nuclear-news

Today: My Trumpian dilemma.

Look – I don’t like Donald Trump. He’s an awful misogynistic, bullying, lying person. I could never vote for him. His supporters have been awful, too.

My dilemma is that the Biden administration is firmly in the grip of the military-industrial-media-corporate -complex. They want to keep this war going “to the last Ukrainian” as Charles Freeman put it.

They want to keep selling weapons to Ukraine, Europe, Australia – everybody – and surround Russia, China, – anyone, with bristling U.S. weaponry.

We all know what the Biden administration is up to. The advantage of maverick Trump is that we don’t know what that impetuous uninformed person might do. He might be a safer bet?

It is a real worry that the criticism, scepticism, opposition to USA-NATO’s war in Ukraine seems to be coming mainly from the Trumpian right-wing.

In the media mess, real seekers after truth are few and far between, and rarely heard.

April 19, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 1 Comment

Another anxious week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news – What went right this week: hope for the climate, plus more positive news.     Nature has priority’: Rewilding map showcases nature-led restoration .  Once Rocked by Nuclear Disaster, Fukushima Is Now a Renewables Hub.   Solar Panels That Make Electricity at Night are Finally Here – And They’re Cheap and Don’t Need Batteries. 

CORONAVIRUS.  Global COVID-19 cases pass grave milestone as highly contagious BA.2 subvariant surges around the world.

CLIMATE.  Pole to Pole with Paul Beckwith – I highly recommend this Radio Ecoshock  interview with this top climate communicator 

NUCLEAR. What can I say ?   Are we on the brink of nuclear war? Can we have any confidence in our leaders to make sensible decisions?    It is exhausting to rummage through the media spin in the search for accurate information.

Caitlin Johnstone sheds a critical gaze on media reporting on Ukraine, and asks why Julian Assange is criminalised for revealing military atrocities.        Glenn Greenwald: The Censorship Campaign Against Western Criticism of NATO’s Ukraine Policy Is Extreme.      How Much Are We Prepared To Sacrifice To Help The US Win A Propaganda War Against Putin?

NATO gloats over second, bloodier phase of Ukraine war

NATO’s military buildup on eastern flank to lengthen, broaden war — Anti-bellum

The US-Australia-UK pact seems determined to pursue great power competition at the risk of real conflict.

UKRAINE. Russian soldiers received ‘shocking amount’ of nuclear exposure at Chernobyl site – some may have less than a year to live. Carelessness of Russian soldiers around Chernobyl – shows danger of nuclear sites in wartime. Kyiv Independent news is anything but independent. It’s a mouthpiece for NATO-USA-Azov-nazi propaganda and unverified atrocity stories. Ukrainian blogger gets 15 years gaol for saying that Zelensky govt takes orders from other governments. Zelensky gives his vision of peace deal with Russia.

Zelensky adviser: Ukraine war can last till 2035, best option is for Russia to be broken

 NATO’s shift to Asia-Pacific: Biden trip to Japan designed to rally Asia against Russia, China

USA. 

•  Nonstop Corporate News on Ukraine Is Fueling Support for Unchecked US Militarism. Rep. Ilhan Omar: Accountability for Russia Means Abandoning US ‘Hypocrisy‘. Biden’s genocide comment raised concern . After Undermining International Criminal Court, US Now Wants It to Charge Russians,   Dissent is dying in America – the backlash is vitriolic.  Resilience: NATO offers grants to spy on, stifle dissent.     
• Extremely rare brain cancer appearing in people who attended a New Jersey school, close to former nuclear weapons fuel plant. 
•   NuScale: Not new, not needed — Beyond Nuclear International .     Oregon regulators have doubts about Natrium nuclear schedule for Kemmerer.
•  The average American tax-payer gave $900 to military contractors last year.
• Hanford report reveals problem with nuclear waste solution.    San Onofre’s not the only nuclear worry – there are “nuclear materials events” — lost or stolen radioactive material, radiation overexposures, leaks, and more.   What should America do with its nuclear waste?        Scientist fired after raising questions about safety at nuclear waste plant.
•   U.S. Jews Favor Return to Iran Deal. 

CANADA. A call for World-class Cleanup at Chalk River Laboratories. Canada’s Federal Budget Funding for New Nuclear Reactors a ‘Climate Throwaway’ .

MIDDLE EAST. For the Middle East, the introduction of nuclear reactors poses dangers at every turn. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybdwXo14sQI

JAPAN.  Japan severely breaches obligations under international law by persisting in discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into ocean .      Japanese groups voice growing opposition, organize rallies over govt’s nuclear-contaminated water dumping plan decided one year before.    Japan’s planned release of radioactive wastewater draws concern- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2RB7yw9ceE   Protests in various locations demanding withdrawal of ocean discharge of treated water from TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.    Fukushima Thyroid Examination October 2021: 221 Surgically Confirmed as Thyroid Cancer Among 266 Cytology Suspected Cases

UK.

• UK to get ‘‘special weapons”storage sites for USA nuclear weapons, – making a pre-emptive strike easier.
• Nuclear power stations UK: the new and existing sites at threat of flooding from 2030 amid rising sea levels.  
• Dr Richard Dixon: Scottish and UK governments are on a collision course over nuclear energy and oil.
• Touring exhibition celebrates 40 years on Wales county councils Nuclear Free Zones . Sizewell nuclear project: planning process drags on: thousands of objectors, yet tax-payer funding already promised!
• Planning advises rejected Wylfa as unsuitable for nuclear development. No wonder Boris Johnson wants to ”cut red tape”.
• UK’s energy strategy ”cowardly and incoherent” – solar and onshore wind are the practical options.  Nuclear energy a useless distraction for UK – Green Party MP Caroline Lucas. Johnson’s ‘nuclear fantasy’ will not reduce rising fuel bills or rising temperatures- UK’s Nuclear Free Local Authorities.
• No community in the UK has agreed to host a nuclear waste facility.
• Nuclear Free Local Authorities deplore UK govt’s super-costly new nuclear energy strategy, and its rejection of energy conservation measures. Reclaim the Word “Clean” from the Nuclear Industry. Anti- Bradwell B campaigners slam Government’s boost for nuclear – ”never likely to see the light of day!”
• Rolls Royce shares dive as JP Morgan warns that small nuclear reactors will not be profitable.
• No country in the world has worked out what to do with its old dead, radioactive, nuclear submarines. No room at the dump: Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) fears Johnson’s nuclear ambitions will lead to need for second unwanted underground facility.

EUROPE. Able Archer: The NATO exercise that almost went nuclear. Nuclear and gas in EU taxonomy slammed as ‘greenwashing’. NATO’s incorporation of Finland, Sweden could pose nuclear threat to Europe — Anti-bellum. Europe aiming to stop importing gas, oil, coal from Russia, – but uranium for the nuclear industry – well, that’s OK.

RUSSIA. Fears sunken Russian warship Moskva was carrying nuclear weapons. Russia’s ‘broken arrow’: Fears that NUCLEAR MISSILES sank with Putin’s flagship Moskva.

NORTH KOREA. North Korea tests new weapon bolstering nuclear capability

FINLAND. Finland to buy as many as 2,000 drones, boost military ahead of joining NATO. Not all trade with Russia is stopped – Finland’s still getting nuclear power project built by Russia.

FRANCE. France working out how to save debt-laden nuclear company EDF. French presidential election – Macron and LePen have differing pro-nuclear policies – but in both cases, very costly.

CHINA. China’s view –  After disrupting Europe, NATO aims to destabilize Asia, whole world: Chinese Foreign Ministry Chinese, Vietnamese FMs vow not to allow Ukraine-type tragedy in region

DENMARK. Denmark prepares nuclear emergency plan.

SOUTH AFRICA.. South African Anti-nuclear activist taking Energy Minister to court for firing him.

SPAIN. Spain outraged as massive US nuclear-powered submarine arrives in Gibraltar.

AUSTRALIA.  Pine Gap’s role in China–US arms race makes Australia a target.     Nuclear risks, the war in Ukraine, and Australia’s significant contribution to these dangers. 

April 18, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Today: the nuclear lobby’s most charming new lie – ”energy independence”

I’ve often pointed out the prevailing lies about nuclear power. The big one is, of course:

No 1 ”Nuclear power has nothing to do with nuclear weapons”‘

Then – in order of current popularity:

• nuclear power is essential to stop climate change
• is clean, green
• cheap
• renewablw
• safe
• necessary for medicine
• its toxic waste problem is solved
• provides 1000s of clean gooid jobs
• necessary for space research

There are probably more lies, but right now, I am fascinated with this fashionable new lie – that nuclear power is necessary for energy independence, national sovereignty – blah blah.

What an obvious outright lie! Perhaps the world will actually notice this one!

Sunshine, wind, tides – these forms of energy are truly national – going straight to the local technology. Nuclear is certainly not – starting from the need to import uranium, – going eventually to the likely need to dump te toxic waste onsome other poor sucker nation.

April 18, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Global heating – the cure for the nuclear industry disease?

It’s very odd that the nuclear industry is pitching itself as the cure for climate change, when in fact, it’s the other way around.

I hardly know where to start!

But let’s begin with sea level rise. Current research forecasts dire consequences for Britain’s nuclear reactors, within a few years, as global heating brings up sea levels. That’s sea surges, very big waves, estuary flooding….

Then , paradoxically, there’s water shortages, as nuclear facilkities need heaps of cooling water – and that goes not just for reactors, but for dealing with uranium tailings, stopping tgem blowing away. Uranium mining takes heaps of water

There’s the dangers of wildfires, seen already in Russia – to reactors, and nuclear waste dumps.

There’s heat waves – requiring nuclear reactors to shut down – France is especially vulnerable, with mabny shutdowns already for this reason.

Extreme weather of all kinds poses threats – of damage, of loss of electricity to nuclear safety technology.

An awful lot of nuclear facilities are vulnerable to climate change – the sooner they are shut down, the better!

April 15, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Ain’t it great? New U.S. nuclear warheads to be stored in UK – keeping the war fervour going, making pre-emptive strike possible.

It’s so exciting! This Ukraine war could go on for months, years. And without a single Western casualty! (The Ukrainians don’t count). Those British bunkers were being wasted. Now they’re going to house American nuclear warheads,

That’ll help show the Russians that we mean business!

No more sissy diplomacy, or arms control agreements. The Biden administration’s 2023 defence budget request adds Britain to the list of European countries to store ”special weapons” (they mean B61 nuclear bombs) British chests can swell with pride, (never mind that the nuclear weapons stores could be targets, too)

And, most exciting of all, the U.S, review leaves open the option of using nuclear arms to respond to non-nuclear threats as well.

April 14, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

Today: Should the responsibility for nuclear pollution stop at a nation’s border?

I was prompted to think about this question, as I read this morning about Denmark deciding to buy two million iodine tablets to protect people in the event of a nuclear accident in a nearby country.

I mean – Denmark doesn’t have any nuclear reactors.

Denmark has neighbouring countries that do have nuclear reactors, Sweden and Germany. And there are nuclear-powerd ships travelling in Danish waters.

Ukraine has nuclear reactors over 900 km from Denmark. And we’re all rather worried about them. A nuclear catastrophe there would pollute a large swathe of Europe, – as we already learned, with the nuclear accident in Chernobyl in 1986.

So – Denmark’s government worries about Ukraine, and maybe should be worried about a number of nuclear-reactor countries, much closer ones.

In the nuclear csatastrophe world – that we are all desperately hoping to avoid – ”national sovereignty ‘ suddenly doesn’t seem to mean much.

April 12, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Nuclear news – week to 12 April

 Some bits of good news .     Why the latest UN climate report is positive news .    New research shows planting trees and shrubs brings woodland birds back to farms, from superb fairy wrens to spotted pardalotes .    Climate change: greener lifestyles linked to greater happiness – in both rich and poor countries.  Annual bird count in UK gardens raises hopes for greenfinch .

Pandemic. It’s not as if the coronavirus has gone away – new sub-variants etc…

Climate. It’s not as if global heating has gone away.

Nuclear. While the Ukraine warseems to consume nearly all the news, there is a swamping of UK nuclear news at present. The mainstream media can be depended on for its usual regurgitation of handouts from the nuclear lobby, masquerading as news. All the same, there’s a surprising flow of information, even from conservative sources, warning that Boris Johnson”s nuclear energy dream looks like turning into a nightmare  –  useless against climate change, increasing the toxic waste problem, of dubious safety. and – shock horror – unaffordable.

The choices: fight to the last Ukrainian, or choose Macron’s dialogue path.    In the midst of war in Ukraine, U.S. and NATO must de-escalate.       Questions Abound About Bucha Massacre.

Pundits Who Advocate Hot War With Russia Are Enemies Of Humanity.  World leaders must look to peaceful solutions, not more weapons. Who speaks for the world? — IPPNW peace and health blogl      Ukraine is ground zero for the expansion of the U.S.-Russia proxy war, (and the war industry is jubilant).   Nuclear missiles, bombs market to surge 73% by 2030, report says, industry worried that international treaties ”might hamper growth”.     ‘Most Dangerous Point in Human History’ Looming, Warns Noam Chomsky.

NATO is punishing China               U.S., NATO push Asia-Pacific bloc against Russia, China, with Ukraine as pretext.
Shortening the kill chain: nuclear-capable U.S. B-52s integrate with NATO Eastern flank states

Protecting the environment to reduce the risk of another pandemic

IPCC ‘s dire warning on climate change is being ignored, amid war and economic turmoil. IPCC new report coming, on limiting global heating. World on ‘fast track to climate disaster’, says UN secretary general – video
 We can still avert climate catastrophe – but there is barely time.

Almost everyone now breathing polluted air, warns WHO

ANTARCTICA. New research links Antarctic ice loss to greenhouse gas emissions,

UKRAINE. Ending Ukraine’s suffering. The decision to negotiate this is up to Ukraine, not the USA.      Ukraine planning to resume control of Chernobyl nuclear site, as Russians withdraw.

Ukraine: Russian troops took Radioactive ‘souvenirs’ from Chernobyl, says agency Russian soldiers in Chernobyl ‘picked up radioactive material with barehands’ and contaminated inside of plant.  Over 70 Russian soldiers suffering from radiation exposure at Chernobyl nuclear site.

Greenpeace maps Ukraine’s nuclear power risks. Zaporizhzhia is a wake-up call demonstrating the vulnerability of nuclear plants to deliberate acts of war.     Why Ukraine’s Nuclear Waste Is A Major Threat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r88prlEbtmg&t=33s

Weapons, weapons and more weapons: Ukrainian FM welcomed at NATO headquarters

JAPAN. Japan to match Germany’s NATO military spending level, develop first external strike ability since WWII .  In Japan, no return to nuclear power any time soon, despite loud voices wanting this,

ITALY. ]NATO military involvement in Ukraine will lead to world war: Italian FM

UK.

• Boris goes all out for UK nuclear. UK government’s energy strategy relying on massive nuclear expansion will fail credibility test. UK government got its energy strategy so wrong. In the UK’s energy plan, the nation has been sold a dud. UK’s new energy strategy will accelerate the development of nuclear power generation . despite Treasury opposition.
• Incompetence of Britain’s leaders, on energy policy. Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has hit back at the UK Government’s plans for new nuclear power plants. UK Government should ‘impose’ energy projects on devolved nations says Conservative editor. British government launches a new government body – Great British Nuclear. Britain’s ‘‘underwhelming” energy plan – ‘Great British Nuclear, with no policies on saving energy, nor energy efficiency,
• Expensive nuclear power push ignores chance to cut costs of UK’s electricity system. Nuclear costs will swamp UK Labour’s green energy plans.
• Does EDF really need even more subsidies for Sizewell C nuclear project?
• Elon Musk joins the frenzy for small nuclear reactors in Wales, despite local opposition to nuclear development. Nuclear industry is giving high-risk small modular reactors the hard sell.
• People Against Wylfa B (PAWB) to protest against plan for nuclear reactor on Anglesey island.
• The Windscale nuclear accident 1957, and still not cleaned up. – a warning from history. Cracks found in Torness nuclear power station.
• Expert warning that UK’s nuclear plans mean that there won’t be room for all the new radioactive wastes.   UK government incoherent and inconsistent on energy crisis, and has no solution to the accumulating nuclear wastes. Radioactive Waste Incineration including Intermediate Level Nuclear Wastes 3.9 miles from Preston City Centre?
• Nuclear Free Local Authorities back international challenge to UK nuclear weapons policies in UN Human Rights Council
• Nuclear safety incidents in UK, as inspection numbers fall.
• ” Renewable Energy Foundation (REF)” strongly linked to anti-wind power lobby.

RUSSIA. Would Putin use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine? Kremlin condemns Polish comments on readiness to host nuclear weapons. Rosatom, Russia’s nuclear corporation, exports nuclear fuel to Finland and others – has not been sanctioned by USA and Europe.

MARSHALL ISLANDS. The U.S. Must Take Responsibility for Nuclear Fallout in the Marshall Islands.

USA. 

•  Is the USA , while not directly involved in the war, giving direct instructions to Ukrainian forces?  
  U.S. provides Ukraine thousands of missiles, drones; intelligence for war in Donbass    
•  U. S. House swears loyalty to NATO as bulwark against Russia, China, domestic “proponents of illiberalism”
•   U.S. government high on the narcotic of ”Defense” spending – the war corporations love it !. 
•   US Officials Admit They’re Literally Just Lying To The Public About Russia.     The US Bubble of Pretend- our complacent acceptance of preposterous propaganda about Ukraine.      
•  A $50 billion (bottomless?) pit?  Four public interest groups demand review of production of nuclear weapons ”pits”
• Negligence uncovered at Diablo Canyon Nuclear Station. 
•  What to do with closed Massachusetts nuclear plant’s wastewater?.
• U.S. nuclear electricity generation continues to decline as more reactors retire.
•  Workers evacuated from area of USA’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant nuclear waste repository after ‘abnormal event‘ .

EUROPE. The European Commission Platform on Sustainable Finance concludes that nuclear and gas power are not green.

 “Line between peace and war blurring”: NATO’s new warfighting agenda aims at military superiority for next 20 years/

FRANCE. Emmanuel Macron Gets Nuclear Energy All Wrong. In France, the nuclear waste keeps piling up: new reactors will add to the dilemma. Macron under Putin’s thumb as Russia could CRIPPLE France’s nuclear industry, as it controls uranium supply.

INDIA. India’s Inadvertent Missile Launch Underscores the Risk of Accidental Nuclear Warfare.

CHINA. China Is Accelerating Its Nuclear Buildup Over Rising Fears of U.S. Conflict. Nuclear bunkers are not what they used to be, with earth-penetrating weapons on the rise.

FINLAND. Nuclear waste management: Is Finland’s Onkalo facility safe?

POLAND Poland: Ruling party chief invites nuclear weapons, more U.S. troops

IRAN. Iran blames US for halt to nuclear talks. Iran MPs Set Conditions for Reviving 2015 Nuclear Deal amid Stalled Talks.Iran wants U.S. to show goodwill by lifting some sanctions prior to nuclear deal

SINGAPORE. Singapore’s nuclear power development is far away, relying on unproven reactor designs

GERMANY Chancellor Olaf Scholz reiterated Germany’s determination to close down all nuclear power stations

NORTH KOREA. The forgotten nuclear threat of North Korea.

PORTUGAL. European Commission takes Portugal to Court to guarantee citizens’ protection from ionising radiation-exposure

SOUTH KOREA. SouthKorea’s president-elect wants U.S. nuclear bombers, submarines to return,

ARGENTINA. Argentina wants China to fully fund $8.3 bln nuclear plant.

UZBEKISTAN. Uzbekistan: Nuclear deal with Russia still on the table despite sanctions. Ukraine War Has Upset Uzbekistan’s Nuclear Plans.

SWITZERLAND. Switzerland plans to bury spent nuclear fuel deep underground in clay.  

AUSTRALIA. FAST TRACK TO ARMAGEDDON — Declassified Australia. AUKUS hypersonic announcement will ‘escalate global tensions’, warns CND

April 11, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Today. Are we CERTAIN that these atrocities in Ukraine were done by Russian soldiers?

30 March, Russian troops leave Bucha. 31st March. Bucha Mayor Anatolii Fedoruk announces that all Russian trroops have gone from Bucha. ”A glorious day” – no mention of bodies littering the streets. New York Times was there, reported only ”dead soldiers and burned vehicles, according to witnesses, Ukrainian officials, satellite images and military analysts.”

2nd April The US and EU-funded Gorshenin Institute online [Ukrainian language] site Left Bank announced that:

‘Special forces have begun a clearing operation in the city of Bucha in the Kyiv region, which has been liberated by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The city is being cleared from saboteurs and accomplices of Russian forces.’

Why did reports of slaughter of civilians appeared only 4 days after the Ukrainians retook the town

The AZOV battalian, known to be made up of Nazis, performed the clearing of ”saboteurs and accompliices”.

Ukraine has such a tortured history of ethnic hatreds – from Tsarist times, Napoleonic invasion, Stalinist repression, Nazi invasion……… no surprise that cruel retaliations continue.

But what is needed is indpendent investigation – not Russophobic knee-jerk propaganda.

April 7, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 1 Comment

Today. Silver lining? War is SO good for shareholders in the nuclear weapons industry

It is SO good . Banks, superannuation funds, savvy financial advisors – why, the’re all putting YOUR money to good use – investing in weapons of all kinds, but especially nuclear!

In the (possibly very ) short run, ya just can’t go wrong. The government payments (using YOUR tax money) are a sure thing for all of them, whether naughty Eastern state-owned corporations, or virtuous Western corporations. What a steady, secure investment !

In the long run, it’s only the kids that mightn’t do so well out of it. But anyway, they don’t matter, do they?

April 4, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Another worrying week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news:Photos show increasing numbers of rare one-horned rhinos in Indian national parkBritain’s butterflies bolstered by conservation efforts.     Indigenous rangers program doubles with $636 million boost .   Back from the brink: Tiny bush carnivore gets a new lease on life.       Ancient rock art site returned to Aboriginal owners — and they’re keen to share it, on their own terms. 

On the nuclear and military scene –   what a mess !  Yes, the Russian invasion is illegal and wrong. And yes, atrocities are being committed, and the Ukrainian people are suffering terribly.  But, I hope that people are becoming aware of the very carefully managed anglophone media coverage, which is emphasising human emotional stories, while not really covering the progress of the war, nor the USA resistance to peace talks..  No other invasion, such as those in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, has been media-manipulated in this way.

Meanwhile – inexplicably, Western governments are pushing for new nuclear reactors at the very time when Ukraine is demonstrating how terribly dangerous they are!

Julian Assange’s family tirelessly advocate for his freedom.

The information war that precedes and complements kinetic war — Anti-bellum .     Ukraine: Transfer of Power Balance from West to East.

. Chernobyl: radiation sickness in soldiers, theft of radioactive materials, wildfires – a frightening case of the multiple dangers of nuclear power. Ukraine Negotiations: No Fly Zone, Nukes, Neutrality, and Disarmament. Chris Hedges On Ukraine, Russia & NATO Urgent need to bring about new arms control agreements. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I6ZkPi6NSI

Depicting Putin as ‘Madman’ Eliminates Need for Diplomacy.      What is the current nuclear arms pact between Russia and the US?           The Red Scare, Viewpoint by Alice Slater.          Frenzy for selling bunkers, but they might not be much use, really.     How would a nuclear winter impact food production?

 Coastal communities across the world already feeling the impacts of climate change.    Climate crisis worsened by population and economic growth.  Nuclear on the ”frontline of climate change” – and not in a good way!

War in Ukraine has produced a new energy crisis. Energy efficiency is the fastest way to address this..

ANTARCTICA. Scientists caught off guard by massive ice shelf collapse in ‘coldest, driest’ part of Antarctica Hotter Antarctic summers posing increasing threat to stability of world’s largest ice sheet.

UKRAINE. Media coverage of the nuclear dangers in Ukraine often poorly informed and downplayed due to the influence of the pro nuclear lobby.       Ukraine, Poland discuss NATO “peacekeeping” force in Ukraine — Anti-bellum.    Russian troops pull out out of Chernobyl after suffering ”acute radiation sickness”.     Wide reporting on Russian soldiers affected by radiation, leaving Chernobyl.     Anxieties at Varash nuclear power station, and other ones in Ukraine – ”town smells of fear.”.

 Nuclear catastrophe threatened, as fires sweep through forests towards Chernobyl site.   7 wildfires in Chernobyl Exclusion zone exceed Ukraine’s emergency classification tenfold.        Head of IAEA to visit Chernobyl, as Russians withdraw from the site. Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense warns on radioactivity danger from the Chernobyl Excusion Zone.    UN nuclear watchdog chief in Ukraine for safety talks. U.S. ambassador incites Georgians to confront Russia — Anti-bellum.

Zelensky: Russia will be driven out of Caucasus, Transnistria, Crimea, all post-Soviet space — Anti-bellum

JAPAN. Construction projects surge at Fukushima nuclear plant despite decommissioning progress.

UK. 

•  Why UK Labour’s green policies are fatally undermined by its ‘nuclear first’ stance. New nuclear reactors will pose a bigger, hotter, more long-lasting waste problem. Getting bigger but not safer or cheaper – the myth of Rolls Royce and its very big non-modular reactor. UK government’s nuclear dream likely to fade away, as private investors resist that risky call. UK Business Secretary Kwarteng boasts about new nuclear plants, but admits that local consent will be needed.    Boris Johnson’s fixation on nuclear power is not justified by the facts, as Britain’s electricity demand continues to fall. UK’s energy security strategy delayed, as Cabinet split on nuclear power, and the Regulated Asset Base plan to pay for it. 
•  Hinkley Point C nuclear project faces more delays, increased costs. And more Hinkley delays. UK’s Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer srongly resisting Boris Johnson’s push for costly nuclear power. Boris Johnson beholden to the nuclear industry. That’s going to cost UK bigtime – Chancellor Sunak not happy. 
•  To wean UK off Russian gas – the key is energy efficiency + wind projects – not nuclear power, says new research.
• Spending £4bn on a new nuclear station at Sizewell will not solve the government’s energy problems. Stop Sizewell C campaigners query the government’s planning judgment , especially on costs. Sizewell new nuclear will not solve the government’s energy problems, but will punish the poorest. 
•   BAE shipyard – home to nuclear submarine construction ‘set to flood’ due to impact of climate change. Nuclear Free Local Authorities highlight the threat to Britain’s nuclear reactors, of rising sea levels and coastal erosion. Low-lying Dungeness threatened by climate change – sea level rise. 
•  Plaid Cymru Party in Wales sticking firmly to their anti-nuclear position.

USA. 

•   THE MADNESS OF THE RESURGENT US COLD WAR ON RUSSIA. Biden’s Reckless Words Underscore the Dangers of the U.S.’s Use of Ukraine As a Proxy War.    Caitlin Johnstone: The Target is China. Nearly half of Americans concerned about nuclear war amid Russia-Ukraine invasion. 
•  Progressive Lawmakers in US and Japan Demand No-First-Use Policy on Nukes. 
•  Pentagon: NATO executes military deployments to Russian border with unmatched speed. USA cancels ICBM missile test due to Russia nuclear tensions. 
•  Those yearning for regime change in Russia rarely consider what might come next. 
•  How corporate media has put the American public in a state of Ukraine-Russia psychosis.
• Nuland leads first U.S.-EU High-Level Dialogue on Russia meeting. Belarus, China also targeted. New Maidans planned. — Anti-bellum.
•   Biden administration shuts down Trump-era nuclear cruise missile program. Annual military spending approaching $1 trillion and U.S. still feels insecure.   Washington Should Think Twice Before Launching a New Cold War. Caitlin Johnstone: Re-Visiting Russiagate in Light of Ukraine War.        
• Air Force transforming away from ”unnecessary” aircraft towards more nuclear weapons. Space Force Gets Roughly 40% Increase in Biden Request. 
• Two sailors reportedly injured in accident on docked nuclear submarine. 

• Promoting nuclear risks to reduce greenhouse emissions is the classic jump from the frying pan into the fire! 
•  43rd anniversary of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident. 
•   NuScale’s small modular nuclear reactor – ”too late, too expensive, too risky and too uncertain” –  Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Nuclear is not the key to energy independence.

EUROPE. European Union lawmakers move to reject inclusion of nuclear energy as ‘green‘. NATO . concludes 30-nation strike force exercise in Norway — Anti-bellum . Growing resistance to EU proposal to label gas and nuclear as ”sustainable” energy .

FRANCE. Greenpeace activists storm French nuclear plant. Macron rubbing hands with glee as UK energy crisis means EDF poised for ‘£30bn payday‘. France pays the steep cost of inflexible and ageing nuclear as electricity prices soar.

NORWAY. Norway: NATO continues largest drills since Cold War off Russia’s coast — Anti-bellum

AFRICA. African nations condemn Ukraine’s recruiting mercenaries for “international legion” — Anti-bellum

GEORGIA. U.S. ambassador incites Georgians to confront Russia — Anti-bellum

ISRAEL. EU advisers urge full NATO membership for Israel — Anti-bellum

SWITZERLAND. . Scrutiny on Switzerland’s nuclear power industry- it gets uranium from Russia. Switzerland’s nuclear-war-readiness – bunkers for all.

CHINA. China call USA the ”Leading Instigator” of the Russia/Ukraine conflict.

NORTH KOREA. North Korea says Seoul ‘crazy’ to talk of preemptive strike on ‘nuclear power’ .

PORTUGAL. Portugal to speed up switch to renewable power in wake of Ukraine war .

AUSTRALIA. Australia’s Parliament has little control over military matters, and Prime Ministers kow tow to USA and the White Anglosphere to go to war.  Weapons corporations infiltrate our schools and charities, promoting war-mongering to our youth.    NATO Enhanced Opportunities Partner Australia to deliver armored vehicles to Ukraine — Anti-bellum.

April 4, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Today. Alien observers astonished that earthings now promoting nuclear power as catastrophe threatens Ukraine’s nuclear reactors

Christina Macpherson, 2 Apr 22, The International Atomic Energy Agency and the nuclear lobby (they’re the same thing) are having a bit of a nervous breakdown.

On the one hand, they’re flat out pushing their subservient and apparently rather thick Big Power governments to press on as fast as possible with fleets of all sorts of nuclear reactors – which are ”clean” ”green” ”cheap” and above all ”SAFE”

On the other hand – the chief of IAEA is hot-footing it over to Ukraine, to check on whether there might be a few problems with the wrecked old Chernobyl nuclear reactor, and all the other reactors, in view of a few shootings, shellings, missiles, and in view of Russian soldiers reported as sick with radiation, and in view of wildfires out of control in the Chernobyl exclusion zone.

April 2, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Nuclear news – week to 28 March

Some bits of good news. Some welcome news, in UK  Government support for energy saving.  Some Good News About Corals and Climate Change   The UK’s first hospital-owned solar farm shows how renewables could be a way out of reliance on fossil fuels.. The Good News About Renewable Energy.

I’ve read so much on the Ukraine crisis. For an overview of that situation, Charles Freeman, former USA diplomat, is the best source. His interview is long. ”USA fighting Russia to the last Ukrainian’‘. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vxufUeqnuc I think I’m the only one to transcribe it. (that took me hours!). But I recommend that you persist with it. It is worth 100 other commentaries on Ukraine.

Ukraine war shows nuclear deterrence doesn’t work; we need disarmament — IPPNW peace and health blog. Dalai Lama, Other Nobel Winners Demand Explicit Vow Not to Use Nuclear Weapons in Ukraine. U.S. Peace Council Statement on Russia’s Military Intervention in Ukraine.

Zelensky ready to negotiate with Russia over NATO and Donbas sovereignty, but Biden won’t budge. More Evidence That The US Is Trying To Prolong This War– Caitlin Johnstone lays it bare.

We have a new energy crisis, and EFFICIENCY is the largest, cheapest, safest, cleanest and fastest way to address it.

Official cover-up by 7 governments of the cancer deaths of nuclear test veterans.

Western countries importing Russian uranium and nuclear supplies – WITH NO SANCTIONS.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to discuss climate mitigation efforts, including technology to remove CO2 from the atmosphere.

Climate change at the Poles.    Temperatures hit ‘unthinkable’ highs at both of Earth’s poles on the weekend.   Climate scientists are trying to find out why.   Record-smashing heatwaves are hitting Antarctica and the Arctic simultaneously.  Here’s what’s driving them, and how they’ll impact wildlife.   Wildfires caused by global warming ‘are accelerating global warming’.    In 20 years of studying how ecosystems absorb carbon, here’s why we’re worried about a tipping point of collapse.    Fridays for Future school climate strikes resume across the world

Bitcoin miners want to recast themselves as eco-friendly

ANTARCTICA. Climate scientists alarmed at unprecedented heat at both the Antarctic and the Arctic. Record-smashing heatwaves are hitting Antarctica and the Arctic simultaneously. Here’s what’s driving them, and how they’ll impact wildlife. Antarctic heat – a horrifying reminder of the future with global heating. Gigantic Antarctic ice shelf collapses into the sea.

ARCTIC. Very low Arctic sea ice.

UKRAINE. 

Forest fires erupt around Chernobyl nuclear plant. Chernobyl radiation monitors ‘not working‘. Chernobyl nuclear worker gives the inside story on the dire situation for the staff as Russians took over. 

Ukraine war – the Nazi factor. What is the risk of a nuclear accident in Ukraine?  Deal on Ukrainian nuclear safety to come ‘soon,’ says IAEA chief. Bellona explains Ukraine’s nuclear stations.  International Atomic Energy Agency’s grave concern over safety of Ukraine’s nuclear reactors. IAEA concerned that Russia is shelling Ukrainian checkpoints in the city of Slavutych, near Chernobyl. The work of Ukraine-based European Institute of Chernobyl. So far, Zaporizhzhya’s nuclear reactors are being managed safely under Russian control . Warning on effect of Russian force’s attack on nuclear research facility.

HUNGARY. NATO troops deployed to Hungary despite government’s reservations — Anti-bellum

USA. 

• No chance of a fair trial for Julian Assange in America. Caitlin Johnstone – yes, it’s a proxy war. 
• Re-Visiting Russiagate In Light Of The Ukraine War.
•  Biden keeping up the big spend on nuclear weapons. 
• Dozens Of Men Got Sick During A Secret Training Exercise At A Nuclear Site In 1991. They’re Still Fighting For Answers. 
• Nuclear Information and Resource Servic calls upon the Biden administration to sanction the Russian nuclear industry .
• Nuclear energy development not possible in USA, unless it is tax-payer funded? 
• Multi $billion plutonium cores project – unsafe, unnecessary, and ill-conceived. USA’s production for plutonium ”pits”will fall short of the goal. 
• Nuclear lobby touting small nuclear reactors to Alaska. 
• With threats of nuclear war and climate disaster growing, America’s ‘bunker fantasy’ is woefully inadequate.
• Nearly 60% of USA is in prolonged drought. 
• Editorial: Washington conducts international Inquisition over Ukraine — Anti-bellum
• World’s richest men enthuse over new nuclear power, despite its poor progress .

CANADA. Ottawa’s Nuclear Funding Delays Climate Action, Ignores Indigenous Objections, Opponents Warn. Saskatchewn ponders new small nuclear reactors, but opposition unsure about safety and environmental impacts.

JAPAN. Nagasaki survivor calls for joint resistance to nuclear threat amid Russian invasion.

RUSSIA. Kremlin says Russia could use nuclear weapons, if its existence were threatened. Russia holds back on full assaults on Ukraine, and Zelensky prepared to negotiate on NATO and Donbas/Crimea.

FRANCE. France’s nuclear energy output continues to slump.

UK. 

• As UK government touted ”media freedom”, Julian Assange in high security Belmarsh Prison was an embarassment. 
• Big ‘doomsday plane’ for the Big Nobs, in the event of nuclear war, arrives in Britain. 
• London. Anti-nuclear campaigners have won a victory for free expression. 
• Boris Johnson determined to show ‘leadership’ on nuclear power. Boris Johnson’s enthusiasm for UK nuclear power should raise huge red flags for Scotland.  UK Tories split over nuclear power. Sceptism over Boris Johnson’s plan for ”Britain carpeted in mini-nukes. UK’s Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng considering launching State-owned nuclear company.   Boris Johnson’s splashy style still avoids the costs, lack of financial commitments for nuclear power development.   Boris Johnson in the grip of the nuclear lobby.   Evangelical fervour for new nuclear power in UK’s Tory government.   Boris Johnson ‘gung ho’ for new nuclear power, but Chancellor Rishi Sunak applying the brakes.     Boris Johnson all for nuclear power – but there are tensions with the Treasury about this.  Some Brits not very impressed with their government’s newbound love affair with nuclear power.
• UK’s Green Party calls for big effort on energy efficiency and renewables – nuclear is an ”expensive distraction”. Greens firm on Scotland’s opposition to nuclear power. Greenpeace scathing about Boris Johnson’s plan for nuclear power.
• British public in the dark about what ”Modular” nuclear reactors really means (hint -they’re like Lego pieces) . 
• Energy efficiency and renewables – faster, safer, than nuclear power, to move away from Russian fuel, and combat climate change.   The energy crisis is now, new nuclear will be (at least) twenty years too late – UK’s Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA).  UK does NOT need more nuclear power. Electricity demand has fallen.
• Campaigners against Sizewell C nuclear project concerned that UK govt plans to stop local opposition to it. Boris Johnson government to put limits on local community opposition to nuclear power.   
• Water supply problems for planned £20billion twin reactor on the Suffolk coast . 
• People Against Wylfa-B (PAWB) calls for sanctions on UK importing enriched uranium from Russia.  
• Catholic bishops assert their opposition to nuclear weapons.  Residents react after huge military convoy spotted travelling through Preston. 
• Campaigners lose legal challenge to stop Hinkley Point C mud being dumped in the sea. 
•  Over 1000 tonnes of steel drums full of nuclear waste dumped at Drigg, Cumbria.

IRELAND. NATO grooming yet another new member: Ireland — Anti-bellum

IRAN. Iran’s foreign minister says nuclear deal closer ‘than ever’. Iran blames US for delays in reaching nuclear deal.

INDIA. Opinion: U.S. pressure on India over Ukraine doomed to fail — Anti-bellum

EUROPE. Europeans stocking up on anti-radiation pills. No surety that Europe will favour nuclear power, following Ukraine crisis,

CHINA. Chinese analysts: U.S. hopes to bleed Russia, collapse it like USSR — Anti-bellum

AUSTRIA. Renewable energy: Austria, a leader of anti-nuclear advocacy in Europe.

RUSSIA. Russia about to announce an export ban on uranium.

SERBIA. Serbia won’t be dragged into broader European war: president — Anti-bellum      Brutal, horrible, criminal, inhuman attack on a small country: Serbs commemorate victims of NATO’s war — Anti-bellum

NORTH KOREA. North Korea preparing for its first nuclear test in 5 years.

PHILIPPINES. Greenpeace: Nuclear power is not the solution to Philippines’ energy woes.

CZECH REPUBLIC. World’s biggest bunker where billionaires could survive in luxury for 10 years.

AUSTRALIA. Australian Radioactive Waste Agency – a couple of English nuclear waste officials conning the Australian public? Wilful ignorance . Blaming war and deadly floods on climate change activists .

March 28, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

The week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news:     Giant Floating Solar Panel Flowers Replace Coal in Korea. 

Most significant environmental deal since Paris’: UN agrees on landmark plastic pollution treaty.        Solar Panels Built From Waste Crops Can Make Energy Without Direct Light. The ‘charismatic’ Mexican tequila  fish has been saved from extinction

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I know that it’s all about Ukraine.  BUT – is anybody noticing? – the global climate is weird-  it’s getting hot at the Poles. In the total scheme of things – that process is going to matter more to the world, even than the Ukraine horror.

Meanwhile, inexplicably, governments are pushing futuristic not-yet -existing gee-whiz nuclear reactors to solve this climate problem, which is already upon us!       A space alien, observing us, might have a laugh at that.   And also laugh that, just as the Ukraine war is demonstrating the awful danger to nuclear reactors there, politicians are touting nuclear as the safest energy source.!

Oh, and by the way, – the pandemic is still happening.

Extradition of Julian Assange. REMEMBER – he’s an Australian citizen, not an American! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jv5GDnApfqc

A “no-fly zone” does not becalm the skies. Veterans warn against no-fly zone in Ukraine: Examine Western propaganda critically.       Putin’s ‘Peaceful Atom’ Apocalypse Draws Closer by the Minute. How Much Less Newsworthy Are Civilians in Other Conflicts?

Chris Hedges: Waltzing to Armageddon .

HELEN CALDICOTT: Russia’s war could spell worldwide nuclear disaster. International Committee of the Red Cross calls for States to join UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The $multibillion question. Will UKraine have to pay for all those foreign weapons?

“Russian Invasion of Ukraine Spotlights the Dangers of Nuclear Reactors in War,”

Why New Technology Is Making Nuclear Arms Control Harder.

Fears of nuclear war in Europe stoke demand for fancy bunkers.

  What the nuclear industry and its supporters have to say about the economic viability of nuclear power.

ANTARCTICA. Record minimum amount of Antarctic sea ice. Temperatures in eastern Antarctica are 70 degrees warmer than usual.    

 ARCTIC. Exceptional warmth at North Pole    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nJczShXwaU

  UKRAINE. Zelensky Says He’s ‘Cooled’ on Joining NATO, Ready for Talks With Russia on Crimea, Donbas. Shrouded in doubt: safety issues at Russian-occupied nuclear stations in Ukraine. Electric Power Restored to Ukraine’s Chernobyl Plant.   Safety fears, as Chernobyl nuclear staff tired and stressed.    Danger of radioactive disaster at Chernobyl and other nuclear sites, with exhausted staff, and risk of loss of remote control.       Understanding the war in Ukraine.    What next for Ukraine’s nuclear sites and Wylfa and Trawsfynydd?
Zelensky Announces Ban on 11 Political Parties-, although no evidence linking any to Russian government.

EUROPE. European countries make an exception for uranium from Russia – no sanctions on importing that! EU seeks to boost stockpile of iodine pills and nuclear protective gear.

JAPAN. Japan’s new awareness of nuclear dangers – nuclear reactors as targets in war-time.     11 years on, Fukushima morass still poses danger.    Ukraine war triggers debate on Japan’s nuclear option.  Radioactive iodine levels in primary cooling water at the Ikata Nuclear Power Plant Unit 3 increase threefold.      Massive 7.3 earthquake hits Japan near site of Fukushima nuclear disaster.   Renewed worries about restarting nuclear plants, after 7-3 earthquake near Fukushima. 

  Hope, hard reality mix in Fukushima town wrecked by nuclear disaster .  Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, risk of earthquakes revealed... Failure of seismometers, building deterioration, tanks shifting….      Ruling pressures Japan to set proper damages for Fukushima nuclear disaster.     Contaminated soil piles up in vast Fukushima cleanup project.

USA

• Russia’s Ukraine invasion may have been preventable, The US made a huge mistake?  Peace Talks in Ukraine “Will Get Nowhere” If US Keeps Refusing to Join, Message to Biden: Help De-Escalation in Ukraine or Risk Nuclear War. ‘Let them kill as many as possible‘ The Roots of US Militarism in Russia and Around the World. 
• 5 USA States selected for target areas for the enemy, in a nuclear war.
•  Potassium iodide tablets SELL OUT in US .   
• US Republican senators say they will not back Iran nuclear deal.
• Another burst of tax-payer funding for Bill Gate’s gee-whiz Natrium reactor project. 
•  The Ukraine war is bad for USA’s nuclear industry– hard to get the Highly Enriched Uranium needed from Russia for Advanced Nuclear Reactors. 
•  Fate of Radioactive Waste at Plymouth Nuclear Site Continues to Raise Concerns. 
• U.S. loses plane, crew in NATO exercise in Arctic .
•  Dangerous wildfires in Texas.

CANADA. Canada’s green bond program specifically prohibits investments in nuclear energy . Indigenous, scientific, environmental and citizen groups strongly oppose Ottawa’s push for small nuclear reactors. . Fossil and nuclear energy regimes threaten global security, Small modular nuclear reactors – no good for Canada’s indigenous communities, no good for climate action.

UK. 

•   Silence in the media and Labour “left” on Assange’s extradition danger. 
• Push for UK govt to call nuclear power ”green”, so that nuclear industry can get money from the Green Financing Framework. UK’s Nuclear All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) condemned for calling on govt to reclassify nuclear energy as ‘green’. 
•   Rolls Royce wants to hurry up the introduction of small nuclear reactors, but UK govt is focussed on a big one for Wylfa. UK government now considering extending life of Sizewell nuclear power station by 20 years.
• Radiation Free Lakeland protests against plan for a Near Surface Nuclear Waste Dump.

GERMANY. The return of the nuclear threat

CHINA. China continues to resist U.S. demand to join “global web to strangle Russia” — Anti-bellum Global  

PHILIPPINES. US to help Philippines develop nuclear power program; groups push renewable energy instead

INDIA. India will not join any move by NATO against Russia.

RUSSIA. Putin set to hold nuclear evacuation drill; moved family to Siberia.

AUSTRALIA.  South Australian Unions stand with Traditional Owners in rejecting nuclear waste dump.

  Report to U.S. Congress on AUKUS agreement, allows Australia access to Highly Enriched Uranium and Plutonium.    Australia’s ‘Historic’ Submarine Pact Enters 1st Phase; Will Become Only The 2nd Country With US Nuclear Propulsion Tech. What does a ‘once-in-100-year’ weather event actually mean?

March 21, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

The $multibillion question. Will Ukraine have to pay for all those foreign weapons?

This is one of those questions that only an ignorant peasant like me dare ask. All the experts seem to be ignoring it (perhaps to the joy of oligarchs in Ukraine and foreign countries too?)

I undestand that, even before this war, Ukraine had foreign debt resulting in some 12 $billion in annual interest costs.

Let’s suppose that Ukraine wins this war, or emerges from it as an independent State. A poverty-stricken State, beholden to other counntries.

Will the U.S. and other corporations forgive the debt? Will pigs fly?

March 17, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment