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A nuclear Svengali on Capitol Hill?

  Linda Pentz Gunter   by beyondnuclearinternational

Attempts by the Breakthrough Institute’s Ted Nordaus to derail NRC commissioner candidacies have met with mixed success, writes Linda Pentz Gunter

We’re getting used to the swagger of entitlement and the complacency of corporate nuclear lobbyists on Capitol Hill.  They, in turn, have become accustomed to getting their way — usually through the powerful persuasion of big money or saturation propaganda campaigns financed with those large stashes of handy corporate cash.

But when that isn’t enough, then a nice smear campaign should do. One who appears to enjoy such an endeavor is the Breakthrough Institute’s founder, Ted Nordhaus, who has made it his business of late to decide who does and does not get a commissioner seat at the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Those who should not, in Nordhaus’s views, are the Democratic candidates or incumbents who have too much of a regard for nuclear safety as a priority.

Safety is a big ticket item for the nuclear power industry. Literally. Maintaining, upgrading and replacing aging parts in these decades-old dinosaurs of the 20th century, many of them running well past their sell-by date, is an expensive undertaking. But a relaxation of — or looking the other way on — some of those pesky safety regulations would be made easier by more compliant NRC commissioners.

Cue Nordhaus, Capitol Hill’s nuclear Svengali. 

His most recent target was Matthew Marzano, the candidate for the long vacant fifth seat on the NRC commission. Nordhaus pulled out all the stops to derail Marzano, beginning last September prior to Marzano’s hearing before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Nordhaus prepared a veritable death warrant in which he claimed, among other things, that Marzano would, if approved, be “the least qualified commissioner ever seated on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission”. Nordhaus also wrote that Marzano, if chosen, “will not be a voice for reform and modernization on the commission.”

Never mind that Marzano, who was then an official at the Idaho National Laboratory, has a pretty solid nuclear background, having worked both on commercial reactors and as an instructor for the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program at the US Department of Energy. (As a side note, this exemplifies once again the two-way street and inexorable link between the civil and military nuclear sectors.)

“Modernization” is Nordhaus’s absolutely most favorite word. He used it, or a derivation of it, nine times in his public assassination-by-blogpost of Marzano’s qualifications (accusations that were obediently re-quoted by senators during Marzano’s hearing.)

“Modernization” is code of course. What it really means is “weakening” or “emasculation,” because what Nordhaus, the Republicans and far too many Democrats are now intent on doing is to transform the NRC from what is already a lame safety regulator into an even meeker nuclear industry lapdog.

The same hand of influence belonging to Nordhaus and his Breakthrough Institute had earlier been felt when legislation was passed on Capitol Hill designed specifically to weaken the NRC. At that time, the Breakthrough Institute railed on its website that the NRC’s “national progress is hindered by its self-imposed narrowly defined mission, primarily concentrated on nuclear safety, which leads to unwarranted delays in reactor licensing.”

Last June, the Senate voted almost unanimously for a bill introduced by Senator Gary Peters, a Democrat from Michigan —S.870 – A bill to authorize appropriations for the United States Fire Administration and firefighter assistance grant programs, to advance the benefits of nuclear energy, and for other purposes. Ostensibly designed to provide improved benefits and safety conditions for firefighters, it included an entire section on the NRC straight from the Nordhaus playbook.

The bill required the NRC to “update the mission statement of the Commission to include that licensing and regulation of the civilian use of radioactive materials and nuclear energy be conducted in a manner that is efficient and does not unnecessarily limit—

(1) the civilian use of radioactive materials and deployment of nuclear energy; or

(2) the benefits of civilian use of radioactive materials and nuclear energy technology to society.”

Afraid of appearing to throw firefighters under the bus, all but two senators voted for the bill. Predictably, the dissenters were Democrat Ed Markey of Massachusetts and independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the only consistent anti-nuclear voices on Capitol Hill…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

What has really crippled the nuclear power sector is its exorbitant costs. But the ruse to undermine the NRC and weaken (“modernize” or “reform”) safety oversight is precisely because it is nuclear power’s immense dangers that cause its costs to sky-rocket.

None of this fazes Nordhaus, however, who insists that new reactors constitute “a new generation of even safer reactors” and that nuclear power has “substantial environmental public health benefits”. 

The former assertion is strongly challenged by physicists such as Edwin Lyman at the Union of Concerned Scientists and M.V. Ramana at the University of British Columbia, who happen to understand the science and know that the untested, recycled and long ago rejected design ideas for small modular reactors are replete with radiological risks and serious and unsolved uncertainties around safety.

As for the substantial health benefits of nuclear power, perhaps Mr. Nordhaus would like to say that to the (non-White) faces of Native Americans coping with the deadly legacy of abandoned uranium mines and to the mothers of childhood leukemia sufferers living near nuclear plants, who would beg to differ.

This article is adapted from a piece that first appeared in the February/March 2025 edition of Ralph Nader’s newspaper, Capitol Hill Citizen, available in print only.
https://beyondnuclearinternational.org/2025/03/23/a-nuclear-svengali-on-capitol-hill/

March 28, 2025 Posted by | politics, USA | Leave a comment

Ukraine and Israel are not US allies.

Walt Zlotow, West Suburban Peace Coalition, Glen Ellyn IL , 25 Mar 25

They are essentially US Trojan Horses used to project US power dominance in Europe and Middle East respectively.

Both US Trojan Horses have come up lame and are heading for the glue factory.

The US marched their Ukraine Trojan Horse up to Russia’s borders armed with NATO entrance papers and billions in US weapons. When Russia pleaded with the US for years to discuss Russia’s valid security concerns, the US replied ‘Nyet.’ Former President Biden knew Russia would attack but believed any invasion would be a Vietnam style quagmire for Russia. Biden saw the upcoming Russian collapse as the shining achievement of his half century anti-Russian Cold War mantra. That failed spectacularly.

The election of Trump has injected a healthy dose of realpolitik that acknowledges Biden’s folly. Trump is currently in negotiations to put America’s Ukraine Trojan Horse to pastoral retirement. Can’t come soon enough.

America’s Israeli Trojan Horse to dominate the Middle East is a horse of a different color. It’s more like Israel’s Trojan Horse near totally financed by Uncle Sam. America gets to sit back while Israel marches around their neighborhood committing genocide is Gaza, indiscriminately bombing innocents in Syria and Lebanon, and promoting US attacks on Yemen and eventually Iran. All this senseless carnage constitutes Israel serving as the US battering ram to recreate the Middle East according to its dominant worldview.

Like our Ukraine Trojan Horse, our Israeli Trojan Horse is failing to promote America’s true national interests. Most of the world’s 193 countries are aghast America promotes the most grotesque genocide this century. America’s standing may be at an all time low. Like with Ukraine, we’re enabling Israel to self destruct. It’s now a pariah state. Tourism and investment are in decline. Its military is demoralized both from significant casualties and having to commit genocide.

Both allies are flirting with wider war; nuclear in Ukraine, regional war in Israel.

America gets nothing from allies Ukraine and Israel except worldwide condemnation, squandered treasure and diminishing unipolar world dominance.

With allies like Ukraine and Israel, America does not need enemies.

March 27, 2025 Posted by | Israel, politics international, Ukraine, USA | 2 Comments

Trump’s Star Wars Revival: The Golden Dome Antimissile Fantasy

March 26, 2025 Dr Binoy Kampmark, https://theaimn.net/trumps-star-wars-revival-the-golden-dome-antimissile-fantasy/

Bad ideas do not necessarily die; they retire to museums of failure and folly, awaiting to be revived by the next proponent who should know better. The Iron Dome shield vision of US President Donald Trump, intended to intercept and destroy incoming missiles and other malicious aerial objects, seems much like a previous dotty one advanced by President Ronald Reagan, known rather blandly as the Strategic Defense Initiative.  

In its current iteration, it is inspired by the Israeli “Iron Dome” multilayered defensive shield, a matter that raised an immediate problem, given the trademark ownership of the name by the Israeli firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. Given the current administration’s obsession with all things golden, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has dubbed this revived endeavour “Golden Dome for America”. The renaming was noted in a February 24 amendment to request for information from industry. Much sniggering is surely in order at, not only the name itself, but the stumbling.

Reagan, even as he began suffering amnesiac decline, believed that the United States could be protected by a shield against any attack by Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles. The technology intended for that endeavour, much of it requiring a space component, was thin on research and non-existent in development. The envisaged use of laser weapons from space and terrestrial components drew much derision: the President had evidently been too engrossed by the Star Wars films of George Lucas.

The source for this latest initiative (“deploying and maintaining a next-generation missile defense shield”) is an executive order signed on January 27 titled “The Iron Dome for America.” (That was before the metallurgical change of name.) The order asserts from the outset that “The threat of attack by ballistic, hypersonic and cruise missiles and other advanced aerial attacks remains the most catastrophic threat facing the United States.” It acknowledges Reagan’s SDI but strikes a note of disappointment at its cancellation “before its goal could be realized.” Progress on such a system since the US withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in 2002 had been confined to “limited homeland defense” efforts that “remained only to stay ahead of rogue-nation threats and accidental or unauthorized missile launches.”

The Secretary of Defense is also directed, within 60 days, to submit to Trump “a reference architecture, capabilities-based requirements, and an implementation plan for the next-generation missile defense shield.” Such a shield would defend the US from “ballistic, hypersonic, advanced cruise missiles and the other next-generation attacks from peer, near-peer and rogue adversaries.” Among some of the plans are the accelerated deployment of a hypersonic and ballistic tracking space sensor layer; development and deployment of proliferated space-based interceptors and the development and deployment of capabilities that will neutralise missile assaults “prior to launch and in the boost phase.”

The original SDI was heavy on the intended development and use of energy weapons, lasers being foremost among them. But even after four decades, US technological prowess remains unable to deploy such weapons of sufficient power and accuracy to eliminate drones or missiles. The Israelis claim to have overcome this problem with their Iron Beam high energy laser weapon system, which should see deployment later this year. For that reason, Lockheed Martin has partnered with Israeli firm Rafael to bring that technology into the US arsenal.

To date, Steven J. Morani, currently discharging duties as undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, has given little away about the herculean labours that have been set. “Consistent with protecting the homeland and per President Trump’s [executive order],” he told the McAleese Defense Programs Conference in Washington earlier this month, “we’re working with the industrial base and [through] supply chain challenges associated with standing up the Golden Dome.” He admitted that this was “like the monster systems engineering problem” made even more difficult by being “the monster integration problem.”

The list of demerits to Golden Dome are many, and Morani alludes to them. For one, the Israeli Iron Dome operates across much smaller territory, not a continent. The sheer scale of any defence shield to protect such a vast swathe of land would be, not merely from a practical point but a budgetary one, absurd. A space-based interceptor system, a point that echoes Reagan’s Star Wars fantasy, would require thousands of units to successfully intercept one hefty ballistic missile. Todd Harrison of the American Enterprise Institute has offered a calculation: a system of 1,900 satellites would cost somewhere between US$11 and US$27 billion to develop, build and launch.  

A study for Defence and Peace Economics published this year goes further. The authors argue that, even if the US had appropriate ballistic missile defence technology and a sufficient number of interceptors to be distributed in a two-layer defence with an efficiency return of 90%, 8 times more would have to be spent than the attacker for a bill between US$60 and US$500 billion. If it was assumed that individual interceptor effectiveness was a mere 50%, and the system could not discriminate against decoys, the cost would be 70 times more, with a staggering bill of US$430 billion to US$5.3 trillion.

The most telling flaw in Golden Dome is one long identified, certainly by the more sober members of the establishment, in the annals of defence. “The fundamental problem with any plan for a national missile defense system against nuclear attack,” writes Xiaodon Liang in an Arms Control Association issues brief, “is that cost-exchange ratios favor the offense and US adversaries can always choose to build up or diversify their strategic forces to overwhelm a potential shield.” As Liang goes on to remark, the missile shield fantasy defies a cardinal rule of strategic competition: “the enemy always gets a vote.”

Monster system; monstrous integration issues. Confusion with the name and trademark problems. Strategically misguided, even foolish. Golden Dome, it would seem, is already being steadied for a swallow dive.

March 27, 2025 Posted by | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nuclear experts pour cold water on US idea to restore and run Ukrainian power plant.

Nuclear experts have also highlighted that the US does not have any nuclear plants that use the same class of technology as Zaporizhzhia, which is a Soviet-designed “water water energetic reactor” (abbreviated as “VVER” in Russian).

By Lauren Kent, CNN, 20th March 2025, https://edition.cnn.com/2025/03/20/europe/ukraine-us-zaporizhzhia-nuclear-power-plant-explainer/index.html

Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the war, could be restored and protected by US ownership – at least according to the Americans.

But it’s unclear how the operation would work in practice, experts say, especially as the plant is on the front line, in territory controlled by Russia.

As part of ongoing talks to inch toward a partial ceasefire, US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky “discussed Ukraine’s electrical supply and nuclear power plants” during a Wednesday phone call, according to the US readout of the call.

“(Trump) said that the United States could be very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise. American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure,” the readout said.

On Thursday, Zelensky disputed that section, saying: “In terms of ownership, we definitely did not discuss this with President Trump.” Zelensky stressed that “all nuclear power belongs to the (Ukrainian) state, including the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia region.”

Zelensky said the day before that Ukraine is ready to consider the possibility of American investment in the restoration and modernization of Zaporizhzhia. During a news conference after his call with Trump, Zelensky said they only discussed the occupied Zaporizhzhia plant, rather than Ukraine’s wider nuclear power network.

“I believe that the station will not work under occupation. I believe that the station can be restored to operation,” Zelensky said, also cautioning that the process will take an estimated two years or more.

Before Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, the Zaporizhzhia plant supplied roughly 20% of Ukraine’s energy, with six reactors, making it the largest nuclear power station in Europe. Ukrainian staff remain at the plant under Russian occupation, and at one point staff were forced to work at “gunpoint.”

But the plant is now disconnected from the grid and the electricity infrastructure required to operate the plant safely has been damaged by drone strikes and frequent shelling. Russia also destroyed the nearby Kakhovka dam, emptying the reservoir that supplied water to cool the plant.

All six reactors are shut down and there are concerns over the plant’s ongoing maintenance, as explosions continue nearby, according to a UN nuclear watchdog team on the ground.

When asked about how the US could potentially run a Ukrainian nuclear plant, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Fox News that he didn’t believe it would require American troops on the ground.

“Certainly, we have immense technical expertise in the United States to run those plants. I don’t think that requires boots on the ground,” Wright said. “But I’ll leave the foreign policy to President Trump and Secretary (of State Marco) Rubio. I know they are working tirelessly, ‘How do we bring peace to Ukraine?’

“But, if it was helpful to achieve that end – have the US run nuclear power plants in Ukraine? No problem. We can do that,” Wright added.

But experts question how feasible the idea floated by the Trump administration would be.

Operating the plant safely would require a safe, constant power supply to avoid a reactor meltdown, as well as the restoration of sufficient water supplies for cooling the plant.

“The first word of business would be to establish definitively that there could be no attacks on either the plant directly or on the supporting infrastructure – both power and water resources – and that would have to be iron-clad,” said Edwin Lyman, director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists. “So far, that kind of agreement has been elusive, as shelling occurs at a daily basis in the vicinity of the reactors.”

“There’s no point in trying to rebuild a plant and operate it if it could be jeopardized at any moment,” Lyman said. “And the notion that US-ownership would somehow be more of a deterrent to Russia attacking the plant than now, when the Russians themselves control the plant, that doesn’t make sense either.”

The idea of US operation “raises a whole lot of logistical and technical and practical questions that are very unclear,” Lyman said, including the question of US liability for any accident at the facility. “With ownership or operator status comes responsibility.”

Nuclear experts have also highlighted that the US does not have any nuclear plants that use the same class of technology as Zaporizhzhia, which is a Soviet-designed “water water energetic reactor” (abbreviated as “VVER” in Russian).

“These are different technologies,” said Elena Sokova, director of the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, adding that there are strict licensing requirements for the plant’s operators.

“The US is an advanced country… but to be prepared to immediately take control of something that is of a different design, designed by different country, and where you have no experience of running it – I don’t think it’s a good solution or viable option.”

“Having said that, if we’re talking about a long process, I’m sure certain things could be worked out, particularly if there is an arrangement… to have the majority of the Ukrainian staff and operators running these reactors,” Sokova added.

Ukraine wants role in restoration of plant

Zelensky emphasized on Wednesday night that safe restoration of the plant is in the whole world’s interest, and Ukraine should have a role in that “because it is ours, and this is our land, this is our station.”

The Ukrainian president said any return of the plant would not be possible without control of the area where it is located – the city of Enerhodar – on the Russian-occupied side of the Zaporizhzhia region.

“If you just hand over the station, and a meter away from the station, everything is occupied or there are Russian weapons, no one will work like that,” Zelensky told reporters, raising concerns that the plant could be restored with US and Ukrainian investment, only to have Russia possibly damage or destroy it again later.

As fighting continues along the front line, the dire situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant “remains unchanged,” Andrian Prokip, energy program director at the Ukrainian Institute for the Future, wrote last month.

“It still does not receive adequate maintenance and it continues to serve as a Russian ammunition depot,” said Prokip, also a senior associate at the Wilson Center.

CNN’s Svitlana Vlasova, Christian Edwards and DJ Judd contributed to this report.

March 26, 2025 Posted by | politics international, Ukraine, USA | Leave a comment

An Extreme Ultimatum for Iran

The public still needs to be aware of the danger that the U.S. is on course to start a war with Iran for no good reason.

Daniel Larison, Mar 24, 2025, https://daniellarison.substack.com/p/an-extreme-ultimatum-for-iran?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=73370&post_id=159715611&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=ln98x&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

Mike Waltz confirmed again that the Trump administration’s demands for Iran are extreme:

MARGARET BRENNAN: Can you clarify? Is the U.S. seeking the dismantlement of Iran’s nuclear program, or verification, like what President Obama put in place back in 2015 and President Trump pulled out of?

MIKE WALTZ: Full dismantlement [bold mine-DL]. Iran has to give up its program in a way that the entire world can see.

Recent remarks from Trump’s Middle East envoy seemed to suggest that the administration would be satisfied with an agreement that ensures that Iran’s nuclear program remained peaceful, but Waltz shot that idea down without qualification. The administration’s ultimatum to Iran is every bit as unreasonable as we thought, and the Iranian government is not going to agree to such humiliating terms. As we mark the 22nd anniversary of the invasion of Iraq this month, it is alarming to hear the drumbeat for another unnecessary and illegal war in the Middle East.

The demands that the administration delivered to Iran in Trump’s letter were far-reaching, and they touched on issues far beyond the nuclear program itself. In addition to telling Iran to give up domestic enrichment and their entire nuclear program, the president’s letter said that they are supposed to halt all support for allied groups throughout the region, and they must withdraw all their forces from Iraq and Syria. According to the Emirati official who delivered the letter, Trump gave Iran two months to comply with these demands or they would face “large-scale military action.”

This is unfortunately consistent with what we have been hearing for the last two months. Last month, it was reported that Trump had reached an understanding with Netanyahu on Iran that paved the way for military action. On a related note, Trump appeared to be on board with seeking a “Libya-style” dismantling of Iran’s entire nuclear program. This is such an obvious non-starter for Iran that we have to assume that the administration wants this to give themselves a pretext for war.

Later in the interview, Waltz said, “But we want to be clear, this isn’t some kind of, you know, kind of tit for tat that we had under the Obama administration, or Biden. This is the full program. Give it up, or there will be consequences.” The interviewer failed to ask Waltz what the consequences would be, but it is clear enough that this is a public threat to launch an unprovoked attack on Iran if their government refuses to cave to the administration’s preposterous demands.

When Trump kept Mike Pompeo out of the second administration, some people thought that this was a sign that the president wouldn’t be pursuing such a braindead, aggressive foreign policy this time around. So much for that. As it turns out, Trump’s foreign policy is every bit as hardline as it was when Pompeo and Bolton were there (and possibly even more so) because Trump favors hardline policies and reliably surrounds himself with hardline advisers. Pompeo may not be in government anymore, but judging from the absurd demands that Trump sent to Iran he might as well be.

Americans are understandably preoccupied with the extensive damage that the administration is causing at home, but the public still needs to be aware of the danger that the U.S. is on course to start a war with Iran for no good reason. If the administration is serious about this two-month deadline, it is possible that we could be looking a U.S. or U.S.-backed Israeli attack on Iran by the end of May. Americans need to begin organizing and mobilizing against that attack now if we are going to have any chance of stopping it.

March 26, 2025 Posted by | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

US seeks full dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program, Trump’s advisor says

 Iran International 23rd March 2025,
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202503231237

The Trump administration is seeking full dismantlement of Iranian nuclear program in a way that the entire world can see, White House National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told CBS News on Sunday.

“It is time for Iran to walk away completely from its desire to have a nuclear weapon. And they will not, and cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapons program, that’s enrichment, weaponization, and its strategic missile program,” Waltz said.

“The President has all options on the table. But we want to be clear, this isn’t some kind of, you know, kind of tit for tat that we had under the Obama administration, or Biden. This is the full program. Give it up, or there will be consequences,” he added.

His comments came in contrast to the much more conciliatory tone of Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, who spoke of the US president’s intention to resolve Iran’s nuclear dispute diplomatically.

Earlier this month, Trump wrote a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in an attempt to explore a new nuclear agreement and prevent military escalation, Witkoff told Fox News on Sunday.

“We don’t need to solve everything militarily,” Witkoff said.

He emphasized that Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb, saying, “It cannot happen and it will not happen.”

“Our signal to Iran is let’s sit down and see if we can, through dialogue, through diplomacy, get to the right place. If we can, we are prepared to do that. And if we can’t, the alternative is not a great alternative.”

On Friday, Witkoff told the Tucker Carlson show, “We should talk. We should clear up the misconceptions. We should create a verification program so that nobody worries about weaponization of your nuclear material.”

He also said Trump believes the issue “has a real possibility of being solved diplomatically” and “acknowledged that he’s open to an opportunity to clean it all up with Iran.”

His remarks raised questions about the Trump’s administration’s approach toward Iran, as Trump’s Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and National Security Advisor, Michael Waltz, have taken a much tougher stance, insisting over the past few weeks that Iran’s nuclear program must be dismantled and that Iran will face military action unless it complies with US demands.

March 26, 2025 Posted by | Iran, politics international, USA | Leave a comment

Nuclear regulators hear concerns about plan to restart Three Mile Island reactor.

The Constellation energy plant will generate elctricity exclusively for a Microsoft artificial intelligence data center

Pennsyvania Capital Star, By: Peter Hall – March 20, 2025 

Speakers at a virtual meeting Thursday about Three Mile Island raised concerns about restarting the nuclear plant’s Unit 1 reactor, nearly a half-century after its sister became a national symbol of the fraught promise of nuclear energy.

Members of the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) heard support from nuclear energy advocates and Dauphin County residents for Constellation Energy’s plan to restart the power plant. The Baltimore-based company announced last year it has a contract to supply Microsoft with 835 megawatts of electricity for an artificial intelligence data center.

But skeptics, including longtime Three Mile Island opponent Eric Epstein of Harrisburg, told the commission they have questions about how the 50-year-old plant was mothballed when Constellation shut it down in 2019, how much traffic it would generate, and the storage of radioactive spent fuel.

They also said they’re concerned about how the facility will interact with the Susquehanna River in an age when climate change both makes water an increasingly scarce resource and flooding more violent and unpredictable.

Paul Gunter, director of the reactor oversight project for Beyond Nuclear, noted the Government Accountability Office has advised the NRC to address climate risks to nuclear power plants by using future climate projections to assess safety risks rather than historical data.

“The NRC environmental review process is not unlike driving your car through the rear view mirror,” Gunter said. “The GAO has called attention to the fact that you’re not doing an adequate environmental review, and in particular, that you need to look at the impacts of climate change on the Susquehanna River levels.”

The meeting was an opportunity for NRC members and the Constellation Energy team to discuss an environmental review required under federal law before the agency can approve the plan to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1.

Constellation said in September that it would invest $1.6 billion to overhaul the plant, which it acquired in 1999 and shut down six years ago, citing economic conditions. 

Located in Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, the plant is adjacent to but independent from the Unit 2 Three Mile Island reactor, which suffered a partial meltdown in 1979. The incident shook public confidence in nuclear power. Both plants occupy an island in the Susquehanna River about 15 miles south of Harrisburg.

Constellation said it plans to rename the plant the Crane Clean Energy Center after the company’s former CEO Chris Crane. The change must also be approved by the NRC.

Company officials said they plan to submit an environmental report to the NRC in October and hope to obtain final environmental approval and renewed permits by the first quarter of 2027.


In a presentation to the NRC, Constellation said the plant would be restored to its previous operational condition and that no major demolition or construction is planned. The project would include modifications to the base of one of the two cooling towers, reactor building cooling equipment and an underground oil tank that had been used to store fuel for diesel generators……………………………………

Epstein, chairman of the nuclear watchdog group Three Mile Island Alert, said he has questions about the storage of the plant’s used nuclear fuel rods, which according to Constellation’s presentation were removed from the reactor and placed in dry storage casks in a facility adjacent to the plant on the island. Epstein said he has been unable to get answers from Constellation about the plan for storing the spent fuel, noting that the owner of the damaged Unit 2 reactor also operates a fuel storage facility.

He asked a rapid-fire stream of questions about the restart plan. 

“Is there a list of things that need to be rebuilt or replaced? … Where are you going to get the parts? You can’t go to Pep Boys and pull it off the shelf,” Epstein said.

He noted the surrounding farmland in Dauphin and Lancaster counties is home to Amish and Mennonite communities, of which many members don’t drive or use modern communication devices.

“I hope you guys will take a look at that in terms of emergency planning,” Epstein said.

Three Mile Island is one of three nuclear power plants that draw water from the Susquehanna River, Epstein said, claiming the demand of just two is equivalent to half the river’s daily flow. 

Earlier this month, Houston-based Talen Energy announced a $650 million deal with Amazon Web Services (AWS) for a 1,200-acre property adjacent to the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station nuclear plant near Berwick. AWS expects to build out the site with data centers that would consume as much energy as 900,000 homes and require millions of gallons of cooling water each day.

While it’s unclear whether the Microsoft data centers would be located near Three Mile Island, Epstein said his organization would sue to prevent additional water withdrawals from the Susquehanna..

“Where are we going to use the water? We’re going to use it for farmers? We’re going to use it for cleansing, or use it for hygiene, or are we going to use it for artificial intelligence?” Epstein said.  https://penncapital-star.com/uncategorized/nuclear-regulators-hear-concerns-about-plan-to-restart-three-mile-island-reactor/?fbclid=IwY2xjawJMYRdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHQib_ldS-ISmA1D6gu47O93dieRbXJuNFU_qcOMN6vmRnGDEpQTFzeaJ_w_aem_Ms6VL_eSAqi2vSoLrWfBLg

March 25, 2025 Posted by | opposition to nuclear, USA | Leave a comment

Trump eyeing Crimea as ‘international resort’ – Hersh


 https://www.rt.com/russia/614596-trump-crimea-resort-hersh/ 21 Mar 25

The renowned American journalist has claimed that the US president wants to do business with Putin.

US President Donald Trump is reportedly considering lifting sanctions against Moscow in order to turn Russia’s Crimean Peninsula into a major international resort, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh has reported, citing a White House official.

Since his inauguration in January, Trump has pursued direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the conflict in Ukraine. His administration has indicated that it is open to recognizing Moscow’s sovereignty over Crimea and some of the Donbass as part of a potential peace deal. 

The Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol officially joined Russia in 2014 following public referendums; they were followed in 2022 by the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics and the regions of Kherson and Zaporozhye. Kiev continues to claim the territories as its own and has vowed to take them back, but Moscow has insisted that their status is non-negotiable.

In a post on his Substack blog on Thursday, Hersh reported that Trump’s broader aim is to improve US-Russia relations through economic cooperation. The president, he says, is seeking to lift sanctions imposed since 2014 and 2022 and “form a partnership with Putin aimed at turning Crimea into a major international resort.” The official source cited in Hersh’s report added that “they might do the same in Donbass.”

The journalist noted that Trump’s approach is markedly different from that of the administration of Joe Biden, with his unnamed source describing the current president as an “economic winner.” Trump’s reported interest in Russian energy and natural resource assets includes oil, gas, and unmined rare earth metals.

Since taking office in January, Trump has reversed several foreign policy positions on Moscow. Following a phone call with Putin in February, US and Russian delegations met in Saudi Arabia, with both sides agreeing to restore diplomatic ties and explore joint business ventures after the Ukraine conflict is resolved.

Trump and Putin held another phone call on Tuesday to discuss a US-proposed ceasefire. According to statements from both sides, the conversation was productive, with Russia agreeing to a one-month halt on strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure as talks continue.

March 25, 2025 Posted by | politics, USA | Leave a comment

Federal Court Orders Reconsideration of Nuclear Waste Facility Approval, Citing Inadequate Indigenous Consultation

By NNL Digital News , March 20, 2025, https://www.netnewsledger.com/2025/03/20/federal-court-orders-reconsideration-of-nuclear-waste-facility-approval-citing-inadequate-indigenous-consultation/#google_vignette

OTTAWA – A Federal Court decision has ordered the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to revisit its approval of a Near Surface Disposal Facility (NSDF) at the Chalk River Laboratories site, citing errors in its assessment of Indigenous consultation obligations.

The ruling, issued by the Honourable Madam Justice Blackhawk on February 19, 2025, in the case of Kebaowek First Nation v. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, highlights the importance of adhering to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in Canadian law.

The Case at a Glance

The Kebaowek First Nation challenged the CNSC’s decision to grant Canadian Nuclear Laboratories Ltd. (Canadian Nuclear) a license amendment to construct the NSDF, a proposed facility for the permanent storage and disposal of low-level nuclear waste. Kebaowek argued that the CNSC erred by:

  • Failing to apply the UNDRIP and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (UNDA) to its decision-making process regarding the duty to consult and accommodate.
  • Concluding that the Crown had fulfilled its duty to consult and accommodate Kebaowek.
  • Determining that the NSDF is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

Court’s Findings

Madam Justice Blackhawk’s decision focused on the CNSC’s handling of Indigenous consultation. Key findings included:

  • Jurisdiction to Apply UNDRIP/UNDA: The court found that the CNSC erred in determining it did not have the jurisdiction to consider the application of the UNDRIP and the UNDA to the duty to consult and accommodate.
  • Duty to Consult and Accommodate: The court determined that the CNSC’s assessment of whether the Crown had fulfilled its duty to consult and accommodate Kebaowek was flawed due to the failure to consider the UNDRIP and its principle of “free, prior, and informed consent” (FPIC) as an interpretive lens.
  • Flawed Consultation Process: The court stated that the consultation process was inadequate, and Canadian Nuclear failed to consult in a manner consistent with the UNDRIP and the FPIC standard.

Remedy and Next Steps

The Federal Court has ordered the matter to be remitted back to the CNSC for reconsideration. The CNSC, or a newly struck commission, is directed to:

  • Address the jurisdictional question regarding the application of UNDRIP and the UNDA.
  • Re-assess the Crown’s fulfillment of the duty to consult and accommodate, considering the UNDRIP and the FPIC standard.

Canadian Nuclear and CNSC staff are also directed to resume consultation with Kebaowek, aiming to implement the UNDRIP FPIC standard in a robust manner and work towards achieving an agreement. The court has set a target completion date of September 30, 2026, for this renewed consultation process.

Implications

This decision has significant implications for future development projects in Canada that may affect Indigenous rights and interests. It underscores the importance of:

  • Properly interpreting and applying the UNDRIP and the UNDA.
  • Conducting meaningful and robust consultation with Indigenous communities, consistent with the principles of FPIC.

The ruling emphasizes that consultation processes must be approached from an Indigenous perspective and take into account Indigenous laws, knowledge, and practices.

NetNewsLedger.com will continue to follow this developing story and provide updates.

March 24, 2025 Posted by | Canada, indigenous issues, Legal | Leave a comment

Radiation exposure victims fight for compensation as nuclear weapons funding soars

Bulletin, By Chloe Shrager | March 19, 2025

Nine months have passed since the law that compensates US victims of radiation exposure expired in June, and yet another opportunity to reinstate it fell to the wayside last week.

The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), enacted in 1990, provided pay-outs to people unwittingly exposed to radioactive substances from the Manhattan Project and Cold War efforts. For decades, people living downwind from the Nevada Test Site, nuclear weapons site workers and uranium miners relied on the money they received from RECA to pay their medical bills for rare cancers and diseases contracted from their radiation exposure.

But even so, activist groups across the US homeland and territories argue that the law was woefully inadequate. “When you talk about nuclear justice, we have not had it. We haven’t seen it,” Mary Dickson, a Utah downwinder and thyroid cancer survivor, said in a recent interview.

After the House shot down an attempt to push an expanded version of the compensation act through Congress last year, a bipartisan group of senators reintroduced a RECA reauthorization and expansion bill in January. The effort is led by Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, who recently spoke on the proposed bill in an interview with the Bulletin.

“This is not a partisan issue,” Luján said. “This is for the American people, and especially those who live downwind of this testing and those uranium mine workers who are sacrificing their lives and their careers for national security purposes.”

The hope was to slip the amended act into the Trump Administration’s first stopgap budget bill, due no later than the end-of-day last Friday to avoid a government shutdown. But that hope evaporated when instead of proposing an omnibus bill overhauling previous budget priorities—as was expected of the new administration—the House introduced a continuing resolution that largely carried on Biden administration funding levels without mention of the new RECA bill. The continuing resolution does, however, increase defense budget spending by $6 billion……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. The human cost of nuclear security. Congress passed a GOP budget bill on Friday to avoid a government shutdown and fund the government through September. While the bill does not fund RECA’s reauthorization, it does earmark at least $21.7 billion for “defense nuclear nonproliferation” and “weapons activities” under the National Nuclear Security Administration for the next six months. Funding under these categories can be used for anything from continued domestic uranium enrichment to warhead modernization and assembly. These defense budget proposals come during an estimated $1.7 trillion, 30-year overhaul of the United States’ nuclear arsenal that will rebuild each leg of the nuclear triad and its accompanying infrastructure.

These investments were approved. Legislation to continue to compensate those poisoned by nuclear weapons activities were not.

“They’re investing all this money to build up our arsenal and develop new weapons. So when they say there’s not enough money to take care of the people those weapons have harmed in the past… I just think part of that cost has got to be taking care of the people they harm,” Dickson said.  https://thebulletin.org/2025/03/radiation-exposure-victims-fight-for-compensation-as-nuclear-weapons-funding-soars/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Plans%20to%20colonize%20Mars%20threaten%20Earth&utm_campaign=20250320%20Thursday%20Newsletter

March 23, 2025 Posted by | health, USA | Leave a comment

 Trump: best protection for Ukraine’s nuclear power is US takeover.

 President Trump has told President Zelensky that an American takeover of
nuclear power in Ukraine would offer the “best protection” for the
­country’s infrastructure. The White House said Trump had “moved
beyond” the minerals deal for American companies to extract oil, gas and
rare metals that had been proposed as a way to protect Ukraine from future
Russian aggression. That deal was suspended after ­Zelensky’s disastrous
meeting last month with Trump and JD Vance, the vice-president, in the Oval
Office. It envisaged US control over natural resources and infrastructure
such as ports, but did not mention nuclear power.

 Times 19th March 2025 https://www.thetimes.com/world/russia-ukraine-war/article/trump-best-protection-for-ukraines-nuclear-power-is-us-takeover-9l0xsxqjj

March 23, 2025 Posted by | politics international, Ukraine, USA | Leave a comment

SCOTUS Ruling Could Shape the Future of Nuclear Waste Storage.

Samuel Lawrence Foundation, 20 Mar 25

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently reviewing a case that could have major implications for how nuclear waste is stored across the country—including the 3.6 million pounds of radioactive waste at San Onofre. At the center of the case is whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has the authority to license private interim storage facilities, such as the one proposed in Andrews County, Texas, which would hold high-level nuclear waste away from reactor sites. Texas has challenged this decision, arguing that the NRC is overstepping its legal bounds and that waste management should remain under federal oversight.

This case matters to us because San Onofre’s waste remains in thin-walled metal canisters near a rising ocean, with no long-term plan for safe containment. If the Supreme Court rules against private storage, it could limit future options for moving this waste to a safer location. Meanwhile, if the Court upholds the NRC’s authority, it could pave the way for private companies to take a larger role in nuclear waste management—raising serious questions about safety, oversight, and accountability. As we continue to fight for a real solution for San Onofre, this decision will play a critical role in shaping what’s possible. Stay tuned for more updates as this case unfolds.

March 23, 2025 Posted by | Legal, USA, wastes | Leave a comment

With Trump’s ‘Thumbs Up’, Netanyahu restarts Gaza genocide.


Walt Zlotow, West Suburban Peace Coalition, Glen Ellyn IL, 21 Mar 25

Over 400 killed, 500 injured in massive Israeli bombing of Palestinians sheltering in tents from earlier Israeli bombings.

Trump was notified in advance and gave the typical US green light to proceed. In under 2 months Trump has funneled $12 billion in genocide weapons including many 2,000 lb. bombs to fuel Netanyahu’s latest genocide campaign.

Trump is anxious for all the Palestinians in Gaza to be dead and gone so he can begin his massive real estate development there to create a ‘Greater Israel.’

The massive Israeli bombing comes 2 weeks after Netanyahu blocked all humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza. Whether killing Palestinians slowly with no food, fmedicine or killing them quickly with 2,000 lb. US bombs, Netanyahu and Trump cover the gamut of ghoulish death in Gaza.

March 22, 2025 Posted by | Atrocities, Israel, USA | Leave a comment

Idle Lepreau nuclear plant threatens to post worst operational year in 4 decades

Refurbishing only half the nuclear plant was a mistake, utility president admits


Robert Jones · CBC News : Mar 21, 2025

An end-of-the-fiscal-year breakdown at Point Lepreau is worsening what may turn out to be the poorest operational year on record for the 42-year-old plant.

The nuclear generating station was shutdown on Monday after a malfunctioning cooling fan was deemed to need immediate repair. That fix is expected to take almost until the end of the month  

“Work is underway to repair an issue with the cooling fan and motor assembly,” D’Arcy Walsh, an N.B. Power spokesperson, said in an email. “We expect the station to return to service by the end of next week.”

A scheduled maintenance shutdown last spring, followed by the discovery of a major issue last summer in Lepreau’s generator, previously had the plant offline from early last April to mid-December. The latest problem is dragging the year’s low productivity further 

Not including the years Lepreau was offline between 2008 and 2013 for a $2.5-billion refurbishment, the plant’s least productive year was in 1995, when it underwent work on sagging pressure tubes in its reactor and operated for just over 100 days.   

Downtime at Lepreau is expensive for N.B. Power and has been cited as the primary cause for its current financial problems.

In February, N.B. Power president Lori Clark told MLAs the fortunes of the utility are largely dependent on how well, or poorly, the nuclear plant performs…………………….

Since it returned from refurbishment in late 2012, Lepreau has suffered a number of problems and has been taken offline for maintenance and repairs for more than 1,100 days in total.

More than one third of that downtime has occurred just in the last three years.

It has been estimated by the utility to cost between $1 million and $4 million per day when Lepreau is idle, depending on the time of year and the cost of generating or buying replacement power……………………………https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/idle-lepreau-nuclear-plant-threatening-worst-operational-year-nb-1.7490177

March 22, 2025 Posted by | business and costs, Canada | Leave a comment

Hold Southern California Edison (SCE) Accountable: From Wildfires to Nuclear Waste.

Samuel Lawrence Foundation, 20 Mar 25

On March 5, 2025, Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit against Southern California Edison (SCE) over the devastating Eaton Fire, which killed 17 people and destroyed over 9,000 structures. The lawsuit alleges that SCE’s failure to maintain its infrastructure led to the disaster—echoing a long history of negligence by the utility. From wildfires to nuclear waste, Edison has repeatedly put profit over public safety, avoiding accountability for the risks it imposes on millions of Californians. The parallels to nuclear waste stored at San Onofre are striking: just as SCE’s equipment failures have fueled deadly fires, their reckless handling of 3.6 million pounds of nuclear waste at San Onofre poses an existential threat to our coastal communities.

This lawsuit highlights the urgent need to hold SCE accountable—not just for wildfire destruction but for the dangerous waste sitting on our shoreline. Our fight continues to demand oversight, responsibility, transportability, and real solutions for San Onofre’s ticking time bomb before disaster strikes again. We are optimistic that LA County will see justice in this fight against Edison.

March 22, 2025 Posted by | Legal, USA | Leave a comment

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