, bouncing Geiger counters reported — No ‘immediate’ health threat to public http://enenews.com/paper-news-blackout-over-mystery-barrels-in-lake-superior-reports-of-purplish-ooze-bouncing-geiger-counters-no-immediate-health-threat-to-public  February 23rd, 2013
Title: Our view: New mysteries emerge in big-lake barrel saga
Source: Duluth News Tribune
Date: February 22, 2013
h/t Anonymous tip

Our view: New mysteries emerge in big-lake barrel saga

[…] 1,400 barrels dumped in [Lake Superior] in the late 1950s and early 1960s not far from the Duluth-Superior Harbor. The Department of Defense barrels were said to hold scrap metal from a grenade project the U.S. was eager to keep secret from the Soviets. But reports of purplish ooze, bouncing Geiger counters and more long fueled speculation, concern and even conspiracy theorists.

The [Red Cliff Band of Chippewa] recovered only 25 barrels, and it did so under what was called a “news blackout.” No media was allowed near the recovery work and there were no briefings with reporters about what was going on or what was found. A “safety zone” kept curious boats well away.

“We need to stay focused on the work rather than informing the public,” Red Cliff Environmental Director Melonee Montano said in an August story in the News Tribune. […]

In January, the band did say there were no “immediate (health) threats or concerns to the public,” an assurance it reiterated a month later. […]
A Tribune editorial from 2012: Duluth Newspaper: Maybe Yucca Mountain-type nuclear waste dump should be in Minnesota, Wisconsin or Michigan instead — Sounds scary, but is it?

February 25, 2013 Posted by | Canada, media | Leave a comment

STOP THE GREAT LAKES NUCLEAR DUMP FACT SHEET

highly-recommended 

Global Research, February 23, 2013
Region: , 

by Stop The Great Lakes Nuclear Dump     

1.     Ontario Power Generation (OPG), a multi-billion dollar corporation wholly owned by the Province of Ontario, plans to build a nuclear waste dump at the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant site, Municipality of Kincardine, Ontario “located approximately 1 km inland from the shore of Lake Huron at the surface and more than 400 metres below the deepest near-site point of Lake Huron.”  http://tinyurl.com/arc34y2  , page 55  OPG owns all Ontario’s nuclear plants and all radioactive nuclear waste created.

2.     Low and intermediate level radioactive nuclear waste will be buried in the nuclear waste dump. Intermediate level nuclear wastes are highly radioactive and many remain toxic for over 100,000 years.  Some are as dangerous as nuclear spent fuel.  No scientist or geologist can provide a 100,000 year guarantee that this nuclear waste dump will not leak. Continue reading →

February 25, 2013 Posted by | Canada, environment, Reference | Leave a comment

Federal court rules against Cameco getting money from uranium spill ship

No money for Cameco after sale of ship that had uranium spill  By Kevin O’Connor CBC News Feb 7, 2013  Saskatchewan mining company Cameco will not get any money from the sale of a ship that once had a uranium spill at sea — and that it spent millions cleaning up.

Instead, according to a recent Federal Court decision, a German bank that held a mortgage on the shipping vessel MCP Altona will get most of the $4.6 million raised when it was sold.

The case stems from an incident at sea two years ago….. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2013/02/07/sk-radioactive-spill-on-boat-case-1302.html

February 8, 2013 Posted by | Canada, Legal | Leave a comment

No nuclear wastes dump near Lake Huron – Bruce County group

Bruce County group opposes burying nuclear waste near Lake Huron, The Record, Frances Barrick,  Jan 15 2013 A Bruce County-based group opposed to burying nuclear waste near Lake Huron is taking its fight to Canada’s largest city.

A billboard along Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway says “bad idea” to a plan to build an underground repository to store low- and intermediate-level nuclear waste at the Bruce nuclear plant near Kincardine.

“We feel this is a national issue and we want to bring this to the attention of all Canadians,” Beverly Fernandez, spokesperson for Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump Inc., said of the sign on one of Canada’s busiest commuter routes.

The Ontario Power Generation is in the midst of seeking approval from the federal government for this project, which would be built about one kilometre from the shores of Lake Huron. Approval is expected in about nine months, she said.

“It defies common sense to bury radioactive waste beside a source of drinking water that 40 million people rely on,” said Fernandez, a Southampton resident.

This project is separate from plans by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization to bury highly radioactive nuclear waste in a “willing” community in Canada…..

The group has also launched an online petition intended for federal Environment Minister Peter Kent, who has final approval of the project. The petition is at www.gopetition.com/petitions/stopthegreatlakesnucleardump.html…..

http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/870018–bruce-county-group-opposes-burying-nuclear-waste-near-lake-huron

January 17, 2013 Posted by | Canada, opposition to nuclear | Leave a comment

Coal mining’s radiation hazard should be recognised, too

radiation-warningThe nuclear lobby is out to convince us that ionising radiation is not harmful .

This is a lie.

However, if we are seriously concerned about ionising radiation, we need to recognise that it is  a serious threat from sources other than the nuclear industry, as well.

Two other serous sources of  ionising radiation are medical radiation, and mining operations, especially coal.

There is an argument for medical radiation. Used judicially, medical radiation is beneficial in diagnosis, treatment, and pain relief in illness.

There really is no longer an argument for coal mining, given it’s role in global warming. But also, attention should be paid to the menace of ionising radiation in coal ash. – Christina Macpherson 7 Jan 13

EPA agrees to look into town’s radiation concerns SF Gate,  January 6, 2013 TOWN OF PINES, Ind. (AP) — Federal environmental officials will investigate concerns about radiation levels in a northwestern Indiana community after residents and activists raised concern. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notified local officials late last month that the EPA would study the levels in The Pines early this year, The Times reported (http://bit.ly/UmBcgA ).

Matthew Ohl, the EPA’s project remedial manager, said NIPSCO, Brown, Inc., Ddalt Cop. and Bulk Transport Corp. proposed sampling in “certain residential yards in the Town of Pines.” The study was requested by a local environmental panel, which heard a presentation in November by Paul Kysel and Larry Jensen of PINES, or People in Need of Environmental Safety.

Jensen, a former EPA employee, conducted his own study of radiation levels and concluded that levels in the town are elevated. The PINES group believes coal ash, which was used as fill in roads, could be the cause of elevated radiation levels. The Pines is home to a landfill operated by Brown Inc. and holds about 1 million tons of fly ash created by NIPSCO’s burning of coal in its power plants. The facility was cited in 2000 by the EPA for contaminating drinkingwater …..http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/EPA-agrees-to-look-into-town-s-radiation-concerns-4170911.php#ixzz2HJy2xPxC

January 7, 2013 Posted by | Canada, Christina's notes, environment | Leave a comment

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