antinuclear « nuclear-news

Far from being deterrence, nuclear weapons are a lethal liability

The George W. Bush administration was the first to admit nuclear deterrence would not work against terrorists, now perceived to be the greatest threat to Americans…The key is to see nuclear disarmament as a security-building process, moving from an outdated adversarial mindset to a co-operative one where nuclear weapons are recognized as a lethal liability….

Nuclear Deterrence Scam Blocking Progress to a Safer World, THE HUFFINGTON POST, Robert Green, 7 June 2010, “……………The nuclear weapon states’ blocking of any serious moves towards honoring their obligation in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to get rid of their nuclear arsenals is driven by their uncritical acceptance of nuclear deterrence. Yet my carefully considered conclusion is that nuclear deterrence is a huge confidence trick – an outrageous scam cooked up fifty years ago by the US military industrial monster created by the Manhattan Project and now dominating US politics. Continue reading →

June 9, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

radiation cancer risk with repeated dental X-rays

Repeated Dental X-Rays Increase Thyroid Cancer Risk TopNews United Kingdom, by Rasik Sharma on Mon, 06/07/2010 – It has been stated by the researchers from Brighton, Cambridge (England) and Kuwait that thyroid cancer risk elevates with an increase in the number of dental x-rays. This finding was cited in the medical journal Acta Oncologica.According to the reports, rates of thyroid cancer have doubled from 1.4 per 100,000 in 1975 to 2.9 per 100,000 in 2006 in the UK, as the patients take up more and more number of dental x-rays……

The research was headed by Dr. Anjum Memon, Senior Lecturer and Consultant in Public Health Medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School.

This was a combined research conducted by Brighton and Sussex universities and NHS (National Health Service) Brighton and Hove.

It is known that the thyroid gland gets exposed to radiation from many dental x-rays. Thyroid gland is sensitive to ionizing radiation in children especially. The research points out to the potential risks that dental radiography often causes to thyroid gland.

Repeated Dental X-Rays Increase Thyroid Cancer Risk | TopNews United Kingdom

June 9, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, health | antinuclear, cancer, nuclear, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Stockpiles of nuclear weapons form increasing terrorist risk

Forward Observer: Nuclear Time Bomb, GovExec.com, By George C. Wilson, CongressDaily June 7, 2010Standing up like a red lighthouse of warning above the otherwise murky prose in President Obama’s new National Security Strategy document is this statement: “The American people face no greater or more urgent danger than a terrorist attack with a nuclear weapon.”……
“Indeed,” continues the white paper, “since the end of the Cold War the risk of a nuclear attack has increased. Excessive Cold War stockpiles remain. More nations have acquired nuclear weapons. Testing has continued. Black markets trade in nuclear secrets and materials. Terrorists are determined to buy, build or steal a nuclear weapon. Our efforts to contain these dangers are centered in a global nonproliferation regime that has frayed as more people and nations break the rules.”………….If nothing else can inspire a bipartisan response this election year, that presidential warning should.

Forward Observer: Nuclear Time Bomb (6/7/10) — GovExec.com

June 9, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Radioactive leaks continue to plague nuclear industry

An Old Nuclear Problem Creeps Back, NYTimes.com, By MATTHEW L. WALD June 7, 2010 The American nuclear industry, primed to begin new construction projects for the first time in 30 years, is about as eager for an operating problem at an old reactor as the oil industry was for a well blowout on the eve of opening the Atlantic coast to oil drilling.Nonetheless, a nuclear reactor where a hidden leak caused near-catastrophic corrosion in 2002 has experienced a second bout of the same problem……recently the new vessel head showed the same leakage pattern…..

The reactor has 69 nozzles, and the utility has modified 24 of them in preparation for starting up again in a few weeks. The long-term fix is yet another vessel head, with nozzles of a sturdier alloy, to be installed in 2014.

In the interim, the company said, it will opt for a shorter production run

An Old Nuclear Problem Creeps Back – Green Blog – NYTimes.com

June 9, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radioactive | Leave a comment

A nuclear bomb on the oil gusher would NOT be OK!

Nuclear Follies: How Not To Stem the BP Oil Gusher, Daily Kos:, by Page van der Linden, 7 June 2010, “…….Never has it been more apparent that there’s a lot of misunderstanding (deliberate or otherwise) regarding nuclear weapons than recently. I’m talking about the appalling, misguided idea that we can “just nuke” the BP oil gusher and it will some how “be okay”.Here’s the Global Security Newswire’s “Quote of the Day” from June 3, 2010:
The use of a nuclear weapon to stop the BP oil gusher is not an option. It is, in fact, the worst possible thing we could do. Here’s why. Continue reading →

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics international, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radioactive | 1 Comment

France’s nuclear firm got secret subsidy from British govt

They know full well that the economics of nuclear don’t stack up and that new reactors will only ever happen if the British taxpayer is forced yet again to carry the atomic can.”.

EDF ran secret lobbying campaign to reduce nuclear waste disposal levy• Reactors builder won big concessions on key issues• Rethink on costs is in effect a subsidy, says Greenpeace Tim Webb * guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 2 June 2010

The nuclear industry is being offered what campaigners claim is a taxpayer subsidy on the disposal costs of waste from new reactors following a secret lobbying campaign, the Guardian has learned. Continue reading →

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | secrets,lies and civil liberties, UK | antinuclear, EDF, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radioactive | Leave a comment

Increasing exposure of Americans to ionising radiation

nuclear reactors produce a number of radioactive isotopes not found in the environment,….the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s policy of including reactor-generated radionuclides as part of the average background radiation is misleading…….”Nature does not expose human beings to the several hundred radioactive isotopes that that are generated by and routinely released from the nuclear fuel cycle,”

Americans are exposed to increased levels of radiation, Brattleboro Reformer, By BOB AUDETTE June 5, 2010 BRATTLEBORO — The average American receives 620 millirems of background radiation every year, as opposed to the 360 millirems as is often stated in the press.The number has crept up in the last two decades, from 180 millirems to 300 millirems, then to 360 millirems and most recently, in 2006, to 620 millirems. Continue reading →

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, cancer, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radioactive, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Nuking the oil gusher could release the entire oil reserve into ocean

Detonation of Nuclear Device the only Solution to Stop Oil Spill | Seyoh BP Oil Spill Live Feed Updates 7 June 20201, – The unsuccesful attempts to finally seal off the oil gusher sparks a new plan from a group of scientist spearheaded by Matt Simons, Houston energy expert, to detonate a Nuke. This came after the problem with the containment system was announced. The scientist claims that the Russians used this unimaginable technique to seal their oil well during 1966. However, this is yet to be confirmed. Several group of legislature and scientist a like denounced this suggestion because this could do more harm than good. The radioactive fallout could literally destroy the ecology of the whole Gulf of Mexico and could spread even further. Moreover, it could even worsen the scenario and the whole oil reserve could be released by this explosion.

BP Oil Spill Live Feed Update: Detonation of Nuclear Device the only Solution to Stop Oil Spill | Seyoh

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, radioactive | Leave a comment

Russia did not use nuclear explosions to fix oil leaks

all these Soviet nuclear blasts were on land and did not involve oil. Eventually, both superpowers gave up trying to use nukes for peaceful purposes, and one of the reasons was the environmental hazards.

Just Because Someone Else Did It, Doesn’t Mean It’ll Work As the New York Times pointed out, the whole idea came from something the Russians tried back in the 1960s to stop a natural gas fire. Historian and nuclear non-proliferation expert David E. Hoffman tears down the idea that “if it worked for them it’ll work for us”: But didn’t the Soviet Union once use nukes for this? Not exactly. Continue reading →

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Russia, safety | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Equipment for Iran’s uranium enrichment smuggled in via Dubai

Report: Iran smuggling German-made nuclear equipment via Dubai, Haaretz Daily Newspaper 06.06.10 Sunday Telegraph: Dubai intermediary sells Iran components bought from German manufacturer without its knowledge in violation of UN resolutions. Iran has been able to smuggle advanced technological equipment to its uranium enrichment plant in Natanz via a complex smuggling route based in Dubai, the Sunday Telegraph reported on Sunday.
According to the report, an Iranian company has purchased control systems from one of Germany’s leading electronic manufacturers. The deal was negotiated with a Dubai trading company, which in turn sold Iran a range of electronic equipment for use at its enrichment facility, the British website reported…..According to the Sunday Telegraph, Iran has smuggled German computers, controllers, communication cards and cables into Iran. The equipment was sold to Iran via a Dubai intermediary, using false certificates for company .. Report: Iran smuggling German-made nuclear equipment via Dubai – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, enriched, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear weapons, uranium | Leave a comment

Nuclear waste disputes go on; no end in sight

Nuclear waste wars BlueNC by James on Wed, 06/02/2010 It’s depressing to think how much money and time has gone into this bizarre lawsuit over North Carolina’s participation in an agreement to store low level nuclear waste. The U.S. Supreme Court handed North Carolina a victory Tuesday in an epic, decades-long legal battle with other states over plans for a low-level nuclear disposal site that would have been in Wake County. From reading the story, it’s hard to imagine the suit might have turned out any other way. When other states broke their funding commitments, the contract should have been – and was – voided. And while there’s relief that the lawsuit is settled, the looming problem of dealing with nuclear waste remains unaddressed. We keep making the stuff, without the slightest idea of what to do with it.North Carolina may have won this battle over nuclear waste, but the end of the war is nowhere in sight.

Nuclear waste wars | BlueNC

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes | Leave a comment

Solar energy, rather than nuclear, holds promise for Saudi Arabia

The fact is Saudi Arabia can generate enough power form the sun to take care of its and others’ energy needs….Minister of Petroleum, Ali Al-Naimi, said: “Saudi Arabia aspires to export as much solar energy in the future as it exports oil now.”

Alternatives to nuclear energy under focus – Arab News 7 June 2010, …………..Official studies from the German government has shown that the risk of getting cancer significantly increased in children growing up in the neighborhood of a nuclear power station, particularly leukemia. Other disadvantages have to do with nuclear waste. The EIA has shown that a typical nuclear reactor produces 20-30 tons or waste per year that can’t be disposed of with Plutonium 239 remaining dangerous for as much as 10,000 years and radioactive for 240,000 years. Most countries reuse nuclear waste to create energy but this just creates more waste while others utilize the waste through their national defense departments…. Continue reading →

June 7, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, Saudi Arabia | antinuclear, energy efficiency, renewable energy, renewables, solar | Leave a comment

In USA renewable energy electricity growing, coal-fired dwindling

Why the Renewable Energy Sector Will Prevail Simple Math Proves Cleantech SuperiorityBy Nick HodgeThursday, May 20th, 2010 Numbers Don’t Lie In 2005 — just 5 years ago — there were 5,000 MW of installed solar capacity in the United States.Today, there are more than 23,000 MW — a rise of 360%.In 2005, there were just 9,000 MW of installed wind capacity in the U.S.; today, there are more than 35,000 MW — a rise of 289%.Now consider this…In 2005, the United States consumed 1.037 billion short tons of coal to produce electricity.Today, we use even less than that (about 936.5 million short tons in 2009) for a loss of about 9.7%. Why the Renewable Energy Sector Will Prevail

June 6, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, USA | antinuclear, energy efficiency, solar, wind | Leave a comment

Radioactive wastes are produced at all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle

The NUCLEAR INDUSTRY and the GLOBAL NUCLEAR WASTE PROBLEM – our theme for June 2010

June 6, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Nuclear bomb to solve oil spill crisis – a crazy idea, says USA

Nuclear Option on Gulf Oil Spill? No Way, U.S. Says, NYTimes.com, By WILLIAM J. BROAD : June 2, 2010 The chatter began weeks ago as armchair engineers brainstormed for ways to stop the torrent of oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico: What about nuking the well?…. Stephanie Mueller, a spokeswoman for the Energy Department, said that neither Energy Secretary, Steven Chu nor anyone else was thinking about a nuclear blast under the gulf. The nuclear option was not — and never had been — on the table, federal officials said. “It’s crazy,” one senior official said.

Government and private nuclear experts agreed that using a nuclear bomb would be not only risky technically, with unknown and possibly disastrous consequences from radiation, but also unwise geopolitically — it would violate arms treaties that the United States has signed and championed over the decades and do so at a time when President Obama is pushing for global nuclear disarmament.Nuclear Option on Gulf Oil Spill? No Way, U.S. Says – NYTimes.com

June 6, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment