Did Stuxnet computer worm damage Iran’s uranium enrichment facility?
A sophisticated malworm such as Stuxnet could potentially include code that would cause uranium enriching centrifuges to explode under high pressure, or at a certain date. Did it actually do it? There were reports that Iran’s uranium enrichment plant at the Natanz facility was attacked by Stuxnet and sustained damage. An earlier report suggested that in 2009 that site suffered a serious nuclear accident that reduced the number of uranium enriching centrifuges by at least 25%. Was Stuxnet the reason?
A Cyber War Against Iran: Whodunit?, THE HUFFINGTON POST, by Haggai Carmon:, 13 Oct 10, The Iranians are frantically looking for those responsible for infecting their nuclear and industrial facilities with Stuxnet, an extremely sophisticated and dangerous viral computer malworm………… Continue reading
American public opposes war on Iran
Americans against war on Iran: PressTV , 14 Oct 10, PollA new survey has shown that most Americans would not support US-lead attack on Iran, even if the country “tested a nuclear bomb or attacked Israel.”A quarter of respondents in 60 Minutes-Vanity Fair poll have said that “nothing” could make them “support a war with Iran.”The phone survey of 906 randomly selected participants in September showed that 25% of respondent would consent to an attack “only if Iran attacks US soil” or “if Iran attacks the US fleet in the Persian Gulf”.Around 24% of respondents said they would never support a war with Iran.Only 11 percent of respondents said they would support war if Iran tested a nuclear bomb.The US accuses Iran of following a military agenda under the guise of its civilian nuclear program, refusing to rule out military action on the country of more than 70 million people.Tehran rejects the charges, arguing that as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran has a right to the peaceful applications of nuclear technology.
Israel – don’t ask, don’t tell, about its nuclear weapons
Israel’s policy toward its nuclear secrets needs to change as well…….
Israel’s policy goes by the Hebrew word amimut, meaning vagueness, opacity or ambiguity. It is a turbo-charged version of “don’t ask, don’t tell.
Books of The Times – Avner Cohen’s ‘Worst-Kept Secret,’ Israel and the Bomb – NYTimes.com, by Ethan Bronner, 13 Oct 10, In 1986 a former technician in the Dimona nuclear reactor in Israel revealed to The Sunday Times of London everything he knew about Israel’s clandestine nuclear weapons program. It caused a worldwide sensation, with experts estimating Israel’s arsenal at more than 100 atom bombs. Continue reading
Nuclear regulators cutting corners on safety, just as oil regulators did
another case of regulators cutting corners to accommodate industry’s needs, just as the now-renamed and revamped Minerals and Management Service did for the oil and gas industry before the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Nuclear watchdog groups say corners cut on fire safety, Politics AP – MiamiHerald.com, By RENEE SCHOOF 14 Oct 10, WASHINGTON — Nuclear watchdog groups say that an internal report by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on fire safety at nuclear plants shows that regulators don’t have enough information to know whether its new fire rules will ensure safety…… Continue reading
majority in USA and Europe favour wind energy, but not nuclear
Opinions on building more nuclear power plants are more mixed and vary by country. The public is more or less equally divided in the U.S., Britain and France but clear majorities are opposed in Italy (60%), Spain (63%) and even more strongly in Germany (77%)…….
U.S., Europe back wind farms but split on nuclear power – Green House , 14 Oct 10,”……. The main findings of the poll, taken between Sept. 15 and 21, 2010, include: * Big majorities of the public in all six countries favor the building of more wind farms in their countries, varying from 90% in Spain and 87% in the U.S. to 77% in France. And large numbers of them favor it “strongly.” Continue reading
Just how much is President Obama beholden to the nuclear industry?
President Barack Obama has called for an increase to $54 billion in loan guarantees. The U.S. needs a “new generation of clean, safe nuclear power plants,” Obama said in his State of the Union address Jan. 27. …
The administration must weigh its support for nuclear power against limiting the risk that taxpayers will be stuck with the bill should a nuclear utility default,
Constellation Nuclear-Loan Pullout Tests Obama Resolve to Revive Industry, Bloomberg, By Jim Snyder and Katarzyna Klimasinska – Oct 13, 2010 A U.S. loan-guarantee program is testing how much risk the Obama administration is willing to take to revive the nuclear-power industry. Continue reading
India’s govt manipulating in the interests of USA nuclear firms
Ever since the bill was passed, the US administration has been pressing India to make certain modifications, particularly about certain aspects of unlimited liability. But, India is not keen on making any changes.
Law firms hired to allay US fears on N-liability bill – The Economic Times. 13 Oct 10, MUMBAI: Ahead of US President Barack Obama’s visit to India next month, the Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC) has engaged law firms to allay fears and apprehension of the US about the N-liability bill. Continue reading
Demolition of nuclear reactor – cost not mentioned
Westinghouse Begins Demolition of Retired Test Reactor Outer Structure at Waltz Mill Site Nuclear Power Industry News – , Oct 12 2010 – Edited By Chris Reed -Westinghouse Electric Company announced last week it has begun the demolition and removal of the retired test reactor outer structure at its Waltz Mill facility here. This project is part of the site’s continued remediation plans, which include decontamination or removal of structures and areas used as part of test reactor operations conducted from 1959 to 1962.
The test reactor vessel was previously removed in 2000; the remaining structure, a large, white-domed containment building used to house the test reactor, is not needed for current site operations.
No saving prospects for nuclear industry on the cliff edge
chaotic construction fiascos in Finland and Flamanville, France, have caused “trepidation” by the reactor industry as a whole,…..However it plays out, Constellation has dealt a body blow to the nuclear renaissance…..Pro-nuclear members of Congress may gather in December to demand more money and laxer terms for loan guarantees. But the apparent death of Calvert Cliffs has no upside for an industry on the brink.
Reactor “Renaissance” Flies off Another Cliff, By Harvey Wasserman, 12 Oct 10,
Maryland’s Calvert Cliffs nuke project is on the brink of cancellation. It’s potentially one of the most critical atomic failures in decades.
But financial markets love the nuke’s demise. The stock of its American partner—Constellation Energy—has soared with the apparent death of a project widely feared as a huge money-loser. Continue reading
Ratepayers, not shareholders, cop the cost of Georgia’s planned nuclear reactors
[Georgia’s nuclear] project is receiving other assistance that was not available to the Calvert Cliffs project: Construction Work in Progress financing, or CWIP. This is a scheme that allows Southern Company/Georgia Power to begin charging ratepayers for the reactors even before they’re built. Maryland law does not allow CWIP.
Nuclear project cancellation leaves Georgia standing alone, FACING SOUTH, 11 Oct 10, Apparently even billions of dollars in loan guarantees from the federal government are not enough to help the nuclear industry overcome the financial risks of building new reactors……. Continue reading
Nuclear power’s high costs make nuclear socialism essential
the all-in cost of a 2-gigawatt nuclear plant including financing running around $20 billion to $25 billion — in other words, $10 or more per watt. Financing costs are important to include because plants take years to erect: even a one percent loan on a $8 billion project adds up. As a result, the high price results in nuclear socialism, … because plants will always need state support.
How Much Does Nuclear Cost? $6,000 a Kilowatt or More, Greentech Media, 11 Oct 10, Constellation’s bid to get government backing sheds some light on the high cost of nuclear.
How much is that nuclear reactor in the window? Continue reading
Russia boosting nuclear sales – will take back radioactive wastes
Sergei Kiriyenko, a former prime minister, told reporters there that sales would triple by 2030, to $50 billion annually……Under legislation that might have been more difficult to push through a freer political system, Russia allows the importation of spent nuclear fuel from reactors elsewhere.
Russia Seeks to Build Europe’s Nuclear Plants – NYTimes.com, Rosatom, the Russian state-owned nuclear company, is competing with Westinghouse and Areva of France to build new reactors at the Temelin station in the Czech Republic.By ANDREW E. KRAMER October 11, 2010 MOSCOW — The Russian nuclear industry has profited handsomely from building reactors in developing countries, including India, China and Iran. Now it is testing the prospect of becoming a major supplier to the European Union, too…….. Continue reading
Complexity of shipping Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU)
These reactors are using highly enriched uranium fuel pure enough for a bomb. Since Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. government has grown increasingly worried that terrorists could steal the material or buy it. ….. these reactors aren’t very well guarded.
Nuclear Road Trip: Shipping Uranium A Complex Task, NPR, by Geoff Brumfiel, 11 Oct 10, A shipment of bomb-grade uranium arrived at a secure facility in Russia on Monday, sent from a research reactor in Poland as part of a race to secure dangerous radioactive material around the world. Continue reading
India govt doing a back door deal to subvert Nuclear Liability Bill?
Desperate to push through its nuclear energy programme, it would appear that the Indian government may try to push through back-door amendments to limit the liability of foreign suppliers in case of an accident.
(India) Govt set to dilute n-liability bill thru back door? domain-b.com news 11 October 2010 Science and technology minister Prithviraj Chavan’s latest comments seem to indicate that the government is not happy about the stringent nuclear liability rules forced down its throat in the wake of the pitiful Bhopal gas disaster verdict. Continue reading
New screening methods increase risk of breast cancer
both BSGI and PEM are linked with much higher breast cancer risk per screening than the risks associated with the mammography currently used and the cancer risk from the new methods is also found in other radiosensitive organs.
Be aware of radiation-induced breast cancer risk, foodconsumer.org – Pink News, 12 Oct 10, In October – the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, women are encouraged to receive annual breast cancer screening. Many women may not be aware though that mammography screening by itself can cause breast cancer. The radiation induced breast cancer risk is particularly higher from the newly approved screening instruments. Continue reading
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