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In (muted) praise of USA

Christina Macpherson's websites & blogs

This website is so often showing the bad side of USA ‘s nuclear history and current affairs. And – it’s such a shame to see USA’s brilliant President Barack Obama kow towing to the nuclear lobby – even to the extent of not having the solar panels back on the White House.

BUT – I am reminded – by today’s news of THREE nuclear plant shut-downs in USA – that at least we get to hear of these incidents in the USA.

Do you think for a moment that Russia, China, France, even Britain – let the media know when there are incidents at nuclear installations?

Amidst the global nuclear lobby’s well funded hype about nuclear power’s “success’ – it’s a sobering thought that any negative economic news about nuclear just doesn’t get out, in most countries.

It might take a bit of hunting to find stuff, but at least USA has freedom of speech, freedom of the press. – Christina Macpherson

September 11, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology, reactors, renewables, solar | Leave a comment

Barack Obama too scared to allow even symbolic support for climate change action?

campaigners had hoped that the White House would embrace at least the symbolism of going solar – much like Michelle Obama kicked off her healthy food movement by planting a vegetable garden.

Barack Obama says ‘no’ to solar panels on the White House roof | Suzanne Goldenberg | 10 Sept 10 Campaigner Bill McKibben says solar panels would demonstrate presidential leadership on climate change. Continue reading →

September 11, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, climate change, global warming, nuclear, renewable energy, renewables, solar | Leave a comment

65% of Germans not happy with Merkel pandering to nuclear lobby

65 percent of respondents agree with the charge leveled by many in the German opposition that Merkel’s center-right coalition mainly took account of nuclear plant operators’ interests in drawing up its energy concept.

Poll: Germans oppose nuclear power extension – BusinessWeek, 10 sept 10, A majority of Germans oppose government plans to put off a shutdown of the country’s nuclear power plants by an average 12 years, according to a poll released Friday.The poll for ZDF television found that 61 percent opposed the plan announced earlier this week to undo a previous government’s decade-old decision to shut down all German nuclear plants by 2021. Continue reading →

September 11, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, politics | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

India refusing to be a stooge for USA nuclear salesmen

Coming in the backdrop of the recent judgment of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy and the events thereafter, Indian opposition parties, and in many cases, even the Indian intelligentsia, is putting pressure on the government to make sure that the country is not seen as a ‘U.S. stooge’ within or outside the country.

Civil Nuclear Bill – The slip is showing – International Business Times, 10 Sept 10, It was meant to be a quid-pro-quo in return for the Bush administration-led efforts to get India into the global nuclear league. In return, the U.S. expected India to return the favor by ensuring that the U.S. industry benefits the most from the country’s civil nuclear effort. However, the bill, as passed by the India parliament last fortnight is anything but satisfactory to the U.S. industry. Continue reading →

September 11, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Church groups, businessmen, youth, join German anti-nuclear movement

bolstered the current protests beyond the traditional activist base to reach different age groups, church bodies and small businesses specialized in renewable-energy technologies who see their livelihoods at risk.

“The protests are much broader now — they include a lot of young people who now know that nuclear power doesn’t create jobs, but eliminates jobs,”

Merkel Faces `New Dimension’ of Anti-Nuclear Protests, Green Leader Says, Bloomberg, By Patrick Donahue – Sep 10, 2010 German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces “massive” public protests this fall as demonstrators attempt to derail her plan to prolong the use of nuclear power, Continue reading →

September 11, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, opposition to nuclear | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

Leaked memo reveals German govt’s dirty nuclear deal

The memo, leaked Thursday, also promises that the new nuclear agreement will include provisions to make it hard for future anti-nuclear governments to reverse the decision to keep nuclear in the mix.

Opposition fuming over secret nuclear deal – UPI.com BERLIN, Sept. 10 The German opposition has reacted angrily over revelations that the government, as part of its decision to extend the life of nuclear power in Germany to the mid 2030s, struck a deal with the nuclear industry to shield it from unfavorable future political decisions. German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a previously unreleased memo assured the country’s four main utilities that government-imposed nuclear safety upgrades would be capped at $640 million per reactor. Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, secrets,lies and civil liberties | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology | Leave a comment

Angela Merkel denies secret nuclear deal – do we believe her?

Tens of thousands are expected to take part in a mass anti-nuclear rally in Berlin on Sept. 18……..

German govt spokesman rejects charges of secret pact* Merkel’s party loses support after nuclear extension By Erik KirschbaumBERLIN, Sept 10 (Reuters) – The German government denied on Friday charges that it had made a secretive deal to cap safety costs for utility firms as part of an agreement to extend the lifespans of nuclear power plants. Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology, reactors | Leave a comment

Over 250 Canadian towns say no to nuclear power

Ontario is backing off nuclear power generation of the Canadian-developed CANDU variety, ….. Quebec has a golden opportunity to follow that example.

No to nuclear power, towns say, By Jan Ravensbergen, Montreal Gazette September 10, 2010, MONTREAL – More than 250 Quebec municipalities and regional municipal governments have banded together to demand the province shut the door once and for all on nuclear energy Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, opposition to nuclear | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

New York nuclear reactor shut down due to water leak

NY’s Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant Shut For Repairs – WSJ.comBy Mark Long and Mark Peters Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES NEW YORK (Dow Jones)- 10 Sept 10, -Entergy Corp. (ETR) said Friday its Indian Point nuclear-power station in New York was completely offline after the second of two operating units was shut because of a non-radioactive water leak…Unit 3 was shut Thursday evening after the discovery of a leak of water used to cool the generator, which is housed in a building separate from the reactor….The shutdown of Unit 3, which had been running continuously for more than a year, comes just a week after Unit 2 was brought offline for the repair of a water-pump motor.

UPDATE: NY’s Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant Shut For Repairs – WSJ.com

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment

South Carolina nuclear reactor shut down for third time this year this year

SC nuclear plant shut down by turbine problem BusinessWeek, 10 Sept 10, HARTSVILLE, S.C.A control problem with a turbine at a nuclear power plant in South Carolina has shut the reactor down until the issue can be fixed. It’s the third shutdown this year.Raleigh, N.C.-based Progress Energy Inc. reported Thursday’s incident at the H.B. Robinson plant in Hartsville to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.Plant spokesman Andy Cole says the shutdown was triggered by a control problem with a turbine unrelated to the nuclear side of the plant. The reactor shuts down as a safety precaution during certain conditions at the plant.Earlier this year, two fires in Robinson’s electrical system led to a nearly four-month shutdown of the plant that included a planned refueling outage and some needed repairs. The reactor was restarted in mid-July….

SC nuclear plant shut down by turbine problem – BusinessWeek

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment

Louisiana nuclear reactor reduces power

Entergy La. River Bend reactor slips to 75 pct | Reuters, NEW YORK, Sept 10 – Entergy Corp’s (ETR.N) 978-megawatt RiverBend nuclear power unit in Louisiana was at 75 percent power early Friday,down from full power on Thursday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commissionsaid in its power reactor status report. It was not immediately known why the unit, in St. Francisville,Louisiana, had been reduced…..

Entergy La. River Bend reactor slips to 75 pct | Reuters

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment

Danger in blending Class A radioactive wastes with hotter classes

blended waste should be dealt with as part of a comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s low-level radioactive waste, with careful attention paid to public-safety issues…..Under Utah law, Energy- Solutions is banned from taking waste hotter than Class A.

NRC head urges caution on waste blending | The Salt Lake Tribune, By JUDY FAHYS Sep 10, 2010 Las Vegas • Blended radioactive waste won’t be coming to Utah anytime soon if the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission adopts its leader’s position. Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | technology, USA, wastes | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

France’s nuclear socialism – a nightmare, not a miracle

Unlike computers, solar panels, wind turbines and most other high tech projects, nuclear power plants and projects don’t go down in price over time. Instead, the costs escalate, and that’s a recipe for a disaster,

Time to End Nuclear Socialism, Says New Study, Greentech Media, 10 Sept 10, A nuclear plant will cost $7,000 to $10,000 per kilowatt, says Mark Cooper of the University of Vermont. That’s more than wind, solar, storage and other renewables—and the price tag will continue to climb. It shouldn’t be called the French Nuclear Miracle, says Mark Cooper. It’s more like a recurring nightmare. Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, politics | antinuclear, AREVA, EDF, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Russia’s secrecy over nuclear incident, as it promotes nuclear sales

Russia wants a big slice of the nuclear ‘renaissance ’. Talk of nuclear accidents at reactors with incompetent management and under-trained staff doesn’t look good to potential investors.

What happened at Russia’s Kursk nuclear power plant? | Greenpeace International, by jmckeati – September 9, 2010 , On July 22, it appears that one of the reactors at the plant may have come close a Chernobyl-style disaster……..official details from the authorities are few and sketchy. The story that is slowly leaking out however, via Bellona, is one of a highly dangerous mix of incompetence, arrogance, cover-up and propaganda. Continue reading →

September 10, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Russia, secrets,lies and civil liberties | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, radiation, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Merkel govt’s secret deals to benefit Germany’s nuclear lobby

the memo shows this will be a no-risk deal for the utilities, even if an anti-nuclear government comes to power and tries to roll back Merkel’s pro-nuclear policies….

the SPD would fight the “secret deal.”Government sources said the Merkel government also planned to change the law, making it almost impossible to sue a nuclear company to force it to upgrade its nuclear security standards.