Reference « nuclear-news

USA’s MOX plutonium nuclear fuel plant a costly, dangerous, flop

“The government would be crazy to consider building another MOX plant. MOX cannot be recycled.”….

No scientist in the United States is studying how to safely store MOX fuel.

The Bomb Plant: A MOX White Elephant?, DC Bureau By Joseph Trento, on October 20th, 2011 The National Nuclear Security Administration may have a $10 billion taxpayer-financed white elephant on its hands based on Britain’s experience with a similar plant that has been shuttered after a decade of failed operations. Continue reading →

October 23, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | - plutonium, Reference, reprocessing | 2 Comments

Nuclear power as cure for climate change- the big con

The Big Con Is Nuclear Power Really a Trump Card Against Global Warming?, CounterPunch, by TAKASHI HIROSE OCTOBER 19, 2011 In recent years there seemed to be a nuclear power renaissance. One reason for this has been the adoption by its promoters of the theme of global warming, and their claim that nuclear power is clean energy because it does not produce carbon emissions. But is nuclear power in fact the clean-energy solution its promoters claim? Continue reading →

October 23, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | climate change, Japan, Reference | Leave a comment

Through Google Earth, researcher tracks India’s nuclear program

Researcher Uses Google Earth to Track India’s Nuclear Program, PC World, By John Ribeiro, IDG News Oct 13, 2011 The Institute for Science and International Security in Washington has used imagery from Google Earth to arrive at the conclusion that India may be constructing a gas centrifuge plant for uranium enrichment for military purposes, reinforcing Indian fears that Google Earth can be misused to compromise national security. Continue reading →

October 15, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Reference, technology, Uranium, weapons and war | Leave a comment

China’s underground nuclear network

US worries over China’s underground nuclear network, Google News, AFP – 15 Oct 11, WASHINGTON — A leading US lawmaker who fears budget cuts could delay modernizing the US nuclear arsenal voiced concern Friday about an extensive tunnel complex designed to house Chinese nuclear missiles. “This network of tunnels could be in excess of 5,000 kilometers (3,110 miles), and is used to transport nuclear weapons and forces,” said Michael Turner, who chairs a House Armed Services Committee panel focusing on strategic weapons and other security programs.

“As we strive to make our nuclear forces more transparent, China is building this underground tunnel system to make its nuclear forces even more opaque,” he added, citing an unclassified Department of Defense report. Experts also expressed their concern about the network, whose existence was revealed by official Chinese media in late 2009.

The tunnels would allow China to launch a nuclear counter-attack if it was hit by a nuclear strike. “It’s almost mind-boggling,” said Mark Schneider, senior analyst at the National Institute for Public Policy. “It has enormous implications in terms of their view toward nuclear warfare, survivability of their systems and their leadership in the event of war.

“It is virtually impossible to target anything like that, irrespective of how many nuclear weapons you have,” he added.Richard Fisher of the International Assessment and Strategy Center said the tunnel complex could allow the Chinese army to conceal its weapons. “Do we really know how many missiles the Chinese have today?” he asked…. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iHO_kCCLQm86s29jw45FIx6EkdLQ?docId=CNG.19cbae00c31007ab44469985e8a939e2.6a1

October 15, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | China, Reference, weapons and war | Leave a comment

At last, France reveals, and questions, the safety of its nuclear industry

institutions are showing greater boldness in convicting nuclear operators guilty of negligence or issuing reprimands and demanding immediate corrective measures from giants like EDF or Areva..

With accusing fingers increasingly pointing towards the nuclear industry, a hesitant debate is beginning to open up in France. Socialist leader Segolene Royal who was defeated by Nicolas Sarkozy in France’s last presidential poll but hopes once again to be her party’s candidate, said she would close down the EPR under construction at Flamanville and completely abandon the EPR technology being pushed by Areva.

Post-Fukushima, France breaks silence on nuclear safety, The Hindu VAIJUNARAVANE, 11 Oct 11 “…….Doubts have been raised about the benefits of the EPR reactor, of which India plans to buy six. For a country as given to debate and argument as France, there has been a deafening silence surrounding the choice of nuclear as the prime source of energy. With a population of 62 million, France boasts 59 nuclear reactors — the highest per capita in the world, with over 75 per cent of its electricity coming from the power of the atom.

In the post-Fukushima period, however, that tacit silence is being broken with increasing frequency not just by anti-nuclear associations or candidates hoping to win elections but by French courts and the Nuclear Safety Authority. Continue reading →

October 11, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, Reference, safety | Leave a comment

Delays, defects, and “social dumping” in France’s Flamanville nuclear reactor

Post-Fukushima, France breaks silence on nuclear safety The Hindu VAIJU NARAVANE, 11 Oct 11“…….Construction of the Flamanville EPR reactor which began in 2007 is experiencing significant delays with a large number of accidents including two fatalities. The EPR reactor, of which India plans to buy six, will now not be completed before 2016 at the earliest and its price tag has climbed to an estimated €7 billion per reactor of 1,650MWe capacity. Not a single EPR is as yet operational.

Of the four currently under construction, (one each in France and Finland, two in China) the Finnish reactor (construction began in August1985) is now slated to go on stream in 2013 but costs have risen from €3 billion to over €7 billion and the Finnish utility TVO is locked in costly arbitration (€2.7 billion) with Areva….. Continue reading →

October 11, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, Reference, safety | Leave a comment

Real radioactive cleanup from Fukushima area is a long way off

With challenges such as the designation of temporary radioactive waste dumps and interim storage facilities yet unsolved, the road to true decontamination remains a long one.

True radiation decontamination still a long way away, Mainichi Daily News,. Japan October 7, 2011 Though the government last month lifted the “emergency evacuation preparation zone” designation of some areas greatly affected by the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant, radiation decontamination efforts are still taking place in areas with high levels of radiation.

The three main decontamination methods that have been highly publicized through media reports are: the stripping away of surface soil from school playgrounds and athletic fields, the removal of mud accumulated in gutters, and the washing of roofs using high-pressure water cleaners. While the first method is considered effective, the remaining two have been found to be effective only to a certain point, and some especially warn against overestimating the effects of high-pressure water cleaners. Continue reading →

October 10, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, Japan, Reference | Leave a comment

Concern over India’s Kalpakkam nuclear reprocessing facility

Indian peace activists have expressed suspicions that the plutonium separated at Indian civilian reprocessing facilities will be diverted and used to increase the country’s stock of atomic weapons.

Technological preparations towards the building of a full-scale fast breeder reactor at Kalpakkam are reportedly in an advanced stage.

Anti-Nuclear Struggle Has Large Fallout, International News Magazine, 05 October 2011 Peter Custers “……..The Kalpakkam complex does not just harbour a nuclear power plant, but also a reprocessing facility- a plant where nuclear fuel rods, after they have outlived their use in reactors, are chemically treated so as to extract raw materials for re-use as energy source.

The method of reprocessing nuclear fuel rods has always been defended as an appropriate method to dispose of dangerous nuclear waste, as a method of ‘recycling’. Yet nuclear reprocessing results in new waste, and that is the most damaging industrial waste in the entire nuclear production chain. It has to be stored and put aside in nuclear waste tanks for an indefinite period of time.

Storage of such high-level waste in tanks has resulted in catastrophic accidents, Continue reading →

October 6, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, Reference, reprocessing, safety | Leave a comment

Problems of Finland’s Olkiluoto nuclear plant and waste storage plans

the companies are planning to make Onkalo only large enough for waste from their own potential seven reactors

the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) has identified safety concerns at operating Finnish power plants as part of stress tests conducted after last spring’s Fukushima crisis in Japan. These include the lack of backup cooling systems that are independent of electrical supply at the Olkiluoto1 and 2 reactors.

a honeycomb of storage sites extending over an area of several square kilometres will weaken the bedrock, making it vulnerable to earthquakes,

includes VIDEO TVO: No room for Fennovoima waste in nuclear cave, YLE FI 4 oct 11, Onkalo on Finland’s west coast will be the world’s first permanent nuclear waste repository. The project director of the Olkiluoto 3 nuclear power plant, TVO Senior Vice President Jouni Silvennoinen, insists there is no space for waste from utilities other than TVO or Fortum in the Onkalo underground disposal site on Finland’s west coast. Continue reading →