***************************************************************** 06/21/04 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 12.147 ***************************************************************** 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 AFP: Iran must master nuclear fuel cycle, supreme leader says 2 BBC: Iran rebukes EU on rights abuses 3 Hi Pakistan: IAEA wants more Pak cooperation in Iran probe --> 4 AFP: Iran's hardliners urge showdown with UN nuclear watchdog 5 AFP: China and South Korea voice optimism but NKorea defiant ahead o 6 Korea Herald: 6-party working groups discuss N.K. nukes 7 UPI: N. Korean nuclear working talks begin - 8 AFP: NKorea's top negotiator arrives in Beijing - reports 9 AFP: China remains dubious on North Korea's uranium program 10 AFP: Negotiators hammer out agenda for NKorea talks in Beijing 11 AFP: China and South Korea voice optimism but NKorea defiant ahead o 12 US: www.GovExec.com: Senate likely to tackle Defense appropriations 13 US: Guardian Unlimited: Interest Groups Take Targeted Ad Approach 14 US: The Committee on Energy and Commerce 15 US: Renewable Energy News: Hydrogen from Electrolysis 16 AFP: Pakistan rejects report of its nuclear scientists working in NK 17 AFP: 'Good' chemistry in first meeting of Indian, Pakistani FMs 18 Xinhuanet: Successful conclusion of Indo-Pak nuclear talks ends 19 Hi Pakistan: N-proliferation out of question: Musharraf --> 20 Hi Pakistan: India, Pakistan to set up N-hotline --> 21 Hi Pakistan: The most perilous nuclear flashpoint - 22 Indian Express: The genie under control 23 Gannon: Time for 'destructive engagement' NUCLEAR REACTORS 24 US: Las Vegas RJ: LETTERS: Nuke power 25 US: NRC: NRC Proposes $19,200 Fine Against U.S. Inspection Services 26 US: heraldtribune.com: ENERGY ALTERNATIVES Going nuclear has costly 27 Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Dominion is a powerful gas, electri 28 AFP: Radioactive leak found at Japanese nuclear plant NUCLEAR SAFETY 29 AFP: Russia wants to dismantle nuclear subs by 2010: official NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 30 Reuters: Yucca Nuclear Dump Funding Plan Draws Industry Ire 31 US: Salt Lake Tribune: Walker wants uranium waste moved 32 Las Vegas SUN: Nuke power users asked to pay more to fund Yucca 33 US: El Paso Times: Funding approved to continue WIPP oversight 34 Yucca Mountain Update - Volume 2 Issue 6 ~ June 18, 2004 NUCLEAR WEAPONS 35 US: 30 Years of History Preserved in Collection of Nuclear Control 36 UK Independent: Journalist in Vanunu case barred from Israel as 'ris 37 Daily Times: OP-ED: First-use and nuclear risk-reduction 38 US: lamonitor.com: Remembering Oppenheimer and the bomb US DEPT. OF ENERGY 39 Produce enriched uranium at Piketon!! WHY? 40 DOE: International Energy Agency Meeting 41 Tri-City Herald: Opinions Parochialism threatens nuclear cleanup eff 42 Oak Ridger: Y-12 worker contributes to Hank Williams project for PBS 43 U.S. Newswire: Secretary Abraham to Address National Petroleum Counc 44 U.S. Newswire: Western Governors kick off Annual Meeting with 45 U.S. Newswire: DOE Officials to Testify before Congressional Committ 46 Oak Ridger: Oak Ridge leaders heading to D.C. again 47 Oak Ridger: 'No' vote prolongs union talks OTHER NUCLEAR 48 Google News Alert - nuclear ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** FULL NEWS STORIES ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** 1 AFP: Iran must master nuclear fuel cycle, supreme leader says [http://www.spacewar.com/] TEHRAN (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Monday that it was essential for the Islamic republic to master the nuclear fuel cycle, but again denied the country was seeking to develop nuclear weapons. "It is essential because if the Iranian people cannot" produce their own nuclear fuel, "they will be dependent on outside sources and if these countries decide not to supply us, our stations will be useless," Khamenei said in a speech carried on state television. The all-powerful leader, however, did not say when Iran would resume enriching uranium, an activity that is currently suspended in line with demands from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The IAEA is investigating Iran's bid to generate atomic energy, which the United States says is merely a cover for a weapons programme. Iran denies the charge. The question of the nuclear fuel cycle is a serious concern at the IAEA, which fears it could eventually be used for military purposes. Khamenei repeated the regime's assertions that this was not a risk. "Iran is not trying to make an atomic bomb, because it does not need this to unravel its enemies," he said, employing a term commonly used to refer to the United States and Israel. "It is by relying on faith, determination and unity that the peope can defeat their enemies," said Khamenei, who has the final word on all matters of state. On Friday, the IAEA passed a British-French-German sponsored resolution that strongly criticised Iran for failing to cooperate enough with UN inspectors and calling for the probe to be stepped up and concluded within a few months. The renewed pressure has sparked many officials here to call for a revision of ties with the IAEA, the international body charged with overseeing the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). "If the Europeans are in fact worried that we could have a nuclear weapon, we will reassure them: no, we do not want to have such weapons," Khamenei said. "But if it bothers them that Iran masters nuclear technology and that this technology is home-grown, and if they want to oppose this, we say to them that the Iranian people will never accept the language of force," he added. The US holds that Iran, OPEC's number-two exporter and world number two for natural gas reserves, does not need nuclear energy. Khamenei replied to this, saying "our enemies want our oil to run out so that we will be dependent on them." Russia is currently helping Iran build its first nuclear power plant at the southern city of Bushehr, but Moscow and Tehran have yet to agree on a fuel supply deal. In the meantime, Iran has been pressing on with mastering the entire nuclear fuel cycle itself, a programme that is technically permitted by the WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 2 BBC: Iran rebukes EU on rights abuses Last Updated: Monday, 21 June, 2004 [Iranian President Mohammad Khatami] Iran says the EU should not politicise human rights Iran has lashed out at the EU, saying the 25-member bloc should solve its own human rights issues before criticising those of the Islamic Republic. The comments come after the EU warned it was gravely concerned with human rights violations in Iran. In a report, the EU said that little progress had been made in Iran, in spite of efforts to engage the country in dialogue. In return, Iran condemned the EU for politicising the issue of human rights. Foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told state news agency Irna that the EU's criticism was unrealistic and "indicates the Union's inability to accept transparent dialogue". "The European Union should learn from the chance of talks with an Islamic state with a rich cultural history and civilization," he is quoted as telling Irna. Violations An EU delegation in the Iranian capital for talks on human rights had urged Iran to release immediately 40 prisoners of conscience held in detention. The delegation said it was worried by numerous and continued human rights violations. These include: + The use of torture in prisons and other detention centres + A culture of impunity for perpetrators + The lack of an independent judiciary + The use of the death penalty + Reports of the continued use of amputations and other cruel punishments + A continuing campaign against journalists and intellectuals. The EU's report was the result of a fourth round of talks, which began in December 2002, between the EU and Tehran. Iran said the European Union had its own human rights problems, which include ignoring minorities' rights, discrimination against Muslims, Islamophobia and a lack of rights for refugees. It also said that during talks, the EU had failed to pay attention to repeated human rights violations in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories. Progress Despite the EU's stinging comments, the BBC's Jim Muir in Tehran says that since the victory of the conservatives in Iran's controversial general elections in February, there have been signs of progress on human rights, at least superficially. A law banning the use of torture has been approved and the judiciary chief has circulated instructions that proper procedures must be followed during arrests and detentions. Progress on such issues, as well as terrorism and nuclear proliferation, are among the conditions for the possible signing of a trade and co-operation agreement between the EU and Iran. A lack of progress in talks has been highlighted by international monitoring group Human Rights Watch, which also criticised Iran's judiciary. In a recent report, the group said the situation in Iran was worse now than at any time since reformist Mohammad Khatami became president in 1997. On Friday, Britain, France and Germany threw their weight behind a tough resolution at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) rebuking Iran for failing to co-operate fully with an inquiry into its nuclear activities. ***************************************************************** 3 Hi Pakistan: IAEA wants more Pak cooperation in Iran probe --> June 21 2004 BRUSSELS: In its pursuit to trace out the origin of the highly enriched uranium (HEU) traces found on some equipment at Iran’s nuclear installations, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues its investigation on the allegation that weapon-grade HEU contamination spotted on Iranian nuclear machinery had originated from Pakistan. "No it is not true," was the categorical but terse response of the senior spokesman for IAEA Mark Gwozdecky, when asked whether Pakistan has been vindicated in the accusation that the equipment contaminated with the HEU came form Pakistan. "We have not concluded the investigation on this issue. The probe does not involve only Pakistan, but at least two other countries are also being investigated for allegedly supplying nuclear equipment to Iran with HEU contamination," Gwozdecky explained. He did not reveal the names of other two countries. The IAEA officials, however, expect more cooperation from Pakistan in the HEU contamination investigation. IAEA Chief Dr Elbaradie had been repeatedly stating that his agency was asking Pakistan for permission to take environmental samples from enrichment facilities in Pakistan to see if the traces of the HEU match those found in Iran. In response to a question, Gwozdecky said, "We do not want to go into the details of this issue." But indicated agency’s acknowledgement of cooperation from Pakistan in "some areas" hoping that the IAEA would get higher level of cooperation. The IAEA, after locating highly enriched uranium in Iran, suspects that the country’s alleged weapon programme is much more advanced as previously indicated. Previously the IAEA had reported finding "weapons grade" traces of uranium, but had not revealed that some were from uranium refined to 90 per cent of the rare 235 isotope. Another senior official at the Vienna-based IAEA, Melisa Flemming also averred the views expressed by spokesman Gwozdecky. She denied emphatically that the IAEA had concluded the investigation on the HEU contamination traced on Iranian equipment. Flemming said, "We have not been able to solve the mystery as yet." Referring to the resolution carried at the meeting of its board of governors (BoG), she said, "Dr Elbaradie wants the contamination question to be resolved urgently." She added, "We are also in contact with some other countries and trying to get more information from individuals and companies involved." In response to a question on the progress in investigation on nuclear contamination issue, Flemming said, the IAEA was "coming to little bit closer to a solution. We have made progress on one of the areas. Actually, different types of traces of enriched uranium were found," she said referring to the latest resolution carried at the meeting of the BoG of the IAEA. Copyright 1996-2002 . Hi Pakistan. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 4 AFP: Iran's hardliners urge showdown with UN nuclear watchdog [http://www.spacewar.com/] TEHRAN (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 Members of Iran's now-dominant conservative camp are increasing their calls for the Islamic republic to resume uranium enrichment and cease tough UN inspections in retaliation to yet more criticism from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). According to top national security official and nuclear negotiator Hassan Rowhani, Iran will soon decide its next step after being chastised by the UN nuclear watchdog for failing to ease suspicions over its atomic programme. Rowhani has already suggested Iran could resume uranium enrichment activities, the most sensitive part of the nuclear fuel cycle that the IAEA had demanded be halted pending the conclusion of its inquiry into its programme. Although officials say resuming enrichment is not in immediate view, other retaliatory measures -- such as resuming the assembly of centrifuges -- do appear to be under consideration. Many of Iran's hardliners, who cemented their grip on power after they won disputed parliamentary elections in February, want the regime's leadership to take a much tougher line. On Monday, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said it was essential for the Islamic republic to master the nuclear fuel cycle, but again denied the country was seeking to develop nuclear weapons. "It is essential because if the Iranian people cannot" produce their own nuclear fuel, "they will be dependent on outside sources and if these countries decide not to supply us, our stations will be useless," Khamenei said in a speech carried on state television. Measures proposed by some hardliners include pulling out of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), refusing to ratify the NPT additional protocol allowing tougher inspections and getting back down to enriching uranium. Each would provoke a major crisis with the IAEA, which in turn could decide to refer Iran to the UN Security Council for sanction. "We should continue our peaceful nuclear activities and the Majlis should not ratify the addition to NPT," cleric and hardline MP, Mohammad Reza Faker, told the student news agency ISNA. "In our discussions with the Europeans and the IAEA, we committed ourselves to suspending enrichment in order to facilitate the job for the Europeans to close Iran's case at the IAEA. But now, as they have not lived up to their part of the deal, it is time to take the country's interest into account and to boldly go forward." The European Union's "big three", Britain, France and Germany, secured Iranian cooperation in negotiations last year. But by drafting th harsh resolution passed last Friday at the IAEA, they clearly signalled they felt Iran was failing. Iran insists it has met its commitments and accuses the Europeans of betrayal. Officials here also contend that mastering the nuclear fuel cycle for peaceful purposes is permitted under the NPT. "Iran should resume uranium enrichment. This is Iran's right," said another conservative MP, Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh. "The tone and wording of this resolution is harsher than the previous ones, since they are asking us to reconsider a programme that we have invested so much in." Another new conservative MP, Ali Abasspour Tehrani, told the Jomhuri Eslami newspaper that "neither the IAEA or any country has the right to restrict any country from pursuing nuclear energy for peaceful purposes." In addition, the far-right Jomhuri Eslami paper on Monday branded IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei "a big liar". "If the US and the Europeans continue to endanger our national interests, we will take the necessary action," warned Hossien Nejabat, another MP. "Getting out of the NPT based on a timetable is one option, although Iran is not currently pursuing this," he added. Alaodin Borujerdi, the new conservative head of the parliament's foreign affairs committee, warned that MPs were unlikely to ratify the additional protocol which Iran signed in December. Such a step would signal an end to tough UN inspections the regime is currently allowing. Kayhan newspaper, the mouthpiece of the religious right-wing, said the IAEA was testing the new parliament. "The (IAEA) board of governors is overtly blackmailing us, therefore it is expected from the majlis to frankly announce their definite decision not to ratify the additional protocol," the paper wrote in an editorial. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 5 AFP: China and South Korea voice optimism but NKorea defiant ahead of talks [http://www.spacewar.com/] BEIJING (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 China and South Korea voiced guarded optimism Monday ahead of North Korean nuclear talks, but Pyongyang remained defiant, saying there would no progress until Washington dropped its "hostile policy". North Korea's state-controlled media issued a dispatch again blaming the United States for the 20-month stalemate, despite its closest ally China Monday urging pragmatism and flexibility. "For a fair solution to the nuclear issue between the DPRK and the US, the countries concerned should demand the US drop at once its hostile policy toward the DPRK proceeding from a correct standpoint and attitude," Rodong Sinmun said in a commentary. "The DPRK does not have any interest in other options but this nor expects it." Despite the rhetoric, Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing put a positive spin on the third round of vice-ministerial level talks that start Wednesday and include China, the United States, North Korea, Japan, Russia and South Korea. Asked at a regional meeting of foreign ministers in eastern Qingdao whether progress could be expected, he replied: "Yes. We hope the peninsula will be nuclear free and enjoy peace and stability. Let's work together for this goal." Li called for the talks to held in an "atmosphere that is pragmatic, relaxed and constructive". "I hope progress will be made but of course it also takes patience and creativity," he said. South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon also expressed guarded optimism. "We will try to concentrate on making some positive progress in the forthcoming talks," he told AFP in Qingdao. "First of all we will try to discuss as a first phase the eventual dismantlement of the nuclear program, the nuclear freeze versus corresponding measures. "We hope that this time we will be able to make some positive progress." The impasse blew up in October 2002 when Washington said the Stalinist state had broken a 1994 nuclear freeze by launching a secret nuclear weapons program. While Pyongyang denies it is running a uranium scheme, it has offered to freeze its plutonium facilities in return for simultaneous rewards like energy and food aid from the United States. Working group talks between the six countries -- the second round at this level -- opened Monday at Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse to hammer out the agenda for this week's meeting. The Xinhua news agency, citing foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue, said "relevant documents and arrangements" were being finalised, without specifying what documents she was referring to. According to South Korea's Yonhap news agency, North Korea offered to present a "clear road map" for freezing or dismantling its nuclear program if the United States and other nations spelt out what they were prepared to give in return. The United States rejected the offer, saying the communist state must come up with a more detailed plan, the agency said. Earlier, Yonhap said Seoul would offer to provide energy and other economic aid to the North if it yields to the American demand for a "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement" of its nuclear programs, both plutonium and enriched uranium. South Korean envoys presented the idea at a joint strategy session with the United States and Japan on Sunday. A similar plan was proposed during the last round of talks in February and North Korea was not interested, insisting it does not have a uranium program. Pyongyang has also insisted that it be allowed to maintain a nuclear program for peaceful purposes. Japanese reports Sunday said that Tokyo, together with South Korea and the United States, would also propose that Pyongyang's nuclear facilities be inspected by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Analysts have said this is a possibility if aid is offered in return. mp/jah WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 6 Korea Herald: 6-party working groups discuss N.K. nukes 2004.06.22 By Choi Soung-ah Korea Herald correspondent BEIJING - To smooth the path for the main 6-party talks this week, working level envoys from South and North Korea, the United States and three other participating nations convened the first day of delicate discussions yesterday here, each presenting their views on Pyongyang's nuclear standoff. The prelude meeting, which began at 9 a.m. local time, lasted two hours and 40 minutes in the morning session where delegates worked to iron out wrinkles in cooperative issues toward North Korea. "Each party presented their fundamental positions on North Korea's dismantlement," Yang Seok-hwan, a South Korean spokesman to the talks said. "Each party also expressed their stance on the countermeasure to the nuclear freeze and discussed the issue as preparatory measure to the third round of formal talks." The second of its kind, the so-called "working-group" meeting is aimed at setting the agenda and making other preparations for the main six-party talks scheduled back-to-back at China's State Diaoyutai Guesthouse. "We expect the working-level group talks will help the North Korean nuclear issue be more soluble," a South Korean official said on condition of anonymity. But delegates of the six nations who arrived here in the Chinese capital over the weekend showed mixed prospects for both the talks. All participants, including the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China, have met in Beijing twice at senior levels without reaching an agreement on dismantling the North's suspected nuclear arms programs. The talks have been criticized by many watchers as being slow to bring concrete progress, while Washington continues to insist that Pyongyang agrees to the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantling of its programs. The Pyongyang government demands Washington's simultaneous commitment to remuneration and a security guarantee for giving up any nuclear ambitions. The crisis over the communist nation's atomic ambitions began in October, 2002, when U.S. officials said North Korea admitted to having a secret uranium enrichment program to develop nuclear weapons. But Leon V. Sigal, director of the Northeast Asia Cooperative Security Project at the Social Science Research Council in New York believes a complete resolution to the 20-month-long nuclear standoff will take more than just a "few talks". "It's going to take a lot of rounds to work out all the issues. I hope we can make some progress in this round but the notion that in one round we can get rid of North Korean nuclear programs, I think is out of the question," Sigal told The Korea Herald. "I see these negotiations as running for several years at least because neither side trusts each other. They have been opening up a little bit more but I see no sign of desperation." If the North is proved to possess the highly enriched uranium (HEU) program, it would violate a 1994 Geneva accord it signed with the United States under which it froze its plutonium-based program and promised to eventually dismantle it. The plutonium program was later revived. "The fundamental thing in these talks has to be a shift in the political relations by South Korea which is well on its way of doing that, by Japan which is considerably far along too and ultimately by the United States to move to end enemy," Sigal said. ***************************************************************** 7 UPI: N. Korean nuclear working talks begin - (United Press International) June 21, 2004 Beijing, China, Jun. 21 (UPI) -- Working talks on North Korea's nuclear program began Monday in Beijing among junior representatives of six countries seeking an end to the deadlock. Hosting the talks, the Chinese government set a low tone for the meeting, saying "expectations ... should be rational and realistic," The Times of London reported. The countries involved are China, North and South Korea, Japan, Russia and the United States. If progress is made this week, a higher level summit will be called. However, two previous summits, in February and last August, ended without progress. The North Koreans insist they will be prepared to halt their nuclear program only when they receive a guarantee of security from the United States while the United States is demanding the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantling of the nuclear program. When North Korea left the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in January last year, it was thought the country had one or two nuclear warheads although intelligence officials say the number could exceed six by now, the newspaper said. [UPI Perspectives] ***************************************************************** 8 AFP: NKorea's top negotiator arrives in Beijing - reports [http://www.spacewar.com/] BEIJING (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 North Korea's top negotiator for six-nation talks on the stalinist state's nuclear ambitions arrived here Monday, two days before official negotiations are due to start, reports said. Kim Kye-Gwan, a vice foreign minister leading the North Korean team, left Pyongyang earlier in the day to take part in the talks due to resume in Beijing this week, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said. South Korea's Yonhap news agency also quoted a diplomatic source as saying Kim's delegation arrived in the Chinese capital later Monday. North Korean officials were not immediately available for comment. Most other chief delegates are expected to arrive in Beijing Tuesday on the eve of the main talks, South Korean officials said. The talks involving the two Koreas, the United States, China, Russia and Japan is to open at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse at 3:00pm (0700 GMT) on Wednesday, they said. Two days of working-group discussions between the six participating countries began on Monday at Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse to sort out the agenda and procedures for the main talks, the officials said. "The freezing (of North Korean nuclear programs) and the corresponding measures (by others) were among the main topics discussed," said a South Korean official emerging from Monday's working group talks. "It is so complex. You cannot just describe it in a word." He said working group talks would last until Tuesday morning before a series of separate bilateral or trilateral meetings between the participating countries ahead of the talks. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 9 AFP: China remains dubious on North Korea's uranium program [http://www.spacewar.com/] BEIJING (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 North Korea's closest ally China remains dubious about US claims that Pyongyang has a covert uranium-based nuclear weapons program and is not likely to press its Stalinist neighbour much harder without better evidence. China publicly questioned the US allegations in the New York Times this month, prompting Washington to respond that it was "puzzled". While North Korea acknowledges having a plutonium program, it denies it is enriching uranium to make nuclear fuel. The United States is insisting that it completely dismantle both programs before receiving aid and security guarantees, a demand which has stalled two previous rounds of six-party talks that also involve Japan, Russia and South Korea. "We don't know whether it exists. So far the United States has not presented convincing evidence of this program," deputy foreign minister Zhou Wenzhong said in the interview. Washington has long said that it learned "conclusively" in the summer of 2002 that the North Koreans were pursuing a covert nuclear program based on uranium enrichment. According to the paper, Zhou said the Bush administration should stop making charges about the program unless it could offer more conclusive evidence that it exists. Up until now, Washington has been keen to let Beijing pull strings behind the scenes and pressure the regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il while hosting the six-party talks. But this could be backfiring, with China growing impatient with the US' uncompromising position. "It's possible that the US recently shared with the Chinese the intelligence on which the uranium allegations are based, and the Chinese were unconvinced," said Timothy Savage, a visiting fellow at the Seoul-based Institute of Far Eastern Studies who specialises in Korean affairs. He said the timing of the remarks was interesting, shortly before the third round of six-party talks that start in Beijing on Wednesday. "As for why Zhou made the comments, there are a couple of possibilities," he said. "One is that China really does believe that it is the US that is blocking progress in the talks and is trying to put pressure on them, especially as the Japanese now seem to be moving in the direction of engagement. "Another, it may simply be that China is publicly moving closer to the North Korean position in order to make the North Koreans more comfortable about coming to the table, but that they'll continue to pressure them behind the scenes to give up the nuke program." For China, progress in the talks, or at least preventing them from collapsing, is a matter of saving face. Beijing launched its most significant diplomatic offensive in years to bring together Pyongyang and Washington last August for the first round of six-nation talks and has been working frantically ever since to prevent the dialogue from dying. Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum CSIS, a Hawaii-based think-tank, said that Zhou's comments were likely not a fundamental change in the Chinese position, but rather a way to let Washington know it was tired of its foot-dragging. "I would not call it a changed position but it is clear that China (and South Korea) would like the US to be more flexible and forthcoming on what it is prepared to offer North Korea if it behaves and comes clean," he said. "China is certainly pressuring Washington to be more flexible and, more importantly, is demonstrating to Seoul that it is trying to be helpful but that Washington is the problem." China is seen as one of the few states with any influence in Pyongyang courtesy of aid and oil, and is a long-time ally, fighting on North Korea's side against US and South Korean forces in the 1950-53 Korean War. Marcus Norland, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for Internal Economics, said it was possible the US could table better evidence this week to keep China onside. "The US is likely to present more evidence regarding the DPRK's uranium program in an effort to keep China and others onside, but may not be more forthcoming about what sorts of carrots it is willing to offer." WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 10 AFP: Negotiators hammer out agenda for NKorea talks in Beijing [http://www.spacewar.com/] BEIJING (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 Working level talks between North Korea, the United States and four other nations got underway in Beijing Monday, hammering out the agenda for a high-level six-country meeting later this week. China, South Korea, Japan and Russia are also involved in the negotiations at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse aimed at persuading Pyongyang to back down from its nuclear ambitions in exchange for energy and food aid. The working-group meetings -- the second round at this level -- are scheduled to run until Tuesday and will work on "preparations for substantial contents to be discussed" in the full blown talks starting Wednesday. The Xinhua news agency, citing foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue, said "relevant documents and arrangements" were being finalised, without specifying what documents she was referring to. Delegates have sent mixed messages on the prospects of the talks since their arrival in the Chinese capital over the weekend, with Japan predicting "many difficulties," while Russia has voiced limited optimism. China has called for only a "reasonable expectation" for the third round vice-ministerial level talks, noting that as the negotiations deepened, differences and difficulties increased. "Only by peaceful dialogue can the Korean peninsula be a peaceful and stable peninsula. It is beneficial for all parties involved," Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing stressed Monday. "We hope and believe that all parties involved will work hard for that goal." According to South Korean media, Seoul will offer to provide energy and other economic aid to the North if it yields to the American demand for a "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement" of its nuclear programs, both plutonium and enriched uranium. South Korean envoys presented the idea at a joint strategy session with the United States and Japan on Sunday, the Yonhap news agency said. A similar plan was proposed during the last round of talks in February and North Korea was not interested, claiming it does not have a uranium enrichment program. Pyongyang has also insisted that it be allowed to maintain a nuclear program for peaceful purposes. Japanese reports Sunday said that Tokyo, together with South Korea and the United States, would also propose that Pyongyang's nuclear facilities be inspected by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Analysts have said this is a possibility if aid in the form of fuel oil is offered in return. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi urged North Korea to take a "realistic step" toward ending the 20-month impasse. "It will be what I regard as a tangible result if North Korea abolishes its nuclear (arms) program and takes a realistic step," Koizumi said Sunday, according to Japanese media. "Each participating country will work toward achieving this." The impasse blew up in October 2002 when Washington said the Stalinist state had broken a 1994 nuclear freeze by launching a secret nuclear weapons program. While Pyongyang denies it is running a uranium scheme, it has offered to freeze its plutonium facilities in return for simultaneous rewards from the United States. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 11 AFP: China and South Korea voice optimism but NKorea defiant ahead of talks [http://www.spacewar.com/] BEIJING (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 China and South Korea voiced optimism Monday that progress will be made in talks this week on North Korea's nuclear ambitions, and called for pragmatism and creativity to help forge agreements. But North Korea's state-controlled media issued a dispatch again blaming the United States for the 20-month stalemate, making clear it had no interest in moving forward unless Washington dropped its "hostile policy". "For a fair solution to the nuclear issue between the DPRK and the US, the countries concerned should demand the US drop at once its hostile policy toward the DPRK proceeding from a correct standpoint and attitude," Rodong Sinmun said in a commentary. "The DPRK does not have any interest in other options but this nor expects it. Despite the rhetoric, Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing put a positive spin on the third round of vice-ministerial level talks that start Wednesday and include China, United States, North Korea, Japan, Russia and South Korea. Asked at a regional meeting of foreign ministers in eastern Qingdao whether progress could be expected, he replied: "Yes. We hope the peninsula will be nuclear free and enjoy peace and stability. Let's work together for this goal." Li called for the talks to held in an "atmosphere that is pragmatic, relaxed and constructive". "I hope progress will be made but of course it also takes patience and creativity," he said. South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon also expressed guarded optimism. "We will try to concentrate on making some positive progress in the forthcoming talks," he told AFP in Qingdao. "First of all we will try to discuss as a first phase the eventual dismantlement of the nuclear program, the nuclear freeze versus corresponding measures. "We hope that this time we will be able to make some positive progress." The impasse blew up in October 2002 when Washington said the Stalinist state had broken a 1994 nuclear freeze by launching a secret nuclear weapons program. While Pyongyang denies it is running a uranium scheme, it has offered to freeze its plutonium facilities in return for simultaneous rewards like energy and food aid from the United States. Working level talks between the six countries -- the second round at this level -- opened Monday at Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse to hammer out the agenda for this week's negotiations. The Xinhua news agency, citing foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue, said "relevant documents and arrangements" were being finalised, without specifying what documents she was referring to. According to South Korean media, Seoul will offer to provide energy and other economic aid to the North if it yields to the American demand for a "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement" of its nuclear programs, both plutonium and enriched uranium. South Korean envoys presented the idea at a joint strategy session with the United States and Japan on Sunday, the Yonhap news agency said. A similar plan was proposed during the last round of talks in February and North Korea was not interested, claiming it does not have a uranium program. Pyongyang has also insisted that it be allowed to maintain a nuclear program for peaceful purposes. Japanese reports Sunday said that Tokyo, together with South Korea and the United States, would also propose that Pyongyang's nuclear facilities be inspected by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Analysts have said this is a possibility if aid in the form of fuel oil is offered in return. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 12 www.GovExec.com: Senate likely to tackle Defense appropriations bill before recess (6/21/04) DAILY BRIEFING June 21, 2004 By Amy Klamper, CongressDailyAM Both chambers are likely to be dominated by appropriations work this week, although the Senate could detour into class action legislation and the House will deal with intelligence authorization and budget enforcement measures. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., had planned to move to the class action bill after the Senate finished the fiscal 2005 defense authorization bill, and he told the National Federation of Independent Business Friday that that remains the schedule. But he acknowledged he could move to either the fiscal 2005 Defense or Homeland Security appropriations bills, and leadership aides said Friday it appears more likely he will go to the Defense appropriations bill instead. Senate Appropriations Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has scheduled a Defense Appropriations Subcommittee markup Tuesday morning and an Appropriations Committee markup that afternoon, making the bill eligible for action later in the week. Neither Frist nor Stevens want to leave the Defense spending measure unfinished before adjourning for the July Fourth recess at the end of the week. Senate leaders are banking that the political importance of funding the Pentagon when U.S. military forces are in harm's way overseas will ease its way through the chamber before the recess. The Senate bill is expected to be close to the House version's $418 billion, including $25 billion in funds for Iraq and Afghanistan that could be made available upon enactment. The House is scheduled to debate its Defense spending measure Tuesday. Defense funds above the Senate's unofficial allocation of $384 billion would be classified as emergency spending, which would allow the $814 billion fiscal 2005 discretionary spending cap to be breached without triggering points of order. While no budget points of order can be raised on the Senate floor on individual spending bills without an fiscal 2005 budget resolution in place, last year's budget resolution set an overall spending ceiling of $814 billion, with the exception of emergency defense funds. In addition to the Defense appropriations bill, the House also plans to consider a $28 billion fiscal 2005 Energy and Water spending bill Friday. But appropriators face procedural difficulties on that measure related to funding for the proposed nuclear waste repository at Nevada's Yucca Mountain that threaten to provoke a jurisdictional battle on the floor. House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman David Hobson, R-Ohio, included $131 million for the Yucca Mountain project -- $749 million less than the Bush administration requested. The additional funds were to come from user fees collected from consumers using electricity derived from nuclear power, but the Appropriations Committee could not authorize the plan. The House Energy and Commerce Committee acted last week to authorize the fees, which Hobson would like to include in the spending bill. But to do that, lawmakers must waive budget points of order, as well as points of order against authorizing on an appropriations bill. They also must use "directed scoring" to ensure the additional $749 million counts against the Energy and Commerce Committee's allocation and not the Appropriations panel's discretionary cap. "I don't know if it's going to happen," Hobson said. "But I'd like to go to conference with that extra $749 million." Regarding the budget enforcement bill, no deal was reached last week between Appropriations Chairman Bill Young. R-Fla., and Budget Chairman Jim Nussle, R-Iowa, about the scope of the bill, leading to a potential intra-party fight on the floor this week. With Democrats waiting in the wings to oppose the bill, the GOP divide could doom the measure. Nussle's bill would impose discretionary spending caps for five years and pay/go rules for entitlement spending but not for tax cuts. The measure faces amendments by conservatives to add tougher spending restraints; from Democrats seeking to extend pay/go to tax cuts as well as entitlements; and by appropriators, who will argue multiyear spending caps would make it difficult to run the government. When asked if he would have the votes, Nussle laughed and replied, "We'll see." Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee will consider Wednesday the fiscal 2005 Commerce-Justice-State, Agriculture and Legislative Branch spending bills. The Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee is scheduled Thursday to mark up its fiscal 2005 spending bill. If the Senate sticks to its original plan, then the long-awaited floor consideration of a bipartisan bill overhauling the rules for class action lawsuits may begin this week when the defense authorization bill is finished, according to a spokeswoman for Frist. But although Senate aides said bill sponsors are hoping it will reach the floor before the July Fourth recess, Republican and Democratic leaders had not come to an agreement as of Friday on the number of amendments that could be offered. Frist accused Senate Democrats Friday of attempting to scuttle the class action package by demanding that unrelated amendments be allowed. Democratic co-sponsors of the class action bill hope the Senate will move to that bill as planned under a unanimous consent agreement reached earlier this month, according to an aide to Sen. Thomas Carper, D-Del. Carper and other Democratic co-sponsors have urged Frist to ensure a "fair and reasonable debate" on potential germane and non-germane amendments. If the Senate does not have enough time to fully consider the legislation and all potential amendments before the July Fourth recess, Carper's aide said Democratic co-sponsors would have "no problem" resuming debate after the recess. The class action bill would move many class action lawsuits from state court to federal court, where more stringent rules would govern the cases. The House passed its version of the class action legislation last year. Business groups and Republican sponsors are pushing for the Senate to adopt the bill without amendments. "Since it's a carefully crafted compromise, he'd just like it to go through," said a spokeswoman for Finance Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the bill's chief sponsor. Possible Democratic amendments include a carve-out for wage-and-hour cases and language by Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., giving judges guidance for handling multistate class action cases filed in federal court. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions ranking member Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. also plans to offer a non-germane amendment to raise the minimum wage. ***************************************************************** 13 Guardian Unlimited: Interest Groups Take Targeted Ad Approach From the Associated Press [UP] Sunday June 20, 2004 6:46 PM By LIZ SIDOTI Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Interest groups are taking a more targeted approach to political advertising than in the past, as they count on local media outlets to help spread their message to voters already inundated by campaign commercials. ``The closer you bring a message to individual voters, the more likely they'll be to pay attention to it,'' said Costas Panagopoulos, a New York University politics professor who said tailored media strategies are smart in a year of unprecedented political advertising. When President Bush visits Cincinnati on Monday, a liberal interest group will air a radio commercial that says ``Ohio's economy was humming along'' before Bush took office.'' During former President Clinton's appearance Sunday on ``60 Minutes,'' a conservative outfit scheduled a TV ad that implies support of Bush and says ``winning the war on terror demands a president who is willing to fight it.'' Liberal interest groups have spent more than $40 million since March on political ads benefiting Democratic presidential challenger John Kerry. Conservative groups supportive of Bush have spent a fraction of that amount. The Media Fund, a Democratic-leaning group that has spent $25 million recently switched tactics from saturating the TV airwaves in 17 battleground states to birddogging Bush with newspaper and radio ads on his trips outside Washington. When the president visited Nevada on Friday, a Media Fund radio ad criticized him for supporting the creation of a high-level nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain. When he visits Ohio on Monday, newspaper and radio ads will challenge him on the economy in a state that has lost more than 190,000 manufacturing jobs since he took office in January 2001. ``With a relatively modest investment, you get a big bang for your buck by piggybacking on a presidential visit,'' said Erik Smith, the Media Fund's executive director. The goal is to offset the flood of positive local news coverage of a presidential candidate's visit and to spread the opposing point of view. But there can be drawbacks. The coverage of a candidate can be so dense that other messages have difficulty breaking through and ads sometimes have to be put together quickly because some candidate trips are planned only a few days in advance. Citizens United - a conservative interest group headed by one of Clinton's harshest critics, former Republican congressional aide David Bossie - scheduled a TV ad to run in Washington, New York and other media markets as the former president discusses his memoirs Sunday night on CBS' ``60 Minutes.'' ``Here's what you might miss in Bill Clinton's new book,'' the ad says, before listing various terrorist attacks executed under his tenure. ``So who is responsible for leaving us vulnerable to terrorists? You don't need Clinton's book to know winning the war on terror demands a president who is willing to fight it.'' An affiliate of MoveOn.org, a liberal interest group, used the same approach in January when it aired a commercial assailing Bush on the deficit in the days surrounding his State of the Union address. Other interest groups have moved to targeted advertising as well, although to a lesser degree. The Sierra Club ran newspaper ads criticizing Bush's environmental record when he visited Maine on Earth Day in April and Louisiana in May. Also in May, NARAL Pro-Choice America targeted the president's visit to Wisconsin with a commercial criticizing one of his adviser's comments about abortion. Bush's re-election campaign also has used the technique against Kerry. In March, when the Democrat visited veteran-rich West Virginia, the GOP campaign rolled out a television commercial labeling Kerry as ``wrong on defense.'' Some groups, like Citizens United, are running TV ads to coincide with specific televised events, such as Clinton's interview, or are tailoring commercials to piggyback on issues covered by the local media. Meanwhile, the League of Conservation Voters says it will continue to criticize Bush's positions on local issues by advertising in select media markets, even when he's not there, in hopes of influencing the coverage. The group tested its approch with ads in Tampa and Orlando assailing Bush for his position on oil drilling off Florida's coast. ``The point was to drive media coverage - and it worked,'' said Mark Longabaugh, the group's political director. ^--- On the Net: To view The Media Fund's ads: http://www.makeamericaworkforus.com MoveOn: http://www.moveon.org Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004 ***************************************************************** 14 The Committee on Energy and Commerce [http://www.house.gov/barton] The Committee on Energy and Commerce Joe Barton, Chairman U.S. House of Representatives Home [http://energycommerce.house.gov] Markup of H.R. 2929, H.R. 2023, S. 741, H.R. 4555, H.R. 3981 Joe Barton, Chairman June 24, 2004 09:30 AM Webcast: Pending The link to the webcast will be available here approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of this event. Refresh your browser for the latest information. The free Real Player [http://www.real.com/products/player/downloadrealplayer.html?wp=d l0699&src=hp_butn,990629home_2&lang=en] basic is required in order to connect to this broadcast. The Full Committee will meet in OPEN MARKUP SESSION at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 24, 2004, and subsequent days if necessary, in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building, to consider the following measures: 1. H.R. 2929, the Safeguard Against Privacy Invasions Act; 2. H.R. 2023, the Asthmatic Schoolchildren’s Treatment and Health Management Act; 3. S. 741, to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with regard to new animal drugs and for other purposes; 4. H.R. 4555, Mammography Quality Standards Reauthorization Act of 2004; and, 5. H.R. 3981, to reclassify fees paid into the Nuclear Waste Fund as offsetting collections, and for other purposes. Related Documents Subcommitee Markup Markup of H.R. 2023, S. 741 and H.R. ____, Mammography Quality Standards Reauthorization Act of 2004 [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/Markups/06152004markup1306.h tm] Subcommittee on Health Tuesday, June 15, 2004 1:00 PM Parents Be Aware: Health Concerns about Dietary Supplements for Overweight Children. [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/Hearings/06162004hearing1303 /hearing.htm] Hearing by the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Wednesday, June 16, 2004 10:00 AM 2123 Rayburn House Office Building Scientific Opportunities and Public Needs: Balancing NIH's Priority Setting Process [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/Hearings/06022004hearing1288 /hearing.htm] Hearing by the Subcommittee on Health Wednesday, June 02, 2004 2:00 PM 2123 Rayburn House Office Building H.R. 3266, the Faster and Smarter Funding for First Responders Act of 2004. [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/Hearings/05112004hearing1268 /hearing.htm] Hearing by the Subcommittee on Health Tuesday, May 11, 2004 2:30 PM 2123 Rayburn House Office Building News Release House Panel Passes Ban of Steroid Precursors Barton: Steroid Precursors Are Dangerous Drugs [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/News/04222004_1257.htm] April 22, 2004 News Release Barton Names Clapton Chief Counsel for Health [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/News/04192004_1254.htm] April 19, 2004 Full Committee Markup Full Committee Markup of H.R. 3866, H.R. 2771, and H.Res. 516 [http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/Markups/04222004markup1253.h tm] Full Committee on Energy and Commerce Thursday, April 22, 2004 09:30 AM The Committee on Energy and Commerce 2125 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 (202) 225-2927 ***************************************************************** 15 Renewable Energy News: Hydrogen from Electrolysis William A. McDonough Architect, Designer "I think SolarAccess is excellent - the most concise, complete update on Renewable Energy and related issues on the web. I am a huge fan." by Chip Schroeder "it is clear why hydrogen from electrolysis is gaining credibility as perhaps the most logical way to achieve the introductory phase of the hydrogen fueling infrastructure." RE Insider, June 21, 2004 - In today's industrial gas markets as well as tomorrow's hydrogen energy markets, the choices we make in how we generate hydrogen for use as fuel are critically important. From several practical perspectives, electrolysis - the production of hydrogen from water - offers a number of advantages over other methods of hydrogen production. In this RE Insider, we will focus on the economic benefits of electrolysis and present the first argument in a compelling case that identifies electrolysis as a practical answer to the question: where will the hydrogen for fuel cells and the hydrogen economy come from? Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolyzer technology has been used successfully for nearly three decades on submarines and in spacecraft to generate oxygen for human life support needs. Fuel cells use the same technology, converting hydrogen into electricity. To produce hydrogen instead of electricity as the end product, the fuel cell is literally run in reverse: taking in water and electricity and producing hydrogen and oxygen. PEM electrolyzers incorporate a solid polymer membrane that helps manage the electrolysis process in such a way that hydrogen ends up on one side of the membrane, while oxygen remains behind, suspended in the water that serves as the "feedstock" for the system. The result is a supply of pure hydrogen and, if needed, pure oxygen. One might wonder where the practicality is in making a fuel cell that runs backward. After all, if the excitement surrounding fuel cells is that they can cleanly and efficiently convert hydrogen into electricity, what would be the sense in squandering that electricity by turning it back into hydrogen? From a "net energy" perspective, it would seem that it takes more BTUs of electricity than are contained in the hydrogen produced from electrolysis. The answer begins with an acknowledgement that the amount of energy consumed in PEM electrolysis is indeed greater than the amount of energy in the resulting hydrogen. But this trade-off can make good economic sense in a variety of circumstances. For example, if the electricity used to make electrolytic hydrogen comes from low-priced coal or nuclear power sources, and if the hydrogen is then used to replace high priced fuels such as gasoline, we have effectively transformed coal or nuclear resources into transport fuel. In such practical applications, the economic value added overwhelms the net energy loss. An even more compelling justification for electrolysis comes from the desire to see renewable power make an impact on transportation markets. Renewables give us electricity, but not fuel. The only practical way to turn renewably-generated power (wind, solar, hydro, geothermal) into fuel is through electrolysis. Another key to the good economic basis for electrolytic hydrogen is that the hydrogen can be made "on-site," that is, at or near the point of end-use, thereby minimizing or eliminating transport costs. In effect, electrolysis takes advantage of the existing infrastructures for electricity and water. The all-in cost of an electrolyzer sited at a gas station and sized to fill 10-20 cars per day is far less than the total capital cost of a new large scale steam-methane reformer that requires a new pipeline or truck-based delivery infrastructure. For this reason, various experts have concluded that electrolysis will have a role in the introductory stages of the hydrogen fueling marketplace. The longer-term role of electrolysis for fueling will depend upon how the economics of converting electricity to hydrogen compares with the economics of other fueling options. The electrochemical efficiency of electrolysis is fairly high. Electrolyzer stacks exhibit an inverse relationship between efficiency and "current density" (or amps per square foot). When low levels of current are applied to the stack, resulting in lower output of hydrogen, the efficiency of the process can exceed 85%. That is, more than 85% of the BTUs of electrical energy are converted to BTUs of hydrogen chemical energy. Much like an internal combustion engine, a PEM stack gets less efficient the harder it is "driven." Our systems today confront a trade off between efficiency and capital cost. The stacks in our commercial systems operate at below 80% efficiency because the PEM cells are expensive. As the cost of cells and cell stacks comes down, we will be able to put more cells into each stack (with correspondingly lower current density per cell) and higher resulting efficiencies. The math for translating electricity into hydrogen-based fuel cell transport is fairly straightforward. The theoretical efficiency of converting electricity into hydrogen via electrolysis is 39.4 kWh per Kg of hydrogen. Assuming we place a 75% efficient electrolyzer system at a typical gas station, the electricity requirement per Kg of hydrogen rises to 39.4 divided by .75, or 52.5 kWh per Kg. Now let's put that hydrogen into a current-generation fuel cell demonstration vehicle that can travel 90 - 100 Kilometers (or 55 - 60 miles) on one Kilogram of hydrogen. Net result: a Kg of hydrogen "costs" 52.5 kWh to produce and provides better than 55 miles of driving, or just about 1 kWh of electricity to drive one mile. If the cost of electricity at the gas station is, say, 7 cents per kWh, this equates to 7 cents per mile as the fuel cost of driving a fuel cell vehicle. That cost is perfectly competitive with today's gasoline internal engine automobile. If gasoline costs $1.70 per gallon, then a 20-mile per gallon car costs 8.5 cents per mile. Most analysts are quite surprised when they first work through the economics of hydrogen fuel from electrolysis. The presumption is that the net energy cost of making hydrogen from electricity is prohibitively high. How can the fuel value at the gas station possibly be greater than the fuel value that went into making electricity in the first place? The answer of course is that the cost of the BTUs used to make the electricity is much lower than the value of transport fuel. The variable (fuel and operations and maintenance) cost of electricity at a coal-fired generating plant is only about 1 cent per kWh (or about 15-20% of typical commercial electric prices). Again, on a gasoline equivalent basis, the generating cost of base load electricity is perhaps one-eighth the value of the fuel that it can replace if electrolyzed and used in a fuel cell vehicle. It's as if we start with a gallon of water at the utility generator but when it gets to the gas station the water has turned into wine. Sure, we spilled some, but wine is worth enough more than water to overcome the shrinkage. So the reality is that the variable cost of fueling a fuel cell vehicle with hydrogen from water is much more interesting than most people initially anticipate. Now take into account that electrolysis permits us to leverage existing electricity and water infrastructures. And because electrolysis technology is modular and scalable, it is clear why hydrogen from electrolysis is gaining credibility as perhaps the most logical way to achieve the introductory phase of the hydrogen fueling infrastructure. One final issue to consider is that if we begin using the utility grid to make part of our transport fuel mix, the economics of the utility may shift for the better. Generating capacity and wires that are not fully utilized during off peak periods can now be effectively harnessed to meet transportation fuel needs. Capacity factors thus improve, and rates charged to fueling stations may be beneficially impacted. Couple this with the inevitable political interest that will derive if utility ratemaking and practices become intertwined with retail transportation fuel costs, and the implications for electrolysis as a source of fuel get ever more intriguing. Watch for some of these ideas to take root in California, as the new governor applies his formidable political strength to the development of 200 fueling stations as part of the "hydrogen highway network" running up and down the state. Many of these stations may well incorporate PEM electrolysis. About the author... Chip Schroeder is currently President of Distributed Energy Systems Corp. and is one of the founders of Proton Energy Systems. Schroeder has served as the president and chief executive officer of Proton, and as a director, since the Proton's founding in August 1996. From 1991 to August 1996, Schroeder served as an officer of AES Corp., an independent power company. From 1986 to 1991, Mr. Schroeder was a vice president in the investment banking division of Goldman Sachs &Co. Schroeder holds BS and MS degrees from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The formation of Distributed Energy Systems Corp. follows Proton's acquisition of Northern Power Systems. Copyright © 1999 - 2004 - SolarAccess.com - All Rights ***************************************************************** 16 AFP: Pakistan rejects report of its nuclear scientists working in NKorea [http://www.spacewar.com/] ISLAMABAD (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 Pakistan Monday rejected as "baseless and false" a report from Seoul that missing Pakistani nuclear scientists might be in North Korea to help develop its nuclear weapons programme. "This is an absolutely false story, it is totally baseless," Information Minister Sheikh Rashid told AFP. He denied that any Pakistani scientist was missing. Yonhap news agency, citing a report from the state-run Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) in Seoul, said North Korea might have achieved a higher level of technology for enriched uranium with the help of foreign scientists. "Nine Pakistani nuclear scientists have been missing since they left their country six years ago and we cannot rule out the possibility that some of them are in North Korea," KINU researcher Jeon Sung-Hun was quoted as saying. Rashid described the report as part of a "campaign to tarnish the image of Pakistani nuclear scientists." North Korea's highly enriched uranium program was at an early stage in its development, he said. The architect of Pakistan's nuclear program Abdul Qadeer Khan confessed in February that he had sold nuclear technology to the Stalinist state, as well as Iran and Libya, confirming what experts have called the world's worst nuclear proliferation scandal. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 17 AFP: 'Good' chemistry in first meeting of Indian, Pakistani FMs [http://www.spacewar.com/] QINGDAO, China (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 The foreign ministers of nuclear rivals India and Pakistan said Monday they had developed "good chemistry" after meeting face to face for the first time since the Indian elections. A day after the two countries agreed to set up a nuclear hotline to lower tensions, India's Natwar Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri had a two-hour working lunch on the sidelines of a regional gathering in China. "The chemistry was pretty good," Singh told reporters after the lunch, which also included a lively 25-minute one-on-one conversation, minus officials and notetakers, on the lawn outside the restaurant where the luncheon was held. Kasuri said the meeting -- taking place ahead of a gathering of 22 Asian foreign ministers in east China's Qingdao city -- had been helpful in reaching his stated aim of beginning to build trust with India. "I think we did succeed in at least taking a first step in that direction," he said. "I had a feeling that (Singh) meant well. He told me that it was his great desire in life to resolve the problems between us so we can live like normal friendly neighbors," he said. Kasuri said he had not discussed with Singh the details of either reducing the risk of nuclear confrontation or solving the festering Kashmir issue. But it was not out of the question that Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf could meet new Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh once the ground had been prepared, he said. "A lot of work needs to be done, because we want summit-level talks to be a success," he said. "We can't afford a failure at that level." He suggested that the recent Indian elections, won by the Congress Party, would probably cause no significant changes to attempts by the two neighbors to improve relations. "Mr Natwar Singh's own statements have been positive, and he has in fact told me that he plans to take the process forward and at a faster pace than the old ... government did," said Kasuri. After two days of meetings in New Delhi, India and Pakistan agreed Sunday to set up a hotline to avoid nuclear confrontation and continue a ban on nuclear tests. The two South Asian nations, which held nuclear tests two weeks apart in 1998 and have come close to war twice since, said they wanted to "promote a stable environment of peace and security." The hotline will link the top civil servants in their foreign ministries, said a joint statement at the end of the two countries' first talks on nuclear risks since the 1998 atomic tests. Reaffirming a 1999 agreement, India and Pakistan said neither country would conduct another nuclear test "unless, in exercise of national sovereignty, it decides that extraordinary events have jeopardised its supreme interests." Singh and Kasuri's talks were made possible because both attended the third meeting of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), a mechanism set up on a Thai initiative which brings together foreign ministers from across the continent. Also on the sidelines of this event, foreign ministers from China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will meet later Monday for informal talks. The two-day ACD will also bring together the foreign ministers of China, Japan and South Korea for discussions that are expected to touch on the ongoing North Korean nuclear standoff. The forum is a pet project of Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is attending the talks, the first outside Thailand after gatherings in Bangkok in 2002 and Chiang Mai in 2003. The goal of the ACD is to "ultimately transform the Asian continent into an Asian community, capable of interacting with the rest of the world on a more equal footing", according to the Thai foreign ministry. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 18 Xinhuanet: Successful conclusion of Indo-Pak nuclear talks ends uncertainty: Pakistan www.xinhuanet.com www.chinaview.cn 2004-06-21 21:07:56 ISLAMABAD, June 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Following successful conclusion of a round of talks between India and Pakistan on nuclear confidence building measures, the environment of uncertainty has ended now, said a spokesman for the Pakistani Foreign Office. The apprehensions about the future of Indo-Pak talks after the change of the Indian government have been removed after these talks, the official Associated Press of Pakistan Monday quoted Foreign Office Spokesman Masood Khan as saying. The spokesman said the talks between the two countries on nuclear issue were started in 1999 and it was after a long interval that they were restored. The two countries have also agreed to create a solid atmospherefor peace and security in South Asia, Masood Khan said. Responding to a question, he said the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding in 1999 to the effect that they will inform each other in advance before carrying out tests of ballistic missiles. But now the two sides have decided to formally write this understanding into an agreement, he added. Significantly, the two countries have also said that other nuclear powers should also be included in the meetings to discuss matters of joint mutual interests, which are held on the working level between Pakistan and India on nuclear issue, the spokesman said. Another important outcome of the two-day talks is that a proposal has been floated for the first time on establishing a specific and safe hotline between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries so that the two foreign ministers could avert misunderstandings and reduce threats of nuclear matters, he said. This is a significant headway and achievement, gained in the latest round of talks concluded Sunday, Masood Khan said. These talks have provided a solid foundation for future talks between the two countries, he said. Enditem Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 19 Hi Pakistan: N-proliferation out of question: Musharraf --> June 21 2004 LONDON (APP)-President Gen. Pervez Musharraf has said there cannot be any proliferation of nuclear technology as now ‘the best possible custodial measures’ are in place to protect the country’s nuclear installations. He expressed these views in an interview carried by The Telegraph here Sunday. “As far as our nuclear programme is concerned, we have put the best possible custodial measures protecting our installations. We have a National Command Authority, the highest body controlling our strategic assets, then there is a very well organised strategic planning division, headed by a very capable lieutenant-general who is looking after all our strategic assets,” he said. The President said, “As far as those assets are concerned, they are under very strong control of the armed forces of Pakistan. Here we have created an Army Air Force Navy strategic forces, commanding all these assets. So I think we are very well organised.” He said, the intelligence and security measures have been beefed up and strengthened. “All possible doubtful areas have been removed. I think we have taken tremendous action. I am very sure that there cannot be any proliferation, there cannot be any assets falling into wrong hands. I am very sure about that”, he said. Answering a question on nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, he said, “he has been pardoned. He is not under house arrest. But he is in Islamabad in his house. For his own security he is not moving much at all, but certainly the family is moving around. There is no restriction on them at all. They can move around but in their own interests and security, it is better that they stay in one place as much as possible.” Asked about the achievements of the present government he expressed his pride especially local government system, he said is the greatest achievement. ‘I would like to convey to the Commonwealth, if they are talking about real democracy, which was not existing here. We were living in a colonial period where the people were governed by a Deputy Commissioner, one man, a bureaucrat, who used to be king in his district. We have broken that and made the people govern themselves. Now the DCO comes under the people’s representative who is the Mayor or Nazim. Now this is our greatest achievement, introducing democracy at the grass roots level and empowering the people politically, administratively, financially. This is the real development, the real future of Pakistan. There are also many other issues, emancipation of women”, he said. When asked about his anti-corruption drive he said, “corruption has been checked in a very big way at the top level. The corruption of billions, the loot and plunder of banks, all banks were bankrupt, all our organisations, our corporations, PIA, steel mills were bankrupt because of the loot and plunder from the top. That has been stopped. That is our biggest achievement.” “At a practical level, the lower level corruption continues and that has a lot to do with many issues, it certainly has a mindset, an attitude and a social problem. And the government structure, maybe the salaries are defective. It is a complex issue, which leads to corruption at the lower level, which we need to tackle. We have identified that the basis of corruption at a lower level is when a person’s salary is not in consonance with what he needs and not sufficient to give him security for him and his family and future retired life,” he said. The President said, “We have to make sure that the salary structure ensures these things. This is the root of the elimination of poverty and corruption at the lower level. At a higher level, where there is no reason for the person to be corrupt because they already have sufficient resources, punitive measures, very harsh actions are the only action because they don’t deserve any sympathy.” President said Pakistan’s stand on Kashmir is “unchanged” and all parties have to show flexibility to resolve the core issue. “Now our stand is unchanged. It does not mean that when I say flexibility that we have given up our previous stand. We are still holding onto the stand that there is a United Nations Security Council resolution,” he said. Answering another question on the peace process between Pakistan and India, the President said there ought to be headway on Kashmir as it was the central issue. “I am afraid if there is no movement forward on Kashmir, then there can be no movement on Confidence Building Measures (CBMs). There is no doubt in my mind that the core issue bedevilling relations between India and Pakistan is the Kashmir dispute. But Pakistan is prepared to resolve all disputes in a sincere and honourable manner,” he said. “But if this core issue is not being addressed and if India is intransigent and they say that is all, we are not moving forward, and this core issue is out, then all the issues are out.” Copyright 1996-2002 . Hi Pakistan. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 20 Hi Pakistan: India, Pakistan to set up N-hotline --> June 21 2004 NEW DELHI: India and Pakistan announced on Sunday that they would establish a new hotline to reduce the risk of nuclear war and reaffirmed their moratorium on conducting nuclear tests. The hotline will link the top civil servants in their foreign ministries, said a joint statement at the end of two-day of talks between Pakistan’s delegation, led by Tariq Osman Hyder, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Indian side, led by Sheel Kant Sharma, Additional Secretary, External Affairs Ministry. Both sides also agreed to work on formalising arrangements to notify each other before missile tests and upgrade and secure the existing dedicated hotline between senior military officials, used often in de-escalating a sudden spurt in border tension. "A dedicated and secure hotline would be established between the two foreign secretaries, through their respective foreign offices, to prevent misunderstandings and reduce risks relevant to nuclear issues," the seven-point statement said. It added that an existing hotline between senior military commanders, who have conversations scheduled once a week, would also be "upgraded, dedicated and secured". Reaffirming a 1999 agreement, the statement said that neither country would conduct another nuclear test "unless, in exercise of national sovereignty, it decides that extraordinary events have jeopardised its supreme interests". The statement recognised that both countries’ nuclear programmes were "based on their national security imperatives" and "constitute a factor for stability." They joined hands to make an indirect criticism of other atomic powers, which have expressed concern about the stability of the developing nations’ nuclear arsenals. "Both countries called for regular working level meetings to be held among all the nuclear powers to discuss issues of common concern," the statement said. The neighbours also agreed to implement measures to prevent accidental or unauthorised launch of nuclear weapons. The joint statement also said that India and Pakistan would work towards concluding an agreement with "technical parameters on pre-notification of flight testing of missiles, a draft of which was handed over by the Indian side" on Saturday. It added both countries would continue bilateral talks toward implementation of the 1999 Lahore agreement. Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesman Masood Khan, who in New Delhi for the talks, said that significant progress had been made. "The spirit right now in the nuclear realm is to transcend beyond rhetoric and do something substantive and concrete," he told reporters. "That is the intent of the delegations who met here and that is the intent of the governments of Pakistan and India." The FO spokesman, flanked by Deputy High Commissioner Munawwar Saeed and Minister (Press) Kamran Ali Khan told the newsmen that the peace process was "on schedule" despite the change of government in India. "We are on track and we are on schedule. After the talks on nuclear CBMs, the foreign secretaries of the two countries would meet on June 27-28 and discuss the issues on security and Kashmir. "Then we expect talks at appropriate level on all other items of the agenda and this process should mature and culminate in meetings between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan in August this year," Masood Khan said in response to a question. Hence, he said, there is a progress, there has been understanding, movement towards dialogue and confidence-building and constructive and now consistent engagements between the two sides. In response to another query about the meeting between the foreign ministers, Khan said: "This is a concrete proposal and part of the calendar of activities, agreed at the meeting between the foreign secretaries of the two countries in February this year in Islamabad." He said that the foreign ministers would be meeting in China tomorrow (today). "Then we hope when we have Saarc ministerial meeting in Islamabad, Mr Natwar Singh along with other Saarc foreign ministers would be in Islamabad and we will have meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries." He said broad agreement between President Pervez Musharraf and former Indian prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was reached in January this year and concrete shape to the agreement was given at the meeting between the foreign secretaries on February 18 in Islamabad and they finalised a calendar of activities. Because of the January meeting and later meeting between foreign secretaries in February, he said, "we did make process of composite dialogue predictable and have calendar of activities and meetings and we are pursuing that". "So this is progress, the two tracks "confidence building and dialogue are proceeding and we are pressing ahead with them." Recalling that when there was political transition in India, there was some degree of uncertainty, but that has been removed by the assurances and statements given by the Indian government, he said. When asked about discussion on a proposal of common nuclear doctrine, floated by India, Khan said there was a general exchange of views on all issues. The leader of the Pakistani delegation Tariq Osman Hyder had called on Natwar Singh, External Affairs Minister and "all dimensions were covered and all issues discussed but there was no specific focus on this proposal." About matters related to capping the number of missiles and warheads at the talks, he said: "Yes in a general sense but we are moving step-by-step," adding the areas being focused by both sides (in their talks) was implementation of whatever has been agreed. About the Indian draft agreement, spelling out technical parameters on pre-notification of flight testing of missiles, Masood Khan said under the MoU of 1999, the two sides had agreed to notify each other on test firing of ballistic missiles. Both sides were informing each other in that regard. "But we have to formalise this arrangement. That is why both sides are keen to finalise an agreement. This is in pursuit of what has been done in Lahore," he said, adding that the Pakistani side was looking at the text of the draft and preliminary exchange of views have taken place. Masood Khan said that India and Pakistan would hold expert-level talks on Monday (today) to sort out differences on Baghliar hydro power project on the Chenab river in held Kashmir. There are some differences over the project. "We have been talking about it for quite sometime without reaching any conclusion," Khan said, adding that recently India had agreed to have technical level talks and upgrade them to the secretary level. This is a significant movement, he expressed. Masood also said Pakistan favours a summit meeting between President Pervez Musharraf and new Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "We are making preparations. If they culminate in a summit, it will be a good thing," said Masood Khan. He said details had not been discussed by the two sides so far. Copyright 1996-2002 . Hi Pakistan. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 21 Hi Pakistan: The most perilous nuclear flashpoint - By Lt Gen. (Retd) Javed Nasir --> June 21 2004 Solution to the on going insurgencies in Kashmir does not lie with the military but should be sought politically, was the statement made by Gen VP Malik in Sep 2000 just before his retirement as the Indian Army Chief of Staff. Gen S. Padmanabhn who took over from Malik not only reaffirmed this but also strongly recommended to the Prime Minister Vajpayee to extend the cease-fire. Gen VP Malik had been terribly upset by the failure of three successive attacks Being professionally the most outstanding Indian Chief Gen Malik had been most upset by the excessive mental damage done by the Fidayan attacks. On the rear HQs and the lines of communications and the poor performance in Kargil, which had completely demoralized the Indian troops fighting in Kashmir, was the basis for his statement. The report had pin pointed the too frequent tenures in Kashmir as the main reason for extraordinary large number of desertions, over staying absent without leave, open defiance of seniors, killing of their own officers and sex starved Indian soldiers either indulging in sodomy or raping Kashmiri Muslim women. Without any exception every Indian soldier posted to units in Kashmir counts the days left over of his tenure and invariably avoids contact with the Mujahadin while on patrolling tasks. The most disturbing fact that an officer becomes due for a fresh tenure in Kashmir with in 1 1/2 -2 years of his current tenure has spread to the entire youth in India who do not want to join the army despite the attractive monetary perks offered for service in Kashmir is the main cause for constantly increasing deficiency of officers. It was as early as 1989 that the freedom struggle in Kashmir received a major impetus when the Kashmiri youth belonging to Indian held Kashmir who had received excellent training Mujahideen in Afghanistan against the Russians had joined their brethren in Kashmir in very large numbers with the firm conviction that if they could defeat a super power like Russia in eight years, defeating Indian army in Kashmir would be much easier in much shorter time. It was during Gen Malik’s tenure that the frequency of Fidayans suicidal attacks reached the peak in 1999 and left such deep impact which was visible clearly from the dejected and disheartened faces of every Indian soldier in Kashmir because he could no longer differentiate between the Mujahideen and the Kashmiris as both had the same looks and wore the same dresses. It was. for this reason that General Malik had spent most of his tenure in the northern command studying the Kashmir situation. It was during his farewell call on the Prime Minister, that General Malik, the best Indian military brain comprehensively transformed Vajpayee’s thinking in favour of immediate resolution of Kashmir through ceasefire and political talks. Only a few days earlier while addressing Indian nationals in New York the same Vajpayee had vowed for the coming elections “that if you give my party 213rd majority we will build thousands of temples by demolishing the likes of Babri Mosques”. Vajpayee could not sleep for weeks after this marathon discussion which is reflected vividly in his article “My Musings from Kumarakom” which appeared in Hindu of January 2, 2001 stating therein that his government was ready for bold steps to resolve “The legacy of the century” the Kashmir problem. The punch line in his article was that India would not traverse solely on the beaten track of the past and Pakistani reciprocates by creating a conducive environment for a meaningful dialogue. Seeing Musharraf coming under tremendous pressure to tow the American line for his own survival, Vajpayee unleashed the initiative of “Talks with Pakistan on all matters including Kashmir” which invoked a very positive response from not only Pakistan but also US which claimed to their credit this turn as the result of their efforts to influence the Indian leadership in the resolution of the major nuclear flash point, decided to hold the elections in India earliest to win a simple majority government to resolve Kashmir. General Pervez Musharraf reacted very boldly in response to Vajpayee’s initiative and went out of the way to ensure effective cease fire on the LOC which very seriously reduced the frequency and intensity of operation by Mujahideen. General Malik had made it very clear to Vaj payee that if India succeeded in convincing Pakistan on a cease fire, half the battle would be won which they have. Malik wanted that India should use the cease fire period to fence the entire LOC and mine intensively at least 1- 1 ¼ mile depth along the LOC and then even carry out small sized search and destroy missions on the lines India did in Punjab against the Sikhs The Kashmiris are surprised that the Americans who had themselves fought to liberate their country and called it as the American Freedom Civil War would call the Kashmiris freedom fighters as terrorist. Denial of even moral and financial support to the Kashmiris and preventing their entry into the Azad Kashmir even by Pakistan under US pressure has very seriously reduced the intensity of the Fidayan’s operations which has stemmed the sagging morale of Indian troops. Had BJP won the elections Vajpayee was most likely to offer a plan giving Siachin and parts of Kargil to Pakistan in protracted dialogues and parleys because 90% of the fatal casualties occurring therein are due to the weather and perma snow very high altitude and Pakistan would ensure a firm ceasefire during the entire period which by itself will finish the insurgency and thus raise the morale of the Indian soldiers. To the Kashmiris he would offer the semi autonomous status with defence, currency and foreign policy staying in India’s hands. The resolution of Kashmir issue would enable India to de induct at least 2-3 lacs regular troops to ease the turn over and remove the prevalent imbalances in the strategic and tactical grouping in the main land. In accordance with the elections results, the best Prime Minister in India’s history of 57 years resigned voluntarily when his party did not emerge as the leading political party. In Pakistan an election with similar results would have resulted in a flourishing political stock- exchange for the non leading parties to buy the majority. Sonia Gandhi set the supreme example of self sacrifice by denying herself the premiership which her party had won primarily because of her own personality and popularity and nominated Manmohan Singh as India’s new Prime Minister. No other Indian Congress or BJP leader would have ever nominated a Sikh for the post of Prime Minister or COAS. Only Sonia, a non Indian took such a bold decision to lift the Indian democracy standard above the rest of the world. Manmohan Singh was an excellent Finance Minister but is not even a patch on Vajpayee political caliber but Sonia Gandhi felt that India needed a financial wizard to lift the country from the economic morass. Manmohan has exposed his bankruptcy in political domain by his first major policy pronouncement that Indian government will not hold any plebiscite in Kashmir on the line of UN resolutions which he calls as religion based ignoring the fact that the choice UN resolution offered to the Kashmiris in 1948 is exactly the manner in which other nationals of British India in 1947 were offered to accede with either India or Pakistan. By the statements made by him, Natwar and Dixit clearly indicate that the Congress is not likely to resolve the Kashmir issue because none of them had the transformation of mind in favour of settling the most critical nuclear flash point like Vajpayee had experienced. Congress is most likely to tread on the beaten track of the past. What a tragedy that the best political wizard, the most seasoned politician’s party, lost the elections and it’s premiership because he had tolerated for too long his deputy Shri Lal Krishan Advani, a born terrorist whose policies, conduct and behaviour made even Milosovic look like a gentleman despite the latter’s worst brutalities. Advani gave the slogan “Hindustan is for Hindus only” he was the torch bearer of the mobs who killed thousands of Muslim The Indian Supreme Court up held the findings of the Indian investigating geologists that no foundations of any building or any other signs exist even within thousands of yards around Babri Mosque. He could not be convicted as an accused because the prosecution inspector who blamed all the others was too much scared of his own Super Boss the Interior Minister Advani.He had been the main brain in massacre of Muslims in Gujrat, the, demolitions, torching of Churches and killing of Christians in India. In order to win the sympathies of his leader Vajpayee he supported his policies of friendship with Pakistan by declaring repeatedly during the Indian Cricket team’s is it to Pakistan in April this year that he would be too happy to visit Pakistan if invited forgetting that he had fled from Pakistan to India in 1948 from Hyderabad/Karachi after an unsuccessful assassination attempt on Quaid-e-Azam, an FIR registered against him still awaits for him undisposed. It is very sad that the present Congress elite nominated by Sonia Gandhi to the various key appointments do not fully comprehend the change in power status in the sub continent. Even if India wastes its, entire national assets to raise a hundred armoured divisions and a thousand infantry divisions force, the outcome is not going to be decided by the conventional weapons conflict. Pakistan is meaningless to us. I wish Air Chief Marshal S. Krishana Swamy had spent some time with General Malik or read Vajpayee’s article he would not have then disgraced the uniform and the rank with such ignorance. Poor Swamy does not know that even if India waists the whole GNP on equipping IAF with 100 Squadrons of modern aircraft in the next 50 years, the out break of the nuclear conflict can strand all these aircraft within 10 minutes. The meaningless country. Pakistan has already test fired successfully Hatf — V missiles which will strike with precision targets at a distances of 1500 kms, within a time frame in which IAF ace pilots doubling from the air-conditioned waiting rooms to their jets would not have even become air borne. Air Marshal Venod Patney has put the blame of excessive Indian casualties during Kargil operation on Gen Malik (Nation dated 9 June 04) for lack of coordination with the IAF. I suggest the Indian Black Cats should kidnap and take him to Kargil or Siachin and make him climb a position at altitude of 20000 feet ASL. Some Indian politician made threats of “Hot pursuit operation” across the LOC. They do not realize that “Hot pursuit operations” would have served as a cause for an immediate call by the Mujahideen to the Kashmiris to rise against the Indian occupant forces as the Bangalies did in East Pakistan in 1971 in support of Indian invaders. General Pervez Musharraf therefore must apply the brakes and re-evaluate this most critical issue between India and Pakistan which has been made to look most bleak by Manmohan without realizing that no matter is as important to Pakistan as Kashmir to Pakistan.Very few people including the politicians at the highest level know that India’s defence budget is more than Pakistan’s national budget. In the two countries where even some of the service Chiefs and the political leaders are not aware of the extent of damage a nuclear conflict can do, instead of advocating a no war pact are recommending the national assets to be completely wasted. This unfortunately is not being realized that the Indians are vastly superior in conventional forces and Pakistan has a distinct superiority in the nuclear weapons and their delivery system. It surprises me the most that General Musharraf who taught effectively the operational and the military strategy at the National Defence College Pakistan’s premier military institution for three years seems to have over looked the key principle that once the threat to the National Security had been identified, a11 the national policies and strategies evolved by a nation are geared to eliminate or reduce that threat. How can the only nuclear power in the Islamic World (Pakistan) be treated as a friend by US. Pakistan is its priority one enemy. Islamic policies followed by the government and even in the armed forces were so exploited by anti Pakistan elements that even the lowest ranks in armed forces treacherously joined in the suicidal attempts to eliminate General Musharraf In an unseen attempt in Karachi the foreign trained militants/terrorist even tried to kill the Corps Commander In my assessment this is the biggest challenge facing General Musharraf With the beaten track traders having come in control in India, General Musharraf must take Kashmir as the most cardinal issue the resolution of which can ensure permanent peace between India and Pakistan. It has appeared in the Indian press that the present government will not go for a permanent solution of Kashmir in accordance with the UN Resolutions. It is hoped that Sonia Gandhi will accept ‘President Musharraf s invitation to visit Pakistan soonest which will give him an opportunity to asses the extent to which she would be willing to go for a Sonia Gandhi that if the Indian army tries to exploit the ceasefire in Kashmir, Pakistan will retaliate to enable the Mujahideen to revive the freedom struggle of Kashmiris back to the pre ceasefire level. Copyright 1996-2002 . Hi Pakistan. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 22 Indian Express: The genie under control Tuesday, June 22, 2004 [http://www.indianexpress.com India and Pakistan need to keep talking and working together to reduce nuclear risks Contrary to doomsday forecasts of the subcontinent being the site of a nuclear flashpoint, Pakistan and India have come together to commit themselves to a set of confidence building measures in the area of nuclear weapons during their meeting over the weekend. With its first successful agreement with Pakistan structured on past processes and agreements going back at least to the three-decade old Simla Agreement, the UPA government has specifically proved wrong the cynics who had expressed reservations about the commitment of this government to a process set in motion by the previous one. That this agreement pertains to the crucial and tricky field of nuclear weapons is all the more creditable. Even those who are against nuclear weapons would no doubt welcome every possible restraint and risk reduction measure like those just agreed upon. The international community has often linked the idea of South Asia being a nuclear flashpoint with the Kashmir issue. This approach, driven mostly by the interests and perceptions of various global players, ignores certain ground realities. The non-proliferation global agenda of the five nuclear weapon states has always sought to retain their own nuclear weapons while denying others such capabilities, even for legitimate defence. Moreover, the shrill rhetoric and missile firings timed with serious crises have tended to add to the mistrust that has dominated bilateral relations for decades. The art of communicating between two nuclear weapon states, especially during crises, requires that this is not cluttered with false signals of rhetoric. And the hot-line connection between foreign secretaries, that has now been decided upon, should help. This unique and path breaking agreement is pragmatically based on the reality of the two countries possessing nuclear weapons. But what is significant is that they have mutually confirmed that this capability is based on the logic of a national security imperative, and that this is accepted as such by the other side. Although the language used is different, the approach acknowledges and accepts the principle of “mutual and equal security” enshrined in the India-China agreements, something that is anathema to many world powers. This principle should also eliminate attempts by one side to try and push for unilateral disarmament by the other side and make it possible for them to work together for improving strategic stability in the region. A whole range of possibilities arise as a consequence. Indeed, it helps both countries to move more quickly toward normalisation and better bilateral relations, and to engage in consultations on security and non-proliferation issues so vital to regional stability. The challenge is to build on the progress made thus far. Us [http://www.expressindia.com/about] | [http://www.expressindia.com/about/privacy.html] | © 2004: Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd. ***************************************************************** 23 Gannon: Time for 'destructive engagement' Gannon - 2004, June 21 > [http://www.opinioneditorials.com] June 21, 2004 Sean Gannon It appears that nothing short of a nuclear test will push the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) into declaring Iran in breach of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and referring the issue to the Security Council for international sanctions. Despite the fact that its own report of February 24th last was described by the Wall Street Journal as “as close as could be expected to smoking-gun proof” of a weapons’ program, the UN nuclear watchdog, at a meeting to discuss its findings the following month perversely stopped short of accusing the Khamenei regime of building a bomb and reporting it to the Security Council for sanctions. Instead, it opted to issue yet another toothless resolution urging co-operation with IAEA inspectors and deferring a final decision on the matter until a follow-up meeting in June. That meeting took place last week and again the IAEA, ignoring the evidence of its last three quarterly reports on the issue, refused to take substantive action against the emerging threat posed by an atomic Iran. True, the now routine condemnatory resolution was stronger than those passed previously and was even sponsored by Tehran’s European friends. But true to their policy of ‘constructive engagement’ with the Tehran mullahcracy, France, Germany and Britain once more united to scupper U.S-led efforts to impose a timetable for Iranian co-operation backed by a table of UN Security Council sanctions. Instead the mullahs have been given yet more time to comply. But as Kevin Brill, the American IAEA representative pointed out after the meeting, “the passage of time is not a neutral factor in proliferation cases” and to give Tehran more time to comply with IAEA demands is to give it more time to construct nuclear weapons. For, despite claims of success by its European sponsors, 'constructive engagement' with Tehran has been a manifest failure, its trumpeted achievements such as Iran's suspension of uranium enrichment and signing of the Additional Protocol to the NPT, shown to be shams. Not only did Iran violate the spirit of the enrichment agreement by continuing to assemble P-1 centrifuges, it was last February found to have acquired designs for the more advanced P-2 model which can produce weapons-grade material at double the speed. According to the latest IAEA report published June 1st, P-2s, with traces of enriched uranium, have since been discovered at the nuclear facility at Natanz. Tehran’s April 6th announcement that it would “voluntarily” cease centrifuge construction within a week was somewhat undermined by it simultaneous disclosure of a start-date for the building of a 40 megawatt reactor capable of producing enough plutonium for a bomb a year. The discovery of evidence of experimentation with polonium-210, a radioactive substance which can act as trigger for chain reaction in an atomic bomb, and of what the New York Times described as "extremely highly-enriched uranium, of a purity reserved for use in a nuclear bomb" further serve to underline that, far from providing the full and frank account of its activities promised last October, Tehran is continuing its 20-year policy of elusiveness and lies. Also accumulating steadily is the evidence that Iran is still pursuing its other 20-year old policy – the use of international terrorism as an instrument of foreign policy. A number of investigations last year confirmed its suspected responsibility for some of the worst terrorist atrocities of the last two decades. For instance, in March 2003 Argentina formally accused the mullahs of masterminding the 1994 bombing of the Buenos Aires Jewish community center which killed 86 people and injured 200. According to the testimony of an Iranian defector which formed part of the evidence, the attack was planned at a meeting of the Iranian Supreme Council for National Security at which Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was present. He also stated that they were behind the earlier bombing of the city’s Israeli Embassy in which 29 people died. The following May, ex-FBI chief Louis Freeh revealed in the Wall Street Journal that his investigation into the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing found that “the entire operation was planned, funded and coordinated by Iran's security services, the IRGC and MOIS, acting on orders from the highest levels of the regime in Tehran” while, ten days later, an American Federal judge found Iran liable for the deaths of 241 marines killed when Hizbullah suicide terrorists blew up their Beirut barracks in October 1983, saying that it was “beyond question” that they “received massive material and technical support from the Iranian Government.” While there have been credible reports of al-Qaeda associations and documented cases of Iranian involvement in the anti-coalition violence in Iraq, Tehran’s present-day terrorist efforts are, of course, focussed mainly on Israel. Its political establishment may be deeply divided on the country’s domestic agenda but on the issue of the “Zionist occupation regime of al-Quds,” the conservatives and ‘reformists’ are one. For example, Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior advisor Ayatollah Khamenei, said last October that the mere existence of Israel was contrary to Iran's national interests while three months later, the celebrated ‘moderate’ President Khatami reiterated on German TV his view that “historically as well as morally Israel is not a legitimate state.” Buoyed up by the perceived victory of its terrorist proxies in south Lebanon, Iran has stepped up its sponsorship of Palestinian terrorist gangs. Not content with continuing its long-term support for Islamic Jihad and Hamas, the Tehran regime has now begun taking over Arafat’s Fatah militias which it began financing when the PA coffers ran dry. According to a security source quoted recently by Ma’ariv, “Hizbullah has become an employment agency for the Tanzim” with the result that today, almost 100% of Al-Aqsa Brigades’ operations are financed and directed through it by Iran. And terrorism expert Matthew Levitt told a conference in Washington on June 8th last that "there is a Hizbullah fingerprint on 80 percent of Hamas attacks.” Iran therefore represents what Tony Blair defined in his speech to the American Joint Houses of Congress in July 2003 as the greatest threat faced by the twenty-first century world, the alliance of “terrorism and states developing weapons of mass destruction.” And nowhere is at more risk than Israel. If, as is now widely believed, the Iranian bomb is an inevitability, then so too is some sort of future radiological or nuclear attack on Israeli interests either by the mullahs’ terrorist proxies or by the Islamic Republic itself, a fact underlined by the Chairman of the powerful Expediency Council, Akbar Hashemi-Rajsanjani, who in December 2001 stated: “If a day comes when the world of Islam is duly equipped with the arms Israel has in possession, the strategy of colonialism would face a stalemate because application of an atomic bomb would not leave anything in Israel but the same thing would just produce damages in the Muslim world.” The Tehran threat is well-recognised by the Israel’s state security services. In October 2003, Moshe Ya’alon described Iran as Israel’s foremost existential threat, a view in which Mossad chief Meir Dagan supported him one month later. As the man charged with the mission to frustrate the mullahs’ nuclear ambitions, Dagan is reported to have delivered to the IAF “complex, yet manageable” plans for the destruction of Iran’s known nuclear infrastructure something to which, according to the Jerusalem Post, the IAF “has devoted the bulk of its procurement funds in the past decade.” Given the March 9th claim of Alireza Jafarzadeh, an Iranian defector who has in the past furnished reliable information on Iran’s nuclear activities, that Ayatollah Khamenei had recently decided, whatever the cost, to acquire atomic weapons by the end of 2005 (a date in line with the long-made predictions of Israel intelligence), and the recently repeated Iranian threats to resume uranium enrichment and withdraw from the NPT, the time for ‘destructive engagement’ is now. Click here for additional commentary on politics, policy, pop culture and more. [http://www.opinioneditorials.com] Home [http://www.opinioneditorials.com] | © 2002 - 2004 Frontiers of Freedom [http://www.ff.org] | All ***************************************************************** 24 Las Vegas RJ: LETTERS: Nuke power Monday, June 21, 2004 To the editor: The 10 June commentary, "After the oil runs out," reminded me that we already have renewable energy, but ignorance and environmental extremists continue to deny us cheap and limitless electrical power. But since we don't like nuclear reactors and their fuel rods, we should also shut down our nuclear Navy to be consistent rather than risk the lives of our sons and daughters. Do we still have coal to fuel the ships? In a "spent" uranium fuel rod, less than 1 percent of the energy has been expended. Fission products absorb too many neutrons in a spent rod. In France, which gets more than 50 percent of its energy from nuclear sources, they clean the rods of neutron absorbers and the rod becomes as good as new. The French also clean rods for the Japanese. If rod recycling were to be done in the United States, we would also have little need for a large storage site: Reusing rods would mean not as many rods are needed in the first place. Unfortunately, recycling of fuel rods will not occur until this nation is on its knees looking for energy sources. By then it may be too late. Perhaps the French have something to teach us about not surrendering to fear and ignorance. LEE R. BISHOP LAS VEGAS Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal ***************************************************************** 25 NRC: NRC Proposes $19,200 Fine Against U.S. Inspection Services for a Radiation Overexposure to Worker News Release - Region III - 2004-03 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region III No. III-04-039 June 21, 2004 CONTACT: Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663 Viktoria Mitlyng (630) 829-9662 E-mail: opa3@nrc.gov [opa3@nrc.gov] The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $19,200 fine against U.S. Inspection Services, Dayton, Ohio, for violations involving radiation overexposure to a worker at a temporary job site in West Virginia. The company uses radiography cameras containing a radiation source for industrial applications, such as identifying flaws in pipe welds. Radiography is a non-destructive testing method that uses a sealed radiation source to make x-ray-like images of heavy metal objects such as pumps, valves and pipes. On September 11, 2003, the U.S. Inspection Services notified the NRC that an employee using a radiography camera with a sealed radiation source on September 9 received a radiation dose of about 20 rem. The NRC annual limit for radiation workers is 5 rem (a rem is a standard unit of radiation dose). The NRC conducted inspections into the circumstances of the incident and held a predecisional enforcement conference with the U.S. Inspection Services to discuss apparent violations of NRC requirements and actions taken by the company to prevent recurrence. NRC inspectors concluded that the overexposure occurred when a radiographer failed to ensure that the cameras radiation source had returned to its shielded position and conduct proper surveys of the radiography camera following a radiographic exposure. The NRC staff identified seven violations of NRC regulations associated with the overexposure event based on inspection findings and information provided during the conference. Inspectors concluded that the root cause of the event was the companys inadequate management oversight of radiographic equipment operation and maintenance activities. This event would not have occurred had personnel employed by U.S. Inspection Services complied with the regulatory requirements and the licensees procedures, writes James L. Caldwell, regional administrator of the NRC Region III office in Lisle, Ill., in his letter to the company. The company has taken corrective actions to address the issues identified by the NRC. The company has until July 15 to either pay the fine or to protest it. If the fine is protested and subsequently imposed by the NRC staff, the company may request a hearing. Last revised Monday, June 21, 2004 ***************************************************************** 26 heraldtribune.com: ENERGY ALTERNATIVES Going nuclear has costly risks Southwest Florida's Information Leader Monday, June 21, 2004 ALBANY, NY. Oil prices fluctuated a little earlier this month, but remained high. No help was on the way, as OPEC committed to an increase in production that it already had been putting onto the world market. At times like these when costs of powering national and world economies are rising steadily, many alternative energy sources become more attractive despite their still higher price than oil at around $40 a barrel. One of the alternatives is nuclear energy. However, it has major downsides because it creates radioactive waste that is highly toxic, now standing at approximately 50,000 tons and getting larger by 2,000 tons each year. This is true both for the nuclear energy providing electricity for the domestic market and for the nuclear arms industry. A dispute in the U.S. Senate over disposal of toxic waste created by the production of nuclear weapons illustrates the problem that has existed since the dawning of the nuclear age. It is an argument about safety, because the waste can remain toxic for something like 10,000 years or longer. It also is an argument about public money, because it costs billions of dollars to store it safely. Just how safely remains debatable. More than 20 years ago, Congress passed a law that said that liquid nuclear waste, stored in steel tanks, had to be deeply buried. To that end, the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada has been preparing for years to store deep underground the most radioactive waste. As a practical matter, Yucca Mountain is, at best, six years away from being able to fulfill that function. At worst, many continuing disputes surrounding its location and development could delay it much longer. In the meantime, waste measured in the millions of gallons is stored in tanks that are underground, but not deeply buried. Some are leaking. Nearly a year ago, a federal court ruled that the 1982 law required deep burial. The Energy Department, looking to save huge sums, wanted flexibility from Congress to permit large amounts of the waste to continue to be stored in the tanks that would be encased in grout. The government hopes to save huge sums and expedite the cleanup. This month, the Senate gave the Energy Department that authority. On top of the safe disposal of the waste, the vulnerability of nuclear plants to terrorist attack has come to the fore since the 9/11 attacks for the more than 100 reactors in the country. The industry is fighting the extent of government security requirements and their high costs, pitting the bottom line against public safety even as some nuclear entrepreneurs are planning new facilities. The Bush administration supports the building of state-of- the-art reactors as the country looks to alternative supplies of energy. This would entail the government picking up about half the multibillion-dollar cost of ventures described as risky and still entailing a variety of health hazards. Nothing comparable is being proposed by the federal government to speed the creation of renewable and nontoxic sources of energy -- such as solar, wind, hydropower, whose undesirable byproducts don't come close to the dangers inherent in nuclear power. In the long run, this dichotomy promises to make matters worse while appearing to make things better in the short term. The nation is being led to foot the bill for compounding its energy problems. ALBANY TIMES UNION Last modified: June 21. 2004 12:00AM ***************************************************************** 27 Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Dominion is a powerful gas, electric company Posted June 21, 2004 By Richard Ryman Gannett Wisconsin Newspapers EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second of two days of stories examining the proposed sale of the Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant to Dominion Resources Inc. Sunday’s stories, which are available online at [http://www.htrnews.com] , include an overall look at the proposed purchase and the impact it might have on future rates. Dominion Resources Inc., the proposed buyer of the Kewaunee Nuclear Plant, is the largest integrated gas and electric company in the nation. The Richmond, Va.-based utility holding company has agreed to purchase the Kewaunee plant from its owners, Wisconsin Public Service Corp. of Green Bay and Alliant Energy of Madison. Public hearings on the proposed sale are to take place Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Manitowoc. With assets of $37.9 billion and net income of $318 million, Dominion is much larger than WPS, which has assets of $4.3 billion and reported net income of $94.7 million in 2003. Dominion Resources has developed a good reputation for its management of nuclear power plants. It is credited with helping to turn around the woeful management of the Millstone nuclear plant in Waterford, Conn. Dominion later purchased the operation. “Our experience with them was that this was a most responsible company,” said Beryl Lyons, a spokeswoman for the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control. The department no longer has regulatory control over Millstone, “but we are not hearing of any problems,” Lyons said. The most recent annual assessments of plants by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found no significant problems at any of the three operated by Dominion. The NRC had some concerns with the Surry plant in Virginia, but little or none with the North Anna plant in Virginia and the Millstone plant in Connecticut. “For the past 12 years, we have performed at very high levels as measured by the NRC, consistently,” said Rick Zuercher, manager of nuclear public affairs for Dominion. The Kewaunee plant is under more scrutiny from the NRC than the Dominion operations. Kewaunee is managed by Nuclear Management Co. of Hudson. Dominion’s corporate structure includes at least 15 subsidiaries whose responsibilities range from natural gas exploration and production, to operating transmission lines — electric and natural gas — to the retail sale of electricity to operating power plants in multiple states. “We are the nation’s largest fully integrated gas and electric company,” Zuercher said. Dominion is Virginia’s largest utility, providing service to 2 million of the state’s 3 million customers, according to Ken Schrad, spokesman for the State Corporations Commission. It provides half of Connecticut’s energy needs and 12 percent of those for New England. The company has operations from the East Coast to Wisconsin and Missouri in the West, an area that has 44 percent of the U.S. population and uses 40 percent of the energy. The company’s fuel mix is 28 percent coal, 24 percent gas, 22 percent nuclear and 10 percent oil. Dominion purchases 16 percent of its electricity. Its nuclear operations are pertinent to its decision to purchase the Kewaunee plant. The company built its four reactors in Virginia -- two at North Anna and two at Surry -- and purchased three at Millstone in Connecticut. One of those three is being decommissioned. The North Anna and Surry reactors have been re-licensed for another 20 years. Applications have been made to re-license the Millstone reactors, and Dominion has indicated it will seek to renew Kewaunee as well. Dominion was one of three outside utilities called upon to help solve the problems at Millstone, which had been shut down by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. “They had a lot of problems related to credibility of management,” Zuercher said. “Our main objective was to bring in our nuclear safety policy and do the licensing requirements.” Lyons said the state wanted to make sure whoever bought the Millstone plant had a good reputation for running a nuclear facility. “They corrected a lot of the problems,” she said of Dominion. Dominion was the first utility in the nation to successfully replace a vessel reactor head. Inspections discovered that what are essentially the caps on nuclear reactors had developed cracks caused by highly corrosive boric acid. The problem appears to be prevalent in all pressurized water reactors. The vessel heads are not small, weighing about 70 tons, and they’re not cheap. WPS Chairman Larry Weyers said it will cost about $20 million to change the vessel reactor head at Kewaunee. Zuercher said Dominion has replaced four of its six reactor heads since February 2003. It speeded up the replacement process, buying available reactor heads from Japan even though it was waiting on delivery of an order from France. “That goes to show you we don’t mess around with this stuff,” he said. The Kewaunee vessel reactor head is scheduled for replacement this fall. WPS and Dominion have encouraged regulators to fast-track approval of the sale so Dominion can be the one making the replacement. Zuercher said Dominion’s good track record in nuclear management is due to its Principals of Professionalism, which were developed by employees. The 11 principals establish a culture of honesty, integrity, high ethics and focus on safety. “This is a document we hold in very high regard and we do practice every day,” he said. “We told the public they should demand we operate these plants safely.” In April, an editorial in The Day, a newspaper in New London, Conn., praised the plant’s turnaround. “People within the plant say that Dominion management treats employees with openness and respect, and that, among workers, there is a low tolerance for allowing the culture within the plant to deteriorate,” the paper said. Copyright © 2004 Use of this site signifies your agreement to the [http://www.wisinfo.com/terms.html] . Send your questions and comments to [http://www.wisinfo.com/heraldtimes/contactus/readerservices/comm ***************************************************************** 28 AFP: Radioactive leak found at Japanese nuclear plant [http://www.spacewar.com/] TOKYO (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 A radioactive leak was found at a Japanese nuclear fuel-reprocessing plant Monday but it posed no danger to humans or the environment, an official said. The state-run Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Institute, which operates the plant, said the leak was discovered after a plant worker spotted two small stains on the wall of a room inside the fuel-processing plant. "Our radioactive measuring instrument responded to the stains and we quickly sealed off the room," said the official at the Institute in Tokaimura, 120 kilometers (70 miles) northeast of Tokyo. "The level of radioactivity was really small," he said. Tokaimura is notorious for an accident in 1999 when a critical reaction at a uranium processing plant there killed two plant workers and exposed 439 people to radiation. It was Japan's worst-ever nuclear accident, which was also classified as the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 29 AFP: Russia wants to dismantle nuclear subs by 2010: official [http://www.spacewar.com/] MOSCOW (AFP) Jun 21, 2004 Russia plans to dismantle all of its decommissioned nuclear submarines by 2010 with the help of international aid, an official with the federal nuclear energy agency said Monday. "We hope to regulate the problem of dismantling the nuclear submarines by 2010 with the help of our international partners," a spokesman for the agency told AFP. Russia has about 100 decommissioned nuclear subs waiting to be dismantled and 70 of these still have nuclear reactors aboard, the spokesman said. The agency estimates it will need nearly four billion dollars to dismantle the subs, which pose an environmental threat to seas around the vast country. Some 192 Soviet-era and Russian submarines are thought to have been decommissioned since the 1980s, of which 89 have been dismantled. Most of the foreign financing pledged for the program has come from the United States, with Canada, Japan and Norway also contributing funds. WAR.WIRE ***************************************************************** 30 Reuters: Yucca Nuclear Dump Funding Plan Draws Industry Ire Mon Jun 21, 2004 04:41 PM ET By Chris Baltimore WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A plan by Republican Sen. Pete Domenici to tack a $446 million surcharge on utility customers to pay for a Nevada nuclear waste site drew the ire of nuclear power plant owners on Monday. New Mexico Republican Domenici, a long-time nuclear industry ally, has drawn rare industry criticism for his plan to raise fees paid by utility customers by 60 percent in fiscal 2005, which starts Oct. 1. Domenici aides say the move is needed to deflect an attempt by Democrat Henry Reid of Nevada and others to choke off funding for the massive Yucca Mountain storage facility planned in the desert about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Slated to open in 2010, the underground facility would hold 77,000 tons (70,000 metric tons) of waste from the nation's 103 nuclear power plants for 10,000 years. The Bush administration says it will take $880 million in 2005 to proceed with a plan to obtain a license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to construct the repository. But a House Appropriations Committee panel that oversees Yucca Mountain funding has proposed $131 million in funding for the 2005 fiscal year, far short of the administration request. Industry officials called the proposed fees excessive on top of the $22 billion utility customers have already paid into a construction fund. Domenici's staff was to brief the utility industry on the proposal later on Monday. "We definitely don't believe that imposing additional fees at this time ... can be justified," said a spokesman for the Nuclear Energy Institute, the industry's lobbying arm. But deferring action could stop the project in its tracks, because funding at the lower level will require the government to lay off about 70 percent of 2,400 site contractors, a Domenici aide said. "The alternative is that we in effect declare we will not proceed with Yucca Mountain," the aide said. "I think industry would be more concerned about that alternative." The industry says it has already borne its share of costs. Since 1983, utility customers have paid a fee of 1/10 of a cent per kilowatt-hour to a fund that holds about $15 billion earmarked to develop and build the Yucca facility, which would be the first permanent U.S. nuclear waste repository. Domenici, chairman of a Senate Appropriations Committee panel that oversees Yucca Mountain funding, is expected to propose his plan as part of a $28 billion 2005 energy and water appropriations bill set for panel consideration in early July. Spent fuel from the nation's nuclear plants has been piling up for years. An estimated 50,000 tons (45,500 metric tons) of it is stored at 72 sites in 33 states, mostly near urban areas in the East and Midwest. ***************************************************************** 31 Salt Lake Tribune: Walker wants uranium waste moved June 21, 2004 By Judy Fahys Gov. Olene Walker is gently prodding the U.S. Energy Department once again to remove leaching uranium waste from the banks of the Colorado River near Moab. In a letter to the agency's environmental officials June 8, she noted the DOE's analysis of four options for dealing with the waste, including a proposal to leave the massive pile on the riverbank under a rock cover, has been delayed from April to August. "I urge your support in proceeding with that schedule, leading to a prompt selection of an alternative for removal of the uranium tailings from the banks of the Colorado River," the letter said. The Energy Department (DOE) did not respond to a request for comment. Still, Walker's letter -- with its emphasis on removing the mill tailings -- comes at a time when new information has surfaced about the wisdom of "capping" the tailings in place. Core samples drilled from in and around the riverbed suggest the Colorado is so dynamic that periodic floods scrub down to the underlying gravel and dramatically move the river's course within the canyon as frequently as every 900 years. In core samples drilled across the river from the tailings, University of Utah geologist Kip Solomon used carbon-14 dating to test peat and wood left about 30 feet underground from a past flood. The tests made it clear to him that floods had scoured away all the canyon silt to rock bottom at least twice in the last 960 years, give or take 60 years. The results are significant to the decision on whether to move the tailings because by law, the Energy Department must rule out any solution that does not have a high likelihood of protecting the river from contamination for at least 1,000 years. If Solomon's findings hold up, the pile must be moved. "Based on the results, I don't see that you can arrive at any other conclusion," said Solomon. For many of the 25 million people in four states who rely on Colorado River water, the obvious answer has always been to scoop up the 12 million tons of mining waste and bury it where the uranium, ammonia and other pollutants cannot leach into critical water supplies. The waste, roughly equal to six times the debris hauled from the World Trade Center collapse, also threatens species of wildlife perilously close to extinction. These include four types of fish: the bonytail chub; the pike minnow; the razorback sucker; and the humpback chub; and a bird called the southwest willow flycatcher. In Moab, residents worry about cancer-causing radon gas, which drifts into town on gusts of wind and sullies the image of a community that depends on outdoor tourism as its economic mainstay. The state of Utah, along with members of the Utah congressional delegation and California lawmakers, also have advocated moving the pile. The Energy Department found a 45,000-year-old piece of wood while characterizing the site, but its engineers, like the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, disagree that ordinary flooding poses a risk to the tailing pile. "DOE's engineering calculations conclude that river migration and periodic flooding is highly unlikely," said agency spokesman Joe Davis, in a written response to questions from The Salt Lake Tribune about Solomon's results. "In fact, it is expected that if migration or flooding did occur, it would be in the opposite direction of the Moab Site." Estimates suggest capping the waste in place would be cheapest of the options under consideration, at about $249 million. Relocating the pile could cost anywhere from $407 million to $543 million. Meghan Riding, spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. Chris Cannon, noted that her boss continues to support relocation of the tailings. The Utah Republican persuaded Congress to have the Energy Department take over the tailings site from the bankruptcy trustee for the Atlas Corp. which operated the mill before it closed. Of removing the tailings, she said, "The longer it takes the more it will cost or, worse, there could even be a natural disaster." U.S. Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, continues to "push as hard as he can" for the removal, said spokeswoman Alyson Heyrend. He had sought a meeting with Jesse Roberson, assistant secretary of energy for environmental management, until her resignation earlier this week. Said Heyrend: "It's been a frustrating experience with DOE." fahys@sltrib.com [fahys@sltrib.com] "> --> Copyright Salt Lake City Tribune ***************************************************************** 32 Las Vegas SUN: Nuke power users asked to pay more to fund Yucca By Suzanne Struglinski SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON -- Nuclear power users may be asked to pay even more money to fund the Yucca Mountain dumpsite to help fill a gap created by budget policy. The Wall Street Journal reported today that Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., will ask for a one-year, 60-percent increase on fees paid by nuclear ratepayers to fund the nuclear waste storage site at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. This is the latest proposal to help make sure the department can keep the project on track to open in 2010 by getting the money it needs. The Energy Department faces a budget crunch this year since its $880 million request for the project may only be filled if Congress approves a policy change. The House has acted on the change, but Yucca Mountain critics and supporters have said the additional money is unlikely to move in the Senate based on the objections of Nevada senators. Domenici heads the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Committee, on which Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., is the top Democrat. Reid works to cut the project's budget every year and strongly opposes any policy change that would allow the department to get money for the project without congressional oversight. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., kept a proposal out of the Senate budget resolution that would have allowed the department to tap into more money without having the Yucca project compete with other federal programs. The Nuclear Energy Institute is still trying to get details on Domenici's proposal but spokesman Mitch Singer said today that the group, which represents the nuclear power industry, does not feel ratepayers should have to pay more money on top of the $15 billion sitting in the account earmarked to fund the project. Brian O'Connell, nuclear waste program office director for the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, which supports the Yucca project, said he had "more questions than answers" on Domenici's proposal. He said a 60 percent increase would be an additional $1.2 billion on top of the $750 million ratepayers will put toward the project this year. It was unclear it how Domenici's proposal would go around budget rules and allow the money from the increase to go directly to the project. Calls to Domenici's office were not returned. "This proposed increase is just the latest in a series of budget gimmicks designed to pour more money into the fiscal black hole that is Yucca Mountain," said Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., in a statement. "The nuclear industry could care less how much the Domenici proposal would cost the average ratepayer, as long as it means they can continue to generate nuclear waste and rake in the profits. "The Bush Administration and Republicans leaders in both the Senate and the House have made it clear the will go to any lengths to see that Yucca Mountain is built, regardless of the health impacts it would have on families in Nevada or the terrorist threat that nuclear waste shipments would unleash." Some House Democrats that support the Yucca project including Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., want the department to be able to tap into all $15 billion in waste funds, not just the $750 million put in every year. "It is a mistake to rob nuclear power customers so they can pay for the problems of nuclear power companies," Rep. Jon Porter, R- Nev., said. "We must not spend anymore money on Yucca until all the safety concerns are addressed, including concerns of transporting 77,000 tons of nuclear waste across the nation." Meanwhile, the House Energy and Commerce Committee plans on Thursday to take up a bill offered by Chairman Joe Barton, R-Texas, that would provide the Yucca Mountain project with $750 million a year in each of the next five years. The committee will meet just a day before the House votes on the Energy and Water Development spending bill, which contains the $131 million Yucca budget Barton's bill would try to increase. The spending bill is scheduled for Friday, according to House Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman David Hobson's, R-Ohio office. If the Barton bill gets approved Thursday, it could be brought up as an amendment to the spending bill on Friday. Barton's aides said this morning that the chairman is still weighing his options. Barton's bill would change budget policy so Congress could get the $750 million each year from a pool of money funded directly by a surcharge on nuclear power, so the project would not have to compete with other programs for federal money and the money in the pool could not be used for anything other than the Yucca project. The department requested $880 million for the project this year, but so far the House has only be able to allocate $131 million since the policy change has not gone through. The project must compete with other federal spending items in the bill, meaning other programs would have to be cut to make up the $749 million shortfall. Barton's bill would make up the difference and allow only funds above the $750 million guarantee to have to compete with other programs. ***************************************************************** 33 El Paso Times: Funding approved to continue WIPP oversight [http://www.elpasotimes.com/ Borderland Monday, June 21, 2004 Associated Press SANTA FE -- The U.S. Department of Energy has approved $600,000 to fund the reopening of a state office to oversee operations at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad. The New Mexico Environment Department had operated a DOE Oversight Bureau in Carlsbad, but it was closed in 1996 due to a lack of funding. Gov. Bill Richardson said the new office will fill some of the void left by the closure of the Environmental Evaluation Group, an independent watchdog established in 1978 and dissolved two months ago because of a budget dispute with the DOE. "This office will pick up where the EEG left off," Richardson said in a statement issued Friday. "It is imperative for the state to provide proper oversight of WIPP." The Environment Department said former EEG employees are encouraged to apply to work in the oversight bureau, which could open late this summer. The state said an office manager, five technical personnel and an administrative assistant will be hired to monitor the underground depository for radioactive waste. [http://www.elpasotimes.com/] | News ***************************************************************** 34 Yucca Mountain Update - Volume 2 Issue 6 ~ June 18, 2004 [Yucca Mountain Update -- A Publication of the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects] Volume 2 Issue 6 ~ June 18, 2004 http://www.state.nv.us/nucwaste IN THIS ISSUE... - State Questions Potential Environmental Affects of Department of Energy’s Proposed Caliente Rail Route to Yucca Mountain - Outrage of the Week State Questions Potential Environmental Affects of Department of Energy’s Proposed Caliente Rail Route to Yucca Mountain Nevada rebuts DOE claims that little to no nuclear waste will pass through Las Vegas Valley Despite claims by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to the contrary, the State of Nevada believes there is no way high-level nuclear waste can be transported by rail to the proposed Yucca Mountain repository without a large percentage of it passing through the heavily-populated Las Vegas Valley. The state’s comments are contained in a 120-page document submitted recently to the DOE in response to a draft environmental report covering the DOE’s plans to build a railroad on a circuitous route from Caliente in rural Lincoln County to the proposed repository 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. “The DOE would have us believe that the Caliente rail route would allow nuclear waste to bypass the Las Vegas Valley, but it simply does not do that,” said Bob Loux, executive director of the state’s Agency for Nuclear Projects. “Any waste coming to Yucca Mountain from Southern California and Arizona would have to go through Las Vegas, and in winter months, rail shipments coming from Texas through New Mexico and Arizona and into California would pass through Barstow (Calif.), and the only route it would have to Yucca Mountain from there would be through Las Vegas.” Loux added that the DOE ultimately would have no say over which route private rail carriers, such as the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe and Union Pacific, would transport the waste to Yucca Mountain. “The Caliente route, therefore, does not do as it is advertised,” he said. The DOE claims that building the rail line from Caliente westward across the Great Basin Desert, then south and east past Tonopah and Goldfield along the western edge of the Nellis Air Force Range to Yucca Mountain, would alleviate the need for any waste to pass through Las Vegas. However, in its final environmental report for the repository, the DOE estimated that about 7 percent (or 660 out of 9,646 rail cask-shipments) of all rail shipments to Yucca Mountain via a Caliente rail line would travel through downtown Las Vegas. DOE in that report also assumed that the remainder, or 93 percent of the total rail shipments, would use the Union Pacific Railroad mainlines from Chicago or Kansas City, via Gibbon, Neb., and Cheyenne, Wyo., entering Nevada from Utah. In its comments of the Caliente rail line environmental report, dated May 25 and addressed to Robin Sweeney, EIS document manager for the DOE’s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, the state argued, “Rail shipments through Las Vegas could potentially account for about 89 percent of the total if the Caliente rail line is constructed. Analyses done for the State of Nevada, using shipment numbers from the Repository Final EIS (environmental impact statement), conclude that up to 8,564 of the total 9,646 rail-cask shipments could traverse downtown Las Vegas.” The state went on to say that “Even if DOE shipped an average of three casks per train, there could be 2,854 shipments over 24 years, or an average of two train shipments per week, through Las Vegas.” Current DOE policy provides for rail carriers to determine which routes will be used for shipments to Yucca Mountain. With four major cross-country rail routes available for east-west shipments, “a number of factors could result in the vast majority of shipments from the East traveling to Nevada on the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe or Union Pacific routes across Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California,” the state said. “All rail shipments to Yucca Mountain, except those from the Pacific Northwest and Idaho, could therefore travel to Caliente through downtown Las Vegas under credible alternative routing scenarios.” In addition to concerns over rail shipments passing through Las Vegas, Loux said the state took issue with several other matters contained in the DOE’s draft environmental report. These includes accessibility to water needed to build the rail line, adverse affects on wildlife and endangered species, including migratory patterns for wild horses and burros, affects on ranching and grazing livestock, and impacts on Native American lands and sites. The DOE is drafting an environmental report for the rail line that will probably be released to the public in about 18 months, Loux said. Following that, there will be another round of hearings and public comment periods, then the completion of a final report. “Only then would they be able to begin actual work on the rail line,” he said. Despite the state’s concerns, Loux said he does not believe DOE will have the wherewithal to build the rail line, citing high costs in terms of both time and money and difficulties from environmental and engineering standpoints. He added that 40 percent of the nation’s nuclear reactor sites, where nuclear waste currently is stored, no longer have rail lines. Outrage of the Week Denial of Funds for State Licensing Participation The Department of Energy recently denied Nevada’s request for additional funds needed to effectuate the State’s participation in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s licensing proceeding for the proposed Yucca Mountain repository. DOE’s reason for the denial: The Department doesn’t have the authority to allocate more money to the State absent action by Congress. Never mind that the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, requires the Secretary of Energy to make funds available to the State of Nevada for a range of activities, including State participation in NRC licensing. True to form, DOE isn’t about to allow a little thing like a statutory requirement stand in the way of hamstringing its principal adversary in the licensing process. DOE clearly understands that Nevada will be a formidable foe when DOE submits its application for a Yucca Mountain license to NRC late this year. The State has already amassed considerable data that challenge crucial DOE assumptions about site suitability and the viability of DOE’s entire engineered repository scheme, including compelling evidence about serious corrosion problems with the absurd 10,000 year waste disposal containers that are the core of DOE’s Rube Goldberg repository design. Limiting the State’s ability to effectively intervene in the licensing proceeding is not just a high DOE priority. It is absolutely essential for obtaining the required NRC license to construct and operate a repository. As DOE has demonstrated over and over again in the Yucca Mountain program and elsewhere, when you know you can’t prevail on sound scientific and technical grounds, an effective strategy is to use underhanded politics and fiscal shenanigans to get your way. What about DOE’s argument that it has no authority to provide more money to Nevada than was authorized by Congress in the 2004 Energy and Water Development Authorization Act? Interestingly, the fact that Congress also line-itemed a specific amount for affected local governments’ oversight activities hasn’t stopped DOE from lavishing extra funds on select counties over and above the Congressional appropriation. Nye County, for example, is receiving extra funds (in the millions) for transportation and hydrology/geology work under separate contracts/agreements with DOE. Likewise, DOE is in the process of handing out additional monies to Nye, Lincoln and Esmeralda counties for activities related to the proposed Yucca Mountain rail spur. It seems that DOE has no trouble awarding money without additional congressional action when it suits its purpose – that being to reward its friends and buy support for the Yucca program. But when it comes to finding the funds needed to implement the statutory provision requiring State of Nevada participation in the licensing process, DOE claims its hands are tied. We welcome comments and story ideas for this newsletter. For media information, please contact Tom Bradley, Brown & Partners, at (702) 876-5611 or via e-mail at tbradley@brown-partners.com. For a text-only version of this newsletter, please contact tbradley@brown-partners.com To subscribe to or unsubscribe from this newsletter, please e-mail nwpo@nuc.state.nv.us. Do not reply to this e-mail. ***************************************************************** 35 30 Years of History Preserved in Collection of Nuclear Control Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 16:22:25 -0500 (CDT) National Security Archive Update, June 21, 2004 30 Years of History Preserved in Collection of Nuclear Control Institute's Papers at National Security Archive http://www.nsarchive.org/collections/index.htm Washington D.C., June 21, 2004 - A collection of 293 boxes of papers spanning more than 30 years of nuclear history has been established by the Nuclear Control Institute at the National Security Archive, NCI and NSA announced today. The collection includes the papers of the Nuclear Control Institute from its founding in 1981 to the present, as well as the papers of NCI's founding president, Paul Leventhal, relating to his nuclear investigative and legislative work in the U.S. Senate in the 1970s. The NCI papers cover the Institute's engagement in the leading nuclear non-proliferation issues of the past 25 years, beginning with Israel's bombing of Iraq's still-unfinished Osirak reactor that coincided with NCI's founding in 1981 through present-day U.S. efforts to uncover evidence of Iraqi programs to develop nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. The collection includes correspondence, analyses, investigative reports, legal briefs, testimony and other items that document NCI's ground-breaking efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism, to eliminate commerce in plutonium and bomb-grade uranium, to strengthen enforcement of international safeguards and other non-proliferation obligations, and to dispose of excess U.S. and Russian warhead plutonium by disposing of it as waste rather than introducing it as fuel in commercial nuclear power plants. Leventhal's Senate papers begin with the Senate Government Operations Committee's investigation, hearings and draft legislation leading to enactment of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, which abolished the Atomic Energy Commission and replaced it with independent regulatory and promotional agencies--the present-day Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy. The Senate papers also cover the committee's investigation of U.S. exports of plutonium, bomb-grade uranium and "sensitive nuclear technology" that led to enactment of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978. These papers also include the Senate's special investigation of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, which Leventhal co-directed in 1979, and enactment of "lessons-learned" legislation in 1980. "The National Security Archive is fortunate to acquire such a rich historical record of the past three decades of efforts to stop the further spread of nuclear weapons and prevent nuclear terrorism," said Thomas Blanton, director of the National Security Archive. "These papers will be of immense value to journalists, members of the public and future historians who want insights into early efforts to curb nuclear dangers." Leventhal, who will continue to manage NCI as a website-based program and to remain engaged in proliferation issues, said: "The Institute's papers will help to maintain a marketplace of ideas that is so essential to ensuring that the non-proliferation community is both relevant and effective in addressing the fast-paced nuclear developments confronting the world today." He noted that in addition to donating its papers to the National Security Archive, NCI is scanning and key-wording its core documents going back to 1981 that pre-date its website, so that they will also be word searchable on the NCI website. A summary of the highlights of the NCI Collection is attached to this press release. The complete subject catalogue of boxes will be available on the websites of the Nuclear Control Institute < http://www.nci.org > and the National Security Archive < http://www.nsarchive.org/collections >, as well as a word searchable on the ALADIN, the shared online digital library catalog of the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC). Access to the boxed collection is only through a National Security Archive staff member. Please consult the Guide for Researchers at www.nsarchive.org for information on how to research the Archive's unpublished document collections. Click here for the finding aid to the Nuclear Control Institute collection: http://www.nsarchive.org/collections/index.htm Summary of the highlights of the NCI Collection: http://www.nci.org/04nci/06/NCI_COLLECTION-HIGHLIGHTS_060404.doc _________________________________________________________ THE NATIONAL SECURITY ARCHIVE is an independent non-governmental research institute and library located at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The Archive collects and publishes declassified documents acquired through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). A tax-exempt public charity, the Archive receives no U.S. government funding; its budget is supported by publication royalties and donations from foundations and individuals. _________________________________________________________ PRIVACY NOTICE The National Security Archive does not and will never share the names or e-mail addresses of its subscribers with any other organization. Once a year, we will write you and ask for your financial support. We may also ask you for your ideas for Freedom of Information requests, documentation projects, or other issues that the Archive should take on. We would welcome your input, and any information you care to share with us about your special interests. But we do not sell or rent any information about subscribers to any other party. _________________________________________________________ TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THE LIST You may leave the list at any time by sending a "SIGNOFF NSARCHIVE" command to . You can also unsubscribe from the list anytime by using the following link: ***************************************************************** 36 UK Independent: Journalist in Vanunu case barred from Israel as 'risk to security' By Eric Silver in Jerusalem 22 June 2004 Peter Hounam, the journalist who published Mordechai Vanunu's disclosures about Israel's atomic weapons programme in 1986, has been barred from the country. Meir Vanunu, the nuclear technician's brother, criticised the ruling as an attempt to prevent Mr Hounam testifying when the Israeli Supreme Court considers Mr Vanunu's appeal next week against a ban on leaving the country, imposed when he was freed in April after serving 18 years for espionage. Mr Hounam, who worked for The Sunday Times, was deported last month after he made a BBC documentary, which included a clandestine interview with Mr Vanunu, who had been ordered not to speak to foreigners. Yael Lotan, an Israeli writer and anti-nuclear campaigner, interviewed Mr Vanunu but no new information was disclosed. Since his release Mr Vanunu, who converted to Christianity before his abduction by Mossad agents in Rome and forced return to Israel, has been living in a hostel at St George's Anglican cathedral in Jerusalem. Right-wing extremists have made death threats so he seldom ventures outside. An interior ministry spokes-woman claimed Mr Hounam was a danger to Israel's security and might prompt Mr Vanunu to reveal more secrets. Meir Vanunu dismissed this as ridiculous. "Mordechai has ... spoken to many people. If he still poses a danger, why do they let him meet them? Perhaps Peter Hounam would have helped expose how hollow the argument is." UK Independent Ltd. Journalist in Vanunu case barred from Israel as 'risk to security' By Eric Silver in Jerusalem 22 June 2004 ***************************************************************** 37 Daily Times: OP-ED: First-use and nuclear risk-reduction Tuesday, June 22, 2004 —Ejaz Haider The best NRRMs would be the ones that, while reducing the risk of an unauthorised or accidental launch and improving communications and signalling, strengthen rather than dilute deterrence The two-day talks between India and Pakistan on nuclear CBMs (confidence building measures) ended in New Delhi June 20. Some ground has been covered — a hotline has been established between the foreign secretaries; the hotline between DGMOs (directors-general military operations) has been ‘upgraded, secured and dedicated’; and most importantly, pre-notification of missile tests has been formalised according to technical parameters (range, flight direction, flight time etc). The two sides have also confirmed the unilateral moratorium on further nuclear tests while keeping the option open, which is as it should be. Also, the proposal to have working-group level meetings of all nuclear-weapon states is a novel proposal and other nuclear states need to look at it seriously. In any case, it presents India and Pakistan as responsible nuclear-weapon states not just in relation to their possession of nuclear arsenals but also in the broader context of preventing horizontal proliferation. The interesting aspect, however, deals with the ostensibly conflicting issue of first-use and no-first-use (NFU) of nuclear weapons in case of a conflict. India declared immediately after the May 1998 nuclear tests that it would follow the NFU policy; while Pakistan has never formally declared a policy of first-use, it wants to keep its options open. Various statements and its refusal to wed itself to NFU show its policy is linked to first-use. Is first-use compatible with nuclear CBMs or NRRMs (nuclear risk-reduction measures) as these CBMs are called? The answer is in the affirmative. Consider. India’s NFU declaration, as it stands, means nothing in operational terms. There are two important factors here. One, NFU is insubstantial in military terms unless it can be verified; two, since Indian and Pakistani capabilities, despite the tests, remain opaque it is impossible to verify that the forces on one or both sides are configured for an NFU policy. What does this mean? Simply declaring NFU intent is merely a political statement. And while nuclear weapons have a political purpose, they are also military weapons. Indeed, it is the military side — projection of capability and the will to use it — that allows a nuclear-weapon state to draw political mileage out of them. But if verification that a force is configured for NFU is important for the policy declaration to have any military meaning, are there any parameters through which this can be achieved? Li Bin, a Chinese expert at Peking University, has presented five important parameters through which a state can project its NFU intent and the rival states can verify that intent: the size of the nuclear force; the composition of that force; the number of warheads on each missile; the accuracy of nuclear weapons (whether counter-value or counter-force targeting) and; the strength of the conventional forces. Let’s consider them in this order. Force size: Is the force configured for a first or a retaliatory strike? This, says Bin, can be worked out by comparing ‘the number of retaliating warheads with the minimum number of warheads required for producing intolerable damages’. In other words, if the number of retaliating warheads is much bigger than the minimum number required for causing intolerable damage to the adversary, then the force is not configured for NFU. If, on the other hand, the number of retaliating warheads is much smaller than the minimum number required for a counter-strike, then it not only reflects an NFU commitment but a no-use commitment. Clearly, then, the NFU commitment lies between these two extremes. Even so the problem with this approach is how to determine the minimum number that lies between first- and no-use commitments. While Bin estimates the number at several warheads (itself rather vague), others have estimated it at several-hundred warheads. The other problems with this parameter relate to whether that minimum number should be deployed; if not, what should be the distance between the delivery vehicles and the warheads and so on. Overall, however, this is an approach that seems to eschew LOW (launch on warning) or even LUA (launch under attack). It must verifiably be wedded to LAA (launch after attack). Force composition: Does the force have TNWs (tactical nuclear weapons) designed for battlefield or theatre use? Are they deployed in operational mode, which might suggest the country intends to use them first? On the other hand, as Bin notices, a country may interpret its NFU commitment to mean ‘not to use its nuclear weapons first outside its territory’. It could then use a TNW on its own soil against advancing enemy troops without breaking its NFU commitment. Again, determining this intent is extremely difficult. At the higher end of this spectrum are MIRVs (Multiple Independently-Targetable Re-entry Vehicles) on ICBMs (Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles). If these MIRVs exist on silo-based missiles, the intention may be first-use or at least LOW. This is because technically, a single warhead in a counterforce strike could take out a MIRV, thus causing disproportionate damage. Of course, a country could deploy MIRVs as a countermeasure to missile defences but it is very difficult to figure out that its MIRVs indeed are not configured for first-use. There is a possibility that the MIRVs are configured for a retaliatory strike if they are put on survivable delivery systems like SLBMs (submarine-launched ballistic missiles) as part of a country’s SSBN (Strategic Submarine-based Nuclear) force. Accuracy of weapons: If the CEP (circular error probability) of the missiles is much less than the lethal radius of the target, then the weapon is very accurate and would be configured for attacking point targets. And counterforce targeting would usually point to first use, indeed pre-emption with the intention of taking out the enemy’s arsenal. This is not the case with counter-value targeting where accuracy does not count. Still, it would be very difficult to determine the accuracy of the adversary’s missiles unless one is sure of what technologies are being used for missile development. Conventional force: A country can give an NFU commitment only when it is confident that its conventional capability renders the use of nuclear weapons unnecessary. If that is not the case, then it would escalate to the nuclear level quickly. This is why the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) was wedded to first-use throughout the cold war and remains still so. But the interesting point here is that post-cold-war documents from East Germany have revealed that the Soviet commitment to NFU was eyewash. In case of a conflict in central Europe, the Warsaw Pact forces were configured for first-use. This cursory discussion should make it clear that the debate on NFU in the subcontinental context is a non-starter. Even when forces are deployed, and using Li Bin’s parameters, it is very difficult to verify an NFU commitment. This is owed to the simple fact that while capabilities can be seen, intentions cannot be gauged accurately. In Pakistan’s case, the ‘conventional force’ parameter works to its disadvantage. It is thus important for Pakistan to remain wedded to first-use. However, this does not mean that it can never work with India towards NRRMs. Indeed, it is flawed to think that the two concepts are mutually exclusive. It would amount to saying that bringing down nuclear risk would mean diluting deterrence. In fact, the best NRRMs would be the ones that, while reducing the risk of an unauthorised or accidental launch and improving communications and signalling, strengthen rather than dilute deterrence. Ejaz Haider is News Editor of The Friday Times and Foreign Editor of Daily Times Home | Editorial Daily Times - All Rights Reserved Site developed and hosted by WorldCALL Internet Solutions [http://www.wcis.com.pk] ***************************************************************** 38 lamonitor.com: Remembering Oppenheimer and the bomb The Online News Source for Los Alamos [http://www.lac-nm.us] KELLY PEITSMEYER, lacommunity@lamonitor.com, Monitor Staff Writer EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first of two articles on the 100th birthday celebration for J. Robert Oppenheimer. Part two will be Tuesday. Friday and Saturday, the public will have an opportunity to immerse themselves in the top-secret effort to make an atomic bomb. Gov. Richardson, Rep. Peter Wirth, and senators Jeff Bingaman and Pete Domenici will join LANL Director Pete Nanos, Richard Rhodes, and other historians and veterans of the Manhattan Project in commemorating the J. Robert Oppenheimer centennial and the preservation of the Manhattan Project properties. Cindy Kelly, founder of the Atomic Heritage Foundation and one of the key organizers of the event, said the New Mexico Congressional delegation has been particularly supportive of these efforts. In April, Domenici chaired a committee that approved a bill authorizing a study to be conducted on "the preservation and interpretation of the historic sites of the Manhattan Project for potential inclusion in the National Park System," according to a Senate press release. Kelly said this is the first step in designating parts of Los Alamos a National Park. Kelly said the centennial events in Los Alamos are unique. "They're special because as part of the presentation we have Oppenheimer's house, which was recently bought by the Los Alamos Historical Society and will be forever in the public domain," she said. Kelly also highlighted the bus tours that will be available several times per day, and will include such passengers as Ferenc Szasz and other Manhattan Project veterans and historians who will give detailed accounts of Los Alamos during WWII. "We want to help people go back in time to the Manhattan Project era," Kelly said. From 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday at the Bradbury Science Museum, John Isaacson, cultural resources manager at LANL, will be conducting slide shows, or virtual tours, of a dozen or so historic buildings, testing facilities and Quonset huts that are "behind the fence" and earmarked for preservation. The Bradbury will also be showing the 18-minute film, "The Town That Never Was." After the film, which will run several times throughout the day, three insiders will be on-hand to answer questions and discuss their experiences. Both the virtual tours and the movie are free to the public. From 1-4:45 Friday at Fuller Lodge, Rhodes, Robert Norris, Gregg Herken, Joseph Kanon, Ferenc Szasz and Jon Hunner will be available to sign copies of their books about Los Alamos and the atomic bomb. The Oppenheimer house will be open for public viewing from 4-5 p.m. Friday, and at a ceremony at 5 p.m. at the Rose Garden at Fuller Lodge, the house where Oppenheimer and his family lived will be dedicated as it becomes part of the public domain. Richardson, Domenici, Wirth, Nanos, Nona Bowman, historian Nancy Bartlit, Ernest Ortega of the National Park Service and Oppenheimer's cousin, Andy Oppenheimer, will speak at the dedication. From 6-9 p.m. Friday, a reception and dinner will be held at Fuller Lodge, once the heart of Manhattan Project social life. Nanos will give brief remarks. Saturday, a day-long symposium at Duane Smith Auditorium at Los Alamos High School will feature Rhodes, Pulitzer-prize winning author of "The Making of the Atomic Bomb." Other speakers include Sen. Bingaman; Nanos; Everett Beckner, deputy administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration; Stuart Ashman, director of the Office of Cultural Affairs, N.M.; authors Herken, Hunner, Norris, Szasz and Kanon; and other Manhattan Project experts. Andy Oppenheimer, and J. Robert Oppenheimer's friend, David Pines, will speak as well. Kelly said Friday and Saturday's events are part of a national effort on the part of her organization to educate the public on the Manhattan Project. "People are constantly asking me what the Manhattan Project has to do with World War II," she said. "Many think it has to do with the World Trade Center - with New York." In 2002, the Atomic Heritage Foundation collaborated with the Carnegie Institute to hold a symposium in Washington, D.C., honoring Vannever Bush, president of the Carnegie Institute and President Roosevelt's director of the office of scientific research and development during the war. In 2001, Kelly was involved in a three-day event in Santa Fe featuring the play "Louis Slotkin Sonata" and a symposium with Manhattan Project authors and veterans. "There is a groundswell of public interest in (the Manhattan Project). There's more appreciation for the role of national security than there was five years ago," Kelly said. The Atomic Heritage Foundation has just completed matching the $700,000 Save America's Treasures grant awarded by the National Park Service to the Department of Energy for preservation of the Manhattan Project properties at Los Alamos. These funds and proceeds from the centennial events will be used to restore the Oppenheimer house and other Manhattan Project properties "behind the fence" owned by the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Tickets can be purchased at the Atomic Heritage Foundation's website at the Los Alamos Historical Museum Shop in Los Alamos, Nicholas Potter Bookseller on 211 E. Palace Avenue in Santa Fe, and the National Atomic Museum in Albuquerque, as well as online at www.atomicheritage.org. Prices are as follows: + Bus tours of Manhattan Project Properties Friday - $15. + Reception and Dinner at Fuller Lodge from 6-9 p.m. Friday - $65. + Symposium: "Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project" Saturday - $50. + Angel Ticket: For all events plus a $120 contribution - $250. Discounts are available for Historical Society members, seniors and students. The Atomic Heritage Foundation is presenting the program with support from the Los Alamos Historical Society, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos Tourism &Visitors Bureau, Los Alamos County, Los Alamos Lodger's Tax Advisory Board, Los Alamos National Bank, National Atomic Museum, New Mexico State Historic Preservation Division and other partners. For more information, contact the Los Alamos Historical Museum at 662-6272 or historicalsociety@losalamos.com. [historicalsociety@losalamos.com.] For information on the Atomic Heritage Foundation, visit www.atomicheritage.org or call Cindy Kelly at (202) 347-9200. The Atomic Heritage Foundation contributed to this report. © 2003 Los Alamos Monitor All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 39 Produce enriched uranium at Piketon!! WHY? Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 17:56:57 -0700 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will be holding a meeting in Piketon, Ohio, this Wednesday, June 23, at 7 pm. This will be a hearing on granting a license to the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) to produce enriched uranium in Piketon. Public input is sought. The meeting will be held at the Vern Riffe Careeer Technology Center (Vocational School), at 175 Beaver Creek Road in Piketon (various phone numbers I have include 740-289-2721, and 289-2282 or 289-4172). Take route 23 (High St. in Columbus) south past Waverly and Piketon to route 32. Turn east (left) on 32, and the Vern Riffe vocational school should be less than a mile down the road, on the north side of 32 (on your left), kaddy-corner from the OSU Piketon Center on Shyville Road. (I've been to the OSU Piketon center, but not the vocational school). The Public Affairs Director of USEC in Piketon is: Angie Duduit Public Affairs Manager Phone: (740) 897-2457 Fax: (740) 897-2780 E-Mail: duduitaj@ports.usec.com The USEC website is www.usec.com. Workers and near by community residents are sick and dying from the problems at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Now the government wants to add more harm to us, this is crazy..Will the tax payer fit the bill for more sick and dying workers and community residents? Workers at the Piketon site had the highest exposure of gaseous diffusion becasue of the Highly Enriched Uranium according to a GAO report.. Here in the 80's and the centrifuge building was contaminated after it started up.. In Oak Ridge past centrifuge,workers indicated that exposure to epoxy and chemical fumes was common. Housing were wiped down with solvents. The worker studies state that bladder cancer rates were SEVEN TIMES GREATER than the general population, and Stomach ulcer rates for centrifuge wreck workers were six-and a half times greater than the population..So why are we starting up something that will cause more harm? _________________________________________________________________ MSN 9 Dial-up Internet Access fights spam and pop-ups - now 3 months FREE! http://join.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200361ave/direct/01/ ***************************************************************** 40 DOE: International Energy Agency Meeting FR Doc 04-13939 [Federal Register: June 21, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 118)] [Notices] [Page 34339-34340] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr21jn04-30] AGENCY: Department of Energy. ACTION: Notice of meetings. SUMMARY: The Industry Advisory Board (IAB) to the International Energy Agency (IEA) will meet on June 29, 2004, at the headquarters of the IEA in Paris, France, in connection with a meeting of the IEA's Standing Group on Emergency Questions. Meetings involving members of the IAB in connection with a meeting of the IEA's Emergency Response Exercise (ERE 3) Design Group, and in connection with an IEA workshop on near-term risks in the oil market, as preparation for ERE 3 in October 2004, will be held at the headquarters of the IEA on June 30, 2004. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Samuel M. Bradley, Assistant General Counsel for International and National Security Programs, Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585, 202-586- 6738. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with section 252(c)(1)(A)(i) of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6272(c)(1)(A)(i)) (EPCA), the following notice of meeting is provided: A meeting of the Industry Advisory Board (IAB) to the International Energy [[Page 34340]] Agency (IEA) will be held at the headquarters of the IEA, 9, rue de la F[eacute]d[eacute]ration, Paris, France, on June 29, 2004, beginning at 8:40 a.m. The purpose of this notice is to permit attendance by representatives of U.S. company members of the IAB at a meeting of the IEA's Standing Group on Emergency Questions (SEQ), which is scheduled to be held at the IEA on June 29, beginning at 9:30 a.m., including a preparatory encounter among company representatives from 8:40 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. The agenda for the preparatory encounter is as follows: I. Welcome, Review of Agenda, and Introductions II. Report on Expiration of European Community Exemption for IAB Activities III. Greek Administration Proposal on Minimum Operating Inventories IV. Closing and Review of Meetings of Interest to IAB Members The agenda of the SEQ meeting is under the control of the SEQ. It is expected that the SEQ will adopt the following agenda: 1. Adoption of the Agenda 2. Approval of the Summary Record of the 110th Meeting 3. Program of Work --Progress Report on Planning of Emergency Response Exercise (ERE) 3 --The SEQ Program of Work for 2005-2006 4. Update on Compliance with IEP Stockholding Commitments --Reports by Non-Complying Member Countries 5. The Current Oil Market Situation and Emergency Preparedness --Discussion of Present Oil Market and Emergency Preparedness 6. Report on Current Activities of the IAB 7. Gas Security Issues --Findings from the IEA Study 8. Policy and Other Developments in Member Countries --Reporting Member Country Developments to the IEA Secretariat --United States --Netherlands --Hungary --Czech Republic 9. Emergency Response Activities --Preliminary Assessment of Economic Impacts of Oil Supply Crises --The Impact of Oil Prices on the Global Economy --Proposed Monthly Oil Statistics Addendum on Bilateral Stock Tickets --Oil Demand Restraint in the Transport Sector: An Analysis of Potential Fuel Savings 10. Activities with Non-Member Countries and International Organizations --The Status of Oil Security in European Union Accession and Candidate Countries --Report on the IEA/ASEAN/ASCOPE Workshop on Oil Supply Disruption Management Issues, Cambodia --Report on the International Energy Forum Ministerial meeting, Amsterdam 11. Emergency Response Reviews of IEA Member Countries --Emergency Response Review of Portugal --Emergency Response Review of Finland 12. Other Documents for Information --Emergency Reserve Situation of IEA Member Countries on April 1, 2004 --Emergency Reserve Situation of IEA Candidate Countries on April 1, 2004 --Monthly Oil Statistics: March 2004 --Base Period Final Consumption: 2Q2003-1Q2004 --IEA Dispute Resolution Center: Panel of Arbitrators --Update of Emergency Contacts List 13. Other Business --Dates of Next Meetings: --June 30, 2004: Workshop on Near-Term Risk Assessment in the Oil Market (morning session) --June 30, 2004: ERE 3 Design Group Meeting (afternoon session) --October 25-26, 2004: ERE 3 Training Session for New Participants and Non-Member Countries --October 27-28, 2004: ERE 3 --October 29, 2004: 112th Meeting of the SEQ --Changes in the EPPD Secretariat and Delegations A meeting involving members of the IAB in connection with an IEA workshop on the near-term risks in the oil market, as preparation for the IEA's ERE 3 in October 2004, will be held on June 30, 2004, at the headquarters of the IEA from approximately 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The purpose of this notice is to permit IAB members to attend the workshop. The agenda for the workshop is under the control of the SEQ. It is expected that the SEQ will adopt the following agenda: 1. Introduction by the Chair 2. Introduction by OME: Background and Objectives of IEA Objectives of Emergency Response Exercises 3. Presentation of Objectives of the ERE 3 Simulation Exercises 4. Near-Term Risks in the Oil Market, an Economic View of Possible Scenarios and Their Impact 5. Near-Term Risks in the Oil Market, a Geopolitical View 6. Brainstorming Discussion to Identify Key Elements on Scenario- Building for the ERE 3 Simulation Exercises 7. Closing Remarks by the Chair A meeting involving members of the IAB in connection with a meeting of the IEA's ERE 3 Design Group will be held on June 30, 2004, at the headquarters of the IEA from approximately 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The purpose of this meeting is to assist in planning an oil supply disruption simulation exercise to be conducted by the IEA's SEQ between October 25-28, 2004. The agenda for the meeting is under the control of the SEQ. It is expected that the SEQ will adopt the following agenda: 1. Discussion led by the Chairman of the SEQ Points for discussion include --Approve the ERE 3 October 25 training agenda for distribution to IEA member and candidate countries as well as IAB/reporting companies --Approve the ERE 3 October 26 disruption simulation exercise agenda for new SEQ participants and selected non-member countries for distribution to IEA member and candidate countries as well as IAB/ Reporting Companies --Approve goals and objectives for scenario-building for the simulation exercise --Approve agenda for the ERE 3 October 27-28 SEQ disruption simulation exercise for distribution to the SEQ and reporting companies for distribution to IEA member and candidate countries as well as IAB/reporting companies --Discussion of goals and objectives for the December 7 Governing Board disruption simulation exercise --Discussion on operational issues for the disruption simulation exercise including facilitation and team leaders for the breakout groups --Discussion of participation and role of outside actors in the simulation exercises (media and traders) 2. Chairman's Conclusion As provided in section 252(c)(1)(A)(ii) of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6272(c)(1)(A)(ii)), the meetings of the IAB are open to representatives of members of the IAB and their counsel; representatives of members of the IEA's Standing Group on Emergency Questions (SEQ); representatives of the Departments of Energy, Justice, and State, the Federal Trade Commission, the General Accounting Office, Committees of Congress, the IEA, and the European Commission; and invitees of the IAB, the SEQ, or the IEA. Issued in Washington, DC, June 16 , 2004. Diana D. Clark, Acting Assistant General Counsel for International and National Security Programs. [FR Doc. 04-13939 Filed 6-18-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6460-50-P ***************************************************************** 41 Tri-City Herald: Opinions Parochialism threatens nuclear cleanup effort This story was published Sunday, June 20th, 2004 Divide and conquer might not be the Department of Energy's official strategy, but that's how it looks when it comes to Hanford's tank sludge. Even after Assistant Energy Secretary Jessie Roberson told a Senate committee last week that 99 percent of Hanford's tank wastes will be removed, the Northwest needs to keep up its guard. We don't doubt Roberson's word, but she retires this summer, leaving someone else to carry out cleanup commitments. And frankly, the Energy Department's actions continue to justify suspicions, Roberson's assurances not withstanding. In the weeks before her testimony, a deal was worked out with South Carolina on what to do with tank wastes at the Savannah River site. As a result, the Senate agreed to let the Energy Department reclassify radioactive tank sludge in the Palmetto state. The language deals specifically with South Carolina, and it may still get changed before it goes to the president. Even so, South Carolina and Washington are now divided on the issue, leaving our state without a key ally in the battle over the best way to clean up some of the Cold War's most troublesome wastes. More recently, DOE agreed to stop trying to move radioactive sludge from Hanford to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico. DOE can seek permission from New Mexico in the future, but can't bring any tank sludge to WIPP without getting the state's approval. Regardless of the Energy Department's intent, these developments have left the Northwest more isolated than ever. By allowing some of its tank wastes to be reclassified as low level, South Carolina is weakening arguments against DOE taking a similar route at Hanford. Whether DOE calls the wastes high or low level is critical. High-level wastes must be recovered and stored in an underground repository. Low-level wastes could be mixed with cementlike grout and left in the tanks. If they can grout Savannah River's tank sludge, why spend billions more to recover all of Hanford's waste, treat it and ship it somewhere else? Moreover, who'll take it? The New Mexico deal makes it less likely that all of Hanford's tank sludge will have someplace to go, regardless of how it's classified. Certainly, the states left with the dregs of Cold War weapons production need to be full partners in the cleanup, and that includes New Mexico and South Carolina. But states also must act as partners in resolving a national problem. If it comes down to every state for itself, Washington won't fare well, since Hanford's underground tanks hold 53 million gallons of highly radioactive liquids sludge and saltcake. That's why Initiative 297, which would ban new storage for nuclear wastes from other states until all of Hanford's wastes are cleaned up, is a bad idea. Washington should not become the nation's dumping ground, but neither should this state ignore that the only hope of ever dealing rationally with America's radioactive trash is through cooperation and consultation. Washington wouldn't be the only loser from a strictly parochial approach. In all, 39 states are home to spent nuclear fuel, high-level radioactive wastes or surplus plutonium. The spent fuel alone amounts to about 54,000 tons, and that number is expected to increase to about 115,500 tons by 2035. The worst of it is destined for burial deep under Yucca Mountain in Nevada, which must be taking a serious look at the precedent set by the New Mexico agreement. For the other 38 states with nuclear wastes in temporary storage, the idea of Nevada insisting on equal treatment must sound about as attractive as a leaky spent fuel pond. © 2004 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services ***************************************************************** 42 Oak Ridger: Y-12 worker contributes to Hank Williams project for PBS Story last updated at 12:08 p.m. on June 21, 2004 By: Paul Parson | Oak Ridger Staff paul.parson@oakridger.com [paul.parson@oakridger.com] In a Hank Williams documentary airing Wednesday night, that 1952 Cadillac cruising along the television screen actually belongs to the guy riding in the backseat - David Sheffey. Not only did Sheffey's car get used in the one-hour PBS documentary, but the Y-12 National Security Complex employee also got to don a white cowboy hat and represent the "presence" of the country music legend in the classic car. David Sheffey "They're trying to depict this vehicle on a journey," he said. Sheffey's small screen debut started with a 2003 phone call from a Los Angeles director who was searching for an automobile similar to Williams' Olympic blue 1952 Cadillac convertible. According to Sheffey, the director had discovered a picture of his car on a Web site. "The whole thing looked interesting to me," said Sheffey, who works in the area of nuclear safety at Y-12. Though on display in an Alabama museum, Williams' original car was unavailable for use in the documentary, which was filmed in a number of locations including Knoxville, Farragut and portions of Blount County in 2003. Submitted David Sheffey's 1952 Cadillac was used in a Hank Williams documentary that airs Wednesday night on PBS. "They came here for two days and must have had six hours of footage," said Sheffey. According to the PBS' Web site, "Hank Williams: Honky Tonk Blues" is schedule to air locally at 8 p.m. Wednesday on cable Channel 2. As part of the "American Masters" series, the Williams' documentary features numerous interviews and archived footage about the singer whose hits included "Your Cheatin' Heart" and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." ***************************************************************** 43 U.S. Newswire: Secretary Abraham to Address National Petroleum Council 6/18/2004 2:07:00 PM To: Assignment Desk and Daybook Editor Contact: Jeanne Lopatto, 202-586-4940, or Drew Malcomb, 202-586-5806, both of the U.S. Department of Energy News Advisory: Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham on Tuesday will address the 113th meeting of the National Petroleum Council (NPC), a federally-chartered and privately funded advisory committee that was established by the Secretary of the Interior in 1946 at the request of President Harry S. Truman. The NPC exists to represent the views of the oil and natural gas industries to the Secretary of Energy with respect to any matter relating to oil and natural gas or to the oil and gas industries. The NPC is chartered by the Secretary of Energy under the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972. NPC's membership of approximately 175 persons is selected and appointed by the Secretary of Energy. WHO: Secretary Abraham WHAT: Address to National Petroleum Council WHEN: Tuesday, June 22 at 9:30 a.m. WHERE: The St. Regis Hotel, Crystal Ballroom, 923 16th and K Streets, N.M., Washington, D.C. NOTE: Media planning to cover the event should plan to arrive by 9:15 a.m. [http://www.usnewswire.com/] /© 2004 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/ ***************************************************************** 44 U.S. Newswire: Western Governors kick off Annual Meeting with Issues Roundtable; Action expected on Western Presidential Caucus, Energy Initiative 6/20/2004 7:06:00 PM To: National Desk Contact: Karen Deike of the Western Governors Association, 303-623-9378; SANTA FE, N.M., June 20 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico, chairman of the Western Governors' Association (WGA), said he and his colleagues will meet during the next three days and take action on their top issues. They include plans for boosting clean and diversified energy resources; increasing the West's influence in nominating presidential candidates; reducing the risk of wildfires; and improving the ability of farmers, cities, states and others to manage and prepare for drought. "We have an opportunity to show the rest of the United States that we here in the West are actively engaged in confronting the biggest challenges facing our region and the nation as a whole -- water, energy, economic development and education," Richardson said. During the opening day of the annual meeting, governors addressed a number of issues. Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona led a discussion on WGA's forest health activities: the status of current fires; pre-positioning of fire suppression resources, including air resources; and the extent of hazardous fuel treatments undertaken during the last three years. Kirk Rowdabaugh, Arizona's state forester, reported on efforts of a national panel WGA chairs and is examining steps that should be taken to control the escalating costs of wildfire suppression. "We have made some progress over the past few years, but we still have a long way to go in protecting Western forests," Napolitano said. "The states have stepped up our efforts, and we need the federal government to do its part by allocating sufficient funding to get this job done." Gov. Bill Owens of Colorado discussed a draft compilation of state, private and local efforts to conserve the Greater Sage Grouse. "We are witnessing an unprecedented conservation effort here in the West," Owens and Gov. Kenny Guinn of Nevada said in a joint letter accompanying a summary of public, private and nonprofit conservation activities. "Eleven states are working to protect the Greater Sage Grouse, a bird whose habitat covers most of the Western United States. Given the scope of this area, which stretches from Colorado to California and north from Utah to Montana, this conservation effort is nothing short or remarkable." The governors, under the leadership of Gov. Dave Freudenthal of Wyoming, agreed today to a course of action that will expand the capacity of Western states to address regional electricity issues. "We need to build the capacity of the states to address regional electric power issues," Freudenthal said. "The consequences of the states failing to take a more active role in shaping our regional electricity future are not good for the West. Absent state leadership, we are relegated to relying on the action of the federal government or the industry to make the right decisions for the region." Gov. Mike Rounds of South Dakota moderated a discussion of four carbon sequestration partnerships evaluating technologies and infrastructures that have the best potential to store or reuse carbon dioxide. "Carbon sequestration is a very important long-term issue carrying national importance," Rounds said. "This is a great opportunity for Western governors to come together to share solutions and create new opportunities in our states." Tomorrow the governors will take up the issue of a Western regional caucus to increase the influence of the region in future presidential elections. The Western Governors' Association is an independent, nonprofit organization representing the governors of 18 states and three U.S.-flag islands in the Pacific. Through their Association, the governors identify and address key policy and governance issues in natural resources, the environment, human services, economic development, international relations and public management. Additional information about WGA is available on the Web at http://www.westgov.org [http://releases.usnewswire.com/redir.asp?ReleaseID=32165&Link=ht tp://www.westgov.org] . http://www.usnewswire.com/ [http://www.usnewswire.com/] /© 2004 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/ ***************************************************************** 45 U.S. Newswire: DOE Officials to Testify before Congressional Committees [http://www.usnewswire.com/index.html] 6/21/2004 2:16:00 PM To: Assignment Desk, Daybook Editor, Energy Reporter Contact: Hope Williams of the U.S. Department of Energy, 202-586-5806 News Advisory: Several officials from the Department of Energy (DOE) are scheduled to testify before congressional committees this week. David Garman, Acting Undersecretary of Energy and Glenn Podonsky, director, Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance will testify before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats, and International Relations on Tuesday, June 22 at 10 a.m. These two officials will testify on nuclear security; facility security requirements. Acting Undersecretary of Energy David Garman also will testify before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Natural Resources and Regulatory Affairs on Tuesday, June 22 at 2 p.m. He will testify on the administration's policies regarding liquefied natural gas siting of import facilities. James F. Decker, principal deputy director, Office of Science and Dr. Dimitri Kusnezov, director of Advanced Similation and Computing, National Nuclear Security Administration will testify before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy on Tuesday, June 22 at 2:30 p.m. They will speak on high- end computing. William D. Magwood, IV, director, Office of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology will testify before the House Science Subcommitte on Energy on June 24 at 10 a.m. He will testify on nuclear energy research and development in context of the reorganization of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. TUESDAY, JUNE 22 WHO: David Garman, Acting Undersecretary of Energy and Glenn Podonsky, director, Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance WHAT: Testimony before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats, and International Relations WHEN: 10 a.m., Tuesday, June 22 WHERE: Room 2154, Rayburn House Office Building -- WHO: David Garman, Acting Undersecretary of Energy WHAT: Testimony on the administration's policies regarding liquefied natural siting of import facilities WHEN: 2 p.m., Tuesday, June 22 WHERE: Room 2247, Rayburn House Office Building -- WHO: James F. Decker, principal deputy director, Office of Science and Dr. Dimitri Kusnezov, director of Advanced Similation and Computing, National Nuclear Security Administration WHAT: Testimony on high-end computing WHEN: 2:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 22 WHERE: Room 366, Dirksen Senate Office Building --- THURSDAY, JUNE 24 WHO: William D. Magwood, IV, director, Office of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology WHAT: Testimony on nuclear energy R&D in context of reorganization of the Idaho National Laboratory WHEN: 10 a.m., Thursday, June 24 WHERE: Room 2318, Rayburn House Office Building [http://www.usnewswire.com/] -0- /© 2004 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/ ***************************************************************** 46 Oak Ridger: Oak Ridge leaders heading to D.C. again Story last updated at 12:21 p.m. on June 21, 2004 MAYOR BRADSHAW: 'We would like to get their reaction to the response.' By: Stan Mitchell | Oak Ridger Staff stan.mitchell@oakridger.com [stan.mitchell@oakridger.com] An Oak Ridge delegation will leave for Washington, D.C., Wednesday to continue lobbying as part of a three-year effort to gain more money from the Department of Energy. Oak Ridge Mayor David Bradshaw, City Council member Leonard Abbatiello and City Manager James R. O'Connor will make the trip to meet with Oak Ridge's congressional leaders. Bradshaw said the team will confer with their congressmen about the formal response provided by DOE to a question posed by one of Tennessee's senators. Responding to the request by U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., DOE issued a three-page outline notifying him of the department's efforts. The formal response says DOE and its major contractors "have worked and continue to work closely" with Oak Ridge and organizations within the city that are focused on economic development. "We would like to get their reaction to the response," Bradshaw said. Bradshaw said the local team would also get advice on how the city should proceed with its requests for additional revenue. The trip could be followed by many more, as Oak Ridge ups the pressure against DOE. The effort to gain additional money has been spearheaded by the law firm Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell &Berkowitz. As of the first week of June, more than $424,000 had been paid to the law firm, according to information from the city's finance department. ***************************************************************** 47 Oak Ridger: 'No' vote prolongs union talks Story last updated at 11:44 a.m. on June 21, 2004 ATLC CHIEF: 'The workers need an honorable contract.' By: Paul Parson | Oak Ridger Staff [paul.parson@oakridger.com] It's a different day, but the same game. That's the way Carl "Bubba" Scarbrough described the situation this morning - just a couple of hours before heading into another round of contract negotiations that impact more than 2,000 hourly workers at Oak Ridge federal facilities. "We need something for our proposals besides 'not interested,'" the Atomic Trades and Labor Council president said. Scarbrough said that's the reaction union negotiators are getting from other negotiators when it comes to issues like major medical supplements and pension multipliers. His organization serves as an umbrella group for about 16 unions whose members work at various Oak Ridge federal facilities. The union chief also noted that the Department of Energy-related contractors at the negotiating table are asking for some "unbelievable take-aways" like raising the cost of health insurance by 60 percent while decreasing the amount of coverage by about the same percentage. "This year, the budget in Oak Ridge will be $2.9 billion, but there's no money for insurance and no money for pensions" Scarbrough said. 'The responsibility of this budget situation is in the hands of the leadership at BWXT Y-12, UT-Battelle, Bechtel Jacobs Co., DOE and our elected officials." Contract talks resumed this morning after 33 union delegates nixed Friday afternoon sending the contracts to their membership for a vote. It's up to the delegates to recommend the contracts to union members for ratification. If no deals are reached before the current contracts expire at 4 p.m. Tuesday, the unions' members could strike. With that possibility looming, the union delegates will be ready to decide on the fate of any contracts this afternoon or Tuesday, according to Scarbrough. If the delegates OK the contracts, then the deals will technically go into effect, giving time for the union members to vote. If deals can be reached today or Tuesday, it's likely the union members could vote this weekend. "The workers need an honorable contract," Scarbrough said. "The leadership needs to step forward and become a champion of all the workers. This is not a union thing, it's quality of work for all workers." ***************************************************************** 48 Google News Alert - nuclear Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 14:26:47 -0700 (PDT) KHAMENEI assures world Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons Utusan Malaysia Online - Malaysia TEHRAN (Iran) June 21 - In his first remarks since a rebuke over Iran's nuclear activities, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei sought to assure the world ... See all stories on this topic: NUCLEAR blueprint urges re-think BBC News - London,England,UK By Jonathan Marcus. Current efforts to halt the spread of nuclear weapons are insufficient and need a radical overhaul, according to a respected think-tank. ... See all stories on this topic: SUCCESSFUL conclusion of Indo-Pak nuclear talks ends uncertainty ... Xinhua - China ISLAMABAD, June 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Following successful conclusion of a round of talks between India and Pakistan on nuclear confidence building measures, the ... See all stories on this topic: UN nuclear watchdog strikes compromise on Iran ISN - Zurich,Switzerland ... It goes on to express "concern" that almost two years after inquiries into Iran’s nuclear program began in August 2002 "a number of questions remain ... See all stories on this topic: SIX nations preparing for Korea nuclear talks International Herald Tribune - Paris,France ... Russia and China began working-level talks on Monday to lay the foundation for a third round of the complex discussions on the North Korean nuclear crisis. ... See all stories on this topic: FM Kasuri denies Pakistani nuclear scientists in North Korea SpaceDaily - USA ... Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri said Monday he had no knowledge of Pakistani scientists working in North Korea to help develop its nuclear weapons program. ... See all stories on this topic: RUSSIA wants to dismantle nuclear subs by 2010: official SpaceDaily - USA Russia plans to dismantle all of its decommissioned nuclear submarines by 2010 with the help of international aid, an official with the federal nuclear energy ... See all stories on this topic: INDIA-PAKISTAN EXPERT-LEVEL TALKS ON NUCLEAR CBMS - JOINT ... Press Information Bureau (press release) - India The following is the text of the Joint Statement issued here today about the Indo-Pak expert level talks on nuclear CBMs. In accordance ... See all stories on this topic: NRC hears proposals for more nuclear reactors Fredericksburg.com - Fredericksburg,VA,USA Dominion Virginia Power filed its early site-permit application with the NRC last September to give it the option of building up to two new reactors at the ... See all stories on this topic: LEADER Describes Acquisition of Nuclear Technology As National ... Tehran Times - Tehran,Iran TEHRAN (MNA) –- Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on Monday that gaining access to nuclear technology is the ... This daily-once News Alert is brought to you by Google News (BETA)... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Remove this News Alert: http://www.google.com/newsalerts/remove?s=92d1672a1b037a07&hl=en Create another News Alert: http://www.google.com/newsalerts?hl=en Try Google News: http://news.google.com/ ***************************************************************** 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: *****************************************************************