nuclear-news

The News That Matters about the Nuclear Industry Fukushima Chernobyl Mayak Three Mile Island Atomic Testing Radiation Isotope

Uranium milling company won’t be able to pay for clean-up

Cash-strapped Energy Fuels can pay for uranium mill but not for clean up « Colorado Independent, 2 June 2010, Gulf spill underlines need for companies to put aside vast sums in advance By David O. Williams 6/2/10 12 A Canadian company looking to build the first new uranium mill in the United States in nearly three decades is burning through cash at a rate that could leave it broke right about the time it hopes to secure its final approvals from Colorado public health officials. Continue reading

June 3, 2010 Posted by | business and costs, Canada | , , , , | Leave a comment

UK’s expensive nuclear white elephant

it is an expensive white elephant which produces as much carbon as a conventional power station over its lifetime….. [producing wastes] which will remain dangerous for hundreds of thousands of years – long after EDF, Britain and France have ceased to exist…..So thank you nuclear industry for hobbling all our futures.

NUCLEAR POWER REMAINS THE BIGGEST WHITE ELEPHANT IN THE WORLD, Andy Crick, 3 June 2010 Huhne has pointed out that the huge cost to his department of this necessary cleanup means that in effect it will be able to do nothing else, least of all invest in sustainable new technologies for energy generation.The outcome of this horrendous expense is likely to be the final death knell for any plans for new nuclear power stations, which the coalition has agreed can only go ahead if they are built with no public subsidy and clear plans for their full costs over their whole lifetime. Continue reading

June 3, 2010 Posted by | general | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Thousands of tons of nuclear wastes in above ground casks

– Atomic Waste Gets ‘Temporary’ Home, WSJ.com, JUNE 1, 2010 By REBECCA SMITH “……Power companies are likely to rely on casks even more in coming years. About 80% of reactor sites in the U.S. intend to move used fuel to casks because their storage pools are filling up.

So far, more than 800 casks have been filled and they sit tucked away behind fences on reactor sites. They hold 14,000 metric tons of waste, an amount that is steadily growing. There is an additional 49,000 metric tons being held in spent-fuel pools, used fuel’s first stop after it leaves reactors. Each year, another 2,000 metric tons of nuclear reactor waste is created. Continue reading

June 3, 2010 Posted by | USA, wastes | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nuclear Non-Proliferation not solved, nor is Nuclear Waste

Christina Macpherson's websites & blogs

As the May Nuclear Non Proliferation conference ends, the nuclear industry and President Obama continue to use this story as a selling point for the “peaceful” nuclear industry. And for June, perhaps the critical issue is – how to convince the world that nuclear wastes are OK, that this problem is solved, – when it’s not!

Other selling points are emerging now – perhaps a sign of the desperation of the industry?

There’s a push to use a nuclear bomb as a cure for the oil spill – based on Russian experience – for goodness’ sake!  Who in their right mind would trust the Russian history of things nuclear?

Then there’s the push for little reactors, thorium reactors, instead of uranium-fuelled reactors. Anything to look as though the nuclear industry is forging on.  But it’s not – except for nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, despite all the propaganda, and lack of real government incentives, renewable energy technologies are forging on.

June 1, 2010 Posted by | Christina's notes | , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Birth defects from depleted uranium bring lawsuit

Atomic radiation has increased the number of babies born with defects in the southern provinces of Iraq.

VIDEO Fallujah babies born with birth defects as a result of Depleted Uranium WMD contaminated dust. | mesothelioma Lawyer,Mesothelioma, Asbestos Cancer, Mesothelioma Treatments, Lawyers / Attorneys

Fallujah babies born with birth defects as a result of Depleted Uranium WMD contaminated dust. 1 June 2010, Iraq WILL sue US and Britain over depleted uranium bombs FULL story here- http://www.presstv.ir Ministry for Human Rights will file a lawsuit against Britain and the US over their use of depleted uranium bombs in Iraq, an Iraqi minister says. Continue reading

June 1, 2010 Posted by | health, Iraq | , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Some responses to the idea of “nuking the oil spill”

Using a nuclear device in an attempt to shut down the GOM oil spill seems like using a battleship to cross a river.Success is not guaranteed and the side effects could be horrendous.”

Nuking The Oil Slick? The Oil Drum by Big Gav on May 31, 2010 –  ]A recent interview with Matthew Simmons on Bloomberg discussed the possibility of a nuclear explosion being used to seal the leaking  Macondo oil well. Continue reading

June 1, 2010 Posted by | safety, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vermont nuclear plant likely to be source of radiation in fish

it was impossible to establish a baseline for strontium-90 in Connecticut River fish, because the state had not tested for it before this year.

Bad news: Radioactive fish found near Vt. nuclear plant; Worse news: Fish said to be ordinary,  Washington Examiner, By: DAVE GRAM, Associated Press05/30/10 MONTPELIER, VT. — When a fish taken from the Connecticut River recently tested positive for radioactive strontium-90, suspicion focused on the nearby Vermont Yankee nuclear plant as the likely source. Continue reading

May 31, 2010 Posted by | environment, USA | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Texas to get nuclear wastes from 36 States?

Tx. Could Receive Nuclear Waste from 36 States, Environmental Leader, May 24, 2010, Texas could become the repository for low-level nuclear waste from 36 states, according to a report in the Associated Press.According to a rule change proposed by the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission, the state could accept radioactive materials such as glass, metal and clothing used at power plants, research centers, and medical facilities throughout the country at a storage facility in West Texas. The 1,340-acre site, located in Andrews, Tx., is run by Waste Control Specialists.Local opposition to the rule change has come from the Texas chapter of the Sierra Club, which successfully pushed the state legislature to delay its decision on the rule change until at least June. According to a presentation created by Texas Nuclear Safety, an organization opposing the rule change, the amount of waste at the facility could increase up to 19 times.

Tx. Could Receive Nuclear Waste from 36 States · Environmental Leader · Green Business, Sustainable Business, and Green Strategy News for Corporate Sustainability Executives

May 31, 2010 Posted by | USA, wastes | , , , | Leave a comment

Oil disaster now, nuclear later?

BP oil spill live feed & oil spill update: people express frustration as Top kill fails Chronicle.com, May, 2010 “…Top Kill has failed to work and BP bosses have no idea as to why it failed. ….. Meanwhile people have started shooting off tough question in the eye of increasing oil leak problem. A disgruntled reader says, “They can’t control OIL. How will they control NUCLEAR ? These are the same energy billionaires that own nuclear power plants / giant CANCER machines. How will they control invisible highly radioactive cancer causing nuclear radiation when a nuclear power plant melts down ? AND DONT !! try to tell us accidents “never happen” You make your billions from us while you destroy us. And Obama just approved 54 billion in loan guarantee’s to build more nuclear power plants ! Why should we pay for the billionaires to build more cancer machines ? And we pay their insurance. Because they are uninsurable the government (with our money)” BP oil spill live feed & oil spill update: people express frustration as Top kill fails : ndChronicle.com

May 31, 2010 Posted by | general | , , , , , , | 2 Comments

AREVA’s uranium enrichment plant a danger to Idaho’s groundwater

Areva uranium enrichment plant in Idaho would threaten aquifer, Beyond Nuclear, 28 May 2010, The $2 billion in federal loan guarantees just awarded to Areva by the U.S. Department of Energy for a new uranium enrichment plant in Idaho, will produce depleted uranium (half-life of 4.5 billion years) and will threaten the Snake River Aquifer, say leaders of the Snake River Alliance.

Areva plans to build a new uranium enrichment plant “on the upstream end of the Snake River Aquifer a few miles east of the Idaho National Laboratory,” stated the Alliance in a press release. “INL’s nuclear activities have already contaminated the aquifer and have left substantial radioactive waste behind. Addressing these environmental challenges has already cost billions of taxpayer dollars and will continue for decades”. Continue reading

May 29, 2010 Posted by | USA, water | , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

American Indians against new uranium mining

“Our Navajo communities rely on the groundwater for everything. These new projects could contaminate the source of drinking water for 15,000 Navajo community members,”

Navajo Activists Protest Uranium Mining Plans, May 28, 2010, warresisters By Bruce Finley, The Denver PostUranium-mining leaders and federal regulators poised to fuel a resurgent nuclear power industry gathered in Denver on Wednesday,…outside the conference Wednesday, American Indian demonstrators with drums and signs demanded a halt to all new uranium mining on Navajo land, where federal regulators have permitted several projects. Continue reading

May 29, 2010 Posted by | indigenous issues, USA | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

One Australian Aboriginal thwarts AREVA’s uranium mining plans

”Jeffrey Lee has put country and culture ahead of personal profit and his vision means this magnificent place will be protected for all people and all time,”

Owner wants uranium-rich land to be added to Kakadu, Sydney Morning Herald, LINDSAY MURDOCH IN KAKADUMay 29, 2010 The world heritage-listed Kakadu National Park will be expanded to include thousands of hectares of ecologically sensitive land that contains uranium worth billions of dollars. In a generous act, the Aboriginal traditional owner, Jeffrey Lee, has offered the land to the federal government so that it can become part of Kakadu, where he works as a ranger. Continue reading

May 29, 2010 Posted by | AUSTRALIA, indigenous issues | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nuclear solution to oil spill could be worse than the problem

BP Oil Spill: The Nuclear Option, THE HUFFINGTON POST, Susan Deily-Swearingen, 26 May 2010, “……One solution that is getting increased attention on the web and in the European press is the terrifying sounding nuclear option which, essentially, would detonate a nuclear bomb underground near the oil well shaft……………What are the lasting effects of such an explosion? Is there a potential for them to be even worse than the pollution from the dispersants already used to “solve” or abate the problem? Continue reading

May 27, 2010 Posted by | environment, USA | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

UK not getting new nuclear reactors any time soon

U.K. Energy Policy In A Muddle – WSJ, By Selina Williams, 24 May 2010, “……….Not all the policies required for the construction of new nuclear power plants–a key source of low-carbon electricity–are finalized and it’s unlikely that any will be built until after 2020, the report adds. Decomissioning of old nuclear power plants and what will be done with the waste have yet to be completely pinned down. And the new coalition government’s decision to do away with the Infrastructure Planning Commission, which the previous government set up to streamline and speed up planning decisions for new nuclear, could create more delays to investment…….U.K. Energy Policy In A Muddle – The Source – WSJ

May 25, 2010 Posted by | politics, UK | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

UK govt’s underhand way of subsidising nuclear power

Huhne, it seems, may have ruled out using the public purse to fund the new nuclear generation, but his Government is asking us to use our wallets to do the same.

The Government has found a backhanded way to subsidise nuclear power The Ecologist, Dan Box, 24th May, 2010 21st century nuclear power needs a 21st century subsidy… no blank cheques this time – just an apparently green tweak to the emissions trading system, and voila!What is it they say? Power corrupts? Well, certainly people change. Continue reading

May 25, 2010 Posted by | general | , , , | Leave a comment