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Essential to remove nuclear industry pressure from Radiation and Health Study

Beyond Nuclear, 22 May, 2010, The time for a full-scale bona-fide health study on the impacts of radiation exposure to communities downwind and downstream of US nuclear power facilities is long overdue. The responsibilities to assure that this study is fair and independent are immense.

Given the growing political promotion of nuclear power currently underway, the study’s development, execution and interpretation will no doubt be a tug-of-war. The effort for an independent health study on the impacts from nuclear power facilities raises many of the same questions that have dogged the nuclear industry from the exposure of “down winders” in St. George, Utah to atomic testing fallout, the communities around the Three Mile Island accident, the Massachusetts cancer study around the Pilgrim nuclear power plant and entire countries contaminated by the Chernobyl explosion.

One continuing focus among many will to be to monitor how the NAS policy will be applied to the review and vetting of hundreds of potential committee members for final committee selection. The recusal of Dr. Meserve with his obvious”impaired objectivity” is a good first step and welcome sign. However, the task to watchdog this massive government effort in the public interest is only beginning.

May 22, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, USA | antinuclear, cancer, nuclear, nuclear weapons, radiation, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Failures of AREVA’s, Westinghouse’s and Hitachi’s new nuclear reactors

Free nuclear advice for the Polish Energy Group , Greenpeace International by jmckeati – May 20, 2010 “…………The Polish Energy Group (PGE) wants to build two new nuclear reactors. Which designs are they considering? Oh dear. AREVA’s EPR, Westinghouse’s AP1000 and GE Hitachi’s ABWR and ESBWR……… Continue reading →

May 21, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, EUROPE | antinuclear, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, reactors, uranium, Westinghouse | Leave a comment

How to put it over the people about nuclear power

If nuclear power was really as safe, clean, cheap and reliable as its supporters insist, there’d be no need to ‘socialize’ anybody.

Socializing the dangers of nuclear power Greenpeace International, by jmckeati – May 18, 2010

Indonesia is committed to have a nuclear power plant soon as new source of energy, officials said here on Monday. For the purpose, Indonesia has allocated 7 billion rupiah (about 769,633 U.S. dollars) for nuclear power plant socialization to curb fear among people. Continue reading →

May 19, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Indonesia, spinbuster | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

It could be the water problem that finishes off the nuclear industry

“The best alternatives from a water perspective are wind and photovoltaics, that require effectively no water.”

Water Adds New Constraints to Power, NYTimes.com By ERICA GIES May 17, 2010 “……In the United States, thermoelectric power generation — mainly coal, nuclear and natural gas — accounted for 41 percent of U.S. freshwater withdrawals in 2005, U.S. Geological Society data show………..

But there is a growing awareness in California and throughout the United States that the use of water for energy generation may be reaching its limits.

California has extensive experience with water shortages, resulting in its adoption of a policy, included in the energy commission’s 2003 Integrated Energy Policy Report, that discourages freshwater use for power plant cooling…….“If you want to build a big central power plant, whether it’s oil, gas or nuclear, you can’t take the water for granted.” Continue reading →

May 18, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, water | antinuclear, AUSTRALIA, climate change, global warming, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, reactors, renewable energy, renewables, solar, uranium, water, wind | Leave a comment

UK’s nuclear plans hit by one blow after another

Another blow to nuclear plans, Ruscombe Green, 17 May 2010, “….new uncertainty over new nukes following the appointment of anti-nuclear Energy Secretary Chris Huhne. He has strengthened his assertion that new nuclear build will not receive any Government subsidies including in the event of a nuclear accident…….
Nuke-waste subsidy?
Chris Huhne may also be under pressure from anti-nuclear Lib-Dem colleagues to examine other potential aspects of Government subsidy Continue reading →

May 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Switch from uranium mining to wind farming in New Mexico

VIDEO NM uranium capital turns to wind energy

NM uranium capital turns to wind energy | Mount Taylor, N.M. | KRQE News 13

KRQE News 13, 16 May 2010, MOUNT TAYLOR, N.M. (KRQE) – A part of New Mexico that was once one of the world’s major sources of uranium is about to become a major supplier of wind energy……The Cibola County Commission officially endorsed the project this week. Continue reading →

May 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, USA | antinuclear, climate change, energy efficiency, nuclear, nuclear costs, reactors, renewable energy, renewables, uranium, wind | Leave a comment

Nuclear power: far from a done deal in UK

Nuclear or no nuclear….the first dispute for the UK’s newly elected Cameron-Clegg coalition, The Energy Collectiev, 14 May 2010,”……….. A major dispute already facing our new parliament in the first day of office is that of nuclear energy. Whilst the Tories are supportive of building nuclear power stations, the Liberal Democrats are against this. Simon Hughes, energy spokesperson for Liberal Democrats states that “A new generation of nuclear power stations will be a colossal mistake, regardless of where they are built. They are hugely expensive, dangerous and will take too long to build.”(Source: Guardian Environment, 11-May-10)

Nuclear or no nuclear….the first dispute for the UK’s newly elected Cameron-Clegg coalition

May 15, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Uranium mining prevented in Indian National Park

Uranium mining blocked,The Telegraph – Calcutta (Kolkata), New Delhi, May 14: A national panel of wildlife experts today rejected a proposal from the department of atomic energy for uranium exploration on the Rongcheng plateau in Meghalaya’s South Garo Hills.The standing committee of the National Board of Wildlife decided to reject the proposal for exploratory drilling in view of the sentiments of the local people and representations from civil society groups, the environment ministry said.

The Rongcheng plateau falls in the Balpakram National Park, home to elephants, black bear, leopards, deer and the red panda, one of the rarest animals in the world.Several green groups and NGOs have campaigned against a proposal for exploratory drilling, arguing that it would harm the bio-diversity in the park. The Telegraph – Calcutta (Kolkata) | Nation | Uranium mining blocked

May 15, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, India | antinuclear, nuclear, radiation, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Wake up America, to the pro-nuclear, pro polluting Climate Bill!

Kerry-Lieberman “climate” bill represents massive taxpayer giveaway to dirty, dangerous and expensive energy industries, BeyondNuclear, 14 May 2010, The Kerry-Lieberman “American Power Act” released today would massively subsidize the expansion of the atomic energy industry, at taxpayer financial risk and direct expense. It would similarly benefit the offshore oil drilling industry, despite the catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico, as well as the coal industry, despite the recent deadly mine explosion in West Virginia. As pointed out by the Energy Collective, the bill clearly prioritizes nuclear energy’s expansion, while renewables and efficiency seem to be a mere afterthought. As reported by Democracy Now!, numerous environmental groups expressed immediate opposition. Please call your U.S. Senators via the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121, to oppose the “paltry” climate protections and large-scale taxpayer giveaways to the nuclear power, oil, and coal industries contained in the Kerry-Lieberman “American Power Act.”Beyond Nuclear – Home – Kerry-Lieberman “climate” bill represents massive taxpayer giveaway to dirty, dangerous and expensive energy industries

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, climate change, nuclear, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

Nuclear power radiation shown to cause damaging insect mutations

“Such a low but long-lasting dose of radiation can be far more damaging than a short-term high dose,”

Nuclear Power Critter Mutations, 13 May 2010, Natural Resonance Revolution Conventional wisdom holds that nuclear power stations don’t leak enough radiation to create malformed organisms. But in some locations, Hesse-Honegger discovered mutations — curtailed feelers, misshapen legs, asymmetrical wings — in as many as 30 percent of the bugs she gathered. That’s 10 times the overall rate of about 3 percent for insects found in the wild. Continue reading →

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, environment | antinuclear, nuclear, radioactive, reactors | 1 Comment

The myth of nuclear power’s “rebirth” in USA

Nuclear Loan Guarantees Will Meet State Resistance, Connecticut News, May 13, 2010 , by Jonathan Kantrowitz It was front-page news across America this February when the Vermont Senate voted to shut down the troubled Vermont Yankee reactor in 2012. But what most Americans don’t know is that the nuclear industry also lost all of its seven other major state legislative pushes this year – going 0-8 and putting yet another nail in the coffin of the myth of the “nuclear renaissance” in the United States, according to an analysis by the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS). Continue reading →

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear technology, reactors, renewable energy, renewables | Leave a comment

Nuclear power plants might be shut down in Germany

Poll defeat may hamper Merkel’s nuclear extension plans Deutsche Welle, 13.05.2010 Reuters Editor: Sonia Phalnikar Chancellor Merkel’s center-right government may have to rethink plans to extend the lifecycle of Germany’s nuclear plants after a defeat in a key regional election. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition government of Christian Democrats (CDU) and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) may be forced to reassess plans to run Germany’s nuclear power plants well past their scheduled shutdown dates.A defeat in a regional election in the state of North-Rhine Westphalia last Sunday robbed Merkel of a majority in the upper house of Germany’s parliament. That limits the chancellor’s ability to extend the lifespan of nuclear-power plants. Poll defeat may hamper Merkel’s nuclear extension plans | Environment & Development | Deutsche Welle | 13.05.2010

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Germany, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, reactors | Leave a comment

Britain’s nuclear industry in trouble now

Britain’s nuclear industry wakes up to an explosive problem as Chris Huhne moves in – Telegraph Blogs, 14 May 2010, “…………there remains a sizeable threat that the Liberals could force a time-consuming and costly public inquiry that delays the new build. The idea that Chris Huhne will have to formulate regulatory policy and set out a timetable for nuclear is likely to be a considerable worry. Most destabilising is the fact that policy will probably not be clear for some time, for Mr Huhne is going to have to square his Department’s theoretical support for nuclear with his own views (in a previous speech on energy) that: “No private sector investor has built a nuclear power station anywhere in the world without lashings of government subsidy since Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. The World Bank refuses to lend on nuclear projects because of the long history of overruns. Our message is clear, No to nuclear, as it is not a short cut, but a dead end.” Britain’s nuclear industry wakes up to an explosive problem as Chris Huhne moves in – Telegraph Blogs

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | general | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radiation, reactors | Leave a comment

Britain’s nuclear power huge investment needed without govt subsidy

Mr Huhne yesterday reiterated his sceptical position about new reactors, telling BBC News that they would go ahead only if energy companies were prepared to invest without any new government subsidy, and warning: “No new nuclear power station has been built without new public subsidy for a very long time.”

Billions likely to be spent on nuclear power, FT.com, By Ed Crooks, Energy editor May 14 2010 Tens of billions of pounds of investment in new nuclear power stations can still go ahead, in spite of the appointment of the Liberal Democrats’ Chris Huhne as energy secretary, industry executives said yesterday. Continue reading →

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK | antinuclear, energy efficiency, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

Nuclear industry rebuffed: Arizona, Illinois, Kentucky, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin

In practice, affordable power and long-term waste disposal are two requirements that nuclear power is incapable of meeting

Nuclear Loan Guarantees Will Meet State Resistance, Connecticut News, May 13, 2010 , by Jonathan Kantrowit “…….The following is an overview of the nuclear industry’s failed state legislative efforts in 2010:

• Arizona. SolarCity, Kyocera Solar, Inc. and Suntech Power Holdings joined with other solar energy providers in February to warn that if Arizona House Bill 2701 (HB 2701) was passed into law, it would have jeopardized Arizona’s entire renewable energy industry. Continue reading →

May 14, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, USA | antinuclear, energy efficiency, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, reactors, renewable energy, renewables | Leave a comment