***************************************************************** 03/11/05 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 13.56 ***************************************************************** 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 Guardian Unlimited Chavez: Iran Has Right to Nuclear Program 2 BBC: Iran 'given Pakistan centrifuges' 3 BBC: Bush backs diplomacy with Tehran 4 AFP: 'Stronger' US action if Iran does not end nuclear weapons ambit 5 Guardian Unlimited: Pakistan Admits Rogue Scientist Aided Iran 6 Guardian Unlimited: U.S. to Give Iran Incentives to Stop Nukes 7 Guardian Unlimited: U.S. to Work With Europeans on Iran Talks 8 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: [OUTLOOK]6-party talks are looking useless 9 US: Las Vegas SUN: Utah lawmaker introduces bill to make weapons 10 US: Spectrum: Put hurdles in front of nuke tests 11 UN Atomic Watchdog Fights Not Just Spread Of Nuclear Arms But UN Art 12 [du-list] War "by deception" - There was no full legal advice 13 [du-list] Weaponised Uranium letter to Australian Prime 14 [DU-WATCH] Declassified DU files 15 [DU-WATCH] Weaponised Uranium letter to Australian Prime 16 ThisisLondon: Nuclear shortage 'threatens blackouts' NUCLEAR REACTORS 17 US: NRC: NRC to Discuss 2004 Performance at Catawba Nuclear Power Pl 18 Korea Herald: [ANN]Nuke power and China's energy sector 19 US: NRC: Decommissioning Program--2004 Annual Report; Notice of 20 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Aging nuclear plants present a dilemma 21 US: NRC: Comment Request 22 allAfrica.com: South Africa: PBMR to Work With Chinese Companyin Nuc 23 US: toledoblade.com: FirstEnergy's chief gives upbeat report on its 24 Xinhua: OECD calls for new look at nuclear energy in changing global 25 ITAR-TASS: Russia not bearing civil liability for Chernobyl accident 26 US: Green Bay Press-Gazette: Nuclear-plant work comes at a cost 27 Mos News: Russia Denies Responsibility for Chernobyl Nuclear Disaste 28 CBC: Premier's Lepreau strategy under fire 29 US: Vermont Guardian: VY proposes 12 casks; critics say thats too ma NUCLEAR SAFETY 30 US: [du-list] Anti Uranium smoke campaign? 31 [du-list] Federal row over role of Australian troops in Muthanna, 32 [du-list] First Army caring for soldiers (but not for DU exposure) 33 [du-list] Lawyers' panel indicts Bush, Blair 34 [DU-WATCH] Australian troops may be exposed to uranium 35 [DU-WATCH] Australian Troops will be protected from radiation: 36 [DU-WATCH] turning our backs on the marshall islands again 37 US: RE: [toeslist] Re: How radioactive is DU? 38 Xinhua: Japan to pay residents for radioactive soil 39 US: NRC: In the Matter of Transnuclear, Inc., and All Other Persons 40 ITAR-TASS: FC ratifies Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Dam 41 US: NRC: In the Matter of NAC International, Inc., and All Other Per 42 AU ABC: Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief. 43 US: NRC: In the Matter of BNFL Fuel Solutions Corporation and All Ot NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 44 IEER update: Uranium Enrichment; DU; Yucca Mountain; Secure 45 US: [du-list] Superfund site cleanup likely to begin this year 46 US: L.A. Daily News: Bermite cleanup nearer 47 US: Bradenton Herald: County to update Tallevast residents today 48 US: deseret news: Exhaust all avenues on waste 49 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: 3 cities going after nuclear dump project 50 Las Vegas RJ: Energy officials turn shy in talk about Yucca schedule 51 Scotland: The Herald: Nuclear waste 52 Las Vegas SUN: Ex-Reid aide is mum on Yucca in NRC post 53 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department says it needs cash to move on 54 Las Vegas SUN: EPA radiation options for Yucca met with criticism 55 US: Salt Lake Tribune: Hazardous import: The state still is behind m 56 US: ICT: Treaty may prevent nuclear storage 57 ICT: Yucca Mountain lawsuit filed 58 US: CCDR: Judge rejects Cotter appeal 59 US: AU ABC: Rann backs uranium mining policy rethink. NUCLEAR WEAPONS US DEPT. OF ENERGY 60 Guardian Unlimited: Contractor for Hanford Waste Cleanup Fined 61 L.A. Daily News: Some claim a raw deal on radiation 62 New Mexican: Northrop builds a team to lead bid for LANL 63 Seattle Times: Hanford company is fined $316,250 64 lamonitor.com: Battelle won't bid for LANL OTHER NUCLEAR 65 [du-list] Anti Du force field by Wiz of Oz to be deployed... 66 [du-list] DU in the news - 12th March 05 ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** FULL NEWS STORIES ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** 1 Guardian Unlimited Chavez: Iran Has Right to Nuclear Program From the Associated Press [UP] Saturday March 12, 2005 1:46 AM AP Photo XFLL102 By FABIOLA SANCHEZ Associated Press Writer CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez defended Iran on Friday in its dispute with the United States and Europe over its nuclear program, saying Iran has a right to atomic energy. Chavez, whose country is a leading U.S. oil supplier, announced his stance after meeting Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, who declared that both governments will stand ``firm against any aggression.'' ``Iran has every right, like many other countries have done, to develop its atomic energy and continue its research in this field,'' Chavez said after top officials from both countries signed 20 cooperation agreements in areas from petrochemical projects to agriculture. ``Venezuela and Iran agree in firmly rejecting the imperialist policy of the United States.'' Both countries face increasingly tense relations with the Bush administration, which has voiced concerns that Iran could be trying to acquire nuclear arms and has criticized what Chavez's opponents call a drift toward dictatorship. Iran insists its nuclear program is purely for energy uses, and Chavez has accused Washington of backing plots to oust him. Speaking before Venezuela's congress, Khatami lamented ``the injustice of the great powers that try to control the world.'' He said they include the United States and interfere ``in other states under the precept of fighting terrorism and try to force all of humanity to follow their monopoly of power.'' ``What must be condemned are calls for violence, whether from terrorists or from aggressors with yearnings for domination,'' Khatami said. U.S. officials said Friday they will support European diplomatic efforts to end Iran's alleged nuclear weapons ambitions by offering modest economic incentives. The European Union also revealed it will back U.S. calls to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council if it does not scrap programs linked to nuclear arms, such as uranium enrichment. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005 ***************************************************************** 2 BBC: Iran 'given Pakistan centrifuges' Last Updated: Thursday, 10 March, 2005 [AQ Khan Pakistani nuclear scientist] Khan confessed last year to leaking nuclear secrets Pakistan has confirmed that the former head of its nuclear weapons programme, AQ Khan, gave centrifuges for enriching uranium to Iran. It is the first time Pakistani officials have publicised details of what nuclear materials the disgraced scientist passed on to Iran. Information minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told the BBC's Urdu service that "a few" centrifuges were involved. Iran is under international pressure over its nuclear ambitions. It says it intends to use enriched uranium only in power stations, but the US says Iran is making fuel for nuclear weapons. 'Personal capacity' The Pakistani information minister stated again on Thursday that his government had no knowledge of Dr Khan's activities. "He helped Iran in his personal capacity," he said, the Associated Press news agency reported. Officials have consistently said that the government had no knowledge of Mr Khan's activities on the nuclear black market. [Supporters of Mr AQ Khan prior to hi confession Why Pakistan's nuclear scandal still hits the news Many analysts have questioned the veracity of these denials saying it would have been impossible for him to conceal his actions. Dr Khan remains under close guard at his home in Islamabad. The authorities have refused to allow experts from the UN nuclear watchdog, citing national security. "We will not hand over [Dr Khan] to any other country," Mr Ahmed reiterated on Thursday. Last month he dismissed reports that the US was probing whether Dr Khan had sold nuclear secrets to Arab nations. European countries and the UN recently joined the US in criticising Iran for allegedly not keeping a pledge to suspend uranium enrichment activities. UN atomic energy agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said this month that the "ball is very much in Iran's court to come clean". Nation shocked The US has called Dr Khan the "biggest proliferator" of nuclear technology. Labelled the father of Pakistan's nuclear programme, Dr Khan confessed last year to leaking nuclear secrets. He said he took full responsibility for proliferating nuclear weapons to Iran, Libya and North Korea. President Pervez Musharraf pardoned him, but the scandal embarrassed and traumatised Pakistan, and stunned world nuclear experts. Dr Khan had held the post of scientific adviser since retiring as head of the country's top nuclear facility in 2001 but was sacked after his confession. ***************************************************************** 3 BBC: Bush backs diplomacy with Tehran Last Updated: Saturday, 12 March, 2005 [US President George W Bush] The US had previously taken an uncompromising line on Iran The US has signalled a major change in policy towards Iran, offering economic incentives for the Islamic state to give up its alleged nuclear ambitions. It will lift a decade-long block on Iran's membership of the World Trade Organization, and objections to Tehran obtaining parts for commercial planes. The move will also see the US get behind European attempts to use diplomacy to resolve the issue. Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons and has suspended uranium enrichment. The US and European Union want that move made permanent, and have threatened to seek United Nations sanctions if Iran does not comply. There have been suggestions that the US is planning to use military force against Iran's suspected nuclear weapons facilities. This is giving the Europeans stronger hand, not rewarding the Iranians Condoleezza Rice US Secretary of State US President George W Bush said on Friday: "I'm pleased that we are speaking with one voice with our European friends. "I look forward to working with our European friends to make it abundantly clear to the Iranian regime that the free world will not tolerate them having a nuclear weapon." 'Stronger hand' Two of the most senior figures in the US administration made it clear that the US now backed European-led diplomatic efforts on Iran, but said the possibility of punitive action remained. "The decision that the president has taken is that the United States will make an effort to actively support the EU3 negotiations with the Iranians," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said, referring to the EU's talks with Iran led by Britain, France and Germany. [Iran's Hassan Rowhani and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer] EU nations have been involved in negotiations with Iran "We will make clear that we will lift our objections to an Iranian application to the WTO, and that we are prepared to lift an objection to the licensing of spare parts for Iranian commercial aircraft," she added. But Vice-President Dick Cheney sounded a note of caution. "At the end of the day, if the Iranians don't live up to their obligations and their international commitments to forego a nuclear programme, then obviously we'll have to take stronger action," he told Fox News. Previously, the US had refused to offer incentives for Iran to abide by the terms of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. BBC state department correspondent Jonathan Beale says Mr Bush appears to have had a change of heart following his recent visit to Europe and discussions with EU leaders. Ms Rice insisted: "This is most assuredly giving the Europeans a stronger hand, not rewarding the Iranians." 'Resolution possible' Iran insists it wants nuclear power only for peaceful purposes. A senior Iranian negotiator, Sirus Naseri, described the American move as "too insignificant to comment about" and said it would not affect current negotiations with the EU nations. Tehran has agreed to maintain its enrichment suspension while it negotiates trade and security benefits, but maintains that the enrichment issue is not currently up for discussion. Earlier, the "EU3" said progress on nuclear talks with Iran had not been "as fast as we would wish". In a letter to the EU presidency, they said that if Iran continued to abide by its agreements, the dispute might be resolved by the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). But they made clear that Europe would back US attempts to refer Tehran to the UN Security Council - which has the power to impose sanctions - if it resumed uranium enrichment or failed to live up to its international obligations while talks were under way. ***************************************************************** 4 AFP: 'Stronger' US action if Iran does not end nuclear weapons ambitions : Cheney - Reuters | AFP | Sky News | Photos Saturday March 12, 02:23 AM WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States will pursue "stronger action" if Iran does not abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions, Vice President Dick Cheney said in an interview Friday. The statement comes as Washington announced it would drop objections to Iran joining the World Trade Organization to support efforts by Britain, France and Germany aimed at persuading Tehran to end its suspect nuclear program. If the Iranians are interested only in civilian nuclear power they can acquire reactor fuel from several different commercial sources, Cheney said in an interview with Fox News. The concern is that Iran wants to enrich enough fuel to give them the capability to build a weapon, he said. "And that's what we want to avoid," said Cheney. "But at the end of the day if the Iranians don't live up to their obligations and their international commitments to forego a nuclear program, then obviously we'll have to take stronger action." Speaking on a trip to the southern state of Louisiana Friday, US President George W. Bush said that Washington and its allies will "speak with one voice to the Iranian regime that they should abandon any ambitions for nuclear weapons for the sake of peace in the world." Copyright © 2005 AFP AFP. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 5 Guardian Unlimited: Pakistan Admits Rogue Scientist Aided Iran From the Associated Press [UP] Friday March 11, 2005 10:31 AM AP Photo ISL102 By MUNIR AHMAD Associated Press Writer ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - Lawmakers from hardline Islamic groups and moderate opposition parties Friday walked out of the lower house of parliament to protest a startling admission from a Cabinet minister that a top Pakistani nuclear scientist sold centrifuges to Iran. In a rare admission, Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Thursday said Abdul Qadeer Khan sold the centrifuges to Tehran but insisted that the government was not aware of his activities. ``Dr. Abdul Qadeer gave some centrifuges to Iran,'' Ahmed told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. ``He helped Iran in his personal capacity, and the Pakistan government had nothing to do with it.'' It was the first time a politician from either Iran or Pakistan publicly admitted the transfer of centrifuges, which could be used in making an atomic bomb. On Friday, opposition lawmakers said Ahmed's remarks were highly irresponsible and could create problems for the nation. They called for a debate on the matter, but National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Ameer Hussain rejected the request. Dozens of angry lawmakers continued shouting their remarks over the speaker's objection, then walked out. Qazi Hussain Ahmad, the leader of the Islamic political alliance, said Ahmed's remarks were ``highly irresponsible.'' ``This is a very serious and sensitive matter and the house should hold a debate on it,'' he said. Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, a lawmaker from Pakistan People's Party, a moderate opposition group, also criticized the minister and praised Khan for helping Pakistan attain an atomic bomb. Khan is still considered a hero by many Pakistanis for single-handedly building a nuclear weapon to counter rival India. Khan has been living under virtual house arrest since December 2003. The International Atomic Energy Agency has been investigating for more than two years evidence he sold nuclear technology to Iran, Libya, North Korea and others. President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who made Pakistan a key ally of Washington in its war on terror after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in America, pardoned Khan last year but restricted his movement. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005 ***************************************************************** 6 Guardian Unlimited: U.S. to Give Iran Incentives to Stop Nukes From the Associated Press [UP] Friday March 11, 2005 8:46 AM By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - In a policy shift, the Bush administration will go along with European efforts to stop Iran from building a nuclear weapon by using diplomatic carrots now, with the threat of U.N. sticks later. President Bush agreed to offer modest economic incentives to Iran in exchange for Tehran's abandoning its nuclear enrichment program, two senior administration officials said Thursday. The three European countries leading diplomatic talks with Iran were expected to announce their side of the deal first on Friday, followed later in the day by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's announcement of the U.S. decisions. As recommended by the European leaders who have been negotiating with Iran, the incentives include possible membership for Iran in the World Trade Organization and the sale of commercial aircraft parts to Tehran. In exchange for offering incentives, the United States obtained a firm agreement from Britain, France and Germany to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council for sanctions if Iran does not permanently drop its nuclear program, said the two officials. They spoke on condition of anonymity. The United States agreed not to oppose talks on WTO membership for Iran - a process that normally takes years - and to permit the aircraft part sales, they said. The part sales would be considered on a case-by-case basis, one official said. The European countries wanted U.S. support on the theory that a united front was most likely to persuade Iran to comply. So long as the United States remained apart, Iran would delay meaningful steps to end its nuclear program, the Europeans argued. They also argued that the United States risked looking like the odd man out if the Europeans did win a nonproliferation deal. The Europeans urged the United States to join the talks, but the Bush administration wanted to remain at arm's length from Iran. Iran and the United States have not had diplomatic relations since 1979, when Iranian militants occupied the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held its staff hostage. The administration has opposed any reward for Iranian activities the administration views as a violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The treaty bars Iran from enriching spent nuclear fuel to make it suitable for nuclear weapons. Until now, Bush, who also objects to Iran's support of militant anti-Israeli groups like Hezbollah, has focused instead entirely on the possibility of U.N. sanctions against Iran. Rice drew a hard line on Iran during her meetings last month with representatives of all three Europeans nations, despite a direct public appeal for her support from French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier. Rice made it clear that U.S. patience was wearing thin on Iran and that Bush expected the Europeans to produce results or move for U.N. Security Council action. The matter came up repeatedly when Bush went to Europe later in February, and he began to show greater willingness to look at backing the European approach. ``The president was very much in a listening mode,'' White House press secretary Scott McClellan said when Bush returned to Washington. Iran insists its uranium enrichment program is strictly designed to produce electrical power, not weapons. Tehran has refused to permanently give up its program, but has agreed to temporarily suspend enrichment-related activities as part of the talks with the Europeans. Referral to the Security Council could result in economic sanctions or even tougher action against Iran. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005 ***************************************************************** 7 Guardian Unlimited: U.S. to Work With Europeans on Iran Talks From the Associated Press [UP] Friday March 11, 2005 11:46 PM AP Photo MU112 By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration on Friday softened its hardline stance on how to thwart Iran's suspected nuclear arms program, agreeing to support a European plan that offers economic incentives for the Tehran government to give up any weapons ambitions. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice signaled, however, that Iran should move quickly or face the threat of harsh United Nations Security Council sanctions. The administration also privately expressed skepticism that Iran would live up to the bargain. Until now, the administration has insisted that Iran deserves no reward for simply abiding by an international arms compact that forbids nuclear weapons development. The United States suspects Iran is using a legitimate program to develop nuclear power plants as cover for illegal weapons development. ``I'm pleased that we are speaking with one voice with our European friends,'' President Bush said during a trip to Shreveport, La. ``I look forward to working with our European friends to make it abundantly clear to the Iranian regime that the free world will not tolerate them having a nuclear weapon.'' The United States agreed to drop opposition to Iranian membership in the World Trade Organization and to allow some sales of spare parts for civilian aircraft. If that carrot does not work, the Europeans agreed to support use of the stick the United States has unsuccessfully sought before: U.N. sanctions. Rice said there is no timetable for negotiations, but added, ``This has been going on for some time.'' ``I would think that if the Iranians are going to demonstrate that they are prepared to live up to their obligations, that they would want to do that sooner rather than later,'' she told reporters after meeting at the State Department with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk. ``The Iranians need to take the opportunity that the Europeans are presenting them,'' Rice said. The European Union warned Tehran explicitly about possible U.N. action Friday. ``We shall have no choice but to support referring Iran's nuclear program to the U.N. Security Council,'' a confidential EU document obtained by The Associated Press said. There was no immediate response from Tehran. Vice President Dick Cheney said concern remains that Iran wants the capability to ``enrich fuel far beyond what's required for a civilian reactor to levels that would give them the capability to build a weapon.'' ``If the Iranians don't live up to their obligations and their international commitments to forgo a nuclear program, then obviously we'll have to take stronger action,'' Cheney said in an interview Fox News Channel's ``Special Report with Brit Hume.'' It remains an open question whether Iran will surrender its right to both enrich uranium and reprocess it, said a senior administration official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity. Still, added the official, the U.S. has made a move that could help the Europeans in their negotiations with the Iranians. The shift places the United States side by side with British, French and German diplomats. Just weeks ago the Bush administration had seemed to write off their talks with Tehran as fruitless. The change came about as Bush and Rice received personal assurances that the European countries negotiating with Tehran over its nuclear program are firmly committed to stopping any weapons program there, administration officials said Friday. Both Rice and Bush discussed Iran during fence-mending trips to Europe in February. Those trips were meant to clear the air after disagreements with European powers during Bush's first term over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. A dinner Rice attended in London with European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana and counterparts from Britain, France and Germany was a key turning point, one official said on condition of anonymity. At that March 1 dinner, the Europeans told Rice they would hold Iran to its obligations not to use civilian nuclear power programs to hide weapons research and development, and that the Europeans would support an international effort to invoke U.N. Security Council sanctions if Iran reneged, the official said. Iran is building its first nuclear power plant with Russian help. The U.S. for now accepts Russian assurances that no enrichment or reprocessing will take place, and that spent fuel rods will be returned to Russia. Weapons-grade nuclear fuel can be made either by enriching uranium or by reprocessing spent-fuel rods to create plutonium. The European countries wanted U.S. support on the theory that a united front was most likely to persuade Iran to comply. So long as the United States remained apart, Iran would delay meaningful steps to end its nuclear program, the Europeans argued. They also argued that the United States risked looking like the odd man out if the Europeans did win a nonproliferation deal. The Europeans urged the United States to join the talks, but the Bush administration wanted to remain at arm's length from Iran. Iran and the United States have not had diplomatic relations since 1979, when Iranian militants occupied the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held its staff hostage. The United States has long listed Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism. Rice said in a statement that the administration will consider allowing the spare parts sales on a case-by-case basis. Many of the sales would be from European Union countries. WTO membership increases a country's chances of selling goods to the United States and other rich nations. Joining can be a difficult process that takes several years. ^--- Associated Press Writers George Jahn in Vienna, Austria, and Tom Raum in Washington contributed to this report. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005 ***************************************************************** 8 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: [OUTLOOK]6-party talks are looking useless March 12, 2005 KST 15:14 (GMT+9) Frantic efforts are under way to lure Pyeongyang back to the six-party talks. This is understandable, but in my judgment it is misguided and premature. If past experience is any guide, one of the North Korea's neighbors will pay it handsomely for merely showing up, and the North will secure a new opportunity to expose and exploit the visible policy differences among its interlocutors. An early meeting of the six should not be the priority; agreement on strategy among "the Five" is a necessary prerequisite for a successful negotiation with the North. That should be the focus of diplomacy now. The six-party talks were established to serve several key objectives. One was to muster expanded leverage on Pyeongyang by confronting it with a unified approach among its neighbors and the United States. Another was to provide multilateral "political cover" for bilateral discussions between U.S. and North Korean representatives ¡ª an essential component of a serious negotiation. A third was to assure that South Korea, China, Japan, and Russia acknowledged their stake in assuring the North's compliance with the terms of an agreement should one emerge. Unfortunately, little has been achieved. "The Five" have been unable to present a common front in the talks, and Pyeongyang has exploited their disarray to buy time and avoid hard choices. Despite a few cursory exchanges on the margins of the Beijing meetings, no serious bilateral discussions between the United States and North Korea have materialized. Plenary meetings have been marked by formal presentations and little give and take. Meanwhile, though the negotiations are well into their second year, the North is busy operating its nuclear reactor, reprocessing its plutonium, and working energetically to develop a uranium enrichment capability ¡ª scarcely a record of accomplishment that inspires confidence, especially in light of North Korea's provocative announcement on Feb. 10 that it has a nuclear deterrent, intends to expand it further and will return to the talks only when its conditions are met. Why should we expect Pyeongyang to take the negotiations seriously? At the last six-party meeting in June last year, the Bush administration, responding to admonitions from Seoul and Beijing and its own need to adopt a more politically defensible diplomatic stance during its bid for re-election, put a more conciliatory offer on the table. It may not have been the most imaginative proposal since the appearance of sliced bread, but it constituted genuine movement in Washington's position. Pyeongyang appeared initially to perceive some features of interest, which it promised to study. A month passed without a word of public support for the U.S. initiative from South Korea, China, or Japan. Perversely, Moscow openly expressed its preference for Pyeongyang's offer of a partial "freeze." The North, evidently confident that it would pay no price for stubbornness, then trashed the U.S. offer and refused to return to the talks. As one might have predicted, pressure on Washington to come up with a new and more flexible offer resumed. Pyeongyang wriggled off the hook, while its neighbors and the U.S. went back to negotiating among themselves. This is a fool's game! Without a coordinated negotiating strategy, further six-party meetings are feckless. They merely provide an excuse to concentrate on a process that is yet without substance. The core problem in the negotiation is easy to identify. Whatever the venue, Pyeongyang has little incentive to take the interests of its neighbors and the U.S. seriously unless we present them with a hard and inescapable choice: Verifiably shut down its nuclear activities in return for clearly specified benefits, or confront serious, tangible consequences for its refusal to do so. The Five cannot present such a choice unless they are united and are prepared to utilize both carrots and sticks. Seoul and Beijing appear interested in offering only carrots. There is nothing diplomatically repugnant about appeasement, provided it works. It is scarcely a prudent or defensible course if it does not. And there is little evidence of results to date. South Korea and China have extended substantial resource transfers to the North. Both maintain publicly that they will not tolerate a nuclear North Korea. Yet in the face of the North's Feb. 10 announcement, both ¡ª to the relief of Pyeongyang, I suspect ¡ª displayed embarrassment and denial rather than purposeful resolution. Washington's approach seems comparably problematic, not least, perhaps, because visible internal differences over policy within the administration have not been decisively resolved. To date it has been equally short on credible threats and plausible inducements. Japan has put together a balanced mix of carrots and sticks, but is utterly preoccupied, however understandably, with the unresolved abduction issue. Unless the Bush administration and Japan can find some common ground with South Korea and China that marries appealing inducements with convincing threats, further six-party talks will be an exercise in futility. The time has come to get serious, and that means authoritative consultations among the Five. If a consensus on negotiating strategy can be forged ¡ª and this will demand greater flexibility from Washington and greater firmness from Seoul and Beijing ¡ª a resumption of the talks would be timely. If it can't, we will have to go back to the drawing board because the talks won't help. * The writer, a former U.S. ambassador to Japan, is a professor at Stanford University. by Michael H. Armacost 2005.03.11 Copyright by Joins.com, Inc. Terms of Use | ***************************************************************** 9 Las Vegas SUN: Utah lawmaker introduces bill to make weapons testing at NTS more difficult By Suzanne Struglinski SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON -- A Utah lawmaker introduced a bill today to make it harder for the government to resume weapons testing again at the Nevada Test Site. By October 2006, the Energy Department is supposed to be ready to restart testing nuclear weapons at the Test Site, 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas, within 18 months of a presidential order to do so. It has requestd $25 million for that effort in the 2006 budget. Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, introduced a bill Wednesday that calls for a review focusing on potential health, safety and environmental effects of new nuclear weapons testing before any new test could start. The bill would also require approval from Congress before tests could start as well as at least a week's public notice. The bill also calls for government and private monitoring of radiation levels and creates a group of universities that will study the health effects of radiation. Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., signed on as a cosponsor. Sen. Robert Bennett, R-Utah, will introduce the same bill in the Senate. "I remember my father telling me about how people in Southern Utah would watch the sky light up from the nuclear tests and how Utahns supported the program because they were strong patriots who believed in their country and trusted their government" Matheson said in a statement. "Many untimely deaths later, we've learned to be skeptical of the government's safety claims regarding this issue." Matheson introduced the bill for the first time in 2004, after the department began requesting funds to get the Test Site ready for weapons work again. Without the bill, the testing could begin at the discretion of the Energy Secretary, according to Matheson's office. All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 10 Spectrum: Put hurdles in front of nuke tests St. George - www.thespectrum.com Editorials Friday, March 11, 2005 Earlier this week, Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah, said he supports a Department of Energy proposal to prepare the Nevada Test Site to test new weapons such as the so-called bunker-buster bombs and the reliability of the country's aging nuclear arsenal, saying the United States needs a "clear deterrent" for its enemies in the war on terror. He capped his remarks by saying he believes nuclear testing can be conducted safely. On Wednesday, Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, re-introduced a slightly amended version of the Safety for Americans from Nuclear Weapons Testing Act, which he originally submitted to the House a year ago. The bill places a number of hurdles in the way of resuming nuclear tests, including congressional approval before any weapons are detonated and forcing the federal government to perform an environmental impact study prior to conducting tests. The bill is actually a collaboration between Matheson and Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, who introduced a similar measure on the Senate floor last year. Matheson used some components of Bennett's bill in the new legislation. As Southern Utahns living in the shadow of the mushroom cloud, we have a stake in this issue. There are those who claim that little, if any, ill effects were suffered by the American public as a result of more than 1,000 nuclear tests conducted between 1951 and 1992. That is, however, a minority opinion as evidence from the Centers for Disease Control and the National Cancer Institute shows. Studies claim as many as 15,000 Americans lost their lives as a result of poisonous fallout from the nuclear tests. We have read the studies, we have listened to the experts and we are unshakable in our belief that Matheson and Bennett are on the right path. The mountains of evidence point menacingly to lethal cancers and other diseases that infected our neighbors and those across the continental United States, whether through the air they breathed or the food they ate. We have seen the charts and maps that show how the dangerous cloud of Iodine 131 followed atmospheric patterns and eventually rained down on the nation's food-producing heartland, into the fertile fields of the South and into the highly populated East, where radiation counts were high in places such as upstate New York and even southeastern Canada. As a result, we must underscore our oft-stated position that there is no such thing as a safe nuclear test. We, once again, support Matheson and Bennett as they do the right thing by placing every hurdle at their disposal in front of plans to resume nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Originally published March 11, 2005 ***************************************************************** 11 UN Atomic Watchdog Fights Not Just Spread Of Nuclear Arms But UN Art Too Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 10:00:56 -0500 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.0.1 (2004-10-22) on pascal.ctyme.com X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-23.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,FROM_ORG, SPF_HELO_PASS,SP_HAM_SUPER,SUBJ_ALL_CAPS,WHITE_PHRASE autolearn=ham version=3.0.1 X-Spam-filter-host: pascal.ctyme.com - http://www.junkemailfilter.com UN ATOMIC WATCHDOG FIGHTS NOT JUST SPREAD OF NUCLEAR ARMS BUT COUNTERFEIT ART TOO New York, Mar 11 2005 10:00AM The United Nations nuclear watchdog agency, better known for its efforts to combat nuclear smuggling and the spread of weapons of mass destruction, is now <"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2005/artfraud.html">helping countries to crack down on the illegal trade in counterfeit art, a major source of international crime ranging from ancient Babylonian statues to renaissance paintings. The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (<"http://www.iaea.org">IAEA) has teamed up with experts from France’s famous Louvre museum and 14 other countries across Europe, South America, Africa and Asia to use nuclear science to identify authentic artworks from phoneys. It is just one of the agency’s many less sung initiatives, which include using a radiation-based “sterile insect technique” against malaria-transmitting mosquitoes to stanch a disease that kills as many as 3,000 people each day in sub-Saharan Africa alone. In the art initiative, for example, neutron activation and ion beam analysis performed at the Louvre exposed a portrait of Renaissance French potter Bernard Palissy as a fake, revealing that the paint from the artist’s signature was scribed two centuries after Palissy’s death. The sensitive analysis also sheds light on the lives of ancient cultures. A statue of an Ishtar goddess discovered near Babylon, for example, showed that the figurine’s eyes and navel were fashioned with the most ancient rubies found in the Middle East, rather than red glass or garnets as previously thought. The analysis provided evidence of a previously unknown gem trade route between southeast Asia and Mesopotamia during the 1st century BC. The reaction from shooting a beam of neutrons or protons at a sample area of an artwork reveals a wealth of information, including the trace elements present, which help scientists to identify the origin and age without causing damage. Even the minutest analytical quantities can be traced safely and accurately. IAEA chemist Matthias Rossbach says law enforcement personnel could use portable elemental analyzers at borders to help combat art trafficking. The agency plans to extend nuclear analysis this year to Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Cuba, China, Malaysia, Syria, Ghana, Kazakhstan, Croatia and Hungary, with technical assistance from France, Germany, Greece and Poland. According to the global police coordination centre, Interpol, illicit trade in art and cultural objects is sustained by demand from the art market, the opening of borders, improvements in transport systems and the political instability in some countries. 2005-03-11 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 ***************************************************************** 12 [du-list] War "by deception" - There was no full legal advice Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:21 -0800 http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=618882 Iraq war revelation: There was no full legal advice Cabinet Secretary admits invasion based on single page of A4 By Marie Woolf, Chief Political Correspondent 11 March 2005 Britain went to war on the basis of a single piece of paper setting out the legality of invading Iraq, the country's most senior civil servant has revealed. The Government's case for war appeared to be in tatters last night after the Cabinet Secretary admitted that a parliamentary answer from Lord Goldsmith, the Attorney General, was the final legal opinion on the case for war. In an astonishing admission, Sir Andrew Turnbull disclosed that no "full" legal advice on an invasion of Iraq has ever existed. He confirmed that a short parliamentary answer by the Attorney General was the "definitive advice" on the war sent to the Prime Minister and that "there is no other version". The renewed doubts over the legality of the conflict are a severe setback to Tony Blair, who was hoping that Iraq would fade as a general election issue. MPs had assumed that the parliamentary answer was a précis of a longer, more detailed legal opinion and ministers had come under intense pressure from the media to publish the "full" advice under the Freedom of Information Act. The revelation astonished MPs. Sir Andrew was cross examined about the existence of full legal advice in a Commons committee after The Independent revealed Mr Blair may have breached the prime ministerial code by failing to provide the full legal advice to the Cabinet. Yesterday The Independent reported that questions were being raised by MPs about the existence of legal advice. Charles Kennedy seized on the news and said it showed that the Government's case for war was shambolic. "This is an astonishing revelation which suggests utter confusion at the heart of government. The Prime Minister must now clarify the situation which is undermining public trust," the Liberal Democrat leader said. "He must provide a clear statement about what took place regarding the legal advice. Can it really be true that the legal basis on which we went to war consisted of a parliamentary answer and not a full legal opinion?" After intense cross-examination by Tony Wright, the Labour chairman of the Public Administration Committee, Sir Andrew admitted: "There is not a longer version of that advice. There is no other version. This is the definitive statement of his views. In his view it was sufficient for his colleagues to be assured that he thought there was a legal basis for military action. It does not purport to be a summary of his advice. It was the definitive advice that he had reached." Sir Andrew indicated there was not enough time for Lord Goldsmith to prepare a fuller statement because it was required quickly, when it became clear there would be no second resolution in the UN. He said it summarised his views and was not a summary of a larger document. "What he has put forward is the conclusion that he reached as a result of all the thinking he had been doing." But Sir Andrew added there were "other papers" which the Government would not disclose. Downing Street refused last night to "get into the advice process". The Prime Minister's official spokesman added that the Cabinet was given "an explanation of [the Attorney General's] conclusions" about the legality of war. But Gordon Prentice, a Labour member of the Public Administration Committee, expressed amazement. He said: "We have been taken to war on the basis of a two-page summary conclusion." The Attorney General gave a parliamentary answer in the Lords on 17 March 2003 which appears in the Butler report on the intelligence that led to war, on a single page of A4. The answer says "authority to use force" exists from a combination of the UN resolutions. Lord Goldsmith concluded "the authority to use force under resolution 678 has revived and so continues today". Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrats' foreign affairs spokesman and a senior barrister, said the parliamentary answer could not be described as a legal opinion. It should contain pages of detailed argument and summaries, particularly on an issue such as war. "The written answer provided in the House of Lords could not possibly be described as a legal opinion," he said. "The Cabinet Secretary appears to confirm what many have suspected; that there was no formal opinion recording the Attorney General's change of mind." The Attorney General did prepare a longer piece of legal advice which he presented to Mr Blair on 7 March. But that advice, believed to be a 13-page paper, is thought not to have given a definitive view on whether war would be legal. Clare Short, a member of the Cabinet at the time, said the absence of a longer legal opinion meant Mr Blair had taken Britain to war "by deception". She said: "The more one scrutinises what took place the more shocking it is. "The fact that there was no further legal document is astonishing. Then there is the fact that all the to-ings and fro-ings on the legal advice were kept from the Cabinet and Parliament. That means the war was by deception." Yesterday the Attorney General wrote to Ms Short, the former international development secretary, saying he did not accept her "allegations [on Tuesday] that I failed to comply with the ministerial code or that I misled the Cabinet". In the letter to Ms Short, Lord Goldsmith said: "At its meeting on 17 March 2003, I reported to Cabinet that I had answered a Parliamentary Question on the authority for the use of force in Iraq. I produced the text of that answer for Cabinet and made an oral presentation. That answer set out, as I have repeatedly stated, my genuine, independent view that the use of force in Iraq was lawful ---------- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.308 / Virus Database: 266.7.1 - Release Date: 3/9/05 ***************************************************************** 13 [du-list] Weaponised Uranium letter to Australian Prime Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:22 -0800 anti-DU activists to their lists to get the ball rolling into Howards post box. Naturally this needs to come from the australian public, so if you can pass it on to any activists etc you might know off down under, or amonst your anti-war,veterans, greens etc networks there, then that would be magic. Helps gives the Aussie anti-du movement is bigger voice. many thanks Davey Garland Pandora DU research Project To: The Prime Minister John Howard Parliament House, Canberra 2601 Ref: Weaponised Uranium Dear Prime Minister, We the people of Australia heard you say on ABC radio prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, that you would not send Australian Defence personnel to conflict theaters where nuclear weapons were being used. Taking into account your facility with language, we want to make it very clear that we understand that nuclear and radioactive weapons have different triggering devices, but in essence we are talking about weapons that have the capacity to kill randomly and consistently over long periods of time, and to cause environmental and human disaster in military and civilian populations. My Prime Minister, you have announced the Australian troops will be sent into Samvah, an area of conflict where Dutch and some US troops have refused to serve due to the high levels of radiation. So what of your promise? As you know DU weapons were used almost ubiquitously both during and post invasion in both rural and urban conflict zones. DU weapons along with chemicals weapons in the form of napalm and white phosphorus, were used against the citizens of Fallujah. The environmental and human evidence points to a disaster of epic proportions. Already 56% of US troops returning from GW1 are on sickness benefits, despite only a small percentage of them being wounded. 11,000 out of 580,400 who served in GW1 have died.. Those statistics are alarming in themselves. Veterans are seeing their post Gulf War children being born with horrible deformities. 40% of soldiers in one unit alone have developed cancer after only 16 months. This is the environment into which you are sending ADF personnel. We know it and you know it. If this does not alarm you Prime Minister, it should. The weapons being used in the Gulf War, the Balkans and Afghanistan alter the Master Code for DNA. The US military labs and Manhattan Project personnel alarmed at the implication for global health and survival are now making this news public. We as people of Australia, sent you letters before, expressing our concern at the widespread use of weaponised uranium missiles, commonly known as Depleted Uranium. We wrote because there is increasing evidence of these weapons becoming more ubiquitous, and they are now definitely linked to cancer and birth defects amongst civilians, and combatants. You chose to stay silent, to not listen to the voices of your concerned citizens. But this time the stakes are higher. The data and science is known and well developed. The Casualties have come in and been counted. The doctors who were threatened and told to misdiagnose and maintain secrecy are speaking out. There are no more excuses Prime Minister. No place to hide as the elephant in the lounge room is getting harder to ignore. Sending troops to a known radiation zone without full protection is in effect sentencing them to death. Maybe you agree with Kissinger¡Çs adage that that ¡ÈMilitary men are just dumb stupid animals to be used in Foreign Policy¡É but they are wives, daughters, husbands, fathers, sons, to all of us¡Ä There are no excuses now PM. What you are doing is deliberately sentencing those troops to a multiple of radiologically induced disease and possibly death. They are clearly not your children. \ There is no safe place in Iraq. DU in its post impact oxide form, blows with the wind and is respirable. It has already entered the water table and is in livestock and plants. What we have is a human and environmental tragedy of unimaginable proportions. Is this how you want to go down in history John, as the Trojan horse that brought silence on the world? At a time when it has been revealed that 42 of the US states are now severely contaminated by radiation emanating from DU testing, manufacturing and deployment, you have handed Australian sovereign territory to the US for testing and bases. We understand that Australia also uses weaponised uranium in missiles such as the Javelin. We abhor this as a future for Australia, as we know that areas used for such purposes in the US are now marked as Areas of National Sacrifice, being biologically toxic. You do not have our permission to kill our land and our people. We the people of Australia, in our name, and the name of future generations demand: ¦² The immediate withdrawal of Australian troops from this intransigent war. It is clear there is nothing to be gained and we have failed the people miserably. More have died as a result of the Coalitions activities than from all the years of Sadam Hussein¡Çs dictatorship. ¦² An end to the purchase and use of all uranium containing weapons ¦² An end to the intimidation of scientists investigating the human and environmental costs of the use of such weapons ¦² An immediate independent study of all civilians in conflict zones and Australian combatants, to investigate the nature and extent of radiation and heavy metal sickness ¦² Immediate compensation for all combatants thus effected ¦² Immediate clean up at the US, UK and Australian government¡Çs expense, of all areas contaminated with DU residue. ¦² Public disclosure of all Australian weapons containing DU, which our taxes have bought. ¦² An immediate end to negotiations over the use of Australian land for weapons testing. We demand a full account and end to the use of these Weapons of Current and Future Destruction in line with the Geneva Convention. Name: Address: ***************************************************************** 14 [DU-WATCH] Declassified DU files Date: Thu, 10 Mar 2005 23:49:10 -0600 (CST) No doubt some folk may already have these, but worth asking for a copy if you haven't, new declassified documents. from AEA Technologies to Royal Ordinance 30 april 1991 (3 pages) The letter is basic, but page 1 & 2 of the enclosed report/recomendations of Atomic Energy Authority who give a "realistic appraisal of the effects of DU on the Kuwaiti population" this is worth reading. I quote from report: This paper is presented by AEA Technology which is the trading name of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. AEA Technology is the UK Governments official adviser on nuclear saftey. The paper gives a realistic appraisal of the effects of Depleted uranium Threat: 4. An accurate figure for the quantity of DU fired is difficult to acquire. A best estimate is that US tanks fired more than 5000 DU round. US aircraft many 10'000s and UK tanks a small number of DU rounds. The tank ammunition alone will amount to greater than 50,000lbs of DU, wich is equivalent to approximately 360 GBsv (typing bad) of radioactivity. This equates to a total dose of 10(7) sv. If the tank inventory of DU was inhaled, the latest international committee of radiological protection risk factor of 5 x 10(2) per Sv calculates 500,000 potential deaths. Obviously this theorectical figure is not realistic, however it does indicate a significant problem. 5. The DU will be spread around the battlefield and target vehicles in varying sizes and quantities from dust particles to full size pentrators and shot. It would be unwise for people to stay close to large quantities of DU for long periods and htis would obviously be of concern to the local population if they colect this heavy metal and keep it. There will be specific areas in which many rounds would of been fired where localised contamination of vehicles and the soil may exceed permissiable limits and t hese could be hazardous to both clean up teams adn the local population. 6) Inhalation of air borne DU dust particles can lead to unacceptable body burdens adn manufacturers of DU munitions take precautions to ensure that their staff are not exposed to undue risk fo rthis reason. The limit of intake for members of hte publid is less than 2.2 x 10(3) sv in one year and htis could esily be exceeded if speical arrangements are not made. This would equate to a radioactive dose of 1msv per year, the limit that has been proposed by the ICRP. Exceeding the dose puts the public at risk. DU can also be a danger if taken into the body by ingestion or through a cut. Furthermore if DU gets into the food chain or water then will will create potential health problems. 7. A further concern is a political one of leaving significant quantities of uranium around Kuwait. The problem will not go away and should be tackled before it becomes a political problem created by the environmental lobby. it is in both Kuwait and the UK interest that this is not to rea its head in the years to come. Proposal: 8. There is initially a need to identify the size of the problem. It will never be possible to remove all the DU from Kuwait left as a result of the allied forces action, but it should be possible to remove the worst concentrations and minimise the potential health hazard. DU requires sensitive equipment and well trained operators as it is difficult to locals. 9. Therefore we propose that an exercise should be carried out by the AEA technology to ascertain which areas are most contaminated. This would concentrate on the knocked out vehicles and other known hard targets taht are likely to have been engaged with DU ammunition. A radiological survey would ascertain the quantity of DU in such a target. 10. A clean up paln would be produced as a products of the survey to work in conjunction with the other clean up operations. This survey adn the clean up can be carried out by a small and dedicated team from AEA Technology in total confidentiality. ***************************************************************** 15 [DU-WATCH] Weaponised Uranium letter to Australian Prime Date: Sat, 12 Mar 2005 01:00:07 -0600 (CST) Can folk send this around this letter that has been written by Australian anti-DU activists to their lists to get the ball rolling into Howards post box. Naturally this needs to come from the australian public, so if you can pass it on to any activists etc you might know off down under, or amonst your anti-war,veterans, greens etc networks there, then that would be magic. Helps gives the Aussie anti-du movement is bigger voice. many thanks Davey Garland Pandora DU research Project To: The Prime Minister John Howard Parliament House, Canberra 2601 Ref: Weaponised Uranium Dear Prime Minister, We the people of Australia heard you say on ABC radio prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, that you would not send Australian Defence personnel to conflict theaters where nuclear weapons were being used. Taking into account your facility with language, we want to make it very clear that we understand that nuclear and radioactive weapons have different triggering devices, but in essence we are talking about weapons that have the capacity to kill randomly and consistently over long periods of time, and to cause environmental and human disaster in military and civilian populations. My Prime Minister, you have announced the Australian troops will be sent into Samvah, an area of conflict where Dutch and some US troops have refused to serve due to the high levels of radiation. So what of your promise? As you know DU weapons were used almost ubiquitously both during and post invasion in both rural and urban conflict zones. DU weapons along with chemicals weapons in the form of napalm and white phosphorus, were used against the citizens of Fallujah. The environmental and human evidence points to a disaster of epic proportions. Already 56% of US troops returning from GW1 are on sickness benefits, despite only a small percentage of them being wounded. 11,000 out of 580,400 who served in GW1 have died.. Those statistics are alarming in themselves. Veterans are seeing their post Gulf War children being born with horrible deformities. 40% of soldiers in one unit alone have developed cancer after only 16 months. This is the environment into which you are sending ADF personnel. We know it and you know it. If this does not alarm you Prime Minister, it should. The weapons being used in the Gulf War, the Balkans and Afghanistan alter the Master Code for DNA. The US military labs and Manhattan Project personnel alarmed at the implication for global health and survival are now making this news public. We as people of Australia, sent you letters before, expressing our concern at the widespread use of weaponised uranium missiles, commonly known as Depleted Uranium. We wrote because there is increasing evidence of these weapons becoming more ubiquitous, and they are now definitely linked to cancer and birth defects amongst civilians, and combatants. You chose to stay silent, to not listen to the voices of your concerned citizens. But this time the stakes are higher. The data and science is known and well developed. The Casualties have come in and been counted. The doctors who were threatened and told to misdiagnose and maintain secrecy are speaking out. There are no more excuses Prime Minister. No place to hide as the elephant in the lounge room is getting harder to ignore. Sending troops to a known radiation zone without full protection is in effect sentencing them to death. Maybe you agree with Kissinger!Gs adage that that !HMilitary men are just dumb stupid animals to be used in Foreign Policy!I but they are wives, daughters, husbands, fathers, sons, to all of us!D There are no excuses now PM. What you are doing is deliberately sentencing those troops to a multiple of radiologically induced disease and possibly death. They are clearly not your children. \ There is no safe place in Iraq. DU in its post impact oxide form, blows with the wind and is respirable. It has already entered the water table and is in livestock and plants. What we have is a human and environmental tragedy of unimaginable proportions. Is this how you want to go down in history John, as the Trojan horse that brought silence on the world? At a time when it has been revealed that 42 of the US states are now severely contaminated by radiation emanating from DU testing, manufacturing and deployment, you have handed Australian sovereign territory to the US for testing and bases. We understand that Australia also uses weaponised uranium in missiles such as the Javelin. We abhor this as a future for Australia, as we know that areas used for such purposes in the US are now marked as Areas of National Sacrifice, being biologically toxic. You do not have our permission to kill our land and our people. We the people of Australia, in our name, and the name of future generations demand: &2 The immediate withdrawal of Australian troops from this intransigent war. It is clear there is nothing to be gained and we have failed the people miserably. More have died as a result of the Coalitions activities than from all the years of Sadam Hussein!Gs dictatorship. &2 An end to the purchase and use of all uranium containing weapons &2 An end to the intimidation of scientists investigating the human and environmental costs of the use of such weapons &2 An immediate independent study of all civilians in conflict zones and Australian combatants, to investigate the nature and extent of radiation and heavy metal sickness &2 Immediate compensation for all combatants thus effected &2 Immediate clean up at the US, UK and Australian government!Gs expense, of all areas contaminated with DU residue. &2 Public disclosure of all Australian weapons containing DU, which our taxes have bought. &2 An immediate end to negotiations over the use of Australian land for weapons testing. We demand a full account and end to the use of these Weapons of Current and Future Destruction in line with the Geneva Convention. Name: Address: Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com ***************************************************************** 16 ThisisLondon: Nuclear shortage 'threatens blackouts' Robert Lea, Evening Standard, 12 March 2005 THE Government will have to commit to building nuclear power stations or leave the country under the threat of energy blackouts for years to come, the engineering industry is warning Downing Street. Ahead of a General Election in which the cost of electricity and security of supply could become an issue, the Institution of Civil Engineers is accusing the Government of sweeping the debate on the future of nuclear power under the carpet. 'It would be highly irresponsible for the Government to dismiss the option of nuclear power for future energy supplies,' said ICE executive David Anderson. He cited its own report which claims the British public have been hoodwinked into believing green energy from wind farms will be capable of replacing the volume of power being lost by closing down nuclear stations. 'Failure to consider nuclear power could lead to over-dependency on imported energy supplies. Politically, nuclear is not a vote winner - but nor is the constant threat of blackouts in the future,' said Anderson. 'Nuclear power stations currently produce 22% of the UK's electricity but are closing down at a rapid rate. 'By 2023, 11 will have shut down, leaving just one [Sizewell B in Suffolk] generating electricity. With no current plan for replacements and a five-to-10-year wait from drawing board to completion, the Institution of Civil Engineers is asking how the gap in generating electricity will be filled. The public-overestimate the contribution renewable sources, such as wind, can make. 'By 2020, the public reckons renewables would contribute nearly a third of electricity generation. In fact, it is likely to be less than half that - at its very best 15%.' There has effectively been a moratorium on the building of nuclear power stations since the beginning of the decade after Tony Blair's major review of the energy industry. This status quo undoubtedly played a role in destabilising British Energy, the country's major nuclear operator which has only just come back to the stock market after a Government-led rescue and major restructuring. British Energy is forecasting that its portfolio of nuclear stations will start closing from the end of the decade - beginning with Dungeness in Kent - and has only limited hope of five-year life extensions. The ICE believes nuclear stations can easily be built on current sites which benefit from being geographically remote and from having existing connections to the country's transmission network. ***************************************************************** 17 NRC: NRC to Discuss 2004 Performance at Catawba Nuclear Power Plant News Release - Region II - 2005-00 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region II No. II-05-007 March 11, 2005 CONTACT: Ken Clark (404) 562-4416 Roger D. Hannah (404) 562-4417 E-mail: Duke Energy officials March 22, to discuss the agencys annual assessment of safety performance at the Catawba nuclear power plant, located near York, S. C. The period covered is the calendar year 2004. The 1 p.m. meeting at the Rock Hill, S. C., City Hall, is open to public observation. Before the session ends, NRC staff will be available to answer questions from the public on the plants safety performance, as well as the agencys role in ensuring safe operation of the facility. Each year the NRC staff rates the performance of the Catawba plant and all of the nations other commercial nuclear power plants, NRC Region II Administrator William Travers said. This meeting gives us a chance to discuss our assessment with the company, with local officials and with residents near the plant. Our aim is to make this information available to the public and answer any questions people may have about our oversight. A letter sent from the NRC Region II Office to plant officials addresses the performance of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is available on the NRC web site at www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/cat_2004q4.pdf [PDF Icon] . Overall, the Catawba plant operated safely during 2004. The NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear plant performance. The colors start with green and increase to white, yellow or red, commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved. Because all inspection findings and performance indicators for the plant during 2004 were classified as green, Catawba will receive the baseline, or normal, level of inspections during 2005. Routine inspections are performed by NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and by inspection specialists from the Region II Office in Atlanta, and the agencys headquarters in Rockville, Md. In addition to the baseline inspections in 2005, the NRC plans to inspect activities related to a planned spent fuel storage installation, safety inspections concerning pressurizer penetration and steam space piping connections, and operator licensing examinations. Current information for the two Catawba units is available on the NRC web site at: www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/CAT1/cat1_chart.html and www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/CAT2/cat2_chart.html. Last revised Friday, March 11, 2005 ***************************************************************** 18 Korea Herald: [ANN]Nuke power and China's energy sector 2005.03.12 Editorial One of the key issues for China being considered by the annual session of the National People's Congress is how to ensure that the world's most populous nation has the energy it needs so the economy will continue growing by at least 8 percent a year. Before the 10-day session opened in Beijing last Saturday, the government had announced that it planned to raise nuclear power production by as much as six times over the next 15 years to help eliminate chronic electricity shortages and increase energy self-sufficiency. Major foreign makers of nuclear power equipment last week lodged bids to build four new reactors in China, marking the start of an expansion expected to cost about $30 billion. By boosting the nuclear-power sector, the Chinese authorities also aim to slow the pace of the country's fast-growing dependence on oil, more than 40 percent of it now imported, while reducing the share of coal in electricity generation to cut pollution and global warming emissions. China currently operates nine nuclear power plants with a combined capacity of 6,500MW, with two 1,000MW Russian reactors due to go online soon. The operating plants supply just under 2 percent of the country's electricity. As more nuclear reactors are built, the share of coal in China's energy demand is expected to fall from 66 percent in 2000 to 54 percent in 2020. Plants burning coal account for more than 80 percent of China's electricity output. Although mined in China, the coal is contributing to serious air pollution that is blighting the quality of life in many areas and posing a threat to public health. The pollution is caused by emissions of sulfur dioxide and dust. Studies have shown that 85 percent of sulfur dioxide and 76 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in China are from coal combustion. China is now the second biggest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, after the United States, and it is on track to becoming the largest source well before the mid-century. As it does so, Beijing will come under increasing international pressure to curb emission of greenhouse gases. It will also face intensifying demands from Chinese citizens and foreign investors in the country to clean the air. About one-third of China's coal is consumed by thermal power plants but only a small fraction of them are equipped with anti-pollution equipment. By contrast, nuclear reactors used to generate electricity produce virtually no greenhouse gases, dust or sulfur pollution. About two-thirds of China's energy use is currently from coal which, when burned, releases nearly twice as much carbon dioxide per unit of energy as natural gas. Chinese energy planners aim to see natural gas, nuclear power and renewables - such as hydro- and wind power - grow from just under 3 percent of energy consumption in 2000 to nearly 16 percent in 2020. While these are "cleaner" sources, nuclear power raises concerns about safety of operation, security, disposal of radioactive waste and the dismantling of plants at the end of their working lives. Still, China's expansion of its nuclear-power sector is attracting intense commercial interest. Among those lodging bids last week to build the four new reactors were Westinghouse Electric, a subsidiary of British Nuclear Fuels Ltd; the French nuclear energy group Framatome, a unit of Areva SA; and Russia's AtomStroyExport. The bidders are hoping for a decision by the end of the year. Westinghouse is the only U.S.-based maker of pressurized-water reactors and has yet to break into the Chinese market. China has expressed interest in building dozens more reactors under a standard design. So winning this contract could mean many years of business. However, China is also seeking progressively greater technology transfer in contracts with foreign makers of nuclear power equipment. Some reports suggest that, in the latest bidding, companies were told that 70 percent of plant components must be made in China, compared with 30 percent in 1997. Also, China appears poised to develop a new generation of reactors that promise to be a safer alternative to standard water-cooled power stations. A Chinese energy consortium last month chose a site in the eastern province of Shandong to build the world's first gas cooled Pebble Bed Modular Reactor. The 195MW plant could start producing electricity within five years. China and South Africa have led moves to develop Pebble Bed reactors, so-called as they are fuelled by graphite spheres the size of billiard balls with uranium cores. Proponents say that the small uranium cores and the dispersal of the fuel among hundreds of thousands of spheres will prevent a catastrophic meltdown in an accident. The global economy is being largely sustained by the twin forces of China's producers and U.S. consumers. If China successfully commercializes safer sources of nuclear power, its demand for imported energy will ease without undermining economic growth. The writer is a visiting senior research fellow at the Institute of South-east Asian Studies. This is a personal comment. - Ed. By Michael Richardson The Straits Times (Singapore) Asia News Network ***************************************************************** 19 NRC: Decommissioning Program--2004 Annual Report; Notice of FR Doc 05-4791 [Federal Register: March 11, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 47)] [Notices] [Page 12248] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr11mr05-110] Availability AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of availability. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John T. Buckley, Mail Stop: T-7E18, Decommissioning Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555- 0001, Telephone: (301) 415-6607, and Internet: jtb@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Summary The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC's) Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS) is announcing the availability of NUREG-1814, ``Status of Decommissioning Program--2004 Annual Report.'' This NUREG provides a comprehensive overview of the NRC's decommissioning program. Its purpose is to provide a stand-alone reference document which describes the decommissioning process and summarizes the current status of all decommissioning activities including the decommissioning of complex decommissioning sites, commercial reactors, research and test reactors, uranium mill tailings facilities; and fuel cycle facilities. In addition, this report discusses accomplishments in the decommissioning program since publication of the 2003 annual report (SECY-03-0161); and it identifies the key decommissioning program issues which the staff will address in fiscal year (FY) 2005. II. Further Information NUREG-1814 is available for inspection and copying for a fee at the Commission's Public Document Room, U.S. NRC's Headquarters Building, 11555 Rockville Pike (First Floor), Rockville, Maryland. The Public Document Room is open from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on Federal holidays. NUREG-1814 is also available for inspection at NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/index.html. The ADAMS Accession No. for the NUREG is ML050480398. Copies of NUREG- 1814 may be purchased from one of these two sources: (1) The Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Mail Stop: SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-0001; Internet: http://bookstore.gpo.gov ; telephone: 202-512-1800; fax: 202-512-2250; or (2) The National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161-0002, Internet: http://www.ntis.gov; telephone 1-800-553-6847 or, locally, 703-605-6000. Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day of March, 2005. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Daniel M. Gillen, Deputy Director, Decommissioning Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. 05-4791 Filed 3-10-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P ***************************************************************** 20 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Aging nuclear plants present a dilemma March 12, 2005 KST 15:14 (GMT+9) March 12, 2005 ¤Ñ With Korea's first nuclear power plant due to be decommissioned in three years, the government is moving on a law to extend the operating lives of nuclear plants. Environmentalists opposed to nuclear power have denounced the government measure. Gori I plant, the country's first nuclear plant built in 1978 in South Gyeongsang province, is set to close in three years. While there is no definitive set lifespan for nuclear power plants, U.S. firm Westinghouse, which built it, recommended it be shut down after 30 years. In 2013, Weolseong I plant, and Gori I and II plants will reach the end of their 30-year runs. There are 19 nuclear power plants in operation in South Korea; when the Uljin VI plant goes into operation in June, there will be 20. Nuclear power accounts for 40 percent of the electric power generated in South Korea, but the relatively short history of nuclear generation means there are no guidelines for decommissioning the plants. The Ministry of Science and Technology said yesterday plans are being developed to amend laws to create such guidelines. "We have newly drafted 58 guidelines to determine the safety of aging nuclear power plants," said a ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity. "We plan to complete the necessary revisions to the Atomic Energy Act within this year, and then decide whether to extend the life of the plants or completely close them down." Critics point out that the government's measure is too late, and there may not now be sufficient time to deal with the aging nuclear plants. "The government has dragged its feet on the matter, as they were preoccupied with defusing controversy over the construction of a nuclear waste processing facility," said Kang Chang-soon, a professor of nuclear engineering at Seoul National University. "There may be bigger headaches ahead if the government were to hurry as it is pressed for time." Lee Seung-hwa, a coordinator with the Korean Federation of Environmental Movements, said, "A design lifespan is designated with safety in mind. To extend their lives would increase the possibility of an accident." by Kim Ji-soo tarzan@joongang.co.kr> Copyright by Joins.com, Inc. Terms of Use | ***************************************************************** 21 NRC: Comment Request FR Doc 05-4793 [Federal Register: March 11, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 47)] [Notices] [Page 12243] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr11mr05-106] AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). ACTION: Notice of pending NRC action to submit an information collection request to OMB and solicitation of public comment. SUMMARY: The NRC is preparing a submittal to OMB for review of continued approval of information collections under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). Information pertaining to the requirement to be submitted: 1. The title of the information collection: Design Information Questionnaire-IAEA-N-71 and associated Forms N-72, N-73, N-74, N-75, N- 91, N-92, N-93, N-94. 2. Current OMB approval number: 3150-0056. 3. How often the collection is required: Approximately 1 time annually. 4. Who is required or asked to report: Licensees of facilities on the U.S. eligible list who have been notified in writing by the Commission to submit the form. 5. The number of annual respondents: 1. 6. The number of hours needed annually to complete the requirement or request: 360 reporting hours (360 hours per response). 7. Abstract: Licensees of facilities that appear on the U.S. eligible list, pursuant to the US/IAEA Safeguards Agreement, and who have been notified in writing by the Commission, are required to complete and submit a Design Information Questionnaire, IAEA Form N-71 (and the appropriate associated IAEA Form) or Form N-91, to provide information concerning their installation for use of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Submit, by May 10, 2005, comments that address the following questions: 1. Is the proposed collection of information necessary for the NRC to properly perform its functions? Does the information have practical utility? 2. Is the burden estimate accurate? 3. Is there a way to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected? 4. How can the burden of the information collection be minimized, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology? A copy of the draft supporting statement may be viewed free of charge at the NRC Public Document Room located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Room O-1 F21, Rockville, MD. OMB clearance requests are available at the NRC worldwide Web site (http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/doc-comment/omb/index.html ). The document will be available on the NRC home page site for 60 days after the signature date of this notice. Comments and questions about the information collection requirements may be directed to the NRC Clearance Officer, Brenda Jo. Shelton, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, T-5 F53, Washington, DC 20555-0001, by telephone at (301) 415-7233, or by Internet electronic mail at INFOCOLLECTS@NRC.GOV. Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of March, 2005. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Brenda Jo. Shelton, NRC Clearance Officer, Office of Information Services. [FR Doc. 05-4793 Filed 3-10-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P ***************************************************************** 22 allAfrica.com: South Africa: PBMR to Work With Chinese Companyin Nuclear Plant Project Business Day (Johannesburg) Posted to the web March 11, 2005 Khulu Phasiwe Johannesburg THE advancement of the next generation of nuclear reactors received a major boost with the signing this week of a memorandum of understanding between pebble-bed nuclear technology developer Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) and its Beijing-based counterpart, Chinergy. The agreement enables the two companies to share technical information on the development and construction of high-temperature reactor demonstration projects in both SA and China by 2010. The establishment of the nuclear demonstration plant is aimed at meeting the growing demand for electricity in the two countries. PBMR CEO Jaco Kriek said having the two plants in the same timeframe would bring technical understanding for follow-on applications that could help enhance the future of the pebble bed nuclear technology. "Chinergy's commitment to the technology and the project, along with the ongoing PBMR project, further demonstrates the potential for simple, passive, inherently safe advanced reactor technologies to bring a new option to the marketplace in the near term." Chinergy said the memorandum of understanding was a result of ongoing high level interactions between the two parties. Chinergy CEO Frank Wu expressed enthusiasm about the agreement, saying it would pave way for potential benefits which could be realised through co- operation for the high temperature reactor demonstration plants in China and SA, as well as for the commercialisation of these projects thereafter. Wu said although both technologies used the same pebble fuel concept as a source of heat, there were differences between the power conversion systems. The first of the high-temperature reactor plants in China will be indirect-cycle, steam turbine systems, while the first series of high temperature reactor plants in SA will be direct cycle gas turbine systems. "While the two projects have chosen slightly different technical approaches, we both believe that high temperature gas cooled reactors using pebble fuel offer the most potential for meeting future environmental needs of global power generation energy," said Wu. Construction of the $300m project is expected to start in 2007 and the plant is expected to be fully operational by 2010. The construction of the R10bn PBMR project will run in parallel with its Chinese counterpart. But the PBMR project, which had been in developmental stage since 1993, is touted widely as being in line to become the first pebble bed nuclear plant in the world to produce electricity and large quantities of hydrogen for commercial purposes. PBMR said it had now entered the detailed design stage. It said an international team of strategic suppliers such as Mitsubishi, IST and Westinghouse had expressed confidence in the technical and commercial viability of the project. Copyright © 2005 Business Day. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 23 toledoblade.com: FirstEnergy's chief gives upbeat report on its future Article published Friday, March 11, 2005 In an industry forum, the chief of FirstEnergy Corp. said that, despite the firm's past problems with the Davis-Besse nuclear power plant near Oak Harbor, the financial outlook for the company this year is positive. The company expects to earn $2.70 to $2.85 a share, Anthony Alexander, president and chief executive, told analysts during an annual industry teleconference yesterday. The utility had a profit of $2.67 a share last year and it expects to pay a dividend of $1.65 a share this year, a 10 percent increase. Repeating his message from Feb. 15 when the utility issued its 2004 financial statement, Mr. Alexander told analysts that Davis-Besse's latest maintenance outage went well and the equipment inspections were adequate. "I feel pretty good about where Davis-Besse is since it's been back on line," he said. The power plant returned to full power about a month ago after the three-week scheduled maintenance outage, its longest since the plant was allowed to go back into operation a year ago with a retrofitted reactor head. The plant had been shutdown for two years following the discovery of a reactor head so corroded it nearly erupted. Davis-Besse's next scheduled maintenance outage is a year away. The plant's extended outage took $38.3 million out of the company's bottom line last year. The company plans to reduce debt by $750 million to a total of $11.5 billion, which should help it get an investment-grade rating from Standard &Poor's, Mr. Alexander said. FirstEnergy plans to have capital expenditures this year of $1 billion. The Toledo Blade Company, 541 N. Superior St., Toledo, OH 43660 , (419) 724-6000 ***************************************************************** 24 Xinhua: OECD calls for new look at nuclear energy in changing global warming www.xinhuanet.com www.chinaview.cn 2005-03-11 13:09:44 PAIRS, March 10 (Xinhuanet) -- Secretary-General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Donald Johnston on Thursday called for a new look at nuclear energy in reversing global warming. Nuclear power will play an important role in curbing global warming, Johnston said. His view was echoed by Iouri Sokolov, Deputy Director of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Sokolov said the efficiency, security and profit of the nuclearpower industry have improved thanks to 50 years of development, and nuclear energy will play greater roles in meeting growing energy demand and reducing environmental pollution. He said about 16 percent of world electricity was generated by nuclear plants, but there are only 30 countries that have that kind of capability. As an international treaty to curb global warming, the Kyoto Protocol came into effect on Feb. 16 with most of the industrialized countries legally bound to control pollution. The protocol targets carbon dioxide and five other gases that can trap heat in the atmosphere and are blamed for rising global temperatures. But the United States, the world's biggest polluter, withdrew from the Kyoto treaty in 2001 with an excuse that the treaty wouldcause adverse effects on the US economy. The IAEA and the OECD will hold a two-day international meetingon nuclear energy in Pairs on March 21, which will discuss the rising global energy demand, the roles of nuclear power, the effects of global warming, the disposal of nuclear wastes, and nuclear non-proliferation. Representatives from 65 countries will participate in the meeting. Enditem Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 25 ITAR-TASS: Russia not bearing civil liability for Chernobyl accident 11.03.2005, 11.49 MOSCOW, March 11 (Itar-Tass) - Russia, which is a legal successor of the Soviet Union, should not compensate for the damage, inflicted by the explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. This opinion was expressed at a meeting of the Federation Council on Friday during the discussion of the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage. Sergei Antipov, deputy head of the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy, explained that Russia had signed the Convention in 1996, while the Chernobyl accident had taken place ten years before. The Convention, ratified by the Federation Council, which was signed on behalf of Russia in Vienna in May 1996, is one of the basic international legal documents regulating the liability regime and the procedure for paying compensation for the damage done by incidents at civilian nuclear facilities. 26 countries have signed the Convention. Mikhail Margelov, head of the Federation Council committee for international affairs, said that the main idea of the document consisted in “providing protection to citizens of a country against the damage, done by a nuclear incident in another country.” The Russian legislation does not ensure such protection now. According to Margelov, the Convention provides for the payment of compensation for nuclear damage, if the court satisfies the demand of the person, who sustained the damage. It gives an opportunity to the state to restrict the liability of the operator of the nuclear installation and sets the low limit of the liability. © ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy, ***************************************************************** 26 Green Bay Press-Gazette: Nuclear-plant work comes at a cost Posted Mar. 11, 2005 Nuclear-plant work comes at a cost WPS wants rate increase for next year By Richard Ryman The most recent shutdown of the Kewaunee Nuclear Plant will cost Wisconsin Public Service Corp.’s customers more money, but not this year. The plant was shut down Feb. 20 because of Nuclear Regulatory Commission concerns about a backup cooling system. Kewaunee produces about 20 percent of Wisconsin Public Service Corp.’s electricity annually. To replace the electricity, the Green Bay-based utility fired up its more expensive natural gas-fueled generating plants and is purchasing power on the open market. This is the second time in five months a shutdown of the plant could result in higher utility bills. Last month, Wisconsin Public Service told the state Public Service Commission it needs $7.2 million to cover costs of the plant being offline 21 more days than planned during a refueling and repair outage that began in October. If approved, that charge will mean 62 cents more per month to a typical Wisconsin Public Service customer on bills from May 1 through Dec. 31. Lori Ruedinger, revenue requirement supervisor, said the utility plans to ask the state Public Service Commission for permission to defer passing along costs of the current shutdown to a later rate filing. Wisconsin Power & Light, a minority owner in the power plant, has asked the Public Service Commission for immediate rate relief. Wisconsin Public Service does not know yet how much the shutdown will cost. “We are working on calculating those numbers right now,” Ruedinger said. The utility expects the plant to remain out of operation until around mid-April. Pat Fox, director of resource supply, said it costs about $5 a megawatt hour to produce electricity at Kewaunee. Buying it on the open market costs between $10 and $15 a megawatt hour at the low end to as high as $100 a megawatt hour during peak periods, he said. The company is also producing electricity using its natural gas-fueled peaking plants, but natural gas prices are “relatively high” as well, he said. “We are buying a good portion of what the plant would have produced on the energy market,” Fox said. Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspectors shut down the plant because they theorized water flow to an auxiliary water pump could be interrupted and damage the pump, said Dave Molzahn, director of nuclear oversight for Wisconsin Public Service. Molzahn said design concerns with the auxiliary cooling system were identified in the early 1990s, but the Nuclear Regulatory Commission recently decided it was no longer comfortable with the fix applied then. “The question this time was, ‘How can you prove you are not damaging the first several stages of the pump because it does not have water?’” Molzahn said. “They feel an interruption of suction flow to the pump will damage the pump, though historically that is not the case. Common sense says we are only talking seconds here.” He said the pump is part of a backup system that only would be used if a multiple series of events were to take place. Wisconsin Public Service and Wisconsin Power & Light have proposed selling the plant to Richmond, Va.-based Dominion Resources Inc., citing the increased financial risks of owning an aging nuclear plant as a primary reason. They had hoped to have the sale complete before the refueling outage and reactor vessel head replacement last fall. Instead, the state Public Service Commission on a 2-1 vote blocked the sale, citing loss of regulatory control and potential future costs to ratepayers as the reasons. The parties reworked the deal and asked the Public Service Commission to take a second look, which it has agreed to do. No date for a decision has been set. Copyright © 2004 ***************************************************************** 27 Mos News: Russia Denies Responsibility for Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster - NEWS - MOSNEWS.COM A protest rally of veterans of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster cleanup operation / Image by MosNews.com Created: 11.03.2005 13:32 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 13:48 MSK MosNews Russia, which is the legal successor of the Soviet Union, should not have to compensate for the damage inflicted by the explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the Itar-Tass news agency quoted a top nuclear official as saying on Friday. Sergei Antipov, deputy head of the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy, was speaking at the Friday session of the upper chamber of the Russian parliament devoted to ratifying the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage. The official said that Russia had signed the Convention in 1996, though the Chernobyl accident had taken place 10 years earlier. The Convention, ratified by the Federation Council, which was signed by Russia in Vienna in May 1996, is one of the basic international legal documents regulating the liability regime and the procedure for paying compensation for the damage done by incidents at civilian nuclear facilities. 26 countries have signed the Convention. Mikhail Margelov, head of the Federation Council committee for international affairs, said that the main idea of the document consisted in “providing protection to citizens of a country against the damage done by a nuclear incident in another country”. Russian legislation does not ensure such protection now. According to Margelov, the Convention stipulates the payment of compensation for nuclear damage if a court satisfies the demand of the person who sustained the damages. It gives an opportunity to the state to restrict the liability of the operator of the nuclear installation and sets a low limit of liability. Copyright © 2004 MOSNEWS.COM ***************************************************************** 28 CBC: Premier's Lepreau strategy under fire New Brunswick WebPosted Mar 11 2005 10:55 AM AST CBC News FREDERICTON — A former federal environment minister says Premier Bernard Lord is using a "blackmail argument" to squeeze money out of Ottawa for the Point Lepreau nuclear plant. David Anderson agrees with Lord that refurbishing the plant should qualify for emission credits under the Kyoto accord to reduce greenhouse gases. $1.4 billion for refit But he criticized Lord's threat to build more coal-fired plants if Ottawa doesn't send money for Lepreau. "It's highly irresponsible to try and link that type of argument," Anderson said. "It would appear too much to be the blackmail argument. And Mr. Lord would find it a very, very expensive argument to put forward, because New Brunswick would find the federal government far less generous on a host of other plans that are federal-provincial." Anderson says officials in Ottawa are worried about setting a bad precedent  by giving money to provinces for energy projects they would probably do anyway. Even so, he says the federal government might agree to compensate New Brunswick for every tonne of carbon emissions it eliminated from the air by generating energy with nuclear power, rather than coal or oil. That same argument was made this week by Bill Thompson, the deputy-minister in New Brunswick's energy department. "Point Lepreau doesn't put greenhouse gases into the system, so if we're going to refurbish that, we think we should get credit for that," he said. Thompson also repeated the premier's stand on the issue, saying that a lack of financial support from Ottawa could be a "deal-breaker"  and could force the province to consider generating more power with fossil fuels. After more than 20 years of service, the Point Lepreau nuclear plant is nearing the end of its operational life. But an investment of $1.4 billion to retool the plant from top to bottom, would allow it to generate power for another two or three decades. The board of directors of NB Power has yet to make an official recommendation to the province on whether to proceed with the project. But the premier has stated that he supports the idea in principle: the only obstacle for him is money. ***************************************************************** 29 Vermont Guardian: VY proposes 12 casks; critics say thats too many By Kathryn Casa | Vermont Guardian Posted March 11, 2005 Vermont Yankee officials have submitted proposed legislation that would allow them to install 12 casks for the dry storage of nuclear waste in Vernon. But critics say thats twice as many casks as the plant needs to operate for the remaining seven years of its license. The language, submitted to House Natural Resources and Energy Committee Chairman Robert Dostis, D-Waterbury, on Thursday, sets the stage for committee hearings to begin next week that are expected to lead to a bill from the House Natural Resources Committee, a panel that includes several the nuclear power plants most vigilant legislative watchdogs. One of them, Rep. Steve Darrow, D-Putney, said the Vermont Yankee proposal, as submitted Thursday, doesnt pass the straight-face test. We insisted that they give us a proposal, so they have given us something that we can all call a proposal, Darrow said Friday. But 12 casks is twice the number of casks the plants needs to operate through 2012, he said. The six paragraphs that VY has proposed would limit storage to no more than 12 containers unless the Public Service Board finds after hearing that loading a different number of containers is necessary to operate Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Stations through its existing license and to offload the stations fuel core. Under Vermont law, first the Legislature and then the quasi-judicial Public Service Board must approve a nuclear waste storage facility. The language appears to indicate that Vermont Yankee officials want the remaining six casks to accommodate a full-core offload in which the reactor core is emptied of its 330 fuel-rod assemblies as a result of a serious problem. But Peter Alexander, executive director of the anti-nuclear New England Coalition, said any problem serious enough to require a full-core offload would be so severe that economically it wouldnt make sense to fix. The addition of full core is an added feature, said Raymond Shadis, NEC technical advisor. Its like a stepping stone into Entergys projected future. He said an additional six casks would give the plant enough room to operate at least five years beyond 2012. During a meeting Thursday Entergy lobbyists told the Windham County legislative delegation that they needed six casks for continued operation through the current license, and six to decommission the plant, Darrow said. However, since Entergy purchased Vermont Yankee in 2002, company officials have openly stated that they plan to apply for a license extension that could keep VY running through 2032. So what do they need the other six for? Darrow asked. Vermont Yankee spokesman Rob Williams said he could not comment on specifics in the language. We were asked by the chairman of the House Natural Resources and Energy committee for language that might be used for the basis of legislation, he said. Although the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not require capacity for a full-core offload, most of the nations commercial reactors have that capacity, NRC spokeswoman Diane Screnci said Friday. The VY language also makes no reference to security. Dummerston resident Ed Anthes, a member of the citzens group Nuclear Free Vermont, cautioned Friday, Under no circumstances should they have permission to store any fuel out of the fuel pool thats not secure from attacks. It needs to be secure from attack and it should only be enough to get them through 2012. Wheres the beef when it comes to safeguarding the nuclear fuel from acts of terror? Alexander asked in a prepared statement issued Friday in response to VYs proposed language. Where are the guarantees that the region wont be saddled with a permanent nuclear dump? Where are considerations of alternative storage methods? Where is the offer of compensation to Vermont people for the burden of hosting a second nuclear waste site? Shadis noted that other states hosting nuclear storage sites have imposed requirements including earthen berms to shield residents from radiation exposure, adequate space between casks to allow access to heavy maintenance equipment, security barriers, controls on gas-powered equipment within the storage area, and controls on the use of corrosive de-icing salts. I fail to understand why the people and environment in the region of Entergy Nuclears Vermont Yankee should have less protection than the people and the environment of Maine or Minnesota, Shadis said in the NEC statement. Why shouldnt they have the best possible protection available, instead of an exposed open-air nuclear dump that piles on risk instead of reducing it? Vermont Guardian PO Box 335, Winooski, VT 05404 Southern Vermont: 139 Main Street, Suite 702, Brattleboro, VT 05301 Contact: 802.861.4880 (ph) | 802.861.6388 (fax) | 877.231.5382 ©2004-2005 Vermont Guardian | info@vermontguardian.com ***************************************************************** 30 [du-list] Anti Uranium smoke campaign? Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:28 -0800 Please support this request to write to your Foreign Minister/ government to France as the depositary of The Gas Protocol. Half of Russian WW1 war deaths were from chlorine gas. The Gas Protocol was an act of conscience following the collapse of Russia - the "Never Again of WW1". Gas warfare was generally forbidden in WW2. Britain signed The Gas Protocol in 1930, the USA in 1975 - after the Vietnam War. Does gas warfare persist today as Uranium pollution? When uranium munitions are expended they burn in air to completion with sufficient oxygen. Uranium is a recognized poison. It can be detected in air downwind of radioactive battlefields and uranium using industries. When nuclear weapons explode, part of the components fission, but the larger part is atomized. This means that nuclear weapons cause plutonium and uranium air pollution. After Nagasaki, it was demonstrated that Plutonium particles persisted in air for 2 years. (Symposium on Plutonium in the Environment, Ottawa 1994). The European Committee for Radiation Risk estimates that 64 million people have died from radiation induced (fallout cancer. Uranium is biotoxic because it binds to phosphates in such as in DNA, RNA, and ATP. Nanoparticle ceramic uranium can cross all known barriers - alveolar, blood-brain, placental. When ceramic uranium is internalized, it persists for life. It is especially harmful to the formative stages of life - and not only human. Radiation damages proliferating cells in early life. For humans, the best comparison may be smoking v maternal and child health. Uranium pollution needs "anti-smoke" initiatives. Please ask your foreign minister/ government to act on this concern. Take advantage of Professor Boyle's advice (model letter below). If you don't care about breathing these poisons yourself, consider birds and fish already lost from the environment. Please understand what is happening to children in Iraq - and beyond. Ross Wilcock, arwilcock@sympatico.ca Uranium in the Wind -----Original Message----- From: Boyle, Francis [mailto:fboyle@LAW.UIUC.EDU] Sent: Friday, March 11, 2005 9:15 AM To: 'davey garland'; du-watch@yahoogroups.com; pandora-project@yahoogroups.com; abolition-caucus@yahoogroups.com; Subject: [abolition-caucus] FW: [NYTr] A Global Pact Against Depleted Uranium Francis A. Boyle Law Building 504 E. Pennsylvania Ave. Champaign, IL 61820 USA 217-333-7954 (voice) 217-244-1478 (fax) fboyle@law.uiuc.edu (personal comments only) -----Original Message----- From: nytr@olm.blythe-systems.com [mailto:nytr@olm.blythe-systems.com] Sent: Thursday, September 23, 2004 4:45 PM To: undisclosed-recipients Subject: [NYTr] A Global Pact Against Depleted Uranium Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit sent by Francis A. Boyle - Sept 23, 2004 His Excellency Michel Barnier Foreign Minister French Republic 37, Quai d'Orsay 75351 Paris FRANCE FAX: 33-1-43-17-4275 Dear Excellency: The Republic of Freedonia presents its compliments to the French Republic. I have the honor to draw to your attention the Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare of 17 June 1925, for which the Government of the French Republic serves as the depositary. The Geneva Protocol of 1925 prohibits the use in war of asphyxiating, poisonous or other gases, and of all analogous liquids materials or devices, as well as the use of bacteriological methods of warfare. Freedonia believes that the Geneva Protocol of 1925 already prohibits the use in war of depleted uranium, uranium ammunition, uranium armor-plate and all other uranium weapons. Freedonia respectfully requests your Excellency to circulate this communication to the other High Contacting Parties to the Geneva Protocol of 1925. Please accept, Excellency, the assurance of our highest consideration. Francis A. Boyle Foreign Minister Republic of Freedonia 21 September 2004 ***************************************************************** 31 [du-list] Federal row over role of Australian troops in Muthanna, Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 10:31:09 -0800 
Federal row over role of Australian troops in Muthanna, Iraq

The World Today - Tuesday, 8 March, 2005  Australian 
Broadcasting
Reporter: Catherine McGrath

http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2005/s1318405.htm

ELEANOR HALL: But first today to the national capital where 
the Federal Government has come under question over the role 
of the new contingent of Australian troops being sent to 
southern Iraq.

The questions from the Labor Party and the Greens have been 
prompted by comments from a Japanese Commander that contrary 
to official statements, the Australian troops would not be 
needed for direct protection of the Japanese in Iraq.

The Opposition says this raises questions about exactly what 
the 450 Australians will be doing and whether they'll have 
the resources to cope if violence in the region escalates.

But the Chief of Australia's Defence Force, General Peter 
Cosgrove, says there's no confusion about the role of the 
Australians. He says they won't be the 'bodyguards' for the 
Japanese, but will be providing a secure environment for them.

 From Canberra Chief Political Correspondent Catherine 
McGrath reports.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: With Australia's 450 troops preparing for 
departure for the southern Iraqi province of Methanna, the 
Japanese commander Kiyohiko Ota has indicated they are not 
needed for direct protection of the Japanese forces.

KIYOHIKO OTA: is not necessary to protect directly our 
troops by Australian army forces.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: And he's expecting a more regional role 
for them.

KIYOHIKO OTA: To keep the good security environment, not 
direct protection for us.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: So what exactly is going on? Australia 
has said the role of the troops is to protect the Japanese 
because due to restrictions placed after World War II, they 
can't protect themselves. And the Prime Minister has ruled 
out Australian soldiers taking over the entire role played 
by the Dutch forces in securing that region.

But this morning, after the comments form the Japanese 
commander, Labor's Defence spokesman Robert McClelland said 
that whatever the full story the Australian soldiers aren't 
adequately equipped for the role they're about to undertake.

ROBERT MCCLELLAND: We think we're guarding the Japanese, the 
Japanese think they're guarding themselves, but I think the 
truth is that we're both being guarded by the British, but 
our concern is that have they got the resources to protect 
us if things deteriorate?

I mean, their helicopters are two hours flight away from 
where our troops are, so it's all a bit of a mess from our 
point of view.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: Australia has said, the Prime Minister 
said at the beginning that we wouldn't be guarding the whole 
region, it doesn't seem to be suggested even from what the 
Japanese have said that we would be guarding the whole region?

ROBERT MCCLELLAND: Yeah, what we're seeing is the start of 
mission creep, and that happens when the Government hasn't 
stated what our mission is. And our concern is if this 
mission creep gets a roll on, that we could be sucked into 
ever more dangerous duties and the reality is our troops 
just aren't being equipped for that hot and heavy situation.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: Now, if the Australian soldiers are 
protecting the direct security environment around the 
Japanese – there's 450 of them – they probably have the 
resources for that, don't you think?

ROBERT MCCLELLAND: Well I'm not sure that that's the case, I 
mean they haven't… the Dutch had six Apachi helicopters and 
indeed those helicopters were responsible for repelling at 
least two attacks from insurgents.

We've got helicopters about two hours flight away, our 
aslavs aren't going to be online, all of them aren't. About 
15 are, I understand, remote firing stations – those sort of 
issues.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: And Greens Senator Bob Brown said the 
Australian public needs more details.

BOB BROWN: Well, the Japanese commander says that he doesn't 
need… they don't need direct protection of their troops, 
they can protect themselves at close up quarters and it 
appears that really the Australian troops are going to be 
part of the security for the province, doing what the 
Americans do to the north and the British do further south.

This isn't a remote area, this is on the main road from 
Baghdad to Basra, a major crossing of the Euphrates, it saw 
a major battle during the war where depleted uranium was 
left there after the Americans went through and the Dutch 
are withdrawing because of casualties.

Two soldiers were killed due to grenade and other attacks on 
them. I don't think the Prime Minister's being clear with 
the Australian people here, and it's not up to the 
Australian people to fill in the dots.

The Prime Minister has given the impression that the 
Australians were going directly to protect the Japanese 
troops because they weren't able to fight back.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: Defence Minister Robert Hill wasn't 
available for interview on The World Today, but through a 
spokesman he said he didn't believe there was any issue over 
the role of the Australian forces.

Chief of the Defence forces General Peter Cosgrove has been 
sent into bat on the Government's behalf.

PETER COSGROVE: Our role will be to offer a secure 
environment for the Japanese engineers. Now, the Japanese 
Colonel who spoke I think was spot on in terms of direct 
protection.

He's talking about the bloke on duty at the gate of the 
Japanese camp and people standing right alongside their 
bulldozers and what have you when they're out working, 
they'll be Japanese soldiers.

That's what our own people do, but in that environment, 
close by, wherever you see Japanese engineers, not too far 
away providing that environment will be Australian service 
men and women providing that support.

CATHERINE MCGRATH: It's an issue the Opposition says they 
will pursue.

ELEANOR HALL: Catherine McGrath in Canberra.

----

Heads roll at VA, mushrooming DU scandal blamed

By Bob Nichols, March 9, 2005 Tehran Times

http://www.sfbayview.com/012605/headsroll012605.shtml
http://www.tehrantimes.com/Description.asp?Da=3/6/2005&Cat=14&Num=001

Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter charged Monday that the 
reason Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi stepped 
down earlier this month was the growing scandal surrounding 
the use of uranium munitions in the Iraq War.

Writing in Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter No. 169, 
Arthur N. Bernklau, executive director of Veterans for 
Constitutional Law in New York, stated, “The real reason for 
Mr. Principi’s departure was really never given, however a 
special report published by eminent scientist Leuren Moret 
naming depleted uranium as the definitive cause of the ‘Gulf 
War Syndrome’ has fed a growing scandal about the continued 
use of uranium munitions by the US Military.”

Bernklau continued, “This malady (from uranium munitions), 
that thousands of our military have suffered and died from, 
has finally been identified as the cause of this sickness, 
eliminating the guessing. The terrible truth is now being 
revealed.”

He added, “Out of the 580,400 soldiers who served in GW1 
(the first Gulf War), of them, 11,000 are now dead! By the 
year 2000, there were 325,000 on Permanent Medical 
Disability. This astounding number of ‘Disabled Vets’ means 
that a decade later, 56% of those soldiers who served have 
some form of permanent medical problems!” The disability 
rate for the wars of the last century was 5 percent; it was 
higher, 10 percent, in Viet Nam.

“The VA Secretary (Principi) was aware of this fact as far 
back as 2000,” wrote Bernklau. “He, and the Bush 
administration have been hiding these facts, but now, thanks 
to Moret’s report, (it) ... is far too big to hide or to 
cover up!”

“Terry Jamison, Public Affairs Specialist, Office of the 
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Department of 
Veterans Affairs, at the VA Central Office, recently 
reported that ‘Gulf Era Veterans’ now on medical disability, 
since 1991, number 518,739 Veterans,” said Berklau.

“The long-term effects have revealed that DU (uranium oxide) 
is a virtual death sentence,” stated Berklau. “Marion Fulk, 
a nuclear physical chemist, who retired from the Lawrence 
Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab, and was also involved with 
the Manhattan Project, interprets the new and rapid 
malignancies in the soldiers (from the 2003 Iraq War) as 
‘spectacular … and a matter of concern!’”

When asked if the main purpose of using DU was for 
“destroying things and killing people,” Fulk was more 
specific: “I would say it is the perfect weapon for killing 
lots of people!”

Principi could not be reached for comment prior to deadline.

References

1. Depleted uranium: “Dirty bombs, dirty missiles, dirty 
bullets: A death sentence here and abroad” by Leuren Moret, 
http://www.sfbayview.com/081804/Depleteduranium081804.shtml.

2. Veterans for Constitutional Law, 112 Jefferson Ave., Port 
Jefferson NY 11777, Arthur N. Bernklau, executive director, 
(516) 474-4261, fax 516-474-1968.

3. Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter. Email Gary Kohls, 
gkohls@cpinternet.com, with “Subscribe” in the subject line.

Email Bob Nichols at bobnichols@cox.net.


-- 

Posted for educational and research purposes only,
~ in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 ~

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*****************************************************************
 32 [du-list] First Army caring for soldiers (but not for DU exposure)
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 10:33:57 -0800


First Army caring for soldiers (but not for DU exposure)

By Ed Brock, March 4, 2005 Clayton, GA News-Daily

http://www.news-daily.com/articles/2005/03/04/news/news1.txt

Army Master Sgt. Anthony Kingston was doing physical 
training in Uzbekistan when he noticed that one of his legs 
would grow numb when he ran.

He endured the discomfort for about three months, but when 
he returned to Fort Benning he went through a physical and 
was told his femur head where the thigh bone joins the hip 
was collapsing.

The injury wasn't bad enough for Kingston, a resident of 
Jonesboro stationed at Army Garrison Fort Gillem in Forest 
Park, to be discharged from the Army. But it was enough for 
him to qualify for the Army's Medical Holdover program.

Now he's working a job in maintenance similar to what his 
regular duties are, and he's getting the medical care he needs.

"As far as scheduling appointments and getting in to see a 
doctor, it's good," Kingston said.

The First U.S. Army, stationed at Fort Gillem, hosted a 
panel discussion Thursday on the Medical Holdover and 
Community-Based Health Care Organization programs at the 
Sheraton Gateway Hotel. Officers with the First Army 
addressed a small gathering of soldiers, the reason why 
these programs exist, the officers said.

"There's nothing we do in this Army that's more important 
than taking care of our soldiers," Army Lt. Col. Richard 
Steele said.

First Army Maj. Gen. John Yingling said the focus of the 
programs were to fix soldiers and get them back to their 
military duties or back to their communities.

Currently east of the Mississippi there are 2,779 soldiers 
in the Medical Hold program.

According to Lt. Col. Ken Braddock as many as 10,000 
soldiers might become Medical Holdovers as a result of the 
current mobilization of troops, which is the largest since 
World War II.

The Medical Holdover program is a voluntary option for 
soldiers who, due to their injuries, are not capable of 
performing their normal duties but who do not want to be 
discharged from the military. The Community-Based Health 
Care Organization (CBHCO) allows the soldiers on Medical 
Holdover to locate near their hometown and family to help in 
the healing process.

The CBHCO program was developed in 2003 and initiated in 
February and March of 2004.

To be eligible for the program, as well as being unable to 
return to regular duties, the soldier must live in a state 
that is participating in the program, be unencumbered by 
legal or administrative action or holds, and must be able to 
provide their own transportation to regular doctors 
appointments and live in a residence that accommodates 
"functional limitations."

"If I was in a wheelchair, I couldn't live at home," 
Braddock said.

Also, the soldier's residence must be within commuting 
distance (50 miles) from the duty station or work site to 
which they will be assigned while on Medical Holdover. 
Giving the soldiers work to do also helps in the healing 
process, Yingling said.

As for medical criteria, the preliminary diagnosis and care 
plan must be supportable by the CBHCO programs and 
appropriate medical care must be within commuting range of 
the soldier's residence.

Soldiers with multiple or complex diagnosis as determined at 
the staff at the Army Mobilization Station and those 
requiring maxillofacial reconstruction or not eligible for 
the program. Neither are soldiers who suffer from medical 
problems that are not commonly treated by civilian 
practitioners, such as exposure to depleted uranium or 
chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear agents or who 
have a working diagnosis of leishmaniasis.

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic infection spread by sand flies.

Steele said the CBHCO program will impact Georgians the most 
when members of the Army National Guard 48th Infantry 
Brigade return from active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"There are a number of medical and health problems that can 
happen when they're deployed," Steele said.

The Medical Holdover and CBHCO programs are available to 
National Guard and Reserve members.


-- 

Posted for educational and research purposes only,
~ in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 ~

NucNews Links and Expanded Archives - http://nucnews.net
*****************************************************************
 33 [du-list] Lawyers' panel indicts Bush, Blair
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 10:32:28 -0800


Lawyers' panel indicts Bush, Blair

Julian Ryall
Aljazeera, Monday 07 March 2005

http://www.uruknet.info/?p=m10207&l=i&size=1&hd=0

Tokyo - US President George Bush and British Prime Minister 
Tony Blair deserve life sentences, with the possibility of 
parole after 25 years, for the war crimes and genocide in 
Iraq, according to a lawyers' panel.

Speaking on Monday at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of 
Japan, Kohki Abe, a professor of law at Kanagawa University, 
said they should face the "maximum penalty available". That 
would not include the death penalty, however, as the members 
of the tribunal opposed capital punishment, he added.

Abe is the chief justice of a four-person panel of the 
International Criminal Tribunal for Iraq (ICTI) that has 
judged the two leaders guilty of a series of charges.

The tribunal has headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey, and a 
final meeting of regional panels is scheduled for June.

Numerous charges

In conjunction with similar legal movements around the 
world, the Japanese chapter of the tribunal was set up in 
July last year, bringing together more than 25 lawyers from 
around the world. More than 10,000 Japanese people have 
supported its work with financial donations.

Abe said: "The people's tribunal does not have any binding 
force, and critics say that makes it useless because it 
doesn't have any power.

"But I believe that delivering this judgment and giving a 
legal interpretation of the acts committed by the defendants 
shows that it is playing an important role."

He added: "The tribunal has determined that injustices have 
been committed in Iraq and the tribunal is putting those 
injustices on the record."

As well as the leaders of the United States and the United 
Kingdom, the ICTI has found Japanese Prime Minister 
Junichiro Koizumi and Gloria Arroyo, the president of the 
Philippines, guilty of numerous charges relating to their 
involvement in Iraq.

Non-binding ruling

The ICTI held a series of hearings to consider evidence and 
testimony before the four judges - two from Japan, a Korean 
and an Indonesian lawyer - and delivered its non-binding 
judgment on 5 March.

The tribunal found Bush guilty on 13 counts, Blair guilty of 
eight crimes, Koizumi guilty on four counts and Arroyo 
guilty of aiding and abetting the other defendants of crimes 
of aggression and crimes against humanity, Abe said.

Bush is guilty of genocide for the use of "devastating" 
economic sanctions, as well as war crimes for attacks 
against civilians and the use of indiscriminate weapons, 
such as cluster bombs and depleted uranium weapons. The 
attack on Falluja also makes him guilty of genocide and 
crimes against humanity.

Guilty of genocide

Blair stands guilty on similar counts, Abe said, while 
Koizumi's decision to support the US administration and 
provide refuelling capabilities, transportation facilities 
and home bases for US troops in Japan, as well as committing 
the Self Defence Forces, make him guilty of war crimes and 
genocide.

"Japan says it is a 'pacifist nation,' but it is a key 
country for US operations and Mr Koizumi bears a strong 
responsibility for that," Shin Hae Bong, a law professor at 
Aoyama Gakuin University and the Korean member of the panel, 
said.

"The Japanese government is tolerating the abuse of US bases 
on Japanese soil and gives them a free hand to use bases 
here to invade and occupy Iraq."

Abe added: "I have to emphasise that these acts should have 
been prosecuted in other venues, such as the International 
Court for Justice, but for legal or political reasons these 
four defendants are unlikely to be prosecuted.

"The international civil society has set up these tribunals 
because we cannot let these acts go past without the 
criminals behind them being tried."

----


-- 

Posted for educational and research purposes only,
~ in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 ~

NucNews Links and Expanded Archives - http://nucnews.net

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*****************************************************************
 34 [DU-WATCH] Australian troops may be exposed to uranium
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 00:30:25 -0600 (CST)

 
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12489770-2,00.html

Comments to...

Sigrid Kirk Editor-in-Chief Email: newsroom@NEWS.com.

Australian troops may be exposed to uranium By Luke McIlveen March
09, 2005

Exposure risk ... Aussie troops sent to Iraq may come into contact
with leftover uranium-based munitions THE army is investigating the
possibility that 450 Australian troops bound for Iraq could be
exposed to toxic materials, including uranium.

The troops will be deployed to Al Muthanna province in southern
Iraq, an area suspected of being a dumping ground for depleted
uranium left by US forces in the Gulf War.

An Australian Army reconnaissance team has been in Iraq to investigate
the presence of uranium and other safety threats, and is due to
report back this week.

Defence authorities confirmed they were investigating the uranium
threat to the Diggers, who will be sent to Iraq in May to protect
Japanese military engineers.

"The health and safety of our personnel is the ADF's highest
priority," the Department of Defence said in response to written
questions from the Herald Sun this week.

"The ADF is aware of the issues surrounding the presence of depleted
uranium in Iraq.

"The ADF currently has a reconnaissance team in Iraq that is examining
in detail a range of issues related to the forthcoming deployment.

"Following their assessment, the ADF will take the necessary steps
to ensure that the deployment will be as safe as possible."

Defence Minister Robert Hill told the Senate the army was conducting
"surveys" on contaminated areas to reduce the risk to Diggers.

Senator Hill said he would take advice on whether Australian troops
should be tested for radioactive contamination when they return.

Several of the 1400 Dutch troops the Australian contingent is
replacing have complained to their union after expended uranium
shells were found near their camp.

The long-term effects of the shells have been linked to various
cancers and the mysterious Gulf War syndrome, which plagued thousands
of US marines in the Gulf War when repelling Iraqui troops from
Kuwait.

Sigrid Kirk Editor-in-Chief Email: newsroom@NEWS.com.

*****************************************************************
 35 [DU-WATCH] Australian Troops will be protected from radiation:
 
Date: Sat, 12 Mar 2005 00:59:49 -0600 (CST)

 
Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief The Chief of
the Army says Australian troops going into southern Iraq will be
protected against depleted uranium ammunition.

Lieutenant General Peter Leahy says a military survey group has
returned from southern Iraq after talks with Japanese and British
forces there.

He says the survey group was able to discuss concerns about depleted
uranium in the area and the Army will now consider any implications.

But Lt Gen Leahy says the 450 Australian troops being deployed to
southern Iraq will be fully protected from radiation.

"I don't think we've got results yet of the data and information
that we've brought back, I think we should wait until we've seen
that," he said.

"But we are well-prepared to respond to that and to make sure that
when our forces deploy they have the appropriate protection and the
full knowledge of where some of these things might be so that we
can avoid them."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200503/s1321536.htm

*****************************************************************
 36 [DU-WATCH] turning our backs on the marshall islands again
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 00:30:34 -0600 (CST)

 
WITNESS FOR JUSTICE # 0206 March 7, 2005 TURNING OUR BACKS ON THE
MARSHALL ISLANDS AGAIN By Bernice Powell Jackson Last March 1, I
was in the Marshall Islands, tiny atolls in the middle of the Pacific
Ocean, where we commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Bravo test.
On March 1, 1954, the United States dropped a 15-megaton hydrogen
bomb 1,000 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
It was one of 67 nuclear weapons tests conducted in the Marshall
Islands by the U.S. between 1946 and 1958.  But while many of the
islanders had been evacuated in previous tests, on March 1 the
people of four tiny atolls were not. In fact, they were not evacuated
until for four days after the massive explosion whose radioactive
cloud spread over an area about the size of New Jersey.

While this story is horrible in and of itself, documents declassified
during the Clinton administration appear to point to the decision
by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) to make the Marshall Islanders
into human guinea pigs.  It appears that there was an AEC project,
named Project 4.1, whose purpose was to study the effects of
radioactive fallout on human beings. Despite its public statements
otherwise, it seems that the AEC decided three days after the Bravo
test to make the Marshall Islanders into research subjects.  It is
unclear whether the Marshallese actually received medical treatments
for the exposure to high levels of radiation or whether they just
received tracers which helped researchers know how human beings
were responding, but we do know that they have suffered extraordinarily
high levels of cancer, particularly of the thyroid.  Moreover, the
second and third generations also have high levels of cancer and
immune system diseases. Women and girls who were originally exposed
during the Bravo tests also experienced high levels of stillbirths,
miscarriages and deformities in their babies. "The only thing I
could think of was Nazi Germany," said then U. S. Energy Secretary
Hazel O'Leary upon first learning about these experiments when some
documents were declassified.

With the release of these documents in 1993, the survivors from the
Bravo test petitioned the U.S. government for additional compensation
to help pay for the health care and clean-up needs. Under a compact
signed by the governments of the U.S. and the Marshall Islands in
1983, the U.S. agreed to pay $150 million into a trust fund. Some
additional funds were awarded to specific groups of survivors.  But
while the commission managing the trust fund has awarded over $1
billion in damage claims, less than one percent of that money could
be paid and there are thousands of claims still pending.

Shortly after the beginning of this year, however, the Bush
administration rejected the petition for changed circumstances,
telling the U.S. Congress that it should not award further compensation
to the Marshall Islands. The irony, of course, is that the U.S. is
telling other governments that they must take full responsibility
for their actions, when we refuse to take responsibility for ours.
To make whole the people of the Marshall Islands to treat their
illnesses and clean up their islands would take only a few days of
the funds we are spending in Iraq and Afghanistan.

This year the survivors of Enewetak, Rongelap, Utrik and Bikini
islands sponsored their own commemoration of the Bravo test by
inviting survivors of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor meltdown to
share their experiences.  They found that government cover-ups and
misinformation were common to both experiences.

More than half a century after one of our nation's most shameful
actions, we must tell the truth, admit our guilt and pay fully for
our actions. Only if we make amends to the people of the Marshall
Islands can we move forward into the future with integrity and
truth.

(Note: You can contact your Senators concerning the petition for
changed circumstances of the Marshall Islands at 202-225-3121.  Or
contact your congressperson at 202-224-3121).

*****************************************************************
 37 RE: [toeslist] Re: How radioactive is DU?
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 00:33:47 -0600 (CST)

 
Chapter I.

Cellular and Molecular Response to Uranium and Depleted Uranium
Exposure

(Return to:  TOP 
;

Table of  
Contents;

Author  
Index)

Summary

The papers in this chapter show that uranium (in various forms)
does cause chromosomal damage and genetic aberrations in cells,
such as increases in sister chromatid exchanges and micronuclei
formation, which are indicative of DNA strand breaks.  These changes
are often precursors to carcinogenesis.

Increased strand breaks in germ cells (sperm and ova) can lead to
greater risk of birth defects in offspring, a mutagenic effect, and
direct effects on the developing fetus, a teratogenic effect. These
combined effects are referred to as cytogenetic toxicity. Another
common effect observed with radiation exposure is genomic instability.
This occurs when surviving irradiated cells  are found to also
exhibit functional abnormalities.

Depleted uranium exposure has been shown to cause a significant
effects lasting through as many as 30 generations of progeny cells.
Finally, the bystander effect is observed when cells surrounding
those that have been directly irradiated are also found to exhibit
abnormalities.

Details

Cytotoxicity of uranium in rat lung tissue was reported as early
as 1987 by Tasat (1)

. In 1993 Lin showed uranium compounds to possess cytogenetic toxicity and
cause decreased cell viability in hamster ovary cells, explaining
the teratogenic effects on developing fetal mice (2)

observed and reported by Domingo in 1989.

Alexandria Miller's continuing work at the Armed Forces Radiobiology
Institute in Bethesda has shown that uranium exposure transforms
human osteoblast cells in vitro to a tumorigenic phenotype (3
 ,
9) 
, implying that internalized DU exposure would be biologically
active and could lead to cancer, similar to exposure to other heavy
metals such as nickel and tungsten (5)
 ,
but more potent (7)
 .
She demonstrated that phenyl acetate, a chemotherapeutic agent,
showed some tendancy to suppress these transformation effects of
DU (6) 
. In comparison with nickel and tungsten, neither of which are
radioactive, she demonstrated that DU exposure resulted in significantly
increased dicentric frequency, a radiation induced genotoxic effect,
that was radiation-dose dependant (8)
 .
She also demonstrated that DU exposure produces a significant genomic
instability effect that lasted three times longer (through 30
successive generations) than that for gamma radiation or for nickel
exposure and that the affected progeny cells exhibited considerably
more chromosomal damage than did progeny cells whose precurser cells
were exposed to gamma radiation, while the nickel-exposed ancestor
cells produced progeny with no elevated level of micronuclei formation
(11) 
. Her most recent work tested the ability of DU and metals in a
typical tungsten alloy to induce stress genes in 13 different
recombinant cell lines generated from human liver carcinoma cells,
with the result that both DU and metal components of tungsten alloys
activate gene expression through pathways that may be involved in
the toxicity and tumorigenicity of these metals (14)
 .

Prabhavathi has shown that smokers at a nuclear fuel manufacturing
facility had considerably more signs of chromosomal damage than
smokers and nonsmokers who were not exposed to radiation (4)
 .

Inhaled or embedded DU is known to become associated with macrophages.

Kalinich reported finding that cell death (apoptosis) occurred in
a line of mouse macrophages that were exposed to DU (10)
 .
He also noted other morphological changes and DNA fragmentation in
the exposed cells. Yazze ran in-vitro studies on the effects of of
uranyl acetate/ascorbic acid mixtures on cells and observed plasmid
relaxation responses in pBluescript DNA leading to DNA strand
cleavage, suggesting that uranium, like chromium, may be directly
genotoxic (13)
 .
The effect observed increased as uranium concentration increased,
and was inhibited in the presence of catalase. Free-radical scavangers
showed no effect.

Schroder analyzed blood lymphocytes samples from 16 veterans of war
theaters where DU was used and discovered in each sample a statistically
significant increased frequency of dicentric chromosomes and centric
ring chromosomes, compared to samples from unexposed controls (12)

*****************************************************************
 38 Xinhua: Japan to pay residents for radioactive soil   

  www.xinhuanet.com

  www.chinaview.cn 2005-03-11 17:20:02   

    TOKYO, March 11 (Xinhuanet) -- The Japan Nuclear Cycle
Development Institute will start paying a fine of 750,000 yen
(7,210 US dollars) a day to local residents in the western
Japanese town of Yurihama from Friday for its failure to meet a
deadline to remove uranium-contaminated soil left in the town. 

    JNC, a state-backed organization developing technologies for
nuclear fuel cycle, said it is seeking a place to temporarily
store the tainted soil to end the payment of the fines as early
aspossible. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science
and Technology supervises the JNC. 

    According to Kyodo News, a court-ordered deadline expired
Thursday for JNC to remove 290 cubic meters of about 3,000 cubic
meters of contaminated soil abandoned in the area for about 40
years. 

    The abandoned soil came from the site of test uranium
drilling conducted from 1956 to 1967 by JNC's predecessor, Power
Reactor & Nuclear Fuel Development Corp., Kyodo said. 

    In October 2004, the Supreme Court finalized an order for
JNC to remove the contaminated soil. 

    It would take at least 10 days for JNC to complete the
removal after it finds a place for the soil. If the removal is
delayed fora year, the fines would total about 270 million yen
(2.6 million US dollars). Enditem 

       
  Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 39 NRC: In the Matter of Transnuclear, Inc., and All Other Persons Who
 
                         FR Doc 05-4794 
[Federal Register: March 11, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 47)] 
[Notices] [Page 12246-12248] From the Federal Register Online via 
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr11mr05-109]
 
Obtain Safeguards Information Described Herein AGENCY: Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission.
 
ACTION: Issuance of order imposing requirements for the 
protection of certain safeguards information.
 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Barr, Project Manager, 
Licensing and Inspection Directorate, Spent Fuel Project Office, 
Office of
 
[[Page 12247]] Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Rockville, MD 20852. Telephone: 
(301) 415-4015; fax number: (301) 415-8555; e-mail CSB2@nrc.gov.
 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I In accordance with the Atomic Energy 
Act of 1954 and 10 CFR part 72, Transnuclear, Inc., 
(Transnuclear) holds Certificate of Compliance No. 1004 for the 
Model No. NUHOMS[reg]-32PT storage cask and Certificate of 
Compliance No. 1027 for the Model No. TN-68 storage cask. In a 
phone call on January 27, 2005, Transnuclear agreed to meet with 
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff with 
Safeguards Information security measures in place. The purpose of 
the meeting(s) is to discuss the NRC's engineering evaluations 
performed to evaluate the safety and security of an array of 
NUHOMS[reg]-32PT and an array of TN-68 storage casks. The 
meeting(s) will be closed to the public. Following the September 
11, 2001, simultaneous terrorist events at the World Trade Center 
(WTC) in New York City and at the Pentagon in Virginia, the U.S. 
Government issued a nationwide alert for the potential of 
additional terrorist acts within the United States.
 
The NRC initiated a comprehensive review of all NRC-licensed 
activities to evaluate those activities against threats. As part 
of that review, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission initiated an 
engineering study to assess the consequences of a terrorist 
event, similar in magnitude to the WTC and Pentagon, on spent 
nuclear fuel transportation packages and storage casks. The NRC 
staff intends to discuss specific information on the engineering 
evaluations performed for the NUHOMS[reg]-32PT and the TN- 68 
storage casks with Transnuclear. However, the Commission has 
determined that the material to be discussed at the meeting(s) is 
Safeguards Information, will not be released to the public, and 
must be protected from unauthorized disclosure. Therefore, the 
Commission is imposing the requirements, as set forth in 10 CFR 
73.21, so that Transnuclear can receive this information for 
review and comment at the closed meeting. This Order also imposes 
requirements for the protection of Safeguards Information in the 
hands of any person,\1\ whether or not a Licensee of the 
Commission, who produces, receives, or acquires Safeguards 
Information.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- \1\ Person means (1) any individual, corporation, 
partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private 
institution, group, government agency other than the Commission 
or the Department, except that the Department shall be considered 
a person with respect to those facilities of the Department 
specified in section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 
(88 Stat.
 
1244), any State or any political subdivision of, or any 
political entity within a State, any foreign government or nation 
or any political subdivision of any such government or nation, or 
other entity; and (2) any legal successor, representative, agent, 
or agency of the foregoing.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- II The Commission has broad statutory authority to 
protect and prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards 
Information.
 
Section 147 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, grants 
the Commission explicit authority to ``issue such orders, as 
necessary to prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of safeguards 
information * * *''. This authority extends to information 
concerning special nuclear material, source material, and 
byproduct material, as well as production and utilization 
facilities. Licensees and all persons who produce, receive, or 
acquire Safeguards Information must ensure proper handling and 
protection of Safeguards Information to avoid unauthorized 
disclosure in accordance with the specific requirements for the 
protection of Safeguards Information as contained in 10 CFR 
73.21. The Commission hereby provides notice that it intends to 
treat all violations of the requirements contained in 10 CFR 
73.21, applicable to the handling and unauthorized disclosure of 
Safeguards Information, as serious breaches of adequate 
protection of the public health and safety and the common defense 
and security of the United States. Access to Safeguards 
Information is limited to those persons who have established the 
need- to-know the information, and are considered to be 
trustworthy and reliable. A need-to-know means a determination by 
a person having responsibility for protecting Safeguards 
Information that a proposed recipient's access to Safeguards 
Information is necessary in the performance of official, 
contractual, or duties of employment.
 
Licensees and all other persons who obtain Safeguards Information 
must ensure that they develop, maintain and implement strict 
policies and procedures for the proper handling of Safeguards 
Information to prevent unauthorized disclosure, in accordance 
with the requirements in 10 CFR 73.21. Transnuclear must ensure 
that all contractors whose employees may have access to 
Safeguards Information either adhere to the licensee's policies 
and procedures on Safeguards Information or develop, maintain and 
implement their own acceptable policies and procedures. 
Transnuclear remains responsible for the conduct of their 
contractors. The policies and procedures necessary to ensure 
compliance with applicable requirements contained in 10 CFR 73.21 
must address, at a minimum, the following: The general 
performance requirement that each person who produces, receives, 
or acquires Safeguards Information shall ensure that Safeguards 
Information is protected against unauthorized disclosure; 
protection of Safeguards Information at fixed sites, in use and 
in storage, and while in transit; correspondence containing 
Safeguards Information; access to Safeguards Information; 
preparation, marking, reproduction and destruction of documents; 
external transmission of documents; use of automatic data 
processing systems; and removal of the Safeguards Information 
category.
 
In order to provide assurance that Transnuclear is implementing 
prudent measures to achieve a consistent level of protection, to 
prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards Information, 
Transnuclear shall implement the requirements identified in 10 
CFR 73.21. The Commission recognizes that Transnuclear may have 
already initiated many of the measures set forth in 10 CFR 73.21 
to this Order for handling of Safeguards Information in 
conjunction with a previous NRC Order. In addition, pursuant to 
10 CFR 2.202, I find that in light of the common defense and 
security matters identified above, which warrant the issuance of 
this Order, the public health, safety and interest require that 
this Order be effective immediately.
 
III Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 53, 57, 62, 63, 81, 161b, 
161i, 161o, 182 and 186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended, and the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, and 10 
CFR part 72, it is hereby ordered, effective immediately, that 
Transnuclear, Inc., and all other persons who produce, receive, 
or acquire the safeguards information described above, and any 
related safeguards information, shall comply with the 
requirements of 10 CFR 73.21. The Director, Office of Nuclear 
Materials Safety and Safeguards, may in writing, relax or rescind 
any of the above conditions upon demonstration by the licensee.
 
IV In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, Transnuclear must, and any 
other person adversely affected by this Order
 
[[Page 12248]] may, submit an answer to this Order, and may 
request a hearing on this Order, within twenty (20) days of the 
date of this Order. Where good cause is shown, consideration will 
be given to extending the time to request a hearing. A request 
for extension of time in which to request a hearing must be made 
in writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 
Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555, and include a statement of good cause for the extension. 
Any request for a hearing shall be submitted to the Secretary, 
Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, 
Washington, DC 20555. Copies also shall be sent to the Director, 
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, to the Assistant 
General Counsel for Materials Litigation and Enforcement at the 
same address, and to Transnuclear if the hearing request is by a 
person other than Transnuclear. Because of possible disruptions 
in delivery of mail to United States Government offices, it is 
requested that requests for hearing be transmitted to the 
Secretary of the Commission either by means of facsimile 
transmission to 301-415-1101 or by e-mail to

 
hearingdocket@nrc.gov and also to the Office of the General 
Counsel either by means of facsimile transmission to 301-415-3725 
or by e-mail to OGCMailCenter@nrc.gov. If a person other than 
Transnuclear requests a hearing, that person shall set forth with 
particularity the manner in which his interest is adversely 
affected by this Order and shall address the criteria set forth 
in 10 CFR 2.714(d). If a hearing is requested by Transnuclear or 
a person whose interest is adversely affected, the Commission 
will issue an Order designating the time and place of any 
hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered at such 
hearing shall be whether this Order should be sustained.
 
Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202(c)(2)(i), Transnuclear may, in addition 
to demanding a hearing, at the time the answer is filed or 
sooner, move the presiding officer to set aside the immediate 
effectiveness of the Order on the ground that the Order, 
including the need for immediate effectiveness, is not based on 
adequate evidence but on mere suspicion, unfounded allegations, 
or error. In the absence of any request for hearing, or written 
approval of an extension of time in which to request a hearing, 
the provisions specified in Section III above shall be final 
twenty (20) days from the date of this Order without further 
order or proceedings. If an extension of time for requesting a 
hearing has been approved, the provisions specified in Section 
III shall be final when the extension expires if a hearing 
request has not been received. A request for hearing shall not 
stay the immediate effectiveness of this Order.
 
Dated this 3rd day of March, 2005.
 
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
Margaret V. Federline, Deputy Director, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards.
 
[FR Doc. 05-4794 Filed 3-10-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

 
*****************************************************************
 40 ITAR-TASS: FC ratifies Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage

11.03.2005, 11.19

MOSCOW, March 11 (Itar-Tass) - The Federation Council upper
house of Russia’s parliament on Friday ratified the Vienna
Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage. 

The Convention signed on behalf of Russia in Vienna in May 1996
is one of the fundamental international legal documents
determining the regime of responsibility and the order of
compensation for the damage resulting from incidents at civil
and nuclear facilities. 

The Convention participants are currently 26 countries. 

Chairman of the FC international affairs committee Mikhail
Margelov stressed that the document’s main idea is “to ensure
the protection of citizens of one state from the damage
inflicted by a nuclear incident in another state.” 

At present Russian legislation does not secure the protection. 

The document provides for paying compensation by a country
responsible for a nuclear facility in the event of any incident
at it. The compensation is made by a court decision in the
country where the incident took place. 

Joining the Convention involves direct financial expenses. Funds
for the damage compensation are transferred to satisfying the
demands of the persons harmed both in the country where the
incident happened and outside it. 

The discussion participants pointed out that the document’s
ratification will make it possible to remove some obstacles to
the development of the country’s international cooperation in
the use of nuclear energy. 

It will also limit damage compensation requirements to Russian
operating organisations set by the state with which Russia is
cooperating in this sphere. 

© ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy,
*****************************************************************
 41 NRC: In the Matter of NAC International, Inc., and All Other Persons
 
                         FR Doc 05-4795 
[Federal Register: March 11, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 47)] 
[Notices] [Page 12245-12246] From the Federal Register Online via 
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr11mr05-108]
 
Who Obtain Safeguards Information Described Herein AGENCY: 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
ACTION: Issuance of Order imposing requirements for the 
protection of certain safeguards information.
 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Barr, Project Manager, 
Licensing and Inspection Directorate, Spent Fuel Project Office, 
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Rockville, MD 20852. Telephone: (301) 
415-4015; fax number: (301) 415-8555; e-mail .
 
 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I In accordance with the Atomic Energy 
Act of 1954 and 10 CFR Part 71, NAC International, Inc., (NAC) 
holds Certificate of Compliance Nos.
 
9010 for the Model No. NLI 1/2 and 9270 for the Model No. NAC-UMS 
transportation packages. In a phone call on January 27, 2005, NAC 
agreed to meet with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 
staff with Safeguards Information security measures in place. The 
purpose of the meeting(s) is to discuss the NRC's engineering 
evaluations performed to evaluate the safety and security of a 
single NLI 1/2 and an array of NAC-UMS transportation packages. 
The meeting(s) will be closed to the public.
 
Following the September 11, 2001, simultaneous terrorist events 
at the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City and at the 
Pentagon in Virginia, the U.S. Government issued a nationwide 
alert for the potential of additional terrorist acts within the 
United States.
 
The NRC initiated a comprehensive review of all NRC-licensed 
activities to evaluate those activities against threats. As part 
of that review, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission initiated an 
engineering study to assess the consequences of a terrorist 
event, similar in magnitude to the WTC and Pentagon, on spent 
nuclear fuel transportation packages. The NRC staff intends to 
discuss specific information on the engineering evaluations 
performed for the NLI 1/2 and NAC-UMS transportation packages 
with NAC. However, the Commission has determined that the 
material to be discussed at the meeting(s) is Safeguards 
Information, will not be released to the public, and must be 
protected from unauthorized disclosure. Therefore, the Commission 
is imposing the requirements, as set forth in 10 CFR 73.21, so 
that NAC can receive this information for review and comment at 
the closed meeting.
 
This Order also imposes requirements for the protection of 
Safeguards Information in the hands of any person,\1\ whether or 
not a Licensee of the Commission, who produces, receives, or 
acquires Safeguards Information.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- \1\ Person means (1) any individual, corporation, 
partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private 
institution, group, government agency other than the Commission 
or the Department, except that the Department shall be considered 
a person with respect to those facilities of the Department 
specified in section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 
(88 Stat.
 
1244), any State or any political subdivision of, or any 
political entity within a State, any foreign government or nation 
or any political subdivision of any such government or nation, or 
other entity; and (2) any legal successor, representative, agent, 
or agency of the foregoing.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- II The Commission has broad statutory authority to 
protect and prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards 
Information.
 
Section 147 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, grants 
the Commission explicit authority to ``issue such orders, as 
necessary to prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of safeguards 
information * * *''. This authority extends to information 
concerning special nuclear material, source material, and 
byproduct material, as well as production and utilization 
facilities. Licensees and all persons who produce, receive, or 
acquire Safeguards Information must ensure proper handling and 
protection of Safeguards Information to avoid unauthorized 
disclosure in accordance with the specific requirements for the 
protection of Safeguards Information as contained in 10 CFR 
73.21. The Commission hereby provides notice that it intends to
 
[[Page 12246]] treat all violations of the requirements contained 
in 10 CFR 73.21, applicable to the handling and unauthorized 
disclosure of Safeguards Information, as serious breaches of 
adequate protection of the public health and safety and the 
common defense and security of the United States. Access to 
Safeguards Information is limited to those persons who have 
established the need-to-know the information, and are considered 
to be trustworthy and reliable. A need-to-know means a 
determination by a person having responsibility for protecting 
Safeguards Information that a proposed recipient's access to 
Safeguards Information is necessary in the performance of 
official, contractual, or duties of employment. Licensees and all 
other persons who obtain Safeguards Information must ensure that 
they develop, maintain and implement strict policies and 
procedures for the proper handling of Safeguards Information to 
prevent unauthorized disclosure, in accordance with the 
requirements in 10 CFR 73.21. NAC must ensure that all 
contractors whose employees may have access to Safeguards 
Information either adhere to the licensee's policies and 
procedures on Safeguards Information or develop, maintain and 
implement their own acceptable policies and procedures. NAC 
remains responsible for the conduct of their contractors. The 
policies and procedures necessary to ensure compliance with 
applicable requirements contained in 10 CFR 73.21 must address, 
at a minimum, the following: the general performance requirement 
that each person who produces, receives, or acquires Safeguards 
Information shall ensure that Safeguards Information is protected 
against unauthorized disclosure; protection of Safeguards 
Information at fixed sites, in use and in storage, and while in 
transit; correspondence containing Safeguards Information; access 
to Safeguards Information; preparation, marking, reproduction and 
destruction of documents; external transmission of documents; use 
of automatic data processing systems; and removal of the 
Safeguards Information category.
 
In order to provide assurance that NAC is implementing prudent 
measures to achieve a consistent level of protection, to prohibit 
the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards Information, NAC shall 
implement the requirements identified in 10 CFR 73.21. The 
Commission recognizes that NAC may have already initiated many of 
the measures set forth in 10 CFR 73.21 to this Order for handling 
of Safeguards Information in conjunction with a previous NRC 
Order. In addition, pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202, I find that in 
light of the common defense and security matters identified 
above, which warrant the issuance of this Order, the public 
health, safety and interest require that this Order be effective 
immediately.
 
III Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 53, 57, 62, 63, 81, 161b, 
161i, 161o, 182 and 186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended, and the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, and 10 
CFR Part 71, it is hereby ordered, effective immediately, that 
NAC international, Inc., and all other persons who produce, 
receive, or acquire the safeguards information described above, 
and any related safeguards information, shall comply with the 
requirements of 10 CFR 73.21. The Director, Office of Nuclear 
Materials Safety and Safeguards, may in writing, relax or rescind 
any of the above conditions upon demonstration by the licensee.
 
IV In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, NAC must, and any other 
person adversely affected by this Order may, submit an answer to 
this Order, and may request a hearing on this Order, within 
twenty (20) days of the date of this Order. Where good cause is 
shown, consideration will be given to extending the time to 
request a hearing. A request for extension of time in which to 
request a hearing must be made in writing to the Director, Office 
of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, and include a 
statement of good cause for the extension. Any request for a 
hearing shall be submitted to the Secretary, Office of the 
Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, Washington, DC 20555. 
Copies also shall be sent to the Director, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555, to the Assistant General 
Counsel for Materials Litigation and Enforcement at the same 
address, and to NAC if the hearing request is by a person other 
than NAC. Because of possible disruptions in delivery of mail to 
United States Government offices, it is requested that requests 
for hearing be transmitted to the Secretary of the Commission 
either by means of facsimile transmission to 301-415-1101 or by 
e-mail to  and also to the Office of the General Counsel either 
by means of facsimile transmission to 301-415-3725 or by e-mail 
to . If a person other than NAC requests a hearing, that person 
shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his 
interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address 
the criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.714(d). If a hearing is 
requested by NAC or a person whose interest is adversely 
affected, the Commission will issue an Order designating the time 
and place of any hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be 
considered at such hearing shall be whether this Order should be 
sustained.
 
Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202(c)(2)(i), NAC may, in addition to 
demanding a hearing, at the time the answer is filed or sooner, 
move the presiding officer to set aside the immediate 
effectiveness of the Order on the ground that the Order, 
including the need for immediate effectiveness, is not based on 
adequate evidence but on mere suspicion, unfounded allegations, 
or error. In the absence of any request for hearing, or written 
approval of an extension of time in which to request a hearing, 
the provisions specified in Section III above shall be final 
twenty (20) days from the date of this Order without further 
order or proceedings. If an extension of time for requesting a 
hearing has been approved, the provisions specified in Section 
III shall be final when the extension expires if a hearing 
request has not been received. A request for hearing shall not 
stay the immediate effectiveness of this Order.
 
Dated this 3rd day of March, 2005.
 
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
Margaret V. Federline, Deputy Director, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards.
 
[FR Doc. 05-4795 Filed 3-10-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

 
*****************************************************************
 42 AU ABC: Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief. 

11/03/2005. ABC News Online
 	
"Australian Broadcasting Corporation Online">   

Health concerns: The Gulf wars
have left Iraq littered with depleted uranium. [File photo]"

Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief
 
The Chief of the Army says Australian troops going into southern
Iraq will be protected against depleted uranium ammunition. 

Lieutenant General Peter Leahy says a military survey group has
returned from southern Iraq after talks with Japanese and
British forces there. 

He says the survey group was able to discuss concerns about
depleted uranium in the area and the Army will now consider any
implications. 

But Lt Gen Leahy says the 450 Australian troops being deployed
to southern Iraq will be fully protected from radiation.

 "I don't think we've got results yet of the data and
information that we've brought back, I think we should wait
until we've seen that," he said. 

"But we are well-prepared to respond to that and to make sure
that when our forces deploy they have the appropriate protection
and the full knowledge of where some of these things might be so
that we can avoid them." 

This service may include material from Agence France-Presse
(AFP), APTN, Reuters, CNN and
*****************************************************************
 43 NRC: In the Matter of BNFL Fuel Solutions Corporation and All Other
 
                         FR Doc 05-4796 
[Federal Register: March 11, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 47)] 
[Notices] [Page 12243-12245] From the Federal Register Online via 
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr11mr05-107]
 
Persons Who Obtain Safeguards Information Described Herein 
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
 
[[Page 12244]] ACTION: Issuance of Order imposing requirements 
for the protection of certain safeguards information.
 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Barr, Project Manager, 
Licensing and Inspection Directorate, Spent Fuel Project Office, 
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Rockville, MD 20852. Telephone: (301) 
415-4015; fax number: (301) 415-8555; e-mail CSB2@nrc.gov.
 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I In accordance with the Atomic Energy 
Act of 1954 and 10 CFR Part 72, BNFL Fuel Solutions Corporation, 
(BNFL) holds Certificate of Compliance No. 1007 for the Model No. 
Ventilated Storage Cask (VSC-24).
 
In a phone call on January 31, 2005, BNFL agreed to meet with the 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff with Safeguards 
Information security measures in place. The purpose of the 
meeting(s) is to discuss the NRC's engineering evaluations 
performed to evaluate the safety and security of an array of 
VSC-24 storage casks. The meeting(s) will be closed to the 
public.
 
Following the September 11, 2001, simultaneous terrorist events 
at the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City and at the 
Pentagon in Virginia, the U.S. Government issued a nationwide 
alert for the potential of additional terrorist acts within the 
United States.
 
The NRC initiated a comprehensive review of all NRC-licensed 
activities to evaluate those activities against threats. As part 
of that review, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission initiated an 
engineering study to assess the consequences of a terrorist 
event, similar in magnitude to the WTC and Pentagon, on spent 
nuclear fuel transportation packages and storage casks. The NRC 
staff intends to discuss specific information on the engineering 
evaluations performed for the VSC-24 storage casks with BNFL. 
However, the Commission has determined that the material to be 
discussed at the meeting(s) is Safeguards Information, will not 
be released to the public, and must be protected from 
unauthorized disclosure. Therefore, the Commission is imposing 
the requirements, as set forth in 10 CFR 73.21, so that BNFL can 
receive this information for review and comment at the closed 
meeting. This Order also imposes requirements for the protection 
of Safeguards Information in the hands of any person \1\, whether 
or not a Licensee of the Commission, who produces, receives, or 
acquires Safeguards Information.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- \1\ Person means (1) any individual, corporation, 
partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private 
institution, group, government agency other than the Commission 
or the Department, except that the Department shall be considered 
a person with respect to those facilities of the Department 
specified in section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 
(88 Stat.
 
1244), any State or any political subdivision of, or any 
political entity within a State, any foreign government or nation 
or any political subdivision of any such government or nation, or 
other entity; and (2) any legal successor, representative, agent, 
or agency of the foregoing.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
---------- II The Commission has broad statutory authority to 
protect and prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards 
Information.
 
Section 147 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, grants 
the Commission explicit authority to ``issue such orders, as 
necessary to prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of safeguards 
information * * *''. This authority extends to information 
concerning special nuclear material, source material, and 
byproduct material, as well as production and utilization 
facilities. Licensees and all persons who produce, receive, or 
acquire Safeguards Information must ensure proper handling and 
protection of Safeguards Information to avoid unauthorized 
disclosure in accordance with the specific requirements for the 
protection of Safeguards Information as contained in 10 CFR 
73.21. The Commission hereby provides notice that it intends to 
treat all violations of the requirements contained in 10 CFR 
73.21, applicable to the handling and unauthorized disclosure of 
Safeguards Information, as serious breaches of adequate 
protection of the public health and safety and the common defense 
and security of the United States. Access to Safeguards 
Information is limited to those persons who have established the 
need- to-know the information, and are considered to be 
trustworthy and reliable. A need-to-know means a determination by 
a person having responsibility for protecting Safeguards 
Information that a proposed recipient's access to Safeguards 
Information is necessary in the performance of official, 
contractual, or duties of employment.
 
Licensees and all other persons who obtain Safeguards Information 
must ensure that they develop, maintain and implement strict 
policies and procedures for the proper handling of Safeguards 
Information to prevent unauthorized disclosure, in accordance 
with the requirements in 10 CFR 73.21. BNFL must ensure that all 
contractors whose employees may have access to Safeguards 
Information either adhere to the licensee's policies and 
procedures on Safeguards Information or develop, maintain and 
implement their own acceptable policies and procedures. BNFL 
remains responsible for the conduct of their contractors. The 
policies and procedures necessary to ensure compliance with 
applicable requirements contained in 10 CFR 73.21 must address, 
at a minimum, the following: The general performance requirement 
that each person who produces, receives, or acquires Safeguards 
Information shall ensure that Safeguards Information is protected 
against unauthorized disclosure; protection of Safeguards 
Information at fixed sites, in use and in storage, and while in 
transit; correspondence containing Safeguards Information; access 
to Safeguards Information; preparation, marking, reproduction and 
destruction of documents; external transmission of documents; use 
of automatic data processing systems; and removal of the 
Safeguards Information category.
 
In order to provide assurance that BNFL is implementing prudent 
measures to achieve a consistent level of protection, to prohibit 
the unauthorized disclosure of Safeguards Information, BNFL shall 
implement the requirements identified in 10 CFR 73.21. The 
Commission recognizes that BNFL may have already initiated many 
of the measures set forth in 10 CFR 73.21 to this Order for 
handling of Safeguards Information in conjunction with a previous 
NRC Order. In addition, pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202, I find that in 
light of the common defense and security matters identified 
above, which warrant the issuance of this Order, the public 
health, safety and interest require that this Order be effective 
immediately.
 
III Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 53, 57, 62, 63, 81, 161b, 
161i, 161o, 182 and 186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended, and the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, and 10 
CFR Part 72, it is hereby ordered, effective immediately, that 
BNFL and all other persons who produce, receive, or acquire the 
safeguards information described above, and any related 
safeguards information, shall comply with the requirements of 10 
CFR 73.21. The Director, Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and 
Safeguards, may in writing, relax or rescind any of the above 
conditions upon demonstration by the licensee.
 
IV In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, BNFL must, and any other 
person adversely affected by this Order may,
 
[[Page 12245]] submit an answer to this Order, and may request a 
hearing on this Order, within twenty (20) days of the date of 
this Order. Where good cause is shown, consideration will be 
given to extending the time to request a hearing. A request for 
extension of time in which to request a hearing must be made in 
writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 
Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555, and include a statement of good cause for the extension. 
Any request for a hearing shall be submitted to the Secretary, 
Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, 
Washington, DC 20555. Copies also shall be sent to the Director, 
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, to the Assistant 
General Counsel for Materials Litigation and Enforcement at the 
same address, and to BNFL if the hearing request is by a person 
other than BNFL. Because of possible disruptions in delivery of 
mail to United States Government offices, it is requested that 
requests for hearing be transmitted to the Secretary of the 
Commission either by means of facsimile transmission to 
301-415-1101 or by e-mail to hearingdocket@nrc.gov and also to 
the Office of the General Counsel either by means of facsimile 
transmission to 301-415-3725 or by e-mail to 
OGCMailCenter@nrc.gov. If a person other than BNFL requests a 
hearing, that person shall set forth with particularity the 
manner in which his interest is adversely affected by this Order 
and shall address the criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.714(d). If a 
hearing is requested by BNFL or a person whose interest is 
adversely affected, the Commission will issue an Order 
designating the time and place of any hearing. If a hearing is 
held, the issue to be considered at such hearing shall be whether 
this Order should be sustained.
 
Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202(c)(2)(i), BNFL may, in addition to 
demanding a hearing, at the time the answer is filed or sooner, 
move the presiding officer to set aside the immediate 
effectiveness of the Order on the ground that the Order, 
including the need for immediate effectiveness, is not based on 
adequate evidence but on mere suspicion, unfounded allegations, 
or error. In the absence of any request for hearing, or written 
approval of an extension of time in which to request a hearing, 
the provisions specified in Section III above shall be final 
twenty (20) days from the date of this Order without further 
order or proceedings. If an extension of time for requesting a 
hearing has been approved, the provisions specified in Section 
III shall be final when the extension expires if a hearing 
request has not been received. A request for hearing shall not 
stay the immediate effectiveness of this Order.
 
Dated this 3rd day of March 2005.
 
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
Margaret V. Federline, Deputy Director, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards.
 
[FR Doc. 05-4796 Filed 3-10-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

 
****************************************************************
 44 IEER update: Uranium Enrichment; DU; Yucca Mountain; Secure
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:32 -0800

 

Here are the latest postings to the Institute for Energy and Environmental 
Research web site, www.ieer.org. Some are brand new, others are oldies but 
goodies and recently posted to the web.  Please let us know if they are 
useful to you.  Apologies for multiple postings.
Lisa Ledwidge, IEER


Uranium Enrichment / Gorbachev and the U.S. People
Science for Democratic Action vol. 13 no. 1
March 2005
http://www.ieer.org/sdafiles/13-1.pdf PDF 445kB


Depleted Uranium from Proposed Enrichment Plant Risks Long-Term Violation 
of Health and Environmental Standards,
May Become Multi-Billion Dollar Taxpayer Liability
Press release http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05.html
Report http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESrptfeb05.pdf PDF, 398 kB
February 23, 2005
Press release also in:
      Arabic http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05a.pdf
      Chinese http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05c.pdf
      Français http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05f.html
      Español http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05sp.html
      Japanese  http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05j.pdf
      Russian http://www.ieer.org/reports/du/LESprfeb05r.html


Comments on the Pantex Plant Radiological Investigation Report
Prepared for Serious Texans Against Nuclear Dumping
June 9, 2004
http://www.ieer.org/comments/pantexradinv.html


Yucca Mountain: An Example Not to Follow
Paper for presentation to a Greenpeace Briefing in Italy
December 2, 2003
http://www.ieer.org/comments/waste/yuccaitaly.html


Congressional Testimony on Secure Storage of Nuclear Spent Fuel
March 10, 2003
http://www.ieer.org/comments/waste/hosstestimony.html


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Lisa Ledwidge
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Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER)
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tel. 1-612-722-9700  | fax: please call 
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 45 [du-list] Superfund site cleanup likely to begin this year
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 10:33:06 -0800

 

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	[du-list] Superfund site cleanup likely to begin this year
Date: 	Fri, 11 Mar 2005 23:35:04 -0500
From: 	et@nucnews.net
To: 	nucnews@yahoogroups.com, DU-List 



Superfund site cleanup likely to begin this year
Depleted uranium barrels to be moved

By Davis Bushnell, Boston Globe Correspondent  |  March 6, 2005

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/03/06/superfund_site_cleanup_likely_to_begin_this_year/

One of the major fronts in the cleanup of the Starmet Corp. 
Superfund site in West Concord -- the removal of more than 
3,700 barrels of depleted uranium -- is expected to get 
underway by year's end, according to environmental officials.

Last Wednesday was the deadline for bids to be submitted to 
the state Department of Environmental Protection for this 
work, which could take a year or more to complete. The 
contractor is expected to be selected March 22 or 23, said 
Ed Coletta, a department spokesman.

In late spring, Coletta said, the contractor will begin 
evaluating and inventorying the barrels, which contain small 
amounts of radioactive material. They are being stored in 
Starmet buildings on the 46-acre property off Route 62.

The US Army, one of five parties cited by the US 
Environmental Protection Agency in 2003 for contaminating 
the site, has agreed to pay for the disposal of the barrels. 
Starmet's predecessor company, Nuclear Metals Inc., made 
uranium-tipped bullets for the Army from 1970 to 1999.

An investigation of how to clean up the property is 
continuing, directed by De Maximis Inc. of Weatogue, Conn., 
which is conducting its research for the Army and the other 
culpable parties.

Next Wednesday, Bruce Thompson, De Maximis project director, 
will give highlights of his firm's work so far to two 
Concord groups, Citizens Research and Environmental Watch 
and the 2229 Main St. Committee. (The Starmet property is 
located at 2229 Main St.)

James West of Concord, a technical assistance coordinator 
for Citizens Research and Environmental Watch, said De 
Maximis has been studying all the appropriate site data, but 
''the issue will be what they've found."

The citizens research group has a $50,000 technical 
assistance grant from the EPA, which is holding the 
Wednesday meeting at Concord town offices. The meeting will 
not be open to the public.

Most of the samples taken late last year of metal debris and 
remnants of some 60 underground drums have now been analyzed 
by General Engineering Laboratory of Charleston, S.C., 
Thompson said in a telephone interview last week.

''We'll present the latest interpretations of those 
analyses" at this week's meeting, Thompson said, declining 
to give details before the meeting. ''We'll also discuss 
potential contaminants other than uranium," he added.

Thompson reiterated that monitors installed around the 
property's perimeter are indicating that no contaminants 
have been released into the air.

Next month, he said, groundwater sampling will be done 
around the 99 monitoring wells, and near 3 to 4 acres of 
bogs and a cooling-water pond. A second round of sampling 
will be conducted six months later, he said.

An assessment of risks to human health posed by the site 
could begin later this year, following the final water 
sampling, Thompson said.

Besides the Army, the other responsible parties are the US 
Department of Energy; Whittaker Corp. of Simi Valley, Calif. 
; Textron Inc. of Providence; and MONY Life Insurance. Co. 
of New York City.

The Starmet site went on the EPA's Superfund list in June 
2001. The list designates severely contaminated sites, which 
are being cleaned up under federal supervision.


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*****************************************************************
 46 L.A. Daily News: Bermite cleanup nearer

Article Published: Friday, March 11, 2005 -
 		   	 	
Bankruptcy judge to pick site developer

By Susan Abram, Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA -- City officials are awaiting a May 4 decision by
a bankruptcy court judge to determine which of several bidders
will clean up and develop the contaminated Whittaker-Bermite
property.

 At the monthly Citizens Advisory Group meeting Wednesday, city
senior planner Jeff Hogan said officials hosted a meeting last
month with several development companies, including Irvine-based
SunCal Co. SunCal is presently planning a 3,900-home development
in Northlake.

 Santa Clarita officials have said the city's best chance of
quickly cleaning up Bermite and the water supply would be if a
developer specializing in contaminated properties would acquire
it to build a mix of homes and commercial developments.
Developers have until April 20 to submit bids to an Arizona
bankruptcy court.

 "The city anticipates the opportunity to review those bids,"
Hogan said. "On May 4, the bankruptcy court will determine who
is best suitable for the project." 

Late last year, Lewis-Soledad Canyon LLC filed a motion of
interest in an Arizona bankruptcy court to make way for the
possible purchase from three shareholders of the 996 acres.

 The Lewis Group, considered one of the nation's largest
privately held real estate development groups, focuses on
developing mixed-use planned communities and residential
subdivisions in California and Nevada, as well as building
multifamily communities, shopping centers, office parks and
industrial space, according to its Web site.

 For nearly 50 years, the 996 acres off Soledad Canyon Road was
used by defense contractors to build and test dynamite,
Sidewinder missiles and small rockets used during World War II,
the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Cold War.

 Manufacturing operations at Whittaker-Bermite concluded in
1987, but the site is contaminated with various chemical
compounds, including perchlorate and heavy metals, solvents and
possibly remnants of fired munitions, which have migrated into
the valley's groundwater system.

 The Castaic Lake Water Agency, working with the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers since 2002, is working to design a process to
purify the contaminated areas. The capital cost is $4 million,
agency officials estimate, and an additional $1 million annually
for the cleanup. But federal funding has been cut.

 Cherokee Investment Partners, a North Carolina-based firm that
specializes in such projects, has been interested in the
property for more than two years. But Cherokee's bid for the
land has stalled because of the $65 million worth of liens on
the property.

 Meanwhile, testing at the site has continued by the Army Corps
of Engineers at a reasonable pace, officials said.

 "I think progress is being made and I think that is good news,"
said Connie Warden-Roberts, chairwoman of the citizens group. 

Susan Abram, (661) 257-5255 susan.abram@dailynews.com

Copyright © 2005 Los Angeles Daily News
*****************************************************************
 47 Bradenton Herald: County to update Tallevast residents today

| 03/11/2005 | 

DONNA WRIGHT

 Herald Staff Writer

Tallevast residents will meet with county staff today to learn
about the latest developments in cleaning up toxic waste from
chemical spills traced back to the former Loral American
Beryllium Co. 

The meeting is a regularly scheduled bi-monthly update to keep
community leaders aware of progress in addressing their health
and environmental concerns. 

Officers of an advocacy group for Tallevast residents called
Family Oriented Community United and Strong are expected to
attend. 

The meeting will be held at 3 p.m. today in the Emergency
Operations Center, 5th Floor of the County Administration
Building, 1112 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.   

HeraldToday.com
*****************************************************************
 48 deseret news: Exhaust all avenues on waste 

Friday, March 11, 2005 

Deseret Morning News editorial 

Sens. Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett took the fight to keep spent 
nuclear fuel rods out of Utah to a new venue Wednesday — the 
White House. 

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove, a former 
Utahn, offered a sympathetic ear and agreed that "temporary" 
storage of 4,000 nuclear waste casks on Utah's west desert is a 
bad idea. But it remains to be seen whether the White House will 
intervene in the matter, which is before the nuclear Regulatory 
Commission for final approval. 

A congressional solution would appear less likely because 
many members represent states that are part of Private Fuel 
Storage, a consortium of nuclear power utilities that wants to 
ship its waste here. With the scheduled opening of Yucca 
Mountain pushed back to at least 2012, they can argue that there 
is a greater urgency to establish the PFS repository on the 
Skull Valley Goshute reservation in Tooele County. 

What this means is that Utah's entire congressional 
delegation, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and other state leaders must 
exhaust every means to keep Utah from becoming Yucca Mountain by 
proxy. But it also means that Utahns have to be realistic about 
the possibilities. PFS struck a private business arrangement 
with a small band of the Goshute tribe. The federal government 
is not a party to the negotiations, and it is limited in what it 
can do. And because the tribe operates on a sovereign 
reservation, the state is virtually powerless. 

Moreover, PFS has a substantial financial investment in 
this project. PFS officials have spent at least a decade working 
through the federal government's regulatory processes. The 
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, which reports to the NRC, 
recently recommended that PFS be granted a license. To hear PFS 
officials tell it, their proposal meets every technical 
requirement of its licensing application. 

State and federal officials must continue to fight this 
proposal to the bitter end. If the NRC gives its OK and every 
other conceivable option is exhausted, the state must shift its 
energies into determining the earliest possible opportunity that 
the waste can be moved to the underground facility at Yucca 
Mountain. 

The logical solution is to keep the waste where it 
currently is stored, at the 70 some odd nuclear facilities 
nationwide. But if the nation is determined to move it to a 
permanent repository, Yucca is far better suited for it than is 
Utah's Skull Valley. 

© 2005 Deseret News Publishing Company 
*****************************************************************
 49 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: 3 cities going after nuclear dump project
 
March 12, 2005 KST 15:14 (GMT+9)

  March 12, 2005 ¤Ñ Three cities in North Gyeongsang province
are vying to win approval from the Korean government for the
construction of a nuclear waste facility in their vicinities. 
A special law passed last week in the National Assembly provides
for incentives of 300 billion won ($300 million) for the city or
town that accepts a dump for low- and medium-level nuclear
waste. 

The Assembly promised an additional 5 to 10 billion won every
year, and said it will move the headquarters of the Korea Hydro
and Nuclear Power Co. to the selected area. 

In Pohang, a port city, the mayor, Chung Jang-sik, took the lead
in the bid for the facility. He ordered all offices to start
focusing on bringing the nuclear dump to Pohang. 

"If we have the nuclear waste facility, it will be easier to
attract the Korea Electric Power Corp. to move their
headquarters down to the city," a Pohang city official said. 

Also in the province, in a county famous for its crabbing
industry, 28 residents of Namjeong village near Yeongdeok have
organized a petition drive, which they said would soon be
delivered to their county office in hopes of prompting a larger
campaign. "The incentives are almost shocking," said Choi
Gyu-han, who is leading the petition drive. 

The city of Uljin, located in the most northern part of North
Gyeongsang, is trying again to attract the nuclear waste dump.
Because of fierce protests from environmental groups, the
central government backed off a plan last May to site the
facility in Uljin. "The central government is really behind the
plan this time," said Jang Chang-su, a member of the Uljin
campaign.
 

by Hong Gweon-sam mina@joongang.co.kr>   
	  
Copyright by Joins.com, Inc. Terms
*****************************************************************
 50 Las Vegas RJ: Energy officials turn shy in talk about Yucca schedule
 
Friday, March 11, 2005
 
 

By STEVE TETREAULT 
STEPHENS WASHINGTON BUREAU 

WASHINGTON -- Energy Department officials are displaying new
caution about projecting schedules for Yucca Mountain, saying
deadlines for establishing a nuclear waste repository for a
large part now are out of their hands. 

For years, the department had its eye firmly on 2010 to begin
accepting high level nuclear waste at the Nevada site. 

But after several setbacks in the past year, Yucca Mountain
managers said in February that 2010 was being abandoned. Project
director Margaret Chu said DOE was "hoping 2012" would emerge as
the new opening date. 

DOE began distancing itself from that prediction almost
immediately, and its officials continue to do so. 

Although saying 2012 can be achieved if everything goes their
way, Yucca managers in recent public comments have mentioned
2015 as another possibility. 

More often, DOE officials carefully couch any talk of deadlines,
saying the project faces uncertainties ahead, including waiting
for the Environmental Protection Agency to set new radiation
health standards and getting enough money from Congress to build
the $57.5 billion project. 

Officials also express new caution about maneuvering through a
complex Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing process that
could stretch beyond three or four years as the state of Nevada
challenges whether the mountain safely can contain highly
radioactive material for thousands of years. 

"There are a number of issues that could extend our activity,
but we are attempting to do this as expeditiously as possible,"
Ted Garrish, Yucca Mountain acting director, said Thursday. 

The Energy Department submitted a chart to Congress on Thursday
that included cost estimates for both a 2012 and a 2015
repository opening. Some in private industry have said a
realistic schedule would have Yucca Mountain open between 2015
and 2020. 

Some DOE officials were exasperated when Chu mentioned 2012,
sources said. She made her comments to a group of reporters
following the department's 2006 budget announcement on Feb. 7. 

Chu's resignation was announced four days later. She said her
departure had been in the works for months, and there has been
no indication of a connection between her departure and her
references to 2012. 

Chu "put a marker out there that got people uncomfortable," a
DOE official said. 

Another DOE executive suggested that Chu made the comment in
haste to escape pressure from reporters seeking new details
about the schedule. 

"To tell you the truth, (reporters) were walking down the
hallway with Margaret Chu during her last week, and she just put
it out there," the official said. 

"So that's what happened." 

Nonetheless, 2012 became a new benchmark. Since then, the
department has cushioned any talk of Yucca time lines. 

Chu, who has moved to New Mexico, could not be contacted
Thursday night. 

"There is great uncertainty for (the Energy Department) as to
what is going to happen politically and financially," said Bob
Loux, executive director of the Nevada Agency for Nuclear
Projects. 

"They are not in control anymore." 

The department's new caution on Yucca Mountain reflects the
influence of new Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, some say.
Bodman has acknowledged to Congress in several appearances that
meeting deadlines has not been DOE's strong suit in a number of
areas. 

"The new secretary is real concerned about doing things, making
estimates of dates or financials, that we can't back up,"
Garrish said. 

"It is possible, if circumstances all work right, for an earlier
rather than a later date," Garrish said. 

"I don't want to give a date that is wrong. It is important that
we be careful." 

A nuclear industry consultant said Yucca Mountain managers "got
a lot of heat for missing the schedules," and their
acknowledgement of complications ahead "is a new breath of
reality." 

"Projects are always dependent on resources," the consultant
said. 

"They now are acknowledging that."
 
 

Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal
*****************************************************************
 51 Scotland: The Herald: Nuclear waste 

Web Issue 2220 March 11 2005 

KEN SMITH and DAVID BELCHER March 11 2005 

Contact: Tel: 0141 302 7055/6 Fax: 0141 302 7272 Email 

SCOTTISH Parliament presiding officer George Reid was calmness 
personified when anti-nuclear protesters blocked the road 
outside the parliament yesterday by chaining themselves inside a 
mock-up of a Trident submarine. 

The Edinburgh council, observed George, had blocked the road 
for months with roadworks, so another day wasn't going to make a 
difference. 

But we leave the last word on the protest to veteran political 
reporter Dave King who, while walking past, observed: "If they 
stay chained up in there long enough, will one of them 
eventually create a nuclear dump?" 

Name confusion 

FORMER television political editor John Sergeant, appearing at 
the BAA-sponsored Look Who's Talking series at Glasgow's Theatre 
Royal, explained to his audience that the first time he asked a 
theatre crowd if they had any questions, a woman piped up: "What 
do you think of Mark Lamarr?" 

John, who has written a book on the aftermath of Maggie 
Thatcher's premiership, racked his brains to come up with an 
opinion on the acid-tongued presenter of music quiz show Never 
Mind The Buzzcocks, and wondered what it had to do with politics.

It was only as he left the theatre that the woman came up to 
him and apologised: "I'm sorry. I meant to say Andrew Marr." 

Foot in mouth 

GMG Radio's chief executive, John Myers, returns to the Real 
Radio network's airwaves under his DJ name John Morgan, hosting 
Saturday Party Night. As combined MD and DJ at his hometown 
station, Century, in Newcastle, John was once required to 
reprimand himself after his show broadcast a competition staged 
jointly with the local newspaper. A blind listener phoned in, 
complaining she couldn't participate, being unable to complete 
the newspaper entry form. John is still shamefaced at his 
off-hand reply: "So what? Deaf folk don't even know there is a 
competition." 

Insecurity 

CONFIRMING that thieves will nick anything, Kate McPherson on 
the Ross-shire Journal, tells us of the charity shop in Dingwall 
which had pinned up a counterfeit £20 note beside the till as a 
reminder to staff on what to look out for. And yes, someone 
stole it. 

Bumpy ride 

AIR crew comedians continued. Joe Hunter in St Albans recalls 
flying in to Aberdeen from Heathrow on a particularly windy and 
unpleasant evening. The plane came down with a resounding thump 
on the runway, bounced up again and back down again. The pilot 
then announced: "Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to tell you 
that that was a fully-automated, hands-free landing  
unfortunately, it was one of my own. I do apologise." 

Loose tongue 

THE ostracised chap who felt like a "piranha" reminded Bob 
Purdie of a court case a friend attended which involved a driver 
being charged after a pedestrian had been knocked down. The 
seriousness of the case was perhaps spoiled by the witness, 
describing the crucial moment, who told the court: "And there 
she lay  prostitute on the ground." 

To the Ferry on time 

GLASGOW'S floating venue, the Renfrew Ferry, is closing 
temporarily for refurbishment, so co-owner Joe Gillan will be 
spared the unique pressures of wedding ceremonies. He recalls a 
phone call from a nervous, tearful-sounding bride whose guests 
were already aboard. When she told Joe she'd be late, he sought 
to reassure her in the time-honoured manner, calmly stating that 
lateness was every bride's prerogative. "No  I'm going to be 
really late!" she cried. The bridal limo had encountered a 
marathon, and zealous stewards wouldn't let her through. 

Early learning 

PRIVATE schools in Scotland have been warned that they might 
have to justify why they should retain their charitable status. 
The editor of The Jaggy Thistle website contacts us with a 
reason: "It gives pupils valuable experience on how to avoid 
paying tax for when they become lawyers and accountants." 

Eyes on teddy bear 

AS we said, the number of humorous items about hymns is a slim 
volume, so we forgive Neil Cameron in Strathblane for reminding 
us of the little girl who told the minister she had named her 
squint-eyed bear "Gladly" after the hymn. 

When he continued to look puzzled she told him "The one that 
goes 'Gladly my cross I'd bear . . .' " 

Copyright © Newsquest (Herald & Times) Limited. All Rights 
*****************************************************************
 52 Las Vegas SUN: Ex-Reid aide is mum on Yucca in NRC post 

March 10, 2005 

By Suzanne Struglinski  SUN WASHINGTON 
BUREAU 

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- New Nuclear Regulatory Commission member Greg 
Jaczko has a perfectly crafted, quick response when people ask 
him about his views on the proposed nuclear waste repository at 
Yucca Mountain. 

Ask him about it again in a year. 

Jaczko, a former staff member of Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., made 
his first public address at a commissioner at the annual 
Regulatory Information Conference on Wednesday. 

After outlining his vision for his new position on the 
five-member commission, the first questions from the audience 
revolved around how he would remain objective on the proposed 
nuclear waste storage facility at Yucca, 90 miles northwest of 
Las Vegas. 

Jaczko, a particle physicist by training, was Reid's science 
adviser during the height of the congressional debate on the 
repository in 2002, raising questions about his ability to 
appropriately serve as a commissioner. The commission will 
ultimately decide whether to give a license to the Energy 
Department to build the repository. 

Reid, one of the Senate's most vocal opponents of the 
repository along with Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., pushed hard for 
about two years for Jaczko's confirmation, placing holds on 
other nominees and bills until Congress would approve him. 
Jaczko, who was sworn in on Jan. 21, said that before his 
official nomination, he thought a lot about what happens to 
congressional staff members and other federal employees when 
they switch to another job. They are usually barred from 
interaction with topics or issues they formerly dealt with for 
at least a year. 

"This was a principle that I thought would be appropriate for 
me given my past work for Sen. Reid when I came to the 
commission," Jaczko said. 

Part of the deal reached in Congress that eventually led to a 
recess appointment by President Bush, included a one-year 
recusal on anything related to Yucca Mountain or geological 
disposal. Jaczko volunteered for it, although it is unlikely the 
commission would vote on its license application in the next 
year. 

"I have agreed not to discuss the issue publicly," Jaczko said. 
"This makes it easy to answer questions because I can truthfully 
say I cannot answer them at this time." 

He said one of the ways he can be "fair and objective" on the 
matter is to wait to discuss it after a year, or when he has 
"appropriately distanced myself from the previous work I have 
done on the issue." 

His recusal does not limit him from working on the proposed 
Private Fuel Storage facility in Utah. The commission could 
consider a license application for the site this year. The site 
would temporarily hold high-level nuclear waste. 

The Nuclear Energy Institute and other Yucca Mountain 
supporters objected to Jaczko's nomination throughout the 
confirmation period, but Marvin Fertel, NEI's senior vice 
president and chief nuclear officer, said he has met with Jaczko 
and will work with him as he would work with any of the 
commissioners. Fertel said the industry's main concern is that 
things are done safely. 

"I think Greg wants to do that too," Fertel said. 

Because his confirmation was done through a recess appointment, 
Jaczko will only serve a two-year term, unless he is 
re-nominated for the position. 

Jaczko poked a little fun at the controversy surrounding his 
nomination, starting his speech saying he "would like to publicy 
express my deep disappointment with many of the newspaper 
articles written about me" during his confirmation process. 

"I was deeply disturbed by them and I will tell you why: not a 
single article gave you an accurate description of how to say my 
name. So for the record, it's pronounced 'yatz ko.' " 

All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. 
*****************************************************************
 53 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department says it needs cash to move on
Yucca 

By Suzanne Struglinski 

SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU 

WASHINGTON -- Money is really the only thing stopping the 
Energy Department from moving forward on the proposed nuclear 
waste repository at Yucca Mountain, a high-ranking project 
official told a House panel Thursday. 

The department and nuclear industry made their case before the 
House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee Thursday to have 
Congress change budget rules to make it easier to allow billions 
of dollars to flow more easily to the project. 

The department has been saying for years that the project can 
only stay on schedule with an adequate budget, but Congress has 
shortchanged it by $1 billion during the last decade. 

"The current challenge is not so much technical as it is 
financial," Theodore Garrish, deputy director of the Energy 
Department's Yucca program, said at a House hearing Thursday. 

The department wants to put 77,000 tons of used commercial 
nuclear fuel and waste from nuclear weapons construction plants 
at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, despite 
strong opposition from state officials and the congressional 
delegation. 

The department and nuclear industry officials want Congress to 
give the project direct access to billions of dollars in a fund 
of ratepayer fees designed to go toward the disposal of nuclear 
waste. 

Nevada's three House members testified against the project, 
citing their usual arguments against it, but also tailoring 
their remarks to focus on the budget aspect. All three feel 
changing the rules would limit congressional oversight of the 
project. 

"In a time when Republicans on the Hill are demanding 
congressional oversight on spending, it is hypocritical to then 
make more spending not subject to strict yearly congressional 
oversight," said Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev. 

Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., said changing the rules could set a 
"dangerous precedent" for other federal projects that do not 
meet their plans. 

"Any budgetary gimmicks like this are dangerous and cannot be 
allowed," Porter said. 

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., reminded the panel of the 
project's problems, including the lack of a radiation protection 
standard, which a federal court threw out last year. 

"This project is in a downward spiral, even members of the 
nuclear industry are looking for other ways to store the 
waste,and throwing more money at this problem-ridden albatross 
will not fill gaps in the science because the science is not 
there," Berkley said. 

Garrish acknowledged the department has to wait for the 
Environmental Protection Agency to develop a new radiation 
standard and get the appropriate documents to the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission before anything can move forward. He 
dismissed any claims that the program was at a dead end. 

"That is absolutely not true," Garrish said. Opening the 
repository by 2012 "is possible if the circumstances all work 
right." 

Part of the "circumstances" include Congress changing budget 
rules to allow money collected in the Nuclear Waste Fund to be 
put toward the repository without affecting other federal 
programs. Nuclear power ratepayers have put about $17 billion in 
the fund, which is set aside to specifically fund the 
repository. Caps on how much money can be spent every year by 
Congress limit how much money is put toward the program. 

"We've got the money in the bank," Garrish said. "We just can't 
get to it." 

The subcommittee passed a bill last year that would have made 
$750 million available to the program a year, which is the same 
amount paid annually into the Nuclear Waste Fund, but it did not 
advance. Garrish said. It is possible for the Office of 
Management and Budget to make the change through an 
administrative action, but the House and Senate Budget 
Committees and the Congressional Budget Office would have to 
agree to the change. 

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., sits on the Senate Budget Committee 
and strongly opposes any attempt to change the repository's 
budget rules. 

The change supported by the department -- and the nuclear 
industry -- would allow Congress to allocate money to the 
project without having to compete with other federal programs 
within the department. Right now, in order to give money to the 
repository, the money has to come from another programs, even 
though it has its own fund sitting there waiting to be used, 
according to the department. 

Garrish said if the project does not get about $10 billion 
between now and when it opens, estimated between 2012 and 2015, 
the department would still be able to submit a license 
application but could not build surface facilities or tunnels 
within the mountain, a rail line in Nevada or move waste to the 
state. 

Despite all the obstacles in front of the program right now, 
Garrish showed the same optimism at the House hearing that he 
showed at a Senate Appropriations hearing Thursday morning, 
saying the program is in the best position it has ever been. 

"I can see the light at the end of the Yucca Mountain tunnel," 
Garrish said. 

All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. 
*****************************************************************
 54 Las Vegas SUN: EPA radiation options for Yucca met with criticism

Today: March 11, 2005 at 11:39:11 PST 

By Benjamin Grove 
 

SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF 

WASHINGTON -- The options that the Environmental Protection 
Agency is considering for a revised radiation standard for Yucca 
Mountain drew negative reviews from environmental groups that 
attended a closed-door EPA briefing this week. 

The agency is considering several revision options that do not 
seem to be in line with a federal court in July that directed 
the EPA to set a tougher standard, the activists said. 

"My impression was that they are going to do what they want to 
do," said Peggy Maze Johnson, director of Nevada-based Citizen 
Alert, who participated in the Washington briefing by phone. 
"They don't care about putting waste in a mountain that leaks." 

EPA spokesman John Millett confirmed that officials held the 
Tuesday meeting to inform Yucca watchdog groups about options 
the agency was considering. But agency officials believe it is 
"premature to discuss which options under discussion are most 
likely to be pursued," Millett said. 

After years of research, the EPA in 2001 set a radiation 
standard for Yucca Mountain that restricted the planned 
underground nuclear waste repository to emitting no more than a 
15-millirem annual dose of radiation for 10,000 years, with a 
separate four-millirem standard for groundwater. A chest X-ray 
yields roughly 10 millirem of radiation. 

A federal court last summer ruled that the standard did not 
legally mesh with a stricter standard recommended by the 
National Academy of Sciences. The academy said the standard 
should be applied during the repository's period of "peak dose" 
-- the time of greatest radioactive risk -- which may not 
necessarily occur in 10,000 years. The peak dose may not happen 
for 100,000 years or more, Yucca watchdogs have said. 

EPA officials have worked mostly behind closed doors to revise 
the standard and have not said publicly what they are planning. 
Nevada officials have unsuccessfully sought access to the 
decision-making process, and to the EPA's communications with 
the Energy Department and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on 
this matter. 

But EPA officials have met quietly with some stakeholders, 
including the nuclear power industry. The agency met with the 
Nuclear Energy Institute, the industry's top lobby group, about 
a month ago. 

On Tuesday EPA radiation office director Elizabeth Cotsworth 
and an agency lawyer met with representatives from 10 
environmental and public interest groups that track Yucca, 
according to several who attended the meeting. Two Nevada 
activists, Johnson and Judy Treichel, participated by conference 
call. 

The agency is considering several options, including no change 
in the 10,000-year standard, meeting participants said. 

Another option is leaving the 15-millirem, 10,000-year standard 
in place -- but with an increased allowable millirem dose level 
after 10,000 years, meeting participants said. An increased dose 
limit such as 25-millirem or 100-millirem were used as examples 
in the meeting, they said. 

Yucca critics said that was unacceptable. 

"It's obvious the EPA is trying to set a standard that would 
hold up in court," said Navin Nayak, environmental advocate for 
U.S. Public Interest Research Group. "It's not clear that the 
path they are headed down would achieve that." 

Nevada officials want a standard that clearly adheres to the 
National Academy recommendation, said Joseph Egan, a lawyer 
working for the state. 

"It's a bit disturbing that right out of the box that the EPA 
is working on a ballfield that is light years away from the 
academy and the court case," Egan said. 

Nevada officials generally believe the peak dose will occur 
when the nuclear waste containers fail, which state officials 
believe will be well before 10,000 years, Egan said. But they do 
not agree that the dose standard should be raised, even after 
10,000 years. 

"We'd have a decent shot of overturning that in court," Egan 
said. 

Among the arguments the state could make is that nuclear 
regulatory law doesn't generally allow for setting different 
standards for future generations, Egan said. 

The nuclear industry generally supports raising the dose limit 
after 10,000 years, said NEI senior project manager Rod McCullum.

"That's an avenue that would be a credible and defensible 
method for addressing uncertainties," he said. 

Another EPA option is pursing a more esoteric "risk-informed, 
performance-based" standard in which the EPA ultimately might 
not set a specific radiation-limit time frame or dose standard 
at all, meeting attendees said. A "non-numeric" 
performance-based standard might describe how the repository 
would be held to the strictest waste isolation technology 
available, for example. 

"It gets into the murky vagueness of pencil-whipping the 
repository into compliance," said Kevin Kamps, a nuclear waste 
specialist with Nuclear Information and Resource Service, who 
attended the meeting. 

The EPA officials told the activists that the agency would 
release a draft of its new standard this summer and would allow 
for a 90-day period of public comment. 

The activists said that wasn't enough time to mobilize 
opposition. They asked the agency to first file a preliminary 
rule-making notice to give them some advanced warning. The 
agency isn't willing to do that, they said. 

Activists fear the important decision-making is being done now, 
behind closed doors. They fear the EPA will rush to finalize the 
rule after public comment. 

"If the real work on this is being done now, why can't they do 
it in the open?" Treichel, director of the Nevada Nuclear Waste 
Task Force, said. 

EPA spokesman John Millett said the agency was trying to be 
sensitive to that. 

"That's always something we strive to do while recognizing that 
we need to deliberate internally as we consider options," 
Millett said. 

All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. 
*****************************************************************
 55 Salt Lake Tribune: Hazardous import: The state still is behind many
others in accepting the waste 

Article Last Updated: 03/11/2005 06:48:54 AM 

The state still is behind many others in accepting the waste, 
but the quantity is up 

By Patty Henetz The Salt Lake Tribune 

The amount of hazardous waste shipped to Utah for disposal has 
quadrupled since 2001, largely because of a commercial waste 
company's decision to consolidate operations, a state official 
said Thursday. 

The state imported 146,413 tons of hazardous waste in 2002 
and 2003, according to the biennial hazardous waste generation 
and management report compiled by the state Department of 
Environmental Quality. During the previous two-year reporting 
period, 2000-2001, the state imported 35,677 tons of hazardous 
waste. 

Rusty Lundberg, the department's solid waste branch manager, 
said Clean Harbors, a company with more than 100 facilities 
throughout North America, has turned its Tooele County 
incinerator at Aragonite into a kind of "super center" for its 
disposal operations. 

In turn, the Clean Harbors landfill at Grassy Mountain is 
taking more of the incinerator's waste ash, Lundberg said. The 
Aragonite facility was Utah's largest hazardous-waste generator 
and the facility that accepted the most waste for the period, 
creating 17,892 tons of material and accepting 101,143 tons from 
out of state. 

Clean Harbors, based in Braintree, Mass., bought out the 
bankrupt Safety-Kleen Corp. chemical services division in 
September 2002. After the acquisition, the company was able to 
handle more of its own waste disposal, said Phillip Retallick, 
senior vice president for compliance and regulatory affairs. 
That made the company's operations more cost-effective, he said. 

The Clean Harbors operations are in Tooele County's 
so-called Hazardous Industries Zone, a large area of the west 
desert that also is home to Envirocare of Utah. 

While Utah imported more waste in the 2002-2003 reporting 
period, the quantity was far less than some states in the 
2000-2001 reporting period. During that time, Ohio accepted 
nearly 509,000 tons of hazardous waste. Michigan accepted 
394,000 tons. Pennsylvania, Indiana, Texas, Illinois, South 
Carolina and Missouri each accepted more than 200,000 tons. 

Still, the state is making itself known as a convenient 
waste dump, said Vanessa Pierce, a spokeswoman for the 
anti-waste group Healthy Environment Alliance Utah. 

"As long as Utah continues to act as the rug under which the 
nation's toxic wastes are swept, we enable the generation of 
ever more hazardous and nuclear waste," she said. "The 
responsibility [for this] rests squarely on the shoulders of the 
policy-makers." 

After the Aragonite facility, Utah's largest hazardous-waste 
producers were Nucor Steel, Deseret Chemical Depot, ATK Thiokol's
Bacchus plant in West Valley City, Tooele Army Depot, ATK Thiokol
in Corinne, Northeast Casualty in Clive, Hill Air Force Base and 
Envirocare of Utah. The nine facilities accounted for 86 percent 
of the total reported statewide. 

Envirocare accepted 26,086 tons of hazardous waste mixed 
with low-level radioactive waste. Grassy Mountain accepted 
93,246 tons of hazardous nonradioactive material. 

Utah must compile the report every two years to satisfy the 
federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. During 
the 2003 reporting cycle, 74 Utah facilities generated 60,408 
tons of hazardous waste, which doesn't include hazardous 
wastewater handled at facility sites. Of that, 24,388 tons were 
shipped out of state for disposal, mostly to Idaho. 

The 2003 report shows a general decline from 2001, when 
facilities generated 89,391 tons of hazardous waste. The large 
generators reported more than 25,000 tons of solvents. 
Incineration, thermal treatment, pollution control equipment, 
painting, equipment maintenance and outdated products and 
chemicals were the primary sources of hazardous wastes. 

Utah ranked 30th in the nation for quantity of hazardous 
waste produced but accounted for less than 0.01 percent of the 
nation's total. 

The Environmental Protection Agency has not yet released the 
2003 reporting cycle nationwide report. But Lundberg said the 
rankings don't tend to change much. 

The 2001 report showed Utah ranked 36th for waste generated. 
The top five hazardous waste generating states that cycle were 
Texas, Louisiana, New York, Kentucky and Mississippi. 

Market dynamics depend on when companies decide to do 
cleanups, Lundberg said. Companies also take steps to reduce 
waste at the front end by substituting less-polluting materials 
in their processes, he said. 

States' disposal and financial assurance fees also can 
influence where companies decide to send their hazardous 
materials for disposal. While Lundberg has not seen any 
comprehensive studies of states' fees, he is certain Utah isn't 
the cheapest. 

"This is an open market," he said. "Sometimes [companies] 
find better deals elsewhere." 

© Copyright 2005, The Salt Lake Tribune. 
*****************************************************************
 56 ICT: Treaty may prevent nuclear storage

[2005/03/11]  

by: Brenda Norrell / Indian Country Today                                                                                             
									 								 								 								 								 								 								
Photo courtesy Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management -- 
Aerial view of Yucca Mountain. (bottom photo) State of Nevada 
callout.                                                                                                                                                                                        
										
LAS VEGAS - Attorney Treva Hearne, partner at Hager and Hearne in 
Reno and counsel to the Western Shoshone National Council, said 
it is time for the United States to honor its treaties with 
American Indians and halt its longstanding history of human 
rights abuses.

The U.S. plans to entomb 77,000 tons of highly radioactive 
commercial, industrial and military waste at Yucca Mountain, 100 
miles northwest of Las Vegas. Although Congress and the Bush 
administration selected the site in 2002, a planned 2010 opening 
has been delayed by budget, legal and technical difficulties.

A lawsuit filed March 4 by the Western Shoshone National Council 
in federal district court in Las Vegas seeks declaratory and 
injunctive relief to stop the plan, as the area has long been 
held as significant to the Western Shoshone Nation and included 
within the tribe's boundaries as described in Article 5 of the 
1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley.

The United States, U.S. Interior and U.S. Department of Energy 
are named as defendants, and two people are specifically named: 
Secretary of Interior Gayle Norton and Energy Secretary Samuel 
Bodman.

Hearne, co-counsel filing the suit, said the treaty only allows 
for communities, mining, agriculture and the development of roads 
and a railroad. A nuclear waste dump would prevent all of this.

''That land would be lost,'' Hearne told Indian Country Today. 
''It would be lost for 10,000 years. In other words - it would be 
lost forever.

''The Western Shoshone are speaking for all of the people of 
Nevada who do not want this land lost to humans forever.''

Responding to the pattern of nuclear waste dumps on Indian lands, 
Hearne said, ''Unfortunately we have more human rights violations 
against Indian people in the United States than there are human 
rights violations against any people in any of the other 
countries we accuse of this.''

Hearne said toxic waste dumps on Indian lands reflect the U.S. 
government's lack of respect for the culture and rights of Indian 
people.

Western Shoshone National Council Chairman Raymond Yowell said 
the fact that Indian nations are sovereign and not subject to the 
same U.S. environmental protection laws as the states has made 
Indian nations targets for deadly nuclear dumping. Indian nations 
have also been targeted because of their need to boost their 
economies, he said.

Yowell warned against the proposal for the temporary nuclear 
waste dump on Goshute land in Utah. ''Our view is, once they get 
it there, they will never move it.''

While Goshutes are split on the proposal, he pointed out that 
some Goshute accepted the U.S. government promise of dollars. 
''They offered them money and bought their way in,'' Yowell said.

''High-level nuclear waste must not be stored in the breast of 
Mother Earth at Yucca Mountain,'' the Council said.

A hearing will be scheduled by the court and could be held as 
early as the end of March, Western Shoshone said in a written 
statement.

A federal Energy Department spokesman declined comment.
									   													 								 		 								 						 	 		
						 
© 1998 - 2005 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved 
*****************************************************************
 57 ICT: Yucca Mountain lawsuit filed

[2005/03/11]  

by: Brenda Norrell / Indian Country Today                                                                                             
  
Photo courtesy Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management -- 
Aerial view of Yucca Mountain. (bottom photo) State of Nevada 
callout.                                                                                                                                                                                        
										
LAS VEGAS - A Western Shoshone lawsuit to halt a high-level 
nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain, based on the Treaty of Ruby 
Valley of 1863, seeks to uphold the treaty and prevent a repeat 
of the radioactive calamity initiated by imperfect nuclear 
science in the aboriginal Western Shoshone territory known as 
Nevada.

Western Shoshone National Council Chairman Raymond Yowell pointed 
out the risks of leaking nuclear storage caskets and the 
possibility of earthquakes. He said claims of safety are the same 
old story: the same U.S. government propaganda that led to the 
deaths of soldiers who participated in the aboveground testing of 
the first atomic bomb without protective clothing here.

''The U.S. Government said it was safe and nothing would happen 
to them. Many of the soldiers developed cancers and died young. 
The government is not to be believed. They have their own 
agenda,'' Yowell told Indian Country Today.

Yowell said in this region of three extinct volcanoes there is 
also the danger of earthquakes. In the event of an earthquake, he 
believes that the steel caskets encasing the spent nuclear fuel 
rods and radioactive waste will be damaged or destroyed. The 
result will be radioactive contamination and catastrophic damage 
to human, animal and plant life.

''It will be there for thousands of years,'' Yowell said.

Yowell said Western Shoshone had planned to continue negotiations 
with the United States in regards to Yucca Mountain. However, the 
Western Shoshone Distribution Bill, passed by Congress and signed 
by President George Bush, halted this plan. Now, the U.S. claims 
aboriginal Western Shoshone land has been paid for, while the 
Western Shoshone refute the claim.

The Western Shoshone National Council filed the lawsuit against 
the U.S. Secretaries of Interior and Energy in federal district 
court in Las Vegas on March 4 to halt the plan to make Yucca 
Mountain a dump for nuclear waste from the United States and 41 
other countries.

Yowell said the United States government has targeted Indian 
lands for nuclear dumping since the early 1990s. But the Treaty 
of Ruby Valley of 1863 does not allow for the storage or 
transport of nuclear waste through Shoshone territory.

Further, Western Shoshone legends tell of Yucca Mountain (known 
as Snake Mountain) and how the snake would rise up as a horrific 
serpent if it were ever harmed.

Timbisha Shoshone Chairman Joe Kennedy in Death Valley, within a 
two-hour drive from Yucca Mountain, said halting nuclear storage 
at Yucca Mountain is an issue for everyone.

''It is not only important for the Western Shoshone, but for 
everyone concerned about nuclear waste. It is the most toxic 
substance known to man,'' Kennedy told ICT.

Kennedy pointed out that in this era of terrorist threats, the 
massive transport of nuclear waste across the United States is of 
grave concern.

Referring to the lawsuit, Kennedy said, ''This is one way to use 
the treaty in a positive way for all people.''

Kennedy said Shoshone elders tell the legend of Snake Mountain: 
''When you mistreat this land, this monster, one day, is going to 
move and cause a lot of harm.''

He said the United States' plan to proceed with plans for a 
temporary nuclear waste storage facility on Goshute land in Utah 
reveals the truth of the U.S. agenda.

''We have been trampled on because we are Indian people.''

Kennedy said the lawsuit could have been avoided if the United 
States had entered into government-to-government negotiations 
with the Western Shoshone Nation, in the same manner the U.S. 
enters into negotiations with European nations. This dialogue 
between nations was dependent on the U.S. honoring the Shoshone 
treaty.

''The United States has not honored the Treaty of Ruby Valley of 
1863.

Money, Kennedy told ICT, is the force pushing Yucca Mountain 
Nuclear Storage Facility forward, a move that would eventually 
poison Nevada's waterways.

Western Shoshone have already endured aboveground atomic testing.

''The Shoshone tell of fallout raining from the sky, how the 
animals would lose their hair and die. People died,'' Kennedy 
said.

''Do we have to go through this again?''                                                                          
													 								 		 								 						 	 		 						 
© 1998 - 2005 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved 
 	   			 
*****************************************************************
 58 CCDR: Judge rejects Cotter appeal 

3-10-05
 
[Canon City Daily Record - Canon City and the Royal Gorge Region, 
Colorado]   

 Company denied right to dispose of 24,000 tons of Maywood soils 

James Bouknight Daily Record Staff Writer 

The Cotter Corp. has been denied the right to dispose of 24,000
tons of thorium-laced radioactive waste from Maywood, N.J., as a
result of a legal decision issued Wednesday. 

The waste was subject to a special adjudicatory hearing after
the company appealed a July 9 decision by the Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment denying importation
and disposal. 

“A deference to the technical expertise of the agency is
appropriate,” Richard W. Dana wrote in his decision. “The
subject of worker and public safety are technical issues within
the expertise of the technical personnel of the” state health
department. 

But Dana’s decision to deny Cotter’s request may be appealed,
and the company may protest Dana’s findings, said John L.
Watson, Cotter’s legal council. 

“We are considering filing exceptions,” Watson said. “That’s the
first step in an appeal process.” 

The company has 30 days to file exceptions to Dana’s decision,
but even after that, the company could still appeal the decision
in court, Watson said. 

The company has intentions to dump about 470,000 tons of the
radioactive New Jersey waste in its on-site lined tailings ponds
and recently was denied a permit to do so in its Radioactive
Materials License issued in February. 

The 24,000 tons of waste was subject to a hearing because the
company submitted a request to dispose of it in 2000, and so the
smaller shipment was being considered separately than the waste
addressed in the company’s license. 

The state health department has authority to regulate all
shipments of classified radioactive waste into the state, and
the company has protested aspects of its license, including
those related to importation of the thorium-laced soils. 

“We are hoping to resolve Maywood in the context of the
re-licensing,” Watson said. 

Sharyn Cunningham, a member of Colorado Citizens Against Toxic
Waste, said she was relieved when she read the judge’s decision
denying Cotter authorization to import the Maywood soils. 

“We’re real happy with the decision,” Cunningham said. “I was so
excited.” 

The group was a party to the hearings and submitted
documentation to Dana supporting the state health department’s
decision to deny the company’s request.   
          
Entire contents Copyright Ó 2004 Royal Gorge Publishing
Corporation. 
*****************************************************************
 59 AU ABC: Rann backs uranium mining policy rethink. 

11/03/2005. ABC News Online
 	
South Australia's Premier Mike Rann has called for the federal
Labor Party to review its policy on uranium mining.

 The State Government has been pushing for a major expansion of
the Olympic Dam uranium mine in South Australia's far north.

 The Deputy Premier flagged his support yesterday for increased
uranium mining, and changes to federal Labor's three mines
policy.

 Mr Rann agrees that a review is needed.

 "There is absolutely no doubt that there will need to be a
review of federal ALP policy at the next national conference,"
he said.

 "That has already been foreshadowed because there are anomalies
in that and I'll be addressing that at the national conference." 

(AFP), APTN, Reuters, CNN and
the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be
*****************************************************************
 60 Guardian Unlimited: Contractor for Hanford Waste Cleanup Fined
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 
	Friday March 11, 2005 3:16 AM
        
RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) - The company overseeing cleanup of highly 
radioactive waste on the Hanford nuclear reservation has been 
fined more than $300,000 for violating worker safety standards, 
the Department of Energy said Thursday. 

A preliminary notice of violation against CH2M Hill Hanford Group 
Inc. cites four incidents of worker contamination. Several 
workers were contaminated while removing equipment from a valve 
pit in June 2003, and a worker was exposed to radiation while 
removing equipment from a tank in July 2004. 

No regulatory radiation limit was exceeded in any incidents, but 
a worker was exposed to about half the annual radiation limit in 
one incident, the DOE said. 

``These issues have been identified before and attempts at 
correction have not been effective,'' John Shaw, assistant 
secretary for environment, safety and health, said in a 
statement. ``It is important that senior management get involved 
to be sure that these problems are corrected now.'' 

CH2M Hill can seek to have the $316,250 fine reduced, and has 30 
days to respond. 

Company spokeswoman Joy Turner said CH2M Hill has taken 
corrective action. 

``CH2M Hill is committed to working safely and protecting our 
workers,'' Turner said in a statement. 

Since 1999, CH2M Hill has been the main contractor for 177 
underground tanks holding about 53 million gallons of radioactive 
and toxic chemical waste. 

For 40 years, the Hanford reservation made plutonium for the 
nation's nuclear weapons arsenal. Today, work centers on a $50 
billion to $60 billion cleanup to be finished by 2035.   
		 	 	   
      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
*****************************************************************
 61 L.A. Daily News: Some claim a raw deal on radiation
 
Article Published: Friday, March 11, 2005 -
 		   	 	
Critics: Cleanup misses EPA goals 

By Kerry Cavanaugh, Staff Writer

The Department of Energy's cleanup standard at the Santa Susana
Field Lab would leave radiation at levels hundreds -- even
thousands -- of times higher than would be allowed under EPA
policy, a report released Thursday says.

 Critics of the former nuclear research lab have long complained
that the DOE chose the less stringent of two cleanup plans.
Environmental groups have filed suit against the federal agency,
saying the decontamination would leave the land unsafe for
residential development.

 DOE managers repeated Thursday that their cleanup plan leaves
the site safe for suburban homes and that radiation levels from
the decontamination will meet the EPA's strict guidelines. But
longtime DOE critic Dan Hirsch said the agency is fudging the
numbers. 

His report looks at 28 radioactive contaminants, from cesium-137
to uranium-239, and compares the radiation that would be left at
the site under the DOE cleanup vs. the radiation left at the
site under the Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

 "I was blown away by the difference between these two
standards," said Hirsch. "For each radionuclide, the differences
are immense, and in some cases astronomical, and could have a
real impact on the numbers of cancers that develop."

 For example, cesium-137 is one of the most common radioactive
contaminants in the soil at the lab. The DOE cleanup level is
9.2 picocuries per gram. The EPA preliminary guideline is .06
picocuries per gram. Both levels assume a suburban development
is built on the site.

 But both agencies said Hirsch is comparing the DOE's worst-case
scenario to the EPA's best- case scenario. Though they use
different processes, officials said they could end up with the
same cleanup levels.

 "I don't think we have any fundamental disagreement with the
EPA about what levels are protective," Field Lab project manager
Mike Lopez. "We just approach things a little differently."

 Lopez said the DOE's cleanup standard is set at 15 millirem, a
dose of radiation that would mean 3 in 10,000 people would
develop cancer. That's the maximum amount of radiation allowed,
and the end result could be less.

 The EPA uses a cancer risk of 1 in a million as its starting
point and can relax the standard down to 1 in 10,000 for
difficult cleanups. 

Kerry Cavanaugh, (818) 713-3746 kerry.cavanaugh@dailynews.com		 
 	 	
Copyright © 2005 Los Angeles Daily News
*****************************************************************
 62 New Mexican: Northrop builds a team to lead bid for LANL  
 	
 Fri Mar 11, 2005 2:07 pm   							 						

As the competition to manage Los Alamos National Laboratory 
nears, Northrop Grumman Corp. has assembled a team to run 
head-tohead with the University of California and Bechtel 
National. 

Northrop Grumman will have the lead role in a partnership with 
CH2M Hill of Denver, which would handle environmental cleanup and 
manufacture triggers for nuclear weapons. Were pressing ahead, 
David Amerine of CH2M Hill said in an interview Thursday. A third 
player, Teledyne Brown, would cover minor aspects of operations. 
The team hasnt settled on a university partner yet. 

Last week in Washington, D.C., the trio met with the board 
overseeing the competition . Amerine said his team suggested ways 
to make the contest less slanted toward the University of 
California, the labs operator since its inception in 1943. 

The scoring system in the request for proposals  a draft 
document at this point  puts too much weight on science and 
technology and not enough emphasis on environmental cleanup and 
the manufacturing of triggers, Amerine said. 

In the latest version of the bidding criteria, the government 
increased the amount of money the next lab operator could make, 
from the previous figure of $30 million a year to about $60 
million. The Northrop Grumman team suggested raising the lucre 
even higher along with higher financial risk, or offering a small 
base fee with the possibility to earn much more depending on good 
performance . 

At last weeks meeting, the trio asked federal officials how 
serious the Energy Department is about bringing management change 
to Los Alamos. 

I genuinely have the impression that the Department of Energy is 
interested in change, Amerine said, but there are other 
political factors at play. 

After a series of security, safety and business lapses in the 
past few years, then-Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham and 
Congress decided to put the Los Alamos management contract out to 
bid for the first time in history . A new contractor could be 
selected as soon as October . 

Bidders will be scored, in part, on the senior laboratory 
leadership they propose. Northrop Grumman has taken the bold move 
of advertising five top positions at LANL, including the deputy 
directors seat, in The Washington Post and elsewhere. 

UC regents have yet to vote on whether to enter the competition 
and wont do so until the final request for proposals is 
published. However, the university is reviewing potential senior 
managementteam members and considering a full range of 
candidates, including the incumbents, school spokesman Chris 
Harrington said. 

The University of California and Northrop Grumman, which has 
offices in New Mexico, could turn out to be the top two 
contenders; however , some interested parties are choosing to 
keep silent. Nuclear Watch of New Mexico  in concert with other 
anti-nuke groups  is gearing up for the competition. 

Those who say theyve dropped out of the race as prime bidders 
include: Lockheed Martin Corp., Battelle Memorial Institute, 
University of Texas, Texas A & M University and Computer Sciences 
Corp.                                                                  
 		   			 		   	 	
Copyright 2004 Santa Fe New Mexican                                                                                             
*****************************************************************
 63 Seattle Times: Hanford company is fined $316,250
 
Friday, March 11, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 a.m. 	 	
 	
By Hal Bernton Seattle Times staff reporter                            
 		
Citing a "lack of sustained improvement" in safety operations,
the federal Department of Energy has fined a Hanford contractor
$316,250 for violations of nuclear rules that exposed workers to
radiation. 

The fine reflects increased federal scrutiny of CH2M Hill
Hanford Group, which manages the storage of highly radioactive
and chemical wastes in 177 tanks at the Eastern Washington
nuclear complex undergoing a multibillion-dollar cleanup effort. 

"These issues have been identified before and attempts at
corrective action have not been effective," said John Shaw, an
assistant Energy secretary for environment, safety and health. 

The tanks are grouped in "farms" and contain a mix of liquids,
salt cakes and thick slurries left over from efforts to produce
atomic bombs at the Hanford reservation during World War II.
CH2M Hill employs more than 800 workers at the farm and during
the last two years transferred wastes from leaking
single-shelled tanks to more sturdy double-shelled tanks. 

The Hanford work is exempt from oversight by the federal
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which helps to
set the nation's workplace rules. Instead, Hanford safety is
monitored by the Department of Energy, which also is charged
with carrying out the cleanup. 

Department officials, in announcing the fine yesterday, noted
four separate exposure events. Those events included the June
2003 contamination of several workers while removing equipment
from a valve pipe and the July 2004 radiation exposure of a
worker while removing equipment from a tank. 

In all the cases, no worker's radiation dose exceeded regulatory
limits. But investigators found "multiple incidents" where the
contractor failed to comply with established operating
procedures. And, because of a lack of controls, the radiation
exposures could have been much higher. 

Since last summer, CH2M Hill has improved training and
accountability and taken other steps to address the Department
of Energy concerns, according to a company statement released
yesterday. 

The Government Accountability Project, a group that has
championed worker concerns, also said there have been
significant improvements since last summer. Tom Carpenter, an
investigator with the group, cites "good-faith efforts by the
contractor and DOE" to improve worker safety. 

The transfer of the tank wastes has been a key step in a process
that eventually is expected to result in the processing of much
of the radioactive wastes into solid material for long-term
storage. 

But this work has triggered numerous complaints from workers,
including bloody noses, memory loss and lung-scarring. Workers
feared these problems could be related to exposure to tank
chemicals, rather than radiation. 

The Department of Energy has no power to levy civil fines due to
chemical exposures, only radiation exposures, according to
Stephen Sohinki, an enforcement official with the department. So
worker chemical exposures were not part of this investigation,
Sohinki said. 

A proposed federal rule could give the department powers to
issue fines due to chemical exposures, as well as radiation
exposures. 

		 		
Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company 	 	 		 		
*****************************************************************
 64 lamonitor.com: Battelle won't bid for LANL 

ROGER SNODGRASS, , Monitor Assistant Editor

Officials of Battelle Memorial Institute have confirmed that the
nonprofit organization will not be among the bidders for the Los
Alamos National Laboratory contract this year. 
Kate Delaney, a spokesperson for the institute, said the
institute now manages five national laboratories for the
Department of Energy but won't make LANL the sixth.

"We just started operating Idaho National Laboratory a month
ago," she said by telephone from Maryland. "Even in a
partnership like Los Alamos, we just thought it would stretch
our resources very thin." 

Battelle joins Lockheed Martin, the University of Texas and
Texas A University among credible institutions that have opted
out of the fray.

The University of California, the current manager of the
contract, has yet to decide whether it will be involved in the
competition, although UC officials maintain that they are
preparing as if they expect to submit a bid. 
The UC Board of Regents will take up several DOE issues when it
meets in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Vice President Bob Foley will
report on the contract status at Los Alamos, Lawrence Berkeley
and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories, where contract
competitions are pending.

Delaney was unable to identify any specific reason for
Battelle's decision. 
"I know that we studied it for a long time, looked at all the
possibilities and talked to other partners," she said. "I can't
point to any one thing."

Battelle's announcement came a few days before President Bush
and new Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman visited Columbus, Ohio,
and Battelle headquarters this week.

Battelle is currently the sole manager of Pacific Northwest
National Laboratory in Richland, Wash.

With various partners, the institute operates Oak Ridge National
Laboratory in Tennessee, Brookhaven National Laboratory in
Upton, N.Y., and the National Energy Renewable Laboratory in
Golden, Colo., along with the newly reconfigured Idaho National
Laboratory in Idaho Falls.

The company is a non-charitable trust, overseeing about $3
billion a year of research and development.

"We're not for profit, but we're not for loss either," Delaney
said, quoting from a former president. She noted that 20 percent
of the company's net income is redistributed in the communities
where Battelle works, while the rest is reinvested.

Battelle is probably best known for helping refine and develop
Chester Carlson's invention of xerography into what became
Xerox, but the company also developed some of the technology
behind compact disks.

According to a National Nuclear Security Administration list,
large companies still in the running for a potential prime bid
on the LANL contract include Bechtel, Northrop Gumman, Computer
Services Corporation (CSC), CH2M Hill, Washington Group BWTX
Operating Services, Titan Corporation, Teledyne Brown
Engineering and Shaw Environmental &Infrastructure.

Northrop Grumman and CH2M Hill have both been dinged lately in
the news.

On March 1, Northrop Grumman announced that it agreed to pay $62
million to whistleblowers to settle fraud charges in a 15-year
old civil suit related to work on government contracts,
including the B-2 stealth bomber.

On Thursday, DOE notified CH2M Hill Hanford Group that it would
be fined $316,250 for nuclear safety violations at the Hanford
Tank Farms near Richland, Wash.   

  © 2003 Los Alamos Monitor All Rights Reserved.   

*****************************************************************
 65 [du-list] Anti Du force field by Wiz  of Oz to be deployed...
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:17 -0800

 


  Additionally Oz personel will be instructed to stop breathing when in 
presence of DUst and "some of those things".
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200503/s1321536.htm
Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief
The Chief of the Army says Australian troops going into southern Iraq will 
be protected against depleted uranium ammunition.

Lieutenant General Peter Leahy says a military survey group has returned 
from southern Iraq after talks with Japanese and British forces there.

He says the survey group was able to discuss concerns about depleted 
uranium in the area and the Army will now consider any implications.

But Lt Gen Leahy says the 450 Australian troops being deployed to southern 
Iraq will be fully protected from radiation.

"I don't think we've got results yet of the data and information that we've 
brought back, I think we should wait until we've seen that," he said.

"But we are well-prepared to respond to that and to make sure that when our 
forces deploy they have the appropriate protection and the full knowledge 
of where some of these things might be so that we can avoid them."

   ----------

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 66 [du-list] DU in the news  - 12th March 05
 
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 20:13:29 -0800

 


WTNH-TV New Haven, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 3:22 PM PST
Lawmakers want state to track health effects of depleted uranium 
http://www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S=3060726&nav=3YeXXLex
(Hartford-AP, Mar. 10, 2005 5:55 PM ) _ Connecticut could become the first 
state to track health problems of veterans returning from Iraq, Afghanistan 
and other war zones.


New Haven Register, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 9:48 PM PST
Panel backs bills on uranium ammo 
http://www.nhregister.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1281&dept_id=31007&newsid=14126490&PAG=461&rfi=9
HARTFORD â?" Two bills focusing on potentially dangerous health risks faced 
by Connecticut veterans because of exposure to depleted-uranium ammunition 
won initial approval from a legislative committee Thursday.


AP via Yahoo! Asia News, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 10:28 PM PST
Australian reconnaissance forces check southern Iraq for depleted uranium 
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/050311/ap/d88ojkuo0.html
Reconnaissance forces have scoured a southern Iraq region where 450 
Australian troops are being sent later this year for possible sources of 
depleted uranium, the army chief said Friday.



CBS 2 New York, Fri, 11 Mar 2005 9:10 AM PST
Connecticut To Track Veterans' Ailments 
http://cbsnewyork.com/topstories/topstoriesny_story_070120123.html
State legislators in Connecticut want to keep veterans' health problems as 
they return from Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. On Thursday, the Select 
Committee on Veterans Affairs unanimously passed a bill that would 
establish a commission to study the health effects of depleted uranium and 
other toxic substances.

ABC News via Yahoo! Australia & NZ News, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 9:00 PM PST
Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief 
http://au.news.yahoo.com/050311/21/tgf1.html
The Chief of the Army says Australian troops going into southern Iraq will 
be protected against depleted uranium ammunition.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 9:29 PM PST
Troops will be protected from radiation: Army chief 
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200503/s1321536.htm
The Chief of the Army says Australian troops going into southern Iraq will 
be protected against depleted uranium ammunition. Lieutenant General Peter 
Leahy says a military survey group has returned from southern Iraq after 
talks with Japanese and British forces there.

Sydney Morning Herald, Thu, 10 Mar 2005 11:49 PM PST
Cosgrove lauds troop leaders for Iraq 
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Cosgrove-lauds-troop-leaders-for-Iraq/2005/03/11/1110417683273.html
Two experienced soldiers will lead Australia's deployment of troops in 
southern Iraq, the Defence Force chief said. The men's expertise, highly 
armoured vehicles and a good mix of forces on the ground would keep 
Australian soldiers as safe as possible, Defence Chief General Peter 
Cosgrove said.

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