radiation « nuclear-news

Continuing protests against NASA’s radiation tests on monkeys

“NASA prides itself on looking to the future, but when it comes to crude and cruel animal experiments, the agency is stuck in the Dark Ages,”

PETA to hold protest at NASA Ames against monkey experiment – San Jose Mercury News By Diana Samuels Daily News Staff Writer : 01/28/2010

A half-dozen people dressed in monkey masks and locked inside small cages plan to demonstrate in front of NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field today, protesting radiation experiments on primates. Continue reading →

January 30, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Obama understands that nuclear power is neither safe nor clean

Indeed, Obama knows better. Candidate Obama understood that nuclear power is neither safe nor clean. Watch this video taken early in his presidential campaign,

Nuclear Information and Resource Service Michael Mariotte 28 Jan 2010 If you were watching last night’s State of the Union address, I’m sure you were as appalled as I was when President Obama suddenly spoke in support of “safe, clean nuclear power” (not to mention support for offshore oil drilling and “clean” coal).

Politically, Obama likely was simply parroting the effort being led by Sens. John Kerry, Joe Lieberman and Lindsay Graham to gain support for a climate bill by adding massive subsidies for nuclear power, offshore oil and “clean” coal. But recycling George W. Bush energy talking points is no way to solve the climate crisis or develop a sustainable energy policy.

Indeed, Obama knows better. Candidate Obama understood that nuclear power is neither safe nor clean. Watch this video taken early in his presidential campaign, in which he expresses concern for his daughters growing up in Chicago and surrounded by nuclear reactors. He says he is not a nuclear proponent and speaks out directly against taxpayer subsidies for nuclear power…www.nirs.org

January 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Young Americans want clean jobs, not dirty nuclear power

Dirty talk in SOTU: why my generation’s jobs must be clean The Huffington Post Jessy Tolkan 28 Jan 2010 “….After outlasting the Bush Administration’s team of deniers over the last decade, it’s a victory that Team Obama has identified the need to solve the climate and energy crisis as the path to securing our nation’s future. Continue reading →

January 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | climate change, general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive, reactors, renewables, solar | Leave a comment

AREVA and INB’s false claims on radioactive drinking water wells

Why do nuclear companies always start by denying there is a problem, when there is a problem, only admitting it when there is a lot of pressure hoping the issue is already forgotten? For years AREVA denied the problems in Niger and now in Brazil! With such track record do they really expect us to believe anything they say?

Hot’ drinking water near uranium mine in Brazil Continue reading →

January 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, SOUTH AMERICA | antinuclear, AREVA, France, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Doubts about AREVA and the future of France’s nuclear power empire

Areva reshuffles ops to stave off split-up PARIS, Jan 28 (Reuters) – French nuclear reactor maker Areva (CEPFi.PA) announced a reorganisation of its businesses on Thursday, in a move aimed to shore up its credentials as an integrated nuclear power provider that cannot be split apart.

The embattled state-owned company said it was reshuffling operations to improve synergies and customer satisfaction.

Areva has recently come under fire for losing a multi-billion euro contract to build nuclear reactors in Abu Dhabi in part because it did not tailor its offer to meet local needs.

The company has also struggled to finish a project to build next generation nuclear reactors in Finland and is embroiled in legal proceedings with its partner there over delays and cost overruns……….President Nicolas Sarkozy has commissioned Francois Roussely, the former head of EDF (EDF.PA), to produce an analysis on the future of the French nuclear industry. The report is due by the end of April. (Reporting by Nina Sovich; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)…http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLDE60R0QQ20100128

January 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | France, politics | antinuclear, AREVA, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Vermont nuclear reactor’s future? Legislators unhappy about radiation leaks

Radiation Levels Cloud Vermont reactor’s Fate The New York Times January 27, 2010 By MATTHEW L. WALD

Levels of radioactive tritium have risen rapidly in recent weeks in the groundwater surrounding Vermont’s sole nuclear power plant, leading both longtime supporters and foes of the reactor to question whether it will be allowed to keep operating…….the rising radiation levels, an indication that reactor water is leaking into the soil, have stirred deep concern about the plant’s safety and the credibility of its operators……

Dozens of reactors around the country have had their 40-year licenses extended by 20 years without much debate. Under the Atomic Energy Act, such decisions are usually the sole purview of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

But Vermont struck a deal with Entergy when it bought the plant in 2002 that gave legislators a veto role. An official with the federal nuclear commission noted that if the state blocked a license renewal, Entergy could file a court challenge.

Vermont Yankee is the largest generator of power in Vermont. But New England’s power grid has a surplus of electricity because of the recession. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/business/energy-environment/28nuclear.html

January 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Local councils rule out new nuclear plants

Cumbria councillors say they are concerned about how and where waste from any new nuclear station would be stored.

Council rules out Cumbria greenbelt land nuclear sites Councillors in Cumbria have come out against plans which could see new nuclear power stations built on greenbelt land. BBC News 27 Jan 2010 Continue reading →

January 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Nuclear contamination from Tritium – dangerous and super-costly to fix

the Environmental Protection Agency’s tritium standards are far too liberal…..the real focus should be on tritium and the nuclear industry’s continued release of the isotope into the environment,

Expert: No level of tritium safe Times Argus By DANIEL BARLOW Vermont Press Bureau : January 27, 2010 MONTPELIER – The federal government may have set a safe drinking water standard for tritium, but no amount of that radioactive isotope, which is now leaking from the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, is safe, according to a national expert. Continue reading →

January 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Colorado bill will force uranium mills to clean up

“Taxpayers have given a one billion dollar bailout to uranium companies to clean up past mill sites, just in the state of Colorado,”s.hauser@krdo.com

Bill Announced To Crack Down On Uranium Mills NEWSCHANNEL 13 by Sean Hauser Jan 27, 2010 FREMONT COUNTY – A major bill was announced in Canon City Tuesday to deliver a message to Uranium Mills in Colorado that enough is enough. Continue reading →

January 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Lack of proper rules on radiation medical errors

the number of errors may be massively underreported due to a lack of enforcement of reporting requirements.

Severe and Fatal Radiation Medical Errors Often Unreported – AboutLawsuits.com January 27th, 2010 Medical errors from the use of radiation therapy can lead to severe and sometimes fatal injuries, Continue reading →

January 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, radiation | Leave a comment

Utah’s heavy burden from uranium

Depleted uranium gets more and more hazardous for at least 1 million years. In contrast, most of the Class A waste at the Utah site is supposed to pose virtually no radiation risk after 100 years………..

Public largely critical of depleted uranium disposal – State has already borne a heavy burden from the nuclear industry, one Utahn says. By Judy FahysThe Salt Lake Tribune: 01/26/2010 Utah’s depleted uranium regulations should ensure no harm will come to the public or the environment as long as the waste remains dangerous — and that, said some Utahns on Tuesday, means the radioactive waste does not belong in a shallow disposal site in western Utah. Continue reading →

January 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, wastes | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Call for UN to investigate Israel’s use of depleted uranium in Gaza

Israel Uses Depleted Uranium against Palestinians in Gaza TEHRAN (FNA) 24 Jan 2010 – A London-based Palestinian activist announced that the buildings damaged in the Gaza Strip after the Israeli onslaught last year all showed signs of contamination with depleted uranium. Continue reading →

January 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | depleted uranium, Israel | antinuclear, depleted, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Australian aboriginal nuclear victims have Cherie Blair on their case

Cherie Blair to work on SA compensation case ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) 25 Jan 2010
The wife of the former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, will represent five Aboriginies seeking compensation for ill health caused by nuclear testing in South Australia’s outback during the 1950s.

The claimants include relatives of people who have died since the nuclear testing at Maralinga. Continue reading →

January 25, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | indigenous issues | antinuclear, AUSTRALIA, nuclear, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Worker exposed to radioactive substance at German nuclear plant

Worker exposed to radioactive substance at German nuclear plant Earth Times 22 Jan 2010 Muenster, Germany – A worker has been accidentally exposed to a radioactive substance, uranium hexafluoride, at a uranium enrichment plant in Gronau in northern Germany, officials said Friday…..The Urenco company gave no details on how the substance escaped in the container preparation unit at Germany’s only enrichment plant on Thursday…..The plant enriches uranium for use in nuclear-power reactors. Anti-nuclear groups have vainly called for it to be closed.

January 24, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Aging Vermont Yankee nuclear plant – a hazard to public health

Beyond Nuclear 22 Jan 2010 Entergy Nuclear has betrayed the trust of the lawmakers, regulators, and citizens of Vermont. Simultaneous with its revelation of radioactivity leaks on site, Vermont Yankee spokespeople engaged in a predictable campaign to downplay the health and safety risks of tritium. However, tritium can impact the human body right down to the DNA level, and can cross the placenta from mother to fragile fetus. At such intimate levels, tritium can and does damage human health, leading to cancer, genetic damage, birth defects, and other maladies. The National Academy of Science has reported consistently over the decades that any exposure to radioactivity, no matter how low the dose, still carries a health risk. As reactors age – and Vermont Yankee is nearly 40 years old – its systems, structures and components degrade, worsening tritium leaks from buried piping. Vermont Yankee’s license should not be extended 20 additional years.