***************************************************************** 01/08/04 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 12.6 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** Send News Stories to news@energy-net.org with title on subject line and first line of body NUCLEAR POLICY 1 [EMMAS] New Report/WMD IN IRAQ - Evidence and Implications 2 IPS-English POLITICS: Report Rebuts U.S.' Pre-War WMD Claims 3 U.S. Withdraws 400 WMD Hunters in Iraq 4 [progchat_action] Blair WMD Claim Dismissed By America 5 BBC: Iraq weapons report draws another blank 6 FT: US to defend WMD assessments 7 Guardian Unlimited: Hutton in five easy steps 8 Las Vegas SUN: Powell Refutes Think-Tank Report on Iraq 9 ITAR-TASS: Russian Minister of Atomic Energy to visit Teheran 10 Korea Herald: Freeze on N.K. nuclear program is imperative 11 China Daily: China working for early second six-party talks 12 ITAR-TASS: US delegation may visit NKorea's Yongbyon nuclear center 13 ITAR-TASS: Russia praises NKorea intention to freeze nuclear program 14 War Wire: China welcomes NKorean nuclear freeze move, says gaps narr 15 US: Daily Star: Mini-nukes and the international community 16 US: CS Monitor: Following the nuclear trail 17 IAEA Wants Libya Nuke Intelligence Shared 18 IPS-English MIDEAST: Nuclear Spotlight Shifts from Libya to 19 Guardian Unlimited: Carnegie group says Bush 20 IPS MIDEAST: Nuclear Spotlight Shifts from Libya to Israel 21 GN Online: Time for Bush to check Israel's nuclear facilities 22 Pakistan Times: 'No Nuke-Technology attained from Pakistani NUCLEAR REACTORS 23 US: Knox News: TVA requests reactor renewals 24 US: Toledo Blade: Key inspection at Davis-Besse put on hold 25 US: JOURNAL NEWS: Indian Point 3 workers prepare for strike 26 ITAR-TASS: Latvia, Lithuania cooperate in field of nuclear security 27 US: PCC: Bondi directed not to sign Indian Point Emergency Evacuatio 28 US: ONN: FirstEnergy Corp. Asks Regulators to Delay Plant Inspection 29 US: NRC: NRC Announces the Availability of License Renewal Applicati NUCLEAR SAFETY 30 [Fwd: Re: [du-list] Honeywell doubts problems from leak] 31 US: DON'T MAKE OUR CHILDREN GUINEA PIGS - URGE THE SF SCHOOL BOARD 32 [du-list] Re: depleted uranium 33 [du-list] U/DU & birth defect 34 US: NRC: Notice of Renewal of Material License SNM-1168 for Framatom 35 US: The Herald: Public meeting to explain iodine tablet distribution 36 ITAR-TASS: Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan register up to 3,000 earthquakes a NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 37 US: AU SMH: Antinuclear accusation clouds mining rebuke 38 US: Salt Lake Tribune: More trouble ahead for Goshutes 39 JoongAng Daily: ¡®No Seoul nuclear dump' 40 US: business.iafrica.com: business news Aflease to exploit uranium 41 US: Tri-City Herald: Proponents of a citizen initiative to limit nuc 42 US: SLOTrib: Planners will get lesson in storage of nuclear waste 43 Korea Herald: SNU professors in nuke dump drama 44 US: NJ Online: GEMS at center of EPA, state tug-of-war 45 heraldtribune.com: Imported uranium incorrectly sent to N.C. plant 46 Russia Journal Daily: Russia ousted from nuclear waste market 47 US: STLtoday: Rain floods radioactive waste site next to Lambert Fie 48 US: UK Independent: Protesters Meet First Radioactive Shipments Into 49 BulletinWire News: Energy Department fumbling Yucca application 50 US: KLAS: Nuke Waste Travel Route NUCLEAR WEAPONS US DEPT. OF ENERGY 51 Gallup Independent: Bluewater uranium piles found to be OK again 52 Albuquerque Tribune: Cash for cleanups OTHER NUCLEAR 53 Google News Alert - nuclear 54 Guardian Unlimited: It shouldn't happen to a 55 Times and Democrat: Nuclear power could play key role in space ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** FULL NEWS STORIES ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** 1 [EMMAS] New Report/WMD IN IRAQ - Evidence and Implications Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 23:18:10 -0600 (CST) http://www.ceip.org/files/Publications/IraqSummary.asp?from=pubdate WMD IN IRAQ Evidence and Implications Summary of New Carnegie Report WMD in IRAQ: Evidence and Implications, a new study from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, details what the U.S. and international intelligence communities understood about Iraq's weapons programs before the war and outlines policy reforms to improve threat assessments, deter transfer of WMD to terrorists, strengthen the UN weapons inspection process, and avoid politicization of the intelligence process. The report distills a massive amount of data into side-by-side comparisons of pre-war intelligence, the official presentation of that intelligence, and what is now known about Iraq's programs. The authors of the report are: Jessica T. Mathews, president; George Perkovich, vice president for studies, and Joseph Cirincione, senior associate and non-proliferation project director of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS Changes to U.S. Policy 7 Revise the National Security Strategy to eliminate a U.S. policy of unilateral preventive war, i.e., preemptive war in absence of imminent threat. 7 Create a nonpartisan, independent commission to establish a clearer picture of what the intelligence community knew and believed it knew about Iraq's weapons program. 7 Consider changing the post of Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) from a political appointment to a career appointment, based on the outcomes of the independent commission. 7 Make the security of poorly protected nuclear weapons and stockpiles of plutonium and highly enriched uranium a much higher priority for national security policy. International Action 7 The United States and United Nations should together produce a complete history and inventory of Iraq's WMD and missile programs. 7 The UN Secretary General should commission a high-level analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the WMD inspection processes in Iraq, and how inspections could be strengthened in the future. 7 The UN Security Council should consider creating a permanent, international, nonproliferation inspection capability. 7 Make the transfer of WMD a violation of international law. Changes to Threat Assessments 7 Recognize distinctions in the degree of threat posed by the different forms of "weapons of mass destruction" - chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons pose vastly different risks and cost-benefit calculations of actions to combat them. 7 Recognize red flags indicating that sound intelligence practices are not being followed. 7 Examine and debate the assertion that the combined threat of evil states and terrorism calls for acting on the basis of worst-case reasoning. 7 Examine assumption that states will likely transfer WMD to terrorists. SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS Iraq WMD Was Not An Immediate Threat 7 Iraq's nuclear program had been suspended for many years; Iraq focused on preserving a latent, dual-use chemical and probably biological weapons capability, not weapons production. 7 Iraqi nerve agents had lost most of their lethality as early as 1991. 7 Operations Desert Storm and Desert Fox, and UN inspections and sanctions effectively destroyed Iraq's large-scale chemical weapon production capabilities. Inspections Were Working 7 Post-war searches suggest the UN inspections were on track to find what was there. 7 International constraints, sanctions, procurement, investigations, and the export/import control mechanism appear to have been considerably more effective than was thought. Intelligence Failed and Was Misrepresented 7 Intelligence community overestimated the chemical and biological weapons in Iraq. 7 Intelligence community appears to have been unduly influenced by policymakers' views. 7 Officials misrepresented threat from Iraq's WMD and ballistic missiles programs over and above intelligence findings. Terrorist Connection Missing 7 No solid evidence of cooperative relationship between Saddam's government and Al Qaeda. 7 No evidence that Iraq would have transferred WMD to terrorists-and much evidence to counter it. 7 No evidence to suggest that deterrence was no longer operable. Post-War WMD Search Ignored Key Resources 7 Past relationships with Iraqi scientists and officials, and credibility of UNMOVIC experts represent a vital resource that has been ignored when it should be being fully exploited. 7 Data from the seven years of UNSCOM/IAEA inspections are absolutely essential. Direct involvement of those who compiled the more-than-30-million- page record is needed. War Was Not the Best-Or Only-Option 7 There were at least two options preferable to a war undertaken without international support: allowing the UNMOVIC/IAEA inspections to continue until obstructed or completed, or imposing a tougher program of "coercive inspections." Download the report at www.ceip.org/WMD or contact Maura Keaney at 202-939-2372 or mkeaney@ceip.org. ========= *** NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.*** ################################################################# " Social and economic well-being will become a reality only through the zeal, courage, the non-compromising determination of intelligent minorities, and not through the mass." Emma Goldman To SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE to the emmasdance list send email to with the message subscribe/unsubscribe emmasdance. [No subject is needed.] "If I can not dance, I want no part in your revolution." Emma Goldman ################################################################# ***************************************************************** 2 IPS-English POLITICS: Report Rebuts U.S.' Pre-War WMD Claims Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2004 12:29:06 -0800 ROMAIPS NA IK MM IP POLITICS: Report Rebuts U.S.' Pre-War WMD Claims By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (IPS) - The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush ''systematically misrepresented'' the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (WMD), three non-proliferation experts from a prominent think tank charged Thursday. In a 107-page report, Jessica Mathews, Joseph Cirincione and George Perkovich of the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) called for the creation of an independent commission to fully investigate what the U.S. intelligence community knew, or believed it knew, about Iraq's WMD programme from 1991 to 2003. The probe should also determine whether intelligence analyses were tainted by foreign intelligence agencies or political pressure, they added. ''It is very likely that intelligence officials were pressured by senior administration officials to conform their threat assessments to pre-existing policies,'' Cirincione told reporters. The Carnegie analysts also found ''no solid evidence'' of a co-operative relationship between the government of ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and the al-Qaeda terrorist group, nor any evidence to support the claim that Iraq would have transferred WMD to al-Qaeda under any circumstances. ''The notion that any government would give its principal security assets to people it could not control in order to achieve its own political aims is highly dubious,'' they wrote. In addition the report, 'WMD in Iraq: Evidence and Implications', concluded that the United Nations inspection process, which was aborted when the agency withdrew its inspectors on the eve of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq last March, ''appears to have been much more successful than recognised before the war''. The report, the most comprehensive public analysis so far of the administration's WMD claims and what has been found in Iraq, will certainly heat up the simmering controversy over whether Bush and his top aides might have deliberately misled Congress and the public into going to war. While that controversy has cooled since last month's capture of Saddam and a palpable rise in the military's confidence that it can subdue the bloody insurgency against the occupation, two congressional committees are only now resuming their own probes of U.S. pre-war intelligence on WMD, which were interrupted by the long Christmas recess. The report also comes amid new indications that the administration itself has decided that its pre-war claims about Iraq's WMD were wrong. The 'New York Times' reported Thursday that a 400-member military team has been quietly withdrawn from the 1,400-member Iraq Survey Group (ISG) that has spent months scouring Iraq at a cost of nearly one billion dollars for any evidence of such weapons. That report followed another in mid-December that said ISG head David Kay had told his superiors at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) he planned to leave as early as the end of January. Kay, a former U.N. inspector who had long charged Saddam with holding vast supplies of WMD, submitted an interim report last October that no weapons had been found. ''I think it's pretty clear by now that they don't expect to find anything at all,'' said one administration official. The Carnegie report also comes on the heels of the publication Wednesday of an extraordinarily lengthy article by the 'Washington Post' that concluded that Iraq's WMD programmes were effectively abandoned after the 1991 Gulf War. The article, which confirmed that Iraq was developing new missile technology, was based on interviews with the country's top weapons scientists and mostly unnamed U.S. and British investigators who went to Iraq after the war. The new report is likely to be taken as the most serious blow yet to the administration's credibility. Carnegie is the publisher of 'Foreign Policy' journal, and, while its general political orientation is slightly left of centre, it has long been studiously non-partisan, and also houses right-wing figures, such as neo-conservative writer Robert Kagan. Carnegie President Mathews travelled to Iraq last September as part of a bi-partisan group of highly respected national-security analysts invited by the Pentagon to assess the situation there. The report, which is based on declassified documents about Iraq from U.N. weapons inspectors and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), reaches a similar conclusion regarding both WMD and the missiles, but is much broader in scope. It concedes that Iraq's WMD programmes could have resumed and might have posed a long-term threat that could not be ignored. But, the authors wrote, ''they did not pose an immediate threat to the United States, to the region or to global security". Despite Vice President Dick Cheney's insistence early last year that Iraq had reconstituted its nuclear weapons programme, the Carnegie report concludes there was ''no convincing evidence'' that it had done so, and that this should have been known to U.S. intelligence. Similarly, with respect to Baghdad's chemical weapons, U.S. intelligence should have known that all facilities for producing them had been effectively destroyed and that existing stockpiles had lost their potency already by 1991. Uncertainties regarding Iraq's biological weapons programme were greater, the report concludes. Dual-use equipment and facilities, however, made it theoretically possible for some limited production of both chemical and biological weapons to occur. As of the beginning of 2002, according to the report, the intelligence community appears to have overestimated the chemical and biological weapons in Iraq, but had a generally accurate picture of both the nuclear and missile programmes. But in 2002 the community appears to have made a ''dramatic shift'' in its analyses. The fact that this change coincided with the creation of the Office of Special Plans (OSP) in the Pentagon -- a still-mysterious group of intelligence analysts and consultants hired by prominent hawks to assess the community's reporting -- ''suggests that the intelligence community began to be unduly influenced by policymakers' views some time in 2002'', the report states. But beyond the failures of the intelligence community, ''administration officials systematically misrepresented the threat from Iraq's WMD and ballistic missile programmes'' in several ways, it adds. They treated the three different kinds of WMD as a single threat when they represented very different threats; insisted without evidence that Saddam would give whatever WMD he had to terrorists; and routinely omitted ''caveats, probabilities, and expressions of uncertainty present in intelligence assessments from (their) public statements''. In addition, the administration misrepresented findings by U.N. inspectors ''in ways that turned threats from minor to dire''. The report goes on to rebut a number of other administration claims, arguing, for example, that the notion that Saddam was not "deterrable" does not stand up to the historical record, given his past reaction to international pressure. The strategic implications of the failure of U.S. intelligence to provide accurate information on Iraq, when there was no imminent threat, should call into question the administration's new national security doctrine of pre-emptive military action, say the authors. As applied in Iraq, the ''doctrine is actually a loose standard for preventive war under the cloak of legitimate pre-emption'', they wrote, and should be rescinded. In a brief reaction, Secretary of State Colin Powell said he remained ''confident'' of the claims he presented to the U.N. Security Council last February. At the same time, he stressed that they represented the views of the intelligence community. ''I was representing them,'' he said. ''It was information they had presented publicly, and they stand behind it''. ***** +Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (http://www.ceip.org/files/Publications/IraqReport3.asp?from=pubdate) +U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee (http://intelligence.senate.gov/030620.htm) (END/IPS/IK/MM/NA/IP/JL/ML/04) = 01082349 ORP015 NNNN ***************************************************************** 3 U.S. Withdraws 400 WMD Hunters in Iraq Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 11:36:36 -0600 (CST) U.S. Withdraws 400 WMD Hunters in Iraq The U.S. has withdrawn from Iraq a 400-member team who had been searching for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. The New York Times reports the government has now spent seven months and hundreds of millions of dollars in the failed hunt. One weapons hunter said the team is "still waiting for something to dispose of." The Washington Post is reporting that no evidence has emerged that showed Iraq maintained or tried to develop illegal weapons after the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Report: Bush "Systematically Misrepresented" Iraq Threat And a new report by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace concluded the Bush administration "systematically misrepresented" the threat from Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. In other news from Iraq, one U.S. soldier died and 34 more wounded during a mortar attack on their base north of Baghdad. Top Iraqi Cleric Criticizes U.S. Handover Plans Iraq's top Shi'ite Muslim cleric charged Wednesday that U.S. plans for a handover of power to Iraqis was unfair and that it would not "ensure in any way the fair representation of the Iraqi people." http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/01/08/1519250 Headlines from Democracy Now! Watch, listen, or read online www.DemcoracyNow.org = = = = STILL FEELING LIKE THE MAINSTREAM U.S. CORPORATE MEDIA IS GIVING A FULL HONEST PICTURE OF WHAT'S GOING ON? = = = = Daily online radio show, news reporting: www.DemocracyNow.org More news: UseNet's misc.activism.progressive (moderated) = = = = Sorry, we cannot read/reply to most usenet posts but welcome email For more information: http://EconomicDemocracy.org/wtc/ (peace) And http://EconomicDemocracy.org/ (general) ANTI-SPAM EMAIL NOTE: For email "info" and "map" don't work. Email instead to m-a-i-l-m-a-i-l (without the dashes) at economicdemocracy.org ***************************************************************** 4 [progchat_action] Blair WMD Claim Dismissed By America Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 11:39:50 -0600 (CST) December 28, 2003 lndependent/UK Blair's WMD Claim Dismissed by America's Baghdad Chief by Raymond Whitaker Claims by Tony Blair and George Bush that the threat of weapons of mass destruction justified the war in Iraq were looking increasingly threadbare last night. The Prime Minister's allegation that British and American weapons hunters had unearthed "massive evidence of a huge system of clandestine laboratories" in Iraq was dismissed by Paul Bremer, America's most senior official in Baghdad. And as he left for Libya yesterday at the head of a team from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), its director general, Mohamed ElBaradei, said the country did not appear to have been close to building a nuclear weapon, as London and Washington claimed. The supposed danger from Saddam Hussein's WMD was central to the Government's case for war in Iraq, but despite months of work, the Iraq Survey Group, headed by David Kay, has all but given up hope of finding them. Mr Blair has remained undaunted, insisting that the evidence would eventually turn up, and told British troops in his Christmas message that the information on laboratories showed Saddam had attempted to "conceal weapons". But when the claim was put to Mr Bremer, head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, he said it was not true. Unaware that it had been made by Mr Blair, the American proconsul said it sounded like a "red herring" put about by someone opposed to military action to undermine the coalition. "I don't know where those words come from, but that is not what David Kay has said," Mr Bremer told ITV1's Jonathan Dimbleby program. "I have read his report, so I don't know who said that ... It sounds like someone who doesn't agree with the policy sets up a red herring, then knocks it down." Mr Bremer changed tack when told the statement was by America's staunchest ally. "There is actually a lot of evidence that had been made public," he said, adding that the group had found "clear evidence of biological and chemical programs ongoing ... and clear evidence of violation of UN Security Council resolutions relating to rockets". Mr Bremer rejected the conclusion by the former chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, that there were no WMD left for Saddam to give up, calling Dr Blix "out of touch". War was justified "historically" regardless of the issue of WMD, he said, pointing to the mass graves of victims of the former regime. Another fallback has been Libya's surprise announcement, just before Christmas, that it was giving up its efforts to build weapons of mass destruction, and would dismantle its facilities under international supervision. Britain and the US argued Colonel Gaddafi had been swayed by the war in Iraq, although experts said the deal was the culmination of years of efforts by the Libyan leader to restore relations with the West. According to US officials, Libya's nuclear program was "much further advanced" than previously thought, while a British official said that, while Libya had not acquired a nuclear bomb, "it was quite close to getting one". But as he left for Tripoli yesterday, Mr ElBaradei said there were no signs Libya had enriched uranium - a step that, were it taken, could be the first move towards a bomb. A "conversion facility", normally also used to upgrade uranium to weapons level, "has not been put together - it's still in the boxes", he said, and a small enrichment facility was dismantled some time ago. "From the look of it, they were not close to a weapon, but we need to go and see it and discuss the details with them," Mr ElBaradei said. "The important thing for me is to get a comprehensive understanding of the program - the origin, its history, its extent - and then agree with the Libyan authorities on a plan of action to eliminate whatever needs to be eliminated." The IAEA, the UN's anti-nuclear proliferation watchdog, was sidelined during the secret talks that led to Libya's announcement that it had - and planned to scrap - WMD. Diplomatic sources said the agency now had access to US and British intelligence, but Mr ElBaradei acknowledged that his team was going in knowing relatively little of what to expect. The IAEA chief has played his part in demolishing previous WMD claims. Although Britain still insists there is information that Iraq tried to buy uranium for its alleged nuclear program from the west African state of Niger, for most the allegation lost all credibility after Mr ElBaradei revealed it was based on forged documents. 2003 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd ***************************************************************** 5 BBC: Iraq weapons report draws another blank Last Updated: Thursday, 8 January, 2004 By Paul Reynolds BBC News Online world affairs correspondent The latest assessment of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction is scornful of the way intelligence was presented and goes beyond concluding that Iraq was not an imminent threat - it calls for an end to the US doctrine of pre-emptive war. The report is from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a liberal think tank in Washington, which opposed the war, arguing that UN inspections should continue. In its 111-page report, it takes the debate beyond the issue of Iraq into the question of how threats are assessed in the future and what the response should be. Among its recommendations: + The US National Security Strategy should be revised to eliminate the doctrine of "unilateral preventive war" which it calls "pre-emptive war in absence of imminent threat." + An independent commission should be set up to establish a clear picture of what the intelligence community knew and believed it knew. + The head of the CIA should perhaps be a career post instead of a political appointment. + The UN should set up a permanent non-proliferation inspections capability. + Distinctions should be recognised in the degree of threat presented by different kinds of weapons of mass destruction. + The assertion that the threat of evil states and international terrorism calls for acting on the worst-case scenario should be examined. Undue influence Underlying the whole report and its conclusions is scepticism about the way intelligence was assessed and presented. As far as the WMD were concerned, it concluded: + Iraq's nuclear programme had been suspended for many years. Iraq focussed on preserving a dual-use chemical and problem biological weapons capability but not on weapons production. Iraqi nerve agents had lost most of their lethality by 1991. + The intelligence community overestimated the chemical and biological weapons in Iraq. + Intelligence agencies appear to have been unduly influenced by policymakers' views. Officials misrepresented the threat over and above intelligence findings. + There was no solid evidence linking Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, nor evidence that Iraq would transfer WMD to terrorists. Among the examples quoted of how officials went beyond the known facts to exaggerate the threat was a comment from President Bush who said: "The regime was forced to admit that it had produced more than 30,000 litres of anthrax and other deadly biological agents." In fact, the report notes, UN inspectors had commented only that Iraq might have imported enough growth media to produce these amounts, not quite the same thing. This is an echo of the claim that Iraq had VX nerve agent. All that the UN ever said was that there was material unaccounted for. Iraq always said that it had been destroyed. Violations The assessment dismisses other claims - that Iraq had been seeking uranium from Niger; that it had developed unmanned aircraft to spray chemical and biological weapons; that it had Scud missiles hidden away. It also plays down the finding of a vial of botulinum in a fridge, saying that experts had concluded that it was very old and not the most toxic strain. But in one area, it does accept that Iraq was acting in violation of UN sanctions. It had developed its al Samoud rocket by more than the 150 kilometres permitted, albeit by only 30 km. The rockets were destroyed by the inspectors. The report also acknowledges that Iraq probably intended to develop a 1000 km range missile. This intention has been confirmed in an interview by the Washington Post with a leading Iraqi scientist, Modher Sadeq-Saba Tamimi. He said that he had made drawings of such a rocket which would have used parts from the al Samoud. The Carnegie report takes its place among other assessments which have drawn a blank on Iraq's WMD. The report which everyone is now waiting for is the conclusion of the Iraq Survey group, the American led effort on WMD carried out after the war. It issued an interim report in October stating: "We have discovered dozens of WMD-related program activities and significant amounts of equipment that Iraq concealed from the United Nations during the inspections that began in late 2002." ***************************************************************** 6 FT: US to defend WMD assessments FT.com By Mark Huband, Security Correspondent, in London Published: January 8 2004 22:41 | Last Updated: January 8 2004 US intelligence chiefs are planning to mount a defence of the information used to justify the war in Iraq, which a Washington think-tank on Thursday said had been politicised to support the Bush administration. Congressional hearings into the performance of the Central Intelligence Agency and its assessment of the threat from Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction are expected to be held in the next two months. Senior officials say the CIA is expected to use the hearings both to justify the assessments it made of the threat from the former Iraqi regime and rebut accusations that the intelligence information was politicised. A report into Iraq and the WMD issue by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, released on Thursday, argued: "The intelligence community appears to have overestimated the chemical and biological weapons in Iraq but had a generally accurate picture of the nuclear and missile programmes." The report went on to say that discrepancies in intelligence assessments on Iraq between the publication of the CIA's National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) in October 2002 and the creation of an intelligence assessment group within the US Defense Department "suggest that the intelligence community began to be unduly influenced by policymakers' views sometime in 2002". Despite exasperation within the CIA at the criticism levelled against it by some Defense Department officials in the run-up to the war, US officials on Thursday denied that the agency was unduly influenced by the administration's need to justify the war. "The [intelligence] judgments were not politicised. What good would there be in coming up with a bent judgment if you're in the end going to be proved wrong?" a senior US official said on Thursday. He said that the CIA intended to provide substantial explanatory detail during the congressional hearings. "The thrust of what [CIA director] George Tenet is going to say is that the judgments were the best possible judgments, that they were arrived at correctly, for non-political reasons. "He will try to demonstrate that these were reasonable judgments," the official said. Intelligence officials from several countries involved in gathering information on Iraq were angered by the creation of the Pentagon's intelligence assessment group and believe it tarnished their reputation. "There clearly was rivalry between the CIA and the Pentagon, and the latter was trying to find its own justification for what was going on," said a senior intelligence official on Thursday. However, he criticised the Carnegie report for reaching "premature" decisions on the agencies' competence - decisions he said could be judged only once the 1,200-strong Iraq Survey Group (ISG) finished its task of finding evidence. The US is reported to be planning to reduce the size of the ISG by 400. © Copyright The Financial Times Ltd 2004. "FT" and "Financial Times" are trademarks of the Financial Times. Privacy ***************************************************************** 7 Guardian Unlimited: Hutton in five easy steps Confused by Dingemans and Gompertz, Hoon and Tebbitt? It's all much more straightforward than it seems, writes the Tories' Hutton expert, David Cameron Thursday January 8, 2004 Round one of the parliamentary bout over the Hutton inquiry started yesterday when Michael Howard challenged Tony Blair at prime minister's question time in the House of Commons. Howard asked Blair to repeat his claims, made to journalists on a plane trip to Asia, that he played no part in authorising the release of David Kelly's name to the press. Howard further asked Blair to confirm that ministers who lie to parliament - including the prime minister - would have to resign. Getting an answer from the PM is usually about as easy as contacting Beagle 2. But on this occasion Blair had no choice but to answer "yes" to both questions. Both men squared up to each other and said how much they were looking forward to the publication of Hutton's report. I couldn't help thinking that only one of them really meant it. Now I'm one of the self-confessed anoraks who have read most of the hearing transcripts and the evidence provided to the inquiry. I can't pretend that I spent all of Christmas doing it, but there were times when Dingemans and Gompertz, Hoon and Tebbitt were competing rather effectively with family and friends, telly and shopping. Parts of the evidence are as indigestible as mince pies and turkey, but the web site is one of the most easily accessible I have come across. Go on, have a go. Look at www.the-hutton-inquiry.org.uk and you'll find out more about how we are governed than any text book or professor will ever tell you. So what's it all about? Here's my bluffer's guide - the Hutton inquiry in five easy steps. Step 1. No 10 Downing Street "sexed up" the dossier presented to parliament in September 2002 Emails from Alastair Campbell and Jonathan Powell released to the inquiry make this pretty clear. The claim that Saddam had WMD ready for use in 45 minutes was significantly hardened and the section about nuclear weapons was transformed. Step 2. BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan made the allegation that the dossier was sexed up on the Today programme in May 2003 - but overstated his case Gilligan accepts that he went too far - and has said so. But without his reporting we wouldn't know a whole series of interesting facts: that the 45 minute claim came from a single source; that late changes were made to the dossier; or that elements of the security services were unhappy with the dossier. Step 3. The government launches a diversionary war against the BBC A classic Campbell tactic - and often effective. As ex-spin doctor Martin Sixsmith put it: "When a story was true, and couldn't be denied, your advice was always to create a diversion." So letters about Gilligan's report flew thick and fast from No 10 to the BBC and Alastair Campbell became ever more incandescent with rage at Auntie. Further embarrassed by the unravelling of the second, February dossier (that's the even more "dodgy" one), this was Campbell's chance to get his own back and secure a climb-down from the Beeb. Step 4. No 10 believed that the arrival of David Kelly on the scene gave them the chance to win their war against the BBC Dr Kelly had admitted to his MoD bosses that he had spoken to Andrew Gilligan, but did not back up all the elements of the journalist's story. This seemed like manna from heaven for No 10. The two most revealing pieces of evidence are Alastair Campbell's scribbles in his diary that "the biggest thing needed was the source out" and "I wanted a clear win, not a messy draw". Step 5. No 10 arranges for the release of Dr Kelly's name to the press via a press release and question and answer briefing Reading the minutes of the meetings that took place in Downing Street on July 7 and 8 last year that decided this strategy, and listening the evidence given by Sir Kevin Tebbitt, permanent secretary of the MoD, it is hard to come to any other conclusion. All the meetings were chaired by the prime minister. The minutes conclude that it was "agreed to fall back on a press statement" and Sir Kevin told the inquiry that "the decision was taken at No 10". So many clues about Dr Kelly's identity were included in the press release and Q that even the legendary Lunchtime O'Booze could have worked out who he was. And the very next day, the name was out. The rest is history or, in the case of David Kelly and his family, tragedy. On July 17, Dr Kelly took his own life - and the Hutton inquiry was swiftly announced. Four days later, the prime minister talked to journalists on the plane from Shanghai to Hong Kong. The transcript of that conversation could not be more clear: Tony Blair denied four times that he had any role in authorising the release of Dr Kelly's name. That bring us neatly back to question time yesterday in the house. Those remarks on the plane have now been read into the parliamentary record. Who knows what step six of this saga will involve. In a week or two, we will find out. I asked a brilliant lawyer to look through something I had written about these events, hoping for some forensic insight. Instead he just told me that he couldn't get over the contrast between Dr Kelly, a decent civil servant who worked selflessly for his country, and the spin-obsessed cabal in No 10 - including the prime minister - conspiring how to win their pathetic, but ultimately fatal, battle against the BBC. A bit emotional for a lawyer, maybe. But spot on. · David Cameron is Conservative MP for Witney and a deputy chairman of the Conservative party. He writes a fortnightly diary for Guardian Unlimited Politics Guardian Newspapers Limited ***************************************************************** 8 Las Vegas SUN: Powell Refutes Think-Tank Report on Iraq Today: January 08, 2004 at 17:25:04 PST By BARRY SCHWEID ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON (AP) - Secretary of State Colin Powell acknowledged Thursday that he had seen no "smoking gun, concrete evidence" of ties between Saddam Hussein and the al-Qaida terror network, but insisted that Iraq had had dangerous weapons and needed to be disarmed by force. At a State Department news conference, Powell disagreed with a private think tank report that maintained Iraq had not been an imminent threat to the United States. And the secretary defended the case he had made last February before the United Nations for a U.S.-led war to force Saddam from power. "My presentation ... made it clear that we had seen some links and connections to terrorist organizations over time," Powell said. "I have not seen smoking gun, concrete evidence about the connection, but I think the possibility of such connections did exist and it was prudent to consider them at the time that we did." Three experts at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said in a report Thursday that the Bush administration systematically misrepresented a weapons threat from Iraq, and U.S. strategy should be revised to eliminate the policy of unilateral preventive war. "It is unlikely that Iraq could have destroyed, hidden or sent out of the country the hundreds of tons of chemical and biological weapons, dozens of Scud missiles and facilities engaged in the ongoing production of chemical and biological weapons that officials claimed were present without the United States detecting some sign of this activity," said the report by Jessica T. Mathews, Joseph Cirincione and George Perkovich. Powell noted that Saddam obviously had, and used, destructive weapons in the late 1980s, then refused for a decade to assure the world he'd gotten rid of them. "In terms of intention, he always had it," Powell said. Of Carnegie's finding that Iraq posed no imminent threat, Powell said: "They did not say it wasn't there." Iraq's nuclear program had been dismantled and there was no convincing evidence it was being revived, the report said. And the U.S.-led war on Iraq in 1991 combined with U.N. sanctions and inspections effectively destroyed Iraq's ability to produce chemical weapons on a large scale, it said. The real threat was posed by what Iraq might have been able to do in the future, such as starting production of biological weapons quickly in the event of war, Carnegie said. Also, Iraq apparently was expanding its capability to build missiles beyond the range permitted by the U.N. Security Council, the report said. "The missile program appears to have been the one program in active development in 2002," it said. Years of U.N. inspections to determine whether Saddam was harboring weapons of mass destruction were working well, and the United States should set up jointly with the United Nations a permanent system to guard against the spread of dangerous technology, the report said. It recommended that consideration be given to making the job of CIA director a career post instead of a political appointment. Mathews is president, Cirincione is director of the proliferation project, and Perkovich is vice president for studies at Carnegie, an independent research group. Citing the CIA and other U.S. intelligence offices, the Bush administration contended that Iraq had caches of weapons of mass destruction and plans to produce more. The Carnegie report said the U.S. intelligence process failed on Iraq and that Bush administration officials dropped qualifications and expressions of uncertainty presented by U.S. intelligence analysts. In the weeks before the war, the administration also intensified its allegations of links between Saddam and the al-Qaida terror network headed by Osama bin Laden. Since May, when Bush declared an end to major combat, 357 U.S. service personnel have died in attacks on them and in accidents. -- ***************************************************************** 9 ITAR-TASS: Russian Minister of Atomic Energy to visit Teheran [ITAR-TASS News Agency of Russia] 08.01.2004, 14.50 MOSCOW, January 8 (Itar-Tass) -- Russian Minister of Atomic Energy Alexander Rumyantsev will hold talks with Iranian leaders in Teheran in the second half of February about the situation with the construction of the first power unit of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) of Iran, Nikolai Shingaryov, official representative of the Ministry of Atomic Energy told Itar-Tass on Thursday. According to his information, “agreement about it was reached at a meeting of Alexander Rumyantsev and Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Golam Reza Shafei.” According to his information, initially Rumyantsev intended to visit Iran in mid-January, but postponed the visit because of the recent natural calamity. Russian and Iranian officials are going to discuss at the forthcoming talks “ways to speed up the building of the Bushehr NPP. Probably, an additional protocol on the return of the used nuclear fuel to the intergovernmental agreement about the building of the first Iranian NPP will be signed,” Shingaryov continued. At present assembly and adjustment operations are coming to a close at the construction site of the first power unit of the Bushehr NPP. The power unit “is ready by 90 per cent,” Shingaryov added. According to Shingaryov, “the TVEL Company of Russia produced nuclear fuel for the reactor of the first power unit. It will be delivered to Iran immediately after the signing of the protocol on the return of the used nuclear fuel to Russia.” According to his information, during the meeting of Rumyantsev and Golam Reza Shafei, “the Iranian embassy expressed gratitude to the Atomstrojexport Company of Russia for helping the victims of the recent earthquake in Iran.” The representative of the Ministry of Atomic Energy explained that when the news came about the earthquake in the city of Bam, Iran, Atomstrojexport, which is the general contractor for the building of the NPP in Iran, purchased and turned over to Iranian officials 1,000 tents for quake victims. “Russian specialists building the Bushehr NPP raised 10,000 dollars for the quake victims among themselves,” added Valery Govorukhin, deputy minister of atomic energy and state secretary of the ministry. © ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy, ***************************************************************** 10 Korea Herald: Freeze on N.K. nuclear program is imperative The following is the first in a series of contributions by renowned foreign experts on the prospects of security on the Korean Peninsula this year. - Ed. By Jack Pritchard On Dec. 9, North Korea offered to freeze its nuclear program in exchange for removal from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, lifting of political, economic and military sanctions, and the provision of energy. It made this proposal as an interim step pending a more permanent solution to the nuclear problem. President Bush publicly turned down the offer during a press conference with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao later that day, saying, "The goal of the United States is not for a freeze of the nuclear program; the goal is to dismantle a nuclear weapons program in a verifiable and irreversible way." I think we all agree that a freeze is not the ultimate goal, but any resolution to this complex problem will require a series of interim steps as we build toward a verifiable end to Pyongyang's nuclear program. An interim freeze at the earliest possible stage is in the national security interests of the United States. By its own admission, North Korea is busily extracting plutonium at its now unfrozen nuclear complex at Yeongbyeon and adding nuclear weapons to its existing, albeit small stockpile. We should take a page out of the North Korea negotiating playbook and pocket their offer of a freeze while changing substantially what we are willing to provide for it. Getting control of North Korea's nuclear program at the soonest opportunity should be one of our highest national security priorities. Failure to seize the moment places the United States and its allies at increased risk either from North Korea or from nonstate players (terrorists) who might eventually obtain nuclear material from Pyongyang. The next round of six-party talks should have a clear objective of refreezing the plutonium-related activities at Yeongbyeon. We have wasted precious time in two rounds of failed talks over the past eight months. The all-or-nothing approach to North Korea we have seen so far has done little to increase our security and plays into the hands of Pyongyang as the North Koreans continue developing a nuclear weapons program. What happens if the six-party talks fail or, more likely, just plod along with no end in sight? North Korea has not suspended its nuclear activities. In fact, it is moving forward on accomplishing its stated goal of developing a nuclear deterrent. My fear is that our friends and allies will view the North Korean nuclear threat in relative terms. That is, if Pyongyang stops its nuclear program at a relatively small number of weapons - perhaps the six to eight that can be produced by extracting plutonium from the 8,000 spent fuel rods that it is now reprocessing - and declares that it has reached its goal and has suspended further nuclear production activity, China and South Korea (and perhaps Japan and Russia) may well accept a new status quo, arguing that the threat is minimal and further nuclear activity has been suspended. That kind of status quo, compared to instability that confrontation would bring, may have a certain appeal to some in the region. Having failed to capitalize on opportunities now, the United States then will be in a difficult position of trying to convince its friends and allies that North Korea's nuclear weapons program is an urgent threat that requires coercive and punitive measures. A nuclear North Korea is unacceptable and that is why it is urgently important that the United States stop the program now before Pyongyang becomes a limited nuclear weapons state that our friends and allies may be unwilling to confront later. The author is a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. He was previously special envoy for negotiations with North Korea and U.S. representative to KEDO in the Bush administration. He contributed this article before going to Pyongyang on Tuesday as a member of the U.S. team of experts invited to visit the North's main nuclear complex in Yeongbyeon. - Ed. 2004.01.09 ***************************************************************** 11 China Daily: China working for early second six-party talks chinadaily.com.cn ( 2004-01-08 21:53) (Xinhua) China is working for an early holding of the second round of six-party talks on the nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said here Thursday at a press conference. The international community places great importance on the second round of the talks, and the parties involved all share the belief that the second meeting is worth the efforts, Kong said, adding the parties also hope to fix the consensus reached so far in written form. "Preparatory work in this field is well under way, and a good foundation has been laid," he said. The first round of six-party talks on the Korean nuclear issue was held in Beijing in August 2003, with participants of China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Russia and Japan. Kong said the Chinese side has recently been in close consultation with other parties, and they are all preparing for the talks. Although various sides still have different views toward the talks, but the parties have enhanced understanding of each other's stance. Kong noted that China stands ready for the second round talks, and expects it to start at an early date. He said China knows little of the true nuclear capacity or plans of the DPRK, and it seems that other countries' such knowledge is also scant. According to the spokesman, Chinese foreign ministry's Asian Affairs Department head Fu Ying visited the ROK recently and exchanged views with both the ROK and Japanese sides on how to resolve the nuclear issue. As to the specific content of solution to the nuclear issue, Kong said China hopes the parties concerned will settle the problem through direct dialogue. Kong said China stands for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and a thorough solution to the issue. Copyright By chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved ***************************************************************** 12 ITAR-TASS: US delegation may visit NKorea's Yongbyon nuclear center ITAR-TASS News Agency of Russia] 08.01.2004, 11.52 SEOUL, January 8 (Itar-Tass) - A US nine-member non-governmental delegation, currently on a five-day visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) may go to see the Yongbyon main nuclear research center, the Tokyo-based Joson Sinbo (People's Korea) newspaper reported on Thursday. The paper represents the interests of the pro-Pyongyang Japanese Korean Citizens League. This will be the first appearance of foreign specialists at the Yongbyon nuclear complex over the past 14 months ever since the DPRK expelled the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear monitors from the country. In October last year the White House cancelled a trip to Yongbyon by a US congressional delegation, headed by Curt Weldon, Deputy Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. At that time the North Koreans intended to show the Americans the procedure for the processing of 8,000 spent nuclear fuel elements and how they use the resultant plutonium. © ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy, ***************************************************************** 13 ITAR-TASS: Russia praises NKorea intention to freeze nuclear programme ITAR-TASS News Agency of Russia] 08.01.2004, 12.47 MOSCOW, January 8 (Itar-Tass) - Pyongyang’s statement on its willingness to freeze its nuclear programme is “an important and serious step, which should not be left without response,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov told Itar-Tass on Thursday. “The step is reason for some optimism. It confirms some previous statements of North Korea on a possibility of giving up its nuclear programme, specifically its military component,” Losyukov said. Moscow “informed the United States of its stand on the problem. It believes that Pyongyang’s statement should be taken seriously. This is our advice to the United States. Freezing is not a final goal, but an important step towards attaining that goal. Concrete agreements may be reached on its basis at the six-party talks on the Korean settlement,” he said. © ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy, ***************************************************************** 14 War Wire: China welcomes NKorean nuclear freeze move, says gaps narrowing WAR.WIRE BEIJING (AFP) Jan 08, 2004 China Thursday welcomed North Korea's offer to freeze its nuclear facilities and Washington's response, saying the gap between the two was narrowing and preparations for a new round of talks were progressing. "China welcomes the willingness of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to stop nuclear activities," foreign ministry spokesman Kong Quan said. "China also appreciates the US Secretary of State Colin Powell's positive response in this regard." North Korea this week offered to refrain from testing and producing nuclear weapons in what it said was a "bold concession" to the United States. Powell responded by saying the chances of a second round of talks on Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions were improving, although he stepped back from initial comments that he was "encouraged." Kong said indications were that the two sides were moving closer to common ground and the prospects for more talks involving China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the two Koreas were better. "I believe the gaps are narrowing and the parties have a better understanding of each other's positions," he said at a regular briefing. "We believe that the preparations of the talks are making progress. We hope to hold the talks as soon as possible. The Chinese side is working on this behalf." China, North Korea's closest ally and chief aid donor, has been trying to convene a new round of talks on the crisis which were tentatively scheduled for December but never went ahead. South Korea and Japan Wednesday also welcomed North Korea's statement in which it said it wanted US aid and an end to US sanctions in return for a nuclear freeze. The United States has demanded an irrevocable and verifiable decision by North Korea to abandon its quest for nuclear weapons before it will consider offering concessions. While upbeat on prospects, Kong however cautioned that concrete results must come out of any new round of negotiations. "These talks should carry on past achievements. These talks should bear concrete results," he said. "We have repeated our position on this issue -- that is that the Korean peninsula should be nuclear free and that North Korean security concerns should be taken into account. "The settlement of this question should be thorough to facilitate peace and stability in the peninsula." China's comments came as two unofficial US delegations were in Pyongyang hoping for a tour of the Yongbyon nuclear complex at the center of a crisis, which erupted in October 2002 when Washington accused North Korea of breaching an anti-nuclear pact. One team includes a former US official who dealt with North Korea policy, a scientist and a top academic. Team members told AFP Wednesday the visit was progressing and they were aware of diplomatic developments surrounding efforts to get Pyongyang to freeze its nuclear weapons program, but would not reveal whether Yongbyon was on their agenda. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 15 Daily Star: Mini-nukes and the international community Web Edition Vol. 4 Num 222 Vol. 4 Num 222 Fri. January 09, 2004 Azad Miah, Oldham, UK The shock, the heat and the mushroom-cloud of death isn't the only destructive part of a nuclear bomb. The radiation released by a nuclear bomb poisons everything for decades. You can't grow any plant, can't farm that land and can't build houses and live nearby. In fact, the radiation contaminates pretty much everything you need for survival. And here we have the US spending billions of dollars developing these new mini-nukes and not a single country is saying anything. Why this big silence? If these countries believe that the US will think twice before using nukes against them, they should check history. Billions of dollars are not being spent to make these mini-nukes for celebrating a little girl's birthday. They are being developed to rule the world and shut up anyone that makes noise without getting permission from Washington. These weapons will be used in our backyards and this dying planet will be poisoned even more -- as if it hasn't been poisoned enough by testing of hundreds of nuclear bombs, the use of depleted uranium and many other poisonous weapons. Shouldn't the international community address this important issue which will start a very dangerous mini-nuke arms race all over the world? When the US develops these, do you think Russia, China and other countries will just sit back? And even if these countries don't react, the main question still remains: if the US is spending billions to develop these weapons of mass destruction, what gives it the right to bomb and invade other countries for allegedly developing the same thing? Photo: AFP ***************************************************************** 16 CS Monitor: Following the nuclear trail | csmonitor.com Commentary > Daniel Schorr from the January 09, 2004 edition WASHINGTON  History may record that the early 21st century witnessed the breakdown of the three-decade-long effort to halt the spread of nuclear weapons. And, according to a comprehensive report in The New York Times, much of the responsibility for that will go to the father of the Pakistani bomb, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan. Since the nonproliferation treaty of 1970, the five charter members of the nuclear club - the United States, Soviet Union (subsequently Russia), Britain, France, and China - have worked to keep the bomb out of other hands. They did not succeed with Israel, India, and Pakistan. A new menace arose when Pakistan went into the export business, undeterred by the US, which relied on Pakistani help against the Russians in Afghanistan, and later against the Al Qaeda terrorists. According to the Times, the A.Q. Khan Research Laboratories have been peddling nuclear know-how and components to rogue states - North Korea, Iran, and Libya. An official-looking brochure selling nuclear hardware bears the name of the Pakistani government and a photo of Dr. Khan. That Strangelovian character stands at the center of an international network of aspiring proliferaters. The Pakistani government has denied that it was involved in transferring nuclear technology, but the denial fell short of claiming that the research laboratory had not done it. If rogue states have not yet produced any mushroom clouds, it is, in large part, because these developing countries have not yet mastered the complex technology involved in extracting uranium and fashioning the special-purpose centrifuges. Greater threats may lie ahead. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf was the target of two recent assassination attempts, raising the thought of nuclear weapons in the hands of an extremist successor regime. President Bush, asked about the safety of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, said, "Yes they are secure." And he changed the subject. Pakistan's instability heightens the danger of nuclear proliferation. And the known willingness of Pakistan's chief nuclear scientist to share the bomb with rogue regimes intensifies the danger. " Daniel Schorr is a senior news analyst at National Public Radio. www.csmonitor.com | Copyright © 2004 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 17 IAEA Wants Libya Nuke Intelligence Shared Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 19:12:45 -0600 (CST) U.N. Watchdog Wants Libya Nuke Intelligence Shared Fri Jan 2,11:34 AM ET By Louis Charbonneau http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&e=3&u=/nm/20040102/wl_nm/nuclear_libya_dc VIENNA (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog urged members states Friday to share intelligence information they have on Libya's nuclear weapons program to ensure effective inspections. This was a clear reference to the United States, which said Thursday it has known about Libya's secret nuclear weapons program since at least October, when it intercepted a shipment of possibly arms-related atomic machinery. The U.N. did not learn of this until Libya acknowledged it in December. The U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) began weapons inspections in Libya last weekend after Tripoli announced it was abandoning all plans to secretly develop weapons of mass destruction, including atomic weapons. IAEA spokesman Mark Gwozdecky said that if its Libyan atomic inspections are to be effective, the agency needs more than just the active cooperation of the Libyans and the authority to comb the country for all weapons-related activities -- both of which the Libyan government has given the U.N. "The third factor is information sharing and, in particular, the importance of any of our member states which have information relevant to our work sharing this information with us," Gwozdecky said. Thursday, the IAEA's inspection team returned to Vienna after visiting nine out of 10 facilities that Libya said were related to its weapons program. "The tenth site is a storage facility for natural uranium, otherwise known as yellowcake, and will be inspected in the near future," Gwozdecky said. In contrast to the United States and Britain, who said Libya was close to developing nuclear weapons, IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei Libya's program was "at a very nascent stage" and far from producing a weapon. ELBARADEI HAS "MINUSCULE" KNOWLEDGE This clearly angered some members of President Bush (news - web sites)'s administration. The New York Times Friday quoted an anonymous "senior Bush administration official" as saying that ElBaradei knew little about the full extent of Libya's plans. "ElBaradei has got a minuscule percentage of the knowledge," the U.S. official said, dismissing ElBaradei's trip to Libya last weekend as a "badly advised" public relations exercise. It was unclear what was behind the latest attack on the IAEA coming from inside the Bush administration. One Western diplomat told Reuters in Vienna that some U.S. officials may think the IAEA is unfit for weapons inspections. Washington has already sidelined the IAEA in Iraq (news - web sites). Agency inspectors have not been allowed to return since they were evacuated ahead of the U.S.-led war that toppled Saddam Hussein (news - web sites), despite ElBaradei's repeated calls for the U.N.'s return. The United States also attacked the IAEA in November for saying it had "no evidence" of an Iranian nuclear weapons program, with one U.S. official calling this statement "impossible to believe." U.S. officials said after ElBaradei returned from Tripoli on Monday that U.S. and British experts would go to Libya to ensure the nuclear arms program was properly assessed and dismantled. But Gwozdecky said the IAEA was the only organization with the authority to police compliance with the 1968 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which Libya has signed and may have violated with its secret weapons programs. "Under the NPT, the IAEA has exclusive responsibility for nuclear verification," Gwozdecky said. ***************************************************************** 18 IPS-English MIDEAST: Nuclear Spotlight Shifts from Libya to Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2004 11:12:11 -0800 ROMAIPS MM IK IP MIDEAST: Nuclear Spotlight Shifts from Libya to Israel Analysis By Peter Hirschberg JERUSALEM, Jan 8 (IPS) - The decision last month by Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi to relinquish his weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles will have enhanced the sense among Israeli leaders that their regional strategic position, already improved by the toppling of Saddam Hussein, was far better at the start of 2004 than it had been at the start of the previous year. But any rejoicing will have been shortlived, as Israeli decision-makers quickly began to understand that the decision by the flamboyant Libyan leader had suddenly reopened the discussion on monitoring of non-conventional weapons in the Middle East. This cast an uncomfortable spotlight on the Jewish state's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) arsenal, which no Israeli government has ever officially acknowledged. In the wake of Gadhafi's announcement, as well as Iran's declared willingness to accept nuclear inspections, both Egypt and Syria have recently called on Israel to give up the bomb. Syrian President Bashar Assad, now facing threats of U.S. sanctions similar to those encountered by Gadhafi, repeated that call on a trip to Turkey earlier this week. Gadhafi made specific mention of Israel after his shock pronouncement. He reasoned that if other countries in the region followed his example, pressure would grow on Israel to follow suit. ”This would tighten the noose around the Israelis so that they would expose their programmes and their weapons of mass destruction,” he said. Following Iran's declaration, and possibly knowing that a Libyan deal was in the works, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohammed ElBaradei called on Israel last month to give up its nuclear weapons as part of a regional peace agreement. ElBaradei suggested Israel was fueling a WMD race in the Middle East. He said he feared a situation in which ”there will be continued incentive for the region's countries to develop weapons of mass destruction to match the Israeli arsenal.” Arab League chief Amr Moussa sounded a similar note Wednesday, saying that Israel's possession of WMDs would ”perhaps” lead other countries in the region to try ”to protect themselves against such weapons.” Despite the diplomatic heat, Israel is not about to alter its decades-old policy of ”nuclear ambiguity”. It neither admits to, nor denies, having nuclear weapons -- and the United States is not about to force it to do so. Israel continues to view nuclear deterrence, even if undeclared, as the ultimate guarantee of its survival in a hostile neighbourhood. But that does not mean the changing nuclear climate has gone unnoticed in the Israeli Foreign Ministry or the defence establishment. Officials are considering the question whether Israel should agree to monitoring of its own free will sometime down the line, or wait until outside pressures become irresistible. There has been speculation in the wake of Libya's move that Israel might consider ratifying the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) if other countries in the region do the same. But the longstanding position of countries like Egypt and Syria, both believed to have chemical weapons, is that they will not sign the CWC until Israel signs the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Prof. Efraim Inbar, head of the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies near Tel Aviv is unconcerned by the greater scrutiny of Israel that Gadhafi's decision has spawned. He views Libya's move as a positive development. ”It's good news,” he told IPS. ”It removes a threat (to Israel).” Inbar, who supports the ”ambiguity” policy, is less enthusiastic about Iran's acceptance of nuclear inspections. ”They might adopt the talk-and-build strategy of North Korea,” he says. Israel's nuclear programme began in the 1950s and was spearheaded by former prime minister and now Labour Party leader Shimon Peres. He initiated the building of a nuclear reactor with French assistance in the southern desert town Dimona. The project has been shrouded in almost complete secrecy ever since. There is no public monitoring of the facility. That secrecy was breached once in 1986 when a technician at the reactor, Mordechai Vanunu, disclosed information about the facility to Britain's Sunday Times. Based on his disclosures, it was estimated that Israel has some 200 nuclear warheads. Vanunu paid a price for the whistleblowing. He was abducted by Israeli agents from Rome, brought to Israel and sentenced to 18 years in jail. He is up for release in April. Israeli officials have hinted he will not be allowed to leave the country, lest he disclose further information. Some observers have suggested, though, that the nuclear speculation fueled by Vanunu's revelations actually boosted Israel's deterrence capacity. Vanunu is viewed as something of a hero in nuclear disarmament circles, but many Israelis consider his behaviour treasonous. A recent opinion poll conducted for the state-run Israel Radio indicates that any pressure on Israel to dismantle its purported nukes will not come from within, where there is broad consensus on the issue. A majority of Israelis (77.4 percent) believe their country has nuclear capability, and 56.1 percent said they opposed giving it up even if the Middle East becomes a WMD-free zone, according to the survey. Some 25 percent said they would support such a move. The liberal Israeli daily Haaretz seemed to reflect public opinion when it wrote in an editorial early January that ”in the Middle East where there are still many groups that reject the very existence of Israel as a Jewish state in the region, it is too early to discuss Israel's nuclear capabilities.” Shimon Peres came closest among Israeli leaders to confessing to having the bomb. He suggested to a group of newspaper and magazine editors in 1995 when he was prime minister that in the event of comprehensive regional peace he would scrap his country's nukes. He is quoted as having said, ”à give me peace and we'll give up the atom. That's the whole story.” With no prospects of regional peace on the horizon, that is unlikely to happen soon. The one party that could force Israel to give up its nuclear weapons is the United States. But U.S. officials speaking anonymously have told Israeli media in recent days that Washington is not about to lean on its key Mideast ally.. ”The United States knows we have a special problem,” says Inbar. ”That there are countries who want to destroy us. That as long as there is no comprehensive peace, this matter will remain untouched.” (END/IPS/MM/IK/IP/ PH/SS/04) = 01081059 ORP003 NNNN ***************************************************************** 19 Guardian Unlimited: Carnegie group says Bush Julian Borger in Washington Thursday January 8, 2004 The Guardian The Bush administration will today be accused of "systematically misrepresenting" the threat posed by "Iraq's weapons of mass destruction" in a comprehensive report on post-war findings. The report, by four experts on weapons proliferation at the respected Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, is likely to reignite calls for acommission to look into the government's pre-war intelligence claims. According to the report, the absence of any imminent threat from Saddam Hussein's chemical or nuclear programmes was "knowable" before the war. There was greater uncertainty over biological weapons but no evidence strong enough to justify war. The authors say the intelligence reports of Iraq's capabilities grew more shrill in October 2002 with the publication of a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), which included an unusual number of dissenting views by intelligence officials. The intelligence community, the report says, began to be unduly influenced by policymakers' views "sometime in 2002". Repeated visits to the CIA by the US vice president, Dick Cheney, and demands by top officials to see unsubstantiated reports, created an atmosphere in which intelligence analysts were pressed to come to "more threatening" judgments of Iraq. The report concludes that "administration officials systematically misrepresented the threat from Iraq's WMD and ballistic missile programmes". Last night aWhite House official responded by pointing to Mr Bush's comment on December 15 when he was pressed on the absence of Iraqi WMD. He claimed evidence had been found that contravened UN resolution 1441 calling for Saddam to disarm, a possible reference to signs that Iraq had been trying to extend the range of its missiles beyond UN limits. Stuart Cohen, the vice chairman of the National Intelligence Council, which oversees intelligence assessments, also defended the 2002 NIE. "We did not, in any area, hype our judgments. We made our calls based on the evidence we had. We never used the word 'imminent' in the ... estimate." But Joseph Cirincione, lead author of the Carnegie report, said: "This is the first thorough review of the intelligence threat assessments, administration statements, findings of UN inspectors and nine months of US searches in Iraq. It shows the threat assessment process is broken. The NIE was wildly off the mark." Guardian Newspapers Limited ***************************************************************** 20 IPS MIDEAST: Nuclear Spotlight Shifts from Libya to Israel Analysis By Peter Hirschberg JERUSALEM, Jan 8 (IPS) - The decision last month by Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi to relinquish his weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles will have enhanced the sense among Israeli leaders that their regional strategic position, already improved by the toppling of Saddam Hussein, was far better at the start of 2004 than it had been at the start of the previous year. But any rejoicing will have been shortlived, as Israeli decision-makers quickly began to understand that the decision by the flamboyant Libyan leader had suddenly reopened the discussion on monitoring of non-conventional weapons in the Middle East. This cast an uncomfortable spotlight on the Jewish state's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) arsenal, which no Israeli government has ever officially acknowledged. In the wake of Gadhafi's announcement, as well as Iran's declared willingness to accept nuclear inspections, both Egypt and Syria have recently called on Israel to give up the bomb. Syrian President Bashar Assad, now facing threats of U.S. sanctions similar to those encountered by Gadhafi, repeated that call on a trip to Turkey earlier this week. Gadhafi made specific mention of Israel after his shock pronouncement. He reasoned that if other countries in the region followed his example, pressure would grow on Israel to follow suit. "This would tighten the noose around the Israelis so that they would expose their programmes and their weapons of mass destruction," he said. Following Iran's declaration, and possibly knowing that a Libyan deal was in the works, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohammed ElBaradei called on Israel last month to give up its nuclear weapons as part of a regional peace agreement. ElBaradei suggested Israel was fueling a WMD race in the Middle East. He said he feared a situation in which "there will be continued incentive for the region's countries to develop weapons of mass destruction to match the Israeli arsenal." Arab League chief Amr Moussa sounded a similar note Wednesday, saying that Israel's possession of WMDs would "perhaps" lead other countries in the region to try "to protect themselves against such weapons." Despite the diplomatic heat, Israel is not about to alter its decades-old policy of "nuclear ambiguity". It neither admits to, nor denies, having nuclear weapons -- and the United States is not about to force it to do so. Israel continues to view nuclear deterrence, even if undeclared, as the ultimate guarantee of its survival in a hostile neighbourhood. But that does not mean the changing nuclear climate has gone unnoticed in the Israeli Foreign Ministry or the defence establishment. Officials are considering the question whether Israel should agree to monitoring of its own free will sometime down the line, or wait until outside pressures become irresistible. There has been speculation in the wake of Libya's move that Israel might consider ratifying the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) if other countries in the region do the same. But the longstanding position of countries like Egypt and Syria, both believed to have chemical weapons, is that they will not sign the CWC until Israel signs the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Prof. Efraim Inbar, head of the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies near Tel Aviv is unconcerned by the greater scrutiny of Israel that Gadhafi's decision has spawned. He views Libya's move as a positive development. "It's good news," he told IPS. "It removes a threat (to Israel)." Inbar, who supports the "ambiguity" policy, is less enthusiastic about Iran's acceptance of nuclear inspections. "They might adopt the talk-and-build strategy of North Korea," he says. Israel's nuclear programme began in the 1950s and was spearheaded by former prime minister and now Labour Party leader Shimon Peres. He initiated the building of a nuclear reactor with French assistance in the southern desert town Dimona. The project has been shrouded in almost complete secrecy ever since. There is no public monitoring of the facility. That secrecy was breached once in 1986 when a technician at the reactor, Mordechai Vanunu, disclosed information about the facility to Britain's Sunday Times. Based on his disclosures, it was estimated that Israel has some 200 nuclear warheads. Vanunu paid a price for the whistleblowing. He was abducted by Israeli agents from Rome, brought to Israel and sentenced to 18 years in jail. He is up for release in April. Israeli officials have hinted he will not be allowed to leave the country, lest he disclose further information. Some observers have suggested, though, that the nuclear speculation fueled by Vanunu's revelations actually boosted Israel's deterrence capacity. Vanunu is viewed as something of a hero in nuclear disarmament circles, but many Israelis consider his behaviour treasonous. A recent opinion poll conducted for the state-run Israel Radio indicates that any pressure on Israel to dismantle its purported nukes will not come from within, where there is broad consensus on the issue. A majority of Israelis (77.4 percent) believe their country has nuclear capability, and 56.1 percent said they opposed giving it up even if the Middle East becomes a WMD-free zone, according to the survey. Some 25 percent said they would support such a move. The liberal Israeli daily Haaretz seemed to reflect public opinion when it wrote in an editorial early January that "in the Middle East where there are still many groups that reject the very existence of Israel as a Jewish state in the region, it is too early to discuss Israel's nuclear capabilities." Shimon Peres came closest among Israeli leaders to confessing to having the bomb. He suggested to a group of newspaper and magazine editors in 1995 when he was prime minister that in the event of comprehensive regional peace he would scrap his country's nukes. He is quoted as having said, "à give me peace and we'll give up the atom. That's the whole story." With no prospects of regional peace on the horizon, that is unlikely to happen soon. The one party that could force Israel to give up its nuclear weapons is the United States. But U.S. officials speaking anonymously have told Israeli media in recent days that Washington is not about to lean on its key Mideast ally.. "The United States knows we have a special problem," says Inbar. "That there are countries who want to destroy us. That as long as there is no comprehensive peace, this matter will remain untouched." (END/2004) Copyright © 2003 IPS-Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 21 GN Online: Time for Bush to check Israel's nuclear facilities George S. Hishmeh: Dubai:Thursday, January 08, 2004 | Special to Gulf News | 08-01-2004 Some time in April this year, the famed Israeli nuclear whistleblower, Mordechai Vanunu, who has served more than 17 years in an Israeli jail – 11 of which were in harsh solitary confinement – will be released. br> This likelihood has touched off a hot debate in Israel about the man who spilled the country's nuclear secrets 18 years ago to a London newspaper and who could still do more harm to his country once he is free. The Israeli secret service, Mossad, had kidnaped Vanunu after he was lured from London to Italy by a female Israeli agent. The Sunday Times published several of his photographs and descriptions of weapons from Israel's top-secret Dimona nuclear reactor. Nowadays, Israel's nuclear weapons, according to the CIA, number anywhere between 200 and 400, making it the world's fifth largest nuclear power with more than enough weapons to obliterate "all imaginable targets in most Arab countries" according to one disarmament researcher. National security Additionally, a 1993 official report to the US Congress says Israel has "undeclared offensive chemical warfare capabilities" and is "generally reported as having an undeclared offensive biological warfare programme". However, only 18.3 per cent of Israelis were optimistic about their sense of national security, according to a recent poll and yet, one in four Israelis believe that their country should give up its "alleged" nuclear arsenal. Israel remains intentionally ambiguous about its nuclear programme, without retribution from any source, maintaining that it would not be the first to "introduce" nuclear weapons in the region. The UN General Assembly and the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, General Conference have adopted 13 resolutions since 1987 appealing to Israel to joint the nucler Non-Proliferation Treaty, NPT. But all the resolutions have been ignored as they are non-binding. It is this recent Israeli anxiety that has re-kindled some international apprehension about the country's hitherto "alleged" nuclear programme and increased demands that the Israeli government come clean and tell the truth once and for all. But more importantly, it is the continued American silence, if not acquiescence, which is most troubling in this respect. A recently published book – Warren Bass's Support Any Friend, Kennedy's Middle East and the Making of the US-Israeli Alliance – traces early American concerns about Israel's nuclear ambitions. "The Israelis were splendidly evasive on the subject," writes one reviewer, "but it became clear that they were building an atomic bomb, to the vexation of (President John F.) Kennedy, for whom nuclear non-proliferation was a touchstone." The reviewer added, "There was much diplomatic to and fro, with Washington demanding to inspect the site and in May 1963 Kennedy told (then Israeli premier) Ben-Gurion that Dimona seriously jeopardised their relationship." Hogwash. White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan was repeatedly evasive last month in response to a reporter's questions at a briefing about whether President Bush was in favour of international inspections of Israel's nuclear stockpile which, the reporter said matter of factly, was "pretty well known". McClellan had the temerity to reply, "I don't know that I agree with that, the premise of your question," and went on to insist that the US has "a longstanding position of universal adherence to the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons." He would add nothing to his hackneyed line when the reporter again asked whether the US was "trying to persuade Israel to sign it and to be open to inspections." A week earlier the head of the IAEA, Mohammed El Baradei, told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, that he believed that Israel had nuclear weapons and suggested the stockpile be eliminated to promote Mideast peace. "We work on the assumption that Israel has nuclear capability (and) I haven't seen Israel ever denying it." El Baradei's statements have put a gaping hole in Israel's so-called "strategic ambiguity" and underlined America's head-in-the-sand approach. How can the Bush administration justify its dogged approach on nuclear and chemical weapons in both Iran and Libya – even Syria – and yet refuse to raise the question with Israel, which is now capable of launching nuclear attack by air, land and sea? Its new submarines have been equipped with modified cruise missiles. Lukewarm reaction But the most appalling decision has been the Bush administration's lukewarm reaction, to put it mildly, to Syria's proposal at the UN Security Council last week to make the Middle East an area free of weapons of mass destruction and for all the countries in the region to join the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Israel is the only country in the region that has yet to adhere to the treaty. It is about time that US governments realise that Israel's continued disregard of international inspections will remain a magnet for countries in the region to acquire chemical and biological weapons, if not nuclear arms. And the best avenue for avoiding this would-be calamity may be in linking nuclear non-proliferation with an all-encompassing Middle East settlement. Hishmeh can be contacted at ***************************************************************** 22 Pakistan Times: 'No Nuke-Technology attained from Pakistani Scientists': Qaddafi's Son PakistanTimes.net]] Pakistan Times Special Report ISLAMABAD: The son of Libyan President, Saiful Islam Qaddafi has strongly denied reports in Western media that Pakistan or its nuclear scientists were involved in transferring nuclear technology to Libya. In a statement, he said that 'because of sanctions the question of acquiring nuclear technology did not arise, as Libya was compelled to purchase even ordinary commodities from black market. 'Libya has been buying even spare parts for its aircraft from the black market', he said. Perceptions Saiful Islam Qaddafi said, when he was asked a question pertaining to any cooperation between Pakistan and Libya in nuclear field, he had only said, 'it is possible that the Libyan and Pakistani traders may have made some contacts, but this does not at all mean that Pakistan as a state or its scientists were involved.' He said 'it should be clarified that there was no such involvement of Pakistan or its scientists.' Qaddafi expresses Concern In his statement, Saiful Islam said that Libyan President Moammar Qaddafi had expressed his concern over this matter and feared that some 'vested interests' were bent upon creating rift between Pakistan and Libya. He called for enhanced cooperation between the two countries so that no one can take any advantage. Saiful Islam said 'cooperation between the two countries was important to thwart the nefarious designs of the enemies of the two countries.' 'Source of Pride' He quoted the Libyan leader as saying that 'Pakistan's nuclear programme was a source of pride for the entire Islamic Ummah.' 'Therefore it is out of question that Libya will try to cause any harm to Pakistan's nuclear programme or its nuclear scientists', he remarked. He said it should not be forgotten that a number of countries were targetting Pakistan and were desparate to deprive it of its nuclear programme. Saiful Islam said 'a proof of this is the statement by Kissinger who had said that we will make such an example of you that no Muslim country will ever think of making a nuclear bomb.' 'Nuclear Technology Not Transferred': Pakistani Interior Minister Pakistan Times Staff Correspondent Atif Hussain adds from Lahore: Quashing allegations here Thursday, the Pakistan's Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat clarified that Pakistan was not involved in transferring nuclear technology to any of the Arab countries including Libya. 'Our nuclear programme is a peaceful one and for self-defence purpose, it is not aimed at exporting, destruction orany other means', the Interior Minister said while talking to newsmen here today. Faisal, however, said a thorough probe was going on in this behalf and assured if any body was found involved in transferring nuclear technology he would be brought to task, he warned. Answering another question, Saleh said alleged culprits nominated in the murder of Azam Tariq MNA, had been arrested. Copyright (c) 2003 TIMES Group of Publications All rights ***************************************************************** 23 Knox News: TVA requests reactor renewals Asks NRC for 20-year licenses for Browns Ferry plant By REBECCA FERRAR, ferrarr@knews.com January 8, 2004 TVA has asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a 20-year renewal of operating licenses for the three reactors at Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant in northern Alabama. One of those reactors - Unit 1 - is being restarted at a cost of $1.8 billion, a project scheduled for completion in 2007. If the NRC approves the license applications, TVA could produce power from the Athens, Ala., units until 2033, 2034 and 2036 for Units 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The units' licenses expire in 2013, 2014 and 2016. NRC spokesman Roger Hannah said the license renewal process will assess two issues surrounding whether the plants should continue to produce power. First, he said, is the safety review, which determines whether programs are ready to ensure that inspections, maintenance and performance operations are in place. Second is an environmental impact statement that assesses the plant's affect on the environment around the installation, including population changes, transportation issues and endangered species. Hannah said license renewals take about 2 1/2 years. TVA officials have said they are refurbishing Unit 1 because of a future need for more power in the Tennessee Valley. "We continue to see a need for power in the future, and extending the operations of all the three units at Browns Ferry is a good business decision," said TVA spokesman Craig Beasley. Operating the three units for another 20 years could reduce the cost of TVA's electricity generation since nuclear power is considered the second least expensive to produce. However, construction and maintenance of nuclear power plants is considered to be expensive. Hydroelectric is the cheapest method of producing power. "The comprehensive application provides the NRC with the basis for our conclusions that these units can continue to operate safely throughout the renewal term," TVA chief nuclear officer John Scalice said in a statement. There are currently 103 nuclear reactors operating in the United States. The NRC has approved license renewals for 23 reactors since the first one was granted in 2000. The NRC is reviewing applications for 12 reactors in addition to Browns Ferry. Business writer Rebecca Ferrar may be reached at 865-342-6357. 2004, Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. ***************************************************************** 24 Toledo Blade: Key inspection at Davis-Besse put on hold Article published Thursday, January 8 2004 By TOM HENRY BLADE STAFF WRITER Efforts to restart FirstEnergy Corp.’s beleaguered Davis-Besse nuclear plant were temporarily put on hold yesterday, although a spokesman claimed the utility doesn’t expect the process for seeking approval to be delayed much more than a week. "Senior management didn’t feel we are where we ought to be before we ask for the [Nu- clear Regulatory Commission’s] Restart Readiness Assessment Team to come back," FirstEnergy spokesman Richard Wilkins said in explaining the company’s decision to postpone what is arguably the plant’s most vital remaining inspection. No makeup date was announced. "We just said we’d like to have at least another week," he said. The NRC’s Restart Readiness Assessment team is a group of resident inspectors the agency has hand-picked from other Midwestern nuclear plants to watch FirstEnergy in action for several days, a final review of the company’s fitness to operate the plant. The company failed to impress it in December. After an 11-day observation, the special NRC inspection team said it had found too many violations to bother counting and said the company was nowhere near ready. The same team will be brought back for a follow-up inspection when the utility says it’s time. The follow-up is to take about a week, Jan Strasma, NRC spokesman, said. The Restart Readiness Assessment Team is one of two that were to arrive Monday at Davis-Besse to begin follow-up inspections of a week or longer. The NRC’s Management and Human Performance Assessment Team, assigned to determine if FirstEnergy has established a workplace culture that encourages Davis-Besse employees to feel at ease about reporting safety issues, is still on schedule to begin its follow-up then, Mr. Strasma said. FirstEnergy has encountered numerous delays during Davis-Besse’s 23-month outage. The outage began Feb. 16, 2002, three weeks before the NRC learned on March 6, 2002, that the company had let the plant’s reactor head become dangerously thin as a result of uncontrolled acid leakage. It was the worst case of corrosion in U.S. nuclear history and the closest brush with a nuclear accident since Three Mile Island in 1979. The NRC also acknowledged yesterday it has reviewed an internal claim from an employee that Lew Myers, the chief operating officer of FirstEnergy’s nuclear subsidiary, "has lost confidence in the organization’s ability to operate plant equipment." Mr. Myers is chief operating officer of the utility’s nuclear subsidiary and was once in charge of the day-to-day operation of the restart effort. The claim, a copy of which has been obtained by The Blade, was submitted on a company document known as a condition report. All such reports are typically reviewed by the company’s senior management team, as well as the three resident inspectors the NRC has assigned to Davis-Besse. Mr. Wilkins said the company had no immediate comment, other than to acknowledge that the condition report will be reviewed like any other. The report is expected to be discussed at the NRC’s next monthly oversight meeting, which the agency has scheduled for Jan. 21 at 6 p.m. at Oak Harbor High School. "The particular terminology in the condition report is not the controlling thing; it’s what our inspectors find when they dig into the situation," Mr. Strasma said. The condition report was written while Davis-Besse’s reactor was still in the early stages of its heat-up phase. Last night, the reactor was holding steady at 530 degrees, about 75 degrees lower than its normal operating temperature, and was at a near-normal operating pressure of 2,155 pounds per square inch. By drawing heat from reactor coolant pumps, the utility could hold the reactor there in a nonnuclear mode indefinitely while it seeks NRC approval to make the transition to nuclear power, officials have said. For earlier stories on Davis-Besse, go to www.toledoblade.com/davisbesse ***************************************************************** 25 JOURNAL NEWS: Indian Point 3 workers prepare for strike By ROGER WITHERSPOON THE JOURNAL NEWS (Original publication: January 8, 2004) VERPLANCK — Hundreds of union workers from the Indian Point 3 nuclear power plant signed up for stints on a potential picket line yesterday, while contract negotiations continued to avoid a Jan. 18 walkout that would mark the first labor disruption at the plant in Buchanan. About 230 of the 276 members of Local 1-2 of the Utility Workers Union of America filed into the second-floor community room at the Verplanck fire house to be briefed on strike rules and to select day or evening shifts on the picket line for at least eight weeks into a strike. "The company will probably get an injunction preventing us from picketing in front of the plant, but it is legal to picket across the street," union representative Bernard Walsh told the workers. He said strikers could not block replacement workers and warned that profanity or insulting language "may not be protected speech." The labor contract between Entergy Nuclear Northeast and Indian Point 3 union members expires at midnight Jan. 17. More than 90 percent of the union's members at Indian Point 3 and Indian Point 2 authorized a walkout last month if a new contract was not in place by then. The Indian Point 2 workers' contract does not expire until June, but the union is negotiating a combined agreement. Indian Point 2 workers would not join a strike. There has never been a strike during the plants' 32-year history. Before being purchased by Entergy in 2001, Indian Point 3 was run by the New York Power Authority, a public utility. The state's Taylor Law prohibits strikes by public employees and fines strikers two days' pay for every day on the picket line. Entergy officials declined to comment about the labor dispute yesterday, but issued a statement that said, "We are aggressively working toward an agreement that is beneficial to all parties, but are fully prepared to safely operate and maintain the Indian Point plants if the union chooses to strike. Security, which is provided by officers who are not members of UWUA Local 1-2, would not be impacted by a possible strike." Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said Entergy gave the agency a contingency plan explaining how it would operate the plant safely during the strike. "We found it acceptable," he said. The NRC also is putting together a special team that would go to Indian Point during a strike and provide round-the-clock oversight of its critical operations. "They will have managers carrying out duties that are typically carried out by regular staff," Sheehan said. "The managers have to be fully qualified and trained, but these are not their primary responsibilities, and we would keep watch to make sure they do what they are supposed to do." Sheehan said Entergy is able to draw on the expertise of managers from other plants in their nuclear fleet. "But if it appears at any point that the plant would be unsafely operated, we could shut it down," he said. "But they have been able to train enough of their own managers that they should be able to operate it safely." Union and Entergy negotiators have been meeting daily at the Ramada Hotel in New Rochelle, where talks are scheduled to resume this morning. "We are very far apart on everything — wages, work rules, language, staffing and medical benefits," union spokesman Stephen Mangione said. "To be this far apart at this late date on everything is an indication that we are on a collision course. I would rather have trained union workers on the job than managers who took short refresher courses." Return-path: Envelope-to: rogerh@energy-net.org Delivery-date: Wed, 07 Jan 2004 20:45:55 -0800 Received: from root by darwin.ctyme.com with spam-scanned (Exim 4.30) id 1AeS3L-0005hr-2M for rogerh@energy-net.org; Wed, 07 Jan 2004 20:45:54 -0800 Received: from n4.grp.scd.yahoo.com ([66.218.66.88]) by darwin.ctyme.com with smtp (Exim 4.30) id 1AeS3K-0005hT-8p for rogerh@energy-net.org; Wed, 07 Jan 2004 20:45:50 -0800 X-eGroups-Return: sentto-1009892-5183-1073537119-rogerh=energy-net.org@returns.groups.yahoo.com Received: from [66.218.67.199] by n4.grp.scd.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 08 Jan 2004 04:45:19 -0000 X-Sender: upthesun@cshore.com X-Apparently-To: du-list@yahoogroups.com Received: (qmail 48496 invoked from network); 8 Jan 2004 04:45:18 -0000 Received: from unknown (66.218.66.217) by m6.grp.scd.yahoo.com with QMQP; 8 Jan 2004 04:45:18 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO smtp-test.cshore.com) (209.113.151.8) by mta2.grp.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; 8 Jan 2004 04:45:17 -0000 Received: from upthesun (newhav02-50.cshore.com [209.113.233.50]) by smtp-test.cshore.com (Postfix) with SMTP id BF66EAB57; Wed, 7 Jan 2004 23:45:14 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <000601c3d5bb$80c37680$32e971d1@upthesun> To: "Tara Thornton" , Cc: "Mitzi Bowman" , "Dr Chris Busby" References: <005d01c3d487$10b55aa0$173f040a@midmaine.com> X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.00.2919.6600 X-MIMEOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2919.6600 X-eGroups-Remote-IP: 209.113.151.8 From: "mitzi" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list du-list@yahoogroups.com; contact du-list-owner@yahoogroups.com Delivered-To: mailing list du-list@yahoogroups.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 20:45:57 -0800 Subject: Re: [du-list] Honeywell doubts problems from leak Reply-To: "mitzi" Content-Type: text/plain; charset=Windows-1252 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Sender-Nameserver: ns2.yahoo.com ns3.yahoo.com ns4.yahoo.com ns5.yahoo.com ns1.yahoo.com X-Sender-Hostname: n4.grp.scd.yahoo.com X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 2.70-cvs (1.222-2003-12-17-exp) on darwin.ctyme.com X-Spam-Status: No, hits=-20.0 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,DATE_IN_PAST_12_24, SUBJ_GROUP,SUBJ_WHITELIST,WHITE_PHRASE,YAHOO_EGROUP,YAHOO_HOST autolearn=ham version=2.70-cvs X-Spam-Level: The fox is still using obsolete "official" safety standards to cover its crimes. To understand fully how unscientific these standards are, read ECRR; 2003 Recommendations of the European Committee on Radiation Risk; Health Effects of Ionising Radiation Exposure at Low Doses for Radiation Protection Purposes. Regulators' Edition. Copies can be obtained from Don't Waste Connecticut, upthesun@cshore.com, 203-389-2067, or from Green Audit Press, Castle Cottage, Aberystwyth, SY23 1DZ, UK www.euradcom.org2003 (Comment by Dr. Seung Lee of the New Life Health Center, Jamaica Plain, MA "Everyone should read this!" 12/30/03) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tara Thornton" To: Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2004 10:58 AM Subject: [du-list] Honeywell doubts problems from leak > http://www.state.nv.us/nucwaste/news2003/nn12023.htm > > > The Paducah Sun > Paducah, Kentucky > Tuesday, December 30, 2003 > > Honeywell doubts problems from leak > Air sampling indicates the likelihood of exposure on Dec. 22 to the plant's > neighbors was minimal to none. > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > ---- > By Joe Walker jwalker@paducahsun.com--270.575.8650 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > ---- > > > > METROPOLIS, Ill.--Honeywell officials say they don't think plant neighbors > ingested toxins from a Dec. 22 uranium hexafluoride release, but are > awaiting urine test results to be certain. > "We do have results back for our employees, and basically they came back all > clear," said plant manager Rory O'Kane. "We don't know about public > urinalyses yet, but air sampling tells us the likelihood of exposure to the > public was minimal to none." > > The company and Nuclear Regulatory Commission are investigating the release > and three other apparently unrelated chemical leaks in September. NRC > officials tentatively plan to discuss their findings in a public meeting > Jan. 6, but a time and place have not been picked, said NRC spokesman Roger > Hannah. > > Honeywell converts natural uranium to uranium hexafluoride, or UF6, for use > in nuclear fuel. Although UF6 is mildly radioactive, it is mainly a chemical > threat because it emits toxic hydrogen fluoride, or HF, when exposed to > moisture in the air, the NRC says. > > Production ceased after the Dec. 22 release, and the shutdown will continue > "until the NRC and Honeywell are jointly satisfied it's safe to operate the > plant," O'Kane said. All 315 employees are still at work — some helping with > the investigation, some reviewing procedures and others doing nonproduction > tasks such as cleaning. > > There are no plans for layoffs. The company in fact is hiring 30 more > workers amid expanded business at the Metropolis plant, the nation's only > converter of uranium to UF6, O'Kane said. > > Honeywell, which had traditionally sent all its UF6 to the Paducah Gaseous > Diffusion Plant, last year began exclusively supplying USEC competitors in > Europe. Honeywell still does business "on paper" with USEC, but the UF6 goes > to Europe in what is essentially an international swap of material by > governments, he said. USEC gets UF6 from Russia in a nuclear disarmament > deal. > > The Dec. 22 release began at 2:24 a.m. in a process building and made its > way outside, resulting in the evacuation of more than 20 people residing > less than a mile from the plant. Four residents were hospitalized — two > treated and released, and two held briefly for evaluation, according to the > plant and NRC. About 75 people were told to stay in their homes as a > precaution. > > O'Kane said Honeywell is still evaluating the cause and quantity of the > latest release, which lasted about an hour. The NRC said radioactivity > outside the plant was within safe regulatory levels, but an investigative > team was sent to the plant because the leak was the fourth since September. > An earlier review of the three previous leaks determined that the company > had taken sufficient corrective action. > > O'Kane gave this account of the previous incidents: > > On Sept. 9, an employee was "pretty seriously hurt" by accidentally inhaling > a puff of HF from a vaporizer that converts liquid HF to gas. The employee > returned to work after just over a month, including about two weeks' > hospitalization for facial burns and HF inhalation. A tiny amount of the > chemical escaped and was confined to a building. > > On Sept. 12, about 18 pounds of antimony pentafluoride, a Honeywell > specialty chemical, leaked from a building toward the Ohio River. Because no > homes or businesses were affected, there was no evacuation or involvement > from outside agencies, O'Kane said. He said the NRC was notified "as a > courtesy," even though NRC doesn't regulate the nonradioactive chemical. As > with UF6, the main threat of antimony pentafluoride is HF emission, O'Kane > said. > > On Sept. 30, about three grams of UF6 leaked and were confined to a > building. The leak was stopped by operations personnel. > > > > > Tara Thornton > Executive Director > Military Toxics Project > P.O. Box 558 > Lewiston, ME 04243 > (207)783-5091 phone > (207783-5096 fax > > > To unsubscribe from this groups send a message to du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com. In the body of the message type unsubscribe and send. > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > To visit your group on the web, go to: > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-list/ > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: > http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ > > > To unsubscribe from this groups send a message to du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com. In the body of the message type unsubscribe and send. Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-list/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ ***************************************************************** 31 DON'T MAKE OUR CHILDREN GUINEA PIGS - URGE THE SF SCHOOL BOARD Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2004 15:39:15 -0800 DON'T MAKE OUR CHILDREN GUINEA PIGS - URGE THE SF SCHOOL BOARD TO BAN IRRADIATED FOODS! Show your support for a ban at the next school board meeting! The San Francisco Board of Education is considering a measure to ban irradiated foods in all SF Schools. This measure is following a decision by the US Department of Agriculture to offer irradiated meat to schoolchildren through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), despite overwhelming opposition from concerned parents and the public. The NSLP provides subsidized meals to 27 million low-income children each year. Irradiation destroys nutrients in food and creates know toxins and carcinogens. Numerous health problems, including reproductive dysfunction, fatal internal bleeding, and cancer have been linked to consumption of irradiated foods. Irradiation will NOT destroy the prion that causes mad cow disease. when: Tuesday, Jan 13 at 6:30pm where: Irving G. Breyer Board Meeting Room 555 Franklin St, 1st Floor San Francisco Contact the School Board and urge them to support a ban on irradiated foods. A sample letter is provided below. The School Board can be contacted at 415-241-6493 or via email: Emilio B. Cruz, President: ecruz@muse.sfusd.edu Eric Mar, Vice President: emar@muse.sfusd.edu Jill Wynns: jwynns@muse.sfusd.edu Dan Kelly: dkelly@muse.sfusd.edu Eddie Y. Chin: echin@muse.sfusd.edu Mark Sanchez: msanche@muse.sfusd.edu Sarah Lipson: slipson@muse.sfusd.edu Please contact Tracy at tlerman@citizen.org or 510-663-0888 x 103 to get more involved or for more info. Sample letter Dear Board Member : I am writing to express my support for the measure prohibiting the use of irradiated foods in all meal programs at all San Francisco schools. I urge you to vote for the measure, as this issue is of critical importance to me. I would never purchase irradiated meat for myself or my family, and I do not want my child to eat irradiated food at school. Irradiation depletes essential nutrients in food, and creates known toxins and carcinogens, as well as a new class of chemicals that have never been tested for safety by the FDA. Numerous studies have linked consumption of irradiated foods to a variety of health problems, including tumor growth, reproductive dysfunction, chromosome aberrations, fatal internal bleeding, and other disorders. I believe that food-borne illness is a serious threat that schools should take care to prevent. However, irradiation will do little to address this threat. Cooking meat to 160° Fahrenheit kills all of the dangerous microbes that irradiation does, as well as any bacteria that may have contaminated meat during handling and preparation. Moreover, unsanitary food preparation facilities and improper food handling in schools are the cause of far more cases of food-borne illness than contaminated meat, and irradiation willdo nothing to address those problems. In light of these concerns, I urge your strong support for the resolution banning irradiated foods in San Francisco schools. Children should not be guinea pigs for this questionable technology! Sincerely, Background Irradiation exposes food to doses of ionizing radiation equivalent to millions of chest x-rays in order to kill bacteria. This process destroys essential nutrients and hastens their depletion during storage and cooking. Irradiation also creates known toxins and carcinogens in food, such as benzene and toluene, and a new class of chemicals, called "unique radiolytic products" some of which the FDA has never tested for safety. Children are particularly susceptible to the health impacts of environmental toxins because their bodies are still developing and because they consume more food and water for their weight than do adults. Research on irradiated foods has linked them to a wide range of health problems in humans and animals, including reproductive dysfunction, genotoxicity, cytotoxicity, fatal internal bleeding, and, in some cases, cancer. There is no research on the health effects of consuming irradiated foods over a long period of time, and no population has ever consumed irradiated foods as a substantial part of their diet. As the National School Lunch Program provides subsidized meals to low-income school children, these children would essentially become guinea pigs for this questionable technology. Because food irradiation is applied at the end of the meat packing process, it removes any incentive to clean up the filthy and inhumane conditions at slaughterhouses and feedlots, where workers are the victims of numerous atrocities that sometimes result in death. Irradiation will not prevent mad cow disease because the dose needed to kill the prions that cause this disease is too high to be used on food. In fact, acceptance of irradiation will perpetuate and even worsen the industrialized feedlot conditions that cause the spread of mad cow disease. The majority of all food borne illness is caused by improper food handling, which irradiation will do nothing to prevent. The only way to safeguard against food-borne illness is to ensure that food preparation facilities are sanitary, food is handled properly by workers, and meat is cooked to 160°F - this temperature will kill all of the microbes killed by irradiation, and any bacteria that contaminates meat after it has been irradiated. For more info on irradiated foods and school lunches visit http://www.safelunch.org For more info on the school board visit http://portal.sfusd.edu V>< ***************************************************************** 32 [du-list] Re: depleted uranium Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2004 15:40:00 -0800 That's fantastic! I know there are others also trying to get a companion bill in the Senate; in NY working on Hillary Clinton, MA on Ted Kennedy, etc. Good Job, Tara ----- Original Message ----- From: "sdpjc" To: "jeanne koster" Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 4:52 PM Subject: depleted uranium > DU interest list: > > Lanny Stricherz shares this lpromising letter which he received > today from Senator Daschle/tommy ross. > > Know what this says to us? It says communicate right away to > Senator Daschle, those of us who haven't done so already, that > we will be grateful for his special concern about this very serious > issue. We want action in the Senate to reinforce Rep. McDermott's > HR 1483. We want his office to keep us abreast of any progress > in getting Senate attention. > > tom_daschle@daschle.senate.gov > (in SUBJECT line, type "Attention Tommy Ross") > > Today's Daschle letter also should remind us to be working > to educate all candidates for SD's vacant US House seat about > DU and to get their pledges of support for HR 1483 should they > be elected. > > Peace, > Jeannne Koster > SD Peace & Justice Center > 605/882-2822 > sdpjc@dailypost.com > > ------------------------------------- > January 8, 2004 > > Lanny Stricherz > 500 South 4th Avenue > Apartment 105 > Sioux Falls, SD 57104-5171 > > Dear Lanny: > > Thank you for contacting me about the impact of munitions containing > depleted uranium on our military personnel. It is good to hear from you. > > As a veteran, I have a deep and abiding respect for the sacrifices our men > and women in uniform make in the course of serving their nation. That is > why I share your concern about the possibility that the use of munitions > containing depleted uranium (DU) could increase the health risks facing our > military personnel. Like you, I am familiar with and troubled by a number > of reports that link exposure to DU munitions with birth defects and an > array of chronic ailments. Moreover, I have been disturbed by reports > chronicling dramatic increases in radiation levels in downtown Baghdad > following the alleged use of DU munitions during Operation Iraqi Freedom. > > Fortunately, other members of Congress are also concerned about this issue. > As you know, Representative McDermott (D-WA) has introduced H.R. 1483, which > calls for an exhaustive assessment of the health effects of exposure to > depleted uranium munitions, and requires the cleanup and mitigation of > depleted uranium contamination sites. H.R. 1483 is being considered in the > House of Representatives, by both the Armed Services Committee and the > Energy and Commerce Committee. > > In addition to monitoring the progress of H.R. 1483 in the House, I will > discuss the prospects of similar legislation with my colleagues on the > Senate Armed Services Committee, the Senate committee responsible for > dealing with this important issue. > > I appreciate your interest in this critical matter, and hope we can stay in > touch about this and any other issues of concern to you. > > With best wishes, I am > > Sincerely, > > > Tom Daschle > United States Senate > > TAD/twr > > > > To unsubscribe from this groups send a message to du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com. In the body of the message type unsubscribe and send. Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-list/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ ***************************************************************** 33 [du-list] U/DU & birth defect Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2004 15:39:56 -0800 Dear All, Below is a communication from someone not on this list. This person is concerned about the increase in birth defects in Iraq after Gulf War I. I suggested to him that one must also consider fetal death rates [in US fetal death is loss of fetus at 26 or more weeks gestation--statistics of losses before that are not reported as deaths] because in my own work I'd discovered this. Fetal deaths are due frequently to worst-case birth defects. For example, in the State of Colorado there was a decrease in birth defect rates yet a rate-doubling of fetal deaths in the year following the Gasbuggy Project. Gasbuggy was a "peaceful uses of nuclear energy" project--natural gas well exploration by thermonuclear explosion near Farmington/Dulce, New Mexico. Elaine I completely agree with your point about fetal deaths but I think those data will be very difficult to collect in a country like Iraq. There is clear experimental evidence that supports your point: exposing female mice to even low doses of uranium is associated in subsequent pregnancies with smaller litters, i.e., fewer pups - exposure to higher doses of uranium is associated with an increased frequency of congenital malformations [cleft palate and various skeletal abnormalities]. There are numerous reports beginning in 1961 that uranyl ions [UO2++] bind to DNA with high affinity [see attachment] - this is independent of the anion [nitrate, acetate, chloride, etc.]. Uranium metal corrodes readily Text of attachment: Upon impact with metal or stone targets, DU shells undergo combustion to yield uranium oxide particles; as much as one half or more of the shell may be converted into uranium oxide particles suspended in air and 30% - 50% of these particles are less than 5 microns in diameter and therefore respirable. The particles consists mainly of three different oxides: * UO2 (ceramic uranium) which is completely insoluble. Note: UO2, the insoluble neutral oxide, should not be confused with UO2++, the uranyl ion, which carries two positive charges and is very soluble. * U3O8(uranyl uranide, the main component of "yellowcake") which is very poorly soluble; and * UO3 (uranium trioxide) which is slightly soluble. All three of these oxides are present in most small particles. All of the uranium oxide particles inhaled into alveoli [deep in the lung] are retained in the body. Gradually, the UO3 in the particles begins to dissolve, i.e., convert into soluble uranyl ions, UO2++, which migrate from alveolar spaces into alveolar capillaries and circulate around the body. Uranyl ions diffuse into every organ and tissue, although bone and kidney are the principal storage organs for uranyl ions and urine is the principal route of excretion. Careful measurements of uranium in 24 hour urine samples, even months or years after inhalational exposures, are useful in assessing exposure dose. The worrisome features of uranyl ions are that they bind to DNA with high affinity and, at least in test tube experiments, can cause extensive chemically-mediated DNA damage when added to DNA in the presence of an electron donor. The residual uranium oxide particles (consisting mostly of UO2 and U3O8) in alveolar spaces are gradually engulfed by alveolar macrophages and carried to hilar and tracheobronchial lymph nodes; this clearance process takes many months and remains incomplete. Nonetheless, large quantities of insoluble uranium oxide particles are transported to the lymph nodes draining the lung. Autopsy studies indicate that the trancheobronchial lymph nodes of uranium workers may consist of up to 0.7% uranium by weight. In summary, some of the inhaled uranium oxide particles dissolve and enter the blood stream as uranyl ions; most of the residual (undissolved) particles are eventually removed to the lymph nodes draining the lung and small amounts of undissolved particles remain in the lung for extended periods. Regarding the "Bystander Effect": for many decades it has been recognized that one rad of alpha particles causes 10-20 times as much tissue injury as one rad of gamma rays. This led to the adoption of the rem (roentgen equivalent man) as a unit of absorbed dose; thus one rem of alpha particles causes the same amount of tissue injury as one rem of beta particles or one rem of gamma rays. What Nagasawa and Little reported in 1992 is that the ability of alpha particles to cause genetic damage is 6000 times greater than that of gamma rays. When they exposed cells in culture to a dose of alpha particles such that 1% of the cells were hit in the nucleus by an alpha particle, they were astonished to find that 30% of the cells showed evidence of genetic damage. That is to say that cells not physically hit by an alpha particle (bystander cells) had sustained genetic damage. Moreover, this state of genetic instability induced in bystander cells by alpha particles is long-lived, lasting at least for several cell divisions. Unfortunately, all the mathematic models which have been developed to estimate the health risks of DU munitions have ignored the bystander effect although it has been well known since 1992 To unsubscribe from this groups send a message to du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com. In the body of the message type unsubscribe and send. ---------- Yahoo! Groups Links * To visit your group on the web, go to: * http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-list/ * * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: * du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com * * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. ***************************************************************** 34 NRC: Notice of Renewal of Material License SNM-1168 for Framatome FR Doc 04-362 [Federal Register: January 8, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 5)] [Notices] [Page 1316] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr08ja04-43] Advanced Nuclear Power, Inc., Lynchburg, VA AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of renewal of license. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julie Olivier, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop T8-A33, Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone (301) 415-8098 and email jao@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Introduction By letter dated March 28, 2002 (ADAMS ML020940468), Framatome Advanced Nuclear Power (FANP) requested the renewal of license SNM- 1168. A Federal Register Notice was published on August 9, 2002, notifying the public that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) or the Commission was reviewing the renewal application for SNM-1168 and offering a 30-day notice of opportunity to request a hearing, in accordance with 10 CFR part 2. No requests for a hearing were received. The environmental impacts of continued operation were reported in the Environmental Assessment (EA) for Renewal of License SNM-1168 (ADAMS ML030940720). On the basis of the assessment, a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) was published in the Federal Register on May 7, 2003, (68 FR 24521). Therefore, the Commission has renewed, for a period of ten years, Special Nuclear Material License SNM-1168 (ADAMS ML033490064), held by FANP to authorize: (1) Fabrication of fuel assemblies for commercial nuclear reactors, (2) support activities for nuclear reactor field service operations, and (3) general manufacturing at the Lynchburg, Virginia facility. This renewal was issued on December 12, 2003, and is effective immediately. II. Further Information In accordance with 10 CFR 2.790 of the NRC's ``Rules of Practice,'' the documents related to this proposed action including the EA and FONSI are available electronically for public inspection from the Publicly Available Records (PARS) component of NRC's document system (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. These documents may also be examined and/or copied for a fee at the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) located at 01 F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2nd day of January, 2004. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Julie Olivier, Project Manager, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. 04-362 Filed 1-7-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P ***************************************************************** 35 The Herald: Public meeting to explain iodine tablet distribution Web Issue 1914 January 08 2004 DAVID ROSS, Highland Correspondent January 08 2004 Public meetings are to be held in the Highlands to explain why iodine tablets are being given to people living within a 1.2-mile radius of nuclear submarine moorings in Wester Ross and Skye. Around 2000 people living near Broadford Bay, Loch Ewe and Aultbea jetty are affected by the decision, and many are said to be outraged. The agencies involved insist it is a precautionary measure in case of the unlikely event of an accident involving a submarine. They say it follows the established practice near the Vulcan naval reactor test establishment next door to Dounreay, as well as Torness power station in East Lothian. The decision to follow these examples of good practice in Wester Ross and Skye follows a recent risk assessment, which requires NHS Highland and the Highland Council to make appropriate plans and counter-measures to offset any potential hazard at the moorings. Previous plans assumed that the tablets could be rapidly distributed to all local residents following the release of any hazardous radiation. However, changes to Health and Safety legislation and a procedural review have shown it would not be possible to rely on police, health or council employees to distribute the tablets within the required timescale. NHS Highland and the Highland Council have agreed the most effective action is to "pre-distribute" the tablets. Copyright © Newsquest (Herald & Times) Limited. All Rights Reserved ***************************************************************** 36 ITAR-TASS: Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan register up to 3,000 earthquakes a year [ITAR-TASS News Agency of Russia] 08.01.2004, 13.20 DUSHANBE, January 8 (Itar-Tass) - Up to three thousand earthquakes are registered every year in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Academician Sabit Negmatullayev, who heads the Tajik institute of earthquake-proof construction, told Itar-Tass on Thursday. “This seismic activity is fraught with the emergence of critical situation in the region that has considerable burials of radioactive waste, cascades of hydropower stations located high in the mountains and glacial lakes. Their debacle can cause catastrophic consequences,” the Academician said. Sabit Negmatullayev said the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) are now pondering assistance to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in getting their foreign debts written off in order to channel the released resources towards the environmental protection activity. These two influential organizations are responding to a resolution adopted at the International Conference “Preparation for Emergency Situations and reaction to ecological-security risks in the Central Asian region” that was held in Bishkek before the New Year. The academician said that the United Nations and the OSCE are ready to provide technical and financial assistance to the governments of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in the formation of the Regional Crises Management Center. © ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy, ***************************************************************** 37 AU SMH: Antinuclear accusation clouds mining rebuke - www.smh.com.au [Sydney Morning Herald Online] By Stephanie Peatling, Environment Reporter January 9, 2004 Regulation of uranium mines should be overhauled following leaks and spills that could have threatened human health and the environment, an inquiry has recommended. A Senate committee catalogued leaking contaminants, inadequate control procedures and the potential for environmental damage, for which it blamed poor monitoring systems. But Government representatives on the committee have distanced themselves from its findings, saying the inquiry was a front for antinuclear campaigners. The committee's chairman, Democrats Senator John Cherry, said there had been a "pattern of underperformance and non-compliance" and that far-reaching changes were needed in order to prevent future accidents. "The frequency of leaks and spills is evidence that self-regulation by the mining companies has failed to prevent incidents which have the potential to cause significant environmental damage," the committee found. Environment departments should be given responsibility for investigating any reported incidents at Australia's four uranium mines, rather than industry, the committee recommended. The Federal Government should also take overall responsibility for uranium mining in Australia. The committee recommended that uranium mine operators be banned from dumping liquid waste into groundwater and that traditional landowners should be given more say on land management. Two Coalition Government senators on the committee - Nigel Scullion, from the Northern Territory, and Tsebin Tchen, from Victoria - disputed some of the information contained in submissions and hearings, saying it "misrepresented the nature and severity of reported incidents". The two senators accused the committee of being a smokescreen for antinuclear campaigners. The inquiry was prompted by more than 100 reported incidents, such as leaks and spills, at uranium mines between 1979 and 2003. Mine operators said the number of incidents was not significant and that no resulting environmental damage had been proven. One of the most recent events happened in October last year when 110,000 litres of radioactive waste liquid were spilled at the Olympic Dam uranium and copper mine in South Australia. The South Australian Environment Protection Authority concluded there had been no major radiological problems and no damage had been caused to people or the environment. But a nuclear campaigner at the Australian Conservation Foundation, Dave Sweeney, said the report "paints a picture of a secretive industry". "These mines operate as a closed shop and the result is a series of open wounds, routinely leaking contaminants and credibility," Mr Sweeney said. The traditional owners of the Jabiluka and Ranger uranium mine areas in Kakadu National Park, the Mirrar people, said regulators had to be more vigilant. "It's somewhat ironic that the mining company itself has lifted its game and that the Commonwealth and Territory regulators are lagging behind," Mirrar spokesman Andy Ralph said. Copyright © 2004. The Sydney Morning Herald. advertise| ***************************************************************** 38 Salt Lake Tribune: More trouble ahead for Goshutes January 08, 2004 [PHOTO] Leon Bear By Judy Fahys (c)2004, The Salt Lake Tribune Federal authorities have been investigating for months why Leon Bear and his tiny Skull Valley Goshutes Indian Band ventured into the international commodities market a few years ago to trade in future prices of Japanese yen. Under a federal court order, Internal Revenue Service lawyers will have an opportunity in February to put the question directly to Bear and others behind Starlike Properties, a limited-liability company owned by the Goshutes and operated by the proprietor of a New York business that devises and sells tax shelters. A Swiss bank, a shadow company based in Britain's Channel Islands tax haven of Jersey, a Florida financier and a Wyoming lawyer credited with helping the Goshutes leverage their sovereign-nation status into a mainland tax haven all have been ordered to explain why they ignored a December 2002 IRS summons for documents related to Starlike. Acting at the request of the IRS and the U.S. Attorney's Office, U.S. District Judge Dee Benson has summoned the people and businesses associated with Starlike into court Feb. 12. None of those named in the summons would respond to requests for comment. The court's action is the latest legal intrigue for the Skull Valley Band, best known for its partnership with eight utility companies to host an open-air parking lot for high-level nuclear-plant waste on the tribe's reservation in the west Utah desert. Last month, following a criminal investigation by the IRS and the Interior Department's Inspector General's Office, Bear was indicted for allegedly embezzling money from his tribe and not paying federal tax on his earnings from tribal enterprises, including taxes owed for two years in which he claimed to have no job. Bear, who insisted in a memo last week to tribal members that the charges are "utterly false and without merit," is set to be arraigned on the criminal charges Jan. 20. In addition, a rival group of Goshute leaders and their attorney were indicted last month on bank fraud charges and are accused of accessing tribal bank accounts with phony legal documents. Their arraignment is scheduled for Friday. It is not clear whether or how the criminal charges might be related to the IRS civil enforcement case, which began as "an investigation into the income tax liability of Starlike" more than a year ago. Nor is there any indication of how many other companies have been part of a tribal program intended to allow nontribal business partners to enjoy some benefits of sovereign nation status, called the tribal "continuance" program. What is clear is that the federal government's interest was piqued more than 13 months ago as it probed the Goshute company's yen deal. According to court documents, IRS revenue agent Denise Glaser originally issued a summons Dec. 19, 2002, for information surrounding Starlike's yen futures deal. The demand for documents was left at the door of Bear's cottage at the Goshute village in Skull Valley as well as at the tribal office just below the Interstate 80 overpass in South Salt Lake. It also was delivered to: * The United Bank of Switz- erland, now called UBS, which acknowledged the yen futures trade in Jan. 9, 1998, correspondence and followed up on the yen deal in a document dated the following month. * Steven Jacoby, a lawyer, broker and financier who lists a Hollywood, Fla., address. * Falzan NV, a business registered at an address in Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands and one of the first global financial hubs to establish a reputation as an offshore tax haven. * James Haber, who the IRS lists as president of New York City-headquartered Starlike Properties and also of the Diversified Group Inc., a company described in an American Lawyer magazine article last month as "a New York Company that makes and sells tax shelters." * Thomas N. Long, a Cheyenne, Wyo., lawyer who worked with former Skull Valley Band attorneys on some of the tribe's business ventures, as well as his company Registered Agency Services. Shortly after the Goshutes inked their deal for the nuclear-waste facility in 1997, Long had a key role in helping set up the Goshutes Business Code allowing legal domiciles of businesses to be easily transferred among certain states and even foreign nations. In effect, tribal regulations allow the Goshutes' business partners to shift their federal tax liabilities to the tribe, whose businesses generally are exempt from federal taxation.. Based on documents contained in federal court files, the tribe bought Starlike from a Canadian businessman Nov. 24, 1997. Starlike linked itself with the Jersey company and another Haber-controlled business in a deal completed a few weeks later. In January 1998, the Swiss Bank accepted a "yen currency put option," a financial instrument traded internationally that amounts to a promise to sell a certain amount of yen currency at a set price within a certain time period. The bank later acknowledged changes made to the yen deal by Starlike and Haber's other company, according to documents already in the hands of the IRS. Glaser, the IRS investigator, said in an affidavit that only Bear responded to the summons when the Starlike participants were originally told to produce their documents last March, and that Bear provided rudimentary paperwork and not all the material IRS requested. Bear, the only Goshute authorized to comment on tribal affairs, was not available to talk about the civil summons. He is out of town until the day before his arraignment on the criminal charges, according to aide Beverly Slack. But he has been communicating about the criminal charges with the 121 people who are official members of the tribe. "We intend to vigorously defend against these charges," Bear said in the Dec. 31 memo circulated to Skull Valley Band members. "We intend to prevail on all counts. We also intend to move forward with the spent nuclear fuel storage project." His memo concluded: "We do not intend to allow the United States government or the state of Utah to compromise our right to our own internal governance or our independent sovereignty as an Indian nation." The issue of tribal finances has been a subject of bitter controversy among tribal members, especially since the leaders agreed to host the nuclear facility on 820 acres of reservation land across the road from the tumbledown tribal village in the shadow of Deseret Peak. Leaders heralded the nuclear facility, which would reportedly cost $3.1 billion to build and operate, as a financial boon for all tribal members. More than five years after approving the facility, which has yet to be licenced by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the average household income for a Skull Valley Goshute is $16,875 a year, or about a third of the typical income of a Utah household, according to the 2000 census. Former Goshute vice chairwoman Mary Allen and her brother, Rex, whose status as tribal secretary is disputed by Bear, have been among the tribal members pushing for in-depth audits and disclosure of the "continuance" programs. They have a pending lawsuit in Utah's 3rd District Court, which was partly dismissed last year because of Bear's claims of tribal sovereignty. Rex Allen "has been seeking to obtain the information but so far he has been blocked and thwarted," said attorney Randall Gaither, who represents the Allens in their state court case. The Allens have been inquiring about Starlike's finances for more than a year, he added. And they are considering trying to intervene in the IRS case on behalf of the entire tribe. fahys@sltrib.com Copyright Salt Lake City Tribune ***************************************************************** 39 JoongAng Daily: ¡®No Seoul nuclear dump' Students, others protest professors' plan Students, environmental groups and local residents are fighting back after 63 professors at Seoul National University proposed Wednesday that the campus become the site of the country's hotly disputed first nuclear waste disposal facility. The academics had suggested that Mount Gwanak, part of which lies on the campus, located in Seoul's Gwanak district, would be a safe location for nuclear waste. Members of the Democratic Labor Party and 30 members of Seoul National University's environmental club held a rally in front of the school's main gate yesterday. "The professors drafted the proposal without even asking the opinion of the nearby residents and the students," the demonstrators said. "The school was formerly opposed to the construction of a highway running through Mount Gwanak on grounds that it would harm the environment," they added. "This proposal contradicts its policies." Green Korea United, an environmental nongovernmental organization, issued a statement yesterday saying that the proposal was unrealistic. The Seoul Environment League, which also opposes the move, said, "The main issue is not the plant's location, but whether nuclear energy should be used." The Gwanak District Office and nearby local governments say they plan to take action against the proposal soon. The professors who signed the proposal, however, claim that the school views it positively. Hong Gang-ja, dean of the school's nursing college, said that university president Chung Un-chan is of the same opinion as the professors. In the proposal, the professors said that they could no longer remain spectators to the crisis in Buan county, North Jeolla province. Residents there staged frequently violent protests for months last year against the government's plan to build the dump on Wido island, after which the government withdrew the plan and opened a new bidding process for regions to host the facility. by Bae No-pil wohn@joongang.co.kr> 2004.01.09 ***************************************************************** 40 business.iafrica.com: business news Aflease to exploit uranium COMPANIES Aflease to exploit uranium Posted Thu, 08 Jan 2004 Junior gold miner Afrikander Lease (Aflease) on Wednesday announced that due to the improvement in the uranium price it would be doing preliminary work to develop its uranium assets. The company owns significant uranium deposits in the Klerksdorp area in the North West province in the form of the Dominion Reefs and Rietkuil resources. Anglo American previously mined the uranium resources with the Dominion mine producing 1143 tons of uranium oxide at a grade of 0.94 kg/ton between 1955 and 1961, while the Rietkuil mine produced 16.2 tons of uranium oxide at a grade of 0.44 kg/ton during 1988. The mining of these deposits was terminated because of the low uranium price. "The preliminary work is expected to continue for some months. Aflease shareholders will be advised of any material progress in this regard," the company said. In December, Aflease it would cease gold mining operations due to the strong rand and the lower-than-expected in situ grades at its open pit operations. Last update 08-Jan-2004 07:35:00 Copyright © 2002 iafrica.com, a division of Metropolis*. ***************************************************************** 41 Tri-City Herald: Proponents of a citizen initiative to limit nuclear waste Hanford cleanup, which also means the future of the Tri-Cities. That's probably not what the team of environmental groups had in mind when it submitted the final signatures for a citizen initiative to the Legislature last week. But in also announcing hopes of using Initiative 297 to make Hanford cleanup a key issue in this fall's elections, environmental activists begin to create the false perception of a partisan division. None exists, of course. The reality is environmental restoration at Hanford enjoys universal support among the Northwest's congressional delegation. Still, Gerald Pollet, executive director of Heart of America Northwest, chided Congressman George Nethercutt, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, for refusing to sign the initiative petition. The implication was that Nethercutt's opponent, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., did sign. But she hasn't signed and told the Herald editorial board this week that the initiative could create problems for the congressional delegation. The attempt by proponents to turn the initiative into a litmus test on support for Hanford cleanup is more than disingenuous. It is dangerous. Pollet and colleagues need to ask what happens if they're successful in politicizing Hanford cleanup. The answer is that they weaken the Northwest's united, bipartisan support for the program. It's foolish to alienate any faction when the region continues to need every friend it can get in competing for the billions of dollars needed to complete the job. Granted, the Department of Energy made itself a target for I-297, or something like it. Actions such as the Energy Department's attempt to reclassify high-level radioactive tank wastes raise serious questions about the administration's commitment to collaborating with regulatory agencies and other interested parties in the Northwest. But while mistrust of the Energy Department's intentions is understandable, it doesn't mean the initiative is good for the Northwest. It's unlikely the measure could ever succeed in its aims in the first place. Other states have tried and failed to prevent nuclear wastes from crossing their borders. If all it took was a popular vote, no state would accept new wastes. Even without any real effect, the initiative could pit the Northwest against other regions by sending the message that we are happy to ship our wastes to New Mexico or Nevada, but unwilling to play a role in anyone else's cleanup. We need allies in other nuclear states as much as we need a united delegation in our own region. The initiative first goes to the Legislature, which can adopt it, put it on the fall ballot or offer it to voters alongside the Legislature's own alternative. Some grandstanding is certain in an election year, but let's hope that Hanford cleanup is still one issue where it's possible for the debate to be based more on reason than fabricated politics. © 2004 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services ***************************************************************** 42 SLOTrib: Planners will get lesson in storage of nuclear waste San Luis Obispo Tribune | 01/08/2004 | [sanluisobispo.com - The sanluisobispo home page] 'Dry Cask 101' will prepare them for Feb. 26 hearing David Sneed The Tribune SAN LUIS OBISPO - County planning commissioners will receive a primer today on storing spent nuclear fuel in above-ground dry casks. They're holding an hour-long study session on Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s proposal to build a dry-cask storage facility at Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant. This workshop is the first of several meetings county officials will hold before issuing PG&E a coastal development permit to build the facility. Other permits will be issued by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Next to a hill behind the power plant, PG&E wants to install 138 huge concrete and steel cylinders each holding 32 depleted but still highly radioactive fuel assemblies. PG&E has applied to build the facility because pools in which the plant's spent nuclear fuel is currently stored will be full by 2006. Today's workshop is an opportunity for planning commissioners to learn the basics of dry-cask storage. No decisions will be made. "It will be Dry Cask 101," said James Caruso, the county planner for the project. Because the meeting is a study session, it will be up to commissioners to decide if they want to take public comment, Caruso added. Another study session is scheduled for Jan. 22. At that meeting, the findings of an environmental impact report on the project will be discussed. The commission will hold its formal public hearing on the dry-cask plan Feb. 26. At that time, the commission will decide whether to issue the permit and whether PG&E will be required to fulfill any extra requirements. County planning staff has recommended that PG&E take additional steps to improve safety and security at the site. PG&E has said the extra precautions are unnecessary and questioned the county's authority to require them. David Sneed covers environmental issues for The Tribune. E-mail story ideas and comments to him at dsneed@thetribune news.com SanLuisObispo.com ***************************************************************** 43 Korea Herald: SNU professors in nuke dump drama By Kim So-young (soyoung@heraldm.com) 2004.01.09 Sixty-three professors at Seoul National University captured headlines this week when they proposed building a nuclear waste dump on campus at the foot of rocky Mt. Gwanak in southern Seoul. That controversial suggestion has earned the group The Korea Herald's inaugural Person of the Week distinction. In this case, the acknowledgment goes to all 63 professors for their collective proposal. Their stunning plan, whether an epoch-making idea or a random thought, heats up the debate in the country. The government and local residents have been stuck in a seven-month stalemate over the construction of such a facility in the southwestern county of Buan. The professors said they felt obliged to jump into the debate after having seen the 18-year-old government project to build a nuclear waste dump repeatedly end in failure. "We suggest that the university president consider allowing a nuclear waste disposal site into our school based on the firm belief that the nuclear facility poses no threat to the security of people," they said in a joint statement at a news conference. Prof. Kang Chang-sun, a world-renowned nuclear physics expert and adviser to the International Atomic Energy Agency, led the proposal, arguing that the nuclear waste disposal site causes no harm. Deans of the schools of Natural Science, Science Engineering, Agriculture and Biology were among the 63 professors at the nation's most prestigious college. Prof. Hwang Woo-seok, a master in the field of biological engineering who cloned a calf for the first, was also in on the proposal. "As scientists to watch the Buan case, we have to propose the government scrap the nuclear site plan if the facility is not safe. Otherwise, Seoul National University, which has benefited most from the government, must encompass the facility," said Prof. Hwang. Buan residents, after months of violent protests against the designation in July of Wido, an island near the region, as a nuclear waste dumpsite, won concessions from the government. Officials said last month they would hold a local referendum and begin to seek other potential sites. The new proposal is seen by some as part of the professors' attempt to change public perception about a nuclear facility, rather than a feasible policy alternative. The professors acknowledged the idea did not aim for a specific outcome or goal. Meanwhile, others still hope this will serve as a good alternative and end the longtime conflict surrounding the nuclear dump plan. However, there are a number of stumbling blocks before the proposal could work. Gwanak-gu Office, which exercises jurisdiction over the university site, along with a number of other related organizations issued statements opposing the proposal. Many residents criticized the professors, saying they ignored residents, citizens who frequent the area and local organizations. ***************************************************************** 44 NJ Online: GEMS at center of EPA, state tug-of-war Gloucester County Times Thursday, January 08, 203 By Shawn Menzies smenzies@sjnewsco.com The same federal judge whose May ruling moved forward a plan to flush slightly contaminated groundwater from a Gloucester Township Superfund site through public sewer lines, is now reviewing new court motions by the state to amend his ruling. U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle will rule sometime in the next two weeks, officials said. The Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority last week asked the judge for it to be removed from participating in the plan. The state Department of Environmental Protection no longer endorses the proposal and a new state law bans the plan. The county and state panels are now calling for the plan to be halted until a better proposal is developed to clean the Gloucester Environmental Management Services (GEMS) Superfund site in the Erial section of Gloucester Township. But two other groups, the GEMS Phase II Trust - the group charged with cleaning the site -- and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, still favor the plan. The plan proposed and endorsed by the federal government would send the groundwater through sewer lines to the CCMUA's facility in Camden City, where it would be treated before being released into the Delaware River. Elizabeth Zimmermann, spokeswoman for the EPA, said in light of recent developments the EPA will not abandon the plan they have endorsed. "No, absolutely not, we continue to stand by our belief" that the plan safeguards and protects the health of the people and the environment. Word that the EPA has no intention of changing its position angered environmentalists Wednesday. "The EPA is clearly on the polluters' side and not the public's side," said Sharon Finlayson, of the N.J. Environmental Federation. "It appears more that they are digging in their heels on a plan developed years ago." During the second round of remediation of the site, contaminants known as radionuclides were found in groundwater tests. Uranium has also been found. Federal officials contend the levels of uranium are naturally occurring, but a report stated that several of the companies that dumped at the site over its 30 years of operation had federal licensing to handle and dispose of uranium. Growing concern has also been raised over the financial status of the GEMS Trust and its practice of not disclosing information to the public. U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, D-1st., of Haddon Heights, had language included in federal legislation now awaiting President Bush's signature that would direct the EPA to conduct an investigation into the GEMS Trust and make its findings public by April 1. The bill is expected to be signed by Bush next month. Copyright 2004 Gloucester County Times. Used with permission. © 2004 NJ.com. All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 45 heraldtribune.com: Imported uranium incorrectly sent to N.C. plant Thursday, January 8 The Associated Press PADUCAH, Ky. -- The federal government is investigating how six metric tons of blended Russian uranium wound up in North Carolina instead of their intended destination, the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission believes the mistaken shipment to a nuclear fabrication plant in Wilmington, N.C., posed no risk to anyone, a spokesman said Wednesday. "It was received at a facility authorized to take it," said Roger Hannah, an NRC spokesman in Atlanta. The Paducah plant enriches uranium for use as fuel for nuclear power plants. The Wilmington plant takes the fuel and shapes it for reactor use. The trucking company that transported the diluted uranium, Transport Logistics International, accidentally sent the load along with a similarly-numbered load from a dock in Norfolk, Va., to Global Nuclear Fuel LLC in Wilmington on Dec. 19. The trucking company's chief executive officer, Rod Fisk, said the error was quickly spotted and Global was notified the Paducah shipment also would be coming, along with Global's intended shipment. "It was never lost," Fisk said. The company that operates the Paducah plant, USEC, was notified of the mix-up after the holidays. Spokeswoman Elizabeth Stuckle said the uranium was on its way to Paducah from North Carolina on Wednesday and that it had been under tight security ever since it arrived in the United States. USEC has bought or agreed to buy $7.5 billion worth of uranium from Russia and process it into nuclear fuel. The weapons-grade uranium is diluted before being shipped to the United States. The federal agency that investigates potential terrorism threats and security breaches, the Department of Homeland Security, would not become involved in the investigation unless criminal intent was suspected, spokesman Ben Quevedo said. Last modified: January 08. 2004 9:14AM heraldtribune.com Serving the Herald-Tribune newspaper and SNN Channel 6 © Sarasota Herald-Tribune. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 46 Russia Journal Daily: Russia ousted from nuclear waste market January 08, 2004 Posted: 14:33 Moscow time (10:33 GMT) MOSCOW - Russia will not be able to make new contracts on nuclear waste import for storage and recycling in the nearest future. This, according to Lenta.ru was a statement made by Alexander Rumyantsev, Russian Atomic minister. According to his words, ‘Russia is denied access to this very profitable market’, which he declares is divided between USA, France and other countries. Ministry of Atomic Energy officials believe that this sphere is extremely profitable and can bring huge sums to Russia. Rumyantsev estimates possible profit as about $20 billion. The Russia JournalRussia ousted from nuclear waste market The Russia Journal magazine The Russia Journal Photos Copyright © 1999-2003 Articles by Ajay Goyal on the Norasco.COM Articles by Ajay Goyal on russiajournal.ru ***************************************************************** 47 STLtoday: Rain floods radioactive waste site next to Lambert Field [Thursday, Jan. 8, 2004] By Sara Shipley Post-Dispatch 01/07/2004 Coldwater Creek overflowed its banks Sunday, running onto the St. Louis Airport Site near Banshee and McDonnell Douglas Blvd. (KAREN ELSHOUT/P-D) A radioactive waste site near the St. Louis airport flooded Sunday during an unusually heavy rain. Coldwater Creek, swollen from the 2-inch downpour, swamped a corner of the 21-acre site near Lambert Field where contaminated soil is being excavated. For decades, the property served as a dump for uranium, radium, thorium and other radioactive residue from nuclear fuel processing. There is no evidence that radioactive waste washed away into the creek during the storm, said Jacqueline Mattingly, a project manager for the Army Corps of Engineers. "We don't expect any measurable quantities of material to have moved off-site," she said. "At least, no more than in the 50 years it's been there." But Kay Drey, a anti-nuclear activist from University City, said the incident shows how dangerous it is to have radioactive waste stored in a flood plain. "This was bound to happen, the flooding," she said. "It's good they're cleaning it up, but they should be handling it very, very carefully." Drey served on a task force that made recommendations about the cleanup. She said that the possibility of contaminated soil and ground water ending up in the creek was one of her major concerns. Coldwater Creek is, in fact, contaminated, according to tests by the federal government. The stream flows underneath Lambert Field and surfaces again at a railroad crossing right by the radioactive waste site. It then runs another 13 miles or so to the Missouri River. The corps recently excavated a pit along the creek to remove utility poles and covered the contaminated soil with plastic sheets to prevent erosion. On Sunday, floodwater rose over a protective berm along the creek bank and flooded the pit, officials said. The corps tested water and soil from the area that flooded Sunday. Mattingly said the test results came up "clean," meaning they were within acceptable levels. Some previous tests of the creek showed that radioactive waste has gotten into the creek over the years. The federal government bought the tract in 1947 to dump waste from Mallinckrodt Chemical Co.'s uranium processing operation in St. Louis. Mallinckrodt's materials helped fuel America's first atomic bomb. The property, known as the St. Louis Airport Site or SLAPS, has been cleaned up several times. Much of the contaminated soil and scrap has been removed, but some "low level" waste remains, Mattingly said. Now the corps is charged with cleaning up at least six radioactive waste sites around St. Louis, including the airport site. The contaminated material is being transported to out-of-state disposal facilities. This summer, the agency proposed a plan for handling the remaining contamination at sites in north St. Louis County. The plan includes dredging part of Coldwater Creek. Mattingly said the entire creek will be tested for contaminants but that the whole creek will not be dredged. "We would expect to remediate less than a few thousand feet" of the creek, said Joseph Schwenk, lead engineer for the airport site. The corps expects to decide on a cleanup plan sometime this year, Mattingly said. Reporter Sara Shipley E-mail: sshipley@post-dispatch.com Phone: 314-340-8215 ***************************************************************** 48 UK Independent: Protesters Meet First Radioactive Shipments Into N.M. Medium-Level Nuclear Waste From Nevada Headed For Carlsbad POSTED: 6:56 AM MST January 8, 2004 UPDATED: 6:53 PM MST January 8, 2004 ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The first truckload of radioactive waste from Nevada rolled into New Mexico about 4 a.m. Thursday. The truck came through Albuquerque on Interstate 40, headed for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad. The shipments of medium-level waste left the Nevada Test Site Wednesday. The truck was met by protesters on the Carlisle overpass, shouting a warning about its contents. "Get out of the way, people! There's nuclear waste on the road," yelled one protester. "There are enough accidents on I-40 and I-25 that we don't need these trucks bringing nuclear waste through my house," said protester Susan Weiss. Cities including Santa Fe and Las Vegas, Nev., banned the WIPP trucks from coming through their communities. The protesters said Albuquerque should also deny them passage. "But we are dumber here in Albuquerque, that we can't (ban) the WIPP trucks. (We) can't get the city government to recognize these are not safe going through towns," said an unidentified protester. Wednesday night, protesters from the Citizens for Alternatives to Radioactive Dumping, Stop the War Machine and Nukes Out of the Duke City gathered outside Sen. Pete Domenici's office. One woman was arrested after she refused to leave without speaking with Domenici. Other than the protest, the WIPP truck passed through the city without incident. Similar shipments are planned for Jan. 13, 15, 20 and 22. Copyright 2004 by TheNewMexicoChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. © 2004, Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. ***************************************************************** 49 BulletinWire News: Energy Department fumbling Yucca application January 7, 2004 The Energy Department’s license application to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain (already a year late according to the state of Nevada) is now being delayed by incomplete assessments of the project’s technical issues, according to a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) official. “[The Energy Department] has not routinely provided supporting information,” wrote Janet Schlueter, the NRC’s high-level waste branch chief, in a letter to Energy officials (Las Vegas Sun, January 5). “NRC cannot complete its review of these agreements without the documentation.” Energy officials have reportedly designed new ways for the NRC to view supporting documents, some of which are only in draft form. Energy has been working to address questions raised about the safety of their plan for the site, which could hold up to 77,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel, before the end of 2004. Preventing environmental radiation contamination has been a chief concern, but there are others. In the January/February 2002 Bulletin, Bret Lortie reported on the potential dangers of transporting nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain in casks loaded on trains. “The current design standards for high-level nuclear waste containers set by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) might be adequate in most circumstances, but put a fire inside a tunnel, add combustibles from other cars, and train tunnel fires can get much, much hotter,” Lortie reported. From Rogue ***************************************************************** 50 KLAS: Nuke Waste Travel Route January 8, 2004 COncessions were made to keep the nuclear waste from traveling on Las Vegas Valley freeways. Atle Erlingsson, Reporter (Jan. 7) -- For the first time ever, radioactive waste from the Nevada Test Site is being transported out of the state to a new storage facility. The exact dates and times of the transportation are top secret but Eyewitness News does know the first shipment left Wednesday. The largest city the waste is going through is Albuquerque, NM. Concessions were made to keep the radioactive waste out of the Las Vegas Valley. Each truck will carry up to 42 barrels filled with waste. Those barrels will be inside specially made steel containers. U.S. Senator John Ensign is canceling a Yucca Mountain hearing. The senator had wanted to look at the plans to bring the waste to Nevada. There were concerns the transportation plan would interfere with Nellis Air Force Base. But the plan picked by the Department of Energy skirts the base, so Senator Ensign says there is no need for the hearing. Congressman Jon Porter is still planning to hold a hearing on the waste route. All content © Copyright 2000 - 2004 WorldNow and KLAS. All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 51 Gallup Independent: Bluewater uranium piles found to be OK again 01-05-04 Kathy Helms Diné Bureau FORT DEFIANCE — A 2003 inspection report from the U.S. Energy Department has given the Bluewater, N.M., uranium mill tailings site near Grants good marks. The Bluewater site is one of three Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act Title II sites currently covered by the department's general license for long-term care. The other two are the Edgemont in South Dakota and the Sherwood on the Spokane reservation in Washington state. The purpose of the annual inspection is to confirm the integrity of the site, to identify changes in conditions that might compromise it, and to determine the need for maintenance or additional inspections and monitoring. The report was prepared by the department's Grand Junction, Colo., office and was based on a May 2003 inspection. According to the Energy Department, the Bluewater disposal site showed no detection of poly chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in ground water monitoring. In accordance with the long-term surveillance plan, the only sampling mandated in 2003 was the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-required PCB sampling. The Point of Compliance well was dry and was not sampled. There are nine monitoring wells at the site, including five in the alluvial aquifer and four in the bedrock aquifer. The department did find evidence of unauthorized livestock grazing, but while livestock intrusion represents a site management issue for the federal agency, it does not threaten the integrity of the disposal site. A barbed-wire stock fence set several feet inside the property line along the perimeter generally was in good condition. Fences were repaired in several locations in 2001, especially along the northwest and western boundaries. A maintenance contractor, during a recent walk-through inspection, found the fence purposefully open in some locations, apparently to allow livestock to come and go. The department has retained a subcontractor to repair the fencing and to check for and remove unauthorized livestock. The east end boundary, where flooding has occurred in the past, was dry at the time of the 2003 inspection. An 800-foot section of perimeter fence repaired in 2001 remained in excellent condition. The department found no evidence of standing water inside depressions on the north end of the main tailings disposal cell, where it had been observed previously. The depressions are believed to be the result of settling. Inspectors will continue to monitor the sinks for ponding on top of the cell and will keep an eye on the settling. There are three disposal cells at the Bluewater site, which together make up one large disposal area of about 320 acres. The main tailings disposal pile is covered with riprap, as are the side slopes of all three cells. The acid tailings and south bench disposal areas are basically flat and covered by grass. All three cells were found to be in generally excellent condition, according to the department. Though inspectors did detect widely scattered dead plants, mainly Russian thistle, on the main tailings disposal cell especially the east side slope the department and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission do not consider plant encroachment an issue at this site. There was a sandstorm on the day of the inspection and a significant amount of windblown sand had accumulated at the entrance gate. To open the gate, inspectors had to force it through a small sand dune, the report states. Sand accumulation also has been noted during previous inspections, and according to the department, has been deposited in a 1,000-foot section along the top of the east side slope of the main tailings pile. Though considered insignificant at this time, inspectors will continue to monitor the accumulation of sand as it is likely to increase due to the dry climate and sparse foliage. Erosion was observed along the east edge of the apron below the carbonate tailings cell during a 2001 inspection. The soil fill appeared to be washing away from the edge of the apron and DOE suggested continued monitoring. The carbonate tailings cell and its extensions were in excellent condition, as were the asbestos and PCB disposal areas, the department said. Officials also conducted a visual inspection of a quarter-mile area outside the site boundary, to look for signs of erosion, development, change in land use, and other things that might affect the long-term integrity of the site. None was observed. The perimeter dirt road was in good to excellent condition but will require periodic maintenance, according to the department. In 2001, a culvert was installed where the road was washing out. Contact the Gallup Independent Please send the Gallup Independent feedback on this website and the paper in general. E-mail: By mail: The Independent PO Box 1210 Gallup, NM 87305 500 N. 9th Gallup, NM 87301 ***************************************************************** 52 Albuquerque Tribune: Cash for cleanups Arguing the Department of Energy has a poor track record in cleaning up its hazardous wastes, today's author says a congressional effort to exempt Sandia National Laboratories' Mixed Waste Landfill, in Albuquerque, from posting a cleanup bond should be opposed. By Paul Robinson How do we manage more than 300,000 cubic feet of radioactive and hazardous waste in unlined pits and trenches at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque? The issue has been on the minds of many in this city for years. But it popped up as a never-before-seen provision in the Omnibus Appropriation Bill released last month and passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Dec. 8. Backed by New Mexico's powerful senior Sen. Pete Domenici, an Albuquerque Republican, the provision: Prevents using federal funds "to post a bond or fulfill any other financial responsibility requirement relating to closure or post-closure care and monitoring of Sandia National Laboratories, and properties held or managed by Sandia National Laboratories prior to implementation of closure or post-closure monitoring." Prevents "the State of New Mexico or any other entity" from enforcing "a requirement to post bond or any other financial responsibility requirement relating to closure or post-closure care and monitoring of Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico and properties held or managed by Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico." Domenici, apparently without the involvement of Rep. Heather Wilson, also an Albuquerque Republican, drafted the provision at Sandia's request because "Sandia, like WIPP and other federal projects, is backed by the full faith and credit of the federal government," his spokesman said. Financial responsibility is the guarantee to pay for activities to assure cleanup (closure) is complete and any problems that might surface later can be taken care of thereafter (post-closure). Where closure includes removing all hazardous materials, post-closure responsibility is a minor, though still important, concern. But where wastes are left in place and controlled using covers and land-use restrictions, monitoring and maintenance are necessary for very long periods to assure no releases occur. Domenici has not explained why this provision is needed and why the Omnibus Appropriation Bill was chosen, since that approach forecloses effective public debate if the Senate also were to approve it. Concerned citizens are left to wonder, Why is this provision needed for Sandia and not the rest of the Department of Energy complex? Why does New Mexico's senior senator want to limit the state's authority? Why doesn't Domenici want Sandia's waste sites cleaned up sufficiently to avoid the need for post-closure care? A fundamental reason for concern is the very mixed record of "full faith and credit" related to nuclear waste management, cited by his office. Taxpayers are spending upward of $200 billion to clean up waste from federal nuclear weapons production during the unregulated Cold War. Sandia waste is a small part of that legacy, but its cleanup and long-term control are of great concern because Sandia and Kirtland Air Force Base waste sites, sit atop Albuquerque's aquifer. Currently, the city relies entirely on this groundwater. As well-funded as Sandia's nuclear weapons work has been, its waste management record is mixed. Sandia is the subject of an order for "Determination of An Imminent and Substantial Endangerment to Health and the Environment." Readers can see it on the Internet here. It was issued during Gov. Gary Johnson's term by the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED). That department found: Waste management activities at Sandia have caused the release of solid and hazardous wastes and radioactive wastes in the environment. Contaminants, including trichloroethene (TCE) nitrate, chromium and nickel, have been detected in at least four areas - in both perched and regional groundwater, and in canyon alluvial and bedrock systems. The "City of Albuquerque . . . (and) Kirtland Air Force Base public water supply wells are all potential receptors of contaminated water." At the Sandia Mixed Waste Landfill (MWL), a focus of major public concern for five years, the state Environment Department found contamination in the vadose zone - the portion of the ground between the surface and the groundwater table - from low levels of tritium and cadmium. The department informed Sandia in 2001 that, if Sandia continues to advocate for capping the site and leaving the waste in place, the state would require Sandia to provide for periodic "evaluation of the effectiveness of the cover," and monitoring and "should monitoring reveal a significant problem, other remedial measures, including excavation and removal of the landfill contents." Were Sandia to propose removing the wastes, those post-closure measures would not be necessary. Federal law - the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) - mandates that the state consider long-term matters as it requires all waste facility operators, private, state or federal to "close that facility in a manner that: One, minimizes the need for further maintenance; and two, controls, minimizes or eliminates - to the extent necessary to protect human health and the environment - post-closure escape of hazardous waste." Federal financial assurance requirements apply to "owners and operators of all hazardous waste facilities," except where "the owner or operator intends to remove the wastes at closure," though such assurances are not required of states and federal government. But New Mexico, like other states with federal legacy waste including Ohio, Tennessee, Washington and California, is working to ensure the federal government meets all RCRA standards, including financial guarantees that cleanup, monitoring and closure, when delayed, comply with the law. New Mexico's effort includes notifying Sandia that its RCRA permit renewal will "require financial assurance," which Environment Secretary Ron Curry believes "triggered" the Domenici provision, according to a Dec. 4 letter he sent to U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, a Silver City Democrat. Several states have developed creative financial assurance measures in cooperation with the federal government that include: A trust fund endowed by annual appropriations for a mixed waste landfill at Oak Ridge, Tennessee (that then-DOE Secretary Bill Richardson agreed to). Insurance provisions at a chemical weapons depot in Oregon. Such measures are critical to the federal government building public trust and confidence in its capacity to effectively clean up wastes, because in the past "full faith and credit" meant a policy of ignoring waste management concerns for many years and never-ending future waste streams. The "trust us, we're the federal government" tone of Domenici's provision underscores the need for state regulators to ensure waste is cleaned up by removal and disposal to avoid extensive post-closure measures. The provision expresses a disappointing refusal by the senator to require the federal government to make the financial commitment to post-closure care that commercial waste site owners have been required to make for many years. TODAYS BYLINE: Paul Robinson is research director at the Southwest Research and Information Center, a nonprofit organization founded in Albuquerque in 1971. He is author of a report on financial assurance mechanisms that can be read here. © The Albuquerque Tribune. ***************************************************************** 53 Google News Alert - nuclear Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 17:46:03 -0800 EU'S Solana to press Iran on nuclear arms International Herald Tribune, France DUBLIN Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy chief, said Thursday that he hoped to revive efforts to persuade Iran to abandon its nuclear program ... PAKISTAN strongly denies nuclear transfers to Libya, report ... Pakistani Newspaper, Pakistan WASHINGTON, Jan 08: A spokesman for the Pakistan Government has strongly denied nuclear transfers to Libya, calling the allegations "absolutely false." A VoA ... RUSSIAN Nuclear Min to visit Iran to speed up Bushehr mid-Feb PRIME-TASS (subscription), Russia MOSCOW, Jan 8 (Prime-Tass) -- Russian Nuclear Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev will hold talks with the Iranian government in Teheran in the second half of ... Russia ousted from nuclear waste market - Russia Journal Russian Minister of Atomic Energy to visit Teheran - ITAR-TASS No contracts for irradiated nuke fuel import in Russia this year ... MALAYSIA Helps US, Britain Probe Libya Nuclear Link Wired News ... Malaysian police are working with US and British intelligence services on an investigation into the supply of parts crucial to Libya's secret nuclear weapons ... NUCLEAR experts scour cities for 'dirty' bombs, other terrorist ... San Francisco Chronicle, CA Two days before New Year's Eve, Energy Department nuclear experts detected radiation coming from a storage rental building near downtown Las Vegas. ... FAISAL denies transfer of nuclear technology PakTribune.com, Pakistan LAHORE: Refuting charges of transfer of nuclear technology levelled by Libya on Pakistan, Interior Minster Faisal Saleh Hayat Thursday said that the country ... PERU praises DPRK's willingness to freeze nuclear program Xinhua, China 8 (Xinhuanet) -- Peru is satisfied with the decision of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to stop nuclear activities, the Peruvian Foreign ... FOLLOWING the nuclear trail Christian Science Monitor WASHINGTON – History may record that the early 21st century witnessed the breakdown of the three-decade-long effort to halt the spread of nuclear weapons. ... RUSSIA praises DPRK's willingness to freeze nuclear program Xinhua, China 8 (Xinhuanet) -- A senior Russian official said Thursday Pyongyang's latest statement of freezing its nuclear program is "an important and serious step, which ... US delegation may visit NKorea's Yongbyon nuclear center - ITAR-TASS World opinion welcome DPRK's offer on nuclear freeze - Viet Nam News Agency Annan welcomes recent statements on DPR of Korea's nuclear ... 'ARTIFICIAL fog' seen as means of protecting nuclear plants Frankfurter Allgemeine, Germany ... German Environment Ministry is considering the use of equipment that would throw up giant, artificial “fog shields“ to improve the protection of nuclear ... This once-a-day News Alert is brought to you by Google News (BETA)... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Remove this News Alert: http://www.google.com/newsalerts/remove?s=682e52ddd0720101 Create another News Alert: http://www.google.com/newsalerts Try Google News: http://news.google.com/ ***************************************************************** 54 Guardian Unlimited: It shouldn't happen to a Uncle Sam needs soldiers to protect his pipelines in Iraq - but they shouldn't expect his help when it's all over AL Kennedy Wednesday January 7, 2004 The Guardian Feeling restless? Is 2004 looking just like 2003? Do you long to have your place in life very firmly defined by others and to wear a range of interesting hats? Do you have low financial expectations, a vigorous desire to travel and a functioning index finger? Then the US military could be for you. Not a US citizen? Don't fret - the Department of Defense Inc welcomes one and all. You can fight for a passport, fight for a green card, just fight for the Christian, God-fearing hell of it. And you'll be in good hands - Secretary of the Air Force James Roche is a former vice-president at Northrop Grumman; Secretary of the Navy Gordon England is a former executive at General Dynamics; and former Secretary of the Army Thomas E White came direct from those hard-fighting boys at Enron. You're only a few months of training from jury-rigging armour on your combat-unready vehicle, eating out of filthy, Halliburton-run kitchens, sewing patches on your Vietnam-issue flak jacket and tying plastic strips round the wrists of numberless fascinating strangers, often in their own homes. Brits also have local access to a subsidiary enterprise, run to the same exacting standards. French nationals need not apply. Or perhaps you've just finished a tour for Uncle Sam. Maybe you're one of last year's lucky amputees, or you've suffered a recent "mystery illness" or "mental breakdown". Well, give yourself a shake, shine up those new prosthetics and re-enlist today. In other wars you'd have been left idle, but no matter what levels of physical and mental trauma you've endured, this time the Department of Defense Inc still needs you. And with veterans making up 9% of the US population but 23% of the homeless - and Veterans Affairs taking care of 40,000 out of 500,000 - what better options have you got? You have a 50% chance of substance abuse and a 45% chance of mental illness - and let's not even talk about Gulf war syndrome and depleted uranium. In fact, let's not talk about that, ever. And who would miss the chance of serving alongside forces from Kellogg Root Brown, Northrop Grumman and DynCorp International - the war professionals? They can ignore the Geneva convention (they're not protected by it, either) and you can simply dodge round it. Feel like beating some prisoners in Camp Bucca? Confining whole villages as collective punishment? Shooting unarmed civilians? Gunning down a surrendered combatant in the street? Arresting the pesky journalists who'd film you gunning down a surrendered combatant in the street? Failing to establish and sustain civil order? Obtaining information "under duress"? Lifting harmless valuables during house-to-house searches? Then this war's for you. Or are you a brave, decent individual with a trust in your country's leaders and a deep sense of duty? Obviously, you can sign up, too, but your disillusionment will cause no end of trouble. You might well suffer long-term psychological problems, send emails to Michael Moore, complain to your relatives that you're being forced into illegal acts for corporate profit, and generally reduce company morale. Your duty is to keep your head down and make sure those pipelines stay secure. Of course, if you don't keep your head down, you may experience a period of negative good health. This is to be avoided, because it tends to depress voters at home, so you might find yourself being withdrawn for a while and stored in a variety of hospitals, barrack blocks and sheds with other inconveniently indisposed personnel, until you can be returned to the combat zone, or filtered quietly back into society. Your secluded storage may also affect your ability to receive Purple Hearts and other awards. And you will, naturally, be expected to repay your $8.10 food allowance for each day spent enjoying hospital meals, while any disability benefit you receive later (subject to further cuts) will be reimbursed to the government out of your retirement pay. There are moves afoot to alter these nominal, reasonable burdens, but don't hold your breath. And rest assured, for those of you who no longer have breath to hold, the Charles C Carson Centre for Mortuary Affairs will deal with your remains efficiently in tasteful surroundings. You won't be best placed to appreciate it, but the 70,000 sq ft, state-of-the-art facility at Dover air force base, in Delaware, has been expressly designed to process you and your comrades. It has a foyer with reflecting pool and rock-effect seating area and a glass Wall of Fallen Heroes, ready and waiting for your name. Better still, no ceremony will be held there to mark your passing, in case your grieving relatives feel compelled to attend. Coincidentally, this means George Bush won't be attending, either. And nor will the press gain any access - your arrival will be entirely private, as if you had never been. Vietnam and Korean war remains still arriving at Hickam air force base can be filmed, because they're Good News. But you, you're different - it's better for all concerned if you just disappear. comment@guardian.co.uk Guardian Newspapers Limited ***************************************************************** 55 Times and Democrat: Nuclear power could play key role in space The news is from Mars. Our focus could be Pluto. On Wednesday, NASA officials said the Mars rover named Spirit has developed some minor problems that will probably delay the start of its trek across the rust-colored landscape to prospect rocks and soil. The problems came a day after NASA scientists showed off the sharpest picture ever taken of the surface of Mars -- and quickly promised even bigger, better photos showing more of the reddish landscape strewn with rocks surrounding Spirit. Just days into its three-month mission, Spirit's first "postcard" home came across 105 million miles of space to Earth. But what of such trips beyond Mars? Dr. Ronald Greeley, an Arizona State University professor of geological sciences and co-leader of a 38-scientist team advising NASA on how to use nuclear energy in space exploration, said electricity generated by a reactor on it could open a new era. A spacecraft so equipped would allow NASA to adjust at light speed to data as it's received, communicate continuously and conduct many missions even simultaneously without fear of losing power. This would create "an unprecedented opportunity for exploration," Grow said. However, "none of us would be surprised if (Jimo) launches later than 2011." NASA tentatively named such a spacecraft Jimo, for Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter. The space agency admits it would require billions of dollars to build, a spaceworthy nuclear reactor with it. Greeley spoke at a San Francisco meeting the week of Dec. 8 of the American Geological Society. The usual opposition has been voiced already by coordinator Bruce Gagnon of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space. He had several warnings, none new. "As you introduce more nuclear power into space missions, you're looking for trouble," Gagnon said. Jimo would also be "an icebreaker to institutionalize nuclear power in space." And he said it "later would be used for military purposes." Gagnon offers no evidence but the common fear of his supporters and, we suppose, his own that this will happen. Since North Korea already has allegedly done so, as well as, first, the Soviet Union and now the Russia, what is to be done? NASA declares it will be attentive, careful and exercise extreme expertise in introducing nuclear energy. It says it won't turn on the reactor until after Jimo reaches orbit, that safety will be a primary concern and that nuclear fuel will be so designed it won't poison the atmosphere or space near Earth should Jimo, or follow-on rockets, explode. Indeed, NASA has used plutonium, which is radioactive, in hunks that decay as they generate heat and break up and generate a small quantity of electricity. The heat is as important as the power in its missions. NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe backed off a nuclear-powered space craft to Pluto, in part because of the battery problems and also because a conventional spacecraft was already in the works and planetary scientists defended it. Still, we need safe nuclear power. The Times and Democrat ©Copyright © 2004, The Times and Democrat ***************************************************************** NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: *****************************************************************