Emergency preparedness at San Onofre Nuclear Plant – agreement approved
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Southern California Edison and five local government agencies announced that they will continue their longstanding collaborative emergency preparedness activities related to SONGS. The five jurisdictions are the counties of Orange and San Diego, and the cities of San Clemente, Dana Point, and San Juan Capistrano. The county boards of supervisors and city councils approved the new agreement at their respective meetings on June 2. Senator Bates, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes, and Southern California Edison Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer Doug Bauder issued the following statements regarding the agreement: Senator Bates: The agreement will provide the five local jurisdictions more than $12.6 million for the eight-year deconstruction period of SONGS through 2029, and more than $9.9 million for the 20-year period through 2049, by which time spent nuclear fuel could potentially be removed from SONGS. Senator Bates authored Senate Bill 465 in 2019 that would have made it clear that local governments will continue to receive funding for costs incurred as a result of carrying out activities that ensure the safety and welfare of the communities surrounding SONGS. The full Senate and the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee both unanimously passed SB 465. In discussions with stakeholders, Senator Bates agreed to hold her bill to see if a voluntary agreement could be reached and ratified, which occurred this week. She has long advocated for the federal government to move SONGS’ nuclear waste to a safe and secure location that is far from communities as possible. SONGS sits near an active fault line, adjacent to the heavily-trafficked Interstate 5 and the Pacific Ocean, and sandwiched between densely-populated Orange and San Diego counties. Senator Bates previously served on the San Onofre Community Engagement Panel (CEP) when she was an Orange County Supervisor. She worked with her fellow panelists to address the issues raised by the continued storage of SONGS’ waste on-site. She also authored Senate Joint Resolution 23 in 2016 that urged Congress to pass the Interim Consolidated Storage Act of 2016 (House Resolution 4745). The Act would have paired a region that is volunteering to host an interim waste storage facility with communities around the country that have nuclear waste demanding a better storage solution. http://www.oc-breeze.com/2020/06/05/182927_agreement-approved-to-protect-emergency-preparedness-at-san-onofre-nuclear-plant/ |
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U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will run environmental study BEFORE relicensing South Carolina nuclear fuel plant
After public outcry, feds will conduct extensive study of SC nuclear fuel plant The State BY SAMMY FRETWELL JUNE 05, 2020 , Following state concerns about previously unknown pollution at an atomic fuel plant near Columbia, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Friday that it will conduct an extensive environmental study of the Westinghouse fuel factory.
Conducting a detailed study is expected to delay by a year any decision on a new license for the plant while the agency looks into problems that have surfaced in recent years.
The plant has polluted groundwater, some of which has only been discovered since 2018, and neighbors have raised concerns about safety and water contamination.
The NRC’s decision marks the first time the agency has ever conducted a full environmental impact statement before deciding if a nuclear fuel fabrication plant should be relicensed, NRC spokesman Roger Hannah said. The plant’s owner, Westinghouse, wants a new 40-year-operating license for the plant, built in 1969.
“In March 2020, the NRC received new data collected by Westinghouse during ongoing site investigations,’’ the agency said in a news release Friday afternoon. “Based on the NRC’s independent evaluation of the new data .
… the NRC decided it could no longer conclude that renewal of the license would result in a finding of no significant impact’’ to the environment.
The Westinghouse plant, which employs more than 1,000 people, is one of only three nuclear fuel factories of its kind in the United States. The plant makes fuel rods for the nation’s atomic energy plants. Plants in North Carolina and Washington state also make nuclear fuel.
Tom Clements, a nuclear safety watchdog in Columbia, said it appears that the NRC listened to concerns by the public and state regulators.
“That is very encouraging to hear,’’ said Clements, who said the full study is needed. “It took a clamor from the public before they would do the right thing. I’m glad they have finally done this.’’
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control called for a full environmental impact statement after finding rising pollution levels in ponds on the site.. …… https://www.thestate.com/news/local/environment/article243310956.html
Beyond Nuclear files petition to be heard in U.S. Court of Appeals
IN BRIEF: Watchdog petitions D.C. Circuit for a voice in nuclear waste battle, https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-energy-lawsuit/in-brief-watchdog-petitions-dc-circuit-for-a-voice-in-nuclear-waste-battle-idUSL1N2DI1PH, Sebastien Malo 5 June 20
A nuclear watchdog has petitioned a federal appeals court to review the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) refusal to hear its opposition to the licensing of a proposed Holtec International “interim” facility to store commercial nuclear reactor waste in southeastern New Mexico.
Beyond Nuclear filed the petition on Thursday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, seeking the court’s review of the NRC’s denial in 2018 and 2020 of its request for a hearing over the storage plan on grounds it would violate the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act.
To read the full story on Westlaw Practitioner Insights, click here: bit.ly/2ALiCzH
Nuclear Detection Helicopter Flies Mission Around Washington D.C. Amid Unrest
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Nuclear Detection Helicopter Flies Mission Around Washington D.C. Amid Unrest The Drive 3 June 20, Reports of curious aerial activity over and around Washington, D.C. continue to emerge amid the response in the nation’s capital to protests and riots stemming from the police killing of Minneapolis resident George Floyd last week. E Earlier today, a Department of Energy helicopter equipped with a specialized system to measure and map radiation levels flew a route around the greater D.C. area. It’s unclear if this flight was somehow related to the ongoing protests or if it was just a routine survey………The complete system’s primary job is to figure out the extent and severity of the spread of radiation after some sort of nuclear or radiological incident. This could be something like radiation leaks from a nuclear power plant or waste disposal facility following a natural or man-made disaster. It could also be the spread of radiation from a terrorist attack involving a dirty bomb or an accident involving an actual nuclear weapon. There’s been no such incident in Washington, D.C., but NNSA does send the AMS-equipped helicopters to conduct mapping surveys of background radiation ahead of significant public events, such as presidential visits or Super Bowls. The helicopters then fly additional patrols of the area afterward to monitor for any concerning changes. …….
A dirty bomb could be especially devastating if detonated in the midst of a large public gathering, such as a massive protest. Mass panic from such an attack could also lead to significant casualties simply from people fleeing the epicenter. The appearance of the Department of Energy Bell 412 over Washington, D.C. came after President Donald Trump announced new increased security measures to stem protests and rioting in the capital. This is exactly the kind of decision that could result in a “security bubble” getting established, which might then prompt NNSA to conduct an AMS survey mission as Associated Administrator Tilden had explained. It’s also possible that this flight is unrelated in any way to current events. NNSA does deploy AMS-equipped helicopters and aircraft to conduct routine radiation surveys to collect baseline data in major cities. As with surveys conducted in relation to public events, this provides a picture of what the normal, naturally-occurring radiation levels look like across a certain area to help identify worrisome abnormalities in the future. The Department of Energy has conducted at least one such survey of Washington, D.C., in 2013…….
The NNSA public affairs office has responded to our queries and says that the flight by N411DE around Washington, D.C. yesterday was a routine flight following maintenance on the helicopter. The full statement is provided below: ….. https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/33817/nuke-sniffing-helicopter-flies-around-washington-amid-protests
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U.S. taxpayers bearing the crushing cost of nuclear waste
The Crushing Cost Of Nuclear Waste Is Weighing On Taxpayers, Oil 
Price, By Haley Zaremba – Jun 19, 2019 The Maine Yankee nuclear power plant hasn’t produced a single watt of energy in more than two decades, but it cost U.S. taxpayers about $35 million this year.” So begins a powerful report this week about the crushing cost of nuclear waste storage by the Los Angeles Times……..In the United States, where the nuclear industry is ailing, this is particularly bad news. More plants are shutting down than are going online, and many of the nuclear plants that are continuing to function are able to do so in large part thanks to government subsidies at the state level, which is to say, even more taxpayer dollars.
The Trump administration, for its part, has made efforts to combat the rising prices of nuclear waste storage–albeit extremely controversial ones. Just this month, “in a move that will roll back safety standards that have been observed for decades” says not-for-profit news organization Truthout, “the Trump administration reportedly has plans to reclassify nuclear waste previously listed as “high-level” radioactive to a lower level, in the interest of saving money and time when disposing of the material.”
While this may be a quick fix for the massive amounts of money flowing out of taxpayer pockets and into the nuclear energy industry, it’s certainly not a sustainable solution for what could easily become a national health crisis if mismanaged. ……https://oilprice.com/Alternative-Energy/Nuclear-Power/The-Crushing-Cost-Of-Nuclear-Waste-Is-Weighing-On-Taxpayers.html
Confidential documents stolen, hacked from US nuclear missile contractor
Hackers steal secrets from US nuclear missile contractor
Cyber extortionists have stolen sensitive data from a company which supports the US Minuteman III nuclear deterrent. Sky News, Alexander MartinTechnology reporter @AlexMartin Wednesday 3 June 2020 UK Hackers have stolen confidential documents from a US military contractor which provides critical support for the country’s Minuteman III nuclear deterrent, Sky News has learnt.
After gaining access to Westech International’s computer network, the criminals encrypted the company’s machines and began to leak documents online to pressure the company to pay extortion.
It is unclear if the documents stolen by the criminals include military classified information, but files which have already been leaked online suggest the hackers had access to extremely sensitive data, including payroll and emails.
There are also concerns that Russian-speaking operators behind the attack could attempt to monetise their haul by selling information about the nuclear deterrent on to a hostile state.
Court documents in the US allege that Russian cyber criminals with a financial motivation have collaborated with the intelligence services in order to steal classified government documents.
A spokesperson for Westech confirmed to Sky News that the company had been hacked and its computers encrypted, and that investigations to identify what data the criminals had managed to steal were ongoing.
The company is involved with the nuclear deterrent as a sub-contractor for Northrup Grumman, providing engineering and maintenance support for the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Minuteman III is the land-based component of the US nuclear deterrent, stored in hundreds of protected underground launch facilities operated by the US Air Force.
Each ICBM is capable of delivering multiple thermonuclear warheads further than 6,000 miles, or the distance between London and Buenos Aires.
Brett Callow, a researcher for Emsisoft which specialises in tackling ransomware incidents, told Sky News: “This is not the first incident in which a contractor has leaked data and, unless action is taken, it will not be the last.
“The information exposed in these incidents could potentially be of interest to other nation states and present a risk to both national security and to the safety of service personnel.
“Even if a company pays the ransom, there is no guarantee that the criminals will destroy the stolen data, especially if it has a high market value.
“They may still sell it to other governments or trade it with other criminal enterprises,” Mr Callow warned, adding that another criminal group operating under the same model is offering interested parties the opportunity to bid for its stolen data…….. https://news.sky.com/story/hackers-steal-secrets-from-us-nuclear-missile-contractor-11999442
Anxieties over the risks of spent nuclear fuel storage at San Onofre
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Used Nuclear Fuel Storage at San Onofre Raises Concerns Over Plant’s Vulnerability, Voice of OC By HOSAM ELATTAR 3 June 20 The Orange County Board of Supervisors Tuesday approved a memorandum of understanding with Southern California Edison to provide the county over $10 million in financial support for emergency preparedness at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating station.Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, who made the motion in support of approving the memorandum, said if there is an incident at the plant it could cost the county a lot of money to address the emergency and the sum agreed to would only cover notifying communities of an incident.
Donna Boston, Orange County director of emergency management, said there is a provision in the agreement that would allow the county to bill Southern California Edison for any excess spending if an emergency response is needed. “We’re not getting but a pittance when you consider what it’s going to take on an emergency preparedness basis, whether it’s evacuation of cities, or if we’ve got nuclear fuel that’s leaking out into the atmosphere or the communities,” Bartlett said. The supervisors’ action comes on the heels of a virtual meeting held last week by the San Onofre Community Engagement Panel about the plant’s vulnerability. The panel made up of local officials and community members advises the plant’s operators on the dismantling of the plant and meets at least four times a year. The plant at San Onofre was retired in June 2013 after uproar from the public and local officials over a radiation leak in 2012. Since then the used nuclear fuel that’s been cooling in wet pools is being converted to dried storage and is kept at the plant. About nine of the 73 canisters of used fuel have yet to be transferred to dry storage but the process is expected to be completed by mid-summer. “We’re moving the spent fuel rods out of the cooling pools and into the dry cask storage, which is safer, but you’re still going to have all of those spent fuel rods in the dry cask storage that are above ground, which concerns me,” said Bartlett……… Some members of the public felt the virtual meeting had an inadequate discussion of the worst case scenario at San Onofre. “There is no plan for when one of these canisters does fail,” said Kalene Walker during the public comment portion of the presentation at last week’s virtual meeting. “There’s so many issues regarding this system. I’m into prevention. Emergency response is super important and appreciated. But I don’t want to be anywhere near when one of these canisters goes off.” Bartlett said Tuesday that canisters have cracked before. “If we have a terrorist attack or something else occurs, we could be in a world of hurt until we get those canisters completely moved off site somewhere else,” Bartlett said…….. https://voiceofoc.org/2020/06/used-nuclear-fuel-storage-at-san-onofre-raises-concerns-over-plants-vulnerability/ |
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Exhumed AREVA – now “Framatome” acquires BWX Technologies’ US nuclear services business
Framatome acquires BWX Technologies’ US nuclear services business 3 June 2020 3 June 2020 Framatome has completed its acquisition of BWX Technologies’ US commercial nuclear services business. With this transaction, Framatome expands its portfolio of equipment and tooling for nuclear power plant inspections and maintenance, a statement said. …..https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsframatome-acquires-bwx-technologies-us-nuclear-services-business-7954409
An American nuclear reactor flooded by an extreme rainfall event – during the pandemic
COVID Infects World Nuclear Plants May 27, 2020, by Radio Ecoshock
“………AN AMERICAN REACTOR FLOODED BY AN EXTREME RAINFALL EVENT – DURING THE PANDEMIC
Grant Smith mentioned the climate threat to nuclear installations. We have a case of that right now. The American mid-West has experience record-setting extreme rainfall events. The City of Chicago just had it wettest May, for the third year in a row. All that rain burst two dams in Michigan, flooding out the city of Midland, population 42,000. It also flooded the Dow Chemical plant that has produced noxious chemicals for years, including Agent Orange. The company acknowledges their chemicals have leaked out over the years. It has been declared a Superfund site, among the worst in the country requiring federal cleanup funds. There are chemicals lining the river, now being stirred up by the flood, and washing down into Lake Michigan.
What is less reported is the Dow nuclear reactor at that flooded site. It is a smaller research reactor built in the 1960’s, called a TRIGA 1 model. The reactor is sunk down into the ground. It doesn’t have cooling rods, but depends on convection for water cooling. Although the reactor was not operating at the time of the flood in late May, the design suggest it probably still had nuclear materials inside. Are they now leaking out into the river and Lake Michigan. So far, the company says “no”. With no federal oversight reporting we can rely on, you just have to take the word of Dow Chemical that this reactor is perfectly safe during this extreme rainfall event. Nothing to worry about here, they say. Beyond nearly 400 very large nuclear power plants in the United States, there are thousands of smaller reactors scattered around the country, at Universities, military bases, and private companies. Who is keeping track of those as climate change and a pandemic come knocking at the door?
Here is that unusual event report to the NRC about the Dow Chemical reactor in Michigan. For those who want to dive deeper, here is a description of that Triga Mark I reactor……… https://www.ecoshock.org/2020/05/covid-infects-world-nuclear-plants.html
Deep boreholes for nuclear waste disposal?
 I’d find this more convincing if it were not so closely tied to the push for “new nukes”
Industry to Explore Decentralized Nuclear Waste Disposal. Power Mag
May 31, 2020 by Sonal Patel Efforts to explore whether it is feasible to permanently dispose of high-level nuclear waste in deep horizontal boreholes under next-generation nuclear reactor sites got a boost in late April as nuclear waste technology firm Deep Isolation signed its first contract with industry. Under the contract with independent nonprofit organization Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the Berkeley, California–based company will team with EPRI researchers, Southern Co., the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), Auburn University, and nuclear waste management consultancy J Kessler and Associates to assess how Deep Isolation’s horizontal borehole disposal solution could contribute to siting of advanced nuclear energy systems. Specifically, the team plans to explore physical site characteristics, disposal operations, safety performance analysis, and regulatory and licensing considerations. …….https://www.powermag.com/industry-to-explore-decentralized-nuclear-waste-disposal/ |
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Now with the pandemic, it is a free-for-all for the nuclear operators
COVID Infects World Nuclear Plants, May 27, 2020, by Alex Smith, Radio Ecoshock, “……….During this pandemic, the nuclear industry is another disaster not just waiting to happen, but already dancing with it. Some reactors have been shut down due to the pandemic. But most atomic companies demanded to stay open.
They call themselves essential services, despite a glut of electricity priced well below what the nuclear industry can match. In many countries, taxpayers are paying billions for mal-investments in nuclear power. In America, the private operators and their investors demanded the federal government top up user bills in order to compete with electricity from cheap wind and natural gas. They want safety regulations cut back, inspections and rules developed after major nuclear accidents to be relaxed.
In America, the Trump Administration is ready to help. Three of the 5 commissioners of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission were nominated by President Trump. Along with other environmental protection rules, the Trump Administration has been dropping safety requirements at nuclear plants. Now with the pandemic, it is a free-for-all for the nuclear operators – as they struggle to avoid painful bankruptcies across the nation.
In just one small example, the former on-site nuclear plant inspectors, found in all nuclear power plants by law, are now making their “inspections” over the phone. There is fear of massive absenteeism of nuclear employees as the pandemic infects workers and their families or contacts. In Georgia, 120 nuclear plant workers had to quarantine. American companies admit they have plans to keep emergency staff, thousands of them, at the reactors in a 24/7 lock down, sleeping on cots. But they won’t say if that is already happening or where. During this pandemic, a nuclear reactor in the United States is sunk down in ground flooded in Michigan. You probably did not hear about that. We will ask big questions about nuclear safety during the pandemic with our guest Grant Smith, Senior Energy Policy Advisor with EWG, the Environmental Working Group.
But it is not just America. The international scene is just as scary. Many companies said they had pandemic plans, but few did, or no plan on this scale. A few reactors in the UK and France were closed down because they could not be operated safely during a pandemic. Almost all the rest stay on, full power, despite workers getting infected, and essential supply chains in doubt. The Russian state atomic company Rosatom brags “Nuclear Is Not Afraid of COVID-19”. Construction on the first nuclear power plant in impoverished Bangladesh is continuing, they say, even though a few hundred Russian nuclear construction experts were called home during the pandemic. I guess it is up to the Bangladeshis to build it completely safely. Rosatom reports construction of new reactors in Egypt and Turkey continues through the pandemic.
Russian nuclear operators have been infected with this virus. Probably every country with a reactor or nuclear weapon has these infections and risks, without reporting it. What could go wrong? I summarize carefully worded reports that explain so much. A nuclear accident during a pandemic would be a dire twist in history. Maybe with a bit of sunlight and public voice, we can avoid that?
The industry reports terrorists threatened to attack nuclear facilities during this plague. Experts point to spikes in attempts to hack nuclear control systems, even while some reactor employees work from home computers. I hope they are not using Windows 10 with botched and hackable updates.. In all countries, from Finland to Canada to Australia, the problems or policies meant to cope with nuclear-sized risks during this pandemic are shrouded in secrecy.
A watchdog group reports major decisions approved by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission require, by law, public consultation and information. The pandemic has excused all that, the brakes are off, the deregulators are not regulating. The NRC claims it rules the operation of nuclear plants, but not worker health. The NRC has not provided a public plan for nuclear plants during COVID-19. Other national governments are distracted. They are already politically and financially enmeshed in the nuclear game. That leaves safety up to nuclear plant owners and investors, the unseen wealthy and their CEOs, the ones already facing oblivion as dangerous aging reactors shut down one after another, and wind power blows them away.
I’m Alex Smith. This is Radio Ecoshock. Before I cover the convergence of a pandemic, climate change, and grave nuclear risks in many countries, let’s start out with our guest in America. …… https://www.ecoshock.org/2020/05/covid-infects-world-nuclear-plants.html
The soaring costs of Trump’s nuclear weapons’ spending – the new arms race
Trump Boosts Nuclear Weapons Spending, Fueling a New Arms Race, Jon Letman, Truthout, – 31 May 2020, Spending by the world’s nine nuclear nations climbed to nearly $73 billion in 2019, nearly half of it by the United States alone. At the same time, the Trump administration has prioritized nuclear weapons in its defense budget while abandoning nuclear treaties, fumbling negotiations and confounding allies. The administration’s lack of coherent goals, strategies or polices have increased nuclear dangers, leaving the U.S. “blundering toward nuclear chaos with potentially disastrous consequences.” Those are the findings of two separate reports published in May that examine nuclear spending and strategy under Trump.
The findings of the reports lay bare the soaring costs and dangers of the Trump administration’s pursuit of more nuclear pits; the fast tracking of a new generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles; and the deployment of new, low-yield submarine-launched nuclear weapons. In May, The Washington Post reported that Trump officials are in ongoing discussions about resuming explosive nuclear weapons testing.
The first report, titled “Enough is Enough: Global Nuclear Weapons Spending 2019,” published by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), is a densely-packed 12-page snapshot of how the world’s nuclear-armed nations collectively spent $72.9 billion on nuclear weapons last year, an increase of more than $7 billion over 2018. That worked out to almost $200 million per day in 2019.
Among the nine nations that collectively (but very unevenly) possess over 13,000 nuclear weapons, in 2019 four countries (Russia, China, France and India) increased nuclear spending modestly, three remained flat (the U.K., North Korea and Israel), and one cut spending slightly (Pakistan). Only the United States sharply increased nuclear expenditures over the previous year, from $29.6 billion to $35.4 billion.
According to Alicia Sanders-Zakre, ICAN policy and research coordinator and lead author of the report, the modernization of existing weapons and the expansion of arsenals is likely to drive further increases on nuclear spending in coming years……..
Sanders-Zakre calculated that total nuclear spending among the U.S., France and U.K. in a single year could cover all their respective shortfalls in “ICU beds, annual salaries for doctors and nurses, and ventilators … and [they would] still have just enormous amounts of money left over.”……
“Blundering Toward Nuclear Chaos”
A second report, “Blundering Toward Nuclear Chaos: The Trump Administration After Three Years,” published by the American Nuclear Policy Initiative (ANPI), an independent project of Global Zero, takes a sweeping look at how the U.S. is navigating the complex nuclear landscape under the undisciplined and unpredictable rule of Donald Trump.
Calling for broad changes, the report’s authors present a disturbing triptych of instability, inexperience and incompetence, making a powerful case for the urgent need to correct and redirect the U.S.’s approach to nuclear weapons policy. …….
The authors also closely examine how Trump has played a disruptive — even destructive — role in dismantling international agreements and nuclear treaties, most notably the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or Iran nuclear deal, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, while acting in a manner that runs counter to arms control and nonproliferation………
This comes as Trump has vowed to cut financial support for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and stop funding for the World Health Organization, even as Trump’s special presidential envoy for arms control recently said the U.S. was prepared to “spend China and Russian into oblivion” in order to win a new arms race.
Under Trump, nuclear spending and tensions are sharply increasing, but U.S. allies are anxious and uncertain and adversaries are antagonized. At a time when more than 100,000 Americans have been killed by a virus that can’t be stopped with a bomb, both the ICAN and ANPI reports illustrate how Trump’s unrestrained embrace of nuclear weapons is not making a U.S. that is safer, only a U.S. that is alone…… https://truthout.org/articles/trump-boosts-nuclear-weapons-spending-fueling-a-new-arms-race/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=830d2f87-01bf-4442-abdf-acad5127c85e
PANDEMIC STRIKES NUCLEAR WORKERS IN AMERICA
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COVID Infects World Nuclear Plants, May 27, 2020, by Alex Smith, Radio Ecoshock,”………..PANDEMIC STRIKES NUCLEAR WORKERS IN AMERICA – GRANT SMITHAmerican nuclear plant workers are being overworked, some crowded in conditions ripe for spread of the Coronavirus. By late April, multiple reactors reported employees infected with COVID-19. The Trump version of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission reacted to the crisis by dropping key safety rules and inspections. Grant Smith is Senior Energy Policy Advisor for EWG, the Environmental Working Group, headquartered in Washington D.C…….
With offices and factories closed down, there is a glut of electricity in the United States. Reactors have shut down during other emergencies. These old units down should at least power down during this pandemic, when workers are showing up sick with a dangerous communicable disease. The industry claims they are under a sustained cyber-attack during the pandemic. Some of their computer systems use decades old technology that cannot be accessed from the Internet, so I suppose that is a safety feature. But what happens when hundreds or thousands of workers are asked to work from home computers? We are also concerned about communities near reactors. Workers are going back to their families and communities. The industry admits they have backup plans to keep workers on site 24/7 – providing them with cots and pre-packaged food. Now that America has over a million and a half cases, over 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, has that emergency plan been implemented anywhere? The nuclear industry has announced they will not say what plants have staff quarantined inside. There are American-designed nuclear reactors all over the world. Four General Electric Mark I reactors blew up at Fukushima Japan following the tsunami in 2011. But now most Americans were flown home during the pandemic. This disease raise worries about other U.S.-type reactors in other countries. If America experiences a second or third wave of disease, worse than this first one, and this pandemic drags on for months or even a couple of years, can the nuclear power industry hold out? Can they just keep training replacements for their sick and dying workers? I know the American public doesn’t really want to hear about anything nuclear. It’s complex and scary to think about. We feel there is nothing we can do about it. The nuclear industry is happy with that, content to run reactors in the shadows, or even in secret. We aren’t handling the pandemic well, we are failing to stop horrible climate change. Can we revive a movement to shut nuclear down and using safe green energy instead?….. https://www.ecoshock.org/2020/05/covid-infects-world-nuclear-plants.html |
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Trump’s ominous creation of the U.S. Space Force – for the purposes of war
How much will it cost? The vast costs will be shouldered by taxpayers, likely by slashing funding for essential social needs. The aerospace industry has suggested defunding “entitlement programs” to pay for “everything space.” That would likely include cutting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid among other social and welfare programs. In his proposed fiscal year 2021 budget, Trump is recommending $15.4 billion for the Space Force. The Space Force, if it is allowed to continue, will clearly be a multi-billion dollar annual affair.
Who will profit?
Raytheon is emerging as a major beneficiary of Space Force work. Perhaps not uncoincidentally, Mark Esper, Trump’s U.S. Secretary of Defense at the time the Space Force was announced, is a former lobbyist for the corporation. Other major contractors for the Space Force will be Northrop Grumman, Boeing and Lockheed-Martin, the world’s biggest military contractor.
Space Force is no laughing matter, May 31, 2020 by beyondnuclearinternational
What started as “a joke” his now deadly serious; and just plain deadly Continue reading
Here’s a supremely unaffordable nuclear fantasy – reactors on the moon and Mars
NASA Wants to Go Nuclear on the Moon and Mars for Astronaut Settlement, SciTech Daily By AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY MAY 31, 2020 m It might sound like science fiction, but scientists are preparing to build colonies on the moon and, eventually, Mars. With NASA planning its next human mission to the moon in 2024, researchers are looking for options to power settlements on the lunar surface. According to a new article in Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, nuclear fission reactors have emerged as top candidates to generate electricity in space.
1 This Month
26 September – International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons
PLEASE OPPOSE HR 8255 AND S.3639 – bills would accelerate satellite deployment, with no environmental review or safeguards – https://ncstd5li.quorum.us/campaign/169331/
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
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