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Canada’s nuclear waste problem, risks to Lake Huron

 In Canada’s 40-year nuclear power program, two million used fuel bundles have been created, enough to fill six hockey arenas. As Canada’s largest nuclear plant, about 50 per cent of that used nuclear waste is stored above ground at the Bruce plant…..

Nuclear-waste dump proposal sparks protest in cottage country, Frances Barrick, The Record  Apr 04 2012 SAUGEEN SHORES — The battles lines are drawn in Saugeen Shores over the contentious issue of whether this Lake Huron tourist community should be the site of Canada’s first underground repository for high-level nuclear waste.

“I can’t imagine why people would want to come here and vacation beside Canada’s nuclear waste dump,” Continue reading →

April 5, 2012 Posted by | Canada, wastes | Leave a comment

Ontario city of Peterborough concerned over nuclear radiation and health

“The main health related concern is the potential direct and indirect effects on DNA and the damage that could result in cancer, teratogenic, reproductive and hereditary effects,”

Peterborough raises radiation concerns Toronto Sun, SARAH DEETH, QMI AGENCY, APRIL 03, 2012   PETERBOROUGH, ONT. – The city of Peterborough, Ont., has raised concerns about human and environmental exposure to radiation levels at a local nuclear processing plant. Continue reading →

April 4, 2012 Posted by | Canada, health | Leave a comment

Court action over inadequate environmental assessment of nuclear reactor plans

They also note that the government didn’t select a specific type of nuclear reactor, making its possible impact difficult to assess.

Environmentalists challenge Ont. nuclear plan in court   The Canadian Press, Mar. 21, 2012  TORONTO — A group of environmentalists has gone to court to challenge Ontario’s plan to build new nuclear reactors, arguing the environmental risks and costs involved haven’t been properly assessed. Continue reading →

March 22, 2012 Posted by | Canada, Legal | Leave a comment

Non nuclear energy strategy would save Ontario $billions

Nuclear power too costly, Ontario Clean Air Alliance argues  The Star, John Spears Business Reporter, 20 March 12, Abandoning nuclear power in favour of imported electricity from Quebec and new, high-efficiency natural gas plants, would save Ontario billions, says the Ontario Clean Air Alliance. Continue reading →

March 21, 2012 Posted by | business and costs, Canada | Leave a comment

Quebec rejects uranium mining

Quebec Says No to Uranium World Business Report, 4 Mar 12, In 2009, on the North-Shore of Quebec, the population of Sept-ÃŽles, with the help of “Sept-ÃŽles sans uranium”, had expressed its opposition against Terre Venture. The population won, and the company abandoned its project. Continue reading →

March 6, 2012 Posted by | Canada, opposition to nuclear, Uranium | Leave a comment

Top medical isotope can be produced without nuclear reactor

Nuclear medicine has long been touted as a selling point for nuclear power  –  a kin do healthy fig leaf put over a n unhealthy, toxic industry. – Christina Macpherson

Nuclear Reactors Not Needed to Make the Most Common Medical Isotope, Science Now by Robert F. Service on 20 February 2012,  In recent years, hospitals worldwide have been grappling with short supplies of technetium-99 (Tc-99), the most commonly used radioisotope in medical imaging scans. But help may be at hand: A team of Canadian researchers reported today that they’ve made critical progress in developing a stable new supply of the isotope.

Tc-99 is currently produced in nuclear reactors fueled with highly enriched uranium, which has raised concerns that the nuclear fuel could be intercepted by terrorists to make a nuclear weapon. The new setupproduces Tc-99 with a medical cyclotron, thereby eliminating proliferation concerns. But economic and technical considerations may make it more practical for shoring up Tc-99 supplies in Canada than in the United States. Continue reading →

February 21, 2012 Posted by | Canada, health, technology | 1 Comment

Canada denies asylum to Japanese nuclear refugee

Japan’s nuclear evacuees denied Canadian refuge CNews  Canada, By Tom Godfrey, QMI Agency , 20 Feb 12,  TORONTO – A Japanese woman who claimed exposure to radiation from damaged nuclear reactors has been denied refugee status in Canada The woman’s identity has not been released by the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB), since she’s seeking asylum in Canada. She is among several dozen Japanese nationals who filed refugee claims to stay in Canada following the disaster, and the decision in her case is one of the first to be reached by the IRB.

“The claimant feared risks of exposure to radiation,” an IRB member said in a ruling. “She was not convinced by the Japanese government’s assurances of safety from radiation.”

The woman was one of hundreds of Japanese citizens who sought refuge in other countries following the March 11, 2011 catastrophe …. A board member said the claimant’s risk “is characterized as being widespread and prevalent in Japan.”

The woman can still appeal her case to the Federal Court of Canada, and that decision can still be appealed. She claimed her life was in danger from radioactive contaminants that spewed into the environment from the Fukushima plant. …..http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2012/02/18/19397881.html

February 21, 2012 Posted by | Canada, politics international | Leave a comment

Cameco uranium company cuts production in view of nuclear industry slowdown

Cameco outlook sours amid doubts on nuclear’s future * Company sees 2012 revenue flat to down 5 percent

* Eyes lower production in 2012

* Shares down 1 pct at C$23.12 

TORONTO, Feb 10 (Reuters) – Uranium producer Cameco forecast lower sales and highlighted doubts about the takeup of nuclear power in its stronger than expected quarterly results, and its shares edged lower on Friday, ……
Cameco, the world’s No.1 publicly-listed uranium producer, also lowered its 2012 uranium production outlook by 3 percent to 21.7 million pounds and said delays and cancellations after last year’s Fukushima nuclear disaster could hit prices.

Germany, which represents about 5 percent of the global market for uranium, plans to phase out its reactors by 2022.

Japan shut down most of its reactors for testing after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, and is expected to take its remaining three reactors offline for maintenance in the next few months.

“It remains unclear what level of nuclear power Japan itself – which represents 12 percent of global nuclear generating capacity – will depend on in the future,” Cameco said.

February 11, 2012 Posted by | business and costs, Canada, Uranium | Leave a comment

Canada’s emerging renewable energy power needs a national focus

Clean energy also needs political focus, Montreal Gazette, By TIM WEIS, Financial Post February 10, 2012 Whether it is the Keystone XL pipeline, the Northern Gateway pipeline or securing an export market in China, the oil sands have dominated
much of the recent energy discussions in Canada.

What might surprise many is that Canada is quietly emerging as a renewable energy leader, but it will take the same political focus
currently being put toward oil sands to ensure we retain and grow the jobs that are being created in the country’s emerging clean energy sector.

In 2011 Canada was sixth in the world in wind energy installations, and as recently as November 2011, Ernst & Young ranked Canada as the eighth most attractive country in the world for renewable energy investment, ahead of some traditional leaders including Denmark, Spain and Japan.

Despite having fewer than 35 million people, Canada has the sixth-largest electricity system on the planet, behind only China, the
United States, Russia, Japan and Germany. Given the size of our electricity system, perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise that
Canada ought to be one of the leading markets for renewable electricity. Continue reading →

February 11, 2012 Posted by | Canada, renewable | Leave a comment

Canadian govt to sell nuclear laboratories, to reduce taxpayers’ financial risks

Government of Canada to Unload AECL Laboratories, TechFinance, February 9, 2012 Government of Canada is seeking “Expression of Interest” as a process of selling Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL)’s Nuclear Laboratories.

Government of Canada said this process will help inform the restructuring process, a critical step to further strengthen Canada’s nuclear industry while reducing taxpayers’ exposure to financial risks in this sector.
AECL’s Nuclear Laboratories include two main sites: Chalk River Laboratories (CRL), located in Ontario, and Whiteshell Laboratories, located at Pinawa, Manitoba…….
http://news.techfinance.ca/government-of-canada-to-unload-aecl-laboratories/

February 10, 2012 Posted by | Canada, politics | Leave a comment

Radioactive threats to the Great Lakes

Nuclear worries abound in Great Lakes region. Do solutions?, Medill News,  BY RORY KEANE, JAN 26, 2012 “..…The report, titled “Too Close to Home,” cites numerous articles that followed the unfolding disaster at Japan’s Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant and concerns in the U.S., including a series of Associated Press stories dating from summer of 2010.

According to the report, over 10 million Americans in Great Lakes states, excluding Indiana and Minnesota, receive drinking water originating within 12 miles of a nuclear power plant. The AP stories cited focused on radioactive isotopes that could leak into drinking water. Continue reading →

January 27, 2012 Posted by | Canada, USA, water | Leave a comment

Cameco uranium company talks big, but future is doubtful

Uranium miners still waiting on that rebound, TIM KILADZE, Globe and Mail , January 24, 2012 When stocks of uranium miners plummeted after last March’s traumatizing Japanese earthquake, some people expected a rebound once the market’s initial shocks and fears subsided.

They’re still waiting.

Close to a year after the earthquake, shares of Cameco Corp. (CCO-T23.54-0.25-1.05%) are still down 40 per cent and smaller rivals are faring just as badly, with Denison Mines (DML-T1.89-0.12-5.97%) down about 50 per cent. The death knell apparently came when Germany declared a retreat from nuclear energy.

Are these miners doomed for good? Depends on who you ask. Investors are clearly too scared to go near the industry, considering the stocks have moved very little since their initial free fall. (Check out a stock chart for the past year.
Quite scary.) But the companies themselves keep saying that everyone has it wrong.

Cameco chief financial officer Grant Isaac repeated this view when he sat down at CIBC World Market’s Whistler conference last week….. there’s still a major problem. Even if Cameco is bullish over the next decade, its consumers, particularly utilities, like to secure long-term supply contracts, and Cameco can’t talk long-term contracts when they would have to lock-in at today’s prices.

So for now, Cameco is touting plans to increase production. Mr. Isaac said Cameco is sitting on 1 billion pounds of reserves and resources, and the firm wants to bump production from 2 per cent of this a year to 4 per cent.

On this front, investors are cautious. Much of this growth centres on developing the second shaft of Cameco’s Cigar Lake project in northern Saskatchewan, and it’s been plagued with problems…..
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/investment-ideas/streetwise/uranium-miners-still-waiting-on-that-rebound/article2313513/

January 25, 2012 Posted by | business and costs, Canada, Uranium | Leave a comment

Canada’s government kept mum about Fukushima radiation fallout

 he’s asking questions about rain which fell on Calgary shortly after the nuclear disaster last March, containing radioactive iodine well above the Health Canada guidelines for drinking water.

“There are certain people who might be concerned — for instance, a pregnant woman,” 

Fukushima fallout hit home   Nuclear critic says Health Canada should have issued warning on radioactive raindrops  BY MICHAEL PLATT ,CALGARY SUN, 22 Jan 12,  There’s no need to panic — probably.

But not knowing whether to shrug or cower over radioactive iodine falling on Calgary as a result of a meltdown in Japan last year has Canada’s top nuclear critic wondering why.

“There’s no need to be concerned, but what you should be concerned about is why the authorities are so quick to dismiss it,” says Dr. Gordon Edwards. Continue reading →

January 24, 2012 Posted by | Canada, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

AREVA’s environmental plan for uranium mining rejected by Nunavut

“Barry McCallum [Areva’s manager of Nunavut affairs] from Areva has been boasting about how many thousands of pages long their draft environmental impact statement is. It appears that size isn’t everything,” said Jack Hicks, a member of Nunavummiut Makitagunarningit, in an email.

Nunavummiut Makitagunarningit has lobbied against the Kiggavik project for years and is opposed to uranium mining in Nunavut….

NIRB gives Areva failing grade on Kiggavik’s draft EIS Environmental review on uranium scheme stalled NUNATSIAQ NEWS,  Nunavut January 20, 2012 The Kiggavik uranium project, about 80 km from Baker Lake, would cost
$2.1 billion to build … The Nunavut Impact Review Board has rejected Areva Canada’s
draft environmental statement and said an environmental review cannot begin until the company fixes its work.
An environmental review of Nunavut’s first uranium mine is stalled for the time being, following a decision by the Nunavut Impact Review Board to reject an 11-volume draft environmental impact statement from Areva Canada on its proposed Kiggavik uranium extraction project near Baker Lake. Continue reading →

January 21, 2012 Posted by | Canada, environment | Leave a comment

Canadian authorities keep mum about radiation in rainwater

Radioactive iodine in rainwater: Public was in the dark By ALEX ROSLIN, The Montreal Gazette January 14, 2012 After the Fukushima nuclear accident, Canadian health officials assured a nervous public that virtually no radioactive fallout had drifted to Canada. Continue reading →

January 19, 2012 Posted by | Canada, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

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