nuclear « nuclear-news

Unnecessary nuclear and uranium projects get $billions in U.S. budget

POGO is Shocked by Wasteful Spending in DOE Budget

Project on Government Oversight, Ingrid Drake, 4 Feb 2010 In the midst of initiating a federal spending freeze, it is shocking that President Obama’s FY 2011 Budget Request released this week pours billions of dollars into two unnecessary nuclear weapons construction projects. There is no demonstrated requirement for either the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) at the Y-12 National Security Complex nor the Chemical and Metallurgical Research Replacement Nuclear Facility (CMRR-NF) at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).

“Contrary to the spin, neither of these facilities are needed to ensure the safety, security and effectiveness of our weapons,” says Peter Stockton, POGO Senior Investigator.

In addition, DOE does not even have an estimated cost for completing the projects, as the budget describes their total costs as “TBD.” “To Be a Disaster,” is what POGO fears that term means, based on DOE’s atrocious record of soaring construction costs and overruns. For example, the cost of the Highly Enriched Uranium Manufacturing Facility (HEUMF) at Y-12 ballooned from $97 million to $549 million. The National Ignition Facility (NIF) project also experienced dramatically increased costs and delayed completion dates. The Department of Energy sold the NIF to Congress in the early 1990s with a reported cost estimate of $700 million and an original completion date of 2002, yet its most recent cost estimate is $5-6 billion with a completion date of 2010 — more than 600 percent over budget and at least 8 years behind schedule.

Despite the 10 percent spending increase on the nation’s nuclear weapons budget, one of the only areas to see reduced growth is the budget for weapons dismantlement, which was sliced almost in half….http://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2010/02/pogo-is-shocked-by-wasteful-spending-in-doe-budget.html

February 5, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Chernobyl taking in money, giving out radiation

Chernobyl: Leaking radiation and sucking up Canadian money Thirteen years after Canada and other nations pledged $768-million to render the destroyed nuclear reactor safe, the cost has ballooned to $2-billion and the job still isn’t done
Kiev —THE GLOBE AND MAIL Doug Saunders Feb. 03, 2010
Almost a quarter-century after its explosion killed hundreds and shocked the world, the Chernobyl nuclear reactor still sits crumbling amid an uninhabitable wasteland in northern Ukraine, still emits surprising amounts of radiation, and still absorbs vast amounts of money. Continue reading →

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, Ukraine | antinuclear, cancer, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radioactive | Leave a comment

Bleak prospects for uranium price

An Un-Happy New Year For Uranium2/02/2010 Nine MSN By Andrew Nelson January was tough on uranium, with U3O8 prices dropping more than 5%, or US$2.25/lb to $42.25/lb from the prior month. The price is now at its lowest level since March 2009.The fairly steady decline that has been seen over the past few months is primarily the function of supply and demand fundamentals, with a high availability of stock not being helped by increasingly low-priced supply and light, mostly discretionary demand………….with demand remaining discretionary in nature, buyers are only really moving to lock in lower prices. Unfortunately, this demand is being met by an ever increasing willingness on the part of some sellers to lower prices further in order to close sales.

An Un-Happy New Year For Uranium

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, uranium | Leave a comment

Nuclear power on the nose in Italy

‘We are against nuclear power and today in Rome most of the regions stood for this idea’.

Political risk for Italian nuclear World Nuclear News 3 Feb 2010 Italy’s inter-regional body rejected the nuclear energy policy proposed by Silvio Berlusconi’s government during a late January session. Meanwhile, regional elections are approaching, giving rise to fears for Italy’s nuclear renaissance. Continue reading →

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Italy, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive, reactor, reactors | Leave a comment

Westinghouse nuclear plans delayed in Florida and in India

Westinghouse says Florida nuclear units to be delayed US nuclear regulator action delays Florida units By C.J. Kuncheria, NEW DELHI, Feb 3 (Reuters) – Nuclear energy firm Westinghouse Electric, owned by Japan’s Toshiba Corp (6502.T), said regulatory issues would delay the starting of two reactors it is building in Florida by 1-½ to 3 years. Continue reading →

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, reactor, reactors, reprocessing, Westinghouse | Leave a comment

French bank pulls out of Bulgaria’s nuclear power plant

France’s BNP Paribas Quits Bulgaria Belene N-Plant Nuclear Reaction 4 Feb 2010 BNP Paribas SA, France’s largest bank by market value, who was hired by the previous Socialist government to help fund the construction of Belene nuclear power plant at the Danube river town, has ditched the project…. Continue reading →

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, France | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes | Leave a comment

Is Iran just playing for time on nuclear weapons?

Iran uranium offer dismissed by Europe as time-wasting The Guardian Julian Borger 3 February 2010 Officials say Ahmadinejad’s offer to export uranium in return for fuel rods was aimed at ducking threat of sanctions Continue reading →

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, politics international | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Israel’s fear of Iran causing ‘nuclear chaos’

Deputy PM Ya’alon: Nuclear Iran could cause chaos in region Y Net 02.03.10, Israel News Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Ya’alon (Likud) said at the Herzliya Conference that America’s “inability to act decisively to prevent Iran from becoming nuclear is now being exposed, and it appears that the current world order is based on organizations like the UN and the IAEA whose strength is in doubt.” Ya’alon said that a nuclear Iran could cause chaos in the region. (Yonatan Weber and Dudi Cohen)

Deputy PM Ya’alon: Nuclear Iran could cause chaos in region – Israel News, Ynetnews

February 4, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Young Obama supporters tell Obama – Nuclear is Wrong Way

Dear Mr. President – Nuclear Power Will Set Back Race Against Global Warming « It’s Getting Hot In Here 2 Feb 2010 Dear President Obama,According to a report released by Environment America in November, the long process to build nuclear plants along with the carbon intensity of production will set us back in the fight against global warming. The next 5-10 years are CRITICAL for the future of my generation and the planet that your daughters will inherit. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radioactive | Leave a comment

UK Property prices slump where nuclear reactors planned

Cumbrian property prices hit by nuclear power station plans News & Star By Julian Whittle Political Editor 02 February 2010 Proposals for nuclear power stations at Braystones and Kirksanton in west Cumbria are causing “property blight”, Cumbria County Council believes…….. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, reactor, reactors | Leave a comment

Nuclear renaissance not likely, despite Obama’s support

This unending stream of technical, financial and political downfalls could doom the “reactor renaissance” to history’s radioactive dump heap. “

Harvey Wasserman: Obama’s New Nuclear War THE HUFFINGTON POST 2 Feb 2010 Amidst utter chaos in the atomic reactor industry, Team Obama is poised to vastly expand a bitterly contested loan guarantee program that may cost far more than expected, both financially and politically.The long-stalled, much-hyped “Renaissance” in atomic power has failed to find private financing. New construction projects are opposed for financial reasons by fiscal conservatives such as the Heritage Foundation and National Taxpayers Union, and by a national grassroots safe energy campaign that has already beaten such loan guarantees three times. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | spinbuster, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin | Leave a comment

U.S. – Russia Agreeing to Reduce Nuclear Weapons

U.S., Russia Close In on Arms Nuclear Arms Treaty – WSJ.com Jonathan Weisman FEBRUARY 2, 2010 WASHINGTON — U.S. and Russian arms-control negotiators have reached an “agreement in principle” on the first nuclear arms reduction treaty in nearly two decades, administration and arms control officials said Tuesday.

The deal would bring down deployed nuclear warheads and sharply limit the number of missiles and bombers that can deliver them………….

The deal would bring the ceiling for deployed nuclear weapons from the 2,200 agreed to in 1991 down to between 1,500 and 1,675, but nuclear delivery systems would fall more sharply, to between 700 and 800 a side.

U.S., Russia Close In on Arms Nuclear Arms Treaty – WSJ.com

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, weapons and war | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Obama boosts nuke weapons funding, while talking disarmament

“The plan described in this budget is not about maintaining a reliable nuclear stockpile. It is a multi-billion dollar ‘radioactive pork’ construction plan

Administration Budget Plan Contradicts Obama Pledge to Reduce Nuclear Weapons Threat Billions to be spent on new nuclear weapons production facilities WASHINGTON – Common Dreams.org February 1 – The Administration’s budget, released today, contradicts President Obama’s pledge to reduce the nuclear weapons threat by working toward their elimination, according to a national network of groups in communities downwind and downstream from U.S. nuclear sites. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Iran agreeing to UN about sending uranium abroad

Iran says ready to send uranium abroad as UN wants

The Washington Post By NASSER KARIMI

The Associated Press Associated Press Writer George Jahn in Vienna contributed to this report.
February 2, 2010

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran said on Tuesday it was ready to send its uranium abroad for further enrichment as requested by the U.N. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, politics international | nuclear, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Increased cancer risk from low dose ionising radiation

Cancer — Is Low-Dose Radiation Imaging Increasing Your Risk?

EmpowerHER 2 Feb 2010 by Lynette Summerill A trip to your doctor or dentist usually means you will be examined from the inside out. But, low-dose radiation like that used in x-rays, mammograms and other diagnostic tests could be causing some cancers. Continue reading →

February 3, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, cancer, nuclear, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment