nuclear costs « nuclear-news

Nuclear power is costly – even to get out of a nuclear deal

$6.1 million spent to end nuclear deal, my sanantonio news, by Tracy Idell Hamilton, 5 Sept 10, CPS Energy spent $6.1 million on litigation and related expenses to get out of its nuclear partnership with NRG Energy earlier this year, according to records it provided to the San Antonio Express-News……..

$6.1 million spent to end nuclear deal

September 6, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear costs | Leave a comment

Not certain that Germany’s nuclear plants will be extended

Merkel’s coalition, however, still needs to get parliamentary approval for the new agreement.

German leaders reach agreement on nuclear energy – BusinessWeek, JUERGEN BAETZ, 5 Sept 10, German leaders reached an agreement to grant the country’s nuclear power plants an average of 12 extra years of production time and to levy new fees on the utility companies’, stripping them of billions of their expected additional profits, a government official said Sunday……. Continue reading →

September 6, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactors | Leave a comment

Ionising radiation is especially dangerous for children

Department of Health (DOH ) recommends practices to reduce radiation exposure in pediatric imaging, including using alternative, non-radiation diagnostic imaging procedures such as MRIs and ultrasounds when possible;…The pamphlets and pocket cards are available for download at the state Health Department website.

(USA) Parents can track kids’ radiation exposure, Times Union, By CATHLEEN CROWLEY Staff Writer ccrowley@timesunion.com. September 3, 2010 ALBANY — Doctors track your child’s height, weight and inoculations. Now, add radiation exposure to the list.

The state Department of Health wants your parents and pediatricians to keep a list of your child’s exposure to X-rays and more potent CT scans. Continue reading →

September 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

USA – nuclear radiation meltdown area to be cleaned up

One of the reactors, which had no containment dome to prevent radiation from leaking into the environment, experienced a partial meltdown in 1959. There were other problems over the years, including two more accidents, burn pits with radioactive contaminants and a rocket fuel explosion that killed two scientists and resulted in a $650 million fine after Rocketdyne illegally disposed of the hazardous waste

Deal to clean up LA-area nuclear accident site, Google hosted news, By NOAKI SCHWARTZ (AP) – 4 Sept 10 LOS ANGELES — State and federal officials announced Friday a potentially historic agreement to remove all radioactive contamination from a partial nuclear meltdown in 1959 at a rocket testing site just outside Los Angeles. Continue reading →

September 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, reactors | Leave a comment

USA’s dangerous and useless addiction to nuclear weapons

In his book “Dangerous Ground: America’s Failed Arms Control Policy, from FDR to Obama,” Ritter pinpoints the major challenges facing the international community in the post-Bush era and presents a blueprint for confronting them.

‘US addicted to nuclear weapons’, PressTV -Sep 2, 2010, Former Chief UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter says the US is addicted to nuclear weapons to use them as deterrence against its imaginary enemies. Continue reading →

September 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Fidel Castro’s passionate call against nuclear weapons

“The world never imagined the appalling use of two nuclear weapons at the end of World War II, but the power of the current existing weapons multiplies their power,”

Fidel Castro calls on nations to avoid nuclear warfare, HAVANA, CUBA (BNO NEWS), 4 Sept 10 — Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Friday made a public appearance for the first time in 4 years in a 45-minute speech at a university in Havana, Cuba………..“Humanity has little time to free itself from [nuclear war].” Continue reading →

September 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, disarmament, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Near a nuclear power plant? – better have some pills!

The pills may help prevent illnesses associated with radioactive iodine if an accident were to occur.

Free pills available for those near nuclear plants, Detroit Free Press, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Sept. 2, 2010 Michigan health officials are making potassium iodide pills available to people who live, work or visit within 10 miles of a nuclear power plant. Continue reading →

September 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Many Germans unhappy with extension of aging nuclear plants

“The chancellor is selling off public safety by allowing ailing and ageing nuclear power plants to stay online longer and by taking money for it.”..

Angela Merkel risks Germans’ ire with fresh commitment to nuclear energyGerman chancellor adds 15 years to scheduled phase-out of country’s nuclear power plants , Kate Connolly in Berlin guardian.co.uk, Monday 30 August 2010 Continue reading →

September 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear technology, reactors | Leave a comment

Danger to workers and community at Honeywell uranium enrichment facility

This is a uranium enrichment facility from which even the slightest leak of UF6 could wipe out the entire town.

Nuclear Regulators Prohibit Honeywell to Resume Production at Facility With Locked-Out Workets, THE HUFFINGTON POST Mike Elk. 2 Sept 10 “…………The Metropolis facility is the only conversion facility in the world that can distill uranium. While the scab workers Honeywell brought in from Louisiana have worked in nuclear facilities, they haven’t worked on the process that converts uranium from the somewhat toxic UF4 solid state to the extraordinarily more lethal liquid UF6. Continue reading →

September 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, Uranium, USA | antinuclear, enriched, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Shutdown of South African nuclear plant

Ezulwini uranium plant closes for repairs, World Nuclear News, 1 Sept 10, Toronto-based First Uranium has temporarily closed its Ezulwini uranium plant in South Africa to replace two columns in the ion exchange section following a structural failure on a loading column. The company said that the plant will remain offline while two replacement columns are designed, manufactured, installed and commissioned. The work is expected to be completed by the end of 2010. The company said that the anticipated impact of the temporary shut down on its cash flow, loss in uranium sales and rescheduled capital is some $1.2 million….the ramping up of gold and uranium production from the Ezulwini mine has been slower than expected.

September 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, South Africa | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactor | Leave a comment

Energy industry heading towards Wind, away from Nuclear

Exelon’s actions often foreshadow where the energy industry is headed…..the momentum for the much-touted nuclear renaissance has slowed to a crawl

(USA) What Exelon’s Wind Energy Buy Means For the Future of Nuclear Power, BNET, By Kirsten Korosec | September 1, 2010 Exelon (EXC) announced this week it was buying John Deere Renewables for as much as $900 million, a purchase that marks the company’s entrance into the wind generation business and suggests its lack of confidence in a nuclear energy renaissance. Continue reading →

September 2, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | ENERGY, USA | antinuclear, energy efficiency, nuclear, nuclear costs, renewable energy, renewables, wind | Leave a comment

Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s ‘decommissioning’ funds inadequate

Vermont Yankee’s decommissioning fund is no exception

Auditor: More Oversight on Yankee Shutdown Fund Needed. Report on Fund Doesn’t Reveal Details Of Shortfall , WPTZ Plattsburgh, August 31, 2010 MONTPELIER, Vt. — Perhaps you’ve noticed your 401-k account isn’t what it used to be? Neither are the balances in most of the nation’s nuclear power plant decommissioning funds, money used to pay to decontaminate and cleanup each site. Continue reading →

September 2, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | decommission reactor, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear decommissioning, radiation, reactor | Leave a comment

Not India, but General Electric, Westinghouse, France, Russia benefit from Nuclear Liability Bill

The first to benefit may be American companies like General Electric and Westinghouse Electric, followed by French and Russian nuclear power equipment suppliers……

Cracks in India’s nuclear law, Asia Times, By Indrajit BasuKOLKATA, Sep 2, 2010 – Pleasing neither supporters nor its critics, India this week passed a Nuclear Liability Bill, opening up the country’s US$150 billion nuclear power market to global equipment suppliers. Continue reading →

September 2, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, politics international | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactors, Westinghouse | Leave a comment

‘Decommissioning’ nuclear reactors becoming unaffordable

The fund, set up to pay for the Vernon reactor’s eventual dismantlement and removal of radioactive components, has come under fire from lawmakers and nuclear watchdog groups as having less in it than will be needed…..

Vt. auditor: Raise nuke plant shutdown fund checks BusinessWeek, 31 Aug 2010, MONTPELIER, Vt.Vermont state Auditor Tom Salmon says the state should do a better job tracking the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s decommissioning fund. Continue reading →

September 1, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, decommission reactor, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, radiation, radioactive, reactors | Leave a comment

Spiralling costs threaten nuclear industry – France, UK, Bulgaria

A particular concern is the specter of spiraling costs at a high-profile project at Olkiluoto in Finland, where Areva, a French nuclear reactor builder, agreed in 2005 to build a next-generation plant, called E.P.R.

New Warnings About Costs of Nuclear Power in Bulgaria and Britain – NYTimes.com August 31, 2010, By JAMES KANTER As anticipation grows about a possible renaissance for the nuclear power industry — and about its potential for curbing greenhouse gas emissions — some politicians are stepping up warnings about the high cost of such projects. Continue reading →

September 1, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, EUROPE | antinuclear, AREVA, EDF, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, reactors | Leave a comment