Blogpost by jmckeati
- May 21, 2010 at 11:00 AM Add comment Nuclear
renaissance a myth
‘The recent past provides a glimpse of the
dangerous nature of confrontations governments
are getting into vis-à-vis their
citizenry, thanks to their obsessive pursuit
of predatory development projects. Take
Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, where the disaster
called Enron was
located. The government is preparing to
impose another Enron on Ratnagiri—this time,
a nuclear one, with potentially far worse
consequences. This is a “nuclear park”,
comprising six 1,600 mw reactors to be made
by France-based Areva.’
Bulgaria bags additional
decommissioning funds
‘The European Parliament (EP) has approved
a European Commission (EC) proposal to extend
its financial aid for the decommissioning
of four shut-down reactors at Bulgaria's
Kozloduy nuclear power plant until 2013.
Meanwhile, neighbouring Serbia is said to
be considering taking a stake in the proposed
new plant at Belene.’
DOE Backs 2nd Nuclear
Project with Loan Guarantee
‘Looks like the Department of Energy is
making good on its plan to dole out $54.5
billion in loan guarantees to build nuclear
power in the U.S. On Thursday afternoon
the DOE said it has offered a $2 billion
loan guarantee to French nuclear giant AREVA
to help it build its uranium enrichment
facility in Idaho that will provide uranium
services to the nuclear power industry.
Loan guarantees serve essentially as promises
by the government to back a loan if the
company can’t make good on it.’
Obama backs nuclear
energy loan guarantees
‘WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is
poised to ask Congress to agree to $9 billion
more in loan guarantees for the nuclear
energy industry, a Democratic aide said
Thursday, in a renewed push for nuclear
power as the growing oil spill in the Gulf
of Mexico highlights the risks of fossil
fuel production. At the insistence of Democratic
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California,
the request for more spending on nuclear
energy would be coupled with $9 billion
in loan guarantees for renewable energy
such as wind and solar, according to the
aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity.’
VY critics: Report just
‘varnish’
‘BRATTLEBORO -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s
Ground Water Monitoring Inspection Report
is nothing but "varnish," said
a critic of Entergy’s management of its
Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
"NRC takes a lot of words to say that
neither they nor Entergy has a clue how
vulnerable any aquifer that may lie below
or next to the VY site may be to pollution
from reactor water leaks," said Ray
Shadis, technical consultant for the New
England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution.
"The report amounts to paraphrasing
and repeating what Entergy told them."’
Russia invests N$8bn
in uranium sector
‘MOSCOW – Russia is ready to invest about
US$1 billion, nearly N$8 billion, to develop
uranium deposits in Namibia, Sergei Kiriyenko,
Chief Executive Officer of Rosatom, said
yesterday following talks between President
Hifikepunye Pohamba and his counterpart
Dmitry Medvedev.’
+ More
Nuclear News: UN Atomic
Chief Amano Warns That Nuclear Accidents
May Rise
Blogpost by jmckeati
- May 18, 2010 at 1:19 PM Add comment UN
Atomic Chief Amano Warns That Nuclear Accidents
May Rise
‘May 17 (Bloomberg) -- Nuclear accidents
may occur more often as atomic technology
spreads and countries build more reactors,
International Atomic Energy Agency Director
General Yukiya Amano said. "Member
states are considering the introduction
of nuclear power plants," Amano said
during a May 14 interview in his 28th-floor
office overlooking Vienna. "We cannot
exclude accidents. If there are more, we
have certain risks." The IAEA expects
as many as 25 nations to start developing
nuclear-power facilities by 2030. The total
global investment in building new atomic
plants is about $270 billion, the Arlington,
Virginia-based Pew Center on Global Climate
Change said on Feb. 17. The additional uranium
resources needed to power the reactors may
create security hazards for which the public
must prepare, said Amano, 63, a career diplomat.
Amano pointed to an April 9 incident in
India in which one person died and six others
were hospitalized after they came into contact
with a stray radioactive source mixed in
with scrap metal. The IAEA is concerned
that terrorists may try to use such lost
sources in an attack, he said.’
Rejection of proposed
India uranium mine
‘Plans to develop a uranium deposit within
the Balphakran National Park in Meghalaya
state, India, have been rejected by a federal
ministry because local authorities had failed
to prevent illegal coal mining in the area.
The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) had
sought approval from the Ministry of Environment
and Forests to conduct exploratory drilling
for uranium in the Garo Hill District. However,
at a recent meeting of its Standing Committee
of the National Board on Wildlife, the ministry
decided to reject the proposal. In a statement,
the committee said that, while acknowledging
India's urgent need to augment domestic
uranium supplies, it "took this decision
keeping in view of the sentiments of the
local people and a number of representations
received from local civil society groups."
During its meeting, the committee was presented
with a report by one of its members - Asad
Rahmani of the Bombay Natural History Society
- on illegal private coal mining around
the Balphakran National Park. Having visited
the area, he found that there were private
coal mines operating in Meghalaya state,
close to the Bangladesh border, in violation
of national environmental and mining regulations.’
Jaitapur villagers nuke
power project
‘Angry protesters, who had gathered in large
numbers, on Sunday made their opposition
known by stalling a public hearing by the
NPCIL. The matter is getting more and more
complicated as an NPCIL official has admitted
to holding back an environmental impact
assessment (EIA) report from villagers.
Apparently, the Nuclear Power Corporation
of India had distributed the English version
of the environmental impact assessment report
only in one village, keeping others in the
dark. The villagers argued that the hearing
can not be held when a majority of the project-affected
people have not been provided with an EIA.
This eventually led to the hearing process
being called off. As has been reported by
ET, the government so far has not been able
to mobilise enough land for the project
that will house six European-pressurised
water reactors (EPRs), each with a 1,600-mw
capacity. As per the initial plan, the project
is expected to come up in 938 hectares and
is likely to be completed by around 2020.
However, the opposition from the unyielding
villagers may throw the entire project off-track.
The villagers are upset with the government's
unilateral decision to take over their prized
tracts of land against a meagre compensation
which is based on March 2008 property rates.’
Non-Proliferation and
the Nuclear "Renaissance": The
Contribution and Responsibilities of the
Nuclear Industry
‘Introduction: With global demand for electricity
increasing rapidly and concerns over greenhouse-gas
emissions and energy security becoming national
priorities, both developed and developing
countries are looking to nuclear energy
as a means of providing a secure and scalable
source of low-carbon power. As existing
nuclear-power states prepare to replace
or expand their reactor fleets following
a decades-long lull in construction and
new countries seek to enter the marketplace,
the concept of a nuclear "renaissance"
has taken root. However, for all the opportunity
that a nuclear revival promises, there are
equally serious challenges. An expansion
of the civilian nuclear sector to include
new actors will bring with it a wider diffusion
of nuclear materials, technologies, and
knowledge at a time when the international
regulatory regime is struggling to cope
with existing security and safety concerns.
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons (NPT), the foundation of international
efforts to ensure nuclear non-proliferation,
is facing both institutional and operational
challenges with respect to current nuclear
activities. Any expansion of nuclear commerce
involving the spread of sensitive technologies
such as uranium enrichment and spent fuel
reprocessing will put additional pressure
on a fragile non-proliferation regime leading
to increased risks.’
Indonesia committed
to have nuclear power plant soon
‘JAKARTA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- 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. "The government
has allocated the fund in 2009. That is
a clear indication that the government is
ready to move to seize the opportunity,"
Minister for Research and Technology Suharna
Suryapranata told a parliamentary hearing.
He said that his ministry is given limited
authority for the project, just for preparation
of the power plant construction. However,
he said that Indonesia is ready to embrace
the technology as since its first preparation
in 1979 there has no single case that indicates
the government's incapability. "According
to our view, we are ready now and we are
waiting for the Ministry for Energy and
Mineral Resources to implement it, "
said the minister. He admitted that resistance
has emerged from various elements of people.’
U.S., allies critical
of new deal on Iran's nuclear program
‘Baku - APA. President Barack Obama indicated
Monday that he isn't satisfied with a deal
that Brazil and Turkey have negotiated with
Iran to send some of its nuclear fuel abroad
because it fails to address Tehran's refusal
to suspend its uranium enrichment program,
APA reports quoting "McClatchy Newspapers".
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs
issued a statement acknowledging the effort,
but he added that like Britain and France
, the U.S. would continue negotiations at
the U.N. Security Council on a resolution
imposing tougher sanctions on Iran . "The
proposal announced in Tehran must now be
conveyed clearly and authoritatively to
the IAEA before it can be considered by
the international community," Gibbs
said, referring to the U.N. International
Atomic Energy Agency. It would be a "positive
step" if Iran transferred low-enriched
uranium off its soil, Gibbs said. He noted,
however, the Iranian declaration Monday
that it intends to continue producing low-enriched
uranium in violation of U.N. Security Council
resolutions after an October deal collapsed.’
New era for nuclear
fleet
‘At the start of May, for the first time
in several years,the International Nuclear
Services Marine Terminal at Ramsden Dock,
Barrow, was quiet, with all its three specialist
vessels at sea. Two were on their way to
Japan with mixed oxide (Mox) fuel for power
stations. A third was in Japan, having just
returned a consignment of highly active
waste from Sellafield to the company which
originated it. This year has seen the start
of a decade of highly active waste (HAW)
shipments to Japan and Europe as part of
a deal which will see intermediate level
waste remain at Sellafield, while the most
radioactive waste will be returned to the
country of origin. For International Nuclear
Services (INS), business is entering a new
era with three new state of the art Pacific
Nuclear Transport Limited (PNTL) vessels
ordered for Barrow over the last few years.
One of the three vessels, the Pacific Heron,
was constructed by Mitsui Engineering and
Shipbuilding Co Ltd in Japan and delivered
to its home port in June 2008. It is currently
on its second voyage. Meanwhile the two
other PNTL vessels, the Pacific Egret and
the Pacific Grebe, have recently been launched
in Japan and will arrive in Barrow later
this year. The Heron cost £30m and
it is believed the three have cost around
£100m.’
For New Mexico, Nuclear
Waste May Be Too Hot To Handle
‘Tourists in New Mexico know the art galleries
of Santa Fe and the ski slopes of Taos,
but not the state's truly unique attraction:
the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. The Waste
Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, is a series
of caverns mined out of underground salt
beds. The Department of Energy has been
burying "transuranic" waste there
for 11 years. The waste includes gloves,
equipment and chemicals contaminated - probably
with plutonium - during the making of nuclear
weapons. It's dangerous stuff but fairly
easily handled. That's what WIPP was built
to take. But the federal government has
a lot of other really hot, high-level waste
to get rid of - especially spent fuel from
reactors.’
