Nuke waste dumping: Are Somalia’s pirates reacting to international abuses?
Are Somalia’s pirates reacting to international abuses? Somali UK 21 April 09 “…………………………The coast remains an easy dumping ground for toxic and nuclear waste.
“It’s a real problem,” said Roger Middleton, a Somalia expert and researcher for the London-based think tank, Chatham House.
“There are very shady goings-on, mostly involving the Mafia.”
The force of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami pulled up dozens of toxic-waste containers, leaving a lethal trail along the Somali coast.
A UN report found as a result many residents suffered “acute respiratory infections, heavy coughing, bleeding gums and mouth, abdominal haemorrhages, unusual skin rashes, and even death.”
Two years later, a team of specialists discovered nine toxic waste sites along 700 km of coastline in southern Somalia.
“Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there,” Nick Nuttall of the UN’s Environment Program told the television channel Al-Jazeera, echoing similar findings from other reports.
“And the waste is many different kinds. There is uranium radioactive waste. There is lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes – you name it.”
The waste came from European companies, which paid shady intermediaries as little as $2.50 a tonne to dispose of it, compared with about $1,000 a tonne in Europe…………
………. http://www.somaliuk.com/Indepth1/Fullarticle.php?IndepthID=483
Pirates, Bankers, Libertarians
Getting a Grip Pirates, Bankers, Libertarians ARTVOICE by Michael I. Niman 16 April 09 – “………………..Somalia, a country that hasn’t had an operating central government since 1991, is a libertarian Republican’s wet dream, where entrepreneurs can grow their businesses unfettered by laws and regulations. Out of this brave new old world of unbridled capitalism, 21st-century Blackbeards have emerged, shoeless gangstas doing it Somali style on the high seas,…………………….There’s a reason why the Maersk Alabama was the first American ship seized by pirates in two centuries. Ninety percent of internationally traded goods are transported on approximately 50,000 freighters and tankers, but putting aside domestic and Great Lakes shipping, only about 200 of these ships are registered to the United States and staffed by Americans. Today’s ships are registered under “flags of convenience,” exempting their multinational corporate owners from taxes and environmental and labor regulation……………
………………..When Somalia’s government fell in 1991, making Somalia a free-market free-for-all, it opened the door for all sorts of exploitation on the lawless coast……………………..a new type of European pirate followed in their wake—this time using the Somali coast as a toxic and radioactive waste dump. The Independent quotes the United Nations envoy to Somalia as reporting not only that “Somebody is dumping nuclear waste here,” but “there is also lead, and heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury” showing up in Somalia’s coastal waters. In 2005, more than 300 coastal residents died from radiation sickness after leaking barrels of radioactive waste started washing ashore. Much of the toxic waste found on the Somali coast is traceable to European hospitals and industrial facilities.
Toxic waste, including nuclear, behind Somali piracy
Toxic waste behind Somali piracy
Axis of Logic By Najad Abdullahi
Al Jazeera
Monday, Apr 13, 2009 Somali pirates have accused European firms of dumping toxic waste off the Somali coast and are demanding an $8m ransom for the return of a Ukranian ship they captured, saying the money will go towards cleaning up the waste.
The ransom demand is a means of “reacting to the toxic waste that has been continually dumped on the shores of our country for nearly 20 years”, Januna Ali Jama, a spokesman for the pirates, based in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, said.
“The Somali coastline has been destroyed, and we believe this money is nothing compared to the devastation that we have seen on the seas.”
The pirates are holding the MV Faina, a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks and military hardware, off Somalia’s northern coast………………
………….Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN envoy for Somalia confirmed to Al Jazeera the world body has “reliable information” that European and Asian companies are dumping toxic waste, including nuclear waste, off the Somali coastline……………
………Mustafa Tolba, the former UNEP executive director, told Al Jazeera that he discovered the firms were set up as fictitious companies by larger industrial firms to dispose of hazardous waste.
“At the time, it felt like we were dealing with the Mafia, or some sort of organised crime group, possibly working with these industrial firms,” he said. “It was very shady, and quite underground, and I would agree with Ould-Abdallah’s claims that it is still going on… Unfortunately the war has not allowed environmental groups to investigate this fully.”
The Italian mafia controls an estimated 30 per cent of Italy’s waste disposal companies, including those that deal with toxic waste……………
………………Mohammed Gure, chairman of the Somalia Concern Group, said that the social and environmental consequences will be felt for decades.
“The Somali coastline used to sustain hundreds of thousands of people, as a source of food and livelihoods. Now much of it is almost destroyed, primarily at the hands of these so-called ministers that have sold their nation to fill their own pockets.”
Ould-Abdallah said piracy will not prevent waste dumping. “The intentions of these pirates are not concerned with protecting their environment,” he said. “What is ultimately needed is a functioning, effective government that will get its act together and take control of its affairs.”
Pentagon contracted ship struck by pirates
MEDIA CHANNEL By AlterNet.10 April 09 The Somali pirates who took control of the 17,000-ton “Maersk Alabama” cargo-ship in the early hours of Wednesday morning probably were unaware that the ship they were boarding belonged to a U.S. Department of Defense contractor with “top security clearance,” which does a half-billion dollars in annual business with the Pentagon, primarily the Navy……….
…………..The U.S. military says the Alabama was not operating on a DoD contract at the time and was said to be delivering food aid………………
……….Often, the reporting on pirates centers around the gangsterism of the pirates and the seemingly huge ransoms they demand…………
…………But this type of coverage of the pirates is similar to the false narrative about “tribalism” being the cause of all of Africa’s problems………..hardly the whole “pirate” story………………..
…………. Nuclear dumping has polluted the environment. “In 1991, the government of Somalia collapsed,” wrote Johann Hari in The Independent. “Its nine million people have been teetering on starvation ever since — and the ugliest forces in the Western world have seen this as a great opportunity to steal the country’s food supply and dump our nuclear waste in their seas.”
According to Hari:
As soon as the [Somali] government was gone, mysterious European ships started appearing off the coast of Somalia, dumping vast barrels into the ocean. The coastal population began to sicken. At first they suffered strange rashes, nausea and malformed babies. Then, after the 2005 tsunami, hundreds of the dumped and leaking barrels washed up on shore. People began to suffer from radiation sickness, and more than 300 died.
This is the context in which the “pirates” have emerged.
Puntland: The Shame on Somali Identity
Puntland: The Shame on Somali Identity Somaliland Press Hargeisa, 9 April 2009 ( – The history of the illegitimate semi-autonomous administration of “Puntland” is shame on Somalia, because of its connection to many illegal operations like agreements with Mafia to dump toxic nuclear wastes in the Somali water, and today’s piracy.Recently the Office of UN General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon issued report accusing “Puntland” administration for sponsoring piracy.
In Dec 2008, the “Puntland” pirates hijacked ship loaded with toxic chemicals – the wastes of nuclear – from European firms. The powder-like chemicals were sealed off in containers, but the ignorant pirates forced the crew to open. The crew requested the codes and opened the containers. Today, all members of the pirates are either dead or suffering serious skin problems in “Puntland” hospitals.
…………………………….. Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN envoy for Somalia confirmed to Al Jazeera English that European and Asian companies are dumping toxic waste, including nuclear waste, off the Somali coastline. These firms signed contracts with Puntland administration, and warlords in Southern Somalia…………….“What is most alarming here is that nuclear waste is being dumped. Radioactive uranium waste that is potentially killing Somalis and completely destroying the ocean.”
Press freedom body slams Niger media ‘harassment’
Press freedom body slams Niger media ‘harassment’ NIAMEY (AFP) 4 April 09 — A press freedom organisation Friday condemned the government of the west African state of Niger for “harassing” Dounia, an independent broadcasting group.”The Dounia group is the victim of repeated harassment by the judicial authorities,” Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders) said in a statement………………………..
The statement follows the arrest of Abibou Garba, director of the Dounia radio and television station, on charges of “disseminating false news” following a discussion of a recent visit to Niger by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
“We urge the authorities to withdraw the charges against Garba,” RSF said.
Garba and Idi Abdou, a political activist in the Alternative Citizen Space organisation, were charged after a televised discussion on the Dounia channel about the mining of uranium in Niger by the French group Areva.
NIGER: Desert residents pay high price for lucrative uranium mining | Economy Environment Health & Nutrition Conflict Water & Sanitation | Feature
NIGER: Desert residents pay high price for lucrative uranium mining IRIN 1 April 09 DAKAR, – After a visit in late March from French President Nicholas Sarkozy to Niger, residents in the uranium-exporting desert country continue questioning whether AREVA, a company primarily owned by the French government, will honour its promise to protect communities from mining hazards.
Studies and residents’ testimonies have pointed to health and environmental dangers from mining operations owned and operated by both AREVA’s subsidiaries and the Niger government…………………… The AREVA majority-owned mine called COMINAK (Mining Company of Akouta) commissioned an environmental study of its operations in Arlit in 2006, which reported that the number of deaths linked to respiratory infections was twice as high in the mining town (16 percent) as in the rest of the country.
Arlit’s population is 110,000.
“The wind carries dust contaminated with the long-lasting radium [time required for it to lose toxicity is more than 1,600 years] and lead…Samples taken from 5km within site…Sandstorms [and] atmospheric waste from mines could be aggravating factors for pulmonary [illnesses] in the region,” the researchers wrote in COMINAK’s environmental study. ………………. Radioactive waste – possibly used in road construction – may be responsible for the abnormally high levels of radiation, according to CRIIRAD. In 2007 CRIIRAD researchers wrote that radiation levels were up to 100 times above average in front of the AREVA-funded hospital near the COMINAK mine…………………… But environmental studies carried out by CRIIRAD and Sherpa in 2005 in mining communities showed water radiation levels up to 110 times higher than World Health Organization (WHO) safe drinking water standards in industrial areas
France 24 | Sarkozy backs Areva’s uranium deal in Niger | France 24
Sarkozy backs Areva’s uranium deal in Niger
FRANCE 24.com 27 March 2009
Sarkozy is expected to back a controversial deal signed in January between French nuclear giant Areva and Niger’s government that would lead to the exploitation of the Imouraren mining site in northern Niger, the world’s second biggest uranium deposit……………………………
France takes great pride in a civilian nuclear program that it says is the key to its energy independency. But the reality is more complex, says Yves Marignac, director of the World Information Forum on Energy.
“One hundred percent of uranium in France comes from abroad,” he says. “A large part comes from Niger. With this contract, its share could increase.” The visit comes a day after Areva chief executive Anne Lauvergeon signed an agreement for mining research and exploration with the Congolese government, on the sidelines of Sarkozy’s visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Niger has one big asset compared with rival uranium exporters Australia and Canada, Martignac adds. “It is the only country that has a uranium contract that doesn’t prevent France from using the ore for something else than a civilian nuclear program.”…………………………….
But the deal has come under scrutiny in France. Environmentalists have warned Areva against the temptation to enforce poor safety and environmental standards in the mostly desert region.
There are also mounting allegations that the Niger government expelled nomadic Tuareg tribes to make way for the French operation. Tuareg rebels have threatened to attack the uranium mine and transport as they did once in 2007.
It is a tense situation that contributes to blurring the line between trade relations and neo-colonialism.
“A vice-director of Areva has been quoted saying that the nuclear company has urged the French government to help Niger’s government stamp out the rebellion,” Martignac says.
France 24 | Sarkozy backs Areva’s uranium deal in Niger | France 24
Radiation emergency at nuclear reactor near Pretoria
Digital Journal By Adriana Stuijt. 17 March 09 A leak of radiation gases occurred at the Pelindaba nuclear reactors near Pretoria at 10am on Monday, the SA Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) said. “Abnormal levels of gamma radiation associated with xenon and krypton gases were detected.”
These high levels of radiation were detected near the building in which radioisotopes are produced for medical applications,” Necsa said, according to their statement on the South African Press Association website.They didn’t say how these xenon and krypton gases could have escaped. However they did decide to declare an on-site emergency, causing the evacuation of the entire nuclear site by staffers until the radiation levels ‘returned to normal’ readings. The residents of the city of Pretoria were not informed about the radiation leaks until this press statement was issued – after the emergency was all over.
Deep concern
This caused deep worry with Mike Kantey, national chairman for The Coalition Against Nuclear Energy in South Africa, who has expressed ‘deep concern” about Monday’s emergency. Pelindaba ‘s security measures have recently also been breached by armed attack gangs.
………………………….. No civil society for independent verification:
He added that iodine was responsible for illnesses that followed the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in the Ukraine in 1986. Kantey said it was also a matter of concern that the NNR did not have a civil society representative on its board.
“This is an occasion when we need such a person,” he said, adding that the post had been vacant since June 2008. The NNR could not be reached for comment.
The killing uranium fields of Topnaar Nama
The killing uranium fields of Topnaar Nama2009-03-12 15:20:00 Commodity Online (Courtesy: Unrepresented Nations and People’s Organisation- UNPO, PRLog)
NAMIBIA: Topnaar Nama people in Namibia are going through tough times even as the government is giving exploration licences to international companies. The Topnaar people now fear for their lives and existence. Uranium mining poses a considerable threat to general health, and lifestyle because of effects on underground and surface water resources………………………Whilst tragic results of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki are well documented, the environmental and health problems that are a consequence of uranium exploration are less well known by the general global public.
During the development of the atomic bomb, thousands of mines were built in the Southwest of the United States and Northern Canada. The radioactive waste, known as tailings, that builds up in huge piles of rocks and slush outside the mines continues to threaten the wellbeing of local populations and contaminates the environment.
…………………Uranium can cause a wide variety of health problems. Miners and local communities drink contaminated water, eat contaminated food and breathe in radon gas and dust from the tailings. In addition to this, the extraction and processing of uranium ore uses huge amounts of highly sought-after water that cannot be recycled…………………………The problems associated with uranium mining are set to continue with its rising price as demand from nuclear power plant companies increases. Africa is especially at risk because companies are attracted by the lack of strict regulations.One community that is particularly at risk from uranium extraction is the Topnaar Nama, one of fourteen groups of Nama people. These groups traditionally lived in the southern parts of the Namib, which today is part of Namibia and adjacent to South Africa. This nomadic group breed their own livestock such as goats and cows, which, along with !Nara fruits make-up their main food staples. They now live their traditional way of life in the area of the Kuiseb River and canyon, south of Walvisbay and Svakopmund.
There are currently two mines operating in the Topnaar territory with the Namibian Government recently issuing more uranium exploration licenses to various international companies.
The lack of water, and other environmental issues related to uranium mining have other impacts on the Topnaar. ………………….It has been reported that workers of the Roessing mine, amongst them Topnaar people, are becoming ill and are dying. One Topnaar reported that his friend, a miner, had died a few weeks ago because of what the doctor referred to as ‘old mans illness’. He was only 60, and those within the Topnaar villages that have never worked in the mines live beyond 80 without any ‘old mans illness.’It is clear from the issuing of uranium exploration licenses that the Namibian Government is less than supportive towards the Topnaar peoples’ situation. This is despite the fact that the Namibian constitution states that traditional chiefs (captains or kings) of different tribes be included in parliament.
The killing uranium fields of Topnaar Nama | 12 March 2009 | www.commodityonline.com
‘Risky’ nuke ship passes Cape: South Africa: News: News24
‘Risky’ nuke ship passes Cape NEWS 24 07/03/2009 16:12 – (SA) Johannesburg – A massive shipment of plutonium mixed oxide (MOX) is meant to travel via the Cape of Good Hope on Saturday, Greenpeace Africa said in a statement.
“MOX shipments are simply not worth the risk, they are a major terror target and pose an enormous threat to the environment of all countries en route,” said Rianne Teule, nuclear campaigner for Greenpeace International in a statement on Saturday.
The ships, Pacific Pintail and the Pacific Heron, were heavily armed and protected by specially trained British forces, the statement read.
They are to enter South African waters as they make their way from France to Japan.
Poses riskhe shipment left Chebourg port with about 1.8 tonnes of MOX fuel – enough to make 225 nuclear weapons – and will travel via the Cape of Good Hope.
“This MOX transport poses immediate contamination and security risks, and is yet another example of the dangers of nuclear energy… not only is the shipment unnecessary and insecure, there is no evidence that the containers carrying the fuel are safe from accidents,” Teule said.
MOX fuel is an alternative nuclear fuel made up of a mixture of uranium and plutonium.
“This shipment is a reminder to the South African government that the health and environment risks associated with nuclear power are real, and that taking the nuclear route in power generation is not the solution to reducing climate change emissions.
“Nuclear power will provide too little, too late to address climate change and it is a dangerous distraction, sucking billions of rands in funding, away from the real solutions which could already be implemented today,” said Brad Smith, programme director for Greenpeace Africa.
In a bid to stop this shipment, Greenpeace Africa has sent a warning letter to several African environmental ministers including South Africa’s environmental affairs and tourism Minister, Marthinus Van Schalkwyk, urging them to take immediate action against the two ships.
– SAPA
The Pebble Bed Modular Nuclear Reactor – a black hole for public funds
No Amount of Redesign Will Save the PBMR
Earthlife Africa Tristen Taylor
18th of Feb. 2009
With the PBMR Company seeking to redesign the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor
(PBMR) to focus more on heat applications, it is imperative to note that
disadvantages of continuing with the PBMR remain.
The Pebble Bed Modular Reactor has become a black hole for public funds. The
costs involved in the PBMR saga are illustrative of the financial risks
inherent in nuclear power in general.
In 1999, the PMBR (165MW capacity) construction costs were budgeted at R2
billion. By 2005, these construction costs had risen by a factor of seven,
to R14 billion without a single PBMR being constructed. These costs do not
include the decommissioning costs, which will be considerable.
Based upon the 2008 Environmental Impact Assessment for the PBMR
Demonstration Reactor and the decommissioning costs for of the predecessor
to the PBMR-the German AVR-the costs to decommission a single PBMR range
from R1.5 billion to R70 billion. It is nearly impossible, due to the
lifespan of the reactor and the variable rates of contamination, to be more
exact than this. Hence, the decommissioning costs of the PBMR are uncertain
and could incur a heavy burden on future generations, absorbing funds for
vital social programmes.
An additional expense will be the waste storage costs, which are impossible
to calculate due to the long-term nature of storing waste; for example,
uranium-235 has a half-life of 704 million years, plutonium-239 a half-life
of 24,110 years, and caesium a half-life of 30.2 years. These kinds of
timeframes defy economic planning, and, given our pressing social needs,
should not be entertained.
The costs for the PBMR are not efficient in terms of power generation. For
example, Eskom is seeking finance of R5 billion to build a concentrated
solar plant (100MW) in the Northern Cape; R14 billion for 165MW or R5
billion for 100MW capacity, economic sense favours the solar plant. This
also excludes the costs associated with the security apparatus necessary for
the PMBR.
Nuclear materials and equipment need to be protected and highly regulated,
due to the threat of contamination and theft. The consequences of
radioactive material in the hands on malicious organisations could have
profoundly negative consequences and has to be avoided at all costs. While
currently unquantifiable at this stage, these security costs will be passed
onto the state and are unique to nuclear power. Other forms of energy
generation (including heat generation) do not require these increased
security costs.
No matter how much the PBMR Company and the Department of Minerals and
Energy seek to spin the matter, the PBMR has been a waste of vital public
funds and will continue to be so until abandoned.
The Times – Tenants evicted for nuclear plants
Tenants evicted for nuclear plants The Times.co.za Bobby Jordan Feb 01, 2009Eskom is evicting tenants from pristine coastal land earmarked for nuclear power stations — despite the official postponement of the country’s nuclear expansion programme.
But some tenants and landowners are refusing to budge, claiming the right to stay on until government decides when, where or even if any new nuclear reactors will be built.
Eskom announced its decision in December to postpone the commercial bid procurement process for the construction of two new conventional nuclear power stations on the coast, citing economic constraints as the reason. But it said this week that, despite the delay, it wanted all tenants off its property,
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