*****************************************************************
07/07/04 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 12.161
*****************************************************************
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 [southnews] CIA Held Back Truth on WMDs
2 Us Reports Transferring Nuclear Material Out Of Iraq, UN Atomic Agen
3 Guardian Unlimited Politics: Hoon could give evidence to Gulf war
4 FT: Inquiry will back intelligence that Iraq sought uranium
5 Xinhuanet: China, Kuwait stress UN's role in Iraq
6 U.S. Newswire: U.S. Removes Iraqi Nuclear and Radiological
7 UK Independent: Blair finally admits it: 'We may never find WMD'
8 AFP: Israel expresses concern to IAEA chief over Iran's nuclear prog
9 Xinhuanet: Iran slams Powell's remarks on Tehran's nuclear program
10 albawaba.com: Iran says Powell nuke comments - ''disgrace''
11 Mehr News Agency: Power Plant On Schedule: Source
12 AFP: UN atomic chief, Israelis discuss Iranian nuclear issue
13 Korea: Digital Chosunilbo: Powell: Rewards Not Possible for N.K. Nuk
14 Korea: Digital Chosunilbo: Powell Rules Out Compensation for North K
15 KoreaTimes: Conjecture Builds Over S-N Summit
16 US: New York Times: Kerry Chooses Edwards, Citing Former Rival's
17 US: Las Vegas RJ: EDITORIAL: Kerry chooses Edwards
18 US: Las Vegas SUN: $100 million in bonds to help bypass
19 US: PRNews: Wyoming Legislator Blames Clinton-Gore Administration fo
20 [southnews] Dirt thrown as Australia signs to star wars
21 FPIF News | Peace, Kashmir & a Nuclear Shadow
22 Bellona: Grigory Pasko receives international passport
23 Aljazeera.Net: Nuclear watchdog's selective bite
24 Guardian Unlimited: U.N. Didn't OK Uranium Transfer to U.S.
25 UPI: Israel's Vanunu critical of ElBaradei -
26 Aljazeera.Net: IAEA breaks ice with Israel on N-issue
27 BBC: Nuclear siren song beguiles Blair
28 Haaretz: Vanunu's notebooks `prove intent to harm state security'
29 Haaretz ElBaradei: Pakistan gave nuclear know-how to at least 20
30 Xinhuanet: Israeli prosecutor says Vanunu still poses risk to state
31 Maariv International: State submits response to Vanunu petition
NUCLEAR REACTORS
32 US: NRC: Amergen Energy Company, LLC Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating
33 US: NRC: Indiana Michigan Power Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
34 US: NRC: Workshop on Regulatory Structure for New Plant Licensing:
35 Taipei Times: Activists protest reactor Japan reactor
36 Pravda.RU: Ukraine complains Chernobyl fund donors behind with
37 Toronto Star: Pickering reactor restart approved
38 US: TheChamplainChannel.com: Vermont Yankee Resurrected After Shutdo
39 US: Reuters: NRC to meet on N.Y. Indian Pt nuke fuel storage
40 SouthofBoston.com: Call to shut down nuke (Pilgrim)
41 CBC News: Ontario to re-invest millions on Pickering reactor
42 US: NRC: NRC Davis-Besse Oversight Panel to Meet July 13 in Ohio
43 CBC Ottawa: $900M bound for Pickering A
NUCLEAR SAFETY
44 AFP: Spanish FM warns Britain over nuclear submarine visit to Gibral
45 US: DenverPost.com: Colorado Voices: The real nuclear threat
NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE
46 Las Vegas RJ: Yucca Mountain may tip scale in close Nevada vote
47 Las Vegas RJ: Yucca database held up again
48 Las Vegas SUN: Edwards has supported Yucca, college betting ban
49 Las Vegas SUN: Work halted on NRC data for Yucca Mountain
50 RGJ: Edwards now opposes Yucca Mountain
51 RGJ: State lawmakers criticize Yucca Mountain data
52 Jim Gibbons: Nevadas Delegation Calls on DOE to Improve
53 US: Denver Post: Colo. uranium mill due ruling on loads of radioacti
54 Australian: Dump review 'an election stunt'
55 AU ABC: Howard may reconsider SA nuclear dump.
56 KRNV: NRC names administrator for DOE Yucca Mountain filings
57 US: AFP: Kazakh uranium production to hit new heights
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
US DEPT. OF ENERGY
58 DOE: Privacy Act of 1974;
59 Wamp: Oak Ridge plays 'key role' in removing Iraqi nuclear material
60 The State: Plutonium may not be leaving SRS
61 U.S. Newswire: DOE: to Announce New Science Education Initiative
62 Daily Texan: Los Alamos: Blinded by profits? -
63 Oak Ridger: OR assists in removal of Iraqi material
64 Oak Ridger: Company to graduate incubator program
65 Oak Ridger: Audit critical of DOE-related radio plans
66 Daily Texan: Q: UT System on possible national lab bid -
OTHER NUCLEAR
67 Google News Alert - nuclear
68 NY Newsday: Why radiation hardly bugs those roaches
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
FULL NEWS STORIES
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
1 [southnews] CIA Held Back Truth on WMDs
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 2004 00:25:53 -0500 (CDT)
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar.
Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/7gSolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
THE Central Intelligence Agency failed to pass on information that
Baghdad had abandoned its program to develop weapons of mass destruction
to President George W. Bush before the Iraq war, The New York Times
reported on its website late today.
Citing unnamed government officials, the newspaper said the existence of
a secret pre-war CIA operation to debrief relatives of Iraqi scientists
- and the agency's failure to give their statements to the president and
other policymakers - has been uncovered by the Senate Select Committee
on Intelligence.
The panel has been investigating the government's handling of prewar
intelligence on Iraq after US and British troops failed to uncover any
alleged stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons the Bush
administration used to justify the war.
The report, which is expected to be released this week, will likely
contain a scathing indictment of the CIA and its leaders for failing to
recognise that the evidence they had collected did not justify their
assessment that Saddam Hussein had illicit weapons, the report said.
______________________
July 6, 2004
INTELLIGENCE
C.I.A. Held Back Iraqi Arms Data, U.S. Officials Say
By JAMES RISEN
WASHINGTON, July 5 The Central Intelligence Agency was told by
relatives of Iraqi scientists before the war that Baghdad's programs to
develop unconventional weapons had been abandoned, but the C.I.A. failed
to give that information to President Bush, even as he publicly warned
of the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's illicit weapons, according to
government officials.
The existence of a secret prewar C.I.A. operation to debrief relatives
of Iraqi scientists and the agency's failure to give their statements
to the president and other policymakers has been uncovered by the
Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. The panel has been
investigating the government's handling of prewar intelligence on Iraq's
unconventional weapons and plans to release a wide-ranging report this
week on the first phase of its inquiry. The report is expected to
contain a scathing indictment of the C.I.A. and its leaders for failing
to recognize that the evidence they had collected did not justify their
assessment that Mr. Hussein had illicit weapons.
C.I.A. officials, saying that only a handful of relatives made claims
that the weapons programs were dead, play down the significance of the
information collected in the secret debriefing operation. That operation
is one of a number of significant disclosures by the Senate
investigation. The Senate report, intelligence officials say, concludes
that the agency and the rest of the intelligence community did a poor
job of collecting information about the status of Iraq's weapons
programs, and that analysts at the C.I.A. and other intelligence
agencies did an even worse job of writing reports that accurately
reflected the information they had.
Among the many problems that contributed to the committee's harsh
assessment of the C.I.A.'s prewar performance were instances in which
analysts may have misrepresented information, writing reports that
distorted evidence in order to bolster their case that Iraq did have
chemical, biological and nuclear programs, according to government
officials. The Senate found, for example, that an Iraqi defector who
supposedly provided evidence of the existence of a biological weapons
program had actually said he did not know of any such program.
In another case concerning whether a shipment of aluminum tubes seized
on its way to Iraq was evidence that Baghdad was trying to build a
nuclear bomb, the Senate panel raised questions about whether the C.I.A.
had become an advocate, rather than an objective observer, and
selectively sought to prove that the tubes were for a nuclear weapons
program.
While the Senate panel has concluded that C.I.A. analysts and other
intelligence officials overstated the case that Iraq had illicit
weapons, the committee has not found any evidence that the analysts
changed their reports as a result of political pressure from the White
House, according to officials familiar with the report.
The Senate report is expected to criticize both the director of central
intelligence, George J. Tenet, and his deputy, John McLaughlin, and
other senior C.I.A. officials, for the way they managed the agency
before the war. Mr. Tenet has announced his resignation, effective July
11, and Mr. McLaughlin will serve as acting director until a permanent
director is appointed. The C.I.A. has scheduled a farewell ceremony for
Mr. Tenet on Thursday, just as the reverberations from the Senate report
are likely to be hitting the agency.
The possibility that Mr. Tenet personally overstated the evidence has
been investigated by the Senate panel, officials said. He was
interviewed privately by the panel recently, and was asked whether he
told President Bush that the case for the existence of Iraq's
unconventional weapons was a "slam dunk."
In his book about the Bush administration's planning for the war in
Iraq, "Plan of Attack," Bob Woodward reported that Mr. Tenet reassured
Mr. Bush about the evidence of the existence of Iraq's illicit weapons
after Mr. Bush had made clear he was unimpressed by the evidence
presented to him in a December 2002 briefing by Mr. McLaughlin. "It's a
slam-dunk case!" Mr. Tenet is quoted as telling the president.
In his private interview with the Senate panel, Mr. Tenet refused to say
whether he had used the "slam-dunk" phrase, arguing that his
conversations with the president were privileged, officials said.
In hindsight, the Senate panel and many other intelligence officials now
agree that there was little effort within the American intelligence
community before the war to question the basic assumption that Mr.
Hussein was still seeking to produce illicit weapons. Evidence that fit
that assumption was embraced; evidence to the contrary was ignored or
seen as part of a clever Iraqi disinformation campaign.
Yet there were some people inside the intelligence community who
recognized the need for better evidence, according to intelligence
officials. In 1998, the United Nations withdrew its weapons inspectors
from Iraq, severely hampering the C.I.A.'s ability to monitor Iraqi
weapons efforts. In response, Charlie Allen, the agency's assistant
director for collection, began searching for new sources of information,
the intelligence officials said.
He pushed for several new collection programs, including one that called
for approaching members of the families of Iraqi scientists believed to
be involved in secret weapons programs, the officials said. At the time,
the C.I.A. had no direct access to important Iraqi scientists, and using
family members as intermediaries seemed like the next best thing.
Beginning in 2000, the C.I.A. contacted the relatives and asked them
what they knew or could learn about the work being conducted by the
scientists. Officials would not say how or where the relatives were
contacted.
The relatives told the agency that the scientists had said that they
were no longer working on illicit weapons, and that those programs were
dead. Yet the statements from the relatives were never included in
C.I.A. intelligence reports on Iraq that were distributed throughout the
government. C.I.A. analysts monitoring Iraq apparently ignored the
statements from the family members and continued to issue assessments
that Mr. Hussein was still developing unconventional weapons, Senate
investigators have found.
At the time, C.I.A. analysts were deeply cynical about statements from
Iraqis suggesting that Mr. Hussein had no illicit weapons, and assumed
that such talk was simply part of an Iraqi denial and deception program,
several intelligence officials said.
In response, a C.I.A. spokesman said, the families' statements were "not
at all convincing."
"There was nothing definitive about it," the spokesman said. "No useful
information was collected from the family members, and that's why it
wouldn't have been disseminated."
The agency's handling of intelligence on biological weapons has also
drawn Congressional criticism. In fact, the C.I.A. relied heavily on
four Iraqi defectors to reach its conclusion that Iraq had developed
mobile biological weapons laboratories.
But one defector, an Iraqi scientist, said he had been working on a
technical program known as a "protein slurry," and that his work was
unrelated to biological weapons. He said he did not know of any other
biological weapons activity under way in Iraq. Senate investigators did
not discover that his statements contradicted the view that Iraq had an
active biological program until they read the original reports of his
debriefings from before the war, officials said. A C.I.A. official said
the agency still had good reasons to use the defector's information, and
has been trying to explain that to the Senate committee. The official
would not elaborate.
There were problems with the handling of the other defectors used to
buttress the biological weapons case. Information from one was used even
though the Defense Intelligence Agency had warned in the spring of 2002
that he had fabricated information. The C.I.A. took statements that
another defector had given to German intelligence without knowing his
identity or learning that he had ties to the Iraqi National Congress,
the Iraqi exile group led by Ahmad Chalabi. Mr. Chalabi, until recently
a close ally of the Pentagon, fell into disfavor with the Bush
administration after it became clear that his organization had provided
disinformation to the United States and had exaggerated the threat posed
by Mr. Hussein.
One of the most sensitive elements of the Senate investigation relates
to the C.I.A.'s handling of intelligence about the shipment of aluminum
tubes seized by the United States in 2001 on its way into Iraq.
Senior C.I.A. analysts became convinced that the shipment was strong
evidence that Mr. Hussein was reconstituting his nuclear weapons
program. The agency concluded that the aluminum tubes were to be used as
spinning rotors in a centrifuge that could enrich uranium for bombs.
But other government experts, particularly at the national laboratories
and in the State Department, were skeptical. They argued that the tubes
seemed designed for use in conventional military rockets.
The technical debate reached a peak in 2002, just as the intelligence
community was preparing a comprehensive National Intelligence Estimate,
an interagency assessment of the status of Iraq's unconventional weapons.
Seeking to prove its case, the C.I.A. hired outside experts to conduct
technical tests, spinning the tubes at high speeds to determine whether
they could withstand the stress of a centrifuge.
But the Senate panel investigated the way in which the C.I.A.
selectively sought to prove its case with the outside experts in the
face of the skepticism from analysts at other agencies. For example, in
the National Intelligence Estimate, the C.I.A. disclosed the initial
and successful test results to support its assertion that the tubes
could be used to help produce nuclear weapons. Only later did the C.I.A.
report results that showed that the tubes ultimately failed in testing.
C.I.A. officials said in response that only the initial test results
were reported in the intelligence assessment because those were the only
results available at the time. When later results were available in
January 2003, they were reported to the rest of the intelligence
community, the officials said. The C.I.A. officials added that nearly
all of the subsequent test failures were a result of failures of testing
equipment, and that the few failures of tubes were at speeds that
exceeded those required for centrifuges. The agency had asked the
outside experts to push the tubes to their limits in the stress tests,
and so their failure did not mean that the tubes could not be used in a
centrifuge, the C.I.A. officials say.
The C.I.A.'s views on the tubes ultimately prevailed inside the Bush
administration. Although the State Department's own analysts issued a
dissent in the National Intelligence Estimate, Secretary of State Colin
L. Powell went with the C.I.A. In his presentation to the United Nations
in February 2003 laying out the administration's case against Iraq, he
relied on the aluminum tubes to show that Mr. Hussein was rebuilding his
nuclear weapons program.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/06/politics/
The archives of South News can be found at
http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/southnews/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
southnews-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
*****************************************************************
2 Us Reports Transferring Nuclear Material Out Of Iraq, UN Atomic Agency Says
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 2004 13:00:53 -0400
US REPORTS TRANSFERRING NUCLEAR MATERIAL OUT OF IRAQ, UN ATOMIC AGENCY
SAYS
New York, Jul 7 2004 1:00PM
Relaying information received from Washington, the head of the United
Nations atomic watchdog agency has told the Security Council
that the United States transferred nuclear material out of Iraq
last month.
In a letter to the Security Council released today, the Director-General
of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed
ElBaradei, says the US Government advised him of the planned transfer
on 19 June, citing security concerns.
The US requested IAEA to keep the information about the intended
transfer confidential for the same security reasons, the letter
notes.
On 30 June, Washington informed the IAEA that the transfer of some
nuclear material stored at Location C an area previously referred
to by the Agency as a nuclear material storage facility near
the Tuwaitha complex south of Baghdad had taken place a week
earlier.
According to the letter, the transferred material consisted of low
enriched uranium in the form of approximately 1.8 tons of uranium
enriched to 2.6 per cent in uranium-235, as well as some additional
3 kilograms of uranium of various low enrichments.
Mr. ElBaradei notes that this material is now under US jurisdiction
and control, while what remains at Location C is mostly natural
uranium, some depleted uranium and some low enriched uranium waste
subject to IAEA monitoring and verification.
The US Government also informed the Agency that approximately 1,000
highly radioactive sources, most of them previously stored at
Location C, were also transferred to the United States, the letter
states.
2004-07-07 00:00:00.000
________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news
To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/news/dh/latest/subscribe.shtml
*****************************************************************
3 Guardian Unlimited Politics: Hoon could give evidence to Gulf war
illness inquiry
James Meikle, health correspondent
Wednesday July 7, 2004
[http://www.guardian.co.uk]
Geoff Hoon, the defence secretary, and John Reid, the health
secretary, are considering whether their departments should give
evidence to an independent inquiry into illnesses suffered by
veterans of the first Gulf war.
Lord Lloyd of Berwick, who is heading the inquiry, has invited
government representatives to hearings in London this month, and
said it was "essential" that they appear.
The cabinet ministers will have to weigh up the political
consequences of refusing to cooperate with an investigation that
has been set up only because the government has refused repeated
calls to hold a public inquiry. But their participation would
raise fresh questions about why the government did not sanction
an inquiry earlier.
Although it has not ruled out the possibility, the government has
maintained that more research is needed into possible causes of
illnesses suffered by veterans since the early 1990s.
Lord Lloyd insisted his inquiry would succeed even if they did
not cooperate. "I hope very much that they will. As far as I can
see, they have as much interest as anybody else in finding out
what the facts actually are."
He said ministers might find that "this is a relatively
inexpensive way ... of doing what many people think they ought to
have done already. If that is so, there won't be a need for a
further inquiry."
He said: "There is no hidden agenda. Our terms of reference are
to investigate the circumstances that have led to the ill health,
and in some cases death, of over 6,000 British troops following
deployment to the Gulf...
"Nobody has yet suggested that there is a single underlying cause
for all the illnesses, nor are all the illnesses identical. So
although they are sometimes referred to collectively as 'the Gulf
war syndrome', this may be an inaccurate or, at least,
insufficient description.
"Nor is it suggested that whatever may have gone wrong in 1991,
the government of the day did other than act with the best of
intentions. Our purpose at this stage is to find the facts, not
to attribute blame."
Many veterans blame the cocktail of vaccinations they were given
before the 1991 conflict for a range of health problems,
including muscle weakness, depression and neurological
conditions.
But low-level exposure to chemical agents and the effects of
depleted uranium and stress are among other explanations put
forward for their illnesses.
The Ministry of Defence said: "We have not yet responded to Lord
Lloyd. Until a ministerial decision has been made it would be
inappropriate to speculate on what our position would be."
The Liberal Democrat leader, Charles Kennedy, welcomed the "well
overdue" inquiry and hoped it would "bring closure to an issue
that has devastated the lives of so many families for well over a
decade".
Lord Morris of Manchester, the Labour peer who was behind
establishing the inquiry, said he was "delighted by the positive
response to the inquiry at Westminster from people of all
parties, and of none".
It is expected to cost between £50,000 and £100,000 and will be
held on at least seven days over the next few weeks. Lord Lloyd
hopes to produce a report by the end of next month, although that
will depend on the complexity of the evidence.
Witnesses will include about 30 veterans, as well as science
experts and possibly ministers and former ministers. Written
evidence is also being invited.
The inquiry is being funded by an anonymous donor, said by Lord
Lloyd to take "a great interest in the affairs of ex-service
people" but "utterly non-political". Lord Lloyd will receive no
remuneration or expenses, while Sir Michael Davies, the
administrator, will receive "a modest honorarium" and expenses,
"if any". The medical adviser, Norman Jones, will receive
expenses.
Useful links
[http://www.army.mod.uk/]
[http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/]
[http://www.raf.mod.uk/]
[http://www.mod.uk/]
[http://www.nato.int/home.htm]
[http://www.un.org/]
[UP]
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004
*****************************************************************
4 FT: Inquiry will back intelligence that Iraq sought uranium
World [http://news.ft.com/world] Print article | Email
By Mark Huband in London
Published: July 7 2004 22:38 | Last Updated: July 8 2004 0:49
A UK government inquiry into the intelligence used to justify the
war in Iraq is expected to conclude that Britain's spies were
correct to say that Saddam Hussein's regime sought to buy uranium
from Niger.
The inquiry by Lord Butler, which was delivered to the
printers on Wednesday and is expected to be released on July 14,
has examined the intelligence that underpinned the UK
government's claims about the threat from Iraq.
Butler to say Iraq missile claim 'not supported'
Read more
[http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT
/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1087373565577&p=101257172708
5]
The report will say the claim that Mr Hussein could deploy
chemical weapons within 45 minutes, seized on by UK prime
minister Tony Blair to bolster the case for war with Iraq, was
inadequately supported by the available intelligence, people
familiar with its contents say .
But among Lord Butler's other areas of investigation was the
issue of whether Iraq sought to buy uranium from Niger. People
with knowledge of the report said Lord Butler has concluded that
this claim was reasonable and consistent with the intelligence.
President George W. Bush referred to the Niger claim in his state
of the union address last year. But officials were forced into a
climbdown when it was revealed that the only primary intelligence
material the US possessed were documents later shown to be
forgeries.
The Bush administration has since distanced itself from all
suggestions that Iraq sought to buy uranium. The UK government
has remained adamant that negotiations over sales did take place
and that the fake documents were not part of the intelligence
material it had gathered to underpin its claim.
The Financial Times revealed last week that a key part of the
UK's intelligence on the uranium came from a European
intelligence service that undertook a three-year surveillance of
an alleged clandestine uranium-smuggling operation of which Iraq
was a part.
Intelligence officials have now confirmed that the results of
this operation formed an important part of the conclusions of
British intelligence. The same information was passed to the US
but US officials did not incorporate it in their assessment.
The 45-minute claim appeared four times in a government dossier
on Iraq's WMD issued in September 2002, including in the foreword
by Mr Blair.
It became the subject of intense scrutiny when government
scientist David Kelly was alleged to have voiced concerns about
the claim's accuracy to Andrew Gilligan, then a BBC reporter.
Mr Gilligan's report of his conversation with Mr Kelly unleashed
a fierce dispute between the government and the BBC that
culminated in Mr Kelly's suicide, an inquiry into the
circumstances of his death, and the resignation of the BBC's two
most senior officials.
Lord Butler is said to have produced a report that criticises the
process of intelligence gathering and assessment on Iraq but
refrains from criticising individual officials.
© Copyright The Financial Times Ltd 2004. "FT" and
"Financial Times" are trademarks of the Financial Times.
*****************************************************************
5 Xinhuanet: China, Kuwait stress UN's role in Iraq
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2004-07-07 21:12:41
BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhuanet) -- China and Kuwait issued a
joint press communique here Wednesday, welcoming the transfer of
sovereignty and founding of the interim government in Iraq, while
stressing the United Nation's role and condemning terrorism
activities there.
The communique was released amid Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh
Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah's eight-day official visit to
China as a guest of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.
China condemns the former Iraqi regime's killing of Kuwaiti
prisoners of war (POW), understands and supports Kuwait's
legitimate claims on the unsolved problems caused by Iraq's
occupation in Kuwait, involving the POWs and compensation, the
communique said.
China and Kuwait hope to exert joint efforts to the
construction and development in Iraq, welcoming and speaking
highly of the UN Security Council Resolution 1546.
The role of the United Nations should be enhanced in Iraq,
which is still in the interim period, in a bid to help Iraqi
people resume sovereignty and carry out their rights, the
communique said.
China and Kuwait condemn the terrorism activities in Iraq
targeting civilians, international organizations and foreign
diplomats, it said, noting the two countries are against
terrorism in any form and oppose the pegging terrorism to any
particular country, ethnicity or religion.
The two sides expressed worry over the stagnating peace talks
in the Middle East and the delayed implementation of the Road Map
peace plan, appealing to concerned sides to turn back to the
track of narrowing differences through negotiation.
Kuwait appreciates China's appointment of a special envoy on
the Middle East issue and supports China's efforts in solving the
problem, the communique said.
Kuwait reiterated that it will firmly adhere to the one-China
policy, opposes any attempt to forge "two Chinas" or "one China,
one Taiwan" and supports China's any efforts in safeguarding
national sovereignty and territorial integrity, the communique
said.
The two sides said international cooperation is needed to
maintain peace, security and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
Kuwait appreciates and supports China's efforts to solve the
Korean nuclear issue within the six-party talks framework.
During the Kuwaiti PM's visit, China and Kuwait agreed to
promote two-way investment and trade. They signed three
agreements respectively on economic and technology cooperation,
oil and natural gas and environmental protection.
The Kuwaiti side invited Chinese President Hu Jintao, Premier
Wen Jiabao and Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of
the National People's Congress, to visit Kuwait, according to the
communique. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
6 U.S. Newswire: U.S. Removes Iraqi Nuclear and Radiological
Materials; Joint Operation Conducted with U.S. Departments of
Energy and Defense
7/6/2004 3:18:00 PM
To: National Desk, Energy Reporter
Contact: Bryan Wilkes of NNSA, 202-586-7371; Major Sandra Burr of
the Department of Defense, 703-697-5133; Jeanne Lopatto of the
U.S. Department of Energy, 202-586-4940
WASHINGTON, July 6 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Energy Secretary Spencer
Abraham announced today that the Department of Energy (DOE) and
the Department of Defense (DOD) have completed a joint operation
to secure and remove from Iraq radiological and nuclear materials
that could potentially be used in a radiological dispersal device
or diverted to support a nuclear weapons program.
"This operation was a major achievement for the Bush
Administration's goal to keep potentially dangerous nuclear
materials out of the hands of terrorists," Secretary Abraham
said. "It also puts this material out of reach for countries that
may seek to develop their own nuclear weapons."
Twenty experts from DOE's national laboratory complex packaged
1.77 metric tons of low-enriched uranium and roughly 1000 highly
radioactive sources from the former Iraq nuclear research
facility. The DOD airlifted the material to the United States on
June 23 and provided security, coordination, planning, ground
transportation, and funding for the mission.
Due to safety and security issues surrounding the removed
materials, the U.S., consistent with its authorities and relevant
United Nations Security Council Resolutions, took possession of,
and removed the materials to ensure the safety and security of
the Iraqi people.
DOE also repackaged less sensitive materials that will remain in
Iraq. Radiological sources that continue to serve useful medical,
agricultural or industrial purposes were not removed from Iraq.
The low enriched uranium will be stored temporarily at a secure
DOE facility and the radiological sources will initially be
brought to a DOE laboratory for further characterization and
disposition.
The International Atomic Energy Agency was advised in advance of
the U.S. intentions to remove the nuclear materials. Iraqi
officials were briefed about the removal of the materials and
sources prior to evacuation.
The nuclear research complex, now under the responsibility of the
Iraq Ministry of Science and Technology, was once a central
institution for Iraq's nuclear weapons program before being
dismantled in the early 1990s, following the first Gulf War. The
complex was also the consolidation point for highly radioactive
sources collected by the Department of Defense with assistance by
employees of the Ministry of Science and Technology within Iraq
over the last year.
[http://www.usnewswire.com/]
-0-
/© 2004 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/
*****************************************************************
7 UK Independent: Blair finally admits it: 'We may never find WMD'
By Andrew Grice, Political Editor
07 July 2004
Tony Blair admitted for the first time yesterday that weapons of
mass destruction may never be found in Iraq and, in a remarkable
U-turn, even suggested that Saddam Hussein may have destroyed his
arsenal.
The Prime Minister, who has previously dismissed the idea that
Saddam's weapons had been destroyed as "palpably absurd", told a
committee of MPs: "I have to accept we have not found them and we
may not find them. He may have removed or hidden or even
destroyed those weapons. We don't know."
Mr Blair finally made his admission after insisting since last
year's conflict that weapons would eventually be discovered and
that the pre-war intelligence was right. But he rejected growing
demands for him to "say sorry" over the Iraq war and insisted it
was right to remove Saddam, describing him as an "evil person"
and a "tyrant" that the world was well rid of.
His move was seen at Westminster as a pre-emptive strike before
the publication a week today of the Butler report into Britain's
pre-war intelligence, which is expected to criticise the security
services and the use by the Government of the material they
provided. Mr Blair is expected to admit that mistakes were made
but to defend the decision to topple Saddam.
During a two-and-a-half hour interrogation by the Commons Liaison
Committee yesterday, Mr Blair was asked whether it was a mistake
to put so much emphasis on WMD rather than regime change before
the war. He replied: "I say it is very important not to go to the
other extreme and say: 'Because we have not found actual
stockpiles of WMD, therefore he was not a threat.' " Insisting
Saddam was in breach of United Nations resolutions, he said: "I
was very, very confident we would find [WMD]." He added: "I
genuinely believe that those weapons were there and that is why
the international community came together as they did."
In America, it emerged that a senate inquiry had uncovered
evidence that the CIA was told by relatives of Iraqi scientists
before the war that Baghdad's weapons programmes had been
abandoned. But the CIA failed to pass the information to
President George Bush, according to officials.
The existence of a secret pre-war CIA operation to debrief
relatives of Iraqi scientists has been uncovered by the Senate
Select Committee on Intelligence. The panel has been
investigating the government's handling of pre-war intelligence
on Iraq's unconventional weapons and it plans to issue a
wide-ranging report this week on the first phase of its inquiry.
It is expected to contain a scathing indictment of the CIA and
its leaders for failing to recognise that the evidence they had
collected did not justify their assessment that Saddam had
illicit weapons.
Mr Blair's remarks were welcomed by some Labour MPs but did not
go far enough for his anti-war critics. Charles Kennedy, the
leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: "The Prime Minister
diminishes himself and his office by not acknowledging what
everyone else accepts, which is that there was no serious threat
from weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
"When Jeremy Greenstock [the former British envoy to Iraq] is
prepared to appear on television and frankly admit this, the
Prime Minister just looks silly. It's time he came to terms with
the reality."
Michael Ancram, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said: "In the
run-up to war, Tony Blair was quite clear about the threat posed
by Iraq. As military operations commenced, he made clear the
reason for going to war was 'to remove Saddam Hussein from power,
and disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction'. If all of
these remarks were honestly meant, then the Prime Minister now
owes the country a full explanation."
Mr Blair told yesterday's hearing that Britain did not have the
"machinery" in place to ensure that the remaining British
detainees at Guantanamo Bay would not pose a security threat if
they were released. He confirmed that he had raised their cases
with President Bush recently, but did not believe the US was
being "unreasonable" in holding on to them until Britain could
give assurances they would not be a security threat.
The Prime Minister defended the close relationship he has with
President Bush, saying other countries would "give their eye
teeth" for it.
THE PM'S RETREAT...
'The intelligence is clear: [Saddam] continues to believe his WMD
programme is essential both for internal repression and for
external aggression' 25 February 2003
'We are asked to accept that, contrary to all intelligence,
Saddam decided to destroy those weapons. I say that such a claim
is palpably absurd' 18 March 2003
'I don't concede at all that the intelligence was wrong. I have
no doubt at all that we will find evidence of weapons of mass
destruction programmes' 8 July 2003
'I have to accept that we have not found them and we may not find
them. He [Saddam] may have removed or hidden or even destroyed
those weapons.' 6 July 2004
UK Independent Ltd.
*****************************************************************
8 AFP: Israel expresses concern to IAEA chief over Iran's nuclear program
+ WAR.WIRE
[http://www.spacewar.com/]
TEL AVIV (AFP) Jul 07, 2004
The UN atomic energy chief took his campaign for a Middle East
free of nuclear weapons to meetings with Israeli energy officials
Wednesday, as a war of words over Iran's atomic ambitions
intensified.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director general
Mohamed ElBaradei said Israeli officials had raised their fears
about Tehran's nuclear program, which has been under
investigation by the IAEA since February 2003.
"They (the Israelis) were expressing concern about Iran,"
ElBaradei told reporters after a meeting here with Gideon Franck,
head of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission.
Israeli military intelligence chief Aharon Zeevi was quoted
Wednesday as saying Tehran may have the bomb by 2008 if the
international community does not halt Iran's march to acquiring
nuclear weapons.
In June, the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors condemned Tehran
for poor cooperation and urged it to provide more information so
the investigation could conclude in a few months.
Iran's defence minister warned Wednesday that the Islamic
republic would abandon its commitments to the IAEA if its nuclear
installations are attacked.
"Today the IAEA holds every detail on Iran's nuclear programme,"
Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani told the Islamic republic's official
IRNA news agency.
"If there is a military attack, that would mean that the IAEA has
been collecting this information to prepare for an attack.
Naturally, after such an action, it would be necessary to
renounce all of our nuclear commitments."
Iran's nuclear program was also on the agenda in Washington
during talks Tuesday between US Secretary of State Colin Powell
and Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.
"Iran is the country that has announced that one missile toward
Israel will destroy the Jewish state. So we should be concerned
about the Iranians' efforts to develop nuclear weapon," Shalom
said.
Powell said Washington would "continue to press in every way that
we can ... to make sure the international community stands
unified behind the effort to stop Iran from pursuing nuclear
weapons development, or worse, acquiring a nuclear weapon".
ElBaradei began his visit to Israel on Tuesday by playing down
prospects of a breakthrough in efforts to persuade the government
to reveal its nuclear secrets and rid the Middle East of nuclear
weapons.
"I have no illusion that things could happen overnight but I
believe that the earlier we start a security dialogue, the
better," ElBaradei said.
"We need to understand the different viewpoints of Israel, of the
other parties in the Middle East and that's what I'm asked to do
-- consult with all the parties and see how we can move things
forward," he said, referring to an IAEA mandate he received last
year to work towards a nuclear-free Middle East.
ElBaradei also held talks with Israeli Health Minister Danny
Naveh on Wednesday as well as going on a flight over the country.
He is expected to meet with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on
Thursday, but the premier has stressed that Israel's policy of
refusing to confirm or deny that it has nuclear weapons would
continue.
Most foreign experts believe Israel possesses a nuclear arsenal
of around 200 warheads, although it has stuck to a policy of
"strategic ambiguity" for the past 40 years.
Israel is not a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
but ElBaradei said that he hoped to persuade Sharon's government
to sign up to other agreements with his agency.
He is expected to push for a deal that would involve Israel
informing the IAEA about Israeli imports and exports of
nuclear-related material.
ElBaradei said the Israelis had told him they could not consider
talking about doing away with nuclear weapons because they
"cannot lower their security threshold" as Iran has said it wants
to destroy the Jewish state.
"We haven't really made any progress because the Israelis have
disputed, saying we can not discuss it before a comprehensive
peace" in the Middle East.
WAR.WIRE
*****************************************************************
9 Xinhuanet: Iran slams Powell's remarks on Tehran's nuclear program
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2004-07-07 20:46:35
TEHRAN, July 7 (Xinhuanet) -- Iran on Wednesday criticized
US Secretary of State Colin Powell's remarks on the nuclear
ambitions of the Islamic republic, the official IRNA news gency
reported.
Powell told a press conference, jointly held with Israeli
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom in Washington Tuesday, that Iran
was "pursuing nuclear weapons development, or worse, acquiring a
nuclear weapon."
In response, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza
Asefi said that "Powell's remarks are a source of disgrace for
the US administration before world public opinion and the Islamic
states in particular."
"The United States is not following an independent policy
toward Iran's nuclear programs but instead is toeing the line of
the Zionist regime in this regard," said Asefi.
He argued that by raising the issue of Iran's attempts to
develop nuclear weapons, Israel was seeking to deflect attention
from its own nuclear activities and prevent its nuclear secrets
from being disclosed to the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA).
Israel has an official policy of "nuclear ambiguity", under
which it neither confirms nor denies having such weapons.
However, international arms experts assess Israel has the
world's sixth largest stockpile of nuclear weapons, including
some 300 warheads and the ability to rapidly expand.
"The Israeli government's refusal to disclose its nuclear
plans to the UN nuclear watchdog clearly indicated it was
stubbornly disregarding its commitments and avoiding transparent
cooperation with the IAEA," Asefi said.
Under the international pressure, Iran suspended uranium
enrichment last October, but it held that the suspension was a
voluntary move to build confidence between Tehran and the
international community, claiming the program was purely of a
peaceful nature.
The IAEA passed on June 18 a resolution censoring Iran for
covering up its nuclear programs for years.
The resolution dissatisfied Iran, who therefore threatened the
resumption of its uranium enrichment.
Iran has been accused by the United States of pursuing secret
nuclear programs, a charge vehemently denied by Tehran. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
10 albawaba.com: Iran says Powell nuke comments - ''disgrace''
Al Bawaba - Middle East News and Information
[webmaster@albawaba.com]
Judeo-Christians Role - Mr. Sharons Final Solution by Charles
E. Carlson
07-07-2004
Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said Wednesday
that recent remarks by the US Secretary of State Colin Powell on
Iran was a source of disgrace for the US administration before
world public opinion in general and the Islamic states in
particular.
Asefi's comments came a day after Powell claimed at a joint press
conference with the Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom in
Washington that Iran was "pursuing nuclear weapons development,
or worse, acquiring a nuclear weapon."
"The US is not following an independent policy towards Iran's
nuclear programs but instead is toeing the line of the Zionist
regime in this regard," said the FM spokesman.
He further noted that by raising claims about Tehran's attempts
to develop nuclear weapons, Shalom was seeking to overshadow
nuclear activities of Israel and preventing its nuclear secrets
from being disclosed to the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA).
"The Zionist foreign minister made baseless claims simultaneously
with a visit to the occupied Palestine by the IAEA chief in a bid
to conceal Israeli plans to develop nuclear weapons and divert
the international public opinion from dangerous nature of Tel
Aviv's nuclear programs, the spokesman added.
He further argued that "the Zionist regime's refusal to disclose
its nuclear plans to the UN nuclear watchdog clearly indicates
that it was stubbornly disregarding its commitments and avoiding
transparent cooperation with the IAEA.
Asefi also noted that Israel's impudent reactions to the
international demands for divulging its nuclear plans was a
result of the US overt and covert supports for the "Zionist
regime." (albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com) [http://www.albawaba.com]
*****************************************************************
11 Mehr News Agency: Power Plant On Schedule: Source
Tehran:07:33,2004/07/08
TEHRAN, July 7
(MNA) â- An informed source said here Wednesday that Bushehr
nuclear power plant will go on stream without changes to the
timetable, based on agreements reached between Iran and Russia.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said that
Tehran-Moscow negotiations are currently continuing to determine
the schedule of the first phase of the power plant, Mehr News
Agency reported.
The source pointed out the seventh ship carrying 1700 tons of
equipment from Russia needed for the power plant was unloaded at
the Bushehr port last week. The last consignments of equipment
will be received in Bushehr over the next six months in two or
three cargo shipments.
The source denied rumors about any delay in power plant
operations, noting that the current Iran-Russia negotiations are
focused on technical and technological issues, other news about
the nature of the consultations to the contrary is politically
motivated.
âIran has reached an agreement with Russia to implement
comprehensive economic studies regarding the second phase of the
power plant and these studies were carried out a while agoâ, he
said, adding that the final report about these studies will be
reviewed during a future trip to Iran by Alexander Rumyantsev,
the Russian Atomic Energy Minister.
The source went on to say that Igor Ivanov, Russiaâs Security
Council Secretary who is visiting Tehran on the invitation of his
Iranian counterpart Hasan Rowhani, the secretary of Supreme
National Security Council has said that the construction of the
Bushehr power plant will be completed in 2005 and it will be
operational in 2006.
The source added that Russian officials had previously declared
that the power plant would be operational in 2005.
FK/DWN/IS END MNA
*****************************************************************
12 AFP: UN atomic chief, Israelis discuss Iranian nuclear issue
WAR.WIRE
[http://www.spacewar.com/]
TEL AVIV (AFP) Jul 07, 2004
The UN atomic energy chief took his campaign for a Middle East
free of nuclear weapons to meetings with Israeli energy officials
Wednesday, as a war of words over Iran's atomic ambitions
intensified.
"We're discussing all issues of proliferation concern in the
Middle East. If people want to raise the Iranian issue, I'll tell
them where we are and what we're doing," Mohamed ElBaradei told
reporters.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director general
was heading for a meeting with Gideon Franck, head of Israel's
Atomic Energy Commission.
Iran was looming large in ElBaradei's talks, which come at a time
when Israeli military intelligence chief Aharon Zeevi was quoted
Wednesday in the Jerusalem Post as saying Tehran may have the
bomb by 2008 if the international community does not halt Iran's
march to acquiring nuclear weapons.
The IAEA has been investigating Iran's nuclear program since
February 2003.
In June, the agency's 35-nation board of governors condemned
Tehran for poor cooperation and urged it to provide more
information so the investigation could conclude in a few months.
Iran's defence minister was quoted by Iranian state media on
Wednesday as warning that the Islamic republic would abandon its
commitments to the IAEA if its nuclear installations are
attacked.
"Today the IAEA holds every detail on Iran's nuclear programme,"
Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani told the IRNA news agency.
"If there is a military attack, that would mean that the IAEA has
been collecting this information to prepare for an attack.
Naturally, after such an action, it would be necessary to
renounce all of our nuclear commitments."
Iran's nuclear program was also on the agenda in Washington
during talks Tuesday between US Secretary of State Colin Powell
and Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.
"Iran is the country that has announced that one missile toward
Israel will destroy the Jewish state. So we should be concerned
about the Iranians' efforts to develop nuclear weapon," Shalom
said.
Powell said Washington would "continue to press in every way that
we can... to make sure the international community stands unified
behind the effort to stop Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons
development, or worse, acquiring a nuclear weapon."
ElBaradei began his visit to Israel on Tuesday by playing down
prospects of a breakthrough in efforts to persuade the government
to reveal its nuclear secrets and rid the Middle East of nuclear
weapons.
"I have no illusion that things could happen overnight but I
believe that the earlier we start a security dialogue, the
better," ElBaradei said.
"We need to understand the different viewpoints of Israel, of the
other parties in the Middle East and that's what I'm asked to do
-- consult with all the parties and see how we can move things
forward," he said, referring to an IAEA mandate he received last
year on working towards a nuclear-free Middle East.
ElBaradei is expected to hold talks with Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon on Thursday, but the premier has stressed that Israel's
policy of refusing to confirm or deny that it has nuclear weapons
would continue.
Most foreign experts believe Israel possesses a nuclear arsenal
of around 200 warheads, although it has stuck to a policy of
"ambiguity" for the past 40 years.
Israel is not a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
but ElBaradei said that he hoped to persuade Sharon's government
to sign up to other agreements with his agency.
He is expected to push for a deal that would involve Israel
informing the IAEA about Israeli imports and exports of
nuclear-related material.
ElBaradei said the Israelis had told him they could not consider
talking about doing away with nuclear weapons because they
"cannot lower their security threshold" as Iran has said it wants
to destroy the Jewish state.
"We haven't really made any progress because the Israelis have
disputed, saying we can not discuss it before a comprehensive
peace (in the Middle East)."
WAR.WIRE
*****************************************************************
13 Korea: Digital Chosunilbo: Powell: Rewards Not Possible for N.K. Nuke Freeze
Updated July.7,2004 14:26 KST
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says even if North Korea
dismantles its nuclear weapons programs, rewards of any kind are
out of the question.
In Washington, Secretary Powell told visiting South Korean ruling
party chief Shin Ki-nam that a mere nuclear freeze is not enough
and that a freeze must be followed by a complete and final
abandonment of nuclear material and facilities as well.
Mr. Powell explained that rewards cannot be given to a country
that has engaged in inappropriate actions.
He added, the Bush administration has no hostile intentions
towards North Korea and it is ready to provide humanitarian
assistance if needed.
The U.S. official noted Washington's stance was made clear when
he met with North Korean Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun at a
regional security forum last week in Jakarta, Indonesia.
*****************************************************************
14 Korea: Digital Chosunilbo: Powell Rules Out Compensation for North Korea
Updated July.7,2004 16:37 KST
The following are comments made by U.S. Secretary of State
Colin Powell during his meeting with Uri Party lawmaker Shin
Ki-nam (as relayed by lawmakers Jeong Hee-yong and Lim
Jong-seok):
Shin Ki-nam, chairman of Uri Party, greets U.S. Trade
Representative Robert Zoellick before having a meeting with him.
/AP
¡ã Concerning North Korea
"We cannot compensate North Korea for dismantling its nuclear
program. This is because we cannot compensate the North for
doing something it should not have been doing. I clearly
conveyed this position to North Korean Foreign Minister Paek
Nam-sun, whom I met in Jakarta, Indonesia. To simply freeze its
nuclear program is not enough; it must be linked to positively
dismantling its nuclear facilities and nuclear materials."
"The U.S. government does not hold any hostile intentions
against the North, and we are prepared to give humanitarian
assistance if needed."
"We are continuing to search for a solution to the nuclear issue
through the six party talks. President Bush has a clear
intention to solve the nuclear issue diplomatically. He is
thankful for the Korean government's active participation in the
six party talks and the role that it plays."
¡ã Concerning USFK Redeployments
"We are pushing the re-organization of USFK as part of our
global U.S. military redeployment strategy, but we will conduct
this in close consultation with the Korea government. The
defensive capabilities of the Korea-U.S. alliance will never
weaken."
"The U.S. government actively supports the efforts of the Korean
government to seek reconciliation with the North. It actively
supports the recent reconnection of railways, overland tourism
routes to Mt. Geumgang, and the efforts to prevent armed clashes
in the West Sea through intra-Korea military talks."
"We feel your pain, and we thank you deeply (said about Korea's
reconfirmation of its decision to send troops to Iraq following
Kim Sun-il's kidnapping and murder)."
(Quotes translated from Korean by English Chosun.com)
(englishnews@chosun.com )
*****************************************************************
15 KoreaTimes: Conjecture Builds Over S-N Summit
Hankooki.com > Korea Times
By Reuben Staines Staff Reporter
A series of reports over the possibility of a second
inter-Korean summit have so far been smothered by the government.
But as long as smoke continues to billow, political observers
will be keeping their eyes peeled for fire.
Probably only a few within the Seoul and Pyongyang governments
know if there is any truth to the reports of a meeting being
planned between President Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader
Kim Jong-il.
Nevertheless, the imagined prize of being the first to break the
story has produced a variety of theories over the past month.
First off, Korean media outlets tipped former President Kim
Dae-jung to travel to Pyongyang in preparation for a second
summit as Roh¡¯s special envoy. Reports were swiftly cut down by
Kim¡¯s aides, though some suggested the plan had its merits.
Next, unnamed sources had Roh and North Korean leader Kim
Jong-il meeting in Russia as part of a trilateral summit
engineered by President Vladimir Putin. But South Korean
officials and the visiting Russian foreign minister poured cold
water on this idea too the moment it hit the newsstands last
week.
Finally, a senior South Korean official Tuesday claimed that the
government is pushing for a meeting between Roh and North
Korea¡¯s ``Dear Leader¡¯¡¯ as early as Liberation Day on Aug. 15.
The summit would likely be held at the North¡¯s Mt. Kumgang but
there was a chance Kim would travel to the South¡¯s Cheju Island,
the report said. Again the Foreign Ministry flatly denied the
claims.
If the story were true, though, it would imply an important
shift in the thinking of the South Korean government, which has
maintained that a reciprocal summit is impossible as long as the
standoff persists over North Korea¡¯s nuclear weapons programs.
``It would be a little bit surprising,¡¯¡¯ said Sheen Seong-ho,
professor at Seoul National University. ``So far the government
has been very cautious in talking about a second summit.¡¯¡¯
Sheen suggested that given the positive atmosphere following
last month¡¯s third round of six-party talks, Seoul may now
believe a North-South meeting to be an effective forum for
breaking the nuclear deadlock. The change could also be a result
of impatience with the United States, which has been seeking to
keep the nuclear crisis on the backburner until after its
presidential election in November.
Still, even assuming Roh¡¯s willingness to participate, there
would remain the small matter of Kim Jong-il¡¯s disposition to
taking part in a second summit.
According to aides of Kim Dae-jung, the North Korean leader told
Chinese officials he was willing to travel to South Korea for a
reciprocal summit while on a rare trip to Beijing in April.
But experts are skeptical that this represents the firm position
of Pyongyang, and North Korea¡¯s media has made no mention of a
second summit.
``Coming down to South Korea for a summit is one of Kim
Jong-il¡¯s biggest cards,¡¯¡¯ Sheen said. ``He would only use it
for considerable benefit and, in this case, I¡¯m not sure what he
can get in return.¡¯¡¯
What is sure, though, are the political gains to be made by
whoever is seen to facilitate a second inter-Korean meeting.
Kim Dae-jung won the Nobel Peace Prize on the back of the June
15, 2000 summit, and some commentators suggest he would like to
have a hand in arranging the follow-up in order to polish a
political legacy that has been tarnished by the nuclear crisis.
Russia, on the periphery at the six-way talks, may also view
hosting an inter-Korean summit as a way to enhance its diplomatic
profile.
Likewise, Sheen noted that for Roh and the ruling Uri Party, it
would be a major boost to their sagging popularity, while
Pyongyang might see a summit as a way of pressuring the U.S.
This convergence of interests, he said, along with a hungry
media, has created the perfect climate for speculation to
flourish.
rjs@koreatimes.co.kr 07-07-2004 17:41
*****************************************************************
16 New York Times: Kerry Chooses Edwards, Citing Former Rival's
'Political Skill'
[http://www.nytimes.com/]
Stephen Crowley/The New York Times Senator John Kerry added
Senator John Edwards's name on his campaign plane.
By DAVID M. HALBFINGER
Published: July 7, 2004
[P] ITTSBURGH, July 6
Candidate john f kerry named johnedwards as his running mate on
Tuesday, turning to a youthful North Carolina senator whose
nimble campaign skills, engaging personality and evident appeal
across different regions of the country had made him the top
choice of many Democratic leaders.
"I have chosen a man who understands and defends the values of
America," Mr. Kerry told a roaring crowd at a morning rally at
Market Square here, minutes after an announcement of his choice
had been e-mailed to hundreds of thousands of supporters.
"A man who has shown courage and conviction as a champion for
middle-class Americans and for those struggling to reach the
middle class," Senator Kerry added, citing the themes that Mr.
Edwards had made his own in the Democratic primaries. "A man who
has shown guts and determination and political skill in his own
race for the presidency of the United States."
In the 51-year-old Mr. Edwards, Senator Kerry, who is 60, chose
a relative newcomer to American politics, and a man who was his
longest-lasting major rival in the Democratic nominating
contests.
After a surprisingly strong second-place finish in the Iowa
caucuses some Kerry aides say they believe Mr. Edwards would
have won had the caucuses occurred two days later Mr. Edwards
held on until the first week of March as others once thought to
have more star power, like
[http://www.nytimes.com/top/news/washington/campaign2004/candidat
es/howarddean/index.html?inline=nyt-per-pol] and Gen.
[http://www.nytimes.com/top/news/washington/campaign2004/candidat
es/wesleykclark/index.html?inline=nyt-per-pol] , fell behind.
"I was humbled by his offer and thrilled to accept it," Mr.
Edwards said in a statement before his wife and children joined
him to fly to Pittsburgh to spend the evening with the Kerry
family at Teresa Heinz Kerry's estate near here.
The Kerry campaign orchestrated the selection for maximum
exposure, managing to keep it a secret across the holiday
weekend, making both a traditional rally announcement as well as
one by e-mail and delaying the ticket's first joint appearance
until Wednesday. The two men and their wives are to embark
Wednesday on a four-day tour through the swing states of Ohio,
Florida, West Virginia and New Mexico before ending the week with
a rally in North Carolina on Saturday.
Democrats who hailed the selection on Tuesday said Mr. Edwards's
buoyant personality and drawling, sunny speaking style would
bring a needed jolt of energy to Mr. Kerry's ticket. They said he
would provide a striking contrast to Vice President Dick Cheney,
though Republicans countered that a debate between the two would
be a face-off between sizzle and substance, particularly over the
Iraq war, when Mr. Edwards's relative lack of foreign policy
experience would be an issue.
Several Democrats also said that Mr. Edwards's selection would
put to rest questions that Mr. Kerry, of Massachusetts, was
writing off the South. Rather, they said, the addition of Mr.
Edwards and his support from blacks, among other mainstay
Democratic constituencies would put North Carolina into play
and bolster Mr. Kerry's bid in other Southern states, improving
his chances of outdoing the abysmal performance in the South of
Al Gore, a native Tennessean, four years ago.
The choice of Mr. Edwards is also likely to have a powerful
effect on the future of the party, giving a platform to a
younger Democrat and setting up a potential leadership clash
between Mr. Edwards, as Mr. Kerry's presumptive heir, and
Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has ridden her husband's legacy to
the Senate and is widely thought to have designs on the White
House herself.
Mr. Edwards's background as a trial lawyer is certain to help
Mr. Kerry and the Democratic Party raise money heading into the
fall campaign, but Republicans and industry officials said it
also would propel business executives, manufacturers and other
proponents of curbs on civil litigation and jury awards to
increase contributions to
[http://www.nytimes.com/top/news/washington/campaign2004/candidat
es/georgewbush/index.html?inline=nyt-per-pol] .
More immediately, the choice of Mr. Edwards forced aides to Mr.
Kerry to try to reconcile his dismissal of Mr. Edwards as
unready for the presidency when the two men were vying in the
Democratic primaries.
"In the Senate four years and that is the full extent of
public life no international experience, no military
experience," Mr. Kerry said in Iowa in January. "When I came
back from Vietnam in 1969, I don't know if John Edwards was out
of diapers."
And in February, Mr. Kerry warned of Mr Edwards, "This is not
the time for on-the-job training in the White House on national
security issues."
Republicans immediately played up Mr. Kerry's past remarks.
"This is the person he now considers qualified to be president
of the United States?" said Steve Schmidt, a Bush campaign
spokesman, as Republicans circulated a 23-page, 16,000-word
dossier on Tuesday that depicted Mr. Edwards as an
unaccomplished, inexperienced, disingenuous liberal.
The Bush campaign also began airing a television advertisement
featuring what it described as "John Kerry's first choice for a
vice presidential running mate," Senator John McCain of Arizona.
Mr. McCain, a Republican with an appeal to independents, had
deflected several approaches by Mr. Kerry.
Mr. Edwards, the son of a millworker who became a wealthy
plaintiff's lawyer, has said he was driven to enter politics
after his eldest son Wade's death as a teenager in a car accident
in 1996. Two years later, in his first race, he unseated Senator
Lauch Faircloth of North Carolina, then began running for the
presidency before his first term was over.
Mr. Kerry left questions to his aides on Tuesday afternoon as he
flew from here to Indianapolis to speak to a convention of the
African Methodist Episcopal Church. His campaign manager, Mary
Beth Cahill, acknowledged that political strategy played a part
in choosing Mr. Edwards but said that Mr. Kerry was more
concerned that his running mate "be in a position to succeed
him."
When asked when and how Mr. Kerry had satisfied himself of Mr.
Edwards's readiness to assume the presidency, Ms. Cahill cited
Mr. Edwards's "tireless" campaigning for Mr. Kerry since
withdrawing from the race.
"When you're competing in the primaries, you are thinking about
getting through the primaries," she said. "When you look at who
is a good running mate, a good partner, that is a different
calculus. And when he went through that, it was clear to him that
Senator Edwards would be a great partner to win the presidency in
November."
In his announcement, Mr. Kerry provided clues to how his
estimation of Mr. Edwards had risen. "I've seen John Edwards
think, argue, advocate, legislate and lead for six years now," he
said. "I know his skill, I know his passion, I know his strength,
I know his conscience, I know his faith."
"John Edwards is ready for this job," Mr. Kerry said. "John
Edwards is ready for this job," he repeated, adding, "I am
determined that we reach out across party lines, that we speak
the heart of America, that we speak of hope and optimism, and
John Edwards will join me in doing that."
For all their friction in the primaries, Mr. Kerry and Mr.
Edwards had two influential Democrats in common as advisers:
Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, who took Mr. Edwards
under his wing in the Senate and took an increasingly large role
in Mr. Kerry's campaign in the primaries; and Bob Shrum, the
speechwriter and media consultant who worked for both Mr. Kerry
and Mr. Edwards until both men's entry into the primary race led
him to drop Mr. Edwards as a client last year.
They have voted alike on every important issue likely to arise
during the presidential campaign, starting with the Iraq war.
Both voted to authorize Mr. Bush to deploy troops in Iraq. They
have voted in favor of abortion rights, gun control, changes in
campaign finance laws, stronger environmental standards and the
antiterrorism law known as the USA Patriot Act. They also voted
against impeaching President Bill Clinton and against the Bush
tax cuts.
In Congressional Quarterly's 10 to 15 "key votes" of the year,
since 1999, when Mr. Edwards entered the Senate, he and Mr. Kerry
have been on opposite sides of these issues only twice, on
whether a nuclear waste disposal site should be built on Yucca
Mountain in Nevada (Mr. Edwards in favor, Mr. Kerry against) and
on whether Mr. Bush's plan for closing military bases should be
adopted (Mr. Kerry in favor, Mr. Edwards against).
Mr. Edwards was not in the Senate in 1993 when Congress approved
the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Mr. Kerry
supported. This year, Mr. Edwards said he would have voted
against the measure. But in the Senate, their records on trade
matters have differed only slightly.
The announcement on Tuesday concluded an extraordinarily secret
vetting and decision-making process, one in which Mr. Kerry
concealed his intentions from even his closest aides until late
Monday night. The first person other than Mr. Kerry's wife to
learn of Mr. Edwards's selection was a contractor hired to
redecorate the fuselage of his jet with both men's names, aides
said. Mr. Kerry personally called the contractor about 6 p.m.
Monday so he could have the plane ready by Tuesday morning. He
did not tell his campaign manager and other senior aides until
about 10:30 p.m., they said.
In keeping his own counsel, Mr. Kerry drew on his displeasure at
having learned from television reports of his rejection in 2000,
when both he and Mr. Edwards were considered and ultimately
passed over by Al Gore. Aides said Mr. Kerry called Mr. Edwards
about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, about the time that news organizations
were first reporting his decision and minutes before the mass
e-mail message was sent. Mr. Edwards learned the news from Mr.
Kerry, judging from their telephone conversation, Ms. Cahill
said.
The two men spoke for about 15 minutes, and Mr. Kerry then began
notifying others who had been candidates for the job before
heading to the rally in downtown Pittsburgh, she said.
Representative Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri, who had made
known his plans to retire from politics if Mr. Kerry did not
choose him, called the Kerry-Edwards pairing "a ticket that can
excite, motivate and most importantly defeat George Bush and Dick
Cheney in November."
Mr. Gephardt said he would continue to campaign with and for Mr.
Kerry and Mr. Edwards, as did Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa, the
little-known Midwesterner whose close ties with Mr. Kerry and
leadership of a crucial swing state helped vault him into close
contention for the job.
*****************************************************************
17 Las Vegas RJ: EDITORIAL: Kerry chooses Edwards
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Choice of 'safe' liberal brings geographic balance, shows
Democratic confidence
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., the Democratic presidential
nominee-apparent, has removed what little suspense might have
remained from his party's upcoming convention by announcing his
choice for running mate: North Carolina Sen. John Edwards. Sen.
Edwards made his millions as a trial lawyer, suing big
corporations. He has yet to complete his first term in the Senate
-- and in fact was absent for many votes in the past year as he
waged his own, unsuccessful campaign for his party's nomination,
winning only the South Carolina primary and his own state's less
formal caucuses.
But while Americans like to make jokes about lawyers, lawyerhood
did not keep Bill Clinton out of office. And Sen. Edwards -- a
rousing if boyish populist speaker -- has been largely successful
in casting his primary career as that of "champion of the little
guys."
There were many reports the Kerry camp was concerned Sen.
Edwards lacked the necessary gravitas -- and especially
foreign-policy expertise -- to be placed only one heartbeat away
from the Oval Office.
("Clearly, Edwards doesn't have the longest resume on national
security," admits Michael O'Hanlon, a defense adviser at the
prestigious Brookings Institution and a staunch Kerry supporter.)
Sen. Edwards was not even Sen. Kerry's first choice. It appears
Sen. Kerry was prepared to offer the slot to Republican John
McCain in a private meeting, but was turned down flat. And many
in the party would have preferred Hillary Clinton -- though the
New York senator's own plans apparently focus on 2008 or 2012.
But so what? Historically, the vice presidential selection seems
to generate more excitement among political insiders than among
the general populace. The notion that the presidential fortunes
of Harry Truman, Richard Nixon or even the current president's
father were much affected by their choices of Alben Barkley,
Spiro Agnew or the tongue-tied Dan Quayle as their running mates
seems a bit of a stretch.
The greatest significance of the Edwards choice is probably the
extent to which it indicates the high comfort level of the Kerry
team with the way the race is going.
Sen. Edwards is a relatively safe and predictable choice. He
brings some geographic "balance" to the ticket and has been
vetted through the primary process -- placing a safe second in a
number of state races. He's also popular with the party's more
extreme, pro-big-government, left wing. The junior senator voted
for the Yucca Mountain waste dump. He opposed highly qualified
judicial nominees such as Miguel Estrada -- a Horatio Alger story
of immigrant success in American who was nonetheless demonized by
far-left Democrats such as Ted Kennedy as some kind of
"right-wing extremist." Why? Apparently because of Mr. Estrada's
principled support of property rights, and the fact his law firm
successfully represented George Bush in the successful Republican
effort to call off Al Gore's endless attempts to revise Florida's
2000 popular vote by counting "dimpled chads" as Democratic
votes. Sen. Edwards has been a reliable vote in every Democratic
attempt to roll back the Bush tax cuts. He even opposes phasing
out the double taxation of dividend income.
Just as a sports coach who sees his team behind at halftime may
"open up the game" by trying some high-risk plays, so a
Democratic campaign team that saw itself losing to George Bush at
this stage might have been expected to "reach outside the box"
for a less traditional nominee.
Conversely, the choice of Edwards means the Democratic
leadership today feels comfortable. They assume the race is
currently even, that things will only get worse for George Bush
on the economic front or in Iraq or both, and that all they need
do is play it safe, make no mistakes, and wait for the electorate
to go to the polls in four months and vote for "Anybody but
Bush."
Of course, this may also explain why their standard-bearer, John
Kerry, is himself barely visible on the national stage, except
for his carefully nuanced call to "let the U.N. do more" in Iraq.
The bulk of the Democratic presidential campaign this summer, it
appears, will consist of the Michael Moore movie "Fahrenheit
9/11." The Democrats are content to allow Nov. 2 to be a
referendum on George Bush, a British style "vote of confidence,"
up or down.
Whether it will work, time will tell. What's interesting is that
the Democratic strategy turns out to be so -- we don't mean to
resort to name-calling, here -- "conservative."
Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal
*****************************************************************
18 Las Vegas SUN: $100 million in bonds to help bypass
State money for Hoover Dam alternate will eventually be repaid
with federal funds
By Ed Koch < [koch@lasvegassun.com] > LAS VEGAS SUN
While Congress and the White House fight over what to allocate
for projects in the federal transportation spending bill, the
Hoover Dam bypass project will get $100 million in bonds to
continue construction, project officials said.
The state money, which is expected to be repaid with eventual
federal money that the $234 million bypass project will receive
in the transportation bill, is designed to prevent delays in the
3.5-mile project that is scheduled for completion by 2008,
officials said.
The $100 million debt will be split evenly between Nevada and
Arizona as construction on the Arizona approach portion of the
project is 85 percent complete and the Nevada approach section
is 30 percent complete, officials said.
"The bonds are a terrific boost of energy to the project," said
Dave Zanetell, the Federal Highway Administration's project
manager for the bypass.
"They will enable us to get the approaches in place to provide
access to the site, create a staging area and minimize public
impact. The bonding demonstrates the collaborative team effort
of the project -- a joint state and federal commitment."
The new bridge for U.S. 93 across the Colorado River will be
located a quarter of a mile south of Hoover Dam.
According to the project's Web site, hooverdambypass.org., the
Nevada approach costs $30.1 million.
Among those improvements are more than two miles of four-lane
roadway, six bridges, a traffic interchange at U.S. 93 near the
Hacienda Casino, retaining walls, wildlife crossings, trail
extensions and parking.
The Arizona approach costs $21.5 millione. It, too, includes
nearly two miles of four-lane roadway, as well as a 900-foot
bridge on the east side of Sugarloaf Mountain, a traffic
interchange at U.S. 93 and Kingman Wash Road, wildlife crossings
and trail access parking.
The Nevada approach, which began in October 2003, is expected
to be completed next spring. The Arizona approach is expected to
be complete in the fall, the Web site said.
The project will alleviate traffic that now crosses at the dam.
However, federal officials have said they have no plans to close
traffic to visitors to the popular tourist attraction once the
bypass is built.
The bypass also will move commercial vehicle traffic that
currently is being rerouted south to Laughlin because of safety
measures initiated after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
*****************************************************************
19 PRNews: Wyoming Legislator Blames Clinton-Gore Administration for
Highest Uranium Prices in 20 Years
[http://www.prnewswire.com/] [
[http://www.stockinterview.com]
TAMPA, Fla., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Two-term Wyoming state
legislator and International Atomic Energy Agency consultant,
David Miller, believes the current soaring uranium price can be
traced back to a questionable Clinton- Gore administration
program. The swords-to-plowshares effort led to a Wall- Street
IPO, Bethesda, Maryland-based United States Enrichment
Corporation, which guaranteed investors a dividend. Miller told
StockInterview.com, "To fulfill that dividend, the DOE gave them
70 million pounds of what we call yellowcake, which is the
finished mined product. The only way they could pay that dividend
was to unload that yellowcake into the marketplace."
Representative Miller's comments appear in a four-part
interview series on the internet news website,
StockInterview.com:
http://www.stockinterview.com/strathmore-miller3.html
[http://www.stockinterview.com/strathmore-miller3.html] .
Miller also cited the HEU (Russian Highly Enriched Uranium)
program as another reason for the 1997 price collapse in uranium.
He also noted that last year's flooding of the McArthur mine in
Canada's Athabasca basin was what motivated the recent price
increase, "That's what dawned on everyone finally: if they
produced less uranium, the price of uranium went right up
immediately. If they lost that mine, it would have taken 15
million pounds per year off the market."
Miller believes uranium may be undergoing a price squeeze,
pointing to the production deficit compared to the demand,
saying, "Right now, the current worldwide production is somewhere
around 90 million pounds per year. The current worldwide
consumption is around 160 to 180 million pounds per year." Miller
expects consumption to steadily increase as China, Russia and
third- world countries add more nuclear reactors to meet growing
energy needs and to avoid the environmental impact and sky-high
costs of fossil fuels.
The legislator and IAEA consultant is a veteran geologist,
previously with France's Cogema, which currently accounts for
about 20 percent of the world's uranium production. Miller is
also a consulting geologist to publicly listed Strathmore
Minerals Corporation.
For more information contact: Sky Wallen of Blue Skye, Inc.
for StockInterview.com Tel: 813-732-6869 blueskyeinc@yahoo.com [
blueskyeinc@yahoo.com]
This release was issued through eReleases(TM). For more
information, visit http://www.ereleases.com
[http://www.ereleases.com] . SOURCE StockInterview.com Web Site:
http://www.stockinterview.com [http://www.stockinterview.com]
Copyright © 1996-2004 PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights
*****************************************************************
20 [southnews] Dirt thrown as Australia signs to star wars
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 2004 01:24:29 -0500 (CDT)
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Yahoo! Domains - Claim yours for only $14.70
http://us.click.yahoo.com/Z1wmxD/DREIAA/yQLSAA/7gSolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
Australian Defence Minister Robert Hill will be in Washington on to sign
an agreement with the United States to help develop a controversial
missile defence shield.
The Australian government's commitment comes amid strengthening
political opposition to the programme as the opposition leader renewed
an appeal to his political enemies to lay off his family and also made
it clear he did not believe Mr Howard's denial of the existence of a
government dirt unit digging into Mr Latham's past.
Sack dirt-digger: Latham to PM
By Lloyd Jones in Cairns
AAP 07jul04
MARK Latham today called on Prime Minister John Howard to sack
ministerial staffer and alleged dirt-digger Ian Hanke.
The opposition leader renewed an appeal to his political enemies to lay
off his family and also made it clear he did not believe Mr Howard's
denial of the existence of a government dirt unit digging into Mr
Latham's past.
Mr Latham said he wanted Mr Howard to disband the unit and sack Ian
Hanke, who worked for Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews.
"Mr Ian Hanke is on the public record as saying that he occupies his
time digging dirt on me," Mr Latham told ABC radio in Townsville.
"Well, if the Liberal Party want to fund him to do that I suppose they
could but he shouldn't be there at taxpayers' expense.
"Taxpayers' money has got to be used for a good positive public purpose
not what amounts to a political purpose."
Earlier this week, Mr Hanke denied being involved in any bid to dig dirt
on Mr Latham.
"I have not and do not trade in personal gossip, nor have I been
involved in any exercise to unearth such material," he said.
Mr Latham also attacked $123 million worth of government advertising,
saying a lot of it was quasi-political in nature and could easily be
Liberal Party ads.
"If the Liberal Party want to fund those ads and put their own money on
the table instead of the public's money, and if they want to fund Ian
Hanke to go research my matters day in day out, then they should fund
that instead of expecting the taxpayer to do it," he said.
"That's why I called on the prime minister to disband the (dirt-digging)
unit and at the very least he should sack Mr Hanke who's obviously not
doing something that the taxpayer would expect is in the public interest."
Mr Latham said although public figures were fair game, he had nothing to
hide and had confronted questions and swirling rumours about his private
life on Monday.
"My intention was to deal with it promptly on the spot then get onto the
things that really matter.
"My focus is on policy, staying positive, staying constructive, I'm not
a negative whingeing person by nature."
The opposition leader was in far north Queensland to shore up electoral
support in the marginal federal seat of Herbert, held by the Liberals'
Peter Lindsay by 1.5 per cent.
Following a tearful news conference in Canberra on Monday, Mr Latham
said he was not prepared to live his public life in a swirl of rumours
and smears.
Mr Howard and other senior ministers accused Mr Latham of double standards.
They said he had been vitriolic and abusive in attacks on his opponents,
but now seemed unable to accept legitimate criticism.
Mr Latham was due to return to Sydney tonight.
_______________________________--
Australia to sign missile defence deal with US
AFP Wednesday July 7
Australian Defence Minister Robert Hill will be in Washington on to sign
an agreement with the United States to help develop a controversial
missile defence shield.
The Australian government's commitment comes amid strengthening
political opposition to the programme, which Hill defended in remarks to
reporters Tuesday at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
"From an Australian perspective, we're looking well into the future," he
said. "We don't have any threat against us from ballistic missiles at
this time, but the day might come when we have."
Hill is to sign a memorandum of understanding that will commit Australia
to working with its close ally on the programme, including assistance
with research, over a 25-year period.
Critics have charged that the US programme is the next version of former
US president Ronald Reagan's failed "Star Wars" missile defence shield,
but Hill cautioned against understating the programme's possibilities.
"The new technologies have meant that there is the potential to protect
against incoming ballistic missiles, and in the past that hasn't been
possible. So why not take advantage of that?" he said.
"We will identify what's of particular interest to us, and where we can
make a contribution, where our defence industry might be able to provide
value."
Australia's opposition Labor party has said it fears the programme might
prompt an arms race by China and India.
The archives of South News can be found at
http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/southnews/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
southnews-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
*****************************************************************
21 FPIF News | Peace, Kashmir & a Nuclear Shadow
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 2004 09:46:05 -0500 (CDT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Whats New at FPIF
"Working to make the U.S. a more responsible global leader and partner"
http://www.fpif.org/
July 6, 2004
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Introducing a new commentary from Foreign Policy In Focus
Talking Peace and Kashmir-Warily, Under A Nuclear Shadow
By Praful Bidwai
Six years after they blasted their way into the Global Nuclear Club and
dangerously heightened their mutual rivalry even further, India and Pakistan
have begun a wide-ranging bilateral dialogue to resolve disputes and normalize
relations. Since the new United Progressive Alliance government led by
Manmohan Singh was sworn in six weeks ago, Indian and Pakistani officials have
held two rounds of talks.
Most important of all, India and Pakistan have begun talking bilaterally and
substantively about Kashmir-for the first time ever. On June 27 and 28, they
exchanged views and preliminary proposals on the issue "in a cordial and
constructive atmosphere, and with the objective of taking the process [of
dialogue] forward", as their communiqui put it. They say they are committed to
finding a "peaceful negotiated final settlement" to the Kashmir problem.
Although understandably inconclusive at this very early stage, the dialogue on
Kashmir marks a big step forward and holds out hopes of resolution of an
extraordinarily fraught and complicated dispute which both states associate
with the very definition of their nationhood, inseparable from the bloody
Partition of 1947, and at least two major wars.
Praful Bidwai is a New Delhi-based columnist with 25
publications, an independent international affairs commentator, and a Fellow
of the Transnational Institute (www.tni.org) Amsterdam and an analyst for
Foreign Policy in Focus (www.fpif.org). He co-authored, with Achin Vanaik, New
Nukes: India, Pakistan and Global Nuclear Disarmament, Interlink, Northampton
(Mass, USA) and Signal Books (Oxford, UK).
See new FPIF commentary online at:
http://www.fpif.org/commentary/2004/0407kashmir.html
With printer friendly PDF version at:
http://www.fpif.org/pdf/gac/0407kashmir.pdf
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Distributed by FPIF:"A Think Tank Without Walls," a joint program of
Interhemispheric Resource Center (IRC) and Institute for Policy Studies
(IPS).
For more information, visit www.fpif.org. If you would like to add a name to
the "Whats New At FPIF" list, please email: communications@irc-online.org,
giving your area of interest.
Also see our Progressive Response newsletter at:
http://www.fpif.org/progresp/index.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interhemispheric Resource Center(IRC)
http://www.irc-online.org/
Siri D. Khalsa
Outreach Coordinator
Email: communications@irc-online.org
Siri D. Khalsa
Communications Coordinator
Interhemispheric Resource Center (IRC)
siri@irc-online.org
IRC Projects Online:
IRC (www.irc-online.org)
FPIF (www.fpif.org)
Americas Program (www.americaspolicy.org)
Self-Determination In Focus (www.selfdetermine.org)
Project Against the Present Danger (www.presentdanger.org)
*****************************************************************
22 Bellona: Grigory Pasko receives international passport
mailto:vlad@bellona.no Vladislav Nikiforov
2004-07-02 16:18
On June 30, Grigory Pasko received a telephone call on his mobile
phone from the director of the local passport department who
asked the journalist: Why dont you, Grigory Mikhaylovich, pick
up your international passport, its been here for a long!.How
long? asked Pasko. Whole day already the director said.
Pasko filed all the necessary documents for an international
passport back in April last year, and anticipating it would be
ready within the legal time frame of one month, he was preparing
to visit Bellonas central office in Oslowhich organized his
defence at his last trialat the beginning of May.
But it was not until July 8, 2003,four months after he filed his
applicationthat Pasko received official notice that his request
had been turned down by office No. 3 of the Visas and
Registration Department of Moscows South-Eastern District, a
local branch of Russian police-controlled international passport
and immigration authority known by its Russian acronym as OVIR.
Later Grigory appealed this decision in the Moscows Lyublino
District Court which rejected the appeal.
According to Paskos lawyer, Ivan Pavlov, OVIR based its decision
not to issue the international passport on some order of 1998,
signed by the chief of one of Moscow's police precincts. The
order stated that release on parole is not a complete release
from the sentence. A person's rights can only be limited by law,
not by an order by some minor bureaucrat, who in this case is not
even a minister and not even the head of the Moscow police. The
order is not a normative act and is unacceptable in this case, sa
id Pavlov. According to Article 79 of the Russian Criminal Code,
release on parole is one the types of release from punishment,
therefore it cannot limit the right to travel outside the Russian
Federation.
On August 20, 2003, the Moscow City Court upheld the ruling of a
lower district court which one month before had denied the appeal
of prominent environmental journalist and whistleblower Grigory
Pasko to have his international passport reinstated.
The long-lasting fight for Grigory Paskos right for
international passport is over. This is a small but very useful
victory for all environmental and human rights movement in
Russia.
*****************************************************************
23 Aljazeera.Net: Nuclear watchdog's selective bite
By Khalid Amayreh in the West Bank
Wednesday 07 July 2004, 15:55 Makka Time, 12:55 GMT
Al-Baradai is aware of the limits of his ability to confront
Israel
Does Israel have an unwritten right to possess weapons of mass
destruction while neighbouring Arab and Muslim states run the
risk of sanctions and even regime change if they try to exercise
the same right?
This is the big embarrassing question that Muhammad al-Baradai,
director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA), has been struggling to avoid.
Whenever he is pressed to explain the apparent double standard,
al-Baradai chooses to equivocate - a response that many see as an
indirect admission of the IAEA's inability to confront Israel
over its alleged huge stockpile of nuclear, chemical and
biological weapons.
Al-Baradai arrived in Israel on Tuesday as an invited guest in
what was described as a "routine visit". He told reporters in Tel
Aviv that he would like to see Israel support the Nuclear
Non-proliferation Treaty as well as sign an additional agreement
committing it to disclose information on any potential
nuclear-related exports.
The stated principal objective of al-Baradai's visit is to sell
the concept of the Middle East as a nuclear-free zone.
But, according to many experts, an almost equally important
objective is to counter the accusation often levelled by Arab and
Muslim countries - that the IAEA is a pliant instrument of US
foreign policy.
Policy of ambiguity
Israel says it accepts "in principle" the concept of a
nuclear-free Middle East. At the same time, it insists that its
sizable nuclear arsenal shouldn't be the subject of international
scrutiny until comprehensive peace is achieved throughout the
Middle East.
Accordingly, Israel has consistently refused to admit officially
that it possesses nuclear weapons. Instead, successive
governments have adopted a policy which states that "Israel will
not be the first country to introduce nuclear weapons to the
Middle East".
The once-secret atomic reactor outside Dimona in Negev Desert
Israel's prickliness on the issue is best illustrated by the case
of Mordechai Vanunu, the nuclear technician who was kidnapped,
tried and imprisoned in 1986 for blowing the whistle to a UK
newspaper on Israel's atomic reactor outside Dimona in the Negev
Desert.
This decades-old rigid policy of nuclear ambiguity is, however,
considered unconvincing and anachronistic by a large section of
the international community, and by the Arab world as sheer
deception.
"We know, Israel knows, and the world knows that Israel possesses
nuclear weapons. We also know that Israel quibbles and
equivocates about this," said Muhammad Qadri Said, a scholar at
al-Ahram Centre for Strategic Studies in Cairo, Egypt, in an
interview to Aljazeera.net.
Said said neighbouring Arab and Muslim countries might be forced
to "draw the necessary conclusions" if Israel continues to insist
on threatening the Middle East with its nuclear weapons.
"If the international community fails to deal with the Israeli
nuclear arsenal, then countries such as Egypt might rethink its
present way of thinking.
"There are several scenarios. Some countries could enter into an
alliance with nuclear powers, others might resort to increasing
their conventional forces," Said said.
Extremist spectre
Israeli leaders and officials routinely say the nuclear arsenal
is a defence of last resort against possible annihilation of
their state. But many Arabs dismiss this argument as "only a
pretext", and say Israel is more than capable of defending itself
with conventional weapons.
"If the international community fails to deal with the Israeli
nuclear arsenal, then countries such as Egypt might rethink its
present way of thinking"
Muhammad Qadri Said, al-Ahram Centre for Strategic Studies, Cairo
In any case, they add, the decades-old strategic alliance between
Israel and the US grants the Jewish state not only security but a
qualitative edge over all the Arab countries combined.
Some Arab experts also express concern about the likelihood of
Israel becoming a very dangerous state if Jewish fundamentalists,
who are now threatening to topple the government of Ariel Sharon
for his Gaza withdrawal plan, ever grab political power.
Indeed, Jewish fundamentalist leaders - the former tourism
minister Benny Elon of the quasi-fascist National Union Party,
for one - have been reported as saying during a meeting with
American evangelical leaders that "Jews and Christians ought to
launch a worldwide crusade for the purpose of wiping out Islam".
Moreover, most of the messianic Jews, like the Gush Emunim
movement, are deeply steeped in the theological doctrine that the
"redeemer" or Jewish Messiah wouldn't appear unless there is a
genocidal event and bloodshed on a very large scale.
According to some Israeli intellectuals, the country might become
a serious threat to its neighbours if Jewish extremists one day
get their hands on Israel's nuclear weapons.
Threat perceptions
Such concerns notwithstanding, Israeli officials and strategic
experts insist that Iran, not Israel, is the "real threat".
Mordechai Vanunu was jailed for 18 years for spilling N-secrets
Speaking to Aljazeera.net, Ephraim Inbar, a fellow at the
Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies at the Bar Ilan
University, Tel Aviv, said Iran is dangerous because of its
"revolutionary government and because of its threats against
Israel".
"Israel doesn't pose a threat to Iran, but Iran poses a threat to
Israel," he said.
Asked to explain why Iran and other countries in the region
should meekly continue to live in the shadow of Israel's nuclear
arsenal, Inbar avoided giving a direct answer.
Israel, he said instead, would be willing to "discuss the nuclear
issue" when a "comprehensive and stable peace" is reached.
But when Israeli officials and strategic experts talk of
"comprehensive peace", what they leave unsaid is that this peace
would have to be on Israeli terms.
To the region's Arabs and Muslims, that would be tantamount to
assertion of Israeli supremacy and hegemony over a vast region
extending from the Indian subcontinent to the Atlantic Ocean.
Better or worse?
Inbar and al-Ahram Centre's Said differ sharply on whether the
possible appearance of a second nuclear-armed state in the Middle
East, such as Iran, would bring about stability or exacerbate
tensions.
"Israel doesn't pose a threat to Iran, but Iran poses a threat to
Israel"
Ephraim Inbar, Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies, Bar Ilan
University, Tel Aviv
Said argues that the Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) theory,
which many scholars now believe kept the peace between the former
Soviet Union and the West during the cold war, could also work in
the Middle East.
He cites the example of India and Pakistan - two avowed nuclear
enemies that have now been forced to normalise their relations
and seek a more peaceful coexistence.
On the other hand, Begin-Sadat Centre's Inbar says it is doubtful
whether MAD would work effectively in the Middle East given the
"fragile and unstable regimes in the area".
Furthermore, he says, the Soviet Union and the US had a
early-warning span of more than 20 minutes while in the Middle
East it's only a few minutes.
"Due to the relatively short distances, the chances for
miscalculation here are greater than it was between the Soviet
Union and the United States," Inbar says.
Trouble ahead
Soon there may be more cause for Arab concern, however.
Israel is believed to be developing a fleet of nuclear-armed
submarines capable of striking at distant shores of Arab and
Muslim countries.
Nuclear-armed Israeli subs could some day strike distant shores
When deployed, the submarines would supplement its existing
land-based nuclear weapons, along with their complete delivery
systems, such as the Yarihoo long-range missiles as well as a
large squadron of long-range, state-of-the-art fighter aircraft
such as the F-15-I supplied by the US.
Reports recently spoke of Israel fitting a number of modern
submarines gifted by Germany with nuclear warheads.
Israeli officials, in keeping with the country's
nuclear-ambiguity policy, have refused to confirm or deny the
reports. But what is beyond doubt is that Israel, using its
special relations with the US, is determined to maintain its
nuclear monopoly and military supremacy in the Middle East.
Indeed, many Arab experts are convinced that the overthrow of
Saddam Hussein was a part of the same grand design to perpetuate
Israel's military dominance in the region â a suspicion backed
by retired US general Anthony Zinni's recent disclosures.
"I have no power to pressure Israel"
Muhammad al-Baradai, Director-General, International Atomic
Energy Agency
For similar reasons, they say, Israeli is inciting the
international community, notably the US, to crack the whip on
Iran, a regional power with nuclear ambitions, even as it refuses
to come clean on its own huge nuclear arsenal.
In all likelihood, al-Baradai understands the irony of the
situation better than anybody else. But, then, he surely has no
illusions about the limits of his ability to confront Israel in
view of the US connection. He almost admitted as much when he
said in Tel Aviv this week, "I have no power to pressure Israel."
Which partly explains why Israel but not its Arab and Muslim
neighbours can get away with building and stockpiling WMDs.
© 2003 Aljazeera.Net Copyright and Terms of
*****************************************************************
24 Guardian Unlimited: U.N. Didn't OK Uranium Transfer to U.S.
From the Associated Press
[UP]
Thursday July 8, 2004 12:16 AM
By EDITH M. LEDERER
Associated Press Writer
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The United States didn't have authorization
from the U.N. nuclear watchdog when it secretly shipped from Iraq
uranium and highly radioactive material that could be used in
so-called ``dirty bombs,'' U.N. officials said Wednesday.
The nearly 2 tons of low-enriched uranium and approximately 1,000
highly radioactive items transferred from Iraq to the United
States last month had been placed under seal by the International
Atomic Energy Agency at the sprawling Tuwaitha nuclear complex,
12 miles south of Baghdad, the officials said.
``The American authorities just informed us of their intention to
remove the materials, but they never sought authorization from
us,'' said Gustavo Zlauvinen, head of the IAEA's New York office.
U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham disclosed the secret
airlift from Iraq on Tuesday as ``a major achievement'' in an
attempt to ``keep potentially dangerous nuclear material out of
the hands of terrorists.'' The material was taken to an
undisclosed U.S. Energy Department laboratory for further
analysis.
The airlift ended on June 23, five days before the United States
transferred sovereignty to Iraq's new interim government.
IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said in a letter to the
Security Council circulated Wednesday that Washington informed
the agency on June 19 that ``due to security concerns'' it
intended to transfer some nuclear material stored at Tuwaitha to
the United States.
The agency took note of the U.S. intention to remove the nuclear
material ``from agency verification,'' he said.
According to the letter, the United States informed the IAEA on
June 30 that approximately 1.8 tons of uranium, enriched to a
level of 2.6 percent, another 6.6 pounds of low-enriched uranium,
and approximately 1,000 highly radioactive sources had been
transferred on June 23.
A U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there
was some concern about the legality of the U.S. transfer because
the nuclear material belonged to Iraq and was under the control
and supervision of the IAEA.
The U.S. Energy Department statement said ``the U.S., consistent
with its authorities and relevant United Nations resolutions,
took possession of and removed the materials to ensure the safety
and security of the Iraqi people.''
Iraqi officials ``were briefed about the removal and sources
prior to evacuation,'' the statement said.
In 1992, after the first Gulf War, all highly enriched uranium -
which could be used to make nuclear weapons - was shipped from
Iraq to Russia, the IAEA's Zlauvinen said.
After 1992, roughly 2 tons of natural uranium, or yellow cake,
some low enriched uranium and some depleted uranium was left at
Tuwaitha under IAEA seal and control, he said.
So were radioactive items used for medical, agricultural and
industrial purposes, which Iraq was allowed to keep under a 1991
U.N. Security Council resolution, Zlauvinen said.
IAEA inspectors left Iraq just before last year's U.S.-led war.
After it ended, Washington barred U.N. weapons inspectors from
returning, deploying U.S. teams instead in a so far unsuccessful
search for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.
An exception was made in June 2003 when Washington allowed an
IAEA team to go to Tuwaitha to secure uranium after reports of
widespread looting when the fighting ended.
The IAEA recovered most missing material and Zlauvinen said the
uranium was put in sealed containers and left for the Americans
to guard.
But because U.S. authorities restricted inspections of Tuwaitha,
the IAEA team was unable to determine whether hundreds of
radioactive items used in research and medicine across the
country were secure.
ElBaradei's letter said that an unspecified amount of nuclear
material still at Tuwaitha consists mainly of natural uranium,
some depleted uranium and some low enriched uranium waste, which
is subject to IAEA monitoring.
Some radioisotopes are also still in the country and come under
the agency's responsibilities, he said.
Tuwaitha is now under the control of Iraq's Ministry of Science
and Technology.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004
*****************************************************************
25 UPI: Israel's Vanunu critical of ElBaradei -
(United Press International)
July 07, 2004
Jerusalem, Israel, Jul. 7 (UPI) -- Israeli nuclear whistleblower
Mordechai Vanunu says the International Atomic Energy Agency is
failing to adequately investigate Israel's nuclear program.
Vanunu made the remarks to the Washington Times as IAEA chief
Mohamed ElBaradei arrived for a rare visit to Israel. The former
nuclear technician complained ElBaradei made no effort to get in
touch with him even though the media has widely reported his
whereabouts in East Jerusalem.
Vanunu served 17 years in an Israeli prison for revealing
details of the country's nuclear secrets and is under court order
not to speak to foreigners, enter Internet chat rooms or approach
foreign embassies.
Vanunu urged the chief of the U.N. nuclear watchdog to demand
entrance to the Dimona reactor, where he had worked and secretly
photographed several underground and secret floors, including a
plutonium-processing facility and what scientists later said was
a model for a nuclear bomb.
"I think ElBaradei is operating in secret with (the Israelis),"
Vanunu told the newspaper. "All he'll hear ... will be propaganda
and disinformation."
[UPI Perspectives]
*****************************************************************
26 Aljazeera.Net: IAEA breaks ice with Israel on N-issue
16:19 GMT
al-Baradei is to raise all N-related issues in Middle East
UN atomic energy chief Muhammad al-Baradei has met Israeli atomic
energy officials in Tel Aviv to implement his campaign for a
nuclear weapon-free Middle East.
"We're discussing all issues of proliferation concern in the
Middle East. If people want to raise the Iranian issue, I'll tell
them where we are and what we're doing," International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General al-Baradei told reporters
in the Israeli capital on Wednesday.
al-Baradei was meeting Gideon Franck, head of Israel's Atomic
Energy Commission.
The IAEA chief earlier began his visit to Israel on Tuesday by
playing down prospects of a breakthrough in efforts to persuade
the Israeli government to reveal its nuclear secrets and rid the
Middle East of nuclear weapons.
No illusion
"I have no illusion that things could happen overnight but I
believe that the earlier we start a security dialogue, the
better," al-Baradei said.
Experts believe Israel has 200 nuclear warheads in its arsenal
"People need to understand that this is something that has been
discussed for over 30 years."
al-Baradei is expected to hold talks with Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon on Thursday, but the premier on Tuesday said that Israel's
policy of refusing to confirm or deny that it has nuclear weapons
would continue.
Most foreign experts believe Israel possesses a nuclear arsenal,
comprising around 200 warheads, although it has stuck to a policy
of "ambiguity" for the past 40 years.
NPT
Israel is not a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT) but al-Baradei said that he hoped to persuade Sharon's
government to sign up to other agreements with his agency.
"We should not have any illusions that these things ... will
change overnight"
Muhammad al-Baradei, chief, IAEA
He is expected to push for an agreement that would involve
Israel informing the IAEA about Israeli imports and exports of
nuclear-related material.
Al-Baradei said it was "a long path to travel. We should not
have any illusions that these things ... will change overnight."
"We need to take the first step," he said, adding that this
could be Israel "concluding an additional protocol with the
agency.
"We need to understand the different viewpoints of Israel, of
the other parties in the Middle East and that's what I'm asked
to do - consult with all the parties and see how we can move
things forward," he said, referring to a mandate he received
from an IAEA general conference last year on working towards a
nuclear-free Middle East.
Experts have said al-Baradei's mission is more of a political
gesture to convince Arab states the IAEA is as concerned about
Israel as it is about Iran.
© 2003 Aljazeera.Net
*****************************************************************
27 BBC: Nuclear siren song beguiles Blair
Last Updated: Thursday, 8 July, 2004
By Alex Kirby BBC News Online environment correspondent
[Greenpeace Chernobyl protest PA]
Nuclear memory: Protest is never far away
The only way to meet the UK's promises on tackling climate change
may mean it has to opt for nuclear power, the prime minister has
told a committee of MPs.
His declaration will scandalise many environmental groups, but it
will draw praise from several influential greens.
Tony Blair made no commitment to build a new round of nuclear
power stations, and acknowledged the obstacles ahead.
But he did not mention the inability at present of nuclear energy
to fuel cars and aircraft, two huge carbon emitters.
Other approaches
Many environmental groups insist we could keep our promises on
reducing emissions of the gases scientists say are causing the
atmosphere to heat up, without going nuclear.
THE UK &CLIMATE CHANGE
The UK is likely t keep its promise to cut greenhouse gas
emissions to 12.5% below 1990 levels by 2010 Ministers say
they want to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by 2010, but
look unlikely to manage this Government policy is to cut
greenhouse emissions by 60% by 2050
They say using energy more efficiently, and generating more of it
from renewable sources like wind, waves and solar power, would
let us make sufficient cuts in the amount of coal, oil and gas we
burn.
But within the last few weeks two leading figures in the
environmental movement have urged a new look at the possible
merits of nuclear power.
Professor James Lovelock, who developed the Gaia Hypothesis,
said: "We must stop fretting over the minute statistical risks of
cancer from chemicals or radiation. Our goal should be the
cessation of fossil fuel consumption as quickly as possible."
Days later Sir Crispin Tickell, formerly the UK's ambassador to
the United Nations, said British politicians had failed to give a
lead on nuclear energy.
He said: "I reproach this government and its predecessor for not
putting more effort and resources into coping with the problems
of high-level waste. Next I reproach them for fudging nuclear
issues.
Level playing field
z "The problems of true cost, safety, proliferation, security,
risk and the rest should be examined in a complete overall
assessment of nuclear against other forms of renewable energy to
lay a proper foundation for debate and future policy."
UK ENERGY USE
In 2001 transport used 34% o total energy, and aviation used 21%
of transport's share From 1990 to 2001 aviation's energy
consumption rose by 56%, rail's by 8% and road's by 7% In 2000
domestic demand accounted for 30% of total energy
Sir Crispin touched a raw nerve in mentioning nuclear waste.
Despite claims that there are solutions - burying the waste in
the ocean depths, for example, to be absorbed into the seabed -
many nuclear scientists remain unconvinced.
The industry insists modern reactors are as safe as they can be -
and at least as safe as any other large power plant.
But memories of Windscale, Three Mile Island and Chernobyl
persist, and persuade many of us that nuclear energy is
inherently dangerous.
It is also a tempting target for terrorists, and it would take
years for new power stations to be built.
Decision deferred
It could eventually buy us some time in moving towards a less
polluting society. But at the moment there is little if anything
it can do to reduce the burning of oil in land vehicles and
aircraft - two main and growing sources of greenhouse gases.
Mr Blair did not suggest he would necessarily be the leader to
commit the UK to a nuclear renaissance, saying simply that he had
"fought long and hard" to keep the option open.
Understandably, politicians often find themselves echoing St
Augustine's fervent but post-dated prayer for a blameless life:
"Lord, give me chastity - but not yet."
One day soon, though, a British prime minister will have to
decide whether or not we can cut our greenhouse emissions without
the help of nuclear power, and face the implications of that
decision.
*****************************************************************
28 Haaretz: Vanunu's notebooks `prove intent to harm state security'
[http://www.haaretz.com]
News Updates Thu., July 08, 2004 Tamuz 19, 5764 Israel
By [yuvaly@haaretz.co.il]
An expert has concluded that Mordechai Vanunu's prison notebooks
contain previously unpublished information on the Dimona nuclear
reactor, the state said in a brief to the High Court of Justice
yesterday.
The brief was in response to Vanunu's petition that the
restrictions imposed following his release from jail earlier this
year be overturned. Vanunu served an 18-year sentence for
revealing Israel's nuclear secrets to England's Sunday Times.
The brief said that shortly before Vanunu was released,
authorities found notebooks in his cell that contained classified
information derived from his work as a technician at the Dimona
reactor. An expert who reviewed the notebooks concluded that some
of the sketches and descriptions they contained were not
published by The Times.
Vanunu's petition, filed by the Association for Civil Rights in
Israel, protests the following restrictions: the obligation to
notify authorities 48 hours before any change of address; the
obligation to give a 24-hour advance warning before leaving any
site where he resides; a ban on approaching certain areas of
airports; a ban on entry to foreign embassies in Israel; a ban on
conversation with foreigners; and a ban on Internet chats.
The prosecutors' statement was submitted ahead of next Sunday's
High Court hearing on Vanunu's petition. Prosecutors claim that
Vanunu still poses a risk to Israeli security. The notebook
materials found in his cell prove that he has the wherewithal,
and the motivation, to disclose additional classified
information, and harm state security, claim prosecutors.
The prosecutors cite as evidence passages from letters which
Vanunu wrote while still in prison. In one letter written in
August 2000, Vanunu wrote: "We must open up Dimona, and receive
clear, precise information about what, and how much, has been
produced there ... I can report on all these topics, on all the
materials which were produced in the Dimona reactor."
In December 2002, Vanunu wrote: "I wouldn't mind working for
foreign intelligence services after I am free, or helping the CIA
and the FBI, if somebody needs something from me."
[feedback@haaretz.co.il]
© Copyright Haaretz. All rights reserved
*****************************************************************
29 Haaretz ElBaradei: Pakistan gave nuclear know-how to at least 20
countries
[http://www.haaretz.com]
News Updates Thu., July 08, 2004 Tamuz 19, 5764 Israel
By [contact@haaretz.co.il]
Israel must take the spread of nuclear technology into account
and remember that terror is getting more sophisticated: Other
countries could get nuclear weapons, and the ordinary deterrence
that worked in the past may not be effective any more. Israel
must therefore think about a different regional security concept
and lend a hand to it.
The above was the key message in an interview granted to Haaretz
by Mohammed ElBaradei, director-general of the International
Atomic Energy Agency, during his brief visit to Israel.
He is a practiced diplomat and a top-flight professional, but he
does not always get what he wants as the IAEA's top executive -
as has been evident in Iran and North Korea. Nevertheless,
ElBaradei is very attentive to what is happening.
Summarizing what he no doubt heard in his closed meetings in
Israel, he said that there is a very strong sense of existential
threat in Israel. ElBaradei, who visited Israel several times in
the context of previous positions he held at the IAEA, noted that
this strong sense of insecurity has remained unchanged in recent
years.
ElBaradei said there are worrying signs that the nonproliferation
regime is coming undone, in the Middle East and elsewhere. Israel
has to take into account that other countries or, heaven forbid,
terrorist organizations could get nuclear weapons, he said. Under
those circumstances, nuclear accidents could happen, or wrong
assessments could be made in this sphere.
As an example of the spread of nuclear know-how, he used
Pakistan. He said that Abdul Kadr Khan, considered the father of
the Pakistani bomb, had commercial contacts with at least 20
different countries and large companies. The IAEA only learned
about some of it 18 months ago, when Khan's contacts with Libya
came to light, but the Americans and others had been tracking the
Pakistani's contacts for some time before that. Clearly, this was
not the work of Abdul Kadr Khan on his own.
The IAEA's inspection work in Libya is still not over, said
ElBaradei. In September, Libya is due to hand over more
documentation to IAEA inspectors and to respond to questions and
provide various clarifications.
Asked if Muammar Gadhafi's decision to change his policies was
the result of the war in Iraq, ElBaradei said that the
negotiations with Libya began before the Iraq war and that
apparently, it was the economic situation in Iraq caused by
sanctions that was most influential.
As for why Egypt, Libya's next-door neighbor, knew nothing of the
impending change in Libyan policy, ElBaradei did not hesitate to
say that this was apparently an Egyptian intelligence failure.
ElBaradei said that he does not know of any country beside Iran
and Libya - such as Syria - with whom the Pakistani nuclear
scientist had commercial contacts.
ElBaradei refused to accept the analysis that Iran is inevitably
going to get the bomb, so efforts to prevent it are a lost cause.
It is true, he said, that Iran is making an effort to acquire
nuclear know-how, including the full cycle of nuclear fuel
production, but he does not know what Iran's intentions
concerning nuclear weapons are.
He did confirm that signs were discovered in Iran of uranium that
was 54 percent enriched (the manufacture of uranium-based nuclear
weapons requires 90 percent enrichment). But he also said that
the Iranians have frozen their uranium enrichment program. He
said there is a very complex situation in Iran: It is in dialogue
with European countries, but other country also need to join.
This month there will be another meeting between the Iranians and
Europeans, he said, and ways have to be found to create a package
deal with Iran that would grant it various guarantees, and thus
persuade it.
Asked why he does not take the Iran issue to the UN Security
Council, he said that no smoking gun has been found - and anyway,
what could the security council do? Everyone remembers the case
of North Korea and its nuclear problems at the Security Council.
Moreover, he said, the world should take care not to reach a
situation in which extremists in Iran call for the country to
abandon the nuclear nonproliferation treaty.
Asked why the IAEA does not reveal the names of those countries
that helped Iran in their nuclear acquisition efforts, such as
China or Pakistan, ElBaradei said simply that the IAEA will need
those countries' cooperation in the future.
As for his hosts, ElBaradei said that it is clear to him that a
new dialogue must begin in the Middle East, and he is ready to
help. He said he feels that people are listening. A different
regional security concept must be developed that would prevent a
nuclear arms race, he said. He hoped that a small step has been
taken in this direction, and that maybe in the future, a light
will appear at the end of this difficult tunnel.
Yossi Melman adds:
Despite government efforts to keep the ElBaradei visit low-key
and out of the press, the visitor has held three impromptu press
conferences - one at his hotel, one after his Jerusalem meeting
with Health Minister Danny Naveh and one after his Ramat Aviv
meeting with Gideon Frank, head of the Israel Atomic Energy
Commission.
Today he is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
and to deliver a speech at Hebrew University before leaving the
country. He is also slated to meet with Foreign Minister Silvan
Shalom at the airport, as Shalom returns from the United States
and ElBaradei leaves for Vienna, the IAEA headquarters.
[feedback@haaretz.co.il]
© Copyright Haaretz. All rights reserved
*****************************************************************
30 Xinhuanet: Israeli prosecutor says Vanunu still poses risk to state security
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2004-07-08 07:07:59
JERUSALEM, July 7 (Xinhuanet) -- The Israeli Prosecutor said
on Wednesday that the nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu
still poses a threat to the country's security, the Ha'aretz
daily reported.
"He both intends and is able to continue harming the security
of the State of Israel even after his release," the Prosecutor
said in a statement.
The conclusion was brought out of a data analysis did on
Vanunu, which put all information regarding to his case into
consideration just prior the end of the period of Vanunu's
imprisonment.
The statement was submitted to the High court of Justice in
the lead-up to the Sunday hearing on Vanunu's appeal.
He appealed to the High Court of Justice over the limitations
placed on him by the security establishment following his release
from prison, the report said.
The restrictions imposed by the Defense Ministry have made it
impossible for Vanunu to hire Israeli experts to submit evidence
for his petition to the High Court.
Vanunu has therefore sought testimony from overseas experts,
who will try to prove that Vanunu disclosed everything he knew
about Israel's nuclear program more than 18 years ago, and no
longer poses a security threat to the country. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
31 Maariv International: State submits response to Vanunu petition
19 Tammuz 5764 8 July, 2004
Argues preventative measure reason behind restrictions. Says
Vanunu violated court order by holding dozens of contacts with
foreigners.
State submits response to Vanunu petition Argues preventative
measure reason behind restrictions. Says Vanunu violated court
order by holding dozens of contacts with foreigners.
[contact@maariv.co.il?subject=Yinon Kadari]
âA preventative measure is the only reason behind the
restrictions imposed on Vanunuâ, the State Prosecutorâs
Office has written in its response to the petitions filed by
Nuclear spy Mordechai Vanunu and the Human Right Association in
Israel, which demand of the state to lift the court order that
prevents Vanunu from leaving the country or speaking to any
foreign nationals.
According to the prosecution, Vanunu still poses a risk to state
security.
In the response written by Deputy State Prosecutor, Attorney Shai
Nitzan, the reason behind the restrictions is not to âprevent
Vanunu from expressing his opinions on Israelâs nuclear policy
publiclyâ, but only to âprevent him from exposing secrets he
came across during his work at the nuclear facilityâ. Nitzan
emphasized, âVanunu is permitted to publicly lobby for nuclear
disarmamentâ.
According to the prosecution, âSecret information that has
reached Israelâs security agencies proves that Vanunu is
violating the court order that forbids him from holding contacts
with foreign nationalsâ. Nitzan claimed Vanunu has held dozens
of such contacts.
The state concludes by saying, âThe contempt the petitioner
exhibits for the restrictions imposed on him so little time after
his release and while his petition is still pending, shows,
unfortunately, what is expected of him in the futureâ.
(2004-07-07 21:39:25.0)
© Maariv International 2004 All Rights Reserved
*****************************************************************
32 NRC: Amergen Energy Company, LLC Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating
FR Doc 04-15321
[Federal Register: July 7, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 129)]
[Notices] [Page 40989-40990] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr07jy04-150]
Station; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant
Impact The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is
considering issuance of schedular exemptions from Title 10 of the
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Section 50.71(e)(4)
for Facility Operating License No. DPR-16, which authorizes
operation of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (OCNGS),
a boiling-water reactor facility, located in Ocean County, New
Jersey. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing
this environmental assessment and finding of no significant
impact.
Environmental Assessment Identification of the Proposed Action
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50,
Paragraph 50.71(e)(4) requires that licensees provide the NRC
with updates to the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR)
annually or 6 months after each refueling outage provided the
interval between successive updates does not exceed 24 months.
The revisions must reflect changes up to 6 months prior to the
date of filing. This regulation would require the licensee to
submit the next OCNGS UFSAR update by April 25, 2005, which is 24
months after the most recent update (April 25, 2003).
The licensee requested a one-time schedular exemption from the
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4), extending the filing date by
``approximately 6 months.'' This one-time schedular exemption
would thus extend the 24-month interval between the last and next
filing to be 30 months. Since the licensee last submitted an
update on April 25, 2003, this proposed one-time, 6-month
extension would permit the next update be as late as October 25,
2005.
The licensee also requested a permanent schedular exemption to
allow filing of all future UFSAR updates up to 12 months, instead
of 6 months, after completion of a refueling outage. Thus,
accordingly to the licensee's current refueling schedule, this
would permit the licensee to file future updates in the fall of
odd-numbered years.
The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's
application for exemption dated March 26, 2004.
The Need for the Proposed Action In its March 26, 2004,
application, the licensee stated that following the schedular
requirements of 10 CFR 50.72(e)(4) literally means that the
licensee has to file both OCNGS and Peach Bottom Atomic Power
Station (PBAPS, owned by the licensee's parent company, Exelon)
UFSAR updates in the same time frame (i.e., spring) of
odd-numbered years. Such filing schedule for both OCNGS and PBAPS
constitutes a hardship for the licensee and its parent company
Exelon; additional temporary resources would have to be employed
in order to simultaneously
[[Page 40990]] prepare both OCNGS and PBAPS updates.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action The NRC has
completed its evaluation of the proposed action and concludes
that the exemption is administrative and would not affect any
plant equipment, operation, or procedures. The UFSAR contains the
analysis, assumptions, and technical details of the facility
design and operating parameters. Until the UFSAR is updated, the
recent changes are documented in the licensee's written
evaluations of changes prepared pursuant to 10 CFR 50.59, and in
the NRC's Safety Evaluations for actions requiring prior
approval. A delay in submitting the UFSAR update will not change
the plant design or the manner in which it is operated.
The proposed action will not significantly increase the
probability or consequences of accidents, no changes are being
made in the types of effluents that may be released off site, and
there is no significant increase in occupational or public
radiation exposure.
Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental
impacts associated with the proposed action.
With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites.
It does not affect nonradiological plant effluents and has no
other environmental impact. Therefore, there are no significant
nonradiological environmental impacts associated with the
proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC staff concludes that there are no
significant environmental impacts associated with the proposed
action.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff
considered denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action''
alternative). Denial of the application would result in no change
in current environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of
the proposed action and the alternative action are similar.
Alternative Use of Resources The action does not involve the use
of any different resource than those previously considered in the
Final Environmental Statement for OCNGS, dated December 1974,
published by the Atomic Energy Commission.
Agencies and Persons Consulted On May 11, 2004, the NRC staff
consulted with the New Jersey State official, Mr. Rich Pinney of
the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of
Nuclear Engineering, regarding the environmental impact of the
proposed action. The State official had no comments.
Finding of No Significant Impact On the basis of the
environmental assessment, the NRC concludes that the proposed
action will not have a significant effect on the quality of the
human environment. Accordingly, the NRC has determined not to
prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed
action.
For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the
licensee's letter dated March 26, 2004. Documents may be
examined, and/ or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document
Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, Public File Area
O1F21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland.
Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from
the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS)
Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the NRC Web
site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html
[http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leaving
FR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html]
. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter
problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should
contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone at
1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov
[pdr@nrc.gov] . Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of
June, 2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Peter S. Tam, Senior Project Manager, Section 1, Project
Directorate I, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office
of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 04-15321 Filed 7-6-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
33 NRC: Indiana Michigan Power Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
FR Doc 04-15322
[Federal Register: July 7, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 129)]
[Notices] [Page 40989] From the Federal Register Online via GPO
Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr07jy04-149]
Application for Amendment to Facility Operating Licenses The U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the
request of Indiana Michigan Power Company (the licensee) to
withdraw its April 6, 2004, application for proposed amendment to
Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-58 and DPR-74 for the Donald
C. Cook Nuclear Plant, Unit No. 1 and Unit No. 2, located in
Berrien County. In addition, the licensee's application requested
exemptions from regulations.
The proposed amendment would have revised the Licenses. The
proposed amendment and the requested exemptions from Title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section 50.44, 10 CFR
50.46, and 10 CFR part 50, Appendix K would have supported a
transition to Framatome ANP, Incorporated as the fuel vendor.
The Commission had previously issued a Notice of Consideration of
Issuance of Amendment published in the Federal Register on May
11, 2004 (69 FR 26192). However, by letter dated June 14, 2004,
the licensee withdrew the proposed change.
For further details with respect to this action, see the
application for amendment dated April 6, 2004, and the licensee's
letter dated June 14, 2004, which withdrew the application for
license amendment. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a
fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One
White Flint North, Public File Area O1 F21, 11555 Rockville Pike
(first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records
will be accessible electronically from the Agencywide Documents
Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading
Room on the internet at the NRC Web site,
[http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leaving
FR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html]
. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter
problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should
contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone at
1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to [ pdr@nrc.gov] .
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 24th day of June, 2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
L. Raghavan, Chief, Section 1, Project Directorate III, Division
of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 04-15322 Filed 7-6-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
34 NRC: Workshop on Regulatory Structure for New Plant Licensing:
FR Doc 04-15323
[Federal Register: July 7, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 129)]
[Notices] [Page 40990-40991] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr07jy04-151]
Technology-Neutral Framework and Options for Non-Light-Water
Reactor Containment Functional Performance Requirements and
Criteria AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of public workshop.
SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has requested the
staff to develop Regulatory Structure for New Plant Licensing:
Technology- Neutral Framework and Options for Non-Light-Water
Reactor (Non-LWR) Containment Functional Performance Requirements
and Criteria.
The purpose of the public workshop/meeting is to discuss and
solicit comments on the draft regulatory framework for future
reactors and options for non-LWR containment functional
performance requirements and criteria.
DATES: July 27, 2004, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. July 28, 2004, 8:30
a.m.-12 p.m.
ADDRESSES: Nuclear Regulatory Commission Auditorium, 11545
Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Margaret T. Bennett, Office of
Nuclear Regulatory Research, Mail Stop: T-10 F13A, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001, (301) 415-7252,
e-mail: mtb1@nrc.gov [mtb1@nrc.gov] .
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice serves as initial
notification of a public workshop to provide for the exchange of
information with all stakeholders regarding the staff's efforts
to develop a technology- neutral framework for future plant
licensing and options for containment functional performance
requirements and criteria for future non-light water reactors.
The meeting will focus on the current work being performed by the
NRC staff. A preliminary agenda is attached.
Workshop Meeting Information: The staff intends to conduct a
workshop to provide for an exchange of information related to the
staff's initial efforts to develop a Regulatory Structure for New
Plant Licensing: Technology-Neutral Framework and options for
containment functional performance requirements and criteria for
future non-light water reactors. Persons other than NRC staff and
NRC contractors interested in making a presentation at the
workshop should notify Margaret T. Bennett, Office of Nuclear
Regulatory Research, Mail Stop: T-10 G8, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001, (301) 415-7252, e-mail:
mtb1@nrc.gov [mtb1@nrc.gov] . Registration: There is no
registration fee for the workshop; however, so that adequate
space, materials, etc., for the workshop can be arranged, please
provide notification of attendance to Margaret T. Bennett, Office
of Nuclear Regulatory Research, Mail Stop: T-10 F13A, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001, (301)
415-7252, e-mail: mtb1@nrc.gov [mtb1@nrc.gov] .
[[Page 40991]] Background: As noted in the Advanced Reactor
Research Plan, a risk- informed regulatory structure that can be
applied to license and regulate future reactors, regardless of
their technology, could enhance the effectiveness, efficiency,
and predictability (i.e., stability) of new plant licensing. As
such this new process, if implemented, could be available for
future reactors based on a number of considerations, including
the following: While the NRC has over 30 years of experience of
licensing and regulating nuclear power plants, this experience
(e.g., regulations, regulatory guidance, policies and practices)
has been focused on current light water-cooled reactors (LWRs)
and may have limited applicability to future reactors that may be
distinctly different from current LWR issues.
The regulatory structure for current LWRs has evolved over five
decades, and the bulk of this evolution occurred without the
benefit of insights from probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs)
and severe accident research. It is expected that future
applicants will rely on PRA and PRA insights as an integral part
of their license applications. In addition, it is further
expected that the regulations licensing these future reactors
will be risk-informed. Both deterministic and probabilistic
results and insights will be used in the development of these
regulations governing these reactors. Consequently, a structured
approach for a regulatory structure for future reactors that
provides guidance about how to use PRA results and insights will
help ensure the safety of these reactors by focusing the
regulations on where the risk is most likely while maintaining
basic safety principles, such as defense-in-depth and safety
margins.
The development of this structure will help to ensure that a
structured and systematic approach is used during the development
of the regulations that will govern the design construction and
operation of future reactors.
The possibility of using alternatives to the traditional
``essentially leak-tight'' containment structures for non-LWRs
has been the subject of Commission policy review, beginning with
SECY-93-092, ``Issues Pertaining to the Advanced Reactor (PRISM,
MHTGR, and PIUS) and CANDU 3 Designs and Their Relationship to
Current Regulatory Requirements,'' dated April 8, 1993. More
recently, in SECY-02-0139, ``Plan for Resolving Policy Issues
Related to Licensing Non-Light Water Reactor Designs,'' dated
July 22, 2002, the staff informed the Commission of its plan to
develop policy options for the design and safety performance of
the containment structure and related systems for non-LWRs.
In SECY-03-0047, ``Policy Issues Related to Licensing Non-Light-
Water Reactor Designs,'' dated March 28, 2003, staff discussed
the policy issue of the conditions, if any, that would be
acceptable for licensing a plant without a pressure-retaining
containment building. In SECY-03-0047, the staff recommended to
the Commission that (1) functional performance requirements be
approved for use in establishing the acceptability of either a
pressure retaining, low leakage containment or a non-pressure
retaining building for future non-LWR reactor designs and, if
approved, (2) the staff develop the functional performance
requirements using the guidance contained in the July 30, 1993,
Commission Staff Requirements Memorandum (SRM) for SECY-93-092
and the Commission's guidance on the other issues in
SECY-03-0047. In the June 26, 2003, SRM for SECY-03-0047, the
Commission requested the staff to submit options and
recommendations to the Commission on functional performance
requirements and criteria for the containment of non-LWRs.
Options for containment functional performance requirements and
criteria for future non-LWRs are under development by the staff.
The final options and recommendations are due in December 2004.
Public workshops on this subject were previously held on November
19, 2003, and January 14, 2004. The NRC staff is including in the
July 27-28, 2004 workshop, presentations and solicitation of
feedback from the public on options and recommendations. Key
considerations for discussion include: --Are the identified
containment functional performance requirements being considered
appropriate? --Are the options for containment performance
criteria reasonable? --Are there other or alternative options for
containment functional performance requirements and criteria
which should be considered? --What is the role of containment in
relation to defense-in-depth? --What metrics and considerations
should be used to evaluate the options, including specific
advantages and disadvantages? Preliminary Workshop Agenda
-----------------------------------------------------------------
------- TIME TOPIC
-----------------------------------------------------------------
------- July 27, 2004: 8:30--8:40.............................
Introduction and Overview for Technology-Neutral Framework.
8:40-9:00.............................. Proposed Scope.
9:00-9:20.............................. Framework Roadmap.
9:20-9:40.............................. Safety Fundamentals.
9:40-10:10............................. Public Health and Safety
Objectives.
10:10-10:25............................ BREAK
10:25-11:00............................ Risk Objectives.
11:00-11:45............................ Design, Construction,
and Operation Objectives.
11:45-1:00............................. LUNCH
1:00-1:30.............................. Treatment of
Uncertainties.
1:30-2:00.............................. Development of
Requirements.
2:00-4:00.............................. Open Discussion.
4:00-4:30.............................. Wrap-up. July 28, 2004:
8:30-8:40.............................. Introduction and Purpose
for Non-LWR Containment Functional Performance.
Requirements and Criteria.
8:40-9:20.............................. Stakeholder
Presentations.
9:20-9:45.............................. NRC Staff Presentation:
Background, Scope, Approach, Evaluation Metrics and
Considerations.
9:45-10:00............................. BREAK
10:00-11:15............................ Preliminary Options for
Non-LWR Containment Functional Performance.
Requirements and Criteria.
11:15-11:45............................ Open Discussion.
11:45-Noon............................. Wrap-up.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
------- Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of June,
2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Farouk Eltawila, Director, Division of Systems Analysis and
Regulatory Effectiveness, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 04-15323 Filed 7-6-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
35 Taipei Times: Activists protest reactor Japan reactor
[http://www.taipeitimes.com]
NUCLEAR FALLOUT: Members of a coalition of environmental groups
protested the arrival of equipment of for the Fourth Nuclear
Power Plant
By Chiu Yu-Tzu STAFF REPORTER Wednesday, Jul 07, 2004,Page 4
Members of the Yenliao Anti-Nuclear Self-Help Association
protest in front of the construction site of the Fourth Nuclear
Power Plant, in Kungliao Township, Taipei County, yesterday. The
group alleges that the plant is not safe and could be prone to
accidents. ``Nuclear Hazard'' is written on their costumes.
PHOTO: CNA
Anti-nuclear activists yesterday protested outside Japan's
Interchange Association in Taipei, accusing Japan of exporting
"deficient nuclear reactors" to Taiwan.
A reactor pressure vessel arrived in a wharf in Kungliao, Taipei
County, several days ago and was scheduled to be handed over to
the Taiwan Power Company yesterday and then delivered the Fourth
Nuclear Power Plant under construction nearby.
Yesterday morning, dozens of activists from the No Nuke Taiwan
Union performed a skit outside the association's Taipei office to
oppose Japan's exporting of nuclear reactors to Taiwan. The union
is comprised of dozens of local environmental groups formed
earlier this year.
Two performers wearing the national flags of Japan and the US
trampled on a performer lying on the ground and wrapped in the
flag of ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
"Useless government! Allowing others to be trampled on!"
activists shouted.
According to Chen Jiau-hua (³¯ŽÔµØ) of the Taiwan Environmental
Protection Union (TEPU), two reactors that will to be installed
at the plant were designed by the US company GE and built by the
Japanese firms Hitachi and Mitsubishi.
"The safety of such a reactor type, known as advanced
boiling-water reactor, cannot be guaranteed," Chen said.
Activists said that a similar reactor installed at a nuclear
power plant in Kashiwazaki, Japan, had resulted in several
nuclear accidents.
The activists' demonstration received no response from the
association. Aside from the performance the activists gave
statement to an office security guard, who promised to pass it
onto his managers.
Afterward, activists burned several paper Japanese national flags
with anti-nuclear slogans written on them.
Meanwhile, other activists also protested in front of the Fourth
Nuclear Plant's construction site yesterday afternoon to show
their anger.
Lin Yuan-te (ªL·œ±o), Taipower's deputy manager for the Lungmen
Construction Office in Kungliao, told the Taipei Times yesterday
the reactor would be unloaded and transferred to the construction
site today. Lin said there would be no problem with the
transport, and did not anticipate that angry residents or
activists would interfere.
Lin said that about 58 percent of the plant project had been
completed.
"The progress remains 8 percent behind the original design. The
plant's opening date, which was set to be July, 2006, will be
postponed," he said.
How long the launch of the plant will be delayed remained
uncertain, Lin noted. However, the first reactor will be
assembled by the end of this year. This story has been viewed 364
times. + Advertising [ height=]
Copyright © 1999-2004 The Taipei Times. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
36 Pravda.RU: Ukraine complains Chernobyl fund donors behind with
their credit obligations
[PRAVDA.RU] Last update:07/08/2004 07:00 MSK
13:24 2004-07-07
Ukraine is going to ask Chernobyl fund Ukrytiye donor countries
why they have not fulfilled their obligations for crediting the
job of decommissioning the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and
making the protective shell safer, RIA Novosti was told at the
press-service of the Ukrainian president.
This is the decision taken on Tuesday by Ukraine's National
Security and Defence Council at a meeting presided over by Leonid
Kuchma.
The participants stated that the delay in the work is due to
non-observance by Group of Seven countries and the European
Commission of their obligations recorded in the 1995 Ottawa
Memorandum. Because of this, Ukraine is having to spend extra
funds on keeping the nuclear reactors in a safe condition.
"Today the Chernobyl plant is three years behind its
decommissioning schedule," the press-release stresses.
The meeting was told of instances of ineffective utilisation of
the money provided by the Ukrytiye foundation, which is
administered by the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development.
In particular, projects managed by foreign partners exceeded
their allocated spending limits. "Nearly half of the fund's money
was spent on non-productive needs," it is noted in the
press-release.
The Ukrytiye facility is a protective envelope built in 1986 over
the destroyed No.4 generating unit of the Chernobyl plant. Its
prime function was to prevent radioactive dust from spreading
beyond the reactor.
Today the envelope's condition is unstable. Scientists and
specialists know nothing about processes under it and the state
of almost 200 tons of nuclear fuel in the generating unit.
Besides, its technical condition has deteriorated - the walls
developed cracks, and the ceiling is very much down. Experts are
warning that the fall-in of this structure may have more gruesome
consequences than the accident itself.
To put the envelope into an ecologically safe state a new shell
was designed, called Ukrytiye-2. It will be constructed next to
the No.4 unit, and then pushed on it. The service time of the new
envelope is estimated at 100 years.
The cost of conversion is 758 million dollars. The work is being
financed by the international Chernobyl fund Ukrytiye (708
million) and the Ukrainian government (50 million).
The construction of foundations for the new protective shell is
expected to start in April 2006 immediately after work is
completed to stabilise the existing Ukrytiye facility.
Assembly of the new envelope is planned to begin in February
2008.
© RIAN
Copyright ©1999 by " [http://www.pravda.ru/] ". When
*****************************************************************
37 Toronto Star: Pickering reactor restart approved
TheStar.com -
Wed. Jul. 7, 2004. | Updated at 07:34 PM
DICK LOEK/TORONTO STAR
The Pickering nuclear station, shown here from the air.
> [http://www.opg.com/ops/N_pickering.asp]
> [http://www.brucepower.com]
> [http://www.opg.com/default2.asp]
FROM CANADIAN PRESS
The province has given Ontario Power Generation the go-ahead to
restart a second idle reactor at the Pickering A nuclear
station, with a pledge that the project will completed on time
and within its $900-million budget.
Energy Minister Dwight Duncan said the restart of the unit,
which has been idle for seven years, won't be plagued by the
massive cost overruns and years of delays experienced in
restarting the plant's fourth unit that returned to service last
September.
"Rest assured, we will not allow a repeat of these mistakes,"
Duncan told a news conference today. "This government will not
write blank cheques."
"We will be vigilant in observing the progress of this project.
Rigorous public scrutiny will ensure that the project stays on
track and on budget."
The reactor is expected to be back in full service by September
2005.
The move will address a looming electricity supply crunch in the
province, Duncan said, and will help the government keep its
promise to close its five coal-fired plants by 2007.
The reactor will provide 515 megawatts of electricity - enough
to power 350,000 Ontario homes.
Ontario Power Generation spent $1.3 billion refurbishing the
fourth Pickering unit - nearly triple the $457-million original
estimate - and the project was finished more than two years
late.
Instead of pouring more money into aging nuclear reactors, the
government should be funding conservation efforts, said New
Democrat energy critic Michael Prue.
"If you can reduce the amount of consumption by five to 10 per
cent, then you don't need to spend this kind of money," he said.
"This is just another sinkhole. They'll be very lucky to come in
on budget."
Don MacKinnon, president of the Power Workers' Union, called the
decision a "positive move," but said the government has to
reconsider closing the coal-fired plants, which produce about 25
per cent of the province's electricity, because it could lead to
shortages and higher prices.
The four units at the Pickering A plant, just east of Toronto,
were taken offline for safety reasons in 1997. The total
estimate to restart all four reactors is now pegged at $4
billion - nearly $3 billion more than the original estimate in
1999.
The government will decide if the remaining two reactors should
be restarted depending on whether this project comes in on time
and on budget, Duncan said.
However, this decision doesn't indicate the government is in
favour of building new nuclear plants, he added.
"It does not tilt or prejudice the future decision about nuclear
in Ontario or what percentage of our power should come from
nuclear," he said.
Duncan acknowledged the bill for restarting the reactor will be
picked up by consumers, but that Ontarians will benefit in the
long run from the increased power supply.
"The people who will ultimately be on the hook for the cost is
the ratepayers," he said.
"Without more supply, your electricity bill will go up. We've
actually seen electricity prices come down in the last several
months so the more supply we bring on, the lower your price will
be. It's elementary economics."
The Pickering A plant, built in the early 1970s, is Canada's
oldest commercial nuclear power plant, and has the capacity to
produce enough power to serve a city of two million people.
There are also four reactors at the adjacent Pickering B
station, which have been operating normally.
Legal Notice: Copyright Toronto Star Newspapers Limited.
*****************************************************************
38 TheChamplainChannel.com: Vermont Yankee Resurrected After Shutdown
[http://www.ibsys.com/]
Power Flowing To Plant Once Again
POSTED: 2:36 pm EDT July 7, 2004
BRATTLEBORO, Vt. -- On Wednesday, Vermont Yankee is back up and
running after a fire forced the nuclear plant to shut down for
almost three weeks.
The nuclear power plant's reactor started up again late Monday
and the plant was fully online Tuesday night.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission made an announcement about the
cause of the fire last week. They announced that the fire was
caused by a piece of an expansion joint that broke off in a duct
carrying electricity to Vermont Yankee's transformer.
The NRC said the problems had nothing to do with the proposal by
Yankee to boost the amount of power produced at the plant.
Copyright 2004 by TheChamplainChannel.com [planews@ibsys.com] .
*****************************************************************
39 Reuters: NRC to meet on N.Y. Indian Pt nuke fuel storage
Updated: Wed 7 Jul 2004 | 11:11 PM ET
- The staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will meet
with the public on July 15 to discuss a dry cask storage facility
for the spent fuel at Entergy Corp. (ETR.N: Quote
[http://www.investor.reuters.com/FullQuote.aspx?ticker=ETR.N&targ
et=%2fstocks%2fquickinfo%2ffullquote] , Profile
[http://www.investor.reuters.com/CompanyOverview.aspx?ticker=ETR.
N] , Research
[http://www.investor.reuters.com/StockReports.aspx?ticker=ETR.N]
) s Indian Point nuclear power station in New York.
Entergy notified the NRC late last year of its intention to
build a dry cask storage facility at Indian Point because the
stations current storage facility is almost full.
During the meeting, which will be held on July 15 near the plant
site in Peekskill, New York, NRC staff members will provide
details of the agencys oversight role in reviewing dry cask
storage of spent nuclear fuel, the agency said in a statement
late Tuesday.
The Indian Point station is located in Buchanan, New York, about
35 miles north of New York City.
Spent nuclear fuel consists of long, thin rods * they can be 12
feet or more in length and have a diameter about the size of a
pencil * holding enriched uranium pellets. The rods are grouped
into assemblies or bundles containing as many as 256 rods each.
Once the assemblies have been used in a reactor, they are placed
in interim storage facilities, such as a circulating-water spent
fuel pool or a dry cask storage system.
With the dry cask storage option, fuel is removed from the pool
after a sufficient period of cooling time has elapsed and placed
inside stainless-steel casks. Those casks are then sealed, filled
with an inert gas and placed inside cylindrical vaults made of
steel-reinforced concrete capable of resisting floods, tornadoes,
projectiles and other unusual scenarios.
The amount of heat given off by spent fuel assemblies loaded
into a cask would typically be less than that generated by an
average home heating system.
Dry cask storage was supposed to be a temporary solution pending
construction of a permanent U.S. repository for high-level
radioactive waste now held in hundreds of locations across the
United States. But, delays in the construction of the repository,
has forced some energy companies to seek short-term alternatives,
like dry cask storage.
There are currently about 30 dry cask storage facilities at
other nuclear plants across the nation. Other plants are pursuing
or considering such facilities.
The Department of Energy, which hopes to open a permanent
repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is expected to apply to the
NRC later this year for a license to begin construction of that
facility.
*****************************************************************
40 SouthofBoston.com: Call to shut down nuke (Pilgrim)
MPG Newspapers 9 Long Pond Rd. Plymouth, MA 02360 (508) 746-5555
By Gregg Gethard MPG Newspapers
PLYMOUTH - The Nuclear Regulator Commission (NRC), the federal
body which oversees matters pertaining to the nuclear power
industry, is weighing a request from local watchdog groups who
would like the Pilgrim nuclear power plant shut in case of a
strike by utility workers.
Plant owner Entergy is currently negotiating a contract with
members of the Utility Workers Union of America Local 369, one of
two unions representing workers at Pilgrim Station. Union members
have voted to go on strike July 13 if a contract has not been
reached.
Entergy officials have indicated they will use workers from other
plants and management in case a walkout occurs. Also, sources
have said some union employees may cross the picket line if a
strike occurs.
Anti-nuclear activists have asked the federal government to
intervene in case of a strike, fearing the plant cannot be run
safely if operated by substitute workers.
A spokesman for the NRC said it was not known when the agency
would make a decision regarding the request to close the plant.
"First of all, the two sides have been negotiating," spokesman
David Tarantino said. "We have been negotiating during the 4th of
July weekend until late at night and we are continuing to
negotiate now. Our hope is to still resolve our issues and not
have a labor action. That's our aim."
A union spokesman was not available for comment. The union,
however, has scheduled a press conference for Wednesday morning
that will detail their recommendations in case a strike occurs.
Union officials have said their main issue with Entergy revolves
around what they say is a lack of staffing at the plant. In 2003,
nearly 90 workers at Pilgrim Station accepted severance packages
offered by Entergy as a way to make the plant more efficient.
Union backers say the trimmed payrolls have resulted in an unsafe
working environment at the plant.
Entergy spent $83 million doling out severance packages to
employees spread across its 10 nuclear power plants.
Union members have also expressed concerns about health care
benefits.
For the first quarter of 2004, the nuclear division of Entergy
reported earnings of $68.8 million, compared to $36.7 million for
the first quarter of 2003. But earnings for Entergy as a whole
fell by 48 percent during the same period, making the nuclear
division an important profit center for the corporation.
CONTACT US
[http://oldcolony.southofboston.com/extras/contact.shtml] MPG
Newspapers, 9 Long Pond Rd., Plymouth, MA 02360 Telephone: (508)
746-5555
*****************************************************************
41 CBC News: Ontario to re-invest millions on Pickering reactor
[http://www.cbc.ca/news/]
Last Updated Wed, 07 Jul 2004 19:55:52
TORONTO - The Ontario government is spending $900 million to get
a long-dormant reactor at the Pickering A Nuclear Plant up and
running.
Ontario Energy Minister Dwight Duncan said Wednesday that the
reactor could potentially provide an additional 515 megawatts of
electricity by fall 2005.
"We are facing a looming electricity supply gap and must leverage
power that is most readily available to us," he said. He added
that the extra wattage would be enough to power 350,000 Ontario
homes.
The four reactors at the Pickering facility have been largely
idle ever since they were shut down in 1997 for safety reasons.
In the seven years since the government has spent almost a
billion dollars to get them back in service but so far only one
reactor is operating.
Duncan said he is confident this effort will be successful.
"It was a difficult decision but I believe we have made the best
efforts to put the proper oversight and get things lined up so
that this will come on," he said.
In December three Ontario Power Generation executives left after
a report revealed that repairs to the Pickering nuclear station
were years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget.
At the time Duncan blamed OPG's financial troubles on cost
overruns at the Pickering nuclear plant and a Conservative Party
freeze on electricity rates.
If this latest effort is successful, the government will then
consider spending what could be a billion more dollars to get the
last two reactors at Pickering A running.
Written by CBC News Online staff [http://cbc.ca/bios.html]
Copyright © CBC 2004
*****************************************************************
42 NRC: NRC Davis-Besse Oversight Panel to Meet July 13 in Ohio
News Release - Region III - 2004-04
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Office of Public Affairs, Region III
No. III-04-040 July 7, 2004
CONTACT: Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663
Viktoria Mitlyng (630) 829-9662 E-mail: opa3@nrc.gov
[opa3@nrc.gov]
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Davis-Besse Oversight Panel
will meet with FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company officials
on Tuesday, July 13, in Oak Harbor, Ohio, to review recent
operating performance and NRC inspection activities at the
Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Plant.
The plant resumed operation in March after a two-year shutdown
to replace the reactor vessel head and make other safety system
and staff performance improvements.
The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the Oak Harbor High
School Auditorium, 11661 West State Rt. 163, Oak Harbor. The
public is invited to observe the business portion of the meeting
and will have an opportunity to make comments and ask questions
of the NRC staff before the meeting is adjourned. The staff will
also be available after the meeting for informal discussions
with the public.
We expect to hear from utility officials how they assess their
performance since the plant resumed operation in March, said
John Grobe, Chairman of the NRC Oversight Panel. In addition,
we will discuss the findings of recent NRC inspections at the
plant.
A transcript of the oversight panel meeting will be posted in
several weeks on the NRC's web site - http://www.nrc.gov. Select
"Davis-Besse/Reactor Vessel Head Degradation" from the Key
Topics menu.
The NRC oversight panel includes NRC managers and staff from
offices in Lisle, Illinois; Rockville, Maryland; and the
Davis-Besse site.
Documents on the Davis-Besse corrosion issue, including further
details on NRC's oversight panel activities, are posted on the
NRC's web site.
Last revised Wednesday, July 07, 2004
*****************************************************************
43 CBC Ottawa: $900M bound for Pickering A
Last Updated | Jul 7 2004 09:19 AM EDT
TORONTO - The Ontario government is spending $900 million to get
the long-dormant reactor Unit 1 at the Pickering A nuclear
facility up and running.
"We are facing a looming electricity supply gap and must
leverage power that is most readily available to us," Energy
Minister Dwight Duncan said in an announcement Wednesday.
Duncan said the reactor could potentially provide an additional
515 megawatts of electricity by fall 2005.
The four reactors at the facility have been shut down since
1997 for safety reasons.
Efforts to re-start them have cost the government almost a
billion dollars, but so far only one reactor is producing
electricity.
Duncan said he is assured they will be successful this time
around.
"It was a difficult decision but I believe we have made the
best efforts to put the proper oversight and get things lined up
so that this will come on," he said.
The repairs were budgeted at $1.1 billion, but could end up
costing up to $4 billion, according to a report commissioned by
Ontario's former Tory government and released in December.
The government said getting Unit 1 up and running "offers the
shortest lead time of any of the major electricity supply
projects available in Ontario."
If the effort is successful, the government and Ontario Power
Generation will then consider spending the money needed to get
the last two reactors at Pickering A back up and running.
Early last December, three top executives at Ontario Power
Generation left amid revelations that repairs to the Pickering
nuclear station were years behind and billions over budget.
+ FROM DEC. 4, 2003: Nuclear repairs run billions over budget
[http://ottawa.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=ot_opg200312
04] A few days later, Duncan blamed Ontario Power Generation's
financial woes, which he said were "growing exponentially," on
severe cost overruns at the Pickering nuclear plant, as well as
a freeze on electricity rates.
Copyright © CBC 2004
*****************************************************************
44 AFP: Spanish FM warns Britain over nuclear submarine visit to Gibraltar
WAR.WIRE
[http://www.spacewar.com/]
MADRID (AFP) Jul 07, 2004
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos warned Britain
Wednesday that a planned visit to Gibraltar by a nuclear
submarine would have repercussions on relations between the two
countries.
Spain has twice summoned the British ambassador to Madrid to
lodge a protest against the visit of HMS Tireless, which spent
almost a year in dock in Gibraltar in 2000-2001 while the cooling
system of its nuclear reactor was repaired.
Moratinos said that in spite of assurances from the British
government that "all safety guarantees" would be observed
"politically the British admiralty is going ahead with its
repeated provocations and we take note of them."
The status of Gibraltar, a British colony occupying a rocky
outcrop attached to the tip of southern Spain, has been a subject
of contention between the two countries for decades.
The Tireless is due to stop at the Rock on Friday. London turned
down appeals from the Spanish government to call off the visit.
A statement from the Spanish foreign ministry said that Stephen
Wright, the British ambassador, had been told of the Spanish
government's "deep discontent and annoyance in the face of the
British government's insensitivity to Spanish public opinion."
Spain had called for the visit to be as short as possible and to
be accompanied by "all technical security guarantees."
The statement said that the Madrid government "wants to maintain
the best of relations of cooperation with the British government
in all fields, but this stopover represents a black mark in these
good relations."
The British embassy confirmed the arrival of the Tireless saying
it was making a short routine visit and insisting that the boat
met all required safety standards.
When the Tireless was in Gibraltar from May 2000 to May 2001
there were fears among local people on the Spanish side of the
border that there might be radioactive leaks.
Wright was summoned to the foreign ministry last month to hear a
protest against the visit of Princess Anne, daughter of Queen
Elizabeth II, to Gibraltar to mark the 300th anniversary of
British sovereignty over the Rock.
It was ceded by Spain under the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht but Spain
has long demanded it be returned.
WAR.WIRE
*****************************************************************
45 DenverPost.com: Colorado Voices: The real nuclear threat
Published: Wednesday, July 07, 2004
By Ihla Nation
At 16, I had thyroid cancer. At 46, I learned why.
I returned to my Montana birthplace for my sister-in-law's
funeral. During the ritual of viewing old family photos, up
popped a picture of me at age 5 with my father and grandmother. I
looked so frail and sickly, I was shocked. "I look like I just
escaped from a concentration camp," I blurted out.
As serendipity would have it, the next morning's newspaper
reported that the National Cancer Institute was releasing a
report about the increased risk for thyroid cancer as a result of
radiation exposure from 90 above-ground atomic bomb tests done in
Nevada between 1950 and 1962. Western states were especially
affected and Montana had counties with the highest exposure rates
in the country.
I believed the wide-open spaces, pristine air and magnificent
mountains nurtured a safe and healthy childhood. Instead, not
once, not twice, but 90 times I was exposed to cancer-causing
radiation. Not for a day or a week, but for two months after each
explosion.
Radiation exposure is especially hazardous to women and children
because their glands are smaller. The form of radiation related
to thyroid cancer (Iodine-131) is consumed in milk, placing
children in double jeopardy. The NCI report states, "For any
particular test, thyroid doses for children between 3 months and
5 years of age exceeded the average per capita thyroid dose
following that test by a factor of about 3 to 7 ... ." What would
that factor be if, like me, you were only 8 weeks old when it all
began?
Boom! That photo of pale, emaciated me took on a sinister aura.
The question I'd avoided asking - where the cancer came from -
was answered. Years of dealing with the costly, life-changing
aftermath of thyroid cancer became connected in my mind with
visions of a huge mushroom cloud.
I obtained the NCI report. I learned about the history of the
atomic bomb. I contacted attorneys. I read everything I could lay
my hands on.
I learned I can't sue the government and win. By law, I can't sue
the contractors who made huge profits polluting the cells of
American citizens. Most painfully, I learned that the Department
of Defense warned Kodak prior to each test so any film being
manufactured was protected. The DOD, however, didn't warn my
mother (or any mother) to stop her children from drinking
contaminated milk. The irresponsibility of the U.S. government
disillusioned me.
Now it appears, despite all the evidence about the dangers of
radiation, I can't trust the government not to do it again. The
administration is pushing for a return to nuclear weapons
testing. Do we never learn our lesson?
"Bombs are tested underground now," someone feebly argued. Yes,
but where does all that radiation go? We were told before that
testing was safe, but my memories of pain and suffering dispute
that claim. I don't believe there are any safe levels of
radiation.
The political rhetoric justifying a return to nuclear testing
scares me. I haven't heard any mention of potential health
hazards. The late Jesse Helms wanted "to make certain that the
next administration will be free to establish its own nuclear
proliferation policy ...." It appears he was successful.
What a comforting thought - the future health of the country's
children left in the hands of politicians whose lack of veracity
has become a shoulder-shrugging event. I have visions of nuclear
bombs coming in and out of silos like prairie dogs popping out of
burrows.
I know immediate issues greedily hog our attention, issues more
visible to our psyches and seemingly more threatening to our
bodies. But a killer is a killer whether it comes packing a
terrorist bomb, toting an automatic rifle or invisibly seeping
out of technology we are brainwashed to believe makes the world
safe for democracy.
We must demand more to this discussion. We can't allow panic to
distort our decisions. If we really want to leave the world safe
for our children, let's not return to the insanity of the Cold
War. Let's be wise so our grandchildren don't suffer the
consequences of our fear.
Ihla Nation ihlafn@yahoo.com [ihlafn@yahoo.com] lives in
Lafayette and works for a technology company in Boulder.
--> All contents Copyright 2004 The Denver Post or other
*****************************************************************
46 Las Vegas RJ: Yucca Mountain may tip scale in close Nevada vote
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
By ERIN NEFF REVIEW-JOURNAL
Edward Lumm makes a sign supporting the Democratic presidential
ticket of John Kerry and John Edwards. A rally supporting the
ticket will be held Thursday at the International Association of
Fire Fighters hall. Joining Lumm at the table at the state
Democratic Party headquarters is his wife, Beverly. Photo by K.M.
Cannon.
John Kerry's choice Tuesday of U.S. Sen. John Edwards as his
running mate was designed to balance the Democratic presidential
ticket.
But in Nevada, the state's key issue -- the Yucca Mountain
Project -- could tip the scales in a close election in a crucial
battleground state.
z Republicans said the North Carolina senator's vote supporting
the nuclear waste repository softens Kerry's criticism of the
Bush administration, which advocated the Yucca Mountain site. But
Democrats quickly lined up behind Edwards after receiving a
pledge he would defer to Kerry on the issue. "Unlike with the
Bush administration, the vice president's not in charge in a
Kerry administration," said state Sen. Dina Titus, the state's
Democratic National Committeewoman.
Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., spoke with Edwards and Kerry shortly
after the announcement and said he received assurances that
Edwards would defer to Kerry's Yucca stance. Kerry has pledged
that the mountain 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas will not hold
a repository if he is elected president.
"I've spoken to both of them today," Reid said. "John Edwards is
totally on board on nuclear waste. He is committed to having no
nuclear waste dump in Nevada."
In 2000, Edwards voted against a bill for temporary storage of
waste at Yucca. That bill passed and then President Bill Clinton
vetoed it. Edwards then voted to override Clinton's veto. In
2002, he voted for the permanent repository.
"Remember, he voted with us and this was a big issue in North
Carolina," Reid said, referring to the Tar Heel state's nuclear
power plants. "He said to me on the floor (for the 2000
override), 'If you need me, I'll be with you,' and I said, 'Well,
we've got enough votes now.' ''
Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said he considers Edwards to be one of
the most liberal senators and one who voted against the state on
Yucca.
"I think they're trying to have it both ways by saying they're
both united, even though he voted for the dump," Ensign said.
Edwards also was crossways with Nevada in 2001 when he voted in
support of a bill by Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona to
ban betting on college sports.
GOP consultant Mike Slanker dubbed the Kerry-Edwards ticket as
"liberal and liberaler" and said Edwards' Yucca vote hurts the
Democrats.
"It certainly in Nevada has ruined any kind of nuclear purity
John Kerry had," Slanker said.
State Democratic Party Chairwoman Adriana Martinez said Kerry's
consistent votes against the repository are in sharp contrast to
George W. Bush's actions as president.
As a candidate in 2000, Bush issued a statement pledging to base
any decision on "sound science, not politics." Early on, his
administration recommended Yucca as the nation's waste
repository, and Bush supported that decision over the objections
of Nevada's Republican governor and entire congressional
delegation. Congress overrode Gov. Kenny Guinn's veto of the site
in 2002.
"I haven't heard anything but pure excitement about the choice,"
Martinez said of Edwards. State Republican Chairwoman Earlene
Forsythe criticized the ticket as being too liberal for a
conservative state.
"They've pushed toward being anti-growth and anti-business,"
Forsythe said, citing votes the senators took against repealing
certain taxes. Forsythe said the vote by both earlier this year
against emergency funding for the war in Iraq and the troops in
Afghanistan "shows they don't support the troops."
Nevada is considered one of 17 battleground states nationally.
Bush won the state by 3.5 percentage points in 2000 after it
twice went for Bill Clinton.
Democratic political consultant Dan Hart said he thinks Edwards
"helps the entire Democratic ticket and party."
"He brings a vitality, energy and enthusiasm that is very
contagious," Hart said.
In a heads-up comparison with Vice President Dick Cheney, Hart
said Edwards, a successful trial attorney, will win the scheduled
debate and will be a better campaigner.
"Dick Cheney is a little imperious and detached when it comes to
campaigning," Hart said.
Democrats who gathered Tuesday in Sunset Park for an event
lauded the selection of Edwards, even if they had supported
different candidates during the primaries.
"I am 110 percent union, and right now our president has lied to
myself about labor issues and to other residents of Nevada about
what he was going to do on Yucca Mountain," said Ray Vercillo, a
retired electrical worker. "Dick Gephardt would have been 110
percent union, but John Edwards is just fine."
Campaigns in Nevada reacted to the Edwards selection in expected
fashion.
Tracey Schmitt, Bush-Cheney spokeswoman for Nevada, said the two
senators are "out of touch" on issues like national security and
the economy.
"Their anti-growth agenda won't resonate in a state that has
57,000 more payroll jobs than it did a year ago," she said.
Local Democratic party spokesman Jon Summers said a
Kerry-Edwards ticket "means the middle class will have a voice,
and our families are going to get a team that's on their side."
A rally in support of the Kerry-Edwards ticket is planned for 5
p.m. Thursday at the International Association of Fire Fighters
hall on West Charleston Boulevard.
Reid said Kerry-Edwards "will be a good-looking ticket."
"I think not only visually are they so much better, but they are
men of substance," Reid said. "It's great substance."
Edwards' trial attorney background and the significant financial
support he gets from the industry also drew Republican criticism.
"One of the biggest problems we have in this state is the
medical liability crisis; and we're saying here you are, have the
leader of the personal injury lawyers," Ensign said. "We know
what happens if a Kerry-Edwards ticket gets elected. National
medical liability reform would be dead."
Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said she
thinks Edwards' past "standing up for people who have been
injured" will play well in Nevada.
"Medical liability reform doesn't have to be a partisan issue,"
Buckley said. "In Nevada, we passed a fair medical liability
reform measure 63-0, and it probably is constitutional."
Buckley said Edwards will play well to swing voters, in part
because of his background. He was raised poor, the son of a mill
worker. He later made millions representing the families of
injured children.
"Here's someone who came from a family who didn't have very much
and ended up living the American dream," Buckley said. "To me,
that's what the promise of America is all about."
Stephens Washington bureau chief Steve Tetreault contributed to
this report.
Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal
*****************************************************************
47 Las Vegas RJ: Yucca database held up again
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
DOE seeks to withdraw more documents By STEVE TETREAULT
STEPHENS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- The Department of Energy is seeking to withdraw
more documents from a Yucca Mountain electronic network, a
request that could delay public access to the database for two
more weeks or longer, officials said.
The disclosure attracted more criticism to the Licensing Support
Network, the required depository for more than 1 million pieces
of technical data, reports and studies related to the planned
nuclear waste repository.
The Energy Department certified June 30 that it was contributing
1.2 million documents totalling 5.6 million pages to the network,
but none of the material has been made available at
www.lsnnet.gov.
Officials at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which maintains
the depository, said they had received less than half the
certified materials and were awaiting the remaining 700,000
documents=.
Also, Energy Department officials had requested to withdraw
about 150,000 documents, contending they dealt with privileged
topics such as homeland security. The department has identified
more documents that might need to be pulled back because they
include Social Security numbers and could be exempt from public
disclosure, the network administrator said in a memo Tuesday.
An Energy Department spokesman did not respond to a query. It
was unclear how many documents might be affected.
Network administrator Daniel Graser told NRC commissioners in a
memo Tuesday that a number of questions have arisen.
Graser said Energy Department problems with its own Web site
have affected the flow of documents.
Besides material tagged for deletion because of privacy
concerns, Graser said, the Energy Department expects to identify
even more documents over the next two weeks for possible
deletion.
Joe Egan, Nevada's lead attorney in fighting the Yucca Mountain
Project, said he expects NRC leaders will appoint a hearing
officer soon to sort out database problems.
The state contends DOE mismanaged its certification and will
urge the administrative official to delay the repository until
glitches are fixed.
Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal
*****************************************************************
48 Las Vegas SUN: Edwards has supported Yucca, college betting ban
By Suzanne Struglinski SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Edwards, presumptive Democratic
presidential candidate John Kerry's pick for vice president, has
voted against positions taken by Nevada officials on two of the
biggest state issues considered by U.S. lawmakers.
Edwards, D-N.C., supported the Energy Department's Yucca
Mountain nuclear waste storage project and an effort to ban
betting on college sports in Nevada.
Edwards co-sponsored the 2001 bill that would have outlawed
betting on college sports in Nevada, a measure stridently opposed
by Nevada officials, the state's federal lawmakers and top casino
industry executives.
He voted against an amendment offered by Sen. John Ensign,
R-Nev., during a Senate Commerce Committee markup of the bill
that would have stripped the ban, according to congressional
records.
"I think it is very important for us to send a clear and
unmistakable signal that we do not condone gambling on college
sports," Edwards said, according to a May 2001 press release.
Ensign's amendment failed on with 10-10 vote in the committee.
Committee members Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Sen. John
Kerry, D-Mass., who is now the presumptive Democratic
presidential nominee, did not vote on the amendment. An amendment
needs to win a vote to pass. A final Senate vote on the bill
never occurred.
It is not known if his position on the betting ban has changed,
according to Edwards' office.
Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the American Gaming Association,
said his organization does not take sides in presidential races,
but acknowledged that this is one local issue that could impact
how people in Nevada vote in November.
"I don't think it will be an issue other than in Nevada,"
Fahrenkopf said. "If he becomes vice president, I don't think
this is something that's going to be on his agenda to push."
Fahrenkopf said he was not sure if voters would not choose the
Kerry-Edwards tickets based on that one issue. He said the
betting ban is the only time Edwards has spoken out on gaming
issue.
Also, Edwards voted in July 2002 to allow the Yucca Mountain
project to proceed.
Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he has spoken with Edwards and
Edwards now agrees with Kerry's opposition to the project. North
Carolina has five nuclear reactors. Since 1983, ratepayers have
put just over $1 billion into the Nuclear Waste Fund, a federal
account set aside to fund the Yucca Mountain project. The account
has about $14 billion in it but Congress continues to give less
money to the project than the department requests.
Massachusetts only has one nuclear reactor and ratepayers have
put $213.7 million into the fund since 1983, when it was created.
Edwards co-sponsored a bill in November 2002 aimed at making
nuclear waste shipments to Yucca safer.
"We need a secure and central place to permanently store the
nation's growing and scattered stockpile of nuclear waste, but we
also need to make sure we ship the waste in the safest way
possible," Edwards said, according to a press 2002 press release.
His release says "Yucca Mountain will offer a safe, central
repository for the estimated 77,000 tons of nuclear material
expected to be shipped to Nevada during the two decades after the
national disposal site opens."
The bill would have set aside $6 million in 2003 to improve
transportation routes and to train state and local emergency
workers to respond in the event of accidents, among other
provision, but it did not move anywhere.
Nuclear industry sources say Edwards has not been vocal for or
against nuclear power or the Yucca project. If elected, his
opposition to the project he now shares with Kerry could be just
that he would support the president's policy, sources said.
Nevadans donated $83,654 to Edwards during his campaign for
president, with $44,906 coming from Las Vegas, mainly from law
firms, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a group
that collects campaign finance data.
*****************************************************************
49 Las Vegas SUN: Work halted on NRC data for Yucca Mountain
By Suzanne Struglinski SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- Work on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's
database of Yucca Mountain project documents will be halted
until the commission appoints a pre-license application officer,
according to a letter sent Tuesday.
This means the commission's progress indexing the Energy
Department's documents, as well as Nevada's objections to the
database, will have to wait until an officer is named. The
appointment is expected to come next week.
An Energy Department request to delete some documents that
contain private information, such as Social Security numbers,
also will have to wait, Daniel Graser, administrator of the
commission's Licensing Support Network, wrote to Commission
Chairman Nils Diaz Tuesday. Graser said he does not have the
authority to delete information from the database.
Graser wrote that he had deleted some documents at the
department's request before the database was certified as
complete, but now, under law, the pre-license application
presiding officer must be involved in any changes.
The Energy Department declared as certified the database of 5.6
million pages of documents related to the Yucca Mountain nuclear
waste storage project, posting the documents a Web site, but has
yet to send all of those documents to the commission to put on
the official database that will be used during the license
hearings.
The department plans to give the commission a license
application for the Yucca project, 90 miles northwest of Las
Vegas, proving it can safely store 77,000 tons of nuclear waste
inside the mountain.
Graser said he will not make the department documents available
on the commission's network and that the department's efforts to
see what other documents may contain private information could
delay its availability for an "indeterminate period of time."
Commission spokeswoman Sue Gagner said this means Graser will
not finish indexing the records that he has until the officer
determines how to handle it.
Attorney Joe Egan, who represents Nevada on Yucca issues, said
the "NRC is following its own rules to the letter."
He said Nevada will have to wait to contest the certification
until an officer is named.
Members of Nevada's congressional delegation said they are
troubled by the confusion and problems surrounding the documents
and on Tuesday they complained to Energy Secretary Spencer
Abraham.
"The purpose of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission-- regulation
is to make the documentation easily available publicly as a
substitute for a protracted legal discovery period," the
delegation wrote to Abraham. "However, with the current status
of the NRC Licensing Support Network, it is difficult to
comprehend how the objectives of the NRC regulation will be met."
Sens. John Ensign, R-Nev. and Harry Reid, D-Nev., along with
Reps. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., Jon Porter, R-Nev., and Jim
Gibbons, R-Nev. wrote that the information on the Web site
should contain safety, health and security questions and " at
the very least, provide an index, site map, or bibliography to
assist Congress and the American public in locating the
documents of concern."
*****************************************************************
50 RGJ: Edwards now opposes Yucca Mountain
[http://www.rgj.com/]
Wednesday | Jul 7, 2004
Reno Gazette-Journal]
Doug Abrahms [online@rgj.com]
(more stories by author)
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
WASHINGTON - Democratic vice presidential candidate U.S. Sen.
John Edwards switched positions and now opposes building a
nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, U.S. Sen. Harry Reid
said.
Reid, D-Nev., said Edwards told him in a Tuesday conversation
that he will work to stop the controversial nuclear waste project
from being built.
John Edwards supports (Democratic presidential candidate) John
Kerry on all issues important to the people of Nevada, including
Senator Kerrys pledge to stop nuclear waste coming to Nevada,
Reid said in a statement.
Edwards, D-N.C., voted to build Yucca Mountain in 2002 to help
North Carolinas nuclear power plants, which wanted to get rid of
their spent nuclear fuel stored on-site. Edwards support was not
crucial in the July 2002 vote in which 60 senators voted to move
forward with the project.
Before Nevadas Democratic caucus in February, Edwards and former
Vermont Gov. Howard Dean supported building Yucca Mountain, while
Kerry, retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark and U.S. Sen. Joe
Lieberman, D-Conn., opposed it.
A spokesman for Edwards had no comment on Yucca Mountain.
Nevada, with five electoral votes, is one of 19 battleground
states where the battle between President Bush and Kerry is
expected to be close in November. Democrats want to make Bushs
decision to move forward on Yucca Mountain a campaign issue,
while Republicans say the economy and homeland security are of
more vital concern to Nevadans.
© Copyright Reno Gazette-Journal, a Gannett
*****************************************************************
51 RGJ: State lawmakers criticize Yucca Mountain data
||| Home [http://www.rgj.com/]
Wednesday | Jul 7, 2004
Reno Gazette-Journal]
[UNDERGROUND: Phil Rizzo, left, and Ken Williams monitor the
heated chamber January 2002 at Yucca Mountain. - Marilyn
Newton/RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL]
Marilyn Newton[mnewton@rgj.com] /RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
ON THE WEB
Energy Department Yucca Mountain project:
http://www.ocrwm.doe.gov [http://www.ocrwm.doe.gov]
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Licensing Support Network:
http://www.lsnnet.gov [http://www.lsnnet.gov]
Ken Ritter [online@rgj.com]
ASSOCIATED PRESS 7/7/2004 12:16 am
LAS VEGAS The completeness and complexity of data the Energy
Department posted to a Web site to support plans for a nuclear
waste repository at Yucca Mountain came under question Tuesday by
Nevadas congressional delegation.
Officials cant tell whether the Web site answers key safety,
security, and health questions about the repository, according to
U.S. Reps. Jim Gibbons, Shelley Berkley and Jon Porter and U.S.
Sens. Harry Reid and John Ensign.
We have strong concerns regarding the disorganized and complex
manner in which DOE has posted the portions of the data that are
available, the bipartisan delegation said in a letter to Energy
Secretary Spencer Abraham.
The Nevada lawmakers asserted the information doesnt meet
Nuclear Regulatory Commission requirements.
Energy Department officials did not immediately respond to
requests for comment.
The criticism comes after Nevada state officials complained last
week they couldnt tell whether the Energy Department met legal
requirements with its June 30 certification that it posted 20
years of scientific studies on the repository to a Web site for
Nuclear Regulatory Commission and public review.
Like the state, the congressional delegation acknowledged it has
to wait for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to appoint a
presiding officer for the Yucca Mountain license application
before lodging an official complaint. An appointment is expected
by July 15.
The Energy Department has said it posted 1.2 million documents
totaling 5.6 million pages onto the Web site, with more documents
to come.
However, Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokeswoman Sue Gagner
said the NRC only received about 500,000 of the electronic
documents and that many remained unavailable pending resolution
of privacy questions and Web site technical problems.
Gagner said the prelicensing application presiding officer will
determine whether the database is complete and resolve Energy
Department data privacy concerns.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission computer system can index about
150,000 documents a week, so it will take several weeks to post
documents that have yet to be submitted, Gagner said .
The Energy Department is required by law to certify that all
Yucca Mountain documents are publicly available six months before
applying to the NRC for a license to build the repository 90
miles northwest of Las Vegas.
The department plans to submit an application by a self-imposed
December 2004 deadline. It expects NRC approval in time to begin
entombing 77,000 tons of the nations most radioactive waste from
power plants and military storage at the repository in 2010.
© Copyright Reno Gazette-Journal, a Gannett
*****************************************************************
52 Jim Gibbons: Nevadas Delegation Calls on DOE to Improve
How Public Documents on Yucca are Posted for the Public
7/6/2004
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Representatives Jim Gibbons (R-Nev.),
Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), and Jon Porter (R-Nev.) and Senators
Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) today announced they
are calling on the Department of Energy (DOE) to improve the
manner in which they have posted documents related to the license
application for Yucca Mountain. The regulations mandating the
release of the documents also require the documentation to be
easily available to the public. The Nevada Delegation contends
the disorganized and complex web of papers posted on the database
fails to achieve this goal.
The text of the Delegation letter to DOE Secretary Abraham
follows:
Dear Secretary Abraham:
On June 30, 2004, Nevadas Congressional Delegation received
notice that the Department of Energy (DOE) would be making public
and available online over 5.6 million pages of documentary
materials related to the Departments Yucca Mountain nuclear
waste repository license application. As you know, the Nuclear
Regulator Commission (NRC) mandated this action through 10 C.F.R.
Part 2, Subpart J. This regulation outlines the items that must
be made public, the schedule for this public posting, and the
manner in which they must be posted.
After having viewed portions of the data available at
http://www.lsnnet.gov, it is troubling to find that the
information posted on this database falls far short of meeting
the requirements mandated by the NRC. According to DOE
predictions from this February and April, the DOE planned to make
available between 3 and 4 million documents totaling an estimated
36 million pages. While this is a large amount of data, the NRC
requires that it all be certified and posted as part of the Yucca
Mountain licensing process. We fully expect DOE to comply with
this imperative requirement not in part, but in its entirety. The
purpose of the NRC regulation is to make the documentation easily
available publicly as a substitute for a protracted legal
discovery period. However, with the current status of the NRC
Licensing Support Network, it is difficult to comprehend how the
objectives of the NRC regulation will be met.
Further, we have strong concerns regarding the disorganized and
complex manner in which DOE has posted the portions of the data
that are available. Primary among these concerns is that there is
no readily available index or bibliography of the data available
on the site. The information on this site should contain answers
to important safety, security, and health questions. The DOE
must, at the very least, provide an index, site map, or
bibliography to assist Congress and the American public in
locating the documents of concern.
We understand that the NRC will appoint an administrative officer
in the coming days to hear disputes regarding the network. With
this letter, we strongly encourage your agency and those
overseeing the NRC Licensing Support Network to take the above
concerns into consideration.
For more information, contact: Amy Spanbauer Press Secretary
Congressman Jim Gibbons Phone: 202-225-6155 FAX: 202-225-5679
URL: http://wwwc.house.gov/gibbons/press_contact.asp
[http://wwwc.house.gov/gibbons/press_contact.asp]
Congressman Jim Gibbons · 100 Cannon House Office Building ·
Washington D.C. 20515
Voice: 202-225-6155 · Fax: 202-225-5679
*****************************************************************
53 Denver Post: Colo. uranium mill due ruling on loads of radioactive soil
Published: Wednesday, July 07, 2004
By Joey Bunch Denver Post Staff Writer
The owner of a Fremont County uranium mill will find out this
week if the facility can accept contaminated dirt from a
Superfund cleanup site in New Jersey.
With that approval, Cotter Corp. could accept initial shipments
of what could grow to be 470,000 tons of thorium-laced dirt.
A local citizens group is pledging to sue if the Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment allows shipments of
the radioactive material.
"That's the next step," Sharyn Cunningham, co-chairwoman of
Colorado Citizens Against Toxic Waste said Tuesday. "As far as I
know, that's our only hope."
She said the decision opens the door to making Colorado a dumping
ground for toxic waste from other states.
CCAT, which formed after learning of the mill's plan in 2002,
successfully pushed for a state law that took effect last year,
which gave the state health department greater discretion to
regulate Cotter.
Cotter Corp., based in Lakewood, applied for permission to accept
24,000 tons from a Maywood, N.J., industrial site nearly two
years earlier. The mill intends to use the dirt to cover its
lined impoundment ponds, where the mill disposed of radioactive
waste from decades of processing uranium.
However, Colorado District Judge Herbert Stern last week ordered
the state health department to separately decide the fate of the
first shipments. Stern also gave the state agency a Friday
deadline.
"We'll take another look at the record and be in a position to
make a decision," said Howard Roitman, the health department's
director of environmental programs.
Cotter's lawyer, John Watson, said the decision is a year
overdue. Health department staff showed company officials a draft
approval of the application a year ago, he said. The draft came
with conditions that Cotter told the state it could accept,
Watson said.
The department, however, failed to issue the permit, and Cotter
sued. "We didn't want to sue the state; we just had nowhere to
turn," Watson said. "Here we are a year later, and the judge has
said, 'Make a decision. You can't hold this Maywood dirt
hostage."'
Watson said the health department is trying to kill the deal by
stalling until Cotter loses the disposal contract.
"That's exactly what they're trying to do, by dragging it out as
long as they can, using the court and every avenue they can to
try to stop this," he said.
Watson said he was unsure how long Cotter could retain the
contract for the dirt.
Roitman said the health department decided last year to include
the Maywood dirt issue with renewal of the mill's license, a
decision that will be made sometime later this year.
"We said that the acceptance of the first Maywood material raised
some questions about consistency with some of the things in the
license," he said, citing the proposed volume of dirt to be put
in the impoundment ponds.
Staff writer Joey Bunch can be reached at 303-820-1240 or
jbunch@denverpost.com [jbunch@denverpost.com] .
--> All contents Copyright 2004 The Denver Post or other
*****************************************************************
54 Australian: Dump review 'an election stunt'
[July 08, 2004]
Source: AAP
THE Federal Government commitment to re-examine whether to build
a nuclear waste dump in South Australia was an election stunt,
the Australian Democrats said today.
The full bench of the Federal Court last month upheld a SA
Government appeal against the compulsory acquisition of the dump
site near Woomera, in SA's north.
Prime Minister John Howard yesterday conceded the low-level
waste repository would be an issue in the looming federal
election.
SA Democrats leader Sandra Kanck said the Government's
announcement that it was still to decide on whether to appeal the
court ruling was worthless until a categorical commitment was
made that the dump would not be built in SA at all.
The Government made the compulsory acquisition after learning of
SA Government moves to declare the site a national park, which
would have precluded a nuclear dump being built there.
Mr Howard said cabinet would discuss next week whether to launch
a High Court appeal for the dump to proceed.
Ms Kanck today called on the Government to promise that no dump
would be built in SA.
"The Prime Minister's vague assurances that the matter will be
looked at again in cabinet have all the hallmarks of an electoral
stunt," Ms Kanck said.
"John Howard has sniffed the electoral breeze and decided his
re-election chances are at risk if he continues to publicly
support a policy forcing a national nuclear waste dump on South
Australia.
"Too many times the reasons and promises of our current PM have
proved elusive after the electoral victory has been secured.
"Nothing short of a scripted electoral promise should be
accepted.
"With three federal coalition seats in Adelaide at risk in what
promises to be an incredibly tight election, the political
equation would now be paramount in the mind of the PM.
"South Australians need to exploit that situation and extract an
iron-clad guarantee from the federal Liberal party that the dump
will not be located here."
SA Environment and Conservation Minister John Hill today said Mr
Howard's comments indicated he was finally listening to South
Australian opposition to the dump.
"I am pleased that the Prime Minister has backed away from his
stated views that the national interest should override that of
any state when it came to the national radioactive waste dump,"
Mr Hill said.
"It's great to hear that John Howard is taking the dump issue
back to cabinet on Monday but, if he wants to be honest with
South Australians, he must end the uncertainty now.
"If the Federal Government is going to rule out our state for
the dump site - do it now."
© The Australian
*****************************************************************
55 AU ABC: Howard may reconsider SA nuclear dump.
07/07/2004. ABC News Online
"Australian Broadcasting Corporation Online">
[http://www.abc.net.au/]
Update: Wednesday, July 7, 2004. 5:24pm (AEST)
Prime Minister John Howard has indicated the Federal Government
may reconsider its decision on a national radioactive waste dump
in South Australia.
Mr Howard is in Adelaide campaigning in marginal seats and has
been confronted by anti-dump protesters today.
He says Federal Cabinet will be discussing these issues next
week after the Federal Court ruled the Government's compulsory
acquisition of land for the dump near Woomera, was unlawful.
"We'll be examining that issue when Cabinet meets next week,"
he said.
"We'll be looking at the implications of the decision of the
Full Federal Court. It's not an easy issue, I accept that we
have to find a solution to the waste disposal issue."
© 2004 Australian Broadcasting Corporation
*****************************************************************
56 KRNV: NRC names administrator for DOE Yucca Mountain filings
LAS VEGAS, NV, July 7
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission named an administrator today to
oversee early Energy Department filings on the Yucca Mountain
project.
G. Paul Bollwerk the Third is currently chief of the NRC's Atomic
Safety and Licensing Board. He's going to be responsible for
handling disputes about a huge database the Energy Department
posted last week detailing the scientific underpinnings of the
planned nuclear waste dump in Nevada.
The NRC is the agency that'll decide if the Energy Department
gets a license to open the repository by the DOE's goal of 2010.
The Energy Department plans to apply for the license by the end
of the year. It said last week it met a six-months' advance
deadline to post more than a million documents to a Web site
supporting its license application.
But the NRC only has about half those documents on its Licensing
Support Network. And Nevada state and federal officials are
complaining that they can't tell whether the Energy Department is
answering key safety, security, and health questions.
(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[http://www.worldnow.com] All content © Copyright 2001 - 2004
WorldNow and KRNV. All Rights Reserved. For more information on
*****************************************************************
57 AFP: Kazakh uranium production to hit new heights
WAR.WIRE
[http://www.spacewar.com/]
ALMATY (AFP) Jul 07, 2004
Kazakhstan plans to become the world's second-largest uranium
producer with a five-fold production increase over the next
decade, the head of the former Soviet republic's atomic energy
company said on Wednesday.
"By 2015 we plan to increase uranium extraction to 15,000 tonnes
a year and become the second largest uranium producer after
Canada," Kazatomprom President Moukhtar Dzhakishev told an
industry conference in Kazakhstan's commercial centre Almaty.
With annual production currently at 3,300 tonnes, Kazakhstan is
in third place behind Canada and Australia.
But its uranium reserves, the second largest in the world, are
being eagerly eyed by investors trying to push forward nuclear
energy around the world.
France's Cogema, a subsidiary of Areva, has been vying with
Russian investors to upgrade Kazakh production and earlier this
year unveiled plans to invest 90 million dollars (75 million
euros) in southern Kazakhstan's Moinkum deposit.
In addition to its Soviet-era mines, Kazakhstan plans to develop
seven new deposits across the south of this vast Central Asian
country, Dzhakishev said.
WAR.WIRE
*****************************************************************
58 DOE: Privacy Act of 1974;
FR Doc 04-15331
[Federal Register: July 7, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 129)]
[Notices] [Page 40886-40888] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr07jy04-66]
®MDBU¯*ERR01*®MDNM¯Notice of Amendment to an Existing System of
Records AGENCY: Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice.
SUMMARY: As required by the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a,
and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-130, the
Department of Energy (DOE) is publishing a notice of a proposed
amendment to an existing system of records. DOE proposes to amend
DOE-50 ``Personnel Assurance Program Records.'' The notice
proposes to change the name of DOE-50 ``Personnel Assurance
Program Records'' to DOE-50 ``Human Reliability Program
Records.'' The notice also identifies the new authority for
collecting and maintaining the information. The categories of
records and the categories of individual sections also will be
expanded. In addition, this notice identifies the new locations
where the records will be maintained and clearly states the
purpose for collecting and maintaining the information.
DATES: The proposed amendment to an existing system of records
will become effective without further notice on August 23, 2004,
unless in advance of that date, DOE receives adverse comments and
determines that this amendment should not become effective on
that date.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be directed to the following
address: U.S. Department of Energy, Lynn Gebrowsky, Director,
Office of Safeguards and Security, SO-10.1, U.S. Department of
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585. FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Abel Lopez, Director, Freedom of
Information Act and Privacy Act Group, ME-74, U.S. Department of
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585,
(202) 586- 5955; Lynn Gebrowsky, Director, Office of Safeguards
and Security, SO- 10.1, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585, (301) 903-3200;
and Isiah Smith, Office of the General Counsel, GC-77, U.S.
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington,
DC 20585, (202) 586-8618.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 1989, as part of its ongoing
efforts to protect national security, DOE published regulations
that appear at title 10, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), part
710 subpart B, ``Criteria and Procedures for Establishment of the
Personnel Security Assurance Program Determinations of an
Individual's Eligibility for Access to a Personnel Security
Assurance Program (PSAP) Position.'' The PSAP is an access
authorization program for individuals who apply for or occupy
certain positions critical to the national security.
The PSAP requires an initial and annual supervisory review,
medical assessment, management evaluation and DOE personnel
security review of all applicants and incumbents. Since the PSAP
was an element of the access authorization process, the
information generated from PSAP will remain in DOE-43 ``Personnel
Security Files.'' In 1998, DOE published regulations that appear
at 10 CFR Part 711 for the ``Personnel Assurance Program (PAP).''
At that time, DOE also published a new system of records for PAP
entitled DOE-50 ``Personnel Assurance Program Records.'' The PAP
is a nuclear explosive safety program for individuals who occupy
positions that involve hands-on work with, or access to nuclear
explosives. The PAP includes many of the same evaluations as the
PSAP to ensure that employees assigned to nuclear explosive
duties do not have a mental/personality disorder or physical
condition that could result in an accidental or unauthorized
detonation of nuclear explosives.
As the PSAP and PAP evolved, significant similarities developed
in the objectives, requirements, and administration of the two
programs. DOE concluded that the monetary and time requirements
of administering two very similar programs could not be justified
as consistent with good management practices when compared to the
benefits of consolidation.
On January 23, 2004, DOE published a final rule establishing the
Human Reliability Program (HRP); the final rule appears at 10 CFR
part 712. The final rule establishes a single unified HRP
management structure that incorporates all of the important
elements of the PSAP and PAP into one comprehensive program. By
adopting a uniform set of requirements applicable to both PSAP
and PAP employees, DOE has developed a stronger, more efficient,
and more effective human reliability program for personnel who
occupy these positions.
The January 23, 2004, rule consolidates the PSAP and the PAP into
a single program. Today's notice proposes to amend DOE-50
``Personnel Assurance Program Records'' by changing the name to
DOE-50 Reliability Program Records,'' expanding the categories of
records and categories of individual sections, identifying the
new locations where the records will be maintained, and
designating a new system manager. The documents generated by the
HRP will be maintained in the DOE-50 ``Human Reliability Program
Records.'' The information collected and the records maintained
in DOE-50 will be used by the Department to ensure that HRP
candidates and HRP- certified individuals have met all the
requirements for HRP certification. The categories of records are
being expanded to include the following: (1) Acknowledgement and
Agreement to Participate in the Human Reliability Program (HRP)
Form; (2) Authorization and Consent to Release Human Reliability
Program (HRP) Records in Connection with HRP Form; (3) Refusal of
Consent Form; (4) Human Reliability Program (HRP) Alcohol Testing
Form; (5) Human Reliability Program (HRP) Certification Form; (6)
random alcohol testing results, (7) drug test results and
information related to substance abuse, and (8) results from the
Office of Hearings and Appeals relating to a safety certification
issue. The drug testing results will be sent to the Medical
Review Officer who will report to the HRP management official
that the test is negative or a confirmed positive and may provide
an assessment related to substance abuse. The information is
recorded on the Human Reliability Program (HRP) Certification
Form and/or attached to the form.
The information collected will be used for screening, selecting,
and continuously evaluating individuals assigned to or being
considered for assignment to HRP duties. This continuous
evaluation process identifies individuals whose judgment and
reliability may be impaired by physical or mental/personality
disorders, alcohol abuse, use of illegal drugs or the abuse of
legal drugs or other substances, or any condition or circumstance
that may be a security or safety concern. The categories of
individuals will be expanded to include all individuals
[[Page 40887]] who were in the PSAP and now are part of the HRP.
The HRP records will be maintained at the following locations:
DOE Headquarters; Chicago Operations Office; Idaho Operations
Office; Oak Ridge Operations Office; Richland Operations Office,
and Savannah River Operations Office; the Rocky Flats Field
Office; Pittsburgh Naval Reactors Office; Schenectady Naval
Reactors Office; National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Office of Secure Transportation at Albuquerque; NNSA Amarillo
Site Office (Pantex); NNSA Kansas City Site Office; NNSA
Livermore Site Office, NNSA Los Alamos Site Office; NNSA Nevada
Site Office; NNSA Oakland Site Office; NNSA Sandia Site Office;
NNSA Y-12 Site Office; and NNSA Service Center at Albuquerque.
DOE is submitting the report required by OMB Circular A-130
concurrently with the publication of this notice. The text of
this notice contains the information required by the Privacy Act,
5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4).
Issued in Washington, DC on June 29, 2004.
James T. Campbell, Acting Director, Office of Management, Budget
and Evaluation/Acting Chief Financial Officer.
DOE-50 SYSTEM NAME: Human Reliability Program Records.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION: Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION(S): U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585.
U.S. Department of Energy, Chicago Operations Office, 9800 South
Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439.
U.S. Department of Energy, Idaho Operations Office, 850 Energy
Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 83401.
U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge Operations Office, P.O. Box
E, Oak Ridge, TN 37830.
U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office, P.O. Box
550, Richland, WA 99352.
U.S. Department of Energy, Savannah River Operations Office, P.O.
Box A, Aiken, SC 29801.
U.S. Department of Energy, Rock Flats Field Office, P.O. Box 928,
Golden, CO 80401.
U.S. Department of Energy, Pittsburgh Naval Reactors Office, P.O.
Box 109, Pittsburgh, PA 15122.
U.S. Department of Energy, Schenectady Naval Reactors Office,
P.O. Box 1069, Schenectady, NY 12301.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Amarillo Site Office (Pantex)
P.O. Box 30030, Amarillo, TX 79120.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Kansas City Site Office, 2000 E
9th Street, Kansas City, MO 64141-3202.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Livermore Site Office, P.O. Box
808, Livermore, CA 94551.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Los Alamos Site Office, 528 35th
Street, Los Alamos, NM 89193-8518.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Nevada Site Office, P.O. Box
98518, Las Vegas, NV 89193-8518.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Oakland Site Office, 1301 Clay
Street, Oakland, CA 94612-5208.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Office of Secure Transportation,
NA-121, P.O. Box 5400, Albuquerque, NM 87185-5400. U.S.
Department of Energy, NNSA Sandia Site Office, P.O. Box 5800,
Albuquerque, NM 87115.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Y-12 Site Office, P.O. Box 2050,
Oak Ridge, TN 37831-8009.
U.S. Department of Energy, NNSA Service Center Albuquerque, P.O.
Box 5400, Albuquerque, NM 87115-5400.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM: Department of
Energy, including National Nuclear Security Administration, and
contractor employees performing work that affords both technical
knowledge and access to assembled nuclear explosives or certain
nuclear weapon components and assigned to, or applying for a
position that: (1) Affords access to Category I Special Nuclear
Material (SNM) or has responsibility for transportation or
protection of Category I quantities of SNM; (2) involves nuclear
explosive duties or has responsibility for working with,
protecting, or transporting nuclear explosives, nuclear devices,
or selected components; (3) affords access to information
concerning vulnerabilities in protective systems when
transporting nuclear explosives, nuclear devices, selected
components, or Category I quantities of SNM; or (4) affords the
potential to significantly impact national security or cause
unacceptable damage and has been approved as an HRP position.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM: Results of medical
examination; employment review; credit/consumer reports; data
pertaining to access authorizations (clearances); training
records pertaining to individual's duties involving assembled
nuclear explosives or certain nuclear weapon components; employee
name; department division; job title; L-code (mail code);
telephone number; pager number; employee number; and social
security number; Acknowledgement and Agreement to Participate in
the Human Reliability Program (HRP) Form; Authorization and
Consent to Release Human Reliability Program (HRP) Records in
Connection with HRP Form; Refusal of Consent Form; Human
Reliability Program (HRP) Alcohol Testing Form; Human Reliability
Program (HRP) Certification Form; random alcohol testing results;
drug test results and information related to substance abuse;
results from the Office of Hearings and Appeals relating to a
safety certification issue; psychological evaluations; and
polygraph results.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM: 41 U.S.C. 2165; 42
U.S.C. 2201; 42 U.S.C. 5814-5815; 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.; 50
U.S.C. 2401 et seq.; E.O. 10450, 3 CFR 1949-1953 as amended; E.O.
10865, 3 CFR 1959-1963, as amended; and 10 CFR 712, Personnel
Assurance Program.
PURPOSE(S): The records are maintained and used by the Department
to ensure that individuals assigned to nuclear explosive duties
do not have emotional, mental, or physical incapacities that
could result in a threat to nuclear explosive safety. This is
done through a continuous evaluation process that identifies
individuals whose judgment or reliability may be impaired by
physical or mental/personality disorders, alcohol abuse, use of
illegal drugs or the abuse of legal drugs or other substances, or
any condition or circumstance that may be a security or safety
concern.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING
CATEGORIES OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES: 1. A record
from this system may be disclosed as a routine use for the
purpose of an investigation, settlement of claims, or the
preparation and conduct of litigation to a (1) person
representing the Department in the investigation, settlement or
litigation, and to individuals assisting in such representation;
(2) others involved in the investigation, settlement, and
litigation, and their representatives and individuals assisting
those representatives; (3) witness, potential witness, or their
representatives and assistants, and any other person who
[[Page 40888]] possesses information pertaining to the matter,
when it is necessary to obtain information or testimony relevant
to the matter.
2. A record from this system may be disclosed as a routine use in
court or administrative proceedings to the tribunals, counsel,
other parties, witnesses, and the public (in publicly available
pleadings, filings or discussion in open court) when such
disclosure: (1) Is relevant to, and necessary for, the
proceeding; and (2) is compatible with the purpose for which the
Department collected the records; and (3) the proceedings
involve: (a) The Department, its predecessor agencies, current or
former contractors of the Department, or other United States
Government agencies and their components, or (b) A current or
former employee of the Department and its predecessor agencies,
current or former contractors of the Department, or other United
States Government agencies and their components, who are acting
in an official capacity, or in any individual capacity where the
Department or other United States Government agency has agreed to
represent the employee.
3. A record from this system of records may be disclosed to a
Federal agency, in response to its written request, to facilitate
the requesting agency's decision concerning the hiring or
retention of an employee, the issuance of a security clearance,
the reporting of an investigation of an employee, the letting of
a contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other
benefit, to the extent that the information is relevant and
necessary to the requesting agency's decision on the matter. The
Department must deem such disclosure to be compatible with the
purpose for which the Department collected the information.
4. A record from the system may be disclosed as a routine use to
the appropriate local, State or Federal agency when records alone
or in conjunction with other information, indicate a violation or
potential violation of law whether civil, criminal, or regulatory
in nature, and whether arising by general statute or particular
program pursuant thereto.
5. A record from this system of records may be disclosed to a
member of Congress submitting a request involving the constituent
when the constituent has requested assistance from the member
with respect to the subject matter of the record. The member of
Congress must provide a copy of the constituent's request for
assistance.
6. A record from the system may be disclosed as a routine use to
DOE contractors in performance of their contracts, and their
officers and employees who have a need for the record in the
performance of their duties. Those provided information under
this routine use are subject to the same limitations applicable
to Department officers and employees under the Privacy Act.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING,
RETAINING, AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM: STORAGE:
Records may be stored as paper files and electronic media.
RETRIEVABILITY: Records may be retrieved by name, social security
number and employee number.
SAFEGUARDS: Paper records are maintained in locked cabinets and
desks. Electronic records are controlled through established DOE
computer center procedures (personnel screening and physical
security), and they are password protected. Access is limited to
those whose official duties require access to the records.
RETENTION AND DISPOSAL: Records retention and disposal
authorities are contained in the National Archives and Records
Administration (NARA) General Records Schedule and DOE record
schedules that have been approved by NARA.
SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS: Director of Security, U.S.
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington,
DC 20585. Field Offices: The HRP certifying official, or his or
her designee of the ``System Locations'' listed above are the
system managers for their respective portions of this system.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES: In accordance with the DOE regulation
implementing the Privacy Act, at 10 CFR part 1008, a request by
an individual to determine if a system of records contains
information about him/her should be directed to the Director,
Headquarters Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act Group,
U.S. Department of Energy, or the Privacy Act Officer at the
appropriate address identified above under ``System Locations.''
For records maintained by Laboratory, Area Office or Site
Offices, the request should be directed to the Privacy Act
Officer at the Operations Office, Field Office or Service Center
that has jurisdiction over that office or facility. The request
should include the requester's complete name, time period for
which records are sought, and the office locations(s) where the
requester believes the records are located.
RECORDS ACCESS PROCEDURES: Same as Notification Procedures above.
Records are generally kept at locations where the work is
performed. In accordance with the DOE Privacy Act regulation,
proper identification is required before a request is processed.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES: Same as Notification Procedures
above.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES: The individual, medical records,
occupational training records, and HRP program and personnel
security records. Information also may be obtained from the
supervisor, site occupational medical director, and the
management official when completing the Human Reliability Program
Certification.
SYSTEM EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE ACT: None.
[FR Doc. 04-15331 Filed 7-6-04; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
*****************************************************************
59 Wamp: Oak Ridge plays 'key role' in removing Iraqi nuclear material -
Wednesday, 07/07/04
tennessean.com
The Tennessean
Associate Press
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. -- Experts from the Energy Department's nuclear
weapons and research complex in Tennessee played a ''key role''
in removing radioactive material from Iraq that could be used in
a dirty bomb, U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp said.
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced in Washington on
Tuesday that DOE and the Defense Department removed 1.77 metric
tons of low-enriched uranium and about 1,000 highly radioactive
sources from a former nuclear research facility in Iraq.
The material was flown to the United States on June 23.
The uranium will be stored temporarily at a ''secure DOE
facility'' and the radioactive sources were taken to a ''DOE
laboratory'' for further examination, DOE said.
Bryan Wilkes, a spokesman for DOE's National Nuclear Security
Administration, refused to identify the DOE installations as the
Y-12 nuclear weapons plant and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory
in Tennessee.
Wamp, a Tennessee Republican whose district includes Oak Ridge,
had no such hesitation.
''Frankly, Oak Ridge has played a key role here,'' said Wamp, a
member of the House's homeland security and energy and water
subcommittees.
''At a classified level, we have been aware of what role Oak
Ridge plays,'' he said. ''And it is a wonderful, wonderful public
service for our highly skilled nuclear technicians to be engaged
in securing this material and bringing it back to the United
States.''
Those Oak Ridge technicians, as many as 20 according to DOE, also
will be involved in ''studying (the material) and determining
exactly how it needs to be secured and removed from any threat
that might develop against our nation,'' Wamp said.
Besides refurbishing nuclear warhead components, the Y-12
National Security Complex serves as this country's primary
storehouse for weapons-grade uranium and increasingly nuclear
materials from other global hot spots -- from the former Soviet
Union to most recently Libya.
The material from Iraq is less powerful than Y-12's highly
enriched uranium inventory. Wamp said it still might be fashioned
into a radiation-spreading dirty bomb that could ''kill
potentially hundreds or even thousands of people.''
''In a place like Iraq, where obviously now there is a vacuum
because we have removed the tyrant and the new government is
being established, you don't want the terrorists that are
operating in that region to ever get their hands on this type of
material,'' Wamp said.
''Making the world a safer place. That is what this is all
about,'' he said.
Bill Cabbage, a spokesman for the Oak Ridge lab, said Wednesday
he could not confirm the lab's involvement.
The Iraqi material came from the former central site for Iraq's
nuclear weapons program, which was dismantled in the early 1990s
following the first Gulf War. The complex also was a collection
point for highly radioactive sources found within Iraq over the
last year, the DOE said.
TOP | [http://www.tennessean.com/] |
© Copyright 2004 The Tennessean
*****************************************************************
60 The State: Plutonium may not be leaving SRS
07/07/2
Federal report says no destination is set for nuclear waste at
Aiken-area site
By SAMMY FRETWELL
Staff Writer
A recent federal report is fueling fears South Carolina could
become a permanent disposal ground for plutonium, a radioactive
metal that is among the deadliest atomic materials in the world.
The U.S. Department of Energy, in a June 16 report to Congress,
said it has not determined what to do with plutonium shipped from
the Rocky Flats, Colo., nuclear weapons complex to the Savannah
River Site.
That report said plutonium from the Rocky Flats site currently
is without a disposition path.
Energy Department officials have planned a $3.8 billion complex
at SRS to turn the leftover bomb-grade plutonium into fuel for
nuclear power plants near Charlotte. According to DOE plans,
about 34 metric tons from federal nuclear weapons sites
including some from Rocky Flats would be converted into fuel at
the Aiken-area weapons complex.
DOE spokesman Joe Davis said late Tuesday the agency still plans
to do that.
But anti-nuclear groups said the agencys own report indicates
otherwise. They said the report raises questions about what to do
with plutonium from at least four federal sites, including Rocky
Flats.
Greenpeace activist Tom Clements said it is further evidence the
governments program to turn plutonium into nuclear fuel is
unraveling.
A key House committee already has cut $165 million from the mixed
oxide fuel project this year. And the start of the fuel plants
construction has been delayed from this summer until at least
next spring.
That plutonium is being accumulated at SRS with no plans for its
disposition is alarming news to people in South Carolina, said
Amanda Martin, director of the Carolina Peace Resource Center in
Columbia.
The Energy Department has shipped about six metric tons of
plutonium from Rocky Flats to SRS in the past two years.
We warned that accumulating plutonium at SRS could turn the site
into a de facto permanent storage facility and that appears to
be coming true, Martin said.
The issue has been a hot one in South Carolina for more than two
years.
Former Gov. Jim Hodges sued the DOE in 2002 and threatened to
block shipments of plutonium to SRS unless the federal government
could guarantee the state it would remove the deadly material one
day.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., persuaded Congress to approve
legislation requiring the plutoniums eventual removal. But
Hodges maintained the law could be easily changed to suit the
Energy Departments future plans.
Will Folks, a spokesman for Gov. Mark Sanford, said the governor
expects the DOE to get rid of any plutonium it cant convert to
mixed oxide fuel.
The Energy Departments report to Congress indicates it has a
plan to take care of any plutonium it cant make into mixed oxide
fuel: It could be made into glass, a process similar to one the
DOE considered but abandoned as too expensive two years ago.
The Energy Department is conducting a preliminary study of the
plan, the report said.
Like mixed oxide fuel, the idea behind the glass process is to
make leftover plutonium useless for nuclear bombs. The United
States and Russia have been working for years to render a total
of 68 metric tons unusable for atomic weapons. Plutonium, a key
component in nuclear weapons, can increase cancer risks if
inhaled.
Reach Fretwell at (803) 771-8537 or [sfretwell@thestate.com] .
TheStateOnline
*****************************************************************
61 U.S. Newswire: DOE: to Announce New Science Education Initiative
Focusing on Teachers and Students
7/6/2004 1:25:00 PM
To: Assignment Desk and Daybook Editor, Education and Science
Reporter
Contact: Joe Davis, 202-586-4940, Jeff Sherwood, 202-586-5806,
both of the U.S. Department of Energy
News Advisory:
U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham will announce on
Thursday, July 8, a new initiative launched by the Department of
Energy and its national laboratories to promote science education
and help prepare the next generation of scientists and engineers.
"It is critical that we leverage the tremendous scientific
resources of the Department of Energy, and all of our national
labs, to help create a new generation of scientists who will
achieve the scientific breakthroughs and technological advances
that are essential to our future security and prosperity."
The Science Education Initiative will focus on several key areas
involving partnerships and educational opportunities between our
labs, university faculty, teachers and students from elementary
through high school. The program will provide hands-on training
for teachers and educational opportunities for students,
including career days, professional development programs, and an
annual science conference bringing together teachers, students
and scientists and corporate innovators.
EVENT INFORMATION:
WHEN: Thursday, July 8, 11 a.m. PDT
WHERE: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, 2575 Sand Hill Road,
Menlo Park, CA
Press
Contact: Neil Calder, 650-926-8707
http://www.usnewswire.com/ [http://www.usnewswire.com/]
*****************************************************************
62 Daily Texan: Los Alamos: Blinded by profits? -
- Opinion
dailytexanonline.com]
Opinion | 7/7/2004
By JJ Hermes
Mitchell Feigenbaum represents one of the most eccentric and
brilliant minds to inhabit the Theoretical Division of Los Alamos
National Laboratory in the 1970s. An atmospheric scientist who
experimented with a 26-hour work day, Feigenbaum was one of the
founders of chaos theory and embodies the non-nuclear side of
LANL - perhaps the only side that Einstein would still be proud
of. Far from the pressures of teaching and publishing, T Division
gave brilliant minds like his a place to keep their heads in the
clouds.
· · ·
In April 2003, Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham declared the
University of California responsible for the systematic failures
in managing LANL, opening the lab contract for competitive
bidding. By July 12, the UT System will formally announce its
interest in operating the lab, according to Randa Safady, vice
chancellor for external relations.
High on the list of flaws, including insufficient property
maintenance and lax security, Abraham cited the fact that UC's
performance in business services needed to be as good as its
performance in science.
A Department of Energy report mirrored this language, stating
that the culture at Los Alamos "exalted science and devalued
business practices, and that changing this attitude would be the
most difficult long-term challenge facing the laboratory."
Overall, the DOE seems tired of what it deems UC's "hands-off
approach" to management.
· · ·
Much like its research, there is a lopsided rift facing
management of the lab: nuclear and non-nuclear. According to the
UT System, the National Nuclear Security Administration makes up
about 72 percent of the Los Alamos budget - nuclear
weapons-related activities make up about 58 percent of the total
budget.
Managing the nuclear security of Los Alamos is perhaps one of the
most important posts in the world. The plutonium production zone
of Technical Area 55 is often referred to as the "four most
closely guarded acres on Earth." Not to mention the 3.2 metric
tons of enriched uranium and 2.7 metric tons of plutonium that
are stored at the facility, according to the last declassified
DOE report on the matter in 1996 (about 55 kilograms of enriched
uranium or smaller quantities of plutonium are required to make a
crude nuclear device).
Clearly, the current system has shown potential bidders how not
to manage nuclear security. In a Nov. 2003 Vanity Fair article,
Rich Levernier, who conducted war games for the U.S. government,
said, "In more than 50 percent of our tests of the Los Alamos
facility, we got in, captured the plutonium, got out again, and
in some cases didn't fire a shot, because we didn't encounter any
guards."
UT officials have previously expressed interest in delegating
security at the lab to a private partner, such as Lockheed
Martin. Lockheed already manages a facility UT lost $800,000
trying to bid on in 2002: Sandia National Laboratory. It
established a limited liability corporation to run the lab in
order to shield the parent company from inherent failure risks.
Even if the System goes in with a partner on security, it would
not have the opportunity to cut and run from a massive accident
or security breach, and most of the blame may likely fall on the
shoulders of any remaining management.
A report for the DOE by Robin Nazzaro identifies some of the
"mission support functions;" the mostly non-nuclear remaining
responsibilities that would likely encompass managing the lab.
They include emergency planning, ensuring projects are on time
and within budget, restoring and maintaining the infrastructure
of the complex, providing communications, carrying out repairs,
purchasing and accounting for products and service, and providing
a beneficial relationship with the local community. Perhaps most
important, managing the lab would also entail directing the very
research that goes on there.
The UT System has no stated position on what administrative
aspects it plans to pursue. As of now, Safady maintains that,
"Whether or not to pursue any portion of the contract will be
entirely dependent on the expectations and requirements set by
the Department of Energy and expressed in the final request for
proposal."
· · ·
Although a hands-off approach to managing the nuclear security of
LANL is a fatally flawed practice, groundbreaking research
requires a buffer from the suffocating hands of constant
oversight. Yet, the criticisms by the DOE have given the System a
chance to offer a bid framed more toward business-friendly
procedures.
While the DOE has better options to reverse the trend of
"devalued business practices" at LANL through private firms such
as the Battelle Memorial Institute, the UT System may fit its
management agenda like a glove. Lab scientists are reluctant to
research under private control, recently telling a panel at the
National Academy of Sciences that only a contractor "untainted by
desire for profits and market share can be trusted to advise the
United States on the reliability of its nuclear weapons and
whether to restart explosive nuclear testing after a 12-year
hiatus." The System may act as a perfect mediator to bridge the
narrowing gap between public and private.
System Chancellor Mark Yudof has already stated that payoff from
the lab will be enormous: "If they happen to discover something,
patent it, create a new business, a new product line - this is
the economic future of Texas."
The hotbed of creativity of Mitchell Feigenbaum's Los Alamos may
be a thing of the past, as business interests portend to strangle
science at an already reeling facility. Since nuclear security
may be a welcome burden lifted from UT's management duties,
maintaining a top-notch research department at the lab is the
next priority. If the UT System is really interested in advancing
research and technology for students and professors, a bid framed
for managing Los Alamos that compromises science for business is
not the best way to achieve it.
Hermes is a physics junior and a design director for Texas
Travesty.
*****************************************************************
63 Oak Ridger: OR assists in removal of Iraqi material
Story last updated at 12:31 p.m. on July 7, 2004
ENERGY SECRETARY: Goal of project was to keep potentially
dangerous materials out of the hands of terrorists.
By: Paul Parson | Oak Ridger Staff paul.parson@oakridger.com
[paul.parson@oakridger.com]
Though Department of Energy-related officials won't discuss the
effort in detail, one local congressman has confirmed Oak Ridge
played a "key role" in removing nuclear and radiological
materials from a "very unstable" part of the world.
"It's a wonderful, wonderful public service for our highly
skilled nuclear technicians to be engaged in securing this
material and bringing it back to the United States," said U.S.
Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District.
DOE only confirmed that 20 experts from its national laboratory
complex packaged 1.77 metric tons of low-enriched uranium and
roughly 1,000 highly radioactive sources from a former Iraqi
nuclear research facility.
Wamp
"This is potentially dangerous material," Wamp said of the items
that were actually airlifted by the Department of Defense to the
United States on June 23.
Mike Bradley, a spokesman for Oak Ridge National Laboratory, said
he could not discuss whether the research facility was involved
in obtaining the materials from Iraq.
It could be assumed that some of the material was ultimately
transported to Oak Ridge, given that several shipments of Libyan
nuclear weapons materials and components were sent to Y-12
National Security Complex this year. Y-12 is considered the
nation's principal storehouse for bomb-grade uranium or what's
officially known as highly enriched uranium.
Y-12 spokesman Bill Wilburn declined to discuss any involvement
by the plant, referring all inquiries to the National Nuclear
Security Administration - the quasi-independent agency within DOE
that oversees the nuclear weapons complex. An NNSA spokesman was
unavailable for comment.
According to federal officials, the low-enriched uranium will be
stored temporarily at a secure DOE facility while the
radiological sources will be characterized at a federal
laboratory.
In announcing the project Tuesday, Energy Secretary Spencer
Abraham said the goal was to keep potentially dangerous nuclear
and radiological materials out of the hands of terrorists who
could've used it to ultimately develop a radiological dispersal
device or support a nuclear weapons program.
The Iraqi nuclear research complex where the materials came from
"was once a central institution for Iraq's nuclear weapons
program before being dismantled in the early 1990s, following the
first Gulf War," according to federal officials. The complex was
also the consolidation point for highly radioactive sources
collected by the Department of Defense with assistance by
employees of the Iraq Ministry of Science and Technology within
Iraq over the last year.
For the current operation, DOE also repackaged less sensitive
materials that will remain in Iraq. For example, radiological
sources that continue to serve useful medical, agricultural or
industrial purposes were not removed.
*****************************************************************
64 Oak Ridger: Company to graduate incubator program
Story last updated at 12:31 p.m. on July 7, 2004
By: Paul Parson | Oak Ridger Staff paul.parson@oakridger.com
[paul.parson@oakridger.com]
An Oak Ridge-based company that offers solutions to getting
hazardous and nuclear waste transported from the "cradle to the
grave" is facing a significant milestone in its life.
The big event takes place Monday when Visionary Solutions LLC
graduates from the Center for Entrepreneurial Growth's business
incubator program.
"Graduation means that they've achieved certain milestones which
generally connotes sustainable operations," said Bob Wilson, the
center's director.
The center was established four years ago by UT-Battelle and
Technology 2020 to create an entrepreneurial climate in Tennessee
and to improve the dissemination of Oak Ridge National
Laboratory-related technology to small- and medium-sized
businesses.
Dee Markelonis, vice president of Visionary Solutions, said the
center's incubator program allows companies access to resources
and people with business-related experience in addition to giving
them time to grow and develop.
"There are a lot of hidden costs that you don't think about when
you start a business," Markelonis said.
Sometimes those costs are associated with items that most people
take for granted. She cited a copier machine as an example,
discussing the cost of getting one and maintaining it with
supplies.
"To a new business, just starting out, that's a huge cost,"
Markelonis said.
She co-owns Visionary Solutions with Cavanaugh Mims, who serves
as the company's president. The company offers a wide range of
services pertaining to environmental and waste management.
"We provide hazardous and nuclear waste transportation
solutions," Markelonis said. "We try to do that cradle to grave."
Visionary Solutions - classified as a small, minority-owned
business - was in the incubator program for around three years.
According to Wilson, there are 39 technology-focused start up
companies currently in the program - another one will be
graduating this year and two left in 2003.
*****************************************************************
65 Oak Ridger: Audit critical of DOE-related radio plans
Story last updated at 12:31 p.m. on July 7, 2004
By: Paul Parson | Oak Ridger Staff paul.parson@oakridger.com
[paul.parson@oakridger.com]
Development of two separate radio systems to service a nuclear
weapons plant and the remainder of the federal government's Oak
Ridge Reservation would be more costly to construct and maintain
than a single, integrated system.
That's the gist of an audit released Tuesday by the Department of
Energy's Inspector General's Office.
DOE sites rely heavily on radio communications to support or
facilitate activities such as emergency response, maintenance and
physical security.
The initiation of plans for separate systems commenced because
DOE's Oak Ridge Operations and the Y-12 National Security Complex
could not agree on an overall system deployment or capability
approach, the audit states.
Y-12 technically falls under the purview of the National Nuclear
Security Administration - the quasi-independent agency within DOE
that oversees the nuclear weapons complex.
"Constructing two separate radio systems at the reservation will
result in the expenditure of an estimated $900,000 more than
necessary in infrastructure costs and increase annual maintenance
costs by about $475,000," the audit states.
"These costs include $500,000 to develop a bridge between the two
systems to permit communication with one another - something
unnecessary under a single system."
Also, building two separate systems would result in an additional
$400,000 in construction costs when compared to the estimated
cost of adding Y-12 coverage to the one system. The Oak Ridge
Reservation system and the one for Y-12 were expected to cost
$4.5 million and $2.1 million respectively, while an expanded
version of the one system would cost $6.2 million.
Responding to the audit, federal managers generally agreed that a
single radio system would better meet the needs of the Oak Ridge
Reservation and indicated that work had been suspended on the
separate Y-12 system.
*****************************************************************
66 Daily Texan: Q: UT System on possible national lab bid -
Opinion
The Daily Texan [http://www.dailytexanonline.com]
Opinion | 7/7/2004
Editor's note: Randa Safady, UT System vice chancellor for
external relations, responded in writing to columnist JJ Hermes'
questions about Los Alamos. The questions, and Safady's answers,
are reprinted here.
Daily Texan: What portions of the management contract for Los
Alamos National Laboratory will the UT System pursue?
Randa Safady: No decision has been made to submit a proposal.
Whether or not to pursue any portion of the contract will be
entirely dependent on the expectations and requirements set by
the Department of Energy and expressed in the final request for
proposal, and any teaming or partnering arrangements that the UT
System may enter into in the preparation of a proposal.
DT: If awarded the management contract, would the relevant
aspects, offices and resources within UT System report to the
Department of Energy?
RS: We would expect that an office would be created within the UT
System that would be responsible for oversight and management of
Los Alamos consistent with our role in the overall management
contract. That office would be responsible for reporting to the
Department of Energy, much as the University of California's
Office of the Vice President for Laboratory Management does
today.
DT: What percentage of research conducted at Los Alamos relates
to nuclear weapons?
RS: Total current fiscal year funding for Los Alamos is $2.076
billion. Of that total budget, $1.489 billion is funds for the
National Nuclear Security Administration part of the Los Alamos
budget (72 percent). Of that portion of the LANL budget, $1.193
billion is for nuclear weapons-related activities (58 percent of
the total budget). The remainder of that portion of the NNSA
budget is for nonproliferation activities and security. Most of
the $1.193 billion earmarked for nuclear weapons-related
activities is for assuring and certifying to the president and to
Congress the safety of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile.
There has been no new nuclear weapons development conducted at
Los Alamos since 1992 and, therefore, no monies included in these
figures for that purpose. There is no way to determine what
percentage of the $1.193 billion spent on the NNSA portion of the
Los Alamos budget that is spent on nuclear weapons research
beyond that research contributes to the larger mission of
assuring and certifying the safety of the current stockpile, not
in developing new nuclear weapons.
DT: If the UT System is awarded the management contract, in what
direct ways will the prestige of the System be affected?
RS: There are a number of benefits to managing a national lab:
* Increased access to research and development programs at the
laboratory.
* Increased visibility of faculty, graduate students and
researchers engaged in research and development programs among
other government agencies.
* Increased advanced research opportunities for postdoctoral
students.
* New educational and research opportunities for graduate and
undergraduate students.
* Increased opportunities for UT and affiliated and collaborating
faculty members at other universities and colleges to participate
in programs at the lab.
* Opportunities for locating more Los Alamos-directed research
activities on UT System campuses and at other universities.
* Additional national and international prestige for UT
institutions, faculty, researchers and students from
participation and experience in cutting-edge, national research.
* An ability to recruit and retain top national scientists,
faculty, research fellows and graduate students to participate in
cutting-edge research conducted by the UT System and Los Alamos.
Managing a national research laboratory is not simply a matter of
prestige; it is a service to the students, faculty and
institutions of the UT System.
As a consequence of managing Los Alamos, the UT System, faculty
and students have the opportunity to participate in and have
access to the world's best science and research being conducted
by the Department of Energy's network of advanced research
facilities and programs.
The educational, employment and economic benefits from that
participation will have an enormous impact on the System, our
communities, our state and the nation.
*****************************************************************
67 Google News Alert - nuclear
Date: Wed, 07 Jul 2004 14:33:27 -0700 (PDT)
ISRAEL Worried About Iran's Nuclear Program
Los Angeles Times (subscription) - Los Angeles,CA,USA
JERUSALEM Israeli officials gave the visiting chief of the UN's atomic
oversight agency an earful today, but not about the nuclear weapons Israel
is widely ...
See all stories on this topic:
US removed nuclear material from Iraq
CNN - USA
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States removed nearly two tons of radiological
and nuclear materials from Iraq last month, the Energy Department said.
...
See all stories on this topic:
IRAN slams Powell's remarks on Tehran's nuclear program
Xinhua - China
TEHRAN, July 7 (Xinhuanet) -- Iran on Wednesday criticized US Secretary
of State Colin Powell's remarks on the nuclear ambitions of the Islamic
republic, the ...
See all stories on this topic:
NUCLEAR power still on back burner: Blair
Sydney Morning Herald - Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
... Tony Blair also admitted that Britain may have to build a new generation
of nuclear power stations to meet the challenge of climate change. ...
See all stories on this topic:
ONTARIO to repair, reopen nuclear plant
The Globe and Mail - Canada
Ontario's Liberal government announced the controversial decision Wednesday
to continue the province's reliance on nuclear power by rebuilding one
nuclear ...
See all stories on this topic:
CLIMATE keeps nuclear option on UK's table
The Age - Melbourne,Victoria,Australia
By Patrick Wintour, Paul Brown. Britain is facing challenges over how to
deal with the imminent closure of some of its nuclear plants, such as
Sellafield. ...
See all stories on this topic:
US reports transferring nuclear material out of Iraq, UN atomic ...
UN News Centre
... from Washington, the head of the United Nations atomic watchdog agency
has told the Security Council that the United States transferred nuclear
material out of ...
See all stories on this topic:
WAMP: Oak Ridge plays 'key role' in removing Iraqi nuclear ...
The Tennessean - Nashville,TN,USA
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. -- Experts from the Energy Department's nuclear weapons
and research complex in Tennessee played a ''key role'' in removing radioactive
...
See all stories on this topic:
INDIA - Pakistan conclude first day of talks on nuclear CBMs
123Bharath.com - India
Setting in motion a crucial expert-level dialogue on nuclear confidence
building measures (CBMs), India and Pakistan today identified areas of
convergence on ...
See all stories on this topic:
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/
*****************************************************************
68 NY Newsday: Why radiation hardly bugs those roaches
Newsday.com
New York City - Health and Science
Wednesday, Jul 7, 2004, 11:07 PM EDT NEW YORK NOW:
NEWS [http://www.nynewsday.com]
Kathy Wollard How Come?
How come cockroaches can survive radiation? asks Chris D., a
student in Manhasset.
It's an idea that's been around for a while: Cockroaches will
inherit the Earth. Whether it's a nuclear war, global warming,
deep freeze, or an alien invasion that does us in, it's the
cockroaches who'll be left standing - or crawling - when the dust
settles. And if there's mutating radiation involved, say the
1950s sci-fi movies, it may be giant cockroaches driving the
Hummers we leave behind.
Of course, the idea that cockroaches will survive us may have
become popular because it's so hard to get rid of them, even when
there isn't a catastrophe. Roach sprays, roach traps, roach
motels - whole industries are focused on how to get roaches to
check out of our apartments and houses.
In fact, there are plenty of small creatures that are more
radiation-resistant than cockroaches. They just don't annoy us as
much.
But cockroaches are survival experts. No one is sure when they
first appeared, but scientists have found a fossil of a cockroach
that lived a quarter of a billion years ago - eons before there
were human beings.
Today, there are at least 3,500 different species of cockroach,
and countless billions of individual insects.
Cockroaches have survived so long - and changed so little in all
that time - because they are so easy-going and adaptable. If you
can live anywhere, and eat anything, you're bound to be a
successful animal - a survivor - in evolutionary terms.
For example, take German roaches, the kind most likely to peek
out from under your stove. Of course, they relish the dry cat
food in Puff's bowl on the floor, and the spaghetti sauce on that
plate you left in the sink. But they will settle, in a pinch, for
munching on the glue that holds your books together. And these
unfussy eaters can really multiply - more than 13,000 were
counted in one Chicago apartment.
And although cockroaches are vulnerable to radiation like
everything living, they're a lot less vulnerable than we. A human
being may be killed by a radiation dose of 300 rems. In one 1950s
study, mature German cockroaches didn't die until the radiation
was ratcheted up to 90,000 to 100,000 rems.
Why? Scientists say the main reason is that roaches are less
complex organisms than human beings. With less DNA for ionizing
radiation to damage, cockroach cells are not as likely to be
killed by a big dose. Adult roaches also have relatively fewer
dividing cells - which are most vulnerable to radiation - than do
people.
In fact, insects in general are good at withstanding radiation,
and scientists say there might be something special about insect
cells that makes them so rad-resistant.
And some studies have shown cockroaches being outplayed in the
radiation survivor game. Rather than the cockroach, it may be
fruit flies, flour beetles, and parasitic wasps that inherit the
world.
Oh, and don't forget bacteria. One kind of bacterium,
deinococcus radiodurans, lives like a happy pig in irradiated
food, frigid Antarctic rock, and radioactive waste dumps.
Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.
[http://www.nynewsday.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:
*****************************************************************