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US Navy nuclear-powered guided-missile submarine and 2 warships sail through Strait of Hormuz, (Persian Gulf-Gulf of Oman)

US Navy sails nuclear submarine through Strait of Hormuz,  By Ryan Browne and Barbara Starr, CNN December 21, 2020  The US Navy nuclear-powered guided-missile submarine USS Georgia transited the Strait of Hormuz Monday accompanied by two additional American warships, the Navy said Monday in a rare public announcement of a nuclear submarine’s movements.

“The nuclear-power Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Georgia (SSGN 729), along with the guided-missile cruisers USS Port Royal (CG 73) and USS Philippine Sea (CG 58), transited the Strait of Hormuz entering the Arabian Gulf, Dec. 21,” the Navy said in a statement using an alternative name for the Persian Gulf.
The vessels’ entrance into the area comes amid heightened tensions with Iran, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blaming Iranian backed militias for a rocket attack on the US Embassy compound in Baghdad, on Sunday.
Some US officials have expressed concern that Iran may use the anniversary of the killing of General Qasem Solemani to carry out a strike on the US.
The US Navy rarely discusses the movement of its submarines, but Monday’s announcement also included details on the vessel’s capabilities, including its “ability to carry up to 154 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles.”………………  https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/21/politics/us-nuclear-sub-hormuz/index.html

December 22, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Following huge bribery scandal, Energy Harbor still manipulating to keep nuclear bailout law

Energy Harbor seeks option of turning down HB6 nuclear bailout money, Cleveland.com  Dec 21, 2020;   Ohio. Energy Harbor is lobbying for Ohio lawmakers to let it choose whether it should be eligible for House Bill 6 nuclear bailout money,

By Jeremy Pelzer, cleveland.com

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Energy Harbor is lobbying for state lawmakers to allow it to decide whether to accept more than $1 billion in House Bill 6 bailout money for its two nuclear power plants because a federal regulatory ruling might otherwise make the subsidies a liability, according to a top lawmaker.

It’s still unclear whether legislators will agree to the proposal, which is being crafted by House Majority Leader Bill Seitz, or whether they will pass any reforms to HB6 at all on Tuesday, expected to be the final day of the current legislative session.But it shows that Energy Harbor, a former subsidiary of FirstEnergy, is working behind the scenes to influence what reforms might be made to HB6, which is at the center of what authorities say is the largest bribery scheme in Ohio history. Federal authorities say $60 million in FirstEnergy bribery money was used to pass the law and keep it on the books.

Under the 2019 law, Energy Harbor’s Davis-Besse and Perry nuclear power plants are set to get $150 million per year from ratepayers from 2021 until 2027. Energy Harbor officials have said without the bailout, they will have to close the plants, though they’ve offered no financial data to back their claims.

But after the HB6 scandal broke last summer, GOP lawmakers have been working on possible changes to the law — including requiring yearly audits to see how much money the nuclear plants need to break even, then adjusting accordingly the amount of subsidies paid to Energy Harbor.

The reason Energy Harbor might not want the money is that late last year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ruled that power generation companies that receive state subsidies (like the ones offered by HB6) can only sell their electricity in the region’s long-term, regional capacity market at a higher rate that what they would otherwise be able to charge. This “minimum offer price rule” would likely make it much harder for Energy Harbor to sell electricity from the two nuclear plants………..

House and Senate leaders are still working to craft an HB6 reform plan that has the votes to pass both chambers. The main reform plan, House Bill 798, would delay the start of the bailout until 2022 to provide time for an audit to be conducted.

When asked whether lawmakers were close to a deal, Seitz said, “That’s kind of above my pay grade.”

But if an HB6 reform proposal does move forward, Seitz said lawmakers critical of HB6 will have “a binary choice” to make.
“For those of you that would like to repeal House Bill 6 or would like to do other things with House Bill 6,” Seitz said, “Well, your choice is this or let House Bill 6 continue.”
State Rep. David Leland, a Columbus Democrat, criticized the proposal in a statement.

“Energy Harbor is a corporation under investigation for orchestrating the largest bribery scandal in Ohio history,” Leland said, “and now Republicans want to let it decide whether to take $1.3 billion straight out of the pockets of everyday Ohioans.” https://www.cleveland.com/open/2020/12/energy-harbor-seeks-option-of-turning-down-hb6-nuclear-bailout-money.html

December 22, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, Legal, politics, secrets,lies and civil liberties, USA | Leave a comment

Major Japan life insurers shun investing in nuclear weapons-linked firms


Major Japan life insurers shun investing in nuclear weapons-linked firms, 
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/12/14/national/major-japan-life-insurers-investing-nuclear-weapons-linked-firms/    14 Dec 20, Four major Japanese life insurers do not invest in or extend loans to producers of nuclear weapons or companies related to them, Kyodo News learned Saturday, as part of their efforts toward socially responsible investing.The revelation comes as various lenders in Japan, Europe and the United States have refrained from investing in companies involved in the nuclear weapons industry.It also precedes the entry into force in January of a United Nations treaty that will ban such weapons.

The four life insurers which managed a combined ¥151 trillion in assets in fiscal 2019 — Nippon Life Insurance Co., Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co., Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co. and Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co. — did not disclose lists of targeted companies.

The restraint shown by the life insurers reflects a growing trend toward valuing environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in making investment decisions.

It is believed that such investing strategies will give a boost to the advancement of green technologies while cutting funding for developing nuclear weapons.

Three of the insurers, with Nippon Life being an exception, say they do not invest in companies involved in the maintenance of nuclear warheads or manufacturing of ballistic missiles, in addition to those making nuclear weapons.

According to PAX, an international nongovernmental organization for peace, U.S. Lockheed Martin Corp., which develops the long-range Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missile, is among such companies.

More than 300 lenders including major Japanese banks invested a total of $748 billion in companies involved in the nuclear weapons industry between January 2017 and January 2019, according to the NGO.

In April, Dai-ichi Life published a basic policy that excludes weapons producers from its portfolio. The company told Kyodo News that companies linked to nuclear weapons raise concerns from the viewpoint of ESG.

Meiji Yasuda said it does not invest in or extend loans to companies that are found to have links to nuclear and other inhumane weapons based on undisclosed internal rules. Categorizing companies related to nuclear weapons as “socially problematic,” Fukoku has excluded them from its investible universe in line with its own guidelines adopted in February 2019.

Nippon Life, meanwhile, said it does not invest in shares or bonds of nuclear weapons producers.

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons will become the first international pact outlawing the development, testing, possession and use of nuclear weapons, though the world’s major nuclear powers have not joined it.

Japan, the only country to have suffered a nuclear attack, has not taken part, to the disappointment of many atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as it is protected under the U.S. nuclear umbrella.

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co., which does not have guidelines on investing in nuclear weapons companies, said it will consider exercising restraint as investing in such companies would hurt its reputation once the nuclear ban treaty takes effect.

December 22, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, Japan, opposition to nuclear, weapons and war | Leave a comment

World powers renew commitment to preserve Iran nuclear deal

World powers renew commitment to preserve Iran nuclear deal
Remaining parties to landmark 2015 deal reaffirm commitment as Iran’s nuclear programme’s chief slams a Parliament bill.   
Aljazeera, Maziar Motamedi, 21 Dec 2020, Tehran, Iran – The remaining parties to a landmark nuclear deal they signed with Iran in 2015 have renewed their commitment to preserving the accord in an online meeting.

The foreign ministers of Iran, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, China and Russia participated in a two-hour meeting chaired by the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, on Monday.

In a tweet before the meeting, Borrell said the aim is to “re-emphasise our commitment to preserve” the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as the nuclear deal is formally known.

A joint statement following the meeting said the ministers “discussed that full and effective implementation of the JCPOA by all remains crucial and discussed the need to address ongoing implementation challenges, including on nuclear non-proliferation and sanctions lifting commitments”.

The foreign ministers recognised the deal, enshrined in Resolution 2231 of the United Nations Security Council, as a “key element” in the global non-proliferation regime and a diplomatic achievement contributing to regional and international peace……..

US President-elect Joe Biden has promised to bring his country back into the deal and lift sanctions but has hinted that more negotiations are needed on Iran’s missiles programme and regional influence.

The European signatories of the nuclear deal have also made similar remarks, but Iran has categorically rejected any further negotiations, saying the nuclear deal must be implemented as negotiated and signed in 2015…………….. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/21/world-powers-renew-commitment-to-preserve-iran-nuclear-deal

December 22, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, politics international | Leave a comment

The real reason for “civil” Small Nuclear Reactors- to supply expertise and technology for the nuclear weapons industry

How investment in SMRs supports “defense nuclear programs”  https://concernedcitizens.net/2020/12/19/how-investment-in-smrs-supports-defense-nuclear-programs/comment-page-1/?unapproved=2198&moderation-hash=3219adce054494626a5ee71e323fef71#comment-2198

DECEMBER 19, 2020LEAVE A COMMENT

1. Rolls-Royce, 2017, ‘UK SMR: A National Endeavour’, https://www.uknuclearsmr.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/V2088-Rolls-Royc…

“The indigenous UK supply chain that supports defence nuclear programmes requires significant ongoing support to retain talent and develop and maintain capability between major programmes. Opportunities for the supply chain to invest in new capability are restricted by the limited size and scope of the defence nuclear programme. A UK SMR programme would increase the security, size and scope of opportunities for the UK supply chain significantly, enabling long-term sustainable investment in people, technology and capability.

“Expanding the talent pool from which defence nuclear programmes can draw from would bring a double benefit. First, additional talent means more competition for senior technical and managerial positions, driving excellence and performance. Second, the expansion of a nuclear-capable skilled workforce through a civil nuclear UK SMR programme would relieve the Ministry of Defence of the burden of developing and retaining skills and capability. This would free up valuable resources for other investments.”

December 21, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, secrets,lies and civil liberties, Small Modular Nuclear Reactors, UK, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Russian environmental defenders under attack

Russian environmental defenders under attack,   https://foeasiapacific.org/2020/12/16/russian-environmental-defenders-under-attack/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=russian-environmental-defenders-under-attack

December 16, 2020,   In 2020, the Russian Social-Ecological Union / Friends of the Earth Russia recorded at least 154 episodes of pressure on 429 environmental activists in 25 regions of Russia. One activist died, 15 received injuries of varying severity, 13 criminal cases were initiated or continued, and more than 250 administrative cases were filed. RSEU has been monitoring and documenting violations against environmental human rights defenders since 2012. Their work advocates for free access to environmental information, broad public participation in solving environmentally significant issues, and an end to pressure on environmental defenders. In 2021, RSEU will continue to fight for solutions to environmental problems and seek protection for environmental defenders.

For future updates follow RSEU on facebook.

For more information contact:
Vitaly Servetnik,
Russian Social-Ecological Union / Friends of the Earth Russia
Email: vitservetnik@gmail.com

 

Program Area: Environmental Human Rights Defenders
Member Group: Russian Social Ecological Union (RSEU)

December 21, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | opposition to nuclear, politics, Russia, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

USA to turn the moon into a nuclear weapons site

US to turn moon into ‘nuclear weapons site’

By Huang Lanlan Source: Global Times: 2020/12/18,  The US ambition to build a nuclear power plant on the moon by 2027, which may contribute to future lunar military projects, shows it seeks space supremacy regardless of the damage and dangers it may cause to people, Chinese experts on military and international relations said.

Establishing a nuclear power plant on the moon by the end of 2027 was included in a number of specific goals in a memorandum signed by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, which is known as Space Policy Directive 6 (SPD-6). The plant would “support a sustained lunar presence and exploration of Mars,” SPD-6 said.

Military purposes are likely to be behind the establishment, Chinese military expert and commentator Song Zhongping said.

By setting up a nuclear power plant, which includes exploiting nuclear materials and building equipment like nuclear reactors and uranium enrichment facilities, the US can theoretically turn the moon “into a production site of nuclear weapons,” Song told the Global Times Friday.

The moon is rich in helium-3, a material that could be used as fuel to produce energy by nuclear fusion, Song said. In the name of building a nuclear power plant, the US may directly exploit this material on the moon and then construct nuclear fuel-processing plants there, he said.

The plan once again shows American unilateralism in space, which runs counter to the will of the international community in terms of lunar issues, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, said……….

As Chang’e-5 successfully completed its lunar trip on Thursday, the signing of SPD-6 also shows the US’ intention of dragging China into a space race, trying to divert China’s attention to an endless consumption of national resources for the race from improving its economy and people’s livelihood, Li said. This is similar to what the US did to the Soviet Union in the 1980s under Ronald Reagan’s “Star Wars” program, he noted.

Its goal of building a lunar nuclear power plant, nonetheless, may hardly be achieved on time by 2027 as the US is stuck in domestic trouble and chaos, such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Li said. https://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1210357.shtml

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | space travel, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Many Canadian organisations dispute the government’s plan for small nuclear reactors

Feds throw support behind development of mini nuclear reactors; action plan released, Saskatoon / 650 CKOM
The Canadian PressDec 18, 2020 “……. Among steps in the plan is developing prototypes and demonstration models.,,,,,

Dozens of groups, including opposition parties, some Indigenous organizations and environmentalists, want the government to fight climate change by investing more in renewable energy and energy efficiency rather than in the new reactors.

They argue nuclear energy costs far too much money and is far from clean given the growing mound of radioactive waste it generates. O’Regan said the government is actively trying to figure out what do with the dangerous material…..

The federal government estimates the global market for SMRs will be worth between $150 billion and $300 billion a year by 2040 but critics question the validity of the estimate. They also wonder who exactly might want one. …https://www.ckom.com/2020/12/18/feds-throw-support-behind-development-of-mini-nuclear-reactors/

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, politics, Small Modular Nuclear Reactors | Leave a comment

2 million yen ($19,300) incentive for families to move to near crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant

New residents near Fukushima nuclear plant can get 2 million yen, Asahi Shimbun  By NORIYOSHI OHTSUKI/ Senior Staff Writer, December 18, 2020   The government will pay up to 2 million yen ($19,300) to families that move to areas around the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, an unprecedented offer for recovery from the 2011 disaster.

Under the program that will start in fiscal 2021, the Reconstruction Agency will provide an additional amount of up to 4 million yen to those who start new businesses in 12 cities, towns and villages where residents had been ordered to evacuate from after the triple meltdown at the plant.

Eleven of those municipalities had come under the central government’s evacuation order, while in the remaining municipality, Hironomachi, residents were ordered to leave by the town government.

Katsuei Hirasawa, the reconstruction minister, said on Dec. 17 that his agency is focused on repopulating those areas because only around 20 percent of residents have returned there even after the evacuation orders were lifted.

One requirement is that the families must live in the locations for at least five years.

The agency will provide 1.2 million yen to families that relocate to the 12 areas from other parts of Fukushima Prefecture and 2 million yen to those from other prefectures.

The amount is 800,000 yen for single-person households that relocate from other areas of the prefecture and 1.2 million yen for those from outside the prefecture. …….. http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14031389

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, politics, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

EDF did a small survey of Suffolk community opinion -weighted to favour nuclear industry?

East Anglian Daily Times 17th Dec 2020.   A new survey has been carried out into the attitudes of people in east
Suffolk towards the building of a new nuclear power station on the coast.
The survey was carried out by a company called ICM Unlimited on behalf of
EDF, which is looking to build the Sizewell C station. ICM interviewed a
representative sample of 500 adults in east Suffolk over the phone between
November 5 and November 19.
But opponents of the power station project
dismissed the research as “meaningless”, saying a sample of 500 people – in
an area with a population of 247,000 – was “hardly representative”. All
those that took part in the survey live in the area with data having been
weighted to the population profile of the East Suffolk Council adult
population.

https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/sizewell-c-survey-shows-favourable-results-6854678

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | public opinion, UK | Leave a comment

Sizewell C nuclear plan – a disastrous and expensive mistake

Spectator 19th Dec 2020, Building Sizewell C would be a nuclear-sized disaster. Not just the
heritage coast, but quite possibly the entire county, could be changed for
ever by the arrival of two new European pressurised reactors (EPRs).
‘Sizewell C, a proposed new nuclear power station in Suffolk, has the
potential to generate the reliable low carbon electricity the country needs
for decades to come’ is the claim made by EDF Energy, the French-owned
company behind the project. It also has the potential to be a disastrous
and expensive mistake. Many believe it already is.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/building-sizewell-c-would-be-a-nuclear-sized-disaster#

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | Leave a comment

Nuclear waste plan spells doom for a Hokkaido fishing community

Hokkaido fishing villages face tough decision over nuclear disposal sites, Japan Times, HOKKAIDO SHIMBUN, Dec 18, 2020

A frosty wind was blowing in from the Sea of Japan at the Suttsu fishing port in Hokkaido in late November. There, catching anglerfish with a grim look on his face was 77-year-old fisherman Kyozo Kimura.

“The haul of fish has been decreasing to the point where we can’t even make ends meet. It has been tough,” said Kimura.

In 1977, Kimura, a native of the town of Matsumae, married into a family whose fishing business had been around for five generations since the Meiji Era (1868-1912). Longline fishing of trout prospered at the time, and he reminisced about the time when he got a new 29-ton ship, funded by his father-in-law, and was filled with hope that he could go out fishing anywhere with it.

But that dream did not last long.

An international regulation took effect later that year restricting fishermen to operating within 200 nautical miles of a nation’s shores.

Despite various efforts including changing to smaller ships aiming to catch Alaskan pink shrimp in coastal waters, hauls continued to drop. To make ends meet, Kimura ventured into scallop farming, learning the ropes from acquaintances.

Though the stable revenue from scallop farming has supported the family for years, the increase in sea temperatures in the past few years and other factors have led to the recurrent deaths of scallops, cutting hauls to a third of their heyday. The impact of coronavirus this year has also kept the price low amid declining demand.

Then, in August, local residents saw shocking headlines that Suttsu was considering applying for preliminary research into being a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste produced from nuclear power plants.

Hearing the news, Kimura was upset, worrying that harmful rumors about radiation could potentially bring down the price of scallops. Local fishermen were split, and Kimura has heard about families arguing over the topic. Soon, people started avoiding it altogether.

In the 60 years or so since he graduated from high school, Kimura has worked as a fisherman, taking pride in his profession. But he is also aware of the importance of the town’s subsidies. For him to run a steady scallop farming business, any help, including municipal subsidies for fishing materials, makes a difference.

“I can’t go on by myself. If the lives of people won’t improve, we won’t have any more younger generations in the town,” said Kimura.

While showing some understanding of the need for a preliminary survey — for which Suttsu will receive government subsidies — he does not see the need for building a nuclear waste disposal site in the town.

On Nov. 17, the government launched preliminary surveys for the towns and villages of Suttsu and Kamoenai in Hokkaido, where herring fishing used to flourish.

According to the histories of the municipalities, wajin, or Japanese migrants to Hokkaido, made a hamlet and started fishing there in the Meiji Era. The industry became so lucrative at the time that there even remains a “herring palace” in Suttsu, which symbolizes the successful fishing business back then.

Although once a thriving industry, herring fishing began its steep decline around the late Meiji Era, and it was a shadow of its former self by the onset of the Showa Era (1926-1989).

After the end of World War II, fishermen began to seek ways to increase their catch, such as switching to pelagic fishing, but they were soon hit by the 200-nautical-mile fishing regulation. Though they have shifted to catching atka mackerel inshore and scallop farming as alternatives for survival, the hauls have been on the decline.

According to a fishery cooperative in Suttsu, there was about ¥2 billion worth of transactions in fiscal 1978, the oldest figures available on record. But transactions are now about ¥1 billion to ¥1.5 billion annually.

The Furuu fishery co-op also reports that there were 270 members in total in fiscal 2009 when three co-ops, Furuu, Kamoenai and Tomari, were merged together, but the number had shrunk to 126 in fiscal 2019.

Nobushige Miura, a 57 year-old fisherman in Kamoenai village, saw the industry dwindling first hand.

“In the offshore area, there aren’t many fish in the sea and prospects for fish farming are bleak. In the past decade, fishermen have been quitting one after the other saying they cannot hand down the business to their kids,” said Miura.

Miura is neither for nor against the village accepting the government’s preliminary survey. But he knows that the village’s future is bleak.

“If we don’t do anything, the village will disappear in the future,” he said.

Miura has been farming scallops for the past 30 years but recently he has seen the number of dead scallops on the rise, a trend also seen in Suttsu.

Miura’s family business started in the Edo Period (1603 to 1868), and is now in its fifth generation. Despite its long history, though, he realizes that the business will come to a halt in his generation due to the absence of successors. That is why Miura hopes all the more for the village to thrive, even for a short time.

Nihonkai Shokudo, a restaurant that sits along the national highway in Suttsu, serves local seafood throughout spring and summer. Owner Sumio Kawachi, 58, is a fourth-generation fisherman.

After graduating from Suttsu high school, he ran a construction business in Sapporo before becoming a fisherman when he was 37 years old due to an injury at his former workplace.

Amid the difficulties in the fishing business, he has been offering fishing classes to tourists in a bid to survive.

“Combining fishing with tourism is creating new business opportunities,” said Kawachi.

Kawachi’s mother was born into a family of fishermen in Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture, where a nuclear reprocessing plant is located. His mother used to tell him about the divide among fishermen over the construction of the facility.

Having visited Rokkasho multiple times since his childhood, he has seen the fishing industry decline despite the help of government subsidies.

Reflecting on his experience, his hope is for everyone to think twice about the potential consequences of constructing a nuclear disposal site.

“I am fishing in a sea that I have succeeded from my ancestors. Will we be able to hand down the sea to future generations given the preliminary research for the nuclear disposal site?”

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, wastes | Leave a comment

Iran builds at underground nuclear plant

Iran builds at underground nuclear plant, The West Australian Jon GambrellAAP. Fri, 18 December 2020  Iran has begun construction on a site at its underground nuclear facility at Fordo amid tensions with the US over its atomic program, satellite photos obtained by The Associated Press show.
Iran has not publicly acknowledged any new construction at Fordo, whose discovery by the West in 2009 came in an earlier
round of brinkmanship before world powers struck the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.

While the purpose of the building remains unclear, any work at Fordo likely will trigger new concern in the waning days of the 

Trump administration before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.

Already, Iran is building at its Natanz nuclear facility after a mysterious explosion in July there that Tehran described as a 

sabotage attack.

“Any changes at this site will be carefully watched as a sign of where Iran’s nuclear program is headed,” said Jeffrey Lewis, 

an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies who 
studies Iran.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The International Atomic Energy 

Agency, whose inspectors are in Iran as part of the nuclear deal, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
…………..https://thewest.com.au/business/energy/iran-builds-at-underground-nuclear-plant-ng-s-2042622

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, politics | Leave a comment

In midst of pandemic crisis, more U.S. tax-payer money to go to nuclear power in space

White House Issues Space Policy Directive on Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion. Via Satellite, By Rachel Jewett | December 17, 2020   

The White House released Space Policy Directive-6 (SPD-6) on Wednesday regarding a U.S. national strategy for space nuclear power and propulsion (SNPP), technology that the White House said will be needed to fuel future space exploration

SPD-6 establishes that the U.S. government will pursue a roadmap for federally-supported space nuclear power and propulsion activities.

It set the following goals for development: “develop capabilities that enable production of fuel suitable to a range of planetary surface and inspace SNPP applications; demonstrate a fission power system on the Moon; establish technical foundations and capabilities that will enable options for in-space nuclear propulsion; and develop advanced radioisotope power systems to enable survivable surface systems and extend robotic exploration of the solar system.”……….. https://www.satellitetoday.com/government-military/2020/12/17/white-house-issues-space-policy-directive-on-space-nuclear-power-and-propulsion/

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | space travel, USA | Leave a comment

44 year old Mihama nuclear station, with waste disposal problem may be allowed to restart

Town assembly gives nod to start 44-year-old nuclear reactor,   http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14031578 THE ASAHI SHIMBUN,  December 18, 2020   MIHAMA, Fukui Prefecture–The town assembly here gave the green light Dec. 18 to resume operations at a nuclear power plant that has already passed its initial 40-year life span.

The No. 3 reactor at the Mihama nuclear plant operated by Kansai Electric Power Co. first went online 44 years ago. The town assembly’s decision came a day after the Federation of Electric Power Companies (FEPC) of Japan submitted a proposal to the economy minister about a new initiative for joint use of an intermediate storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture.

Kansai Electric is keen to resume operations at the No. 3 reactor of the Mihama plant in January. The reactor has been offline for about a decade following the 2011 triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

Key local officials will also have to sign off on the plan, and no further decisions are anticipated before the year-end.

The Takahama town assembly in November also OK’d a resumption of operations at the Takahama plant’s No. 1 and No. 2 reactors.

In response to questions from The Asahi Shimbun, Takahama Mayor Yutaka Nose said he would not make a decision before year-end. Mihama Mayor Hideki Toshima also said it would be difficult to reach a decision this month.

Moreover, once the mayors give their approval, the Fukui prefectural assembly and Fukui Governor Tatsuji Sugimoto must also give their consent. Only then can operations resume.

Sugimoto indicated earlier that he would only give his consent if Kansai Electric submitted a plan for an intermediate storage facility for spent nuclear fuel outside of the prefecture. The FEPC proposal submitted on Dec. 17 would allow Kansai Electric to use the Mutsu facility, but it is still not certain whether the local authorities in Aomori Prefecture will agree to that idea.

Joint use of the Mutsu facility would help lower hurdles facing Sugimoto in reaching a decision on the Mihama reactor, according to a source in the Fukui prefectural government.

Sugimoto is not expected to announce his decision until next year.

In 2016, the Nuclear Regulation Authority gave the nod to  operating the Mihama reactor beyond the legally set limit of 40 years after the facility passed rigorous safety screening procedures.

The only other reactor older than 40 years to be given such approval besides the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors at the Takahama plant is the No. 2 Tokai plant operated by Japan Atomic Power Co. in Ibaraki Prefecture.

The No. 3 reactor at the Mihama plant began operations in December 1976.

Five plant workers were killed and six injured during a steam explosion at the reactor in 2004.

(This article was written by Hideki Muroya and Tsunetaka Sato.)

December 20, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, safety | Leave a comment

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Read the Public Inquiry Report, the Commissioners’ report, Surrendering Australia: The AUKUS Deception is available to download for free at aukuspublicinquiry.com. Or just watch the replay of the National Press Club Luncheon.

19 November – Webinar – The Reality of Reprocessing

Time: 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada) / 2:00 PM Eastern / 7:00 PM UK / 8:00 PM CET

Register for the Zoom Event Here

​

Shut down the radiation-damaged Heysham nuclear reactors now

To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com

Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon

Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon

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