*****************************************************************
09/30/05 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 13.227
*****************************************************************
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 Persian Journal: Mullah: Iran's nuclear dossier a hard accessible fi
2 Persian Journal: Israel: Don't worry, we'll take care of Iran's mull
3 IRNA: Rafsanjani: Iran's nuclear dossier a hard accessible field
4 UN Atomic Conference Hails Pledge By Dpr Of Korea To Abandon Nuclear
5 [southnews] US and China clash over UN statement on North Korea
6 Guardian Unlimited: China-U.S. Split on N.Korea Resolved
7 Guardian Unlimited: North Korean Workers Support Nuke Program
8 AFP: UN atomic watchdog welcomes North Korea abandoning nuclear weap
9 US: PRN: Former Congressman W. J. 'Billy' Tauzin Elected to Entergy'
10 [NYTr] IAEA Refreshes Its Membership; Cuba Joins Board
11 [NYTr] IAEA rejects Arab call to discuss Israel
12 Bellona: European Court takes action
13 Xinhua: US hails nuclear conversion progress with Russia
NUCLEAR REACTORS
14 US: NRC: NRC Updates Aging Management Document for Reviewing Reactor
15 US: Lahontan Valley News: Nuclear power: Americans still haven't war
16 US: NRC: NRC Names New Director and Associate Director of Office of
17 Bellona: Finland prepares to fund dismantling of Russian plutonium r
18 Bellona: Unit 2 lifetime prolongation at Leningrad NPP
19 RIA Novosti: IAEA to resume inspections of Russian reactors
20 BBC: Nuclear firm 'to be privatised'
21 US: RGJ.com: Sandoval sails through confirmation hearing-Vote schedu
22 US: JOURNAL NEWS: Indian Point 3 problem cuts power
23 US: NRC: Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC and Entergy Nuclear
24 PNAW: A Call to Pay Attention to Leakage of Radiations from Dimona R
25 US: NRC: Florida Power and Light Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
26 US: NRC: Florida Power And Light Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
27 US: NRC: Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for th
28 US: Times Herald-Record: Nuke plant evacuation plans assailed
29 ITAR-TASS: Irradiated water leakage stops Japanese reactor
30 US: Tribune-Democrat: Hydrogen – the fuel of the future
31 US: WTNH.com: Advisory committee gives Millstone ok
32 US: NRC: Notice of Availability of NUREG-1800, Revision 1, ``Standar
33 US: NRC: Final Regulatory Guide: Issuance, Availability
NUCLEAR SECURITY
34 NEWS.com.au: Gallop warns of uranium terror threat - WA -
NUCLEAR SAFETY
35 [du-list] Radioactive Wounds of War on Buzzflash
36 [DU-WATCH] Teratogenicity of depleted uranium aerosols: A
37 US: Deseret News: U. to track kids' health
38 Xinhua: China issues regulations on radiation safety
39 Xinhua: Explosions hit artillery depots in Far East of Russia
40 US: NRC: Notice of Environmental Assessment Related to the Issuance
NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE
41 Guardian Unlimited: US investors circle ailing Sellafield
42 Guardian Unlimited: Labour's £10bn nuclear sell-off
43 US: Australian Financial Review: Let uranium go, says Howard
44 US: Deseret News: Allies needed in N-waste fight
45 Interfax: Russia, U.S. successfully fulfilling HEU-LEU deal - statem
46 reviewjournal.com: DOE plans appeal of order to release Yucca docume
47 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department wants more time for NRC
48 US: Independent: San Fernando blaze nears rocket factory
49 US: YubaNetAlert: Feinstein and Boxer Secure $13 Million for Perchlo
50 Pahrump Valley Times: Nevada opposes land withdrawal for Yucca Mount
51 US: LA Daily News: EPA to test Saugus firm for perchlorate
52 US: LA Daily News: Air tests planned at Santa Susana lab
53 US: Madison Courier: Sodrel pursuing ordnance cleanup
54 US: AU ABC: PM restates support for uranium mining in WA
55 AU ABC: Hawke right on nuclear waste: ALP spokesman.
56 UK: News & Star: Sellafield firm to be privatised
57 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department to ask NRC to keep draft license pl
PEACE
US DEPT. OF ENERGY
58 Epoch Times: Los Alamos National Laboratory to Change Management
59 North Augusta Star: County sues over MOX delay at SRS
60 DenverPost.com: Activists oppose any role for CU at Los Alamos lab
61 Colorado Daily News: Los Alamos speak session
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
FULL NEWS STORIES
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
1 Persian Journal: Mullah: Iran's nuclear dossier a hard accessible field -
Sep 30th, 2005 - 18:17:04 >
An Iranian top mullah on Friday warned Europe and the US that
Iran's nuclear dossier is not an easily accessible field.
"The field is mined and dangerous, which if you fail to move
through properly, you are feared to inflict a dear cost on
yourself, the region and the world," said substitute Friday
prayers leader of Tehran mullah Rafsanjani in his second Friday
prayers sermon to multitudes of bassijis and regime's
chomaaqdaaraan.
Mullah said, "Iran is not in a way to surrender whenever you
take up leverages and daggers."
He ruled out any attempt by the US and Europe to intimidate Iran
by using the nuclear issues as a leverage.
"If your intention is intimidation, you should know that
Iranians do not fear and if your intention is to meet your
objectives through this way, you should know for certain that
one can not talk and negotiate through intimidation," said
Rafsanjani in an address to the US and Europe.
Also addressing Iranian officials, mullah said, "The field is a
venue for wisdom and talks and a horizon for materialization of
objectives rather than a point for slogans."
*****************************************************************
2 Persian Journal: Israel: Don't worry, we'll take care of Iran's mullahs nukes -
Sep 30, 2005
If Washington and its allies do not stop Iran's nuclear
programmes by force if necessary, Israel will, three Israeli
legislators visiting the US have warned.
"Israel will not live under the threat of an Iranian nuclear
bomb. We feel we are obliged to warn our friends that Israel
should not be pushed into a situation where we see no other
solution but to act unilaterally against Iran," said Yosef
Lapid, head of the Shinui party. Lapid and his colleagues Yuval
Steinitz, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence
Committee and Arieh Eldad, a member of the Israeli National
Union party said conventional diplomacy will not work with Iran.
"They won't be stopped unless they are convinced their
programmes will be destroyed if they continue," they said.
Steinitz said Israeli officials estimate Tehran is only two to
three years away from developing a nuclear bomb and that time is
running out for the world to act.
"We see an Iranian bomb as a devastating existential threat to
Israel, to the entire Middle East, to all Western interests in
the region. For us, either the world will tackle Iran in advance
or all of us will face the consequences," he said.
; Iranian.ws
*****************************************************************
3 IRNA: Rafsanjani: Iran's nuclear dossier a hard accessible field
Tehran, Sept 30, IRNA
Iran-Nuclear-Rafsanjani
An Iranian top cleric on Friday warned Europe and the US that
Iran's nuclear dossier is not an easily accessible field.
"The field is mined and dangerous, which if you fail to move
through properly, you are feared to inflict a dear cost on
yourself, the region and the world," said substitute Friday
prayers leader of Tehran Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in his second
Friday prayers sermon to multitudes of worshipers.
Rafsanjani said, "Iran is not in a way to surrender whenever
you take up leverages and daggers."
He ruled out any attempt by the US and Europe to intimidate
Iran by using the nuclear issues as a leverage.
"If your intention is intimidation, you should know that
Iranians do not fear and if your intention is to meet your
objectives through this way, you should know for certain that
one can not talk and negotiate through intimidation," said
Rafsanjani in an address to the US and Europe.
Also addressing Iranian officials, Rafsanjani said, "The field
is a venue for wisdom and talks and a horizon for
materialization of objectives rather than a point for slogans."
He further advised officials to be patient enough in using the
leverages without provoking any tension.
Rafsanjani went on to say, "Enemies of the Islamic Republic of
Iran should know that we will protect our nation's rights and
prevent violation of our rights by others.
"We are facing new and grave circumstances; That's a highly
serious matter and our nation should not be misled by the wrong
information raised to downgrade importance of the issue in their
eyes."
Elsewhere in his sermon, Iran's former president said Iranian
people are quite aware of the necessity of nuclear technology.
"Unfortunately, in the case of nuclear technology, we are
dealing with a group of people that favor nuclear apartheid,"
said Rafsanjani.
The cleric highlighted significance of nuclear technology in
the world's number one sciences, namely energy, agriculture,
industry, health and medicine, and said the right can not be
easily compromised.
Recalling a number of humiliating treaties Iran bowed to during
reigns of former Iranian monarchical regimes, including the
capitulation right and the Turkmenchai treaty, Rafsanjani said
no body will forgive whoever in the establishment that
compromises the rights.
He said all the people and officials in the Islamic Republic
system are firm to defend the right.
"Iranian nation has proved that will never bow to humiliation,"
said the Expediency Council Chairman.
Rafsanjani welcomed with reservation certain group's claim that
issues should be raised in an optimistic way to boost public
morals, saying, "People should pin hopes on their own might
rather than on false optimism."
He said, "Our foe strongly claims that we should not have the
fuel cycle, while we stress possessing the fuel cycle; and the
issue has no safe side."
Rafsanjani welcomed continuation of nuclear talks, saying, "The
talks and discussions should continue; and as for claims that
Iran is not trusted, we should prove that we are not after using
nuclear weapons."
"Of course, Iranian nation has a shining record in
non-proliferation of such weapons; when Iraqi Baathist regime
brought our cities during war under the most heinous attacks of
its lethal weapons, we never used such arms because we are not
after such dirty practices; and that's our innate nature which
should be proven in talks and diplomacy."
Referring to conditions in Iraq and Palestine, Rafsanjani said,
"In Iraq, we are unfortunately witnessing dirty mischiefs
targeting the Iraqi nation; In Palestine too, Israel withdrew
from Gaza to make itself less vulnerable, while stepping up
attacks on Palestinians." Rafsanjani said Syria is also in
threat, adding, "Our region is in trouble and today, we are in
dire need of unity among Muslim forces and we should strengthen
proper diplomatic efforts in the region." Yet in some part of
the sermon, Rafsanjani called on Muslims, including Shiites and
Sunnis, to avoid provocative actions.
Rafsanjani touched on his "important" political talks with
Saudi officials during his recent visit to Saudi Arabia, saying
the pivot of the talks had been unity in the world of Islam.
Recalling Iran's "great victory" at the UN Security Council to
prove its righteousness and have Iraq pay reparations as an
aggressor in the eight-year war (1980-88), Rafsanjani criticized
those trying to misportray significance of the sacred defense
and said, "No one can find such a shining part in Iran's
history."
He said the country indebted its victory in the eight-year war
to self-sacrifices, devotion and faith of its citizens as well
as of the martyrs and war veterans and the disabled.
*****************************************************************
4 UN Atomic Conference Hails Pledge By Dpr Of Korea To Abandon Nuclear Weapons
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 16:00:24 -0400
UN ATOMIC CONFERENCE HAILS PLEDGE BY DPR OF KOREA TO ABANDON NUCLEAR WEAPONS
New York, Sep 30 2005 4:00PM
The General Conference of the United Nations atomic watchdog wound
up its meetings today, adopting resolutions on various nuclear
issues, including the implementation of safeguards in the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the application of safeguards
in the Middle East.
The week-long conference, attended by more than 100 States, met at
the Vienna headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency
(<"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2005/res_nuclearissues.html">IAEA).
The resolution on the DPRK, adopted without a vote, "strongly welcomes"
the Joint Statement of 19 September 2005 on the fourth round
of Six-Party Talks in China at which the DPRK committed itself
to abandon nuclear weapons and rejoin the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT).
It said the latest round of talks "accomplished positive progress
by taking a first step toward the goal of the verifiable denuclearization
of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner, and looks
forward to the results of the fifth round of these talks in early
November."
The resolution on the application of safeguards in the Middle East,
as similar General Conference resolutions have done in the past,
calls upon "all States in the region to take measures, including
confidence-building and verification measures, aimed at establishing
a nuclear-weapon-free-zone in the Middle East." It was also
adopted without a vote.
2005-09-30 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
*****************************************************************
5 [southnews] US and China clash over UN statement on North Korea
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 00:21:43 -0500 (CDT)
version=3.0.4
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
1.2 million kids a year are victims of human trafficking. Stop slavery.
http://us.click.yahoo.com/X3SVTD/izNLAA/E2hLAA/7gSolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
The United States and China were clashing at the UN nuclear watchdog
over drafting a resolution welcoming North Korea's pledge to abandon
atomic weapons, with Washington wanting to make it clear a light-water
nuclear reactor is not about to be offered.
US and China clashing over UN statement on North Korea
AFP Friday September 30, 3:20 AM
The United States and China were clashing at the UN nuclear watchdog
over drafting a resolution welcoming North Korea's pledge to abandon
atomic weapons, with Washington wanting to make it clear a light-water
nuclear reactor is not about to be offered.
"The United States now realizes that China is in the driver's seat in
the six-party talks and wants to do things for North Korea," a diplomat
close to the watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) told AFP.
Another IAEA diplomat said: "China wants to be as loyal as possible to
the six-party declaration made in Beijing," referring to the
breakthrough earlier this month in negotiations joining North Korea, the
United States, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea.
The agreement mentions the possibility of Pyongyang receiving
light-water reactors to generate nuclear power.
In talks at the IAEA's 139-nation general conference this week in
Vienna, the United States does not want light-water reactors to be
mentioned in the proposed resolution on North Korea, diplomats said.
US spokesman Matthew Boland said: "Discussions are ongoing." He did not
provide details. The IAEA conference ends Friday.
The breakthrough agreement has led to bickering over how quickly
Pyongyang should move on its promises and how quickly it will get
promised incentives, especially the light-water reactors.
North Korea had agreed in Beijing to a statement of principles on
abandoning its atomic weapons in return for energy and security guarantees.
North Korea said it would scrap its weapons, return to the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and accept IAEA inspectors in return for
security guarantees, economic benefits and energy aid.
The statement said North Korea's demand for light-water reactors would
be considered at an "appropriate" time.
The North has since warned it would not dismantle its nuclear arsenal
until the United States delivered light-water reactors to allow it to
generate power, casting doubt over its commitment to the statement.
The United States wants North Korea to first dismantle its nuclear arms
program before its get incentive bonuses, the top US envoy to the
six-party talks aimed said in Washington Wednesday.
Christopher Hill said he had rejected a demand by Pyongyang for an
interim period allowing a freeze of their nuclear operations ahead of
the dismantlement.
"I am not interested in having a discussion with them about freezing
this operation," Hill said, citing a US-North Korea accord in 1994 which
Pyongyang allegedly reneged on after agreeing to freeze its nuclear
program in exchange for energy assistance and other concessions.
The six-party talks are to resume in early November to discuss
verification and other measures.
North Korea's violation of the 1994 Agreed Framework triggered a nuclear
crisis in October 2002, when the United States accused Pyongyang of
running a secret uranium-enrichment program.
North Korea denied the claims, but responded by throwing out IAEA
inspectors and withdrawing from the NPT, which authorizes the IAEA
monitoring.
In February this year North Korea admitted having built nuclear weapons.
The IAEA's 35-nation board of governors had last week "urged the DPRK
(North Korea) to completely dismantle any nuclear weapons program in a
prompt, transparent, verifiable and irreversible manner, maintaining the
essential verification role of the IAEA," in a statement from the
board's chairwoman, Canadian ambassador Ingrid Hall.
_________________________________-
Hill urges Japan, China, S. Korea to mend ties
Friday September 30, 8:29 AM
(Kyodo) _ U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill urged
Japan, China and South Korea on Thursday to mend their ties through
dialogue, stressing that their good relations are in the United States'
interest.
Testifying at a Senate panel hearing on U.S-Japan ties, Hill, who is in
charge of East Asian and Pacific affairs at the State Department and
also serves as the top delegate to the six-party talks on North Korea's
nuclear ambitions, also urged Pyongyang to resolve the abduction issue
to improve relations with Japan as part of the six-party process.
Hill also repeated Washington's call on Japan to quickly lift its
21-month-old import ban on American beef, saying, "I think this issue
not only should be resolved without further delay but it should have
been resolved long, long time ago."
"Japan is a key ally of the United States in Asia and around the world.
Like us, Japan is dedicated to maintaining regional security and to
promoting peace and stability around the globe," Hill told the Senate
East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee under the Foreign Relations
Committee.
But while highlighting Japan's global role in reiterating Washington's
support for Japan becoming a permanent member of the U.N. Security
Council, Hill pointed to Tokyo's lingering friction with China and South
Korea over territorial disagreements, including energy exploration in
the East China Sea, and other issues.
"For its part, Beijing shares with some of its neighbors, including the
Republic of Korea, a lingering distrust of Japan's view of past," Hill
told the senators. "Tokyo, in return, is concerned about inaccuracies in
and the anti-Japanese tone of textbooks in China and (South) Korea."
ADVERTISEMENT
"For our part, we will continue to stress...the importance of finding
mutually satisfactory and amicable solutions to these issues," Hill
said. "It is fundamentally in the interest of the United States that
these countries have good relations with one another."
"We encourage dialogue, and we obviously watch these issues very
closely," Hill said. But he stressed, "I don't think there is a cause
for the U.S. intervention in these issues."
Asked whether Japan's insistence to resolve the issue of North Korea's
past abduction of Japanese nationals is impeding the six-party talks,
Hill said he is not worried about it, and instead stressed the need for
North Korea to resolve the issue to improve ties with Japan.
"North Korea needs a good relationship with Japan," Hill said, referring
to Japan's global presence and its economic strength.
The abduction issue "has to be solved" to do so because it is closely
followed by the Japanese public and the government, Hill said.
Hill noted that he was encouraged by his Japanese and North Korean
counterparts holding several bilateral talks on the sidelines of the
just-ended fourth round of the six-party talks in Beijing.
As for a joint statement by the six parties issued after the fourth
round, Hill reiterated that North Korea must first implement its
agreement to dismantle its nuclear weapons and programs, rejoin the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and allow safeguard inspections under
the International Atomic Energy Agency before the six nations begin
discussions on the provision of a light-water reactor.
After the fourth round ended last week, North Korea claimed that the
discussion should come first.
The statement only states that six parties agreed to discuss the
provision at "an appropriate time."
Hill said sequencing and implementation, including how to verify it,
will be the focus of the fifth round in early November.
The six-party talks involve China, Japan, South and North Korea, Russia
and the United States.
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/050930/kyodo/d8cu8dqg0.html
The archives of South News can be found at
http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/southnews/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
southnews-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
*****************************************************************
6 Guardian Unlimited: China-U.S. Split on N.Korea Resolved
From the Associated Press
[UP]
Friday September 30, 2005 10:31 AM
By GEORGE JAHN
Associated Press Writer
VIENNA, Austria (AP) - China and the United States appear to
have patched up differences at a meeting of the International
Atomic Energy Agency over the importance of a light-water
nuclear reactor promised North Korea in exchange for pledging to
scrap its nuclear arms, diplomats said Friday.
The two nations found compromise language on a resolution,
meaning the text will likely be presented later in the day to
the 139-nation IAEA General Conference, they told The Associated
Press, papering over an embarrassing reflection of a split on
how to deal with North Korea.
Any resolution has only symbolic value, because the meeting has
no enforcing powers.
But the dispute was significant, because it reflected the
disagreement between the two nations on how to proceed at a more
important level - future talks among North Korea, China, the
United States and three other nations meant to build on
Pyongyang's commitment to mothball its nuclear weapons and
return to the nonproliferation fold.
Confirming differences and outlining Washington's concerns, U.S.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Thursday the
United State was insisting that any resolution agreed on at in
Vienna would ``not in any way try to change any understandings
or what was agreed to at the six party talks.''
A diplomat, who demanded anonymity because the resolution was
not yet public domain, said that the text tried to balance U.S.
concerns that North Korea commit to again honoring the Nuclear
Nonproliferation Treaty and less specific Chinese language that
also wanted to focus on rewards to the North.
At their last meeting this month, delegates from North Korea,
the United States, China, Russia, South Korea and Japan reached
a landmark accord in which North Korea pledged to abandon all
its nuclear programs in exchange for economic aid and security
assurances.
In return, it won recognition of its desire to keep its civilian
nuclear program and a pledge to discuss its demand for a
light-water nuclear reactor - after it meets international
safeguards and rejoins the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
But just hours later, Pyongyang said it will not dismantle its
nuclear facilities until it gets light-water reactors from the
United States, casting a shadow on the agreement. Washington has
rejected that demand.
---
Associated Press writer Barry Schweid contributed to this report
from Washington.
---
On the Net: http://www.iaea.org
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
*****************************************************************
7 Guardian Unlimited: North Korean Workers Support Nuke Program
From the Associated Press
[UP]
Friday September 30, 2005 9:31 AM
AP Photo XBH101
By BURT HERMAN
Associated Press Writer
DIAMOND MOUNTAIN, North Korea (AP) - North Korean workers at
this tourist resort insist their country should not give up its
nuclear weapons without getting something first from the United
States, repeating the official stance of their government.
The comments this week by workers at the Diamond Mountain
tourist enclave, which foreigners can freely visit, reflect the
wide gap that remains between the North and the U.S. despite the
breakthrough Sept. 19 agreement at international arms talks.
Negotiators have warned of a long path ahead for future talks
that reconvene in November.
The company running the Diamond Mountain tours, Hyundai Asan,
asks visitors to refrain from discussing politics or North-South
issues with workers at the picturesque resort just across the
Demilitarized Zone dividing the peninsula.
But workers calling themselves environmental preservation guards
stationed along hiking courses to the rugged peaks of Diamond
Mountain themselves brought up the nuclear issue when greeted by
foreign journalists.
The guards, wearing plain clothes and lapel pins picturing North
Korea's founding ruler Kim Il Sung, also were eager to glean
information from their guests on the arms standoff - presumably
to pass on to higher authorities. Interaction during the tour
with average North Koreans is not possible. Only privileged
workers at the resort are allowed inside the resort zone, which
is fenced off from local villages and protected by army
sentries.
``It's the United States that violated the agreements,'' said
Lim Kang Chol, 31. He was referring to a 1994 deal under which
Washington agreed to supply Pyongyang with energy aid if it
froze its nuclear program. But that agreement fell apart in late
2002, after the U.S. said the North had admitted having a secret
nuclear project.
``It's important to take simultaneous steps,
action-for-action,'' said Lim, repeating the attitude adopted by
Pyongyang - which refuses to totally disarm without getting
incentives along the way. Washington has insisted the North give
up its nuclear programs first before getting rewards.
``It all depends on whether the United States keeps its word, we
will have to wait and see what the United States does,'' said
Song Kwang Chol, 43, another guard at the mountain base. ``It's
not that we'll do something before the United States acts.''
The guards said they had learned about the nuclear talks by
watching state TV and reading the main North Korean daily, the
state-controlled Rodong Sinmun.
They displayed knowledge of the North's publicly held positions,
and referred to official statements made by Pyongyang when asked
how their country viewed the situation.
The North has claimed Washington aims to launch a pre-emptive
nuclear attack, but U.S. officials have repeatedly said they
have no intention to invade and that they recognize North
Korea's sovereignty.
The North is believed to have stayed away last year from
rejoining international nuclear talks because it was hoping for
a change in leadership in the White House in November's
election. Pyongyang finally returned to the talks in July after
a 13-month hiatus.
In February, the North publicly claimed it had nuclear weapons,
but it has not performed any known tests that would confirm it
can make them. Experts have said they believe the North is
capable of building about six bombs.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
*****************************************************************
8 AFP: UN atomic watchdog welcomes North Korea abandoning nuclear weapons
Saturday October 1, 05:38 AM
VIENNA (AFP) - The UN atomic agency unanimously adopted a
resolution welcoming North Korea's agreement to abandon nuclear
weapons, in a compromise between the United States and China
that reflected problems in getting the promised disarmament to
take place.
The resolution welcomed the six-party agreement September 19 in
Beijing "which accomplished positive progress by taking a first
step toward the goal of the verifiable denuclearization of the
Korean peninsula in a peaceful manner."
The United States and China, which are both involved in the
six-party talks, had clashed over mentioning at an International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference in Vienna a
promise to supply Pyongyang with a light-water nuclear reactor
in order to generate nuclear power for peaceful purposes,
diplomats said.
The United States, which has called North Korea part of an "axis
of evil" of rogue states seeking weapons of mass destruction,
wants Pyongyang to first disarm, before getting incentive
bonuses such as a reactor.
But, said diplomats, Beijing had wanted the resolution to
mention the obligation to give North Korea light-water reactors
for peaceful nuclear work.
China refrained from sponsoring the resolution, warning that
"future talks and negotiations will be more complex and
difficult," in comments by Chinese governor Zhang Huazhu at the
conference of the IAEA's 139 member states.
US envoy to the six-party talks Christopher Hill said in
Washington Wednesday that he had rejected a demand by Pyongyang
for an interim period allowing a freeze of their nuclear
operations ahead of the dismantlement.
"I am not interested in having a discussion with them about
freezing this operation," Hill said, citing a US-North Korea
accord in 1994 which Pyongyang allegedly reneged on after
agreeing to freeze its nuclear program in exchange for energy
assistance and other concessions.
US ambassador Gregory Schulte told the IAEA conference: "The
goal of the six-party talks is the prompt, verifiable
denuclearization of the Korean peninsula."
"The United States believes that it is imperative to move
rapidly on an agreement to implement the goals outlined in the
joint statement," Schulte said.
"US officials wanted a neutral text in Vienna that would not
interfere with the six-party talks in Asia," said a diplomat
close to what were two days of painstaking back-door talks at
the IAEA over the resolution on North Korea.
US State Department spokesman Sean McCormak had said in
Washington Thursday that Washington was watching to make sure
that "anything that is produced by the IAEA or out of Vienna at
this time be complementary to what was done at the six-party
talks and not in any way try to change any understandings or
what was agreed to."
North Korea triggered a nuclear crisis in October 2002 after the
United States accused it of running a secret uranium-enrichment
program.
North Korea denied the claims, but responded by throwing out
IAEA inspectors and withdrawing from the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which authorizes the IAEA
monitoring.
In February this year North Korea admitted having built nuclear
weapons.
The IAEA resolution said the agency looks forward to new talks
in November and "calls upon the DPRK to cooperate with the
agency in the full and effective implementation of comprehensive
IAEA safeguards."
Copyright © 2005 AFP. All rights reserved. All information
*****************************************************************
9 PRN: Former Congressman W. J. 'Billy' Tauzin Elected to Entergy's
Board of Directors
PR Newswire's RSS Feed]
TITLE="http://www.entergy.com">
CLINTON, Miss., Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Former
Congressman W. J. "Billy" Tauzin (R-La.), an internationally
recognized energy policy expert and former chairman of the
influential House Energy and Commerce Committee, has been elected
to the board of directors of Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR), it
was announced today.
Tauzin in January became president and chief executive officer of
the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the
Washington-based trade association for America's major
pharmaceutical companies.
He represented Louisiana's Third Congressional District from 1980
through 2004 and was praised as "knowledgeable and eloquent" by
the Almanac of American Politics and "one of the House's savviest
members" by National Journal.
"The addition of Billy Tauzin to Entergy's board is a huge plus
for our corporation," said Robert v.d. Luft, Entergy's chairman
of the board. "He has a deep understanding of the energy,
economic and environmental challenges facing America. His first
hand experience serving the people of the Mid-South for a quarter
century in the U.S. Congress also will be a great asset to our
board."
Luft added that "no one knows our territory better than Billy
Tauzin, including the hardships its people are facing in the
aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita."
Tauzin began his political career in the Louisiana Legislature
where he served at various times as chairman of the House Natural
Resources Committee and chief administration floor leader. He was
chosen twice as one of Louisiana's "Ten Best Legislators."
He was first elected to the U.S. House in 1980 as a Democrat, but
switched to the Republican Party in 1995. During his tenure,
which included service as deputy majority whip, he left his mark
on issues ranging from natural gas, airline, trucking and
electricity deregulation to the Clean Air Act, Superfund and the
historic Telecommunications Reform Act of 1996. In addition, he
was the original author of the Securities Litigation Reform Act
and the Cable Act -- the only bills over the past decade to
become law despite a presidential veto. In 2003, he helped
President George W. Bush win passage of a Medicare prescription
drug bill.
Tauzin received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Nicholls State
University in 1964 and a law degree from Louisiana State
University in 1967.
Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged
primarily in electric power production and retail distribution
operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with
approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity,
and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United
States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility
customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Entergy
has annual revenues of over $10 billion and approximately 14,000
employees.
Entergy's online address is http://www.entergy.com .
SOURCE Entergy Corporation
Web Site: http://www.entergy.com
Copyright © 1996- PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights
*****************************************************************
10 [NYTr] IAEA Refreshes Its Membership; Cuba Joins Board
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 13:12:52 -0500 (CDT)
autolearn=ham version=3.0.4
Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit
Prensa Latina, Havana
http://www.plenglish.com
Atomic Energy Board Refreshes Its Membership; Cuba Joins Board
Vienna, Sep 29 (Prensa Latina) The International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) renewed its governing board with ten new members following
decisions approved at the 49th General Conference.
Among the ten new admitted to the 35-member board are Belarus, Cuba
and Syria, with Egyptian Mohamed El-Baradei reelected general director
for a third term.
The most pressing matter on the IAEA agenda is the US-EU conflict
with Iran following US charges of military intentions concealed in
Iran's domestic nuclear program.
Saturday, the Board approved (22-12) a resolution that may pave the
way to approval of economic sanctions against Iran, which defends its
right to develop its own nuclear program for peaceful ends.
The IAEA was founded in 1957 to promote the peaceful use of nuclear
energy and limit its military use, and now numbers 137 member countries.
hr/ccs/emw/hav
*
================================================================
.NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems
. Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us .
.339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org
.List Archives: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
.Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
*****************************************************************
11 [NYTr] IAEA rejects Arab call to discuss Israel
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 16:41:30 -0500 (CDT)
autolearn=ham version=3.0.4
Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit
[What's sauce for the goose ain't sauce for the gander, when it comes to
the world's sacred nuclear cow, Israel.]
AFP via Al Jazeera - Sep 30, 2005
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/CFF62E0F-55B6-4555-B7A4-3DB238FF75B4.htm
IAEA rejects Arab call to discuss Israel
The UN atomic watchdog has unanimously called for a
nuclear-weapons-free zone (NWFZ) in the Middle East but rejected an
Arab call to denounce Israel as a nuclear threat.
A general conference of the 139-nation International Atomic Energy
Agency on Friday in Vienna also unanimously passed a resolution
welcoming North Korea's agreement to abandon nuclear weapons and
called upon Pyongyang to let IAEA inspectors back into the country.
The IAEA conference rejected discussion of "Israeli nuclear
capabilities and threat," as proposed in a resolution by Oman, despite
a strong push for this by 15 Arab states plus Palestine.
Israel welcomed the idea of such a zone but said it advocates
"achieving regional peace and security not arms control per se," in
comments by Israeli atomic energy chief Gideon Frank.
Egyptian ambassador Ramzy Ezzeldeiin Ramzy told the IAEA conference
that the resolution on a NWFZ invites Israel, believed to be the only
nuclear weapons state in the Middle East, "to join the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and to accept that its various
facilities be subject to the IAEA safeguards system."
Israel has not signed the NPT and neither confirms nor denies reports
that it has some 200 atom bombs.
Frank said that while Israel felt a NWFZ "could eventually serve as a
complement to overall efforts to peace and security in the region" the
Jewish state wanted a general peace agreement first in the Middle
East.
Frank said Israeli actions, such as its withdrawal from Gaza, had
created a "window of opportunity to advancing peace and security in
the region."
Resentment
Confidence-building, as in creating a nuclear-weapons-free zone, "is a
long and enduring process," Frank said.
Friday's conference session was put off for hours as diplomats haggled
behind closed doors.
Arab states resent the fact that the IAEA is cracking down on Iran for
what the United States charges is a covert nuclear weapons program
while US ally Israel avoids such scrutiny.
The agenda item was put off until next year as part of a compromise
that has taken place annually since 1998 in which Arab states drop
this agenda request in order to win Israeli participation in a
consensus on the call for a NWFZ.
Emotions were high, however, this year after the IAEA's 35-nation
board of governors last week found Iran guilty of violating the NPT
and threatened to take Tehran to the UN Security Council, which could
impose trade sanctions.
The North Korea resolution welcomed the six-party agreement September
19 in Beijing "which accomplished positive progress by taking a first
step toward the goal of the verifiable denuclearisation of the Korean
peninsula in a peaceful manner."
The IAEA looks forward to new talks in November and "calls upon the
DPRK to cooperate with the agency in the full and effective
implementation of comprehensive IAEA safeguards," the resolution said.
It was a compromise between the United States and China, with US
officials seeking a neutral text that would not worsen problems that
have cropped up in the six-party talks.
AFP
*
================================================================
.NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems
. Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us .
.339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org
.List Archives: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
.Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
*****************************************************************
12 Bellona: European Court takes action
The European Court of Human Rights has started to handle the
case of Grigory Pasko. Thus, it has turned the first page of the
last chapter of a case that has exposed grave weaknesses within
the Russian legal system.
Jon Gauslaa (author) and Grigory Pasko in Vladivostok,
September 2001.
Vladislav Nikiforov/Bellona
Jon Gauslaa, 2005-09-30 15:56
The conviction of Russian environmental journalist Grigory Pasko
to four years of hard labour for treason through espionage on
December 25, 2001 caused a public outcry, internationally as
well as in Russia. When the Russian Military Supreme Court half
a year later confirmed his conviction, the outcry was even
stronger.
A political reprisal
One of the Russians that spoke out in Pasko’s favour was the
chairman of the Russian Federation Council (the upper chamber of
the State Duma), Sergei Mironov. “I understand how a man feels
who is condemned for something his is not guilty of, Mr. Mironov
said, and underlined the necessity for court reforms in Russia.
Amnesty International adopted Pasko as a prisoner of conscience
in January 2002. The organisation held that the conviction
appeared to be motivated not by the need of protecting national
security, but by “political reprisal for exposing the practice
of dumping nuclear waste (EUR 46/001/2002).”
The Washington Post characterised in its editorial of December
27, 2001, the case as “the most flagrant” of a “series of bogus
espionage cases against independent journalists and academics”
initiated by the Russian security police in recent years.
The conviction also raised concerns regarding the independence
of Russian courts. The European Parliament addressed this issue
in January and July 2002, while the Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe carried out a thorough examination of the
case, before it in a statement released in November 2003,
concluded that the conviction “exposes grave weaknesses with the
procedure before Russian military courts.”
The case communicated
The issues that have triggered off the above-mentioned as well
as a number of similar statements were brought to the attention
of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, by Pasko’s
defence team on December 25, 2002 (Application nr. 69519/01).
Due to the Strasbourg Court’s huge caseload, its preliminary
examination of the case did not start until the autumn of 2004.
In early May 2005 the Court notified Pasko’s defence-team that
following a preliminary examination of the admissibility of his
application, the President of the Court’s First Chamber had
decided that the case should be communicated to the Russian
Government.
European Court
Application to the European Court of Human Rights
Many counts to answer for
The Court requested the Government to submit written
observation on the admissibility and merits of Pasko’s case by
July 25, 2005. With reference to his application, the Government
was in particular asked to deal with the following questions:
- Was the length of the criminal proceedings against Pasko in
breach of the “reasonable time” limit drawn up in Article 6 § 1
of the European Convention on Human Rights?
- Was the principle of equality of arms, as required by Article
6 § 1, respected?
- Was the requirement of adversial proceedings, cf. Article 6 §
1, adhered to?
- Did the domestic courts’ use of illegally obtained evidence as
a basis for the conviction adversely affect the fairness of the
criminal proceedings in violation of Pasko’s right to a fair
trial under Article 6 § 1?
- Was Pasko’s right to have adequate time for the preparation of
his defence as required by Article 6 §§ 1 and 3 (b) complied
with?
- Was the presumption of innocence guaranteed by Article 6 § 2
respected?
- What law was applicable in Pasko’s case? Was it foreseeable?
Did the domestic courts interpret the law extensively and/or
apply it retroactively. If so, was Article 7 of the Convention
respected in the criminal conviction?
- Taken the pre-trial events and the conviction of treason
together, has there been an interference with Pasko’s freedom of
expression, in particular his right to receive and impart
information, within the meaning of Article 10 § 1 of the
Convention? If so, was the interference necessary in terms of
Article 10 § 2 and was it proportionate?
This list of questions addresses all the issues that were
brought up in Pasko’s application to the Court, and shows that
the Russian Government has many counts to answer for.
The page has been turned
Thus, it is perhaps no big surprise that the Government twice
has requested the Court to extend the deadline for submitting
its observations. The Court has granted both requests.
Since the latest deadline expired on September 26, one must
however, assume that the first page of the last chapter of the
Pasko case now has been turned.
Yet, it is hard to predict when there will be a final decision
of the case. There is however reason to believe that the Court
will rule on the admissibility of the various counts in the
first half of 2006, and that the merits of the case will be
decided in late 2006 or early 2007.
****
Grigory Pasko worked as an investigative reporter for the
newspaper of the Russian Pacific Fleet “Boyevaya Vakhta”
(“Battle Watch”). He was arrested on November 20, 1997 and
charged with treason through espionage. The Pacific Fleet Court
in Vladivostok acquitted him of these charges on July 20, 1999,
but sentenced him to three years for ‘abuse of his official
position’ – a crime he was never charged with – and released him
on an amnesty.
The Russian Military Supreme Court cancelled this verdict in
November 2000 and sent the case for a new trial at the Pacific
Fleet Court. The re-trial started on July 11, 2001 and ended on
December 25, with Pasko being convicted to four years of hard
labour.
Both sides again appealed against the verdict. The Military
Supreme Court handled the appeal case on June 25, 2002. The
Court made a few changes in Pasko’s favour, but upheld the
four-years sentence. In September 2002 Pasko was transferred to
a labour camp in order to serve the rest of his sentence. He was
surprisingly released on January 23, 2003.
After his release, Pasko has moved to Moscow, where he edits the
magazine “EcoPravo” (www.ecopravo.info) and writes for
www.bellona.org. He has also completed a law degree.
Publisher: , President:
Information: , Technical contact:
Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box
2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway
*****************************************************************
13 Xinhua: US hails nuclear conversion progress with Russia
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2005-10-01 04:40:51
WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 (Xinhuanet) -- The White House of the
United States on Friday hailed a deal with Russia that has led
to converting the equivalent of 10,000 Russian warheads into
fuel for power reactors.
"Marking this important nonproliferation milestone
underscores the success of US nonproliferation cooperation with
Russia in eliminating highly-enriched uranium (HEU) from
dismantled Russian nuclear warheads and converting the material
to peaceful uses," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in
a statement.
Under a 1993 agreement, Russia agreed to convert 500 metric
tons of HEU -- enough for 20,000 weapons -- from Russian weapons
into low-enriched uranium, suitable of US civilian reactors,
McClellan said.
"Today, at the halfway point of this program, the United
States and Russia remain committed to completing the
down-blending of the remaining material by 2013," said
McClellan. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
14 NRC: NRC Updates Aging Management Document for Reviewing Reactor License Renewal Requests
News Release - 2005-13
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200
Washington, DC 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov
No. 05-133 September 28, 2005
revision of its Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report, a
key document in the agencys process for reviewing applications
to renew reactor operating licenses.
The reports revisions stem from lessons learned during more than
15 license renewal reviews, which covered more than 30 reactors,
conducted by the agency since 1998. The original report, issued
in July 2001, included 48 examples of aging management programs.
Almost all of the 48 examples are updated in the revised report
and nine more programs have been added. The revised GALL Report
also includes a new chapter on standardized aging-management
terminology.
The revised GALL Report gives us even more information to use in
determining whether reactors can be operated safely beyond their
original 40-year license, said Pao-Tsin Kuo, Director of License
Renewal and Environmental Impacts in the NRCs Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation. We will continue learning from current
reviews and consider further GALL enhancements as necessary.
The GALL Report catalogs the structures and components found in
a nuclear power plant. NRC reviewers use the reports matrix of
materials and environments, as well as aging effects and
mechanisms, to judge whether a plants aging management program
is acceptable. The NRC staff asked for public input during the
revision process, and considered these comments in the final
report. As part of this process, the NRC also revised its
Standard Review Plan for license renewal applications, as well
as the standard format and content requirements for license
renewal applications, based on the GALL report revisions and
lessons learned during previous license renewals.
The revised GALL Reports two volumes are available online from
the NRCs electronic document database, ADAMS. Volume 1 can be
retrieved by entering ML052110005, and Volume 2 by entering
ML052110006, in the ADAMS search engine at this Web address:
http://adamswebsearch.nrc.gov/dologin.htm. The Standard Review
Plan and application format/content guide can be retrieved by
entering ML052110007 and ML051920430, respectively.
Last revised Thursday, September 29, 2005
*****************************************************************
15 Lahontan Valley News: Nuclear power: Americans still haven't warmed up to it
Opinion
September 30, 2005
Is it time to seriously think about nuclear energy as the
nation's primary power supply?
The future of electrical generation is assuredly not in fossil
fuels, which most scientists and even politicians agree are the
source of global warming and greenhouse gas emissions. So what
does that leave us? Solar and geothermal, while clean and
renewable sources of energy, fall far short in supplying the
nation with the power it voraciously consumes. Coal is not found
in quantities large enough and also produces pollution.
While nuclear energy is certainly renewable, it can be argued
that it really isn't green power in the true sense of the word.
Why? Well, Yucca Mountain ought to suffice as the answer. Nevada
politicians are fighting the repository's development to see
that the byproduct of nuclear energy and weapons development is
not stored in Nevada.
That's the problem with nuclear power, it produces waste and not
just any waste, but potentially dangerous and long-lived waste.
Nuclear energy also has a terrible image problem that has not
been rehabilitated much since the Three Mile Island reactor
meltdown in 1979.
There are certainly proponents of a greater use of nuclear power
generation. An organization pushing for nuclear energy that
calls itself, literally, Nuclear Power Now, argues that
splitting atoms is the world's largest source of emission-free
energy, and the nuclear industry generates only a fraction of
the solid waste that is produced by power plants burning coal.
The organization notes that nearly 20 percent of electricity
generated in the United States today comes from nuclear power
plants, and in 40 years not a single death has been attributed
to the operation of a civilian nuclear power plant.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, there are
more than 400 nuclear plants located around the world.
No county has embraced nuclear energy quite like France, which
generates 75 percent of its electricity from nuclear reactors.
It has achieved a high level of self sufficiency that has
greatly reduced its dependence on foreign energy sources and
fossil fuel.
Maybe France and its widespread use of nuclear power is the
future as the clamor about greenhouse emissions grows louder.
But we're not quite there yet.
This country certainly has to find a way to deal with nuke waste
beyond entombing it in the earth. Only then will nuclear power
gain acceptance as a relatively benign source of power.
All contents © Copyright 2005 lahontanvalleynews.com
Lahontan Valley News and Fallon Eagle Standard - 562 North
Maine Street - Fallon, NV 89406
*****************************************************************
16 NRC: NRC Names New Director and Associate Director of Office of Congressional Affairs
News Release - 2005-13
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200
Washington, DC 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov
No. 05-134 September 29, 2005
as Director, Office of Congressional Affairs and Betsy J.
Keeling as Associate Director of that office. Schmidt will join
the NRC in October.
Before her new appointment, Schmidt served six years as
Associate Director for Budget Presentation and Congressional
Liaison in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense
(Comptroller). She began her Federal career in 1983 as a
Presidential Management Intern with the Department of the Army.
Since that time, she has held a number of progressively more
responsible positions including, Chief Management Division,
Directorate of Resource Management, U.S. Army Support Command,
Hawaii; Senior Defense Analyst and Senior International Analyst,
Committee on the Budget, U.S. House of Representatives; Senior
Professional Staff Member to the House Armed Services Committee;
and Budget Analyst, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense
(Comptroller).
Schmidt received a Bachelors degree in Political Science from
Wittenberg University and a Masters degree in Public Policy
Analysis from Duke University. She is a native of Ohio.
Keeling was appointed Associate Director, Office of
Congressional Affairs effective September 18. She has worked for
the NRC for 22 years, coming to the NRC in 1983 as an
Administrative Assistant to former Commissioner Frederick M.
Bernthal and joining OCA as a Congressional Affairs Officer in
1988. Prior to NRC, Keeling served on the staff of Sen. Howard
H. Baker, Jr., as his office manager. She received a Bachelors
degree in Business Administration from the University of
Tennessee.
Both Schmidt and Keeling can be reached at 301-415-1776.
Last revised Friday, September 30, 2005
*****************************************************************
17 Bellona: Finland prepares to fund dismantling of Russian plutonium reactor
Finland prepares to participate in the funding of the closing of
the plutonium reactor of a nuclear power plant in Zheleznogorsk,
Russia
2005-09-30 17:30
Finland is thinking of spending 500,000 euros for the purpose,
STT NewsRoom Finland reported.
Finland aims at reaching a decision with the United States by
the end of this year. The project is part of the Global
Partnership program of G8. The program aims at dismantling
safely the arsenal of weapons of mass destruction dating to the
Soviet era. Finland has participated earlier in the program by
destroying chemical weapons and improving nuclear safety. The
Siberian plant is to be closed down by the end of 2010.
Publisher: Bellona Foundation, President: Frederic Hauge
Information: info@bellona.no, Technical contact:
webmaster@bellona.no
Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box
2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway
*****************************************************************
18 Bellona: Unit 2 lifetime prolongation at Leningrad NPP
Rostekhnadzor, Russian State licencing company, is preparing to
prolong the service time of the second reactor unit at the
Leningrad NPP, the head of nuclear sites safety department of
Rostekhnadzor Valery Bezzubtsev said to Interfax.
2005-09-30 18:06
The unit is currently being overhauled to get service time
extension. It should be reportedly back in operation on May 28,
2006. So far, total five reactors at the Kola NPP, Leningrad NPP
and Novovoronezh NPP were granted service time extension.
Publisher: , President:
Information: , Technical contact:
Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box
2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway
*****************************************************************
19 RIA Novosti: IAEA to resume inspections of Russian reactors
30/ 09/ 2005
ROSTOV-ON-DON, September 30 (RIA Novosti, Sofia Brykanova) -
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) experts are set to
return to Russia after 15 years of absence to inspect a nuclear
power plant in the southern town of Volgodonsk, plant spokesmen
said Friday. They said the seventeen-member team, which includes
inspectors from countries such as the United States, Great
Britain, France, Germany, China and Slovakia, will ensure
compliance with the international standards of operation and
safety.
© 2005 "RIA Novosti"
*****************************************************************
20 BBC: Nuclear firm 'to be privatised'
Last Updated: Friday, 30 September 2005
[Oldbury Power Station] Oldbury Power Station is
set to close by 2008
The state-owned company charged with decommissioning the
UK's oldest nuclear power stations may be privatised, according
to reports.
British Nuclear Group is currently a stand-alone subsidiary of
fellow government organisation British Nuclear Fuels Limited
(BNFL).
BNFL said on Friday that it was reviewing its options for the
unit.
It has previously announced plans to sell its US-based nuclear
power station building unit Westinghouse.
State sector led
The UK's nuclear industry has a complicated structure.
In April 2005 the government set up the state-run Nuclear
Decommissioning Agency to take ownership of the majority of
civil nuclear sites in the UK, and control their current or
future decommissioning.
These sites include the oldest Magnox reactors whose
decommissioning is, or will be, carried out by British Nuclear
Group, plus newer reactors and other nuclear facilities.
A completely separate private company - British Energy - owns
and operates a further eight UK nuclear power stations.
British Nuclear Group is, or will be, carrying out the
decommissing at stations including Bradwell in Essex, Calder
Hall in Cumbria, Chapelcross in Dumfries, Dungeness A in Kent,
Hinkley Point A in Somerset, Oldbury in Gloucestershire,
Sizewell A in Suffolk, Wylfa on Anglesey, and Trawsfynydd in
Gwynedd.
*****************************************************************
21 RGJ.com: Sandoval sails through confirmation hearing-Vote scheduled for next week
Reno Gazette-Journal] September 30, 2005
Toni Coleman TCOLEMAN@GNS.GANNETT.COM -->
MICAH WALTER/GANNETT NEWS SERVICE
Nevada Attorney General Brian Sandoval is sworn in Thursday
before the Senate Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C., during
his confirmation hearing to become a judge on the U.S. District
Court of Nevada . in Washingto
WASHINGTON -- No senators demanded to know Thursday where Nevada
Attorney General Brian Sandoval stands on issues or on how he
plans to decide cases if confirmed as a U.S. district judge.
The Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for him and
four other nominees drew only one committee member, U.S. Sen.
Orrin Hatch, R-Utah.
"You have my support. Let's hope that that will help you," he
told the group.
"He will serve with distinction," U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.,
said during his introduction of Sandoval to the committee.
"Brian Sandoval will cause no squabbles. Everyone will vote for
him. He is a class act."
During brief testimony, his only opportunity to pitch himself
for the job, Sandoval stressed his experience in federal and
state courts and promised to "treat all litigants with dignity
and respect."
Sandoval, nominated in March, also won praise from Hatch for
having support from Reid and U.S. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev.
"You've accomplished a great thing by getting both of them to
testify for you," Hatch said.
Hatch also praised Sandoval for dealing with many high-profile
legal issues, being "tenacious" in his efforts to protect the
public and maintaining "an open-door policy" as attorney general.
Sandoval, the first Hispanic elected to statewide office,
represented Washoe County in the Nevada Assembly and was named
chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission by a Democratic
governor before becoming attorney general. Although a
Republican, he was nominated by Reid twice for the federal bench
but turned him down the first time.
"He is somebody who has always bridged across the aisle," said
Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev. "There is no question in my mind that
Brian Sandoval will meet the standards we have set in the state
of Nevada." Sandoval, who represented Nevada in its fight
against the federal government over a nuclear waste facility at
Yucca Mountain, would replace Judge Howard McKibben on the U.S.
District Court of Nevada.
Joined by his wife, three children and other relatives, Sandoval
said he appreciated the senators' remarks and was grateful that
the committee held a hearing.
The committee could debate Sandoval's qualifications and vote as
early as Thursday.
Reid called Sandoval, a rising GOP star who had been mentioned
as a future candidate for governor, a "class act" and "the kind
of judge we should have."
Gov. Kenny Guinn has picked Las Vegas lawyer George Chanos to
replace Sandoval. Chanos, whose clients have included the state
Republican Party, plans to run for a full four-year term next
year.
In the 2006 election, Chanos would face Democrat Catherine
Cortez Masto, who has the support of many top Democrats
including Reid, former Sen. Richard Bryan, former Gov. Bob
Miller and former Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa.
Associated Press reporter Brendan Riley contributed to this
report.
© Copyright Reno Gazette-Journal, a Gannett Co. Inc.Newspaper.
*****************************************************************
22 JOURNAL NEWS: Indian Point 3 problem cuts power
By GREG CLARY
(Original publication: September 30, 2005)
BUCHANAN — Indian Point 3 workers had to slow the nuclear
reactor down by 35 percent yesterday after a control rod from
the heat-generating fuel assemblies dropped into place on its
own and without warning, federal regulators and company
officials said.
Indian Point 3's 53 control rods act as a braking mechanism on
the nuclear reaction, which is fueled by about 4,000 surrounding
rods that contain uranium. During a shutdown, for instance, the
control rods are lowered en masse to stop the nuclear reaction.
Yesterday's incident marked the latest in a series of problems
in the past three months for Indian Point — everything from a
radioactive water leak discovered in August and not reported to
county officials until last week; to failure of the emergency
notification siren network to work properly; to inert nitrogen
collecting around a backup cooling pump, which kept it from
operating properly.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission resident inspectors were quickly
informed of yesterday's malfunction, which NRC and Indian Point
officials said posed no threat to the public.
By late afternoon, engineers from Entergy Nuclear Northeast, the
owner and operator of Indian Point 3, were still trying to
determine the cause of the rod's falling into place on its own.
Entergy officials thought the electromagnetic force used to keep
the control rods suspended might have had an electrical problem
that cut off power to the site where the rod was magnetically
held in place.
"The safety significance is so small that it requires no formal
notifications," said Jim Steets, a spokesman for Entergy. "As
soon as they discover what the problem is, they'll lift the
control rod and go back to full power."
A spokesman for the New York Independent System Operator, which
oversees the state's electrical power grid, said the loss of 350
kilowatts of Indian Point 3's 1,000 kilowatts supplied to the
grid didn't create a problem because NYISO has 1,800 kilowatts
in reserve, 1,200 of which are available within 10 minutes. That
reserve power is then replaced by power from a variety of
providers, according to Ken Klapp, an NYISO spokesman.
The two Indian Point plants provide about 10 percent of the
state's power, Klapp said.
Dave Lochbaum, a nuclear safety engineer with the Union of
Concerned Scientists, said the control rod dropping happens
about three times a year across the nation's 103-reactor
industry, a number of NRC officials confirmed.
"The control rods are designed to fall into the assembly," said
Lochbaum, who monitors the nuclear industry for his
organization. "The bigger concern would be if they didn't,
because they're like the brake for the reactor."
Lochbaum said it will be important to determine why the
mechanism failed and if there's a more systemic problem.
NRC officials said there didn't seem to be a reactorwide
problem, though a similar failure occurred Feb. 9 in Indian
Point 2. Since that occurred in the other of Indian Point's two
working plants, it didn't constitute a problem at Indian Point 3.
Steets said Entergy would evaluate the electrical system across
the board to see if wholesale replacement was necessary.
Anthony Sutton, Westchester County's head of emergency services,
said he was notified within about 90 minutes of the problem and
was confident it was not a threat to public health, if
everything turned out to be as it was presented to him in the
phone call.
"There have been so many problems," Sutton said. "This is
nothing more than a blip, but obviously, we have some strained
relations here, and we want to make sure we have the straight
story."
Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef said Indian Point
continued to have too many problems not to be vigorously
monitored.
"This is just another in an ongoing series of events that, while
they do not pose an immediate risk to our residents, do raise
serious questions about the operation of Indian Point,"
Vanderhoef said. "This just reinforces the need for an immediate
and comprehensive review of the plant by the NRC and (the State
Emergency Management Office). We need to have some kind of
assurance that things are operating as safely as possible while
Indian Point remains open."
Copyright 2005 The Journal News,. Inc. newspaper serving
Westchester, Rockland and Putnam Counties in New York. Use of
this site signifies your agreement to the and , updated June 7,
2005.
*****************************************************************
23 NRC: Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC and Entergy Nuclear
FR Doc 05-19620
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57330] From the Federal Register Online via GPO
Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-149]
Operations, Inc.; Notice of Withdrawal of Application for
Amendment to Facility Operating License The Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC or the Commission) has granted the request of
Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC and Entergy Nuclear
Operations, Inc. (the licensee) to withdraw its April 25, 2003,
application, as supplemented May 21, 2003, June 11, 2003, and
June 30, 2005, for a proposed amendment to Facility Operating
License No.
DPR-28 for the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VYNPS),
located in Windham County Vermont.
The proposed amendment would have revised the VYNPS Technical
Specifications (TSs) related to instrumentation to correct
deficiencies in the TSs, reduce operator work-arounds, improve
and correct confusing and ambiguous TS requirements, and allow
for process enhancements.
The Commission had previously issued a Notice of Consideration of
Issuance of Amendment published in the Federal Register on August
5, 2003 (68 FR 46241). However, by letter dated September 7,
2005, the licensee withdrew the proposed amendment request.
For further details with respect to this action, see the
application for amendment dated April 25, 2003, as supplemented
on May 21, 2003, June 11, 2003, and June 30, 2005, and the
license's letter dated September 7, 2005, which withdrew the
application for license amendment. Documents may be examined,
and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR),
located at One White Flint North, Public File Area 01 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly
available records will be accessible electronically from the
Agencywide Documents Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) Public
Electronic Reading Room on the internet at the NRC Web site,
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html. Persons who do not have
access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR reference
staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by
e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of
September, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Richard B. Ennis, Senior Project Manager, Section 2, Project
Directorate I, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office
of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 05-19620 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
24 PNAW: A Call to Pay Attention to Leakage of Radiations from Dimona Reactor
Palestine News Agency-Wafa
Date : 30/09/2005 Time:20:27
VIENNA, September 30, 2005 (WAFA)- Palestinian Ambassador to
Austria and the Palestinian permanent representative to
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Dr. Zuhier al-Wazir,
called the Agency to pay attention to the leakage of radiations
from the Israeli nuclear reactor of Dimona.
In a speech before the IAEA conference, he stressed the
necessity that the Agency pay attention, to the hazards faced by
the Palestinian people and the neighbouring countries due to the
leakage of radiations from the Israeli nuclear reactor of Dimona.
Dr. al-Wazir called on the international community to reconsider
the Israeli nuclear dangers on the regional and international
peace, stability and security, stressing the necessity of making
decisive decisions that make the middle east empty of any
nuclear weapons.
Al-Wazir, who headed the Palestinian delegation which
participated in the 49th session of the Agency''s general
conference, in the Austrian capital Vienna, that started in 26
September and finished its works today, stressed the importance
of the IAEA support to the Palestinian people.
A.D (20:23 P) (17:23 GMT)
.2004 Palestine News Agency - WAFA. All rights reserved ®
*****************************************************************
25 NRC: Florida Power and Light Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
FR Doc E5-5329
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57330-57331] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-150]
Application for Amendment to Facility Operating License The U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the
request of Florida Power and Light Company (the licensee) to
withdraw its September 18, 2003, application for a proposed
amendment to Facility Operating License No. NPF-16 for the St.
Lucie Plant, Unit No. 2, located in St. Lucie County, Florida.
The proposed amendment would have revised the licensing bases to
[[Page 57331]] utilize the alternate source term as allowed in
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, part 50, section 67
for reanalysis of the radiological consequences of the Updated
Final Safety Analysis Report Chapter 15 accidents for St. Lucie
Unit 2. The Commission had previously issued a Notice of
Consideration of Issuance of Amendment published in the Federal
Register on October 28, 2003 (68 FR 61479). The Commission
approved portions of the requested amendment as part of Amendment
138 to Facility Operating License No. NPF-16 on January 31, 2005.
The Notice of Issuance was published in the Federal Register on
February 15, 2005 (70 FR 7772). However, by letter dated August
11, 2005, the licensee withdrew the remaining portions of the
proposed change that had not been approved in Amendment 138.
For further details with respect to this action, see the
application for amendment dated September 18, 2003, and the
licensee's letter dated August 11, 2005, which withdrew the
application for license amendment. Documents may be examined,
and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR),
located at One White Flint North, Public File Area 01 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly
available records will be accessible electronically from the
Agencywide Documents Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) Public
Electronic Reading Room on the internet at the NRC Web site,
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html. Persons who do not have
access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR Reference
staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737 or by
e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22nd day of
September 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Brendan T. Moroney, Project Manager, Section 2, Project
Directorate II, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office
of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5-5329 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
26 NRC: Florida Power And Light Company; Notice of Withdrawal of
FR Doc E5-5330
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57331] From the Federal Register Online via GPO
Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-151]
Application for Amendment to Facility Operating License The U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the
request of Florida Power and Light Company (the licensee) to
withdraw its September 18, 2003, application for a proposed
amendment to Facility Operating License No. DPR-67 for the St.
Lucie Plant, Unit No. 1, located in St. Lucie County, Florida.
The proposed amendment would have revised the licensing bases to
utilize the alternate source term as allowed in Title 10 of the
Code of Federal Regulations, part 50, section 67 for reanalysis
of the radiological consequences of the Updated Final Safety
Analysis Report Chapter 15 accidents for St. Lucie Unit 1. The
Commission had previously issued a Notice of Consideration of
Issuance of Amendment published in the Federal Register on
October 28, 2003 (68 FR 61477). However, by letter dated August
11, 2005, the licensee withdrew the proposed change.
For further details with respect to this action, see the
application for amendment dated September 18, 2003, and the
licensee's letter dated August 11, 2005, which withdrew the
application for license amendment. Documents may be examined,
and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR),
located at One White Flint North, Public File Area 01 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly
available records will be accessible electronically from the
Agencywide Documents Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) Public
Electronic Reading Room on the internet at the NRC Web site,
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html. Persons who do not have
access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR Reference
staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737 or by
e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22nd day of
September 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Brendan T. Moroney, Project Manager, Section 2, Project
Directorate II, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office
of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5-5330 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
27 NRC: Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for the
FR Doc E5-5332
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57329-57330] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-148]
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Review; Comment Request
AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). ACTION: Notice
of the OMB review of information collection and solicitation of
public comment.
SUMMARY: The NRC has recently submitted to OMB for review the
following proposal for the collection of information under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35). The NRC hereby informs potential respondents that an
agency may not conduct or sponsor, and that a person is not
required to respond to, a collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control number.
1. Type of submission, new, revision, or extension: Extension.
[[Page 57330]] 2. The title of the information collection: 10 CFR
part 74, ``Material Control and Accounting of Special Nuclear
Material (SNM);'' NUREG-1065, Rev. 2, ``Acceptable Standard
Format and Content for the Fundamental Nuclear Material Control
(FNMC) Plan Required for Low Enriched Uranium Facilities;''
NUREG/CR-5734, ``Recommendations to the NRC on Acceptable
Standard Format and Content for the Fundamental Nuclear Material
Control Plan Required for Low-Enriched Uranium Enrichment
Facilities;'' and NUREG-1280, Rev. 1, ``Standard Format and
Content Acceptance Criteria for the Material Control and
Accounting (MC) Reform Amendment.'' 3. The form number if
applicable: N/A. 4. How often the collection is required:
Submission of the FNMC plan is a one-time requirement which has
been completed by all current licensees. However, licensees may
submit amendments or revisions to the plans as necessary. In
addition, specified inventory and material status reports are
required annually or semi-annually. Other reports are submitted
as events occur.
5. Who will be required or asked to report: Persons licensed
under 10 CFR part 70 who possess and use certain forms and
quantities of SNM.
6. An estimate of the number of annual responses: 134. 7. The
estimated number of annual respondents: 22. 8. An estimate of the
total number of hours needed annually to complete the requirement
or request: 9064 (1,269 hours for reporting and 7,795 hours for
recordkeeping (an average of 53 hours per response and 71 hours
annually for each of 110 recordkeepers).
9. An indication of whether Section 3507(d), Pub. L. 104-13
applies: N/A .
10. Abstract: 10 CFR part 74 establishes requirements for
material control and accounting of SNM, and specific
performance-based regulations for licensees authorized to
possess, use, and produce strategic special nuclear material, and
special nuclear material of moderate strategic significance and
low strategic significance.
The information is used by NRC to make licensing and regulatory
determinations concerning material control and accounting of
special nuclear material and to satisfy obligations of the United
States to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Submission or retention of the information is mandatory for
persons subject to the requirements.
A copy of the final supporting statement may be viewed free of
charge at the NRC Public Document Room, One White Flint North,
11555 Rockville Pike, Room O-1 F21, Rockville, MD 20852. OMB
clearance requests are available at the NRC World Wide Web site:
.
The document will be available on the NRC home page site for 60
days after the signature date of this notice.
Comments and questions should be directed to the OMB reviewer
listed below by October 31, 2005. Comments received after this
date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but
assurance of consideration cannot be given to comments received
after this date: John A. Asalone, Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs (3150- 0123), NEOB-10202, Office of Management
and Budget, Washington, DC 20503.
Comments can also be e-mailed to or submitted by telephone at
(202) 395-4650.
The NRC Clearance Officer is Brenda Jo. Shelton, 301-415-7233.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22nd day of September, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Brenda Jo. Shelton, NRC Clearance Officer, Office of Information
Services.
[FR Doc. E5-5332 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
28 Times Herald-Record: Nuke plant evacuation plans assailed
http://www.recordonline.com
September 30, 2005
By Greg Bruno
Times Herald-Record
gbruno@th-record.com
Fort Montgomery – A disaster at Indian Point nuclear power
plant would clog highways with traffic, potentially killing
thousands of Orange County residents in the process, a pair of
Hudson Valley politicians said yesterday.
"We do not have a way of evacuating our residents in a timely
fashion," said Michael Edelstein, the Democratic challenger for
Edward Dianna's county executive seat.
"This is a disaster waiting to happen," he said.
With the Bear Mountain Bridge rising through the mist,
Edelstein and county Legislator Roxanne Donnery, D-Highland
Falls, accused Goshen leaders of failing to protect the county's
most vulnerable residents with a workable evacuation plan.
Roughly 16,000 people live within 10 miles of the twin
nuclear reactors.
"I'm not against nuclear power," Donnery said. "I'm against
the citing of this plant (near) this community."
Not since Sept. 11, 2001, has Indian Point security and
safety been such a prominent political issue.
Elected officials from Goshen, Albany and Washington have all
chimed in in recent weeks, attempting to link the federal
government's slow response to Hurricane Katrina with Indian
Point disaster planning.
A recent leak discovered in the plant's spent-fuel pool has
only intensified the political heat, prompting Sens. Hillary
Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer to call for an investigation.
But for all the questions and renewed criticism now
surrounding the power plant, Orange County officials remain
confident their radiological response plan is adequate.
"We believe we have the strongest plan to protect public
safety and move residents out of harm's way," county spokesman
Steve Gross said recently.
Dominick Greene, the county's deputy commissioner for
emergency management, said the current response and evacuation
plan is in its 18th incarnation; a 19th is expected sometime
next year.
He said the current version is highly detailed, and includes
scenarios on handling the county's temporary populations, like
Bear Mountain summer camps and West Point football games.
Entergy Nuclear Northeast, which owns the nuclear reactors,
says the efforts are collaborative.
An evacuation "would be terribly inconvenient to people, but
we are confident that the protective measures we would have to
take would actually protect," said company spokesman Jim Steets.
Still, even with constant tuning and reassurances, critics
like Edelstein and Donnery say protecting and evacuating the
public is an impossible task.
"To me, that plant is the same as the levees" in New Orleans,
Donnery said. "It needs to be replaced."
the Times Herald-Record
Contact THR Managing Editor Meg McGuire at
mmcguire@th-record.comor call 346-3041.
Record Online is brought to you by the Times Herald-Record,
serving New York's Hudson Valley and the Catskills.
40 Mulberry Street * PO Box 2046 * Middletown, NY 10940
Telephone 845-341-1100 or 800-295-2181 outside the Middletown,
N.Y., area.
*****************************************************************
29 ITAR-TASS: Irradiated water leakage stops Japanese reactor
30.09.2005, 07.05
TOKYO, September 30 (Itar-Tass) -- A reactor at the Japanese
Mihama nuclear power plant, located 320 kilometers west of
Tokyo, was urgently shut down on Friday after irradiated water
leaked from the cooling system.
The administration of the plant said there was no contamination
danger for the environment.
In mid-September an outburst of radioactive steam was reported
at the same reactor. There were other similar incidents at the
Mihama plant this year.
In August 2004 a major incident occurred at Mihama. Five people
were killed and seven injured by a steam outburst.
© ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy,
*****************************************************************
30 Tribune-Democrat: Hydrogen – the fuel of the future
http://static.cnhi.zope.net
Published: September 29, 2005 10:33 am
Higher gasoline prices, sporadic fuel shortages and growing
uncertainty about the stability of world energy supplies are
clouding our nation’s energy and national-security picture. It
is now more critical than ever to speed development of an
alternative energy source that is under our control.
Fortunately, there is such a source: Hy-drogen – a fuel made
from water using electric power.
Several years ago, the U.S. Department of Energy began an
ambitious, long-term research-and-development program whose
outcome could lead to an economy where hydrogen is the primary
source of energy for most of our transportation, industrial,
commercial and residential needs. The shift to hydrogen for
everyday use would have many benefits – reducing dependence on
imported oil, limiting air pollution and lowering global-warming
emissions, especially if nuclear power were used to produce the
hydrogen.
Using hydrogen for energy produces no air pollutants or
global-warming agents – only water vapor – and we do not need to
rely on other countries for supplies.
Comprehensive energy legislation recently signed by President
Bush provides $100 million to demonstrate the production of
hydrogen at two existing nuclear power plants. We must seize
this opportunity as a nation.
Using electric power to extract hydrogen from water and then
using that hydrogen to replace supplies now produced from
high-cost natural gas is straightforward. As the infrastructure
for producing, distributing and using hydrogen grows, this
domestically produced fuel also will be available to power
homes, offices, factories and transportation systems.
An important first step is to demonstrate large-scale hy-drogen
production. This can be done with a proven process that uses
electrolyzers plugged into a nuclear power plant to separate
hydrogen from water. The hydrogen then could be stored at nearby
industrial facilities.
Of course, other power sources, such as solar plants, wind
turbines or coal-fired power plants, also could be used to
produce hydrogen from water. However, solar and wind power are
best suited for smaller-scale applications, and it is unlikely
they ever will be able to produce the enormous amounts of
hydrogen required by a full-hydrogen economy. And unless carbon
dioxide emissions can be captured, coal plants would be
problematic because of the large quantity of emissions they
produce.
By contrast, nuclear plants emit no carbon dioxide or other
greenhouse gases and can reliably produce the amount of hydrogen
needed at a competitive cost.
Producing hydrogen at existing nuclear plants is just one facet
of the federal program. The energy legislation also supports
development of advanced nuclear reactors that can generate
electricity and hydrogen more efficiently than current processes
using natural gas. In addition, advanced hydrogen-production
technologies driven by nuclear power are being developed at
several national laboratories.
Nuclear power can meet the challenge of a future hydrogen
economy in the United States and give us control of our energy.
It has offered a clean and affordable alternative to fossil
fuels since electricity deregulation spurred improved
performance at nuclear plants.
Electricity production from operating nuclear plants has grown
steadily for the past 15 years, but more nuclear plants will be
needed to meet projected growth in future power demand – as well
as the added need for hydrogen.
Establishing a hydrogen economy in the United States is a
long-term proposition. Demonstrating the use of existing nuclear
plants to produce hydrogen and developing more efficient nuclear
methods to produce hydrogen are important steps forward. For
their part, utilities also need to take advantage of financial
incentives now available for the first few, new nuclear plants.
The painful aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the run-up in
gasoline prices are grim reminders that now is the time to
control our energy future. That is the real pro-mise of a
hydrogen economy.
Edgar Berkey, Ph.D., is vice president of research and
development and chief quality officer of Concurrent Technologies
Corp., Pittsburgh.
© 2005, The Tribune-Democrat
425 Locust St, PO Box 340
Johnstown, PA 15907-0340
*****************************************************************
31 WTNH.com: Advisory committee gives Millstone ok
(Waterford-AP, Sept. 30, 2005 8:00 AM)
_ A committee of experts that advises the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission is recommending the renewal of licenses for the
Millstone reactors in Waterford.
The New London Day reports that the Advisory Committee on
Reactor Safeguards has examined the application by Millstone
owner Dominion Nuclear Connecticut and informed the NRC of its
recommendation in a letter.
The commission says Dominion has provided assurance that
Millstone Unite 2 and Unit 3 will work properly during the years
for which their licenses are renewed.
If the NRC approves license renewals next July, Unit 2 could
continue to operate 20 years past its current 2015 license
expiration date, through 2035. Unit 3 could function for another
20 years, through 2045.
Content © Copyright 2000 - 2005 WorldNow, WTNH, and
Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
*****************************************************************
32 NRC: Notice of Availability of NUREG-1800, Revision 1, ``Standard
FR Doc 05-19680
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57334-57335] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-154]
Review Plan for Review of License Renewal Applications for
Nuclear Power Plants,'' NUREG-1801, Revision 1, ``Generic Aging
Lessons Learned (GALL) Report,'' and NUREG-1832, ``Analysis of
Public Comments on the Revised License Renewal Guidance
Documents'' AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing
NUREG- 1800, ``Standard Review Plan for Review of License Renewal
Applications for Nuclear Power Plants,'' Revision 1 and
NUREG-1801, ``Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report,''
Revision 1. These documents describe methods acceptable to the
NRC staff for implementing the license renewal rule, as well as
techniques used by the NRC staff in evaluating applications for
license renewal. The draft versions of these documents were
issued for public comment on February 1, 2005 (70 FR 5254).
The NRC staff assessment of public comments is being issued as
NUREG-1832, ``Analysis of Public Comments on the Revised License
Renewal Guidance Documents.''
ADDRESSES: Electronic copies are available in the Commission's
Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North,
11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland, 20852 or
electronically from the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS). The Public Electronic Reading Room is
accessible from the NRC's Web site at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. NUREG-1800, Revision 1,
is under ADAMS Accession number ML052110007; NUREG-1801, Revision
1, is under ADAMS Accession numbers ML052110005 (Volume 1) and
ML052110006 (Volume 2); and NUREG-1832 (Analysis of Public
Comments) is under ADAMS Accession number ML052110004. Persons
who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in
accessing the documents located in ADAMS should contact the NRC's
PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301- 415-4737, or by
e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jerry
Dozier, License Renewal Project Manager, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, Mail Stop O- 11F1, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission,
[[Page 57335]] Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone 301-415-1014,
or by e-mail at jxd@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Standard Review Plan for Review of LR
Applications for Nuclear Power Plants, Rev. 1 The NRC staff
revised the July 2001 version of NUREG-1800, ``Standard Review
Plan for Review of License Renewal Applications for Nuclear Power
Plants'' (SRP-LR). The SRP-LR provides guidance to NRC staff
reviewers in performing safety reviews of applications to renew
licenses of nuclear power plants in accordance with the license
renewal rule. The SRP-LR, Revision 1, is under ADAMS Accession
number ML052110007. The SRP-LR is revised to incorporate lessons
learned from the review of a number of previous license renewal
applications, as well as to make changes corresponding to the
update of the GALL Report. The SRP-LR, Revision 1, contains four
major chapters: (1) Administrative Information; (2) Scoping and
Screening Methodology for Identifying Structures and Components
Subject to Aging Management Review, and Implementation Results;
(3) Aging Management Review Results; and (4) Time-Limited Aging
Analyses. In addition, three Branch Technical Positions are in an
Appendix to the SRP-LR, Revision 1.
Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report, Revision 1 The
Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report, Revision 1, is an
update to the July 2001 version; the report format is largely
unchanged. The GALL Report, Revision 1, Volumes 1 and 2, are
available under ADAMS Accession number ML052110005 and
ML052110006, respectively. The adequacy of the generic aging
management programs in managing certain aging effects for
particular structures and components will continue to be
evaluated based on the review of the following ten program
elements: (1) Scope of program; (2) preventive actions; (3)
parameters monitored or inspected; (4) detection of aging
effects; (5) monitoring and trending; (6) acceptance criteria;
(7) corrective actions; (8) confirmation process; (9)
administrative controls; and (10) operating experience. The GALL
Report is a technical basis document for the SRP-LR and should be
treated in the same manner as an approved topical report that is
applicable generically.
Analysis of Public Comments on the Revised LR Guidance Documents
On February 1, 2005, the NRC announced (70 FR 5254) the issuance
for public comment and availability a draft of ``Standard Review
Plan for Review of License Renewal Applications for Nuclear Power
Plants' and a draft ``Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL)
Report.'' The NRC also announced a public workshop that was held
on March 2, 2005, to facilitate gathering public comment on the
draft documents.
NUREG-1832 contains the NRC response to stakeholders' comments.
The dispositions are prepared in a table format and contained in
five appendices. Appendix A addresses the specific written
comments submitted by the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI),
Appendix B addresses the comments from the Advisory Committee on
Reactor Safeguards (ACRS), Appendix C addresses the participant
comments from the license renewal public workshop on March 2,
2005, Appendix D addresses the written comments submitted by
other public stakeholders, and Appendix E provides a comparison
of the aging management review line items from the January 2005
GALL Report to the September 2005 GALL Report.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day of September, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jacob I. Zimmerman, Acting Program Director, License Renewal and
Environmental Impacts Program, Division of Regulatory Improvement
Programs, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 05-19680 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
33 NRC: Final Regulatory Guide: Issuance, Availability
FR Doc 05-19704
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57333-57334] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-153]
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a
revision to an existing guide in the agency's Regulatory Guide
Series.
This series has been developed to describe and make available to
the public such information as methods that are acceptable to the
NRC staff for implementing specific parts of the NRC's
regulations, techniques that the staff uses in evaluating
specific problems or postulated accidents, and data that the
staff needs in its review of applications for permits and
licenses.
Revision 1 of Regulatory Guide 1.188, entitled ``Standard Format
and Content for Applications To Renew Nuclear Power Plant
Operating Licenses,'' describes a method that the NRC staff finds
acceptable for complying with the agency's regulatory
requirements in Title 10, Part 54, of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR part 54), ``Requirements for Renewal of
Operating Licenses for Nuclear Power Plants'' (commonly known as
the license renewal rule). Specifically, 10 CFR part 54 specifies
the information that a nuclear power plant licensee must include
in its application to renew an operating license issued by the
NRC.
The NRC initially issued Regulatory Guide 1.188 in July 2001,
after soliciting and resolving public comments on three draft
regulatory guides (DG-1104 in August 2000, DG-1047 in August
1996, and DG-1009 in December 1990). As such, Regulatory Guide
1.188 incorporated lessons learned from the review of license
renewal applications and Owners Group topical report reviews. The
guide also incorporated relevant information from development of
the ``Standard Review Plan for the Review of License Renewal
Applications for Nuclear Power Plants'' (SRP- LR)
(NUREG-1800),\1\ and the ``Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL)
Report'' (NUREG-1801),1 as well as a summary of public comments
received on those documents (NUREG-1832, ``Analysis of Public
Comments on the Revised License Renewal Guidance Documents.'')
\2\
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- \1\ Copies are available at current rates from the
U.S. Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 37082, Washington, DC
20402- 9328 (telephone (202) 512-1800); or from the National
Technical Information Service at 5285 Port Royal Road,
Springfield, VA 22161; http://www.ntis.gov; or (703) 487-4650.
Copies are available for inspection or copying for a fee from the
NRC's Public Document Room at 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
MD; the PDR's mailing address is USNRC PDR, Washington, DC 20555;
telephone (301) 415-4737 or (800) 397-4209; fax (301) 415-3548;
or e-mail PDR@nrc.gov. These documents are also available
electronically through the NRC's public Web site at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm /doc-collections/nuregs /staff/.
\2\ Copies are available at current rates from the U.S.
Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 37082, Washington, DC 20402-
9328 (telephone (202) 512-1800); or from the National Technical
Information Service at 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, VA
22161; http://www.ntis.gov; or (703) 487-4650. Copies are
available for inspection or copying for a fee from the NRC's
Public Document Room at 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD; the
PDR's mailing address is USNRC PDR, Washington, DC 20555;
telephone (301) 415-4737 or (800) 397-4209; fax (301) 415-3548;
or e-mail PDR@nrc.gov. These documents are also available
electronically through the NRC's public Web site at
http://www.nrc.gov /reading-rm /doc-collections/nuregs /staff/.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- Since the NRC initially published Regulatory Guide
1.188 in July 2001, the staff proposed to update both the SRP-LR
(NUREG-1800) and the GALL Report (NUREG-1801). Consequently, the
staff also decided to revise Regulatory Guide 1.188 to reflect
the proposed updates to the guidance documents. Toward that end,
the staff prepared Draft Regulatory Guide DG-1140, which also
included a modification through which the NRC staff endorsed
(with two exceptions) Revision 5 of NEI 95-10, ``Industry
Guideline for Implementing the Requirements of 10 CFR Part 54 ``
The License Renewal Rule,'' which the Nuclear Energy Institute
(NEI) published in January 2005.\3\ Specifically, the staff took
exception to the use of a portion of Appendix F to Revision 5 of
NEI 95-10, from the unnumbered paragraph following paragraph 4.4
through the end of Section 4, ``Non-Safety SSCs Directly
Connected to Safety-Related SSCs.'' In addition, the NRC staff
took exception to the use of paragraph 5.2.3.1, ``Exposure
Duration.''
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- \3\ Copies are available for inspection or copying for
a fee from the NRC's Public Document Room at 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD; the PDR's mailing address is USNRC PDR,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone (301) 415-4737 or (800) 397-4209;
fax (301) 415- 3548; e-mail PDR@nrc.gov. Revision 5 of NEI 95-10
is also available through the NRC's license renewal Web page at
http://www.nrc.gov /
reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/guidance.html#nuclear, and
through the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management
System (ADAMS) at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html, under
Accession No. ML050280113. Note, however, that the NRC has
temporarily limited public access to ADAMS so that the agency can
complete security reviews of publicly available documents and
remove potentially sensitive information. Please check the NRC's
Web site for updates concerning the resumption of public access
to ADAMS.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- The NRC staff then published a Federal Register notice
(70 FR 5494) on February 2, 2005, to solicit stakeholder comments
on Draft Regulatory Guide DG-1140 and/or Revision 5 of NEI 95-10,
and specifically on any inconsistency or incompatibility between
the guidance in these documents and the NRC guidance set forth in
NUREG- 1800 and NUREG-1801. Toward that end, the NRC also held a
public workshop on March 2, 2005, to give participants an
opportunity to ask questions, obtain further information, offer
comments and opinions, and otherwise facilitate the formulation
and preparation of written
[[Page 57334]] comments for NRC staff consideration of the
revised license renewal guidance documents.
The public comment period closed on March 31, 2005, without the
submission of any stakeholder comments. However, in response to
the exceptions stated in DG-1140, NEI issued Revision 6 of
NEI-95-10 in June 2005 \4\ to accept the NRC staff's position
with respect to those issues, thereby rendering the staff's two
exceptions unnecessary. Having reviewed this latest revision of
NEI 95-10, the NRC staff finds Revision 6 acceptable for use in
implementing the license renewal rule, without exceptions, as
discussed in Revision 1 of Regulatory Guide 1.188. Applicants may
meet the intent of the license renewal rule using methods other
than those provided in Revision 6 of NEI 95-10; however, the NRC
staff will determine the acceptability of such methods on a
case-by-case basis.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- \4\ Copies are available for inspection or copying for
a fee from the NRC's Public Document Room at 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD; the PDR's mailing address is USNRC PDR,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone (301) 415-4737 or (800) 397-4209;
fax (301) 415- 3548; e-mail PDR@nrc.gov. Revision 6 of NEI 95-10
is also available through the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access
and Management System (ADAMS) at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html, under Accession No.
ML051860406. Note, however, that the NRC has temporarily limited
public access to ADAMS so that the agency can complete security
reviews of publicly available documents and remove potentially
sensitive information. Please check the NRC's Web site for
updates concerning the resumption of public access to ADAMS.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
---------- The NRC staff encourages and welcomes comments and
suggestions in connection with improvements to published
regulatory guides, as well as items for inclusion in regulatory
guides that are currently being developed. You may submit
comments by any of the following methods.
Mail comments to: Rules and Directives Branch, Office of
Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555-0001.
Hand-deliver comments to: Rules and Directives Branch, Office of
Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, between 7:30 a.m. and
4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays.
Fax comments to: Rules and Directives Branch, Office of
Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission at (301)
415-5144.
Requests for technical information about Revision 1 of Regulatory
Guide 1.188 may be directed to Linh N. Tran at (301) 415-4103 or
by e- mail to LNT@nrc.gov. Regulatory guides are available for
inspection or downloading through the NRC's public Web site in
the Regulatory Guides document collection of the NRC's Electronic
Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/.
Revision 1 of Regulatory Guide 1.188 is also available
electronically through the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS) at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html , under Accession No.
ML051920430. Note, however, that the NRC has temporarily limited
public access to ADAMS so that the agency can complete security
reviews of publicly available documents and remove potentially
sensitive information. Please check the NRC's Web site for
updates concerning the resumption of public access to ADAMS.
In addition, regulatory guides are available for inspection at
the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), which is located at 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland; the PDR's mailing address is
USNRC PDR, Washington, DC 20555-0001. The PDR can also be reached
by telephone at (301) 415-4737 or (800) 397-4205, by fax at (301)
415-3548, and by e- mail to PDR@nrc.gov. Requests for single
copies of draft or final guides (which may be reproduced) or for
placement on an automatic distribution list for single copies of
future draft guides in specific divisions should be made in
writing to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001, Attention: Reproduction and Distribution Services
Section; by e-mail to DISTRIBUTION@nrc.gov; or by fax to (301)
415-2289. Telephone requests cannot be accommodated. Regulatory
guides are not copyrighted, and Commission approval is not
required to reproduce them. (5 U.S.C. 552(a)) Dated at Rockville,
Maryland, this 26th day of September, 2005.
For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Carl J. Paperiello,
Director, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 05-19704 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
34 NEWS.com.au: Gallop warns of uranium terror threat - WA -
From: AAP
September 30, 2005
AN increase in uranium mining across Australia could boost the
risk of attack from a so-called terrorist "dirty bomb", West
Australian Premier Geoff Gallop said today. Prime Minister John
Howard, who is visiting Perth to address the state Liberal Party
Conference tomorrow, said today Australia should be free to mine
all its uranium reserves without restriction, calling the Labor
Party's position on the issue weak.
But Dr Gallop, whose government has vehemently opposed any
uranium mining in the State despite potentially massive revenue,
responded by saying their position was one of commonsense.
"We think in an age of terrorism, which is the age that we live
in, we should be doing everything we can to minimise the level
of risk associated with terrorist activity," he said.
"We had advice and it was published widely that authorities
around the world are worried about the prospect of a dirty bomb,
a conventional bomb attached to which would be radioactive
material, which would cause havoc.
"If we have a radical
expansion of the nuclear industry around the world, the level of
risk associated with such dirty bombs would be increased."
*****************************************************************
35 [du-list] Radioactive Wounds of War on Buzzflash
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 14:45:07 -0700
WHITE_LINKS,WHITE_PHRASE autolearn=ham version=3.0.4
headline at
www.buzzflash.com
Radioactive Wounds of War; Tests on returning troops suggest serious health
consequences of depleted uranium use in Iraq 9/29
Radioactive Wounds of War
Tests on returning troops suggest serious health consequences of depleted
uranium use in Iraq
Gerard Matthew thought he was lucky. He returned from his Iraq tour a year
and a half ago alive and in one piece. But after the New York State
National Guardsman got home, he learned that a bunkmate, Sgt. Ray Ramos,
and a group of N.Y. Guard members from another unit had accepted an offer
by the New York Daily News and reporter Juan Gonzalez to be tested for
depleted uranium (DU) contamination, and had tested positive.
Matthew, 31, decided that since he'd spent much of his time in Iraq lugging
around DU-damaged equipment, he'd better get tested too. It turned out he
was the most contaminated of them all.
Matthew immediately urged his wife to get an ultrasound check of their
unborn baby. They discovered the fetus had a condition common to those with
radioactive exposure: atypical syndactyly. The right hand had only two digits.
So far Victoria Claudette, now 13 months old, shows no other genetic
disorders and is healthy, but Matthew feels guilty for causing her
deformity and angry at a government that never warned him about DU's dangers.
U.S. forces first used DU in the 1991 Gulf War, when some 300 tons of
depleted uranium-the waste product of nuclear power plants and weapons
facilities-were used in tank shells and shells fired by A-10 jets. A lesser
amount was deployed by U.S. and NATO forces during the Balkans conflict.
But in the current wars in Afghanistan and, especially, Iraq, DU has become
the weapon of choice, with more than 1,000 tons used in Afghanistan and
more than 3,000 tons used in Iraq. And while DU was fired mostly in the
desert during the Gulf War, in the current war in Iraq, most of DU
munitions are exploding in populated urban areas.
The Pentagon has expanded DU beyond tank and A-10 shells, for use in
bunker-busting bombs, which can spew out more than half a ton of DU in one
explosion, in anti-personnel bomblets, and even in M-16 and pistol shells.
The military loves DU for its unique penetration capability-it cuts through
steel or concrete like they're butter.
The problem is that when DU hits its target, it burns at a high
temperature, throwing off clouds of microscopic particles that poison a
wide area and remain radioactive for billions of years. If inhaled, these
particles can lodge in lungs, other organs or bones, irradiating tissue and
causing cancers.
Worse yet, uranium is also a highly toxic heavy metal. Indeed, while there
is some debate over the risk posed by the element's radioactive emissions,
there is no debate regarding its chemical toxicity. According to Mt. Sinai
pathologist Thomas Fasey, who participated in the New York Guard unit
testing, the element has an affinity for bonding with DNA, where even trace
amounts can cause cancers and fetal abnormalities.
Dr. Doug Rokke, a health physicist at the University of Illinois who headed
up a Pentagon study of depleted uranium weapons in the mid '90s after
concerns were raised during the Gulf War, concluded there was no safe way
to use the weapons. Rokke says the Pentagon responded by denouncing him,
after earlier commending his work.
No one knows how many U.S. soldiers have been contaminated by DU residue.
Despite regulations authorizing tests for any military personnel who
suspects exposure, the U.S. military is avoiding doing those tests-or
delaying them until they are meaningless.
"When we asked to be tested at Ft. Dix, they wrongly told us we didn't have
to worry unless we had DU fragments in our body," says Matthew. His buddy,
Sgt. Ramos, who exhibits symptoms resembling radiation sickness and heavy
metal poisoning, adds that at Walter Reed Medical Center he was grilled for
hours about why he wanted to be tested and was then branded a troublemaker
by his own unit. Matthew says Walter Reed "lost" his sample.
At the war's start, the United States refused to allow U.N. or other
environmental inspectors to test DU levels within Iraq. Now the United
Nations won't even go near Iraq because of security concerns.
"It doesn't seem right that we are poisoning the places we are supposed to
be liberating," Ramos says.
The Pentagon continues to insist, on the basis of no field evidence, that
DU is safe. To date, only some 270 returned troops have been tested for DU
contamination by the military and Veterans Affairs. But even those tests,
mostly urine samples, are useless 30 days after exposure, because by that
time most of the DU has left the body or migrated into bones or organs.
Gonzalez and the Daily News paid for costlier tests for nine
Guardsmen-tests that could pinpoint uranium inside the body and identify
the special isotope signature of man-made DU. Four of the nine tested
positive for DU; all had symptoms of uranium poisoning.
Even harder evidence may soon arrive. Connecticut State Representative Pat
Dillon (D-New Haven), a Yale-trained epidemiologist, has crafted
state-level legislation that Connecticut and Louisiana have unanimously
passed, authorizing returned National Guard troops to request and receive
specialized DU contamination tests at the Pentagon's expense. This approach
bypasses the Pentagon's feet-dragging because National Guard troops fall
under state, rather than federal, jurisdiction.
"This was not a Democratic or a Republican issue," Dillon says. "These are
our kids and someone needs to protect them." She says that since passage of
her bill, which takes effect this October, military groups and family
organizations, state legislators, and even National Guard unit commanders
have contacted her for copies of her bill to promote in their states. Bob
Smith, a veteran in Louisiana who got hold of Dillon's bill and spearheaded
a successful effort to pass similar legislation in Louisiana, claims that
14 to 20 other states are considering similar measures.
If enough Guard troops avail themselves of the testing-and start testing
positive for contamination-it seems likely that reservists and active duty
troops and veterans will demand similar access to rigorous tests, which can
cost upwards of $1000 per person.
One way or another, the Pentagon will pay a price. "DU is a war crime. It's
that simple," Rokke says. "Once you've scattered all this stuff around, and
then refuse to clean it up, you've committed a war crime."
http://www.ngwrc.org/index.cfm?page=Article&ID=2043
----------
No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.
Version: 7.0.344 / Virus Database: 267.11.9/115 - Release Date: 9/29/05
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Get fast access to your favorite Yahoo! Groups. Make Yahoo! your home page
http://us.click.yahoo.com/dpRU5A/wUILAA/yQLSAA/FGYolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
To unsubscribe from this groups send a message to
du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com. In the body of the message type
unsubscribe and send.
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-list/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
du-list-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
*****************************************************************
36 [DU-WATCH] Teratogenicity of depleted uranium aerosols: A
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 23:02:56 -0500 (CDT)
Teratogenicity of depleted uranium aerosols: A review from an
epidemiological perspective
http://www.traprockpeace.org/1476-069x-4-17.pdf
Rita Hindin , Doug Brugge and Bindu Panikkar
Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source 2005, 4:17 doi:
10.1186/1476-069X-4-17
Published 26 August 2005
See Open Access on use of this work - http://www.biomedcentral.com/
info/about/openaccess/
Charles Jenks
Chair of Advisory Board and Web Manager
Traprock Peace Center
103A Keets Road
Deerfield, MA 01342
413-773-7427
fax 413-773-7507
http://www.traprockpeace.org
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Help save the life of a child. Support St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
http://us.click.yahoo.com/xDyn3B/lbOLAA/xGEGAA/Sj.0lB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
[Brought to you by HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK]
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/du-watch/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
du-watch-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
*****************************************************************
37 Deseret News: U. to track kids' health
[deseretnews.com]
Friday, September 30, 2005
By Lois M. Collins
Deseret Morning News
The University of Utah is one of six "vanguard centers" that will
pilot an ambitious national project to track the health of
100,000 children from before their birth until they are at least
age 21.
['Photo'] Deseret Morning News graphic
The National
Children's Study, authorized by Congress in 2000, may even
answer that old question, "Nature or nurture?" documenting the
effects of both genetics and environment on health and
development.
The study will examine the environment in which the
participants live, looking at factors such as foods they eat,
the air they breathe, their schools and neighborhoods, how often
they see a health-care provider, "even the composition of the
house dust in their homes," said Dr.
Duane Alexander, director of the National Institute of
Child Health and Human Development.
Researchers will also take blood and other biological
samples from parents and children and analyze them for exposure
to environmental factors.
Although the expected cost for the first 25 years is $2.7
billion, five conditions the study hopes to learn about and
someday prevent — injury, obesity, diabetes, asthma and
neurobehavioral disorders — cost Americans $758 billion each
year, study planners said.
"We're looking to find the root causes of many common
diseases and disorders," the U.S. surgeon general, Vice Admiral
Richard H. Carmona, said during the press briefing in
Washington, D.C., Thursday. "When we do, we'll be in a position
to prevent them from ever occurring."
He said he hopes the study will also shed light on indoor
environmental exposures including secondhand smoke, lead, radon
and asbestos.
One goal is to "pinpoint the root causes of many of
today's major childhood diseases and disorders, and to determine
not only which aspects of the environment are harmful, but also
which are harmless or helpful to children's health and
development," said the report outlining the project.
Priority health concerns to be examined include
pregnancy-related outcomes (good nutrition, infection during
pregnancy), injury, asthma, obesity, diabetes and physical
development, and basic child development and mental health.
Two years ago, Utah pediatricians said the genealogical
database of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
experience with the human genome mapping project and the large
number of children in the state would make Utah a logical
choice. As it turns out, study planners agreed.
"This is extraordinarily exciting. The really exciting
thing is, we're going to be one of the pioneers in the true
tradition of Utah," said Dr. Edward B. Clark, chairman of the
Department of Pediatrics at the U. School of Medicine and
medical director of Primary Children's Medical Center.
He will be principal investigator at the U., which will
team for the project with 10 different departments in five
colleges at the U., as well as with other health systems such as
Intermountain Health Care, community agencies, school systems
and area employers. Even the community advisory group is
"extraordinarily diverse."
Clark said each of the six already-named vanguard centers
has different strengths. Utah's strengths, he said, are the
"family capacity for voluntarism and the understanding of our
population."
While Utah is like the other communities in many ways,
it's also different. For instance, "our schools are prepared to
teach in 80 languages. Our population base is extraordinarily
easy to get access to. You can reach our community much more
easily than some other communities. Also, we are a site that has
really been engaged in this type of (long-term) study for
decades," he said, citing the Downwinders nuclear fallout study
that spanned 40 years. The Utah Population Database is
"unparalleled."
['Photo'] Deseret Morning News graphic Over the next 21
months, the researchers will finalize the actual process so the
concepts and goals can be implemented in all the communities.
Family enrollment will begin in 2007. Besides recruiting
pregnant women or those trying to conceive, researchers will
also recruit women who have no current plans for children, as
many pregnancies are unplanned.
Initial information will center on the pregnancy itself,
including a woman's environment, chemical exposures and
emotional stress. The first batch of data from the study is
expected about 2010.
"We are committed to returning the information back to
our community," Clark said. "This is not something where data is
collected and sitting for decades. We'll be doing ongoing
analysis. If we see associations that indicate risk or benefit,
we're going to tell people about it. This is important for all
of us."
Initially, 1,250 children in Salt Lake County will be
recruited over the first five years, with a goal of at least 250
newborns a year. The study plans eventually to include
participants from about 105 communities that represent the
entire nation. As funding is available, the research will expand
to other study centers, probably 50 in all, that will oversee
the research in those 105 communities. As part of that, the U.
will extend its research into Cache County, Utah, Bear River,
Idaho, and Lincoln County, Wyo.
The vanguard centers were awarded in a competitive
process, and future sites will be selected the same way.
Besides the University of Utah, vanguard centers are
University of California, Irvine; University of North Carolina,
Chapel Hill; Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York;
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; and University of
Wisconsin, Madison.
Two other vanguard centers, as yet unnamed, will also be
established right away. A coordinating center, Westat, of
Rockville, Md., holds the contract to manage information for the
study, collecting the data, compiling and analyzing statistics
and making sure the study proceeds as planned.
The study is led by several agencies within the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, including the National
Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency and a
number of other federal agencies.
For more information, see www.nationalchildrensstudy. gov.
E-mail: lois@desnews.com
© 2005 Deseret News Publishing Company [ /]
*****************************************************************
38 Xinhua: China issues regulations on radiation safety
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2005-09-30 20:14:47
BEIJING, Sept. 30 (Xinhuanet) -- China will put in force a
set of regulations on safety of radioactive isotopes and
radiation equipment on Dec. 1 this year, according to a decree
issued recently by the State Council.
It applies to the production, sale and use of radioactive
isotopes and radiation equipment in China as well as the
transfer,import and export of radioactive isotopes.
According to the regulations, organizations must first
obtain a license before they can produce, sell and use
radioactive isotopes and radiation equipment.
They must meet certain conditions to be granted a license,
including employing people with professional knowledge, safety
knowledge and good health, the right place, facilities and
equipment that meet environmental, health and safety standards,
establishing special safety and protection agencies and rules
and drafting contingency plans.
Organizations that produce radioactive waste gas, liquid and
solid must possess capabilities or feasible plans to dispose of
them properly.
The regulations were approved by an executive meeting of the
State Council on Aug. 31. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
39 Xinhua: Explosions hit artillery depots in Far East of Russia
www.xinhuanet.com
www.chinaview.cn 2005-10-01 03:52:17
MOSCOW, Sept. 30 (Xinhuanet) -- A series of explosions
struck some artillery depots near Petropavlosk-Kamchatsky in
Russia's Far Easton Friday evening and there were no casualties
reported, the Itar-Tass news agency said.
The explosions triggered by fire occurred in artillery
depots in the village of Yuzhanaya Koriakiya near
Petropavlosk-Kamchatskyat 18:38 Moscow time (1438 GMT) on
Friday, preliminary investigation showed.
There were no nuclear munitions stored in the depots and no
one was hurt, a source in the Russian Defense Ministry was
quoted as saying.
More than 4,000 residents from five villages nearby were
being evacuated, the Kamchatka department of the Emergency
Situations Ministry said. Enditem
Copyright ©2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
40 NRC: Notice of Environmental Assessment Related to the Issuance of a
FR Doc 05-19647
[Federal Register: September 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 189)]
[Notices] [Page 57331-57333] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr30se05-152]
License Termination Amendment to Byproduct Material License No.
22- 00027-06, for St. Mary's University of Minnesota, Winona, MN
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George M. McCann, Senior Health
Physicist, Decommissioning Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials
Safety, Region III, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2443
Warrenville Road, Lisle, Illinois 60532-4352; telephone: (630)
829- 9856; or by email at gmm@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) is considering the issuance of an amendment to NRC
Materials License No. 22-00027-06, which would terminate St.
Mary's University of Minnesota's NRC Byproduct Material License.
The NRC has prepared an Environmental Assessment in support of
this action in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR Part
51. Based on the Environmental Assessment, the NRC has determined
that a Finding of No Significant Impact is appropriate. The
amendment terminating St. Mary's University of Minnesota's
license will be issued following the publication of this
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact.
I. Environmental Assessment Identification of Proposed Action The
proposed action would approve the licensee's request to terminate
its license and release the site for unrestricted use in
accordance with 10 CFR Part 20, Subpart E. The proposed action is
in accordance with St. Mary's University of Minnesota's request
to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to terminate its
NRC Byproduct
[[Page 57332]] Material License by letters dated January 10, 2005
(ADAMS Accession No. ML050140064), and July 18, 2005 (ADAMS
Accession No.
ML052290386). St. Mary's University of Minnesota was licensed
during the late 1950s by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission by
License Numbers 22-27-03D60, 22- 27-04C65, and 22-00027-05, to
use byproduct materials such as phosphorus-32, carbon-14,
hydrogen-3, cesium-137, strontium-90, and other similar
radiological materials for university laboratory research and
student classroom instruction. These licenses were subsequently
terminated and superceded by NRC License No. 22-00027-06, issued
to the university on May 19, 1975.
The university used the byproduct material in research
laboratories, student classrooms, and radiological material
preparation and storage areas located in the university's
Brothers Charles and Hoffman Halls, located on its Winona Campus.
The isotopes were used by authorized academic staff for research
applications, and for the instruction of university students in
related sciences. The radioisotopes were used and disposed in
accordance with AEC/NRC regulations and license conditions. The
disposal included one September 17, 1977, onsite burial of a
small quantity of strontium-90 and cobalt- 60, which was
authorized pursuant to Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR), Part 20, Section 20.304 (rescinded in 1981). The licensee
requested that the NRC approve the termination of the
university's NRC Byproduct Material License, which would
authorize the unrestricted use of research laboratories, student
classrooms, radioisotope storage and preparation areas, and the
former burial area, all located on St. Mary's of Minnesota's,
Winona, Minnesota campus. The licensee conducted surveys of the
facility and provided this information to the NRC to demonstrate
that the radiological conditions of the laboratories, former
preparation and storage areas, and classrooms located in Brothers
Charles and Hoffman Halls, and the former burial area is
consistent with radiological criteria for unrestricted use in 10
CFR Part 20, Subpart E. No radiological remediation activities
are required to complete the proposed action. The NRC completed a
closeout inspection and survey of the licensee's facilities on
August 17, 2005, NRC Inspection Report No.
030-11241/05- 001(DNMS) (ADAMS Accession No. ML052340785) to
conduct independent radiological surveys and to verify the
licensee's survey findings.
Need for the Proposed Action The licensee is requesting this
license amendment because it no longer plans to conduct
NRC-licensed activities at St. Mary's University of Minnesota.
The NRC is fulfilling its responsibilities under the Atomic
Energy Act to make a decision on the proposed action for
decommissioning that ensures that residual radioactivity is
reduced to a level that is protective of the public health and
safety and the environment.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action The NRC staff
reviewed the information provided and surveys performed by St.
Mary's University of Minnesota to demonstrate that the release of
the university's facilities located at its Winona, Minnesota
campus are consistent with the radiological criteria for
unrestricted use specified in 10 CFR 20.1402. The NRC performed a
closeout inspection and survey to confirm the university's
findings. The NRC staff also evaluated the 10 CFR 20.304 burial
using the Argonne National Laboratories' dose modeling program,
RESRAD Version 6, and determined that the annual dose as a result
of the burial is less than 1 millirem per year (mrem/yr), which
is below the limit in 10 CFR 20.1402 of 25 mrem/yr for
unrestricted use. Based on its review, the staff determined that
the radiological environmental impacts from the proposed action
for university buildings are bounded by the ``Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in Support of Rulemaking on
Radiological Criteria for License Termination of NRC- Licensed
Nuclear Facilities'' (NUREG-1496). Additionally, no non-
radiological or cumulative impacts were identified. Therefore,
the NRC has determined that the proposed action will not have a
significant effect on the quality of the human environment.
Alternatives to the Proposed Action The only alternative to the
proposed action of releasing the university's facilities for
unrestricted use is to take no action. Under the no-action
alternative, the university's facilities would remain under an
NRC license and would not be released for unrestricted use.
Denial of the license amendment request would result in no change
to current conditions at the university. The no-action
alternative is not acceptable because it is inconsistent with the
NRC's Timeliness Rule, 10 CFR Part 30.36 ``Expiration and
Termination of Licenses and Decommissioning of Sites and Separate
Buildings or Outdoor Areas,'' which requires licensees who have
ceased licensed activities to request termination of their
radioactive material license. This alternative also would impose
an unnecessary regulatory burden and limit potential benefits
from future use of the university's facilities.
Conclusion The NRC staff concluded that the proposed action is
consistent with the NRC unrestricted release criteria specified
in 10 CFR Part 20, Subpart E, Section 20.1402, ``Radiological
Criteria for Unrestricted Use.'' Because the proposed action will
not significantly impact the quality of the human environment,
the NRC staff concludes that the proposed action is the preferred
alternative.
Agencies and Persons Consulted The NRC staff has determined that
the proposed action will not affect listed species or critical
habitats. Therefore, no further consultation is required under
Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. Likewise, the NRC staff
has determined that the proposed action is not a type of activity
that has potential to cause effect on historic properties.
Therefore, consultation under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act is not required.
The NRC consulted with the Minnesota Department of Health.
The Minnesota Department of Health, Radiation Control Unit, was
provided the draft EA for comment on August 22, 2005. The State
responded to the NRC by letter dated September 7, 2005,
indicating, ``The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has
reviewed the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's closeout
inspection report for St. Mary's University of Minnesota. In
addition, MDH has discussed the findings with NRC Region III
staff. Based on a review of the closeout inspection report and
our additional discussions, MDH has no comments or concerns.''
II. Finding of No Significant Impact On the basis of the EA in
support of the proposed license amendment to release the site for
unrestricted use, the NRC has determined that the proposed action
will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human
environment. Thus, the NRC has determined not to prepare an
environmental impact statement for the proposed action.
Further Information A copy of this document will be available
electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document
[[Page 57333]] Room or from the Publicly Available Records (PARS)
component of the NRC's document system. From this site, you can
access the NRC's Agencywide Document Access and Management System
(ADAMS), which provides text and image files of NRC's public
documents. The following references are available for inspection
at NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html (the Public Electronic
Reading Room).
1. Rademacher, Brother Jerome, Chairman, Department of Physics,
Radiation Safety Officer, St. Mary's University of Minnesota,
January 10, 2005 letter to the NRC (ML050140064).
2. Rademacher, Brother Jerome, Chairman, Department of Physics,
Radiation Safety Officer, St. Mary's University of Minnesota,
July 18, 2005 letter to the NRC (ML052290386).
3. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ``Environmental Review
Guidance for Licensing Actions Associated with NMSS Programs,''
NUREG- 1748, August 2003.
4. NRC, NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning
Guidance,'' Volumes 1-3, September 2003.
5. Johns, Jr., George F., Supervisor, Radiation Control Unit,
Minnesota Department of Health, September 7, 2005 letter to the
NRC (ML052560161).
If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in
accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at (800) 397-4209, (301)
415-4737 or by email to pdr@nrc.gov. Documents may also be viewed
electronically on the public computers located at the NRC's PDR,
O 1 F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
MD 20852. The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for
a fee.
Dated at Lisle, Illinois, this 19th day of September 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Jamnes L. Cameron, Chief,
Decommissioning Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety
Region III.
[FR Doc. 05-19647 Filed 9-29-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
*****************************************************************
41 Guardian Unlimited: US investors circle ailing Sellafield
Terry Macalister and Tania Branigan
Friday September 30, 2005
The Guardian
Harold Wilson's old Labour government saw the new state-owned
nuclear power industry as a major British success story that
would meet all of our future energy needs. But while New Labour
might still push the button on a new generation of atomic power
stations to take up the slack from a dwindling domestic oil and
gas industry, it seems relaxed about whether ultimate control of
reactors lies overseas.
Last night, such a possibility came a step closer with the
emergence of plans to sell generating, reprocessing and clear-up
operations worth billions of pounds at a string of nuclear sites
operated by British Nuclear Group, part of BNFL.
It is the latest example of British willingness to sell off
sensitive industries once considered vital to national strategic
interests. Despite astonishment from other countries, which balk
at foreign ownership of of their defence and energy complexes,
the government seems relaxed about key national assets such as
missile ranges and the operation of nuclear plants moving into
private - and foreign - hands despite security issues in both
sectors at a time of heightened concern about terrorism.
The proposals over the nuclear sale come as the government has
indicated as greater willingness to build a second generation of
nuclear power stations. All but one of the existing ones are due
to be decommissioned by 2023. This week Tony Blair told the
Labour party conference in Brighton that a successful energy
policy required "an assessment of all options, including civil
nuclear power". He also stressed the "serious" threat posed by
global warming and warned that the developed world could not
afford to rely on unstable regions for its energy needs.
Brian Wilson, Labour's energy minister until 2003, said the sale
of BN Group would be a logical follow-through from the creation
of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, which was set up to
deal with the clean-up of Britain's civil nuclear waste. "It
reinforces the separation of liability issues and current ones.
It wouldn't affect new build," he said.
But Norman Lamb MP, the Lib Dem trade and industry spokesman,
said he would ask the trade and industry secretary, Alan
Johnson, to clarify the government's position, as the sale would
have important implications. The Liberal Democrats oppose the
creation of new nuclear power stations on economic,
environmental and security grounds.
The reason for the mooted sale appears to be that although
government may approve a new generation of plants, the existing
industry is at a low ebb. British Energy, the already privatised
atomic power company, has only been kept in business by public
loans and formidable financial restructuring. As for British
Nuclear Fuels, it made a loss last year of £470m. Managers
privately admit their task, set by government, of becoming a
competitive contractor - bidding for work to operate atomic
sites and decommission ageing plants - is too onerous without
the help of the private sector.
The company, which now manages and operates Sellafield and other
sites, signalled its willingness to give up on its sprawling
empire in July when it unveiled plans to sell-off Westinghouse,
the US-based design and construction business it bought in 1999.
That company is based in America but it also employs 1,400
British staff at a BNFL site near Preston where it maintains a
reactor fuel production facility. A host of American firms such
as General Electric have been linked with possible purchase and
prices of £1bn and beyond have been bandied around.
Mike Graham, north-west secretary for the Prospect union, which
represents thousands of workers at BNFL, says these sell-offs
raise environmental, safety and staffing issues. Not least is
the position of the huge pension fund which is currently in
state hands.
As for the disposal of Westinghouse, he says: "An inquiry should
be launched immediately into why six years ago government
believed owning Westinghouse was central to its vision for BNFL
but today it is peripheral and put up for sale. Nothing has
changed except that nuclear new-build is now top of the agenda
for fighting carbon emissions.
"Westinghouse would provide the UK with a golden opportunity to
grab market share and earn a return for the British taxpayer.
Instead that long-term vision has been sacrificed to make a
quick buck for the Treasury."
Exactly the same arguments can be made about the sale of the BN
Group which operates and nuclear sites such as Bradwell and
Dungeness, although it does not actually own them.
Chequered history
Originally known as Windscale, Sellafield was built in the late
1940s and began generating electricity at its Calder Hall
reactor in 1956. But from the start the plant was plagued by
controversy and accidents.
During the cold war radio-active waste was discharged from
Sellafield via a pipeline directly into the sea.
In 1957 a fire broke out in one of the Calder Hall chimneys
spreading radioactive waste across Cumbria . The accident was so
bad that milk from farms in a 500-square kilometre radius had to
be destroyed. In the 1960s a second reactor was added and in
1981 British Nuclear Fuels renamed the plant Sellafield. The
Calder Hall reactor was retired in 2003. But although Sellafield
was no longer producing electricity it continued to generate
headlines.
In February 2005 the UK Atomic Energy Authority admitted 29.6 kg
of plutonium had gone missing, enough to make seven nuclear
bombs.
In May, Thorp discovered that 83,000 litres of radioactive waste
had leaked from a cracked pipe into a huge stainless steel
chamber. The leak had so contaminated the chamber it was
impossible to enter and with the cost of the clean up estimated
at £2.1bn Thorp was closed.
Mark Honigsbaum
[UP]
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
*****************************************************************
42 Guardian Unlimited: Labour's £10bn nuclear sell-off
US firms tipped to bid for Sellafield
Terry Macalister
Friday September 30, 2005
The Guardian
Operations at Sellafield and other major nuclear plants such as
Sizewell and Dungeness are to be sold off to the private sector
for more than £10bn under plans drawn up yesterday by the board
of British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL).
American companies such as Halliburton and Fluor are seen as
likely contenders in any race to take over British Nuclear Group,
which is the main operating arm of the government-owned BNFL,
handling nuclear generation, reprocessing and clean-up
businesses. The transfer of key operations out of state hands at
a time when Britain is facing an energy shortfall will generate
surprise, particularly with North Sea oil and gas running down
and the government edging towards a decision to proceed with a
new generation of nuclear reactors. But a sell-off is likely to
be approved by the government when Gordon Brown is struggling to
fund his spending commitments.
Last night, the traditionally-secretive BNFL refused to confirm
publicly that any definite disposal move had been made but a
spokesman said: "No decision on a sale will be taken without the
secretary of state, the trades unions, customers and other
stakeholders being properly consulted." Industry sources said the
company was determined to find a new future for BNG through a
partnership with the private sector or, more likely, through an
outright sale of the business which employs 8,000 staff.
The Prospect union expressed alarm at the development. "We are
particularly concerned at the loss of government influence over
the future direction of the British nuclear industry at a time
when we face huge changes such as a major decommissioning
programme and the prospect of a new building programme," said
Mike Graham, north-west officer for the union who deals with
BNFL.
Norman Lamb MP, the Liberal Democrat trade and industry
spokesman, called for the government to clarify its position on
the proposed sale, which would have implications for
decision-making in the nuclear industry. BNG runs a dozen atomic
sites, some with relatively new reactors such as Sizewell B in
Suffolk.
[UP]
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
*****************************************************************
43 Australian Financial Review: Let uranium go, says Howard
September 30 2005
Australia should be free to mine all its
uranium reserves without restriction, the federal government
believes. "I don't think there should be restrictions," the
Prime Minister, John Howard, said in Perth on Friday.
2005/09/30--> AUSTRALIA-->
AAP
Australia should be free to mine all its uranium reserves
without restriction, the federal government believes. "I don't
think there should be restrictions," the Prime Minister, John
Howard, said in Perth on Friday.
Uranium was a great national resource and, as long as it was
exported under stringent safeguards, it should be allowed to be
mined. "The policy of the federal government is to sensibly use
the resources of this nation for the benefit of this nation. Our
policy is clear and it's not going to change."
The West Australian Labor government has refused to change laws
banning uranium mining in the state and federal Labor's policy
is to limit mining to Australia's three existing uranium mines.
"How is it that it's all right to extract the uranium from a
mine in one part of the country but not in another?" Mr Howard
asked.
"Is the uranium in the first mine more moral, purer and nicer
[than] in the second mine? It's just a ridiculous proposition.
It's an act of political weakness by the Labor Party. They can't
make up their mind on this issue."
@media print {.nopr {display:none}}
The Prime Minister also called for debate on all energy options,
including nuclear energy.
"I think we should debate all of the energy options that are
reasonably available," Mr Howard said.
"We have the great advantage of having the largest export
capacity of any nation in the world in coal, we have large
reserves of natural gas and of oil but we are not immune from
world forces.
"We also have vast reserves of uranium and what we must do as a
country is use all of these things in a sensible way."
Copyright
*****************************************************************
44 Deseret News: Allies needed in N-waste fight
[deseretnews.com]
Friday, September 30, 2005
If LaVarr Webb had advised George Washington on what to do during
the Revolutionary War, we'd still be drinking tea and dining on
crumpets ("Accept N-waste for a price — or keep on fighting?"
Sept. 25). The momentum may appear to be on the side of Private
Fuel Storage now that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission endorsed
its plan to store the nation's high-level nuclear waste above
ground on the Skull Valley Goshute Reservation. However, this is
not the time to see how much money we could get for our
surrender. Now is the time to recruit more people to join the
fight to keep nuclear waste from being dumped in Utah.
Hopefully, Sen. Orrin Hatch will join with Gov. Jon
Huntsman, Sen. Bob Bennett and rest of the Utah delegation who
understand the importance of joining forces with our neighbors
to form a stronger alliance. No amount of money makes the stench
from this proposal smell any better. Rather than selling out, as
Webb suggests, we should all commit to fight harder.
Jason Groenewold
director
Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah
© 2005 Deseret News Publishing Company [ /]
*****************************************************************
45 Interfax: Russia, U.S. successfully fulfilling HEU-LEU deal - statement
Sep 30 2005 7:14PM
MOSCOW. Sept 30 (Interfax) - Russia had fulfilled half of its
commitments under the so-called HEU-LEU agreement with the U.S.,
blending down highly-enriched weapons grade uranium into
low-grade uranium to ship to U.S. power plants.
A joint statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry, the Russian
Federal Atomic Energy Agency, the U.S. Department of State and
the U.S. Department of Energy says that 250 tonnes of
highly-enriched uranium, equivalent to 10,000 nuclear warheads,
has been blended down to low- enriched uranium, which marks the
passing of the half-way mark in the agreement. The agreement
envisions the liquidation of 500 tonnes of highly-enriched
uranium by 2013.
© 1991-2005 Interfax
All rights reserved
News and other data on this web site are provided for
information purposes only, and are not intended for
republication or redistribution. Republication or redistribution
of Interfax content, including by framing or similar means, is
expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of
Interfax.
*****************************************************************
46 reviewjournal.com: DOE plans appeal of order to release Yucca document
Sep. 30, 2005
STEVE TETREAULT STEPHENS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- The Depart-ment of Energy is preparing to appeal
an order to make public a 5,000-page draft license application
for Yucca Mountain, prolonging a legal fight over access to
nuclear waste documents.
The order, issued last week by a panel of three administrative
judges for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, "raises in DOE's
view complex and important issues" for the waste repository
project, department attorneys said.
Attorney Donald Irwin filed a document with the judges this week
saying an appeal would be filed Monday.
Energy Department officials did not comment on the notice. DOE
attorneys had argued the draft license application was legally
shielded from disclosure, a position that was rejected by the
judicial panel.
DOE was challenged by the state of Nevada to post the documents
onto a pre-licensing Internet site. State officials said they
believe the documents contain important clues as to Yucca
Mountain's safety for nuclear waste burial.
Public disclosure of the draft, which is said to contain
versions of analysis reports and models that DOE will rely upon
to defend the Yucca site during license hearings, also figures
to give the state's attorneys a head start to form new legal
challenges.
The DOE appeal will be decided by NRC commissioners.
Commissioner Gregory Jaczko is expected to recuse himself
because he worked on Yucca Mountain matters as an aide to Sen.
Harry Reid, D-Nev.
A prolonged appeal could add "a couple months" before the Energy
Department could move forward on Yucca Mountain licensing, said
Charles Fitzpatrick, an attorney for the state.
"I think the (judges') decision was thorough and well-reasoned
in every respect, but consistent with DOE's perpetual 'hide the
ball' attitude, they will do everything within their legal
rights to delay making the material available to the public in
general and Nevada," Fitzpatrick said.
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1997 - 2005
Stephens Media GroupPrivacy Statement
*****************************************************************
47 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department wants more time for NRC
Today: September 30, 2005 at 10:51:4 PDT
By Suzanne Struglinski
SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department will continue its fight to
keep a draft of Yucca Mountain's license application out of the
state's hand and has requested more time from the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission to do its work.
A three-judge panel within the commission ruled Sept. 22 that
the department had to turn over the draft to the state, but
department attorneys sent a letter to the judges this week
notifying them the department will appeal.
The department is finalizing its support material for its
license application. That material must be turned in before the
application.
The Energy Department argues that having to turn over the draft
application and answer further questions the judges have posed
is a "significant hardship" for the department.
Nevada and the department's attorneys were supposed to appear
before the three Atomic Safety and Licensing Board judges
Thursday, but the department requested more time. They will now
meet on Oct. 13.
The appeal will go before the five-member Nuclear Regulatory
Commission. Commissioner Greg Jaczko, a former aide to Sen.
Harry Reid, D-Nev., has recused himself from voting on Yucca
issues until next year because of his previous work against the
project.
All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc.
*****************************************************************
48 Independent: San Fernando blaze nears rocket factory
www.independent.co.uk
By Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles
Published: 01 October 2005
The suburban hills north-west of Los Angeles were ablaze
yesterday, as the first hot desert winds of the autumn season
ignited brush and chaparral and threatened thousands of homes
and businesses as well as a highly toxic rocket-building
factory.
The worst of the damage was at the western end of the San
Fernando Valley, where gated communities and suburban houses
nestle beneath the Santa Susana mountains. The notorious Santa
Ana winds, which bring temperatures so hot it can feel as though
someone has left a radiator on full blast, threatened at one
point to push the flames across the Ventura freeway and out
towards the beachside mansions of Malibu.
But firefighters managed to build breaks and prevent the blazes
from spreading out of control. By last night, the fires were
said to be about 20 per cent contained, and cooler temperatures
were likely to make the task of extinguishing them easier.
The Santa Anas, said to affect the mood of Los Angeles so
drastically they often trigger a rise in the murder rate, have
posed a greater fire risk in recent years because of expanding
suburban development in exposed hillsides. Several towns in the
San Bernardino mountains, east of Los Angeles, were devastated
in fires two years ago. One of the newer developments in the San
Fernando Valley is named Smokey Ridge, for good reason.
Most worrying, perhaps, was the proximity of the flames to the
Rocketdyne factory, which tests rocket engines and contains
numerous toxic chemicals and even radioactive material. But
firefighters said the plant and buildings were so far
unaffected.
© 2005 Independent News & Media (UK) Ltd.
*****************************************************************
49 YubaNetAlert: Feinstein and Boxer Secure $13 Million for Perchlorate
Remediation in the Inland Empire
YubaNet.com
By: Howard Gantman, Feinstein office
Published: September 30, 2005 at 08:51
Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer today announced that
they have secured $13 million for perchlorate clean up and
remediation in the Inland Empire, as part of the FY2006 Defense
Department spending bill.
"This harmful chemical has permeated the nation's water supply
and contaminated water sources in 35 states," Senator Feinstein
said. "This funding is just a drop in the bucket. Much more is
needed to address the widespread contamination. Nevertheless, it
will help the Inland Empire begin to clean up tainted
groundwater and drinking water sources. I will continue to work
with Senator Boxer to hold the Defense Department accountable
for the contamination it caused and to fund cleanup efforts."
"Perchlorate contamination poses a health risk to California's
most vulnerable populations, especially infants," Senator Boxer
said. "Hundreds of water supplies in California are currently
contaminated with perchlorate. I look forward to working with
Senator Feinstein until the problem is remediated."
Equally divided between the cities of Rialto and Colton, and the
West Valley Water District and Fontana Water Company, the funds
will be used to demonstrate enhancements to existing,
best-available technologies as well as new and cost-effective
technologies to remediate the perchlorate-contaminated public
drinking water supplies in the Rialto, Fontana, and Colton areas.
The cities and water utilities were forced to close 22 wells
after they discovered perchlorate that exceeds state and federal
health goals and Action Levels for public drinking water
supplies in the groundwater in the Rialto and Chino groundwater
basins. The water suppliers must locate replacement water, which
is both expensive and challenging in light of water shortages.
The problem also threatens additional wells and could inhibit
future development in the area due to an uncertain future supply
of water.
Perchlorate is a chemical used in rocket fuel and munitions. It
is a highly soluble salt that can readily permeate through
soils. Perchlorate was widely used by the Defense Department and
its contractors in the 1950s and 1960s. Pregnant women and
children may be especially at risk of adverse health affects
from perchlorate exposure.
Copyright © 2005 YubaNet.com, all rights reserved.
YubaNet.com
*****************************************************************
50 Pahrump Valley Times: Nevada opposes land withdrawal for Yucca Mountain rail line
September 30, 2005
News from around the Silver State
The Energy Department has not laid the groundwork to justify
restricting public land use along a proposed railroad corridor
to the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, Nevada
officials said.
The DOE plan for a 308,600-acre land withdrawal across rural
Nevada will have broad impacts that have not been studied
adequately, state officials said in a formal comment. The
proposed action "is not just any land withdrawal," the state
said in a seven-page assessment signed by Bob Loux, executive
director of the Agency for Nuclear Projects.
"Apart from causing impacts and disruption to existing land
users, the proposed action has the potential to negatively
affect the environment, grazing allotments, mining and energy
development activities," the state said.
webmaster@pahrumpvalleytimes.com
Copyright © Pahrump Valley Times, 1997 - 2005
*****************************************************************
51 LA Daily News: EPA to test Saugus firm for perchlorate
NWSSantaClarita
Article Launched: 09/30/2005 12:00:00 AM
By Judy O'Rourke, Special to the Daily News
SANTA CLARITA - The Environmental Protection Agency will test
groundwater for perchlorate and other contaminants at a Saugus
company that tests products for military and commercial use and
sits near the polluted Bermite site, an official said Thursday.
The federal agency will visit National Technical Systems on
Monday and begin the process of drilling seven test wells to a
depth of 80 to 100 feet to check for perchlorate, a byproduct of
rocket fuel that has been linked to thyroid disorders.
Tests show that chemicals at NTS - next to the new Golden Valley
High School - have not contaminated public water sources, but
the EPA wants to know the extent of the pollution on the
property.
Access to the site for sampling has been delayed since 2004 due
to the company's need to protect its confidential operations and
the seasonal demands of the sampling process.
"They wanted us to say exactly where we were going to go before
we went and we were going to figure out where we (needed) to
sample," said Matt Mitguard, project manager for the
Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund.
NTS tests products and components for telecommunications,
aerospace and military applications. The facility performs
testing that is involved in national security.
Bob Snyder, a company spokesman, said NTS does not engage in
manufacturing and the items it tests are sealed - meaning
chemical are within the components and cannot leak.
The agency gained access to the NTS site in early 2004 after
tests by the state's Department of Toxic Substances Control in
2003 found perchlorate in the soil.
"We had difficulty getting an agreement on when we'd get on the
site, how much time we'd have once we got there and the extent
to which we could do our sampling," Mitguard said. The company
cited security concerns.
Mitguard will work with local water purveyors to determine if
the pollution has reached any of their wells. Perchlorate is
believed to have leeched into the groundwater from the defunct
Whittaker Bermite munitions testing facility in Saugus has
prompted officials to cap five municipal wells in Saugus and
Valencia.
Bill Manetta, retail manager for the Santa Clarita Water
Division of the Castaic Lake Water Agency, said his agency
performs regular weekly, monthly and quarterly tests on its
wells and no perchlorate has been detected since 2002. At that
time, a well near the Saugus Speedway was shut down after it was
found to contain 5.9 parts per billion of perchlorate, just
below the recommended safety guideline set by the state
Department of Public Health at 6 ppb. In 1997 the company shut
down two wells by the fork of the Santa Clara River that
registered at 47 ppb. Two more wells operated by the Valencia
Water Co. also are capped.
The Santa Clarita Water Division has been working with the state
Department of Health Services and the Department of Toxic
Substances Control, which is the lead agency for the Whittaker
Bermite cleanup operation. They check for perchlorate and other
pollutants, nitrates, minerals and other substances.
"Pollution is in the general area (of NTS and Bermite.) The
property line doesn't mean anything to us," Manetta said. "We
don't know which parcel it comes from. Our goal is to clean up
the whole mess and get the wells treated so we can put them back
in the system with the DTSC's approval."
Before Golden Valley Road was built, the NTS property was
contiguous with the Whittaker Bermite property. NTS is downhill
from the Whittaker property, which has known perchlorate
contamination. Mitguard said contaminants could possibly have
migrated from the Whittaker property to NTS.
Samples will be taken on the site as well as uphill and downhill
from it.
"If you have no contamination up the gradient and you (do have
it) down the gradient you can deduce contamination is coming
from the source you're evaluating," he said.
The agency is looking at another neighboring company, Hi-Shear
Technology Corp., which Mitguard said seems to be storing
munitions in units built into the ground. He said the agency
will investigate what the company has done historically.
NTS sits on the east side of Golden Valley Road, Whittaker
Bermite is on the west side of the road and a strip of Hi-Shear
is contiguous with the road on the Whittaker side.
Earlier this week, Mitford said the EPA was continuing to
evaluate test results generated from an investigation at the
former Keysor Century plastics plant in Saugus that closed after
it was found to be spewing toxic waste into the air and water.
--
Judy O'Rourke, (661) 257-5255
judy.orourke@dailynews.com
Los Angeles Newspaper Group
*****************************************************************
52 LA Daily News: Air tests planned at Santa Susana lab
Article Launched: 09/30/2005 12:00:00 AM
By Kerry Cavanaugh, Staff Writer
Air-quality regulators planned to sample the air around the
Santa Susana Field Lab late Thursday for contamination that may
have been released when the Topanga Fire roared through the
hilltop lab.
Thursday was supposed to be the day of the final rocket test at
the field lab, ending testing operations at the hilltop site.
Instead, it was at the center of a massive brush fire that
stretched miles through the rugged area.
Several vacant buildings at the site were burned, and an office
and machine shop were damaged by the flames. But hazardous waste
and radioactive facilities were not affected, according to the
Boeing Co., which owns the lab.
Boeing spokesman Dan Beck said no contamination was released as
a result of the fire, and there was no risk to lab neighbors.
"We're confident that there has been no release of hazardous
material that could pose a threat to the community and we don't
believe there will be any."
However, South Coast Air Quality Management District officials
said they would try to sample the air around the lab for
chemicals if they can get close enough to the site.
"This is sort of a unique situation. We have a facility that has
a lot of known toxic contamination in the soil and some of the
contamination may have been released into the air," said Sam
Atwood, AQMD spokesman. The district will also try to find
equipment to follow up with several days of testing for dioxins,
furans, PCBs and hydrochloric acid - toxic contaminants that
have been found in the lab soil.
Beck said the company plans to test the property after the fire
is cleared, but immediate environmental concerns are
unwarranted.
"There isn't the contamination there at levels that are going to
dissipate through water or smoke that would cause harm to public
health."
Lab watchdogs pressed for environmental regulators to visit the
site Thursday to test for potential contamination that could have
been burned with the topsoil and vegetation.
"We're talking about 40 years of using the most exotic chemical
known to man. It's fallen on the flora. All we're saying is get
some tests out there," said Jonathan Parfrey with Physicians for
Social Responsibility.
His group called the air quality regulators for Ventura and Los
Angeles counties to ask for air monitors downwind of the fire.
Others said they didn't expect the wildfire to release deep soil
pollution at the site.
"I would be more concerned about the chemicals created by the
fire, then the fire mobilizing chemicals at the site," said
Yoram Cohen, a professor of chemical engineering at the
University of California, Los Angeles, who has studied
contamination at the field lab. Wildfires and the burning of
vegetation creates toxic air contamination.
Department of Toxic Substances Control spokeswoman Jeanne Garcia
said her agency, which oversees the decade-long cleanup of the
lab, will visit the site once the fire is cleared and safe for
staff.
Boeing and its predecessors tested engines that powered the
Delta 2 rocket and the space shuttle. The lab will still conduct
government research.
--
Kerry Cavanaugh, (818) 713-3746
Los Angeles Newspaper Group
*****************************************************************
53 Madison Courier: Sodrel pursuing ordnance cleanup
9/30/2005 3:00:00 PM
Courier Staff Writer
“By working with my colleagues who represent military sites
that have been used for ordnance exercises, we hope to be able
to solve some of the long-term challenges facing these
communities.”
— U.S. Rep. Mike Sodrel
U.S. Rep. Mike Sodrel has joined a bipartisan group of House
members who want to focus congressional attention, funding and
legislation on cleanup of unexploded ordnance and on UXO safety
issues.
The U.S. Army left tons of unexploded ordnance at Jefferson
Proving Ground, where munitions were tested from 1941 to 1994.
JPG officially closed 10 years ago today under the Defense
Authorization Amendments and Base Realignment and Closure Act of
1988.
Most of the UXO is still there and is on the 50,000 acres that
now is the Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge.
“The former Jefferson Proving Ground, Big Oaks National Wildlife
Refuge and Camp Atterbury continue to deal with the safety,
health and environmental concerns from unexploded ordnance,”
Sodrel, R-New Albany, said in a press release. “By working with
my colleagues who represent military sites that have been used
for ordnance exercises, we hope to be able to solve some of the
long-term challenges facing these communities.”
Unexploded ordnance has been cleared from JPG areas south of
the firing line that have been turned over to private or
public-agency ownership. But tons more — at a higher
concentration because of the direction of fire — remain north of
the firing line, the land that became the wildlife refuge. Two
thousand acres of that area also is contaminated with toxic,
radioactive depleted uranium. DU weapons were tested at JPG from
1983 to 1994.
Of the munitions fired for testing and evaluation, about 1.5
million did not detonate, and about 7 million inert rounds that
were fired to test live detonators, primers or fuzes also did
not function as intended, and so remain, according to Army
reports.
The Army has said it cannot remove the estimated 77 tons of
depleted uranium for safe disposal because of the danger of
unexploded ordinance. The UXO that was cleared from sites south
of the firing line wasn’t in as dense of concentrations as that
found north of the firing line, according to Army reports.
Sodrel was the 11th member of Congress to join the UXO Caucus,
which is new. It was founded by Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore.,
Don Manzullo, R-Ill., Sam Farr, D-Calif., and George Miller,
R-Calif.
Unexploded ordnance has come up as a recent public topic because
some of the military bases on the closure list have unexploded
ordnance.
The RAND Corp., a nonpartisan, nonprofit think tank that studies
and seeks solutions for worldwide problems and issues,
recommended earlier this year that Congress create a nonprofit
governmental corporation to take over management of cleaning up
and transferring ownership of closed bases. The individual armed
services and the Defense Department currently are responsible.
Real estate, environmental cleanup and development are not what
the military do best, so those duties should be lifted from the
military’s shoulders, the RAND Corp. said.
Copyright 2005, The Madison Courier 310 Courier Square, Madison,
IN 47250 (812) 265-3641 (800) 333-2885 Software © 1998-2005 , All
Rights Reserved
*****************************************************************
54 AU ABC: PM restates support for uranium mining in WA
PM - Friday, 30 September , 2005 18:43:00
Reporter: David Weber
MARK COLVIN: The Prime Minister has restated his support for
uranium mining in the lead-up to a debate on the issue at
Western Australia's Liberal Party Conference.
The State Conference is due to develop a position, with several
State and Federal MPs declaring their support for uranium mining
in WA.
There are several known uranium deposits in Western Australia.
At least two considered viable.
Some MPs also support a nuclear waste dump in the State.
But the State Liberal leader says he doesn't have a position on
uranium mining.
David Weber reports.
DAVID WEBER: The Prime Minister says he doesn't want to tell the
WA Liberals what to do, but he says there should be more uranium
mining in Australia.
JOHN HOWARD: The policy of the State Parliamentary Party is a
matter for it to determine but I can tell you that the policy of
the Federal Government is to sensibly, sensibly use the
resources of this nation for the benefit of this nation, and not
to make an absurd distinction between good uranium and bad
uranium. That's the policy of the Federal Government.
DAVID WEBER: Some in the WA Liberal Party have already stated
their support for uranium mining. The Shadow Lands Minister has
gone further. He says Australia should be seriously considering
storing nuclear waste.
But the State Liberal Leader and Member for Kalgoorlie, Matt
Birney, says he doesn't have a position.
MATT BIRNEY: There is a level of discomfort out there in the
community, but equally I know that there are some strong
economic benefits to be gained.
The debate only started a few months ago. Prior to that, it
wasn't out there in the public domain. I in particular didn't
have the level of information that was necessary to make an
informed decision, that public consultation period will
culminate tomorrow at the State Conference, and we'll then take
that resolution to the next party room meeting and we'll have a
decision for you.
DAVID WEBER: The Premier Geoff Gallop has said it's morally
wrong to mine uranium. He's not convinced that it's possible to
store nuclear waste safely.
But there are supporters for uranium mining in the Labor Party
too. There's expected to be a push to have Labor's ban on
uranium mining in WA overturned at the State Conference later
this year.
The WA Liberal Senator David Johnston believes this weekend's
State Conference will endorse uranium mining.
Senator Johnston says Australia needs to consider the energy
requirements of East Asia, and China in particular.
DAVID JOHNSTON: We already have three mines. I mean, we're
exporting as much as can as fast as we can. I mean, what …
having done that, I find opposition to uranium mining generally,
and other strategic minerals – let me say there are other
strategic minerals being exported for use in aircraft, for use
in rockets, etc. Now, for us not to be assisting one of our most
significantly emerging trading partners to solve their
environmental and energy needs is ridiculous.
DAVID WEBER: So you think the WA State Liberal Conference will
be supporting this position?
DAVID JOHNSTON: I wouldn't want to pre-empt them, but I'd be
pretty confident that they're going to support uranium mining
and this ridiculous situation that the Gallop Government has got
us into needs to be sorted out fast because we need to just get
on with the job properly.
DAVID WEBER: If WA starts exporting uranium, should WA be
looking after the waste as well?
DAVID JOHNSTON: Well, the waste is an interesting question, and
I am interested in what Bob Hawke has had to say. Because what
people fail to understand is that in terms of PCBs
(polychlorinated biphenyl), liquid toxic waste, and other toxic
waste, there are repositories around the metropolitan area that
we have had for many years.
DAVID WEBER: So can you see a storage facility for uranium waste
in Western Australia?
DAVID JOHNSTON: No, I can't. Let me say, I want to see the
debate. I want to hear about the vitrification process, I want
to hear about Synroc (synthetic waste) and all the other
scientific methods that we've got of storing nuclear and other
waste properly, responsibly, into the future.
Now let's have the debate, and let's do it rationally and
properly. Western Australia is in a unique position to not just
assist the nation, but probably the whole world.
MARK COLVIN: West Australian Liberal Party Senator David
Johnston speaking to David Weber.
*****************************************************************
55 AU ABC: Hawke right on nuclear waste: ALP spokesman.
30/09/2005. ABC News Online
The Federal Opposition's resources spokesman, Martin Ferguson,
says former prime minister Bob Hawke's suggestion that Australia
take the world's nuclear waste has scientific merit but is too
politically poisonous.
Mr Hawke raised the idea on Monday night.
Labor leader Kim Beazley immediately ruled out adopting Mr
Hawke's idea and it has been widely criticised by environment
groups, unions and the Northern Territory Government.
But Mr Ferguson says Australia would be a safe place to store
nuclear waste.
"In scientific terms Bob Hawke is right," he said.
"Australia internationally could be regarded as a good place to
actually bury it deep in the ground.
"But the Australian community is not willing to accept that
responsibility, hence it is not something that is going to go
anywhere in Australia at the moment."
*****************************************************************
56 UK: News & Star: Sellafield firm to be privatised
Published on 30/09/2005
By Andrea Thompson
THE state-owned company which manages most of the UK’s civil
nuclear sites, including Sellafield, is to be privatised.
The board of BNFL agreed yesterday to put its subsidiary British
Nuclear Group (BNG) up for sale in a move expected to raise £100
million to £150 million.
The decision comes just days after Prime Minister Tony Blair
indicated his backing for a new generation of nuclear power
stations.
The company is responsible for 14 nuclear sites around the
country and has 15,000 employees.
The decision to sell BNG has been fiercely criticised by
Prospect, the trade union that represents BNFL’s scientists
and engineers. It is concerned the taxpayer could lose out
through the sale of BNG to a foreign buyer. BNFL has revealed
plans to sell its US-based nuclear power station unit
Westinghouse.
*****************************************************************
57 Las Vegas SUN: Energy Department to ask NRC to keep draft license plan secret
Today: September 30, 2005 at 14:43:19 PDT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The federal Energy Department plans to ask the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission to overrule a judicial panel's
order that it make public a 5,000-page draft license application
for Yucca Mountain, officials said.
The order issued by a panel of three NRC administrative judges,
"raises in DOE's view complex and important issues" for the
waste repository project, department lawyer Donald Irwin said in
a document notifying judges that an appeal would be filed
Monday.
Energy Department officials in Washington, D.C., did not comment
on the notice filed this week.
The judicial panel on Sept. 22 rejected Energy Department
arguments that the draft license application was legally
shielded from disclosure.
The state of Nevada has challenged the Energy Department to post
the documents on a public Internet site set up to catalog
documents relating to planning and design for the Yucca Mountain
project.
State officials said they believe the draft license application
will show the Energy Department knows it cannot safely entomb
77,000 tons of the nation's most radioactive waste 90 miles
northwest of Las Vegas.
The Energy Department appeal will be decided by NRC
commissioners. Commissioner Gregory Jaczko is expected to
obstain because he worked on Yucca Mountain matters as an aide
to Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.
A prolonged appeal could add several months to the Energy
Department timeline for Yucca Mountain licensing, said Charles
Fitzpatrick, a lawyer for the state.
Project officials have pushed back a target opening date from
2010 to 2012 or later, amid recent budget shortages and
investigations of e-mails exchanged between project scientists
discussing possible falsification of scientific data.
All contents copyright 2005 Las Vegas SUN, Inc.
*****************************************************************
58 Epoch Times: Los Alamos National Laboratory to Change Management
Los Alamos National Laboratory, University of California
On Dec. 1, the Department of Energy will decide on new management
for Los Alamos National Laboratory, possibly replacing the
University of California (UC), which has managed the labs for 62
years.
By Ben Bendig
Times San Francisco Staff
Sep 30, 2005
On Dec. 1, the Department of Energy will decide on new management
for Los Alamos National Laboratory, possibly replacing the
University of California (UC), which has managed the labs for 62
years.
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), located in New Mexico,
famously began during WWII for the Manhattan Project, the
secretive operation to build an atomic bomb. At its conception in
1942, UC Berkeley physics professor J. Robert Oppenheimer led the
lab, and in 1943 UC began managing Los Alamos.
Currently, Los Alamos focuses on national security issues, but
also studies improvements in technologies related to energy, the
environment, and infrastructure. One recent development includes
creating bio-detectors to help prevent the smuggling of weapons
of mass destruction.
After several problems with security, including the high-profile
case involving Chinese-American scientist Wen Ho Lee in 1999 and
2000, who had been accused of mishandling nuclear secrets, the
Dep artment of Energy opted to put to a bid who would manage the
Los Alamos lab.
The prize of management of one of the most prestigious labs in
the world is between two groups. One is UC, along with a team
from private industry: Bechtel, Washington Group International,
and BWX Technologies. Bechtel and Washington group are both
engineering firms, the former built the Bay Area's BART, and
both helped to build the Hoover Dam. BWX is a company focusing in
nuclear and national security operations. Lockheed Martin, a
government defense contractor, and the University of Texas
system, analogous to the UC system, head the second group. They
are joined by two other companies, CH2M Hill, an engineering firm
that specializes in environmental clean-up and restoration, and
Fluor Corporation, another engineering firm.
Robert Dynes, president of the UC system, told the San Francisco
Chronicle in an interview that he saw this situation as a
"choice" - that, "The nation gets to choose whether they want the
nuclear weapons pr ograms over seen by a
science-and-technology-based organization or a defense
contractor."
Whether or not UC wins the bid, the management of the labs will
undergo significant changes. If UC receives the bid, because of
the addition of the three other companies, the board running the
lab would be separate from the UC system.
When asked about losing the bid in the same interview, President
Dynes said, "The University of California's mission, nowhere
does it say that we are responsible for the nuclear sto ckpile in
the United States. Our mission is to create new knowledge, create
the next generation of creators and take those creations for
public service. That's our mission."
On its website, LANL notes that, "Maintaining the nation's
nuclear stockpile is Los Alamos' most important job.
Certifying that the nation's nuclear weapons remain safe and
reliable without underground testing remains the biggest
technical challenge." However, the lab is also involv ed in
several other projects, in cluding mapping the human genome.
Copyright 2000 - 2005 Epoch Times International
*****************************************************************
59 North Augusta Star: County sues over MOX delay at SRS
Fri, Sep 30, 2005
By PHILIP LORD
The Aiken County Council voted last week to sue the U.S.
Department of Energy and Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman over
delays in starting construction of a mixed oxide fuel plant at
the Savannah River Site.
Following an executive session, the Council held a voice vote in
which it was decided to file the federal lawsuit.
County Attorney Robert M. Bell filed the lawsuit Wednesday in
federal court, said Council member Chuck Smith, who has been
appointed the point man for the County on the issue.
Voting in favor of the motion were Council members Willar
Hightower, LaWana McKenzie, Kathy Rawls, Scott Singer and Smith.
Abstaining from the vote were Charles Barton, Gary Bunker and
County Council Chairman Ronnie Young, according to records.
Absent from Tuesday's meeting was Council member Eddie Butler.
The suit claims the MOX project at SRS is more than 12 months
behind schedule and that Bodman has not issued a corrective plan
to bring the program back on schedule, as required by a 2003 law
championed by the late Sen. Strom Thurmond and then Rep. Lindsey
Graham, who took Thurmond's seat in the U.S. Senate.
In the 2003 agreement, DOE is to have the MOX plant operational
at SRS by Jan. 1, 2009.
"The 2003 defense budget does not allow DOE to grant itself
extensions to the 2009 deadline," the Council wrote in a
position statement issued by the body. "However, the DOE
Secretary's 2005 report stated that DOE would be extending that
deadline."
Under language inserted in the bill by Thurmond and Graham, DOE
faces a $1 million a day fine for each day the plant is not
operational.
"We felt that we had to do this to ensure the economic base and
to protect the health, welfare and safety of the residents of
Aiken County," said Smith.
The suit asks the courts to require Bodman to send Congress a
corrective action plan to ensure the MOX plant is operational by
Jan. 1, 2009, to order Bodman to suspend further shipments of
plutonium to SRS until he can certify that construction is back
on track, and to order Bodman to send to Congress a list of
options for removing an amount of plutonium from SRS equal to an
amount shipped to the site after April 15, 2002.
Also included in the suit is a request for the federal courts to
supervise the construction and operation of the MOX plant to
ensure it stays in compliance with federal law.
Tom Clements, who monitors DOE operations for Greenpeace
International, said he felt Bodman had met the letter of the law
with recent filings.
"DOE has met the requirements of the law," said Clements, who
admits his organization has been a critic of the MOX plan from
the start.
Clements said the entire MOX program is off schedule due to
delays in getting a sister operation approved in Russia, which
under a 2000 accord with the United States will destroy
34-metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium, if America does the
same.
"It's known that the whole program is way behind schedule,"
Clements said.
As for material already shipped to SRS, Clements said recent DOE
documents show the materials may be processed through the
Defense Waste Processing Facility, which will encase the
materials in glass for future storage at a long-term repository,
which is currently slated for Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
Until a disposition path is identified, Smith said he is
uncomfortable with the fact that a recent General Accounting
Office report shows storage facilities at SRS are substandard.
Clements said records show DOE has shipped approximately five
metric tons of plutonium to SRS from other DOE facilities in
recent years. The material is currently being stored in existing
structures at SRS.
The Greenpeace advocate said case law concerning waste shipments
is not in the county's favor. Former Gov. Jim Hodges lost a
federal court challenge to halt shipments of nuclear waste to
South Carolina in 2002 before losing a re-election bid to
current Gov. Mark Sanford.
*****************************************************************
60 DenverPost.com: Activists oppose any role for CU at Los Alamos lab
Article Launched: 09/30/2005 01:00:00 AM
By Amy Brouillette Denver Post Staff Writer
Anti-nuclear activists, professors and students criticized the
University of Colorado's Board of Regents at a public forum on
the Boulder campus Thursday night over CU's pending partnership
with Lockheed Martin and the University of Texas to manage the
Los Alamos National Laboratory.
"I question both the legitimacy of the partnership and the
process,"
said Adrienne Anderson, former CU environmental studies
instructor and corporate whistle-blower whose contract wasn't
renewed last spring. Anderson was one of 15 people who spoke to
the crowd of about 50 during the public hearing.
In August, CU roused public protest when it announced plans to
team with Lockheed Martin and
the University of Texas, along with
at least 17 other universities, in a bid to manage the nuclear
weapons research lab in New Mexico.
In May, the Department of Energy called for bids from private
contractors for the first time, after announcing it would not
renew its contract with the University of California, which has
managed operations since Los Alamos opened in 1943.
CU would provide nonclassified, nonweapons-related research and
analysis under a contract with Lockheed Martin, the company
heading the bid.
At Thursday's meeting, the overwhelming majority of attendees
and speakers were opposed to any affiliation between CU and Los
Alamos, even if in
a nonweapons-building capacity.
"I do not want Colorado involved with another Rocky Flats," said
Erin Hamby, a CU graduate and activist with Rocky Mountain Peace
and Justice Center in Boulder.
Regents will consider Thursday night's testimony at their
Wednesday meeting.
All contents Copyright 2005 The Denver Post or other copyright
*****************************************************************
61 Colorado Daily News: Los Alamos speak session
By MATT WILLIAMS Colorado Daily Staff Writer
Thursday, September 29, 2005 10:06 PM MDT
Boulder is fired up about all things nuclear.
The majority of a 75-person audience at an open forum convened
Thursday evening at CU-Boulder spoke against CU's pursuing a
role in a bid to manage the Los Alamos National Laboratory
(LANL), the origin of the United States' first nuclear bomb.
"I strongly oppose this with every fiber of my being," said
Chloe Watkins, a CU-Boulder junior studying biology. "I just
can't sleep at night."
In July, CU officially joined a coalition of 20 major
universities, including the University of Arizona, the Colorado
School of Mines and others, that will form an "academic network"
in a bid led by the University of Texas and defense contractor
Lockheed Martin to operate the New Mexico-based lab.
LANL is a world-class, multidisciplinary research complex
founded in 1943 as part of the United States' clandestine
Manhattan Project that designed and tested the first nuclear
bomb.
Today, the lab has a $2.2 billion annual budget and has 8,000
employees.
CU-Boulder scholars have been working informally with LANL for
decades.
Jeff Cheek, CU assistant vice president for research and
learning innovations, said the lab has many resources -
supercomputers, particle accelerators and "bioinfometrics" -
that the University can't afford on its own.
"We would like to make that available to more faculty, and we
expect some research funding from it," said Cheek.
Under the terms of the bid, CU would not participate in research
connected with weapons programs, University officials say.
Instead, CU would assist in peer review and collaborative
research in fields like astrophysics and biosciences, Cheek said.
The U.S. Department of Energy started making new plutonium pits
at LANL in 2003. The pit is the fissile core of a nuclear
weapon, and they were once fabricated and stockpiled at the
defunct Rocky Flats plant 12 miles south of Boulder until 1989.
But some who attended the forum Thursday evening said CU would
implicitly be connected to weapons research if it joins the
academic network.
CU alumna Erin Hamby of the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice
Center said she doesn't want CU tied to another Rocky Flats.
"I am asking, what are getting involved in? We have the
potential to break international law," said Hamby of reported
research at LANL of next-generation nuclear weapons that
activists claim violate treaties.
Former CU-Boulder environmental studies instructor Adrienne
Anderson said it makes her physically ill that CU might be
affiliated with the "abysmal, pathetic" pollution record of
Lockheed Martin if the bid goes through.
Others, like CU-Boulder biology professor Harvey Nichols, said
the bid could someday make CU vulnerable to terrorism and even
truck bombs aimed at dormitories.
A few from the local business community spoke out in favor of
CU's participation.
"We believe that the alliance will increase the technical base
of the University, and in the long range, will create (company)
spin-offs and more jobs," said Silvia Mioc, president of the
Colorado Photonics Industry Association.
The University of California has operated the lab since its
inception. Two years ago, the Department of Energy decided to
open up the lab's contract for bid after a series of security
gaffes.
The University of California is teaming with Bechtel Corp. in a
bid to keep the contract.
The new seven-year deal is worth $79 million annually. After the
contract expires, DOE can choose to renew it each year for
another 13 years.
Cheek said a portion of the yearly fee could be given to the
academic network, though he added it's too soon to speculate on
what the economic gain of the partnership would be for CU.
"This (bid) doesn't bind us to anything. We're relatively early
in this process," Cheek said.
The DOE is expected to award the contract Dec. 1.
Some at the forum Thursday expressed disappointment that no
members of the CU Board of Regents attended.
Cheek assured the audience a tape-recorded copy of public
comments would be forwarded to the Regents prior to the next
Board meeting next Wednesday in Colorado Springs.
CU will host two more on-campus forums today about the Los
Alamos bid:
10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at CU-Colorado Springs in the University
Center Theater
2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Denver Health Sciences Center in the
King Academic and Performing Arts Center Recital Hall
Contact Matt Williams about this story at 303-443-6272 ext. 111
or
Colorado Daily Online Edition 2610 Pearl St. Boulder, CO 80302
303.443.6272
*****************************************************************
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this
material is distributed without profit or payment to those who
have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for
non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more
information go to:
*****************************************************************