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In situ mining subject to stricter rules and higher fees

New rules take effect for Colorado uranium mines | San Francisco Examiner, Associated Press. 09/30/10 PDTDENVER — New rules for uranium mining in Colorado are now in effect.State lawmakers passed three bills in 2008 that prompted the changes, and the new rules took effect Thursday.The legislation was aimed at protecting groundwater during in-situ uranium mining, which involves injecting a chemical mixture into a site to draw uranium out. The laws also updated mining fees and pushed for disclosure of more information during prospecting activities.Now, all uranium mines must have detailed environmental protection plans. Applicants for in-situ leach uranium mines have to show the technology they want to use has been used before without harming groundwater quality, and they can’t be in violation at another operation. New rules take effect for Colorado uranium mines | San Francisco Examiner

October 1, 2010 Posted by | Legal, Uranium, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slow progress in cleaning up uranium groundwater contamination

State records and Denver Water testing data indicate the pumping has failed to reduce uranium levels that far exceed drinking-water standards in Ralston Creek, which flows into Denver Water’s Ralston Reservoir.

Cotter Corp. puts a price on clean By Bruce FinleyThe Denver Post, 30 Sept 10, The federal government reimbursed Cotter Corp. nearly $3 million for cleanup of its toxic uranium mill near Cañon City — and could pay $3.3 million more for work in the future. But the work mopping up tailings and contaminated groundwater that began in 1984 is not scheduled to be complete until 2027. Continue reading →

October 1, 2010 Posted by | Uranium, USA, water | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Law to protect patients from radiation overdose

Cali law will protect patients from radiation overdose, Dot Med News, September 30, 2010 by Heather Mayer, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill Wednesday that will protect hospital patients from radiation overdoses – a response to more than 260 accidental overexposures at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The events were publicized in a New York Times series looking at overexposure risks.
The law would require hospitals to disclose radiation overdoses during computed tomography exams and to record the doses from all scans in the patient’s medical records. The bill’s author, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), noted that while the dose appears on the CT operator’s computer screen, there was no requirement to make that information available to the patient. DOTmed.com – Cali law will protect patients from radiation overdose

October 1, 2010 Posted by | Legal, USA | , , , | Leave a comment

New laser uranium enrichment technology fraught with problems

Regulatory agencies are worried that laser enrichment of uranium could lead to the proliferation of nuclear weapons….GE and Hitachi “are betting that there will be an upsurge of nuclear power plant construction—that’s a huge and extremely risky bet.”….laser enrichment has been held back by substantial technical hurdles.

Laser Uranium Enrichment Makes a Comeback The controversial technology poses proliferation risks, but nuclear firms press on, IEEE Spectrum: By Sandra Upson  1 October 2010 Two technology giants, GE and Hitachi, are betting big on a nuclear renaissance. Continue reading →

October 1, 2010 Posted by | technology, Uranium, USA | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Did the Pentagon attack Iran’s nuclear reactor with Stuxnet worm?

Pentagon’s spokesman Colonel David Lapan said the Department of defence can “neither confirm nor deny” reports that it launched this attack

Pentagon Accused Of Launching Supervirus Attack On Iran Gizmodo Australia, By Jesus Diaz on September 28, 2010 Stuxnet – which some experts consider to be the most advanced virus ever – appears to be focusing its attacks on Iranian nuclear plants. Now, the Pentagon and German intelligence are being accused of creating the virus to take down Iran’s atomic weapons program. Continue reading →

September 30, 2010 Posted by | secrets,lies and civil liberties, USA | , , , | Leave a comment

University’s nuclear radiation mishap

KSU divulges reactor mishap   CJOnline.com, By Tim Carpenter

September 29, 2010 – The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is investigating a Kansas State University nuclear reactor operator’s exposure to radiation during an experiment, a university official said Wednesday…..TRIGA Mark II reactor had been shut down since Sept. 22 to accommodate the NRC’s evaluation of the mishap. The NRC and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment were notified of the incident. KSU divulges reactor mishap | CJOnline.com

September 30, 2010 Posted by | safety, USA | , , , , | Leave a comment

Nuclear finance squabble as France’s debt-laden EDF in dispute with USA’s Constellation

Moving up a long way in funky financing, state-to-state bilateral deals in the nuclear power sector are now in high gear. Amounts in play are usually well above US $ 10 billion per project, and very complex mix-and-mingle methods and processes are used for their financing

From Put Options to Development Aid The French EDF ex-monopoly electricity supplier with the biggest number of nuclear reactors of any traded power company in the world, also the most debt-laden traded company in France, and with a share price down about 25% through Jan-Aug 2010, is using financial engineering to keep a foothold in the US nuclear power market. Continue reading →

September 30, 2010 Posted by | business and costs, USA | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Costs are looking like the killer for the nuclear industry

Critics such as Mark Cooper at the University of Vermont say the real costs tend to range toward $7,000 to $10,000 per kilowatt. State support of these projects turns into “nuclear socialism,” Cooper says. Amory Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute says costs have escalated beyond what proponents claim.

Cost remains a huge problem for the nuclear industry. : Greentech Media,  Michael Kanellos, 29 Sept, 10 The MIT report estimates that overnight cost — i.e., the cost of a plant minus financing during construction — is around $4,000 a kilowatt, compared to $2,300 per kilowatt for natural gas and $850 for coal. A nuclear facility at this level could produce power for 8.4 cents per kilowatt hour compared to 6.2 cents per kilowatt hour for  coal and 4.2 cents to 8.7 cents for natural gas…….. Continue reading →

September 29, 2010 Posted by | business and costs, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hillary Clinton starts the US govt pressure on India’s Nuclear Liability Bill

Hillary raises nuclear liability issue with Krishna,  The Hindu , 29 Sept 10, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday raised India’s civil nuclear liability issue with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna at a meeting to do the groundwork for President Barack Obama’s visit to India in November……

The bill, which was passed recently by Parliament and which is critical to the full implementation of the India-U.S. civil nuclear deal, has been troubling several American industrialists as it makes equipment suppliers liable in the event of a nuclear accident…….

The Hindu : News / National : Hillary raises nuclear liability issue with Krishna

September 29, 2010 Posted by | politics international, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Electricite de France trying to salvage failed USA nuclear venture

EDF fell 0.1 percent to close at 31.69 euros in Paris. The shares are down 24 percent this year….Constellation was spending $1 million a day on design work for the proposed plant in Lusby, Maryland, adjacent to its Calvert Cliffs reactors. It cut spending and staff after the loan guarantee failed to materialize, costs rose, power demand fell, and the price of natural gas, a competing fuel for power generation, tumbled,

DF, Constellation in Talks to Save U.S. Nuclear Venture By Tara Patel, Jeffrey McCracken and Jim Polson – Sep 25, 201 (Bloomberg) — Electricite de France SA, Europe’s biggest utility, and Constellation Energy Group Inc. are in talks to avoid the collapse of their U.S. nuclear venture, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions. Continue reading →

September 28, 2010 Posted by | business and costs, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cutting edge technology dispels the propaganda against renewable energy

So when I read the next diatribe opposing renewable power or questioning the science of climate change, I’ll think of these and other visionary businesses across Vermont that chose to do the right thing by Vermont’s economy, our local energy security and the health of the planet.

Businesses across the state see the light: Rutland Herald Online, SUSAN ALLEN   September 26, 2010 I’ve been reading with dismay recent commentaries that try, for reasons I cannot fathom, to discredit the renewable energy industry, to turn back the clock and question the proven science of climate change. And I literally shake my head at how hard it is to get some (thankfully not all) in government to recognize the economic benefits offered by these cutting-edge projects. Continue reading →

September 27, 2010 Posted by | spinbuster, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Claim that aliens attacked nuclear missile sites

he decided to come forward because he feels it’s time for people to know the truth. “I believe in the extraterrestrial hypothesis, and I think, in this instance, these objects were not constructed on planet Earth.”

Former Air Force officers say UFO’s attacked nuclear missile sites: They will break decades long silence on Monday September 27, 2010 , Gather News, 27 Sept 10, Continue reading →

September 27, 2010 Posted by | safety, USA | , , | Leave a comment

New START nuclear treaty critical issue – beyond party politics

Standard-bearers and negotiators for nuclear weapons controls in the United States span the spectrum from conservative to liberal. This is a subject so momentous it defies partisan politics. Or it should.

National security at greater risk without New START, The Cap Times,  Susan Shaer, 26 Sept 10, “………..The United States and Russia maintain over 90 percent of the world’s arsenal of some 23,000 nuclear weapons. The original Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) between our two countries providing for inspections and monitoring of these weapons expired nearly a year ago. The Senate now must ratify the New START treaty by a two-thirds margin (67 votes) to preserve the security protections of on-the-ground intelligence we have relied on. Continue reading →

September 27, 2010 Posted by | USA, weapons and war | , , , | Leave a comment

USA’s ‘Blue Ribbon Commission’ looking for answer to nuclear waste

President Barack Obama created the commission after his administration abandoned a proposed nuclear waste storage site in Nevada. The commission is supposed to make the first of its recommendations in the fall of 2011

Nuclear waste panel to visit Georgia site  | ajc.com, 26 Sept 10, The Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionA panel examining how the United States should store nuclear waste will visit Plant Vogtle in eastern Georgia and the Savannah River Site in South Carolina next year. Continue reading →

September 27, 2010 Posted by | USA, wastes | , , , | Leave a comment

Radiation safety protocols needed for CT scans

Currently, there are no safety protocols in place to measure and record the radiation doses being administered to patients who receive CT scans.

CT machines and radiation overdoses: SB1237 would help – latimes.com, 26 Sept 10, “……..the machine that was meant to diagnose me and guide my treatment was also exposing me to excessive levels of radiation capable of causing lethal harm. Apparently, the scanner had been set improperly, so each CT brain perfusion scan bombarded my head with at least eight times the allowable dose of radiation. Continue reading →

September 27, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , | Leave a comment