***************************************************************** 06/28/06 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 14.153 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** Send News Stories to news@energy-net.org with title on subject line and first line of body NUCLEAR POLICY 1 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Joining International Iran Talks 2 Guardian Unlimited: Iran, EU to Meet to Discuss Incentives 3 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Joining International Iran Talks 4 Guardian Unlimited: Iranian Leader: U.S. Nuke Talks Not Needed 5 Guardian Unlimited: Report: Iran Reply May Come Sooner 6 IRNA: US, Europe urge Wade to mediate in Iran's nuclear issue 7 IRNA: French political analyst stresses continuation of nuclear talk 8 IRNA: Iran needs nuclear energy for economic development - Envoy 9 Independent: Ayatollah rejects deal with US on nuclear ambitions 10 IRNA: Iran ready to boost scientific ties with Indonesia - minister 11 IRNA: Iran ready to assist Iraqis without strings attached - Rafsanj 12 AFP: Iran says 'no use' negotiating with US 13 IRNA: Moussa stresses Iran's right to operate peaceful N-program 14 AFP: Rice arrives in Russia to discuss Iran, Mideast with G8 - 15 IRNA: EU foreign policy chief due in Tehran next week 16 [NYTr] Missile Mania: US and Japan Threaten North Korea 17 [NYTr] North Korea: World's Ninth Nuclear Power? 18 Guardian Unlimited: China Urges NKorea Not to Test Missile 19 AFP: Japan, Canada urge North Korea to give up nuclear arms - 20 AFP: Koizumi gets backing on North Korea before Washington summit - 21 IPS-English POLITICS: Indo-US Nuclear Deal Clears First Hurdle 22 Xinhua: U.S. House committee passes U.S.-India nuclear deal 23 Guardian Unlimited: Brown defends nuclear backing 24 Times of India: Bihar to provide site for N-power plant 25 BBC: Blair pressed over Trident vote 26 AFP: Blair confirms decision this year on Britain's nuclear deterren NUCLEAR REACTORS 27 Asheville at the Nuclear Crossroads: new report on Global Mobile Che 28 US: NRC: Commissioner Peter B. Lyons Takes Oath of Office at NRC 29 The Australian: Hitachi offers to build N-plants 30 US: TCPalm: New nuclear storage method planned for St. Lucie plant n 31 Guardian Unlimited: The lights will go out if we avoid the nuclear 32 The Age: Secrecy on Howard's nuclear trip 33 US: newsobserver.com: Utilities accused of overestimating to get new 34 US: newsobserver.com: Costly cleanup at NCSU 35 BBC: Italian faces tough energy choices 36 US: The Herald: Why renewables feature in nuclear debate 37 FT.com: No reason to put off nuclear energy policy any longer 38 US: Platts: S&P expects more nuclear plants, but not before 2015 39 FT.com: Opponents of nuclear power should redo their sums 40 Star-News: Full steam ahead for nuclear plant 41 Independent: HSE to speed up licensing of new nuclear reactors 42 Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: New boat to help secure nuclear pla 43 US: Bennington Banner: Vt. energy policy creates sparks 44 US: Seed: Cribsheet #5: Nuclear Power 45 HSE: HSE publishes expert report for Energy Review 46 US: MSNBC: Nuclear plants' neighbors to get protective drug - 47 US: Hudson Valley News: Indian Point sirens have few glitches 48 US: Business Week: Nuclear Power Is Heating Up Again 49 Scotsman.com: Politics - Scotland may not need more nuclear power NUCLEAR SECURITY NUCLEAR SAFETY 50 US: Testimony of TMI-Alert: Tritium levels at landfills and in 51 The Australian: Nuclear test vets cool on offer | | 52 The Australian: Free cancer treatment for victims | Health | 53 Sydney Morning Herald: Nuclear survivors get free treatment - 54 US: St. Paul Pioneer Press: Anti-radiation pills to be distributed 55 AU ABC: Radiation exposure findings disputed 56 ABC Asia Pacific: British nuclear tests, cancer study questioned 57 AFP: Free cancer treatment for Australian survivors of British nucle 58 China Daily: Plan tackles nuclear emergencies 59 US: NRC: Notice of Consideration of Request for Consent to Transfer 60 AU ABC: Nuclear testing cancer treatment offer 'long overdue'. NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 61 [NukeNet] New report on GNEP and nuclear transport impacts on 62 US: Rocky Mountain News: Tank leaking small amount of radiation, USG 63 The Australian: Enrichment not a cake walk - expert 64 US: SF New Mexican: LES gets operating certificate from NRC 65 US: The Herald: Locals to have final say on waste dumps 66 US: Platts: Domenici drafts bill giving DOE interim nuclear storage 67 US: reviewjournal.com: Senator offers plan to store nuclear waste 68 US: Salt Lake Tribune: Panel rejects PFS nuclear storage 69 AGI: ENVIRONMENT: MOLISE LAW ON RADIOACTIVE WASTES REJECTED 70 Reid: REID SLASHES YUCCA MOUNTAIN FUNDING 71 US: Caon City Daily Record: Cotter Corp. hit with two more Notices 72 US: CBC: Sask. could be home to uranium refinery, government says 73 KVBC: New target date for Yucca Mountain PEACE US DEPT. OF ENERGY 74 Knox News: Munger: Nuke threat quelled, but concern lingers 75 Guardian Unlimited: Audit: Labs Can't Account for Explosives 76 Guardian Unlimited: Audit: Labs Can't Account for Explosives 77 Seattle Times: Hanford cleanup proposal advances in Senate 78 DOE: DOE Announces Loans of Oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve 79 DOE: Energy Secretary Announces $170 Million Solicitation for Solar 80 SF New Mexican: Two Los Alamos employees injured 81 NT: RICHLAND: Hanford workers finish dirty job  wrecking plutonium 82 Tri-City Herald: Hanford vit plant funding restored 83 Olympian: $690 million for Hanford plant clears hurdle 84 CG: Piketon residents updated on progress of new conversion plant 85 DOE: Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board, Paducah 86 DOE: Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board, Hanford 87 lamonitor.com: Panel boosts warhead; adds millions to LANL budget 88 Northwest Progressive Institute: Our Nuclear Legacy ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** FULL NEWS STORIES ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** 1 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Joining International Iran Talks From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 8:01 PM AP Photo ABD103 By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer MOSCOW (AP) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is joining international talks on Iran's nuclear program as the world awaits Tehran's response to a U.S. offer to bargain with the country's clerical rulers. Rice flew to the Russian capital on Wednesday after a quick and heavily guarded visit to Afghanistan, where she said that newly democratic nation has come too far to fall back into terrorism and anarchy. ``Yes, Afghanistan has determined enemies and they are ruthless,'' Rice said following a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. ``They will not succeed in undermining or rolling back the democratic gains of the Afghan people,'' Rice said. She also said the United States is committed to Afghanistan for the long haul. ``We are not going to tire, we are not going to leave,'' she said. Iran is expected to dominate discussions that begin Thursday in the Russian capital at a gathering of foreign ministers from the world's largest industrial democracies. Iran received an international proposal on June 6 that offered economic and other incentives in exchange for a long-term freeze on enriching uranium. Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has said the government will not respond until at least mid-August. But Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Tuesday his country does not need negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program. The Bush administration says it has heard varying responses from different quarters in Iran and wants a formal response soon. ``We've made very clear that we need an answer soon,'' Rice said in an interview with CNN. ``And I would hope that there is going to be an authoritative answer, a definitive answer, one that actually responds to the question, is Iran ready to negotiate, very soon.'' The U.S. has cited Afghanistan as a major success story in the fight against terrorism and a beachhead for the spread of democracy in the Muslim world. But there is growing alarm over a resurgent Taliban and growing frustration within Afghanistan over sluggish improvements nearly five years after the repressive Taliban government fell to U.S.-led forces. Elements of the ousted Taliban rallied this spring in the troubled south of Afghanistan to mount the fiercest fighting since 2001. Taliban forces are using methods commonly used by militants in Iraq: suicide bombings, ambushes and beheadings. The fighting has killed more than 600 people, mostly militants, since mid-May. In Washington, Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told the House Armed Services Committee that the Taliban's strength has grown in some districts, primarily in the South. He said terrorist groups have taken hold in some areas because the Afghan government's institutions are relatively weak. ``We are seeing enemy forces now operate in formations of 40 to 50 fighters,'' he said. ``They are demonstrating better command and control, and they are fighting hard.'' Some 10,000 troops from the U.S.-led coalition have been deployed in a major offensive across southern Afghanistan. The U.S. hopes to reduce its forces in Afghanistan this year while NATO takes over operations in the south. Karzai is struggling to extend his political control beyond the capital, and many Afghans say his government is seen as weak and cloistered. Last week, a clearly frustrated Karzai lashed out at the coalition's anti-terror campaign, deploring the deaths of hundreds of Afghans and appealing for more help for his government. Karzai did not repeat that criticism with Rice by his side; neither of them mentioned a deadly anti-American riot in Kabul last month. Terrorists ``are trying to attack us where they can,'' Karzai said. ``When we speak of success, it doesn't mean that we forget the problems.'' A flourishing drug trade helps bankroll the Taliban, and petty corruption remains a daily feature of Afghan life. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 2 Guardian Unlimited: Iran, EU to Meet to Discuss Incentives From the Associated Press [UP] Thursday June 29, 2006 12:16 AM AP Photo OSL103 By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press Writer UNITED NATIONS (AP) - Iran's top nuclear negotiator and the European Union's foreign policy chief plan to meet on July 5 to discuss a package of incentives from key global powers to try to persuade Iran to roll back its uranium enrichment program, a U.N. official said. The EU's Javier Solana said last Wednesday he had a good phone conversation with Iran's Ali Larijani and would probably meet him this week. That meeting is now expected to take place next Wednesday and will probably be somewhere in Europe, the U.N. official said. An EU diplomat confirmed the July 5 date and said an announcement would be made at Thursday's meeting in Moscow of G-8 foreign ministers. The location of the meeting will be announced closer to the date, the diplomat said. The U.N. official and the EU diplomat both spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made. The Larijani-Solana meeting would be the first since the EU official presented the incentive package to the Iranian negotiator in Tehran on June 6. Larijani said then that the proposals contained ``positive steps'' but talks were needed to clear up ambiguities. A meeting with Solana in Europe in mid-June to discuss Iranian concerns was canceled - but those concerns are now expected to be taken up at next week's meeting. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said the government will not respond officially until at least mid-August. Europe is pressing for a much quicker reply and U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said the United States wants a response before Thursday's Group of Eight ministerial meeting in Moscow. Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was quoted by the German weekly magazine Stern on Wednesday as saying his country may respond before the Group of Eight summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, which starts July 15, ``if we clear up some open questions before then.'' On Tuesday, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged Iran to speed up its response during his second meeting with Mottaki in less than a week. Both focused on the negotiations aimed at ensuring the international community that Iran's nuclear ambitions are peaceful - as Tehran maintains - and not geared toward producing nuclear weapons. Mottaki refused to talk to reporters at U.N. headquarters. But U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the secretary-general ``reiterated his suggestion that Iran should speed up its response to the proposals'' put forward by the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany. Just before he met the Iranian minister, Annan told reporters that after his June 22 meeting with Mottaki in Geneva he came away with the impression that the Iranians would not give their answer before the Group of Eight summit. Thursday's foreign ministers meeting in Moscow is being held to prepare for the summit. The package seeks to persuade Tehran to impose a long-term moratorium on uranium enrichment, a process that can produce material for nuclear generators or bombs. In return, it offers incentives including peaceful Western nuclear technology, the lifting of some sanctions, trade opportunities, U.S. spare parts for Iran's aging fleet of jetliners, and U.S. participation in negotiations with Tehran. The package contains an implicit threat of U.N. sanctions if Iran rejects the package. Mottaki spoke Wednesday to a U.N. conference aimed at curbing the illicit trade in small arms and said Iran's chief security focus will remain fighting the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, especially the threat posed by Israel. ``Fighting proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and combatting the threats posed by those possessing those weapons, particularly the Zionist regime, will always remain our greater goal,'' he said. He said Iran will promote peace and security ``on the basis of justice and free from any and all discriminatory and double-standard considerations.'' ---- Associated Press Writer Robert Wielaard contributed to this report from Brussels Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 3 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Joining International Iran Talks From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 8:01 PM AP Photo ABD103 By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer MOSCOW (AP) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is joining international talks on Iran's nuclear program as the world awaits Tehran's response to a U.S. offer to bargain with the country's clerical rulers. Rice flew to the Russian capital on Wednesday after a quick and heavily guarded visit to Afghanistan, where she said that newly democratic nation has come too far to fall back into terrorism and anarchy. ``Yes, Afghanistan has determined enemies and they are ruthless,'' Rice said following a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. ``They will not succeed in undermining or rolling back the democratic gains of the Afghan people,'' Rice said. She also said the United States is committed to Afghanistan for the long haul. ``We are not going to tire, we are not going to leave,'' she said. Iran is expected to dominate discussions that begin Thursday in the Russian capital at a gathering of foreign ministers from the world's largest industrial democracies. Iran received an international proposal on June 6 that offered economic and other incentives in exchange for a long-term freeze on enriching uranium. Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has said the government will not respond until at least mid-August. But Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Tuesday his country does not need negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program. The Bush administration says it has heard varying responses from different quarters in Iran and wants a formal response soon. ``We've made very clear that we need an answer soon,'' Rice said in an interview with CNN. ``And I would hope that there is going to be an authoritative answer, a definitive answer, one that actually responds to the question, is Iran ready to negotiate, very soon.'' The U.S. has cited Afghanistan as a major success story in the fight against terrorism and a beachhead for the spread of democracy in the Muslim world. But there is growing alarm over a resurgent Taliban and growing frustration within Afghanistan over sluggish improvements nearly five years after the repressive Taliban government fell to U.S.-led forces. Elements of the ousted Taliban rallied this spring in the troubled south of Afghanistan to mount the fiercest fighting since 2001. Taliban forces are using methods commonly used by militants in Iraq: suicide bombings, ambushes and beheadings. The fighting has killed more than 600 people, mostly militants, since mid-May. In Washington, Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told the House Armed Services Committee that the Taliban's strength has grown in some districts, primarily in the South. He said terrorist groups have taken hold in some areas because the Afghan government's institutions are relatively weak. ``We are seeing enemy forces now operate in formations of 40 to 50 fighters,'' he said. ``They are demonstrating better command and control, and they are fighting hard.'' Some 10,000 troops from the U.S.-led coalition have been deployed in a major offensive across southern Afghanistan. The U.S. hopes to reduce its forces in Afghanistan this year while NATO takes over operations in the south. Karzai is struggling to extend his political control beyond the capital, and many Afghans say his government is seen as weak and cloistered. Last week, a clearly frustrated Karzai lashed out at the coalition's anti-terror campaign, deploring the deaths of hundreds of Afghans and appealing for more help for his government. Karzai did not repeat that criticism with Rice by his side; neither of them mentioned a deadly anti-American riot in Kabul last month. Terrorists ``are trying to attack us where they can,'' Karzai said. ``When we speak of success, it doesn't mean that we forget the problems.'' A flourishing drug trade helps bankroll the Taliban, and petty corruption remains a daily feature of Afghan life. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 4 Guardian Unlimited: Iranian Leader: U.S. Nuke Talks Not Needed From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 2:31 AM AP Photo VAH105 By NASSER KARIMI Associated Press Writer TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday that Iran does not need negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program, apparently seeking to reassure hard-liners the country will not cave in as it considers a key Western incentives package. Khamenei, who has the final word on all state matters, did not give his position on the proposals aimed at persuading Iran to impose a long-term moratorium on enriching uranium. In Washington, White House press secretary Tony Snow said Khamenei's remarks were ``ambiguous'' and that the Bush administration has heard varying responses from different quarters in Iran. He said Washington expects a formal response from Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, to European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. ``We're waiting for a consistent, official response,'' Snow said. Iran received the proposals June 6, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said the government will not respond officially until at least mid-August. The United States and Europe are pressing for a quicker reply. The long period of deliberations suggests internal divisions within Iran's leadership over the proposals, which entail major concessions from Washington and a difficult compromise by Tehran. At United Nations headquarters in New York, Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged Iran's foreign minister to speed up Tehran's response. Annan met Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki for the second time in less than a week to discuss the nuclear negotiations. The United States has said it would join direct talks with Iran, which is being asked to suspend uranium enrichment - a program it has vowed to pursue and never give up completely. Enrichment is a process that can produce fuel for nuclear generators or the material for nuclear warheads. The United States and its allies suspect that Iran's nuclear enrichment activities are a cover for a weapons program. Iran insists its nuclear program is limited to peaceful energy uses. Hard-liners in Iran's clerical-run leadership have called on the government to reject the proposals and have painted any agreement to talks with Washington as a surrender. Khamenei's remarks could be aimed at assuaging their fears by showing that talks with the United States are not a major lure for the government and that negotiations with the West will not mean giving up enrichment. ``Negotiations with the United States would have no benefit for us, and we do not need them,'' state television quoted Khamenei as telling visiting Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade. He said Iran was willing to hold talks on its own terms, warning that the West can misuse the negotiating process to bar Tehran from what it considers its right to pursue enrichment. ``We do not negotiate with anybody on achieving and exploiting nuclear technology,'' Khamenei said. ``But if they recognize our nuclear rights, we are ready to negotiate about controls, supervisions and international guarantees.'' Earlier this year, Khamenei supported negotiations with Washington over stabilizing neighboring Iraq. In doing so, he overruled hard-liner opposition, though the prospects of U.S.-Iranian talks on Iraq have fallen apart since then. If Iran accepts the incentives package, the United States has offered to join European nations in multilateral talks with Tehran over a framework that will guarantee its nuclear program cannot produce weapons. The package also offers the lifting of some U.S. sanctions and other economic incentives, as well as a promise of American and European nuclear technology for Iran. Washington's offer to join talks was seen as a major concession since the United States lists Iran as a sponsor of international terrorism and there have been no diplomatic relations between the two countries since 1979, when militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and took Americans hostage for 444 days. President Bush has warned Iran that it faces U.N. Security Council action unless it accepts the incentives. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned Iran on Saturday that it faces isolation if it rejects the package. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 5 Guardian Unlimited: Report: Iran Reply May Come Sooner From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 1:31 PM AP Photo VAH105 BERLIN (AP) - Iran's foreign minister has indicated that his country may respond before mid-July to an international package aimed at resolving a standoff over its nuclear program, a German magazine reported Wednesday. Iran received the proposals June 6, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said the government will not respond officially until at least mid-August. The United States and Europe are pressing for a quicker reply. The long period of deliberations suggests internal divisions within Iran's leadership over the proposals, which entail major concessions from Washington and a difficult compromise by Tehran. Pressed for an indication on when the West may hear from Tehran, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told German weekly Stern ``if everyone maintains good will, talks could begin soon.'' Mottaki was asked whether that might happen before the summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations, which starts July 15 in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was quoted as replying: ``Yes - if we clear up some open questions before then.'' Mottaki also insisted that ``we did not agree on any date for an answer with (Javier) Solana,'' the European Union foreign policy chief who presented the package to Iran. He noted that it had taken other countries ``months to put together the package.'' ``In our country, there are various views, worries and doubts - naturally we need a while to react,'' he was quoted as saying. The offer was drawn up by the U.N. Security Council's five permanent members and Germany. White House press secretary Tony Snow said Tuesday that Washington as waiting for a ``consistent, offoicial'' response. The package seeks to persuade Iran to suspend uranium enrichment in return for incentives including a U.S. offer to provide Iran with peaceful nuclear technology, lift some sanctions and join direct negotiations with Tehran. In Wednesday's interview, Mottaki repeated Iran's longstanding insistence that ``our nuclear activities are peaceful - we are not seeking nuclear weapons.'' Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 6 IRNA: US, Europe urge Wade to mediate in Iran's nuclear issue Tehran, June 27, IRNA Iran-Senegal-Nuclear Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade here Tuesday said that he has been advised by the US and European states to mediate in resolving Iran's nuclear issue. Speaking to reporters after inking four memoranda of understanding in a meeting with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad this afternoon, he said that prior to his visit to Tehran, he was called by the US and Europe to mediate in Iran's nuclear issue. "I talked to Iranian officials about the general principles of their proposed scheme. However, given that no decision was taken on the proposal, I cannot disclose the details," said President Wade. ***************************************************************** 7 IRNA: French political analyst stresses continuation of nuclear talks Paris, June 28, IRNA Iran-France-Nuclear The head of the French Institute for Strategic Studies, Francois Gere, here Tuesday stressed the importance of continuing the nuclear talks that had been initiated with Iran. The sides should reach a positive result through negotiations based on their interests, Gere told IRNA in an exclusive interview. He said Iran's voluntary suspension of uranium enrichment showed its goodwill, and added that he thought Iran would not accept a new request for suspension of enrichment since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government had already suspended enrichment work for over two years. He said he believed any government in Iran would not accept suspension of uranium enrichment for a long period of time, which is the demand of the West. Gere added that Iran may again accept a demand for suspension of uranium enrichment if the Europeans and the United States offered it new incentives. He stressed that research on enrichment should be differentiated from industrial-scale enrichment. The French analyst said Iran needs 50,000 centrifuges by 2020 to provide fuel for its nuclear program, recalling that Russia had offered to enrich uranium for Iran inside its territory but that Iranian officials rejected the offer. He also quoted President Ahmadinejad as having said earlier that research on the nuclear fuel cycle was a "national honor" and urged Iran to produce more experts in this regard. He noted that continuation of talks with Iran would give wider recognition to the country. ***************************************************************** 8 IRNA: Iran needs nuclear energy for economic development - Envoy , June 28, IRNA -- Iran's Ambassador to the Philippines, Jalal Kalantari said in Manila on Wednesday that bomb has not a place in Iranian nuclear program. Addressing a Seminar on Iran's Nuclear Program: "Roadmap to Settlement" convened by the University of the Philippines, the Iranian envoy elaborated on different aspects of Iran's peaceful nuclear program. Iran's huge gas and oil resources will finish and given the growing population of some 70 million, projected to be more than 105 million in 2050, Iran has no choice but to possess more diversified energy resources for its economic development. Since, nuclear energy is cost effective, environment friendly and sustainable, the Islamic Republic of Iran has opted for this source of energy for the well being of its people and future generations, he added. On Iran's policy, he said that Iran is keen to develop regional and international cooperation adding that Tehran considers regional stability indispensable for its economic development and social welfare. Referring to settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue, he said that Iran's dossier should return to its technical and legal path within framework of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to achieve the country's legitimate right for peaceful use of nuclear know-how. As to the support of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) member states as well as those of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) for Iran's inalienable rights to produce nuclear energy, Kalantari said such moves indicated that the allegations made by western media against Iran are mere fabrication. Elaborating on the recent package of incentives offered by the European Union, he said it is a positive step toward settlement of the nuclear issue. The package is under careful study, he added. ***************************************************************** 9 Independent: Ayatollah rejects deal with US on nuclear ambitions By Rupert Cornwell in Washington Published: 28 June 2006 Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, has in effect rejected talks with the US on his country's nuclear programme, saying Iran had nothing to gain from them, and that the country had an inalienable right to develop its own nuclear technology. The ayatollah's remarks, reported by Iranian state television, fall short of a categorical "no" to the package of incentives and sanctions offered by the West this month, in return for a long-term suspension of uranium enrichment by Tehran. But they contrast with the moderately positive reaction of other top Iranian officials, including even President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. "Negotiations with the United States would have no benefit for us, and we do not need them," Ayatollah Khamenei told the visiting Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade. The latest incentives, presented on 6 June by the European Union, were backed by a promise from Washington that if Iran accepted them, and agreed to halt enrichment activities, it would join the EU in negotiations for an overarching nuclear deal with Iran. Such direct talks would have been the first of their kind since the 1979 hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran. But the sticking point remains Iran's insistence on its right to enrich its own uranium - enrichment for purely peaceful purposes, its says, but which the US and its allies suspect is part of a clandestine programme to build nuclear weapons. "We do not negotiate with anybody on achieving and exploiting nuclear technology," Ayatollah Khamenei was quoted as saying. "But if they recognise our nuclear rights, we are ready to negotiate about controls, supervisions and international guarantees." The initial reaction from the Bush administration was measured. The ayatollah's statement was not the last word in the matter, Tony Snow, the White House press secretary, said. The US expected Iran's formal reply to be delivered by Ali Larijani, Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator, to his counterpart Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief. "The position has always been the same, which is when Mr Larijani communicates with Javier Solana, that is how we expect to have an answer to the proposal," Mr Snow said. There was always "a pattern of differing voices coming out of Iran", he added, reflecting the uncertainties here over the true balance of power in Tehran. Indeed, some analysts speculated yesterday that the ayatollah was in fact attempting to deflect pressure from even more hardline elements within the regime, who reject all contacts whatever with the US. Washington and Tehran did have informal contacts over Afghanistan during the 2001 war to topple the Taliban. Last year the US put out feelers for similar talks, this time dealing with the Iraq crisis, but the initiative came to nothing. Nonetheless, yesterday's developments threaten to expose divisions over Iraq within the G8 group of leading powers whose foreign ministers are meeting in Moscow ahead of the summit in St Petersburg. One purpose of the incentives package was to get around the opposition of Russia and China, both veto-wielding members of the UN Security Council, to punitive UN sanctions against Iran if it continued its enrichment activities. If the Khamenei statement does prove the last word, then those divisions are likely to re-emerge. Iran is plainly determined to spin out the process as long as possible. President Ahmedinejad now says Iran will only give its considered reply in mid-August, stretching to the limit the "weeks, not months" deadline laid down by the US. President George Bush has already made clear he thinks a reply should come far sooner. 2006 Independent News and Media Limited ***************************************************************** 10 IRNA: Iran ready to boost scientific ties with Indonesia - minister - Kuala Lumpur, June 28, IRNA Indonesia-Iran-Education Iran's Minister of Science, Research and Technology Mohammad Mehdi Zahedi, currently visiting Jakarta, on Wednesday voiced Tehran's readiness to bolster scientific ties with Indonesia in line with Iran's foreign policy of encouraging ties with the world of Islam. At a meeting with Indonesian Minister of National Education Bambang Sudibyo, he said one of the objectives of his visit was to identify the strengths and weaknesses of Indonesian universities. The Iranian minister further underlined the importance of implementing a letter of understanding signed by the two countries on expansion of bilateral scientific and research cooperation. Zahedi welcomed the enrolment of Iranian students in various Indonesian universities. For his part, the Indonesian minister said the number of Indonesian students studying abroad was growing. He welcomed the enrolment of Indonesian students in universities in developing countries. The Iranian minister arrived in Jakarta Saturday for a five-day visit. ***************************************************************** 11 IRNA: Iran ready to assist Iraqis without strings attached - Rafsanjani , June 28, IRNA -- Iran's offer of assistance to the Iraqi people is not out of a desire to obtain benefits, Expediency Council Chaimrna Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said here Tuesday evening. Talking to the visiting former Iraqi prime minister Ibrahim Jaafari, Rafsanjani said Iran was ready to assist the neighboring country as a "friend." "The Islamic Republic of Iran will defend and support the Iraqi people out of Islamic and humanitarian considerations and will continue to play its constructive role under the new conditions in order to alleviate their sufferings and pain." The EC chairman voiced Iran's readiness to assist the Iraqi people in various technical, industrial and service fields. Stressing the need to continue coordination among the various political groups in Iraq, he said progress, welfare and sustainable security would only be realized if the people, particularly the country's ethnic and political groups, were united. Jaafari, who arrived here Monday, said establishment of security in Iraq was currently was the most important demand of the Iraqi people along with better living conditions and access to jobs. Briefing Rafsanjani on the latest political, economic and social developments in Iraq, he said the Iraqi government and people were facing numerous challenges and pinning their hopes on neighboring countries, especially Iran, to assist them in their current difficulties. In the meeting, the former Iraqi prime minister called for Iranian assistance to develop his country, particularly its industries. ***************************************************************** 12 AFP: Iran says 'no use' negotiating with US by Stefan Smith Wed Jun 28, 4:46 AM ET TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran" /> Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said he saw "no use" in negotiating with the United States over its nuclear program and signalled again that Tehran was unwilling to freeze sensitive uranium enrichment work. Although Khamenei said Iran was ready to ease international concerns over its disputed atomic drive, he said "negotiations with the United States are of no use for us. We have no need for such negotiations." "We will not negotiate with anyone over the undeniable right of nuclear technology and using it," he added, indicating Tehran will refuse to bow to international demands to suspend uranium enrichment. The US administration said it did not view the comments as Iran's final word on the issue and would wait for a formal response to an offer from Washington and other world powers. The European Union" /> European Unionwarned Iran on Wednesday against delaying a response to a proposal on resolving the international standoff over the country's controversial nuclear programme. "Iran should not play for time and we expect Iran to come back soon to the Vienna package," the European Union's external relations commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, said during a visit to Moscow. "Iran has to show it is serious about it." On June 6, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana presented Iran with an offer -- backed by Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States -- of multilateral talks and a variety of incentives. The offer -- which would pave the way for the first substantive contacts between Iran and the United States in decades -- is conditional on Iran first agreeing to suspend enrichment work, the focus of suspicions that the Islamic regime wishes to acquire nuclear weapons. But Iran appears to still reject the key condition and continues to call for negotiations without any "preconditions". "If they recognise this right, we are ready to negotiate over supervision controls," Khamenei said of Iran's nuclear programme, which the regime insists is merely aimed at generating electricity. In Washington, the White House played down Khamenei's comments and said Iran's position remained unclear. Asked whether Iranian leaders were signalling that they would ignore a US call for a formal response to the proposal in "weeks, not months," Snow replied: "Well, no they're not." "Keep in mind that there are differences between public and private statements," he told reporters, adding that "there have been conversations" between Iran and Britain, France and Germany, "and we expect the Iranians to provide a proper answer within the span of weeks and not months." Later, pressed on whether he had meant to signal that Iran's private responses were more positive than its public statements, Snow replied: "I make absolutely no attempt to characterize -- good, bad, or indifferent." Snow said the United States would only recognise a formal answer given by Iran's senior nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, to European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. "The position has always been the same, which is: When Mr Larijani communicates with Javier Solana, that is how we expect to have an answer to the proposal," Snow told reporters. Diplomats said hopes had dimmed that the two would meet this week despite an informal deadline on Thursday for Iran to declare to world powers if it would suspend uranium enrichment. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said a reply to the proposal will be given in late August. In contrast, the major powers are calling for a reply before the end of June in time for a summit of the G8 group of industrialised nations in Russia. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan" /> Kofi Annanon Tuesday also urged Iran to expedite its response to the offer of incentives. Annan conveyed his view "that Iran should speed up its response to the proposals" in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki at UN headquarters in New York, a UN statement said. But President Vladimir Putin" /> Vladimir Putinsaid, in a thinly veiled reference to US-led pressure on Iran, that Russia will not join any ultimatums over the problem of nuclear proliferation. "We do not intend to join any sort of ultimatum, which only pushes the situation into a dead end, striking a blow against the authority of the UN Security Council," Putin told Russian diplomats in Moscow in the presence of journalists. Russia, a key economic ally of Iran, has consistently resisted Western pressure in the current international impasse over US and European claims that Tehran is using a Russia-backed civilian nuclear programme to mask a secret bomb-making project. The United States has not ruled out seeking UN sanctions or even military action should Iran refuse the talks. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 13 IRNA: Moussa stresses Iran's right to operate peaceful N-program Damascus, June 28, IRNA Arab League-Iran-Nuclear Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa reiterated Iran's right to operate peaceful nuclear programs within the frameworks of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). In the opening remarks of the US-Arab Economic Forum held in Houston, the US, Tuesday evening he said Washington cannot denounce Iran's nuclear program while accepting Israel's possession of nuclear bombs. The US administration turns a diplomatic blind eye to widely held suspicions that Israel already has a nuclear weapon, reported the Syrian News Agency (SANA) quoting Moussa as saying. He further reiterated that all military nuclear programs or programs of weapons of mass destruction should be banned and dismantled in the region. On US-Arab ties, he said an important way to improve the US-Arab relationship is for Washington to shift its policy towards Israel and deal with Arab nations in a more balanced way. Moussa said the Arab-Israeli conflict is the greatest threat to instability in the Middle East. "This conflict is the one that will make or break stability in the region," he said. "This will ultimately bring the Middle East to further instability and there will be an inevitable arms race," Moussa said. The US needs to resume playing the role of an honest broker if it is to help end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and improve its image in the Middle East, the head of the 22-member League of Arab states said. He said the US needed to stand behind the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied territories, deal with the issue of Jerusalem and push for the adoption of UN Security Council resolutions and enforcing the international laws. The Iraqi conflict is another cause of instability in the region, he further reiterated. ***************************************************************** 14 AFP: Rice arrives in Russia to discuss Iran, Mideast with G8 - Wed Jun 28, 2:43 PM ET MOSCOW (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice" /> Condoleezza Ricearrived in Moscow, where she is to discuss the Iran" /> Irannuclear crisis and Middle East peace process with Group of Eight (G8) foreign ministers. "We'll talk about the Iranian situation, I'm certain," Rice told CNN news earlier in the Afghan capital Kabul before leaving for Russia. Iran has still not formally responded to an international offer of incentives and multilateral talks if it agrees to temporarily halt the enrichment of uranium, which can be used to produce nuclear fuel or atomic bombs. "We'll talk about the Middle East, how to encourage the Hamas Government to accept the Quartet principles so that we can get back on a road toward a negotiation toward two states," Rice said, referring to international diplomatic efforts to forge peace between Israel" /> Israeland the Palestinians. The United States earlier offered support for Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip" /> Gaza Stripon Wednesday. Washington blamed Hamas for the incursion and urged the Palestinian militant group to free an Israeli soldier whose capture provoked the assault. Rice arrived in Moscow at 6:30 pm (1430 GMT) and was due to have dinner with her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov later on Wednesday. She flew to Moscow after a lightning trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan" /> Afghanistan, whom she urged to cooperate to stamp out extremists operating either side of their common border. Rice met the Afghan President Hamid Karzai during the visit. She also said the G8 delegates would discuss support for Afghanistan, where a stepped-up Taliban insurgency is among the problems facing a NATO" /> NATO-led peacekeeping force, and the situation in violence-plagued Iraq" /> Iraq. "We'll talk about how the international community can support the new Iraqi Government, the first democratically elected government in Iraq, that... now has asked the international community for its support " Rice told CNN. "I think the G8 can make a firm statement about that." "We should also talk about democracy," she added, expressing a desire for Russia to "enhance its commitment to democratic development", as well as citing Belarus and other "places that have yet to see a democratic future". "It's a broad and important agenda. I look forward to meeting with my foreign minister colleagues," she said. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 15 IRNA: EU foreign policy chief due in Tehran next week Madrid, June 28, IRNA Iran-Solana-Visit European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana is visiting Iran next week to hold talks with senior Iranian officials on the nuclear issue and the package of incentives offered to Tehran by the 5+1 Group. Solana, on June 6, visited Iran to hand over a package of incentives approved by the five permanent member states of the UN Security Council -- Russia, China, Britain, France and the United States -- plus Germany (Group 5+1) to convince it to suspend its uranium enrichment activities and resume talks to settle the dispute over its nuclear program. The Spanish news agency EFE on Tuesday night quoted Solana as saying he would meet with senior Iranian officials early in July to hear their views on the incentives offered by the international community. He added he would try to raise the EU's positive response to the ambiguities Iran finds in the proposed incentives. Solana said he will be representating European states and all members of the Security Council, including the United States, in his discussions with Iranian officials to find a peaceful solution to the nuclear issue. He called for negotiations to begin as soon as possible. On the remarks of certain Iranian officials that Iran needs sufficient time to arrive at a decision on the package of incentives, Solana confirmed that Iran needed time to scrutinize certain strategic aspects of the package before reaching a comprehensive and thorough response. He was optimistic all sides to the issue would reach a positive agreement soon on a timetable for Iran to give its response. ***************************************************************** 16 [NYTr] Missile Mania: US and Japan Threaten North Korea Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 18:17:35 -0400 (EDT) X-Sender-Host-Name: sshtunnel-receive Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit Centre for Research on Globalization - June 27, 2006 http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=ELI20060627&articleId=2706 MISSILE MANIA: US AND JAPAN THREATEN NORTH KOREA by Gregory Elich The hysteria surrounding the potential launch of a North Korean missile has generated an artificial crisis. For all the ballyhoo of a threat, there is in fact no danger other than that of U.S. reaction. It is claimed that North Koreas Taepodong-2 missile has a range that would allow it to strike Alaska and possibly the U.S. west coast. The Federation of American Scientists, however, estimates its range as far less. (1) Little concrete information is known about the as yet untested Taepodong-2 missile, and its range is a matter of conjecture. For that matter, U.S. officials have admitted that they cannot be certain that the missile in question is a Taepodong-2. (2) And some reports have indicated that the missile is estimated at just over 30 meters in length, whereas the Taepodong-2 is thought to be 35 meters long. Mention of a Taepodong-2 missile is based on supposition, not evidence. U.S. and Japanese officials have threatened to impose additional sanctions on North Korea if it goes ahead with a missile launch. There has even been talk of a naval blockade, an act of war under international law. The Bush Administration has not spelled out its precise intent, but Peter Rodman, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, warns, We would seek to impose some cost on North Korea. (3) Meanwhile, there are those who advocate military measures. The U.S. has activated its anti-missile defense system, and there is talk of using the North Korean missile as target practice. (4) The only concern expressed over such a provocative action is that the U.S. might suffer embarrassment should it fail to intercept the missile. Worse yet, prominent Democrats have sought through reckless posturing to pressure the Bush Administration from the right. William Perry, former defense secretary in the Clinton Administration, and his assistant, Ashton B. Carter, wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post, advocating a cruise missile strike on the North Korean missile as it sits on the launching pad. Former Vice President Walter Mondale quickly followed by urging the Bush Administration to tell North Korea to dismantle the missile or we are going to take it out. Mondale regards North Korea as so dangerous because of its paranoid leader. One wonders just who it is that is being paranoid here. (5) The impression given by U.S. officials and the news media is that there is something uniquely sinister and threatening in a missile launch. South Korean officials point out that the open manner in which North Korea has prepared the launch indicates that the intent is to put a satellite in orbit, a routine enough activity for a number of nations. (6) North Koreas previous launch of a satellite, atop a Taepodong-1 in 1998, ended in failure. What is overlooked is that North Korea has the right under international law to launch a satellite or even to test a missile. That this should be so openly disregarded in such an emotional manner is indicative of the low state of political discourse in the U.S. today. North Korean Deputy UN Ambassador Han Song-Ryol offered to calm the situation through dialogue. The United States says it is concerned about our missile test launch. Our position is, Okay then, lets talk about it. (7) Predictably, his suggestion was quickly rebuffed by the Bush Administration, which remains opposed to one-on-one contact with North Korea. U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Bolton blustered, You dont normally engage in conversations by threatening to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles, and its not a way to produce a conversation because if you acquiesce in aberrant behavior you simply encourage the repetition of it. (8) Neither Bolton nor anyone else commented on the U.S. own aberrant behavior when it test fired a Minuteman III ICBM on June 14. The missile flew 4,800 miles, before its three warheads struck the Kwajalein Missile Range in the Marshall Islands. (9) For U.S. officials and media to condemn North Korea for preparing a launch even while the U.S. was conducting its own test was merely one more stunning example of hypocrisy. The Bush Administration has correctly pointed out that for North Korea to launch a missile would violate its moratorium on medium and long range missile testing. That commitment, however, was unilateral. North Koreas moratorium was implemented in 1999 after the U.S. agreed to lift some economic sanctions, a promise that failed to materialize. The agreement on general principles reached at the six party talks on nuclear disarmament in September of last year obligated the U.S. to begin normalizing relations with North Korea. Instead, it chose to impose additional economic sanctions, ostensibly because of counterfeiting. First the Bush Administration pressured a Macao bank to close North Korean accounts, despite protestations by the bank that its financial dealings with North Korea were legitimate and commercial. Then it followed by imposing sanctions against eight North Korean import and export firms. Seeing the result of actions taken against the bank in Macao, other banks dealing with North Korea severed relations after receiving warnings from the U.S. Treasury Department. The impact is severe, observed Nigel Cowie, general manager of the Daedong Credit Bank. I cant speak for what everybody was doing, but I can say that in our case, a lot of legitimate business has been hurt. The sanctions, said U.S. Treasury Department Under Secretary Stuart Levy, placed heavy pressure on North Korea, and had a snowballingavalanche effect. (10) Under the circumstances, North Koreas continued adherence to a moratorium on missile testing was beginning to appear decidedly one-sided. Vice President Dick Cheney has rejected calls for a cruise missile attack on the North Korean missile, responding, Obviously, if youre going to launch strikes at another nation, youd better be prepared to not just fire one shot. (11) It is recognized that the North Korean military would be a tough opponent, and any attack is likely to trigger a responding strike at a U.S. military target. Events could rapidly escalate into military conflict, which the U.S. could ill afford at a time when the Iraqi resistance is tying up so many troops. Yet the situation remains precarious. Other mooted actions, such as shooting down the missile after launch or imposing a naval blockade, are acts of war and as such, risk inviting war. In the days to come, the Bush Administration may find pressure from the media and Democrats for military action impossible to resist. Cooler heads are needed, but those are in short supply among a political leadership accustomed to saber rattling. Gregory Elich is author of "Strange Liberators: Militarism, Mayhem, and the Pursuit of Profit." See: http://www.llumina.com/store/strangeliberators.htm * ================================================================ .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 ================================================================ ***************************************************************** 17 [NYTr] North Korea: World's Ninth Nuclear Power? Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 18:56:34 -0400 (EDT) X-Sender-Host-Name: sshtunnel-receive Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit sent by Michael Givel - Jun 28, 2006 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/index.htm North Korea: Nuclear number nine? North Korea claims to have manufactured its own nuclear weapons, which intelligence officials have long suspected. If true, the feat would make Pyongyang the ninth nuclear power. To best understand how the North's announcement will affect efforts to denuclearize the Korean peninsula, take a look at these recent Bulletin reports on U.S.-North Korean relations and North Korean nuclear capabilities: 1. North Korean nuclear program, 2005 By Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen May/June 2005 pp. 64-67 (vol. 61, no. 03) ) 2005 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/article_nn.php?art_ofn=mj05norris 2. North Korea: No bygones at Yongbyon By Robert Alvarez July/August 2003 pp. 38-45 (vol. 59, no. 04) ) 2003 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/article.php?art_ofn=ja03alvarez 3. North Korea: Less than meets the eye By Staff March/April 2003 pp. 38-39 (vol. 59, no. 02) ) 2003 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/article.php?art_ofn=ma03staff 4. Letter from Pyongyang By Anonymous July/August 2002 pp. 50-54, 70 (vol. 58, no. 04) ) 2002 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/article.php?art_ofn=ja02anonymous 5. How much plutonium does North Korea have? By David Albright September/October 1994 pp. 46-53 (vol. 50, no. 05) ) 1994 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.thebulletin.org/article.php?art_ofn=so94albright * ================================================================ .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 ================================================================ ***************************************************************** 18 Guardian Unlimited: China Urges NKorea Not to Test Missile From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 12:16 PM By BURT HERMAN Associated Press Writer SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - China's premier urged North Korea on Wednesday to refrain from test-launching a long-range missile. South Korea pressed the United States to talk directly to the North to help resolve the dispute. Premier Wen Jiabao's remarks were the first time a senior Chinese leader has spoken out about reports that China's longtime ally was preparing a missile test. ``We are paying close attention to the information showing that there might be a possible missile-testing launch by North Korea,'' Wen said in the southern Chinese city of Shenzen at a joint news conference with visiting Australian Prime Minister John Howard. ``We hope that the various parties will proceed from the greater interest of maintaining stability on the Korean Peninsula and refrain from taking measures that will worsen the situation,'' Wen added. China, a key provider of aid to impoverished North Korea, is one of few countries with significant influence over the regime of Kim Jong Il. Since the crisis over North Korea's nuclear programs emerged in late 2002, however, China has largely refrained from threats to halt the fuel and food deliveries and bank credits that sustain Pyongyang. ``No country in the world has a greater influence on North Korea than China has,'' Howard said. ``I will be encouraging the Chinese leadership to encourage the North Koreans to pull back and not to behave in a provocative fashion.'' Recent intelligence reports say the North may have begun fueling a Taepodong-2, one of its most advanced missiles, at a launch pad on the northeastern coast. A U.S. government estimate puts the range of the Taepodong-2 missile at between 5,000 and 7,500 miles, making it capable of reaching the United States. North Korea hasn't said anything about its plans directly, but a North Korean diplomat has indicated the country would talk about the missile concerns directly with the U.S. Washington has refused, demanding Pyongyang return to six-nation talks over its nuclear ambitions. The talks have been suspended since November over a dispute surrounding U.S. financial restrictions on the North. South Korea has urged the Washington to meet with Pyongyang, said Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, South Korea's top official on dealings with the North. ``Our government has the view that the U.S. administration should also be more actively involved in discussions'' Lee said in a speech Wednesday, Yonhap news agency reported. ``We will continue to push for this matter ... The most important thing is to stop North Korea from firing a missile.'' He called on Washington to cooperate with Seoul on security issues in the Korean Peninsula, noting South Korea contributed to U.S. interests by sending troops to Iraq. The decades-old alliance between South Korea and the U.S. has been tested over how to deal with the North, with Seoul preferring engagement and Washington taking a tougher line under the Bush administration. The North shocked the world in 1998 by firing a missile over northern Japan and into the Pacific Ocean, but has been under a self-imposed moratorium on long-range missile tests since 1999. Japanese Defense Minister Fukushiro Nukaga said Wednesday that Japan was better prepared than in 1998 to deal with a missile launch. Japan has dispatched Aegis-equipped warships and reconnaissance planes to monitor the situation, and is coordinating intelligence gathering with the U.S, he said. Nukaga acknowledged, however, that Japan does not have the capability of shooting the missile down. ----- Associated Press Writer Audra Ang in Shenzen, China, contributed to this story. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 19 AFP: Japan, Canada urge North Korea to give up nuclear arms - Wed Jun 28, 2:33 PM ET OTTAWA (AFP) - Canada and Japan agreed to pressure North Korea" /> North Koreato give up its nuclear weapons drive, with the Canadian prime minister saying Pyongyang's moves were posing "a very real threat." Visiting Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and his Canadian counterpart, Stephen Harper, held their first meeting and pressured North Korea amid international concerns that the Stalinist state may test-fire a long-range missile. "I told Prime Minister (Koizumi) that Canada shares his country's concerns about Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile programs," Harper told a press conference after the summit talks. "It is our view that Pyongyang's stance on this issue, particularly those related to arms control and proliferation of nuclear weapons, poses a very real threat to international peace and stability," he said. "So Canada will continue to support Japan and other allies. We are standing firm in the face of provocative acts by North Korea," Harper said. US and Asian officials have said North Korea has prepared a Taepodong-2 missile for launch, amid a parallel standoff over the communist state's nuclear program. North Korea has boycotted talks since November with five other nations, including the United States, over its nuclear weapons program. Along with the missile issue, Japan also hopes to resolve a row with Pyongyang over the abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korean agents in a bid to train its spies, Koizumi told Harper during their summit talks, according to a Japanese official who attended the meeting. Koizumi has actively used diplomatic meetings to solicit support from other leaders to put pressure on North Korea. "The abduction issue, nuclear issue, missiles issue, ... I want resolutions to all these issues before (Japan and North Korea) normalize our ties," Koizumi told Harper, according to the official. "I call on North Korea to use self-restraint over the missile problem," said Koizumi, who has visited Pyongyang twice during his term and had direct talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il. Koizumi, who will fly to Washington later Wednesday, is likely to reiterate his concerns about North Korea in his meeting with US President George W. Bush" /> President George W. Bush, scheduled for Thursday. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 20 AFP: Koizumi gets backing on North Korea before Washington summit - by Hiroshi Hiyama Wed Jun 28, 3:03 PM ET OTTAWA (AFP) - Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi secured Canadian support in his diplomatic campaign against North Korea" /> North Korea's nuclear weapons, before heading off for a farewell summit with US President George W. Bush" /> President George W. Bush. Koizumi's first ever meeting with Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper came at the start of his final tour of North America before standing down in September. "Canada will continue to support Japan and our other allies who are standing firm in the face of provocative acts by North Korea," Harper said. "Japan is a precious partner in the fight to achieve peace and security." North Korea, which is believed to be making plans to launch a Taepodong-2 long range missile, will also be a key topic when Koizumi meets Bush at the White House on Thursday. Koizumi and Harper agreed to "adopt an ambitious forward-looking approach" on trade, Harper told a joint press conference after the summit. They also discussed international efforts to rebuild Afghanistan" /> Afghanistanand Iran" /> Iran's nuclear ambitions. Koizumi said the Japan-Canada relationship has been so stable that officials have neglected to explore the full potential. "Our bilateral relations have a latent ability to expand further. Our economic relations have much more room to expand," Koizumi told reporters. "Canada is an attractive market for Japanese companies, and vice versa," Koizumi said. Koizumi is the first leader from the Group of Eight industrial powers, and the first senior Asian head of state, to be hosted by Harper since his election in January. In their summit talks, the two leaders discussed the economic rise of China, according to a Japanese official who was at their talks. But Koizumi told Harper that China's strength is an opportunity for Japan, Canada and others, the official said. China has now replaced the United States as the biggest trading partner for Japan. Harper told the press conference the two leaders discussed the possibility of negotiating a Canada-Japan free trade agreement, but Koizumi said in the summit that such negotiations would be difficult to start, according to the Japanese official. Japan has said it would be difficult to launch free trade talks with Canada because of differences over the handling of agricultural products. Koizumi flies to Washington later Wednesday. He is to hold a summit with Bush on Thursday which is expected to highlight the close personal friendship built up during Koizumi's five years in power. Koizumi will have dinner at the White House on Thursday night. On Friday, Bush will take Koizumi to Memphis, Tennessee for a private visit to Graceland, Elvis Presley's mansion. Koizumi and Bush will likely use a press conference Thursday to put up a united stand against North Korea. Washington will also be cheered by Japan's stance on Iran, the other power in a standoff with Washington over its nuclear drive. The Financial Times reported Saturday that Tokyo told Washington it was ready to freeze Iranian bank accounts in the event of international sanctions on Tehran. The two sides are also expected to discuss policy towards Myanmar and appear to have smoothed one area of discord -- with Japan apparently ready to lift curbs on US beef, after a mad cow scare. A senior US administration official also signalled Washington would not publicly intervene over Koizumi's visits to the Yasukuni war shrine, which have angered China and South Korea" /> South Koreabecause the shrine contains the remains of Japanese war criminals. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 21 IPS-English POLITICS: Indo-US Nuclear Deal Clears First Hurdle Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 14:13:21 -0700 ROMAIPS AP WD DV IP SC NU=20 POLITICS: Indo-US Nuclear Deal Clears First Hurdle Analysis by Praful Bidwai=20 NEW DELHI, Jun 28 (IPS) - With the House International Relations Committ= ee (HIRC) of the United States House of Representatives gaining overwhelm= ing bipartisan support for a draft bill to allow resumption of civilian n= uclear commerce between India and the U.S., the path is clearer for the c= ontroversial nuclear deal signed a year ago between President George W. B= ush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.=20 Under the Bush-Singh agreement, India would be allowed to keep its nuclea= r weapons, but must separate its civilian nuclear facilities from militar= y ones and agree to place the former under International Atomic Energy Ag= ency (IAEA) safeguards.=20 No less than 37 members of the 50-member HIRC voted in favour of the bill= , on Tuesday, while only five voted against it. The legislation is now s= lated for a =94mark-up=94 to the full House of Representatives. Thereafte= r, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is expected to mark up a separa= te version for the Senate. With this will begin the final push to get U.S. Congress to make a one-ti= me exception for India in the global nuclear-military order. Significant= ly, one of the amendments approved by HIRC emphasises that the change in = rules for the 45-member nuclear suppliers group (NSG) would apply solely = to India and no other country.=20 Another non-binding amendment says that the U.S. should =91'secure India'= s full and active participation in U.S. efforts to dissuade, isolate and,= if necessary, sanction and contain Iran for its efforts to acquire weapo= ns of mass destruction, including a nuclear weapons capability (includin= g the capability to enrich or process nuclear materials) and the means to= deliver weapons of mass destruction''. =20 Both supporters and opponents of the deal are mobilising themselves hard = for the final thrust. Among the supporters are administration officials, = a large number of Republican legislators, and the powerful lobby of rich = and influential non-resident Indians settled in the U.S., all backed by s= ections of the Indian media which act as crusaders for the deal.=20 Already, a series of stories and articles promoting the agreement, based = on selective backroom official briefings, have appeared in India in a wel= l-orchestrated campaign. President Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza R= ice, and now Vice-President Dick Cheney have all thrown their weight behi= nd the =91U.S. and India Nuclear Cooperation Promotion Act, 2006'.=20 Opposing the deal are peace-minded scientists, numerous non-proliferation= experts, including some being mobilised by the Arms Control Association,= and a cross-section of U.S. lawmakers, especially Democrats, considered = non-proliferation =94hawks=94.=20 Opponents of the deal are reportedly trying to make the relevant legislat= ion conditional upon India limiting the size of its atomic arsenal by agr= eeing to freeze the production of nuclear-weapons fuel (fissile material)= unilaterally, or through regional arrangements involving China and Pakis= tan.=20 The Bush Administration has been trying hard to keep the =94mark-up=94 dr= afts of the House and Senate Committees strictly within the boundaries of= the understandings already reached with India in July 2005 and on March = 2.=20 Many legislators however have been pressing for language which stresses t= raditional U.S. concerns about proliferation and strong support for the N= uclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) which India has not signed. Some ar= e laying down other criteria too such as India's backing for a fissile ma= terials cut-off treaty (FMCT), now before the Conference on Disarmament i= n Geneva.=20 However, none of these additional or extraneous clauses is of an operativ= e, binding or deal-breaking character. While their language may not be p= alatable to India, it will probably accept it so long as it does not impo= se an additional constraint upon it. If further amendments are moved, esp= ecially relating to the FMCT, the Bush Administration is likely to mobili= se votes to defeat them.=20 =94The Indian government has so much to gain from the agreement going thr= ough the U.S. Congress that it should, logically, show a lot of flexibili= ty,=94 says Anil Choudhury of the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and P= eace in New Delhi. =94Having an ineffectual, non-binding line here or the= re won't make a difference.=94=20 However, a problem might arise if the U.S. administration and Congress re= ach a compromise on the sections dealing with the termination of the agre= ement should India conduct a nuclear test or violate its safeguards agree= ment with the IAEA. Currently, some furious bargaining is taking place on these issues. There= is only a narrow time-window open for debating the deal and the relevant= legislation. The Congress calendar has only 15 working days in July. If = it does not complete its deliberations by the first week of August, it is= unlikely to do so before it moves towards dissolution and fresh election= s.=20 A strong, indeed overwhelming, bipartisan vote in both Houses is consider= ed a precondition for the deal to go through. A weak vote would mean that= some Congressmen would be reluctant to take up the entire set of Bills b= ecause they are contentious and need a lot of discussion.=20 =46rom the Indian government's point of view, there is another risk, whic= h may be linked to an effort to avert a weak vote. To reach a broad bipar= tisan consensus, the administration may have to agree to certain amendmen= ts to the original text of the concerned bills.=20 If in the process, the final text introduces oversight conditions or othe= r criteria not included in the India-U.S. agreements reached so far, that= will make the Indian government vulnerable to the charge that it has com= promised the nation's vital interests.=20 Already, sensing an opportunity to corner the government, the pro-Hindu, = right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party, which leads the Opposition, has harden= ed its stand against the Indo-U.S. deal. Last week, it submitted a memora= ndum to India's President, saying that it opposes it in its present form = and will not consider it binding upon future governments.=20 The Singh government must look over its shoulder. But it knows, like the = pro-nuclear Indian elite, that the price of making small compromises is w= ell worth paying for a deal that allows India to keep nuclear weapons and= import civilian nuclear technology or materials, besides strengthening a= =94strategic partnership=94 with Washington, with which to jointly neutr= alise China and act as the U.S.'s most trusted partner in South and South= east Asia. =20 However, for purely domestic consumption, the government presents the dea= l as a means of righting a =94historical wrong=94, namely the denial of d= ual-use and sensitive technologies to India for 30 years because of its f= irst nuclear explosion in 1974.=20 In reality, there has been very little denial, except in the civilian-nuc= lear and missile fields. Nor has India suffered significantly from sancti= ons. It has only suffered a modest and poorly performing nuclear power pr= ogramme. But now, India can substantially expand nuclear power generatio= n and divert imported uranium to military uses, critics say. (END/IPS/AP= /WD/IP/NU/DV/SC/PB/RDR/06)=20 =20 =3D 06280745 ORP003 NNNN ***************************************************************** 22 Xinhua: U.S. House committee passes U.S.-India nuclear deal www.xinhuanet.com www.chinaview.cn 2006-06-28 03:51:19 WASHINGTON, June 27 (Xinhua) -- The United States House International Relations Committee passed on Tuesday the nuclear deal between the United States and India by a vote of 37-5. Such a result is expected as both the Bush administration and the Congress have been confident that the deal would win majority bipartisan support in the vote. "There is tremendous support although not necessarily unanimous," said Lynne Weil, spokeswoman for Tom Lantos, a ranking Democrat in the House International Relations Committee. The nuclear deal, signed by U.S. President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in July last year, would aid the development of civil nuclear power programs in India in return for India's placing its civil nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is expected to pass the deal on Thursday. Enditem Editor: Chen Feng Copyright 2003 Xinhua News Agency. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 23 Guardian Unlimited: Brown defends nuclear backing From Press Association [UP] Press Association Wednesday June 28, 2006 8:28 PM Chancellor Gordon Brown has defended his decision to back the renewal of Britain's nuclear weapons system. The Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath MP announced last week that he favoured replacing Britain's ageing submarine-based Trident system. But the decision was criticised by church leaders in Scotland, who said it undermined his commitment to overseas aid. A decision is expected on Trident before the end of this year and Mr Brown may even be the one to make it, if he has replaced Tony Blair as Prime Minister. He said on Wednesday, almost a year after the Make Poverty History march in Edinburgh, that this could be done in tandem with spending on Third world aid. "I think what people do know is that we've managed to ensure the defence and security of this country, in a world where we are prey unfortunately, to terrorist threats," he told BBC Reporting Scotland. "At the same time, we've managed to show that we can double overseas aid, we can increase investment in Africa three-fold, we can create a vaccination facility that will ensure that five million children live rather then die. "I think we've proved that what governments have got to do, you must have defence and security in the modern age and you must be able to help those in greatest need. We're doing both." Both the Chancellor and the Prime Minister were elected on an anti-nuclear manifesto in 1983. But he played down the suggestion that the estimated 12-25 billion to fund a new nuclear weapons system should go to fight poverty. Copyright Press Association Ltd 2006, All Rights Reserved. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 24 Times of India: Bihar to provide site for N-power plant Pranava K Chaudhary [ Thursday, June 29, 2006 02:01:22 amTIMES NEWS NETWORK ] PATNA: The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) has finally decided to send a team of experts to Bihar in the first week of July to begin the preliminary work of site selection for the proposed nuclear power plant at Rajauli in Nawada district. This was communicated to Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) chairman M M Singh by NPCI executive director S Thakur. This comes in the wake of a proposal sent by the state government to chairman Atomic Energy Commission, Mumbai, to seek his guidance and cooperation in this regard. It may be mentioned that CM Nitish Kumar, during his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in February this year, had made a strong for setting up a nuclear power plant in the state. Making common cause with the CM, railway minister Lalu Prasad and steel and fertilizer minister Ram Vilas Paswan too had met the Prime Minister to request him to set up nuclear power plant in Bihar. Though the state government had decided to allot a site for the 2,000 MW plant at Rajauli in Nawada district, it was also willing to offer alternative sites in neighbouring Gaya and Aurangabad districts to the NPCIL team which is expected here soon, sources said. "After selecting the site, the team of expert will prepare a feasibility report that will be presented to the Union cabinet for its approval," the sources added. In view of the proposed visit of the Central team, the BSEB has set up a five-member team to assist the former in the selection of the site. The members are A P Chaube, superintending engineer (design and project), Y K Thakur (production), S K Sukla (Biharsharif transmission circle), Bal Mukund Prasad (superintending engineer) and Gaya transmission zone superintending engineer. The five-member team will make a power-point presentation before the Central team, the sources said adding that several private firms have shown keen interest in setting up three thermal power plants in the state. Several reputed firms including Reliance Energy, Tata Power Company, Torrent Power AEC Limited, Essar Power Limited and Aditya Birla Power Company Limited have already expressed their willingness to the government for setting up three new power plants at Nabinagar (Aurangabad), Pirpainty (Bhagalpur) and Katihar. "The BSEB, on its part, has asked these firms to submit the proposed power tariff rates in order to make the selection process of private parties easier," said an official. Franchise scheme: With a view to improving the distribution network in rural areas, the BSEB has decided to introduce a franchise scheme. For the preliminary stage, the board will be assigning the task of revenue collection and meter reading to private franchises in rural areas. Copyright 2006Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved. For ***************************************************************** 25 BBC: Blair pressed over Trident vote Last Updated: Wednesday, 28 June 2006 [Trident nuclear submarine] Mr Blair has announced the timetable for deciding on Trident Prime Minister Tony Blair has refused to bow to calls for him to promise MPs a House of Commons vote on replacing Britain's nuclear weapons system. Mr Blair told MPs a decision on replacing Trident would be taken later this year, saying he favoured the move. Asked repeatedly whether MPs would get a vote, he said there would be the "fullest debate" but the way to consult people had yet to be decided. David Cameron said Mr Blair was at odds with Gordon Brown on the vote issue. Mr Brown signalled in a speech last week that he wanted to replace Trident, which is expected to become obsolete in about 2024. Defence and aid? Speaking after the Commons clash, the chancellor responded to criticisms from church leaders in Scotland that funding new nuclear weapons was at odds with his commitment to overseas aid. "I think what people do know is that we've managed to ensure the defence and security of this country, in a world where we are prey unfortunately, to terrorist threats," he told BBC News. "At the same time, we've managed to show that we can double overseas aid, we can increase investment in Africa three-fold, we can create a vaccination facility that will ensure that five million children live rather then die. "I think we've proved that what governments have got to do, you must have defence and security in the modern age and you must be able to help those in greatest need. We're doing both." At prime minister's questions, Mr Cameron said Mr Brown and Education Secretary Alan Johnson both wanted a Commons vote on the issue. [David Brent] Like Brent, Tony Blair is now "utterly redundant", says Mr Cameron He told Mr Blair: "You're saying one thing and the chancellor is briefing another. "Isn't this part of a wider problem. Isn't there a danger that you are just becoming the David Brent (lead character in BBC comedy The Office) of Downing Street - utterly redundant, you are just hanging round the office." But Mr Blair said the government was concentrating on policies and he challenged Mr Cameron to debate some of his. He said the Tories had one domestic policy - creating a new British Bill of Rights - and that had been called "xenophobic" by Mr Cameron's democracy adviser, former Chancellor Ken Clarke. Power transfer Voicing his support for keeping Britain's nuclear capabilities, Mr Blair said: "It is important that Britain makes sure that we defend our country properly. I believe an independent nuclear deterrent is an essential part of that." The exchanges come after former Home Secretary Charles Clarke said Mr Blair had lost direction and authority. And Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett urged Mr Blair and Gordon Brown to ensure a smooth transition of power. Pressed to say whether she believed Mr Blair and Mr Brown could carry out the smooth transition the Labour Party wanted, Mrs Beckett replied: "I think they can do that. "I certainly hope they will do that," she told The Times newspaper. But she said it was up to the prime minister and the chancellor to decide if the autumn party conference is the time to signal that they are prepared to hand over power. "What people want is for there to be a process - which there can easily be - which is supportive of the party and advantageous to the party and not the other way round," she said. ***************************************************************** 26 AFP: Blair confirms decision this year on Britain's nuclear deterrent Wed Jun 28, 8:39 AM ET LONDON (AFP) - Prime Minister Tony Blair" /> Tony Blairhas confirmed that a decision on whether to replace Britain's Trident nuclear deterrent will be taken "later this year". Challenged by main opposition Conservative leader David Cameron during his weekly question period in parliament on Wednesday, Blair said an independent nuclear deterrent was an "essential part" of Britain's national security. "The decision will be taken later this year," he added, refusing however to specify whether it would be put to a vote following a promised "fullest possible debate" in the House of Commons. Previously, the government has said that a decision to update or replace submarine-launched Trident missiles would be made before the end of the current parliament in 2010. Last Thursday Blair's heir apparent and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, told a business audience in London that he was in favour of keeping Britain's nuclear deterrent. It was put in place in the 1980s by then prime minister Margaret Thatcher, when the Soviet Union -- and not elusive global terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda -- was seen as the primary security threat. It is based on four Royal Navy submarines fitted with US-built Trident missiles which are due to become obsolete in the 2020s. One of the submarines is always on patrol but the missiles are no longer pre-targeted. Replacing the deterrent is likely to cost anywhere from 10 billion to 25 billion pounds (14.6 billion to 36.4 billion euros, 18.6 billion to 46.1 billion dollars), observers say. Critics say the end of Trident's useful life should be an opportunity for Britain to make good on the disarmament committments by the world's nuclear powers in the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 27 Asheville at the Nuclear Crossroads: new report on Global Mobile Chernobyl Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 16:26:58 -0400 X-Sender-Host-Name: sshtunnel-receive Nuclear Information and Resource Service

 
                                  Nuclear Information and Resource Service

                        Southeast Office

                                  

                                  PO Box 7586    Asheville, North Carolina  28802

828-675-1792      nirs@main.nc.us   www.nirs.org

National Office:      6930 Carroll Avenue, Suite 340, Takoma Park, MD 20912

301-270-NIRS (301-270-6477); Fax: 301-270-4291 nirsnet@nirs.org; www.nirs.org

 
 
 


             

 

 

For Immediate Release

June 28, 2006

Contact: Mary Olson  828-675-1792

 

 

Asheville: At the Nuclear Crossroads

The Local Impacts of the New US Nuclear Waste Policy

Global Mobile Chernobyl

 

Asheville, NC – Today NIRS and the Common Sense at the Nuclear Crossroads Campaign are releasing a major report entitled Asheville: At the Nuclear Crossroads, a cornerstone in a campaign designed to raise awareness about massive revisions in nuclear waste policy that are likely to disproportionately impact this region.

 

“When the plan was to send the nation’s high-level nuclear waste left over from making atomic electric power to a parking lot dump in Nevada, NIRS coined the name ‘Mobile Chernobyl.’ Yesterday a U.S. Senate subcommittee decided to put up those parking lot dumps wherever the Department of Energy chooses, and will not allow a state to say ‘No.’” said Mary Olson, Director of the Southeast Office of Nuclear Information and Resource Service. “Now President Bush has made new plans to take high-level atomic waste from India and from all over the world -- this is Global Mobile Chernobyl!” Olson concluded.

 

The report, produced by members of the Common Sense at the Nuclear Crossroads Campaign, including Ms. Olson, looks at current nuclear transports in Western North Carolina. It exposes the fact that the proposed “I-3” Interstate would link two of the largest nuclear weapons production sites in the U.S.: Y-12 in Oak Ridge, TN and Savannah River Site (SRS) in SC.  It then examines the prospect of high-level waste traveling to the SRS, already assumed by many to be the location of the planned new high-level nuclear waste reprocessing center. If the nation’s waste is sent to SRS, interstate highways in Western North Carolina would likely be the funnel, since these routes would avoid larger population centers like Charlotte and Atlanta. Information about the vulnerability of the shipments and specifically, waste containers, to possible malicious attack is examined. The final chapter, of six, examines the alternatives to nuclear transports as well as to uranium based electric power generation (nuclear).

 

The report is posted in .PDF form and available at: http://www.nirs.org/radwaste/hlwtransport/ashevillenuclearcrossroads280606.pdf

 

# 30 #

 Embedded Content: image001.png: 00000001,041fd332,00000000,60ba5ffb Embedded Content: image0024.jpg: 00000001,1033c674,00000000,60b46221 ***************************************************************** 28 NRC: Commissioner Peter B. Lyons Takes Oath of Office at NRC News Release - 2006-08 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, DC 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov No. 06-086 June 28, 2006 Peter B. Lyons was sworn in today as a Commissioner of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission by Chairman Nils J. Diaz at the NRC headquarters in Rockville, Md. Lyons had been appointed by the President during a Congressional recess and assumed office on Jan. 25, 2005. Commissioner Lyons was recently confirmed by the Senate to fill out the remainder of the full term, which will end June 30, 2009. As a Commissioner, Lyons has focused on the goals of nuclear safety and security. In addition, he has been actively engaged in human capital challenges at NRC, a robust research program and preparations for the agency to meet the coming wave of applications expected for advanced reactor designs and licenses. Prior to joining the NRC, Lyons served for eight years as science advisor to Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. During this time, he focused on military and civilian uses of nuclear technologies, national science policy and nuclear non-proliferation. He also advised Sen. Domenici on issues pertaining to international nuclear policy, energy research and development, and hydrogen technology. Before his service with the Senate, Lyons worked for nearly 30 years at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Lyons held various positions, including director for industrial partnerships, deputy associate director for energy and environment, and deputy associate director-defense research and applications. While at Los Alamos, he spent over a decade supporting nuclear test diagnostics, and as a result of this experience, has brought to the NRC insights regarding adequacy of computer modeling. Lyons has published well over 100 technical papers, holds three patents related to fiber optics and plasma diagnostics, and served as chairman of the NATO Nuclear Effects Task Group for five years. A native of Nevada, Lyons received his doctorate in nuclear astrophysics from the California Institute of Technology in 1969 and earned a bachelors degree in physics/math from the University of Arizona in 1964. Last revised Wednesday, June 28, 2006 ***************************************************************** 29 The Australian: Hitachi offers to build N-plants Teresa Ooi, Energy June 29, 2006 JAPANESE electronics giant Hitachi would be keen to build nuclear power stations here if Australia turned to nuclear power. Hitachi Australia chief executive Yutaka Sugihara said that the company had recently collaborated with General Electric to build a new nuclear power station in the US. "If Australia goes ahead with plans to build nuclear power stations, Hitachi would be interested in building them as we have the expertise and experience to do so," Mr Sugihara said. He admitted the nuclear power debate was a highly sensitive political issue and might take a long time to resolve. But nuclear power had its benefits. "Nuclear energy is clean, unlimited and economic in the long run," Mr Sugihara said. Hitachi Australia's interest in nuclear power stations comes as the company changes its long-term strategy to expand its infrastructure, rail, power generation and water treatment projects. Traditionally known for its plasma television, airconditioning and other electrical goods, the company is keen to double its revenue from infrastructure projects. About 70 per cent of its current $200 million annual revenue is from electronic goods and only 25 per cent from infrastructure projects. "We want to double our revenue from infrastructure, rail and power generation projects," Mr Sugihara said. "By 2010 the company will target to achieve an annual revenue of $400 million." Hitachi has joined Downer EDI to bid for NSW's $3 billion rail contract to build and maintain 600 new double-decker railcars to replace the ageing commuter trains on City Rail's network in Sydney. It is also in a consortium with Siemens which is constructing the $1.2 billion coal-fired Kogan Creek power station at Chinchilla in western Queensland.. Hitachi's association with the rail industry dates back more than 30 years when it worked with EDI Rail to supply 355 passenger rail cars to Melbourne's metropolitan network. Hitachi and EDI also produced Australia's fastest train - the Brisbane-Rockhampton tilt train. ***************************************************************** 30 TCPalm: New nuclear storage method planned for St. Lucie plant not 'new' How dry storage works (PDF 799 KB) By REBECCA PANOFF rebecca.panoff@scripps.com June 29, 2006 HUTCHINSON ISLAND Florida Power &Light Co. is beginning a public education campaign on a different type of storage for nuclear waste at its St. Lucie Nuclear Plant. After hearing an FPL presentation on the issue, County Commissioner Chris Craft, whose district includes the plant, said he isn't concerned about the change to "dry storage," which seals spent uranium fuel in stainless-steel canisters that eventually are stored above ground in concrete modules. Craft said the process already is used elsewhere in the country. "This is not a new thing. If it was a new thing, I would have been very concerned," Craft said Wednesday. FPL needs more storage for expended fuel because "wet storage," which stores the uranium in stainless steel-lined concrete pools of water, will reach capacity at the plant in 2008. FPL has been using wet storage since the plant opened 30 years ago. FPL made a presentation to county officials Tuesday and told its community advisory committee several months ago. No one then had major concerns about the project, said advisory committee member Charles Grande, who also serves as president of both the St. Lucie Conservation Alliance and Presidents' Council of Hutchinson Island. "They've (FPL) been pretty good neighbors. ... They've developed credibility over time with the people here," Grande said. Grande said the plant is a topic that Presidents' Council members discuss, but it has rarely been controversial, he said, in part because FPL keeps them informed about happenings at the plant. Nick Blount, FPL external affairs manager for the Treasure Coast, said the company plans an educational campaign on dry storage with presentations to homeowners associations and any others groups interested in the issue. The company also has a presentation about the storage technique at the FPL Energy Encounter at the St. Lucie plant on Hutchinson Island. "One of the things that is very important on any project is that we have had we know how important it is to get out and tell our story to the public," Blount said. FPL says it must begin using dry storage because of delays in the opening of the federal nuclear repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The company had planned to move the plant's used uranium to Yucca before wet storage reached capacity but that won't be possible because of the delays. The wet storage for Unit 1 at the St. Lucie site will be at capacity in 2008 and will be at capacity for Unit 2 in 2010. Site preparation for the dry storage should begin this year, with construction in 2007 and fuel transfer beginning in 2008. Yucca, even when it does eventually open, won't be ready to receive fuel until at least 2015. The five-acre site on Hutchinson Island is large enough to accommodate used fuel through the end of the plant's extended license, which expires in 2043, Blount said. But FPL officials hope the federal repository is open well before the license expires. Blount said the storage process won't expose residents and workers to any radiation. FPL must get a number of permits for the project before work can begin this year, including permits from the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is responsible for overseeing and regulating nuclear power plants. Blount said the company has already obtained the necessary state permits for the project from the Department of Environmental Protection and South Florida Water Management District, but still needs the federal permits, plus a building permit from the county for the concrete pad where the modules will be stored. Though the use of dry storage is new for the St. Lucie plant, FPL has experience using the storage method to contain nuclear waste at a plant in Iowa owned by FPL Group, of which FPL is a subsidiary. FPL also plans to use dry storage at its Turkey Point nuclear plant near Florida City and FPL Group's Seabrook Station in Seabrook, N.H. Dry storage is not a new technology, according to Dr. Alireza Haghighat, professor and chairman of Nuclear and Radiological Engineering department of the University of Florida. "This is common practice right now," he said. "All the reactors are applying to do that (dry storage,) so it's nothing special." Some nuclear power watchdog groups actually consider dry storage more secure than wet because the fuel is securely packed into the cylinders instead of stored in more accessible pools of water. Haghighat said wet storage is still necessary because the material must cool for a while, but dry storage is a safe form of containment, especially for security. "This is a huge structure," he said. "If somebody wants to get to it or try move it, it's not easy. It takes a long time, a lot of major equipment to do that." Haghighat said the dry storage process, which is designed to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, has no impact on the environment or people. ***************************************************************** 31 Guardian Unlimited: The lights will go out if we avoid the nuclear option, says Darling Energy review The new trade and industry secretary expects a mix of sources - and atomic is one Terry Macalister and Patrick Wintour Wednesday June 28, 2006 The Guardian Alistair Darling has thrown his weight behind rebuilding the nuclear power industry and plans to use the energy review to push a fast-track planning process for atomic plants, wind farms and even transport schemes. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, the new trade and industry secretary gave a blunt warning to householders and local councils that they had to support new power projects in Britain - or the lights would go out. He also insisted there must be a long-term - preferably European - framework for pricing carbon, a measure that would make oil and gas-fired stations comparatively more expensive than renewables and nuclear. "We run a serious risk that some day someone will go into the living room, flick the switch and and nothing will happen because we do not have the capability to generate any energy from any source at all," said Mr Darling. Britain needed the widest possible energy mix and the minister did not accept that support for one form of energy damaged development of another, as some in the renewable sector have claimed in their arguments against increasing nuclear capacity. Faced by the twin objectives of energy security plus lowering carbon emissions to counter global warming, Britain had little option, he said, but to act as the current fleet of atomic stations came to the end of their lives. He said: "No solutions are easy. One of the factors in nuclear is that the costs have got to be met. We know it is expensive but to have an energy review that says we are not going to do it, especially given the carbon problem we face, does not make any sense at all." Pointing out that the UK is poised to go from 19% to 6% of electricity being generated by nuclear power within 10 years, Mr Darling added: "No one is talking about a French-style nuclear provision, where they are up at 80%, but given where we are at the moment, with our increasing dependency on imports on gas ... then we need to look seriously at all options, and nuclear ... does produce substantially less carbon than its gas counterpart." The minister accepts that atomic power remains controversial and costly but believes some of the objections are outdated and a different perspective is needed now. "I was certainly sceptical about it 25 years ago, which was roughly the last time we built a nuclear power station. What has changed is that very few people realised at that time the dangers of climate change. "If you want to be frightened about anything, you want to be frightened about the impact of climate change. It's worrying for our generation - it's even more worrying for the generation coming behind," he argued. Nuclear lobby Mr Darling, who is poised to present the final recommendations of the long-awaited energy review to Tony Blair next month, will delight the nuclear lobby with his clear support for atomic power. He also revealed that the energy review would take the form of a green paper, followed by a white paper and possibly some legislation on planning and licensing. But his determination to act on the problems of drawn-out planning inquiries will also hasten private-sector interest in coming forward with new nuclear - and wind - plants. "I believe the mix of energy generation has served us well in this country but whatever form of generation plant you come forward with, whether it is large or small, you can bet your bottom dollar that there will be a planning objection. "The process will be dragged out and it may well take several years. Now, in a situation where nearly a third of our power plants are going to need replacing in the next 20 to 30 years we just can't have a situation where we do not have the ability to generate power. "Whether it's nuclear, whether it's gas, whether it's onshore renewable or offshore renewable, the problem is the same. So it's quite clear in my mind we have to have a more sensible approach. It does not only apply to energy; we have this problem in transport, we have this problem in housing. "People must be allowed their day in court to say they don't like it and object to it but in some inquiries it has sometimes taken between a third and a half of an inquiry to decide whether there is any need for it." Previous efforts to speed up the planning process had been driven into the sands of the House of Lords, he said, and some more substantial reform was needed. The industry secretary pointed out that just one week after he had argued for the importance of building new gas storage facilities in Britain, a local authority turned down an application for just such a plant on the grounds that there was no need for it. He reiterated the government's promise not to give state aid to nuclear plants: they would have to be self-standing financially and would have to bear the costs of decommissioning and waste disposal. But Mr Darling stressed his support for a mechanism, such as the European Union trading scheme, to reflect the lack of carbon emissions in nuclear power. "I am pretty clear that one way or the other if we are serious about cutting carbon, there has to be a carbon price." He said the economics of energy had been "changed substantially" by the rise in the cost of gas. New plants were likely to be built on existing sites, he said, and admitted that some coastal locations were at risk from rising water levels caused by global warming. Asked whether it would be possible to pre-license nuclear plants and endorse designs of reactors being used elsewhere in the world, Mr Darling said: "That is being looked at. It's not always necessary to reinvent the wheel. In Finland, for instance, they have a pre-licensing system ... but ultimately people will be against them, people will be for them. "What you need to make sure is that if you do decide to build a nuclear plant that it is safe and can function effectively. Now if you can do that better with a straightforward licensing system in relation to a particular kind of plant then that seems to have some sense." The industry secretary supported the recent sale by the government of the Westinghouse nuclear design firm to the Japanese and said local skill shortages could always be made up from abroad. But he accepted that nuclear plants came wrapped with difficulties because they were so complex and involved a lot of money to build. "They are not an easy option ... no one has come forward to build one for the last 25 years," he said. "In some ways the more difficult option, because we have to encourage people to do that, is to drive down demand for energy because that involves people doing things to houses and factories all over the country. But it can be done and has to be done," he said. But Mr Darling stressed that the energy review was not just about nuclear power, as critics complained, and he fully supported trying to slow the demand for energy by introducing a new regulatory requirement on energy sellers to create incentives to save. "There is also a need for all forms of energy production: combined heat and power, and local 'distributive' small-scale energy production," he said. "You do not do one or the other ... The challenge for us now is to strike the right balance between what you need to generate nationally, through conventional generation, and what we can do in a far more environmentally friendly way than we have done in the past." Useful link Green party of England and Wales Email us Email your comments for publication to politics.editor@guardianunlimited.co.uk [UP] Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 32 The Age: Secrecy on Howard's nuclear trip www.theage.com.au Richard Baker June 29, 2006 DETAILS of nuclear talks between Prime Minister John Howard and American officials are being kept secret to ensure the US does not shy away from communicating with Australia about key issues. The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet has refused to search for documents about the nuclear talks in response to a freedom of information request from The Age. The department has made a blanket assumption that documents would be exempt from release due to their sensitivity. Following his Washington visit last month, Mr Howard announced that former Telstra chief executive Ziggy Switkowski would head an inquiry into nuclear and uranium issues. The inquiry will include an examination of a US plan for Australia to export enriched uranium and store nuclear waste from other countries. The decision by the Prime Minister's department prevents the public from knowing who Mr Howard and other Australian officials met in Washington for talks on nuclear issues or the nature of their talks. It contrasts with the Department of Foreign Affairs' decision last October to release under FoI edited transcripts of conversations that Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer and Australian officials had with Chinese representatives on nuclear energy and uranium. In a letter to The Age, the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet's assistant secretary, Allaster Cox, wrote that he would not search for documents on Mr Howard's nuclear talks because he believed that all would be exempt from release because they could damage Australia's international relations and divulge information given in confidence to the Federal Government. "The conversations concern nuclear power and uranium, which are issues of key strategic importance for the parties involved in the conversations," Mr Cox wrote. "The conversations were conducted at the highest levels of government, which suggests that any conversations about nuclear power and uranium would be sensitive. "If such conversations were to be disclosed then I consider the United States would feel inhibited communicating with Australia about key issues, including nuclear power and uranium, thereby making the conduct of Australia's international relations more difficult." It has been reported that Mr Howard was briefed in Washington about the role US President George Bush expects Australia to play in his country's global nuclear energy partnership. The US plan will involve countries with large uranium deposits, such as Australia and Canada, enriching uranium and leasing it out to other countries for civilian power generation. It is proposed that Australia and Canada would then accept shipments of nuclear waste to prevent other countries from using it to develop a nuclear weapons. While in Washington, Mr Howard remarked on his evolving views on nuclear power, saying: "The context of the last week or so has given my developing views more prominence." He said he wanted to be kept "fully informed" of the US proposal. Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd said yesterday that although nobody expected the Government to disclose the precise detail of the nuclear talks, Australians had a right to know what broad topics were discussed. Greens senator Christine Milne said the Government was abusing the FoI Act, especially as documents on nuclear talks with China were released last year. She said the refusal indicated the Government was "taking instructions from Washington" on nuclear issues. age.com.auThe Age 2006-06-29 ***************************************************************** 33 newsobserver.com: Utilities accused of overestimating to get new nuclear plants Wednesday, June 28, 2006 Raleigh Durham Cary Chapel Hill The Associated Press RALEIGH - Environmentalists accused state utility companies Tuesday of overestimating future energy needs to justify their plans to build more nuclear and coal-burning power plants. The companies countered during a hearing Tuesday before the N.C. Utilities Commission, which must approve any new plants, that the need for more power was genuine. "We're adding 25,000 to 30,000 customers a year," said Keith Poston, spokesman for Progress Energy. "We'll have to build new power plants at some point." Progress Energy of Raleigh and Duke Energy of Charlotte want to build three new nuclear reactors and two coal-burning plants to meet electricity demands over the coming decade. North Carolina already has three nuclear plants. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. Copyright 2006, The News & Observer Publishing Company newsobserver.com ***************************************************************** 34 newsobserver.com: Costly cleanup at NCSU Wednesday, June 28, 2006 Raleigh Durham Cary Chapel Hill Chemical waste has seeped into the bedrock; extraction will take decades Wade Rawlins, Staff Writer N.C. State University is spending millions of dollars to clean up a site near the RBC Center and Carter-Finley Stadium where it dumped hazardous waste for 11 years. Chemical contamination leaking from the old landfill has spread into groundwater and bedrock beneath Wade Avenue. The cleanup will take decades. The university is spending $1.27 million to install 17 extraction wells and a water treatment system to try to pump out thousands of gallons of contaminated groundwater. That's on top of about $2.5 million already spent on monitoring and cleanup. The contamination is coming from a 1.5 acre site where, from 1969 to 1980, the university's science and agricultural research labs disposed of chemicals, pesticides, acids and animal carcasses containing low-level radioactive waste. During that period, the current, stringent federal regulations on the disposal of contaminants did not exist. The contamination is coming from the chemicals, not the low-level radioactive waste. The site, a grassy knoll surrounded by a padlocked fence and pocked with monitoring wells, was added to the Superfund list of the nation's most polluted sites in 1986. "They have a real soup out there," said Jack Butler, chief of the Superfund section for the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources. "The plume is expanding and has moved into the bedrock." EPA and state officials say the site poses no immediate risk to area residents, none of whom gets drinking water from underground wells. But tests show the contamination had spread about 700 feet and is moving slowly northwest toward Richland Creek, a tributary of the Neuse River. Initial efforts Representatives of the university and the Environmental Protection Agency signed an agreement in 1998 for the university to clean up the site. University officials carried out the first phase in 1999, mixing 2,200 tons of cement in the ground with the contamination to try to stabilize it. The effort was intended to stop more chemicals from leaking into the groundwater. University officials sought to avoid the expense of pumping and treating groundwater. They asked for time to demonstrate that the contamination would biodegrade naturally. "It isn't that we didn't want to do this," said Duane Knudson, manager of environmental affairs at N.C. State University. "It's just that we didn't want to get into a long-term pump and treat system that wasn't ever going to result in a cure. We were trying to avoid writing checks every year for a system that wasn't going to accomplish its cure." "Basically, they [the EPA] lost their patience and wanted it done," Knudson said. "I do, too." Michael Townsend, project manager for the EPA, said the site had been studied for more than 20 years, and the pump and treat method outlined 10 years ago had been delayed for years at the request of the university. "We gave them an opportunity to see if natural attenuation would work out there," Townsend said. "To date, it's been unsuccessful. You can study and study and keeping studying. It's time to go ahead and get it done." The chemical waste was buried in 22 trenches, about 10 feet deep and varying from 50 feet to 150 feet in length. The university reported about 11,000 cubic yards of waste were buried there. The predominant contaminants are chloroform and carbon tetrachloride, which pose serious health risks. "Contaminant concentrations in some monitoring wells are thousands of times greater than the maximum contaminant levels for groundwater," Townsend said in comments to the university last year. "Expansion of the plume should be controlled as soon as possible." The fast track David Mattison, project manager for the state Division of Waste Management, said the discovery that contamination had moved into the bedrock spurred the decision to take a more active approach. "Once we verified it was indeed in the bedrock, that put us on a faster track for more active remediation," Mattison said. "That just means it's harder to get out and more costly." Low-level radiological wastes are buried nearby in nine trenches, 6 feet deep and 50 feet to 120 feet long. The low-level waste is primarily laboratory animal carcasses, ranging in size from rats to sheep. University and EPA officials said the monitoring of wells had not picked up any leakage of low-level radioactive waste. "We decided it was best to leave it in place and let it decay and not disturb it," Townsend said. A contractor hired by the university has drilled the extraction wells. Construction of a waste treatment system will occur this summer, with the system to be operating by October. Once the contaminated groundwater is pumped to the surface, it will be treated to vaporize the contaminants. The treated water will be discharged through a storm sewer into a tributary of Richland Creek. But the land and water won't be decontaminated right away. "These things tend to run a long time," Knudson said. "I don't want to say forever. The conversation is in decades, 20 to 30 years." No new waste is being disposed of on the site. Nowadays, the university ships its hazardous and chemical waste -- about 100 tons a year -- to landfills and companies that recycle some of the chemicals, Townsend said. Staff writer Wade Rawlins can be reached at 829-4528 or wrawlins@newsobserver.com. Copyright 2006, The News & Observer Publishing Company A subsidiary of The McClatchy Company Re: Public Hearing of the Senate Environmental Resources & Energy Committee Wednesday, June 28, 2006, 9:00 am Senate Majority Caucus Room Patrick Henderson phenderson@pasen.gov Senator Mary Jo White Main Capitol, Room 169 Harrisburg, PA June 27, 2006 Dear Patrick: Enclosed please find the testimony of Eric J. Epstein on behalf of Three Mile Island Alert, Inc. on the matter of tritium levels at municipal waste landfills and in groundwater near nuclear generating stations. Elevated levels of tritium have been recently detected in groundwater in close proximity to nuclear generating stations in Illinois owned and operated by Exelon including Braidwood (1), Dresden and Zion (2). Tritium had been leaking for years (back as far as 1996) without detection or notification of the residents, homeowners, or state officials. The leaks prompted a law suit by the Illinois Attorney General and Will Countys State Attorney. ___ 1 According to Illinois Attorney General, Lisa Madigan, tritium releases occurred in 1996, 1998, and 2000. Three other releases occurred at unknown times. The effluent plumes emanated from Braidwoods blowdown line, an underground pipe that carries wastewater, approximately four and one-half miles from the power plant directly to the Kankakee River. An additional release occurred at an unknown time in the area near and to the west of the station and an eighth release occurred March 13 near the tritiated water temporary storage area at the plant. (Press Release, March 16 , 2006) 2 Traces of radioactive tritium were discovered in groundwater at the deactivated Zion nuclear power plant. Exelon disclosed it dug nine wells on the site later in May of 2006 to test for tritium after revelations of tritium spills at other Exelon Nuclear-owned facilities. 1 The owner and operator of the Exelon plants in Illinois failed to report tritium releases to state officials in a timely manner. The state became aware of the spills only after being informed by local officials near the nuclear facility. The leaks did not constitute an immediate threat to human health; however, the long-term effects of radioactive contamination in the surrounding groundwater and soil could create health risks for residents and workers. Exelon owns and operates three nuclear generating stations in Pennsylvania including: the Limerick Nuclear Generating Station (Pottstown), the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station (Delta), and Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station (Londonderry Township). These plants also routinely dispose of low-level radioactive waste byproducts in Pennsylvania landfills. Three Mile Island-1 found elevated tritium levels onsite during the fall of 2005. The Elevated levels were due to leak at one well traced to a sump from an auxiliary boiler in the turbine building (East Side). TMI's data, which was reviewed by the DEP, found tritium levels to be about 19,000 pCi/liter. The contaminated water di not commingle with onsite groundwater or broach the site boundary. (3) TMI had announced that they may drill two additional wells. Normal ambient levels of tritium range from 100 to 150 picocurie (pCi/lit per liter.) However, readings from tritium bore wells drilled in the fall of 1990 were as high 17,000 to 53,000 picocuries per liter according to the NRC. (4) Measurable levels of tritium were released directly into the environment during the evaporation of 2.3 million gallons of accident-generated radioactive water at Three Mile Island Unit-2 from December 1990 through August 1993. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, the total activity during evaporation was 658 curies of tritium or a 1 to 1.3 MR dose to the public (October 28, 1993.) ____ 3 The EPA tritium limit for safe drinking water is 20,000 picocuries per liter. 4 David Beaulieu, NRC Senior Resident Inspector, October 25, 1990. 2 Exhibit 1 is a Petition for Rulemaking filed by the Union of Concerned Scientists, Three Mile Island Alert, and numerous organizations throughout the country regarding tritium leaks at nuclear facilities. Exhibit 2 is a letter from Thomas K. Fiddler, Deputy Secretary of the DEP to Nils J. Diaz, Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, relating to elevated tritium levels in Pennsylvania landfills. And Exhibit 3 is a letter from three doctors to the Illinois Governor reporting a 43% rise in leukemia cases and a 75% increase in cancer cases in the area around the Braidwood and Dresden nuclear plants. TMI-Alert recommends that Pennsylvania adopt new regulations (modeled on legislation recently signed into law this month in Illinois) (5) requiring nuclear facilities, generators, end users (6), repositories and landfills to report radioactive releases into the soil, surface water or ground water. ____ 5 Pleaser refer to enclosure. 6 NRC staff met with Marcus Hook company to discuss several apparent violations identified during an inspection involving exposures exceeding regulatory limits to employees and contractors of Epsilon Products Co. who are not occupational radiation workers (NRC News, US NRC, March 13, 2006.) Based on an investigation conducted by the NRCs Office of Investigations, the agency determined that in three instances former Hershey nuclear medicine technicians used NRC-licensed radioactive material to perform unauthorized nuclear medicine tests on themselves in the 1996-1997 time-frame, in October 2002 and April 2004. (NRC, October 18, 2005) NRC staff met with representatives of a Lancaster hospital on September 16, 2006 to discuss three apparent violations of agency requirements. NRC inspectors found that last November, the door to a high dose rate remote after loader was left open and the device was left unsecured and unattended. September 7, 2004 - The NRC granted the request of Molycorp, Inc., to terminate its license to possess radioactive material at a former chemical manufacturing plant near York, and released the site for unrestricted use. 3 Pennsylvania is importing and burying nuclear waste in its landfills and deposing of radioactive materials from routine nuclear power plant operations. The law should require the above named nuclear licensees to notify the state of any unpermitted releases of radioactive materials to the Pennsylvania Department Environmental Protection Agency and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency within 24 hours. The DEP should also be empowered to conduct quarterly inspections at each of the state's five nuclear power plants, and review quarterly and multiple well monitoring results from affected landfills. Without this legislation, nuclear facilities in Pennsylvania are only required to report releases to the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission when releases (if detected) reach a high concentration. Sincerely, Eric Epstein, Chairman, Three Mile Island Alert, Inc. 315 Peffer Street Harrisburg, PA 17102 (717)-541-1101 Phone Three Mile Island Alert , Inc., a safe-energy organization based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and founded in 1977. TMIA monitors Peach Bottom, Susquehanna, and Three Mile Island nuclear generating stations. tmia.com cc: Senator Patricia Vance Representative Bruce Smith Dave Allard, Bureau of Radiation Protection, DEP James Joseph, Director, PEMA Stephen Bruder, sbruder@pasenate.com Attachments: Exhibits 1, 2 & 3. 4 Enclosure: http://www.ilga.gov. Short Description: ENVIRONMENT-TECH House Sponsors Rep. Careen M Gordon - Lisa M. Dugan - Jack McGuire - Barbara Flynn Currie - Thomas Holbrook, Karen May, Jack D. Franks, Linda Chapa LaVia and Renee Kosel Senate Sponsors (Sen. Gary G. Dahl - Debbie DeFrancesco Halvorson - Arthur J. Wilhelmi) Last Action Date Chamber Action 6/12/2006 House Public Act . . . . . . . . . 94-0849 Statutes Amended In Order of Appearance 415 ILCS 5/19.9 from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1019.9 Synopsis As Introduced Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning how the Title regarding water pollution control and public water supplies is construed. House Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 415 ILCS 5/19.9 from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1019.9 Adds reference to: 415 ILCS 5/13.6 new Deletes everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Requires the owner or operator of a nuclear power plant to report to the Environmental Protection Agency any unpermitted release of a contaminant within 24 hours. Provides that an "unpermitted release" means any spilling, leaking, emitting, discharging, escaping, leaching, or disposing of an contaminant into groundwater, surface water, or soil that is not permitted under State or federal law or regulation. Requires the Agency to inspect each nuclear power plant with respect to unpermitted releases no less than once each quarter every calendar year. Requires that no later than one year after the 5 effective date of this amendatory Act, the Agency shall propose rules to the Board prescribing standards for detecting and reporting unpermitted releases of contaminants at nuclear power plants (including, but not limited to, tritium or other radionuclides). Provides that no later than one year after receipt of the Agency's proposal, the Board shall adopt rules prescribing standards for detecting and reporting unpermitted releases of contaminants at nuclear power plants. Authorizes rules to include standards for self-monitoring by the owner or operator of the nuclear power plant. Adds other provisions. Effective immediately. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the provisions of the bill as engrossed. Provides that the purpose of this Section is the detection and reporting of unpermitted releases of "radionuclides" (instead of "contaminants" including radionuclides) into groundwater, surface water, or soil at nuclear power plants. Makes corresponding changes reflecting this purpose. Requires the owners of a nuclear power plant to notify the Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) within 24 hours of an unpermitted release. Provides that the quarterly inspections shall be by both IEPA and IEMA. Requires IEPA to consult IEMA in proposing rules to the Pollution Control Board that prescribe standards for detecting and reporting unpermitted releases of radionuclides. Provides that these rules may include standards for self-inspection by the owner or operator of the nuclear power plant in lieu of the IEPA and IEMA quarterly inspections. Effective immediately. The bill is HB1620. On the Net: http://www.ilga.gov ) 6 ***************************************************************** 51 The Australian: Nuclear test vets cool on offer | | This story is from our news.com.aunetwork Source: AAP By Mike Hedge June 28, 2006 THE Federal Government's decision to pay for cancer treatment for all surviving Australians who took part in British nuclear tests in Australia had a cool receoption from ex-servicemen's groups today. The announcement followed a seven-year government study, which found that no link could be established between cancer rates among the participants in the tests and radiation exposure. But despite concluding that the nuclear tests had not caused excessive cancers, the government would make a "positive response" and allow free treatment for all military and civilian personnel involved in them. Britain conducted a nuclear test program in Australia from 1952 until 1963 at Maralinga and Emu Field in the South Australian desert and on the Monte Bello Islands off Western Australia. Veterans Affairs Minister Bruce Billson said the study found that the overwhelming majority of those involved in the tests were only exposed to a similar amount of radiation as the rest of the population. "Whilst there is an increased incidence of cancer among those who participated in the studies, the cancer is not actually related to the tests themselves," Mr Billson said. "What the study has found is that the overwhelming majority of people weren't exposed to any higher level of radiation than the average person going about their daily life. "We have noted that there is an increased rate of cancer not related to radiation, we've simply responded positively." But Atomic Ex-Serviceman's Association president Alan Batchelor said the study failed to consider all the evidence. "The findings are not correct," Mr Batchelor said. He said the study made no reference to "early and immediate re-entry" personnel who were the most likely to be affected by radiation and failed to consider evidence relating to test participants who had died between 1952 and 1982. "Those are the people we are interested in - and the ones they should have been interested in," Mr Batchelor said. Another Maralinga veteran said the decision to offer free treatment to civilian personnel involved in the nuclear tests was a breakthrough. "But ex-servicemen have already been able to get free treatment," said John Hutton from Sydney, who was at Maralinga in 1956 and 1957. Mr Billson described the study, Mortality and Cancer Incidence of Australian Nuclear Test Participants, as "a landmark, groundbreaking body of work". "What we are doing is responding positively by saying: `Here are the facts in relation to the doses of radiation you may or may have otherwise been exposed to," he said. "But our positive response is to say that regardless of the cause or the nature of any cancer you may suffer, the Commonwealth and the Australian taxpayer will make sure adequate resources are available." Asked why the Government hadn't simply offered to pay for treatment in 1999 when the study began, Mr Billson said the necessary research needed to be completed. "We have wanted to know what the facts are," he said. "This study shows that in some areas those participating in the testing have had better health outcomes in terms of suicide and other loss of life (than the general population)." Of 16,000 Australians who participated in the nuclear tests 11,000 took part in the study. Of those, about 5500 had died in the seven years since the research began. Mr Billson said about 6500 test participants could benefit from the access to medical treatment which would cost the government an estimated $4 million a year. The results of the study would not affect the ability of any nuclear test participant to make legal claims for compensation. ***************************************************************** 52 The Australian: Free cancer treatment for victims | Health | This story is from our network Source: AAP AAP June 28, 2006 ALL surviving Australians who took part in British nuclear tests in Australia between 1952 and 1963 will be eligible for free cancer treatment under a policy announced today by the federal government. The access to free health care for cancer sufferers follows the release of the results of a seven-year study into the link between the tests and the incidents of cancer in those who took part. It also comes despite a finding of the study that there was no connection between exposure to radiation in the tests and the rate of cancer in those who took part. Veterans Affairs Minister Bruce Billson said the study had found that the rate of certain cancers among the test participants was higher than in the general population. "(But) it did not find any link between the increase in cancer rates and exposure to radiation," Mr Billson said. "Despite the lack of association between cancer rates and radiation exposure, the Government has decided that it would be appropriate to provide health cover for nuclear test participants who have any form of cancer." Some 16,000 Australians participated in the tests conducted at Emu Field and Maralinga in South Australia and at the Monte Bello Islands off the West Australian coast. Of those, more than 11,000 participated in the health study which began in 1999. Since the study began half of the participants have died. ***************************************************************** 53 Sydney Morning Herald: Nuclear survivors get free treatment - www.smh.com.au June 28, 2006 - 2:09PM All surviving Australians who took part in British nuclear tests in Australia between 1952 and 1963 will be eligible for free cancer treatment under a policy announced by the federal government. The access to free health care for cancer sufferers follows the release of the results of a seven-year study into the link between the tests and the incidents of cancer in those who took part. It also comes despite a finding of the study that there was no connection between exposure to radiation in the tests and the rate of cancer in those who took part. Veterans Affairs Minister Bruce Billson said the study had found that the rate of certain cancers among the test participants was higher than in the general population. "(But) it did not find any link between the increase in cancer rates and exposure to radiation," Mr Billson said. "Despite the lack of association between cancer rates and radiation exposure, the Government has decided that it would be appropriate to provide health cover for nuclear test participants who have any form of cancer." Some 16,000 Australians participated in the tests conducted at Emu Field and Maralinga in South Australia and at the Monte Bello Islands off the West Australian coast. Of those, more than 11,000 participated in the health study which began in 1999. Since the study began half of the participants have died. 2006 AAP ***************************************************************** 54 St. Paul Pioneer Press: Anti-radiation pills to be distributed 06/28/2006 | People living near the Monticello and Prairie Island nuclear power plants will be offered two dosages of potassium iodide as a precaution against radiation, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety announced Tuesday. The potassium iodide, or KI, will be given to those living within 10 miles of the two plants. KI offers some protection against radiation emissions that could result from an industrial accident or from an act of terrorism. The dosages would offer the thyroid gland limited protection against radiation absorption, but they wouldn't protect other parts of the body, the department's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in today's announcement. Minnesota is one of 21 states accepting supplies of KI from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The state plans to contact residents near the plants once a distribution plan for the potassium iodide is in place later this year. Lee Egerstrom ***************************************************************** 55 AU ABC: Radiation exposure findings disputed ABC Northern Territory | Local News | Story Thursday, 29 June 2006. 07:00 (AEDT)Thursday, 29 June 2006. A former Army Major has questioned the findings of a study which says there is no link between the high cancer rates among those who took part in British nuclear tests in Australia in the 1950s - and their exposure to radiation. The Federal Government commissioned study released yesterday found that while those who took part in the nuclear tests had higher rates of certain cancers, it was not linked to their exposure to radiation. Veterans Affairs Minister Bruce Billson says despite there being no connection, there will be free cancer treatment for those who took part. But former Army Major Alan Batchelor who was at the nuclear test site, and took part in the study, claims the findings are flawed and there is a link. He says information in the study showing extremely high radiation levels among veterans are ignored in the findings. "You will find that the levels are about 200 times out," he said. "I've taken these discrepancies to both Ministers Nelson and Billson and I've spoken to the study about them but nobody seems to have taken any notice." The RSL has also expressed doubts about the study but has welcomed the Government's offer of free health care for cancer sufferers involved in the atomic testing. The Veterans Affairs Minister is yet to respond to the latest claims. ***************************************************************** 56 ABC Asia Pacific: British nuclear tests, cancer study questioned 29/06/2006 A former Australian army major has questioned the findings of a seven-year study, which has found no link between high cancer rates among those who took part in the 1950's British nuclear tests in Australia and exposure to radiation. The study commissioned by the Australian government and released on Wednesday has found that while those who took part in the nuclear tests had higher rates of certain cancers, it wasn't linked to their exposure to radiation. The veterans affairs minister says despite there being no connection, there will be free cancer treatment for those who took part. But, our reporter, Jean Kennedy, says former army major, Alan Batchelor, who was at the nuclear test site and took part in the study, claims the findings are flawed and there is a link. He says information in the study showing extremely high radiation levels among veterans are ignored in the findings. "You will find that the levels are about 200-times out," he said. He says he wrote to the government in April with his concerns. The veterans affairs minister is yet to respond to the latest claims. ABC Asia Pacific TV / Radio Australia ***************************************************************** 57 AFP: Free cancer treatment for Australian survivors of British nuclear tests Wed Jun 28, 2:53 AM ET SYDNEY (AFP) - Australians who worked on nuclear tests carried out by the British in remote unpopulated areas in the 1950s and 1960s will be entitled to free cancer treatments, the government has said. Some 16,000 Australians worked on the British testing programme at Emu Field and Maralinga in the South Australian desert and the Monte Bello Islands off West Australia between 1952 to 1963. At least 5,500 are thought to be still alive. A recently released study into 11,000 of those who worked on the tests found the group had a slightly higher cancer rate than the general population, Minister for Veterans' Affairs Bruce Billson said. But the seven-year study found this could not be linked to their exposure to radiation. "Despite the lack of association between cancer rates and radiation exposure, the government has decided that it would be appropriate to provide health cover for nuclear test participants who have any form of cancer," Billson said. The minister said the health care would apply to military personnel and civilians involved in the testing. Of those who took part in the study, 79 percent were found to have had an estimated exposure of less than half of what the average Australian is exposed to annually from everyday sources. Copyright 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 58 China Daily: Plan tackles nuclear emergencies By Zhu Zhe (China Daily) Updated: 2006-06-29 06:16 An emergency response system to deal with nuclear accidents and ensure the safety of nuclear facilities, including those in military use, will be in place during the next five years. The system will operate at the national, provincial/municipal and power operator levels, according to a five-year plan (2006-10) of the National Co-ordinating Committee for Nuclear Emergency (NCCNE), which was approved yesterday. Details will be released soon. At least 10 technical support centres and four rescue teams will be set up nationwide to improve the ability to handle nuclear emergencies. They will help in monitoring, radiation protection and decontamination, and environmental evaluation in emergencies including terrorist attacks. NCCNE Director Sun Qin, also director of the National Atomic Energy Authority, said the plan was timely as the current response measures lag behind the development of the nuclear industry. The country has 10 nuclear generators in commercial operation with a total capacity of about 8 million kilowatts. One generator with a capacity of 1.06 million kilowatts is in trial operation and eight others with a combined capacity of at least 7.3 million kilowatts are being built. This year, two nuclear plants, each with two reactors, will be built in Northeast China's Liaoning Province and East China's Shandong Province. NCCNE figures show that by 2020, the nation plans to increase the total capacity of nuclear power plants to 40 million kilowatts or 4 per cent of energy requirements, up from the current 2 per cent. That means China needs to build another 20 or so 1-million-kilowatt units in 14 years. Faced with such rapid development, a detailed and integrated emergency response system is needed as "safety is the lifeline of the nuclear industry," Sun said. China unveiled guidelines on the management of nuclear power plants in 1986, and has set up a preliminary emergency response system for power plants. The nation has a good safety record in the nuclear sector, with no operational accidents having taken place. Sun said a tragedy such as the one at Chernobyl in the former Soviet Union (now Ukraine) in 1986 would not happen in China. Nuclear reactors in China are heavy water reactors, which are safer in design, structure and operation than the graphite-moderated reactors or boiling water reactors used in Chernobyl, he said. But Sun warned that the existing emergency response system is not adequate and does not cover military and other civil nuclear facilities such as research laboratories or storage facilities. The plan urges that special attention be paid to military nuclear facilities, particularly by provinces where they are concentrated, such as Sichuan, Gansu and Liaoning. (China Daily 06/29/2006 page1) ***************************************************************** 59 NRC: Notice of Consideration of Request for Consent to Transfer of FR Doc E6-10194 [Federal Register: June 28, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 124)] [Notices] [Page 36833-36834] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr28jn06-128] Materials Licenses Westinghouse Electric Company AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of consideration of request from Westinghouse Electric Company for consent to transfer of materials licenses. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Adams, Senior Project Manager, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Telephone: (301) 415-7249; fax number: (301) 415-5955; e-mail: mta@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Introduction The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering approval of an application (the application) from Westinghouse Electric Company (Westinghouse), submitted on April 21, 2006, for consent to indirect change of control with respect to materials licenses, from its parent company British Nuclear Fuels PLC (BNFL) to Toshiba Corporation (Toshiba). The filing and requested NRC consent is necessitated by the planned sale by BNFL of its entire interest in Westinghouse to Toshiba. The applicant described the transaction as follows: BNFL currently controls all interest in Westinghouse through its wholly owned holding company, BNFL USA Group, Inc. (BNFL USA). To accomplish the purchase of all of BNFL's interest in Westinghouse, Toshiba would form an intermediate holding company (NewCo), which would subsequently issue its shares to Toshiba and possibly other minority investors. Toshiba, however, would maintain ownership over a majority of shares in NewCo (51% or more of the membership interest). Once complete, BNFL will sell 100% of its shares of BNFL USA (and Westinghouse) to NewCo. Therefore, through its majority ownership of NewCo, and NewCo's entire ownership of Westinghouse, Toshiba would maintain indirect control of Westinghouse. The applicant stated that Toshiba would at all times maintain majority control of at least 51% of the membership interest in Westinghouse, and that no minority ownership would constitute a change of control of Westinghouse. The application states that there would be no change to Westinghouse's operations, corporate structure, key operating personnel or licensed activities as a result of the transaction and the indirect change of control. Westinghouse would remain a U.S. company and would continue to be headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA. Westinghouse would continue to be the holder of the licenses, approvals, and certificates listed above after the closing of the transaction and the indirect change of control. Westinghouse will remain technically and financially qualified as the licensee and will continue to fulfill all responsibilities as the licensee. The application states that no amendments to the licenses, approvals, and certificates will be necessary in connection with this request for consent. This license transfer, if approved, would affect Special Nuclear Material Licenses SNM-33 and SNM-1107. License SNM-33 authorizes Westinghouse to possess and use source, special nuclear, and byproduct material at its former fuel fabrication facility in Hematite, Missouri, for the purpose of decommissioning the facility. License SNM-1107 authorizes Westinghouse to possess and use source, special nuclear, and byproduct material at the Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility in Columbia, South Carolina. Pursuant to 10 CFR 70.36, no license granted under the regulations in Part 70 and no right to possess or utilize special nuclear material granted by any license issued pursuant to the regulations in Part 70 shall be transferred, assigned or in any manner disposed of, either voluntarily or involuntarily, directly or indirectly, through transfer of control of any license to any person unless the Commission shall, after securing full information, find that the transfer is in accordance with the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (AEA), and shall give its consent in writing. The Commission will approve an application for the transfer of a license if the Commission determines that the proposed transferee is qualified to hold the license, and that the transfer is otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission pursuant thereto. An Environmental Assessment (EA) will not be performed because this action is categorically excluded from the requirement to perform an EA pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(c)(21). [[Page 36834]] II. Further Information Documents related to this action, including the application for amendment and supporting documentation, are available electronically at the NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. 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 ADAMS accession number for the document related to this notice is ML061160195. 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 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. These 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 Rockville, Maryland, this 21st day of June, 2006. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Gary S. Janosko, Chief, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. E6-10194 Filed 6-27-06; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P ***************************************************************** 60 AU ABC: Nuclear testing cancer treatment offer 'long overdue'. 28/06/2006. ABC News Online The Federal Opposition has criticised the Government for taking seven years to complete a study into cancer rates for participants in nuclear testing in outback Australia. About 11,000 people involved in the British nuclear testing program in the 1950s and '60s were surveyed and found to have a higher rate of developing cancer. The Federal Government has announced it will provide free cancer treatment for all participants, even if their cancer is not found to be related to the radiation exposure. Opposition veterans' affairs spokesman Alan Griffin says it should not have taken the Government this long to provide help. "It's just taken too long," he said. "Fifty years is a very long time in anyone and the report in itself has taken some years. "We've been asking questions about where the response has been for some time now. "I'm glad it's finally come out now, but really, it's long overdue." Nuclear Veterans' Association Avon Hudson says the announcement is good news for cancer sufferers. But he says the free medical treatment should extend to all complaints. "Serious skin problems that [are] not necessarily cancer, then there's arthritis of the sternum and stuff like that," he said. "There's some evidence from world research that radiation can induce those complaints. "Then there's the mental problems, the psychological problems." ***************************************************************** 61 [NukeNet] New report on GNEP and nuclear transport impacts on Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 18:44:48 -0700 NukeNet Anti-Nuclear Network (nukenet@energyjustice.net) Asheville: At the Nuclear Crossroads The Local Impacts of the New US Nuclear Waste Policy Global Mobile Chernobyl For Immediate Release June 28, 2006 Contact: Mary Olson 828-675-1792 Asheville, NC Today NIRS and the Common Sense at the Nuclear Crossroads Campaign are releasing a major report entitled Asheville: At the Nuclear Crossroads, a cornerstone in a campaign designed to raise awareness about massive revisions in nuclear waste policy that are likely to disproportionately impact this region. When the plan was to send the nations high-level nuclear waste left over from making atomic electric power to a parking lot dump in Nevada, NIRS coined the name Mobile Chernobyl.Yesterday a U.S. Senate subcommittee decided to put up those parking lot dumps wherever the Department of Energy chooses, and will not allow a state to say No.said Mary Olson, Director of the Southeast Office of Nuclear Information and Resource Service. Now President Bush has made new plans to take high-level atomic waste from India and from all over the world -- this is Global Mobile Chernobyl!Olson concluded. The report, produced by members of the Common Sense at the Nuclear Crossroads Campaign, including Ms. Olson, looks at current nuclear transports in Western North Carolina. It exposes the fact that the proposed I-3Interstate would link two of the largest nuclear weapons production sites in the U.S.: Y-12 in Oak Ridge, TN and Savannah River Site (SRS) in SC. It then examines the prospect of high-level waste traveling to the SRS, already assumed by many to be the location of the planned new high-level nuclear waste reprocessing center. If the nations waste is sent to SRS, interstate highways in Western North Carolina would likely be the funnel, since these routes would avoid larger population centers like Charlotte and Atlanta. Information about the vulnerability of the shipments and specifically, waste containers, to possible malicious attack is examined. The final chapter, of six, examines the alternatives to nuclear transports as well as to uranium based electric power generation (nuclear). The report is posted in .PDF form and available at: http://www.nirs.org/radwaste/hlwtransport/ashevillenuclearcrossroads280606.pdf # 30 # Nuclear Information and Resource Service Southeast Office PO Box 7586 Asheville, North Carolina 28802 828-675-1792 nirs@main.nc.us www.nirs.org _______________________________________________________________________ Subscribe/Unsubscribe Here: http://www.energyjustice.net/nukenet/ Change your settings or access the archives at: http://energyjustice.net/mailman/listinfo/nukenet_energyjustice.net ***************************************************************** 62 Rocky Mountain News: Tank leaking small amount of radiation, USGS says June 28, 2006 The U.S. Geological Survey has notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that one of its water storage tanks at the Denver Federal Center is leaking minute amounts of radiation. USGS officials said they haven't found groundwater flowing from the site. The amount being emitted from the nuclear research reactor storage tank is less than that given off by old-fashioned illuminating watch dials, scientists said. "This is a tank used to store equipment . . . not in reactor operations," said Tim Debey, reactor manager. "As far as we can determine, the leak is in the bottom of the tank and we are working on a plan to stop it," Debey said. "We think we have sealed most of it using an underwater epoxy." Tom Casadevall, central region director, said the USGS wanted to disclose information to the NRC so there is no misunderstanding about the subject. site map--> Subscribe | E-mail 2006 The E.W. Scripps Co. Privacy Policyand User Agreement ***************************************************************** 63 The Australian: Enrichment not a cake walk - expert Andrew Trounson, Energy June 29, 2006 AUSTRALIA faced tough competition in being able to establish a uranium enrichment industry to capitalise on its abundant resources of uranium, a nuclear physicist warned yesterday. "You are working against a background of established suppliers who find it relatively easy to expand production," Tom Quirk, a former deputy chairman of the Victorian Energy Networks, told a business lunch yesterday. He said a more obvious business opportunity for Australia was developing underground storage for radioactive waste from offshore nuclear reactors. "In the business (of storage) is the great unmet need," he said. Mr Quirk said the key to Australia establishing downstream processing of uranium would be potentially rising demand for nuclear fuel in Asia, and securing long-term sales contracts. "The big expansion in demand will probably be in Asia and China, so it might make some sense to build a plant in Australia." Earlier this month, Prime Minister John Howard appointed former Telstra boss Ziggy Switkowski to head an investigation into exploiting opportunities in the nuclear power industry. It is expected to focus on opportunities to add value to Australia's uranium that is exported overseas to processors. Uranium prices have trebled in recent years. Mr Quirk said going a step further beyond enrichment and developing an industry in Australia to make fuel rods for reactors would be even harder, since fuel rod production was reactor-specific and so undertaken or subcontracted out by nuclear power plant makers. Mr Quirk said the question of whether nuclear power in Australia was viable had been too narrowly focused on relative costs, when instead the likely regulatory regime would be key. "Nuclear power looks as though it is within the parameters of being competitive. But until you have a specific site, you know the system it will be operating in, and know what the regulations are, you won't know whether it is worth investing in or not. "I think that part of the debate isn't very sensible. The issues really are regulation," he said. He also noted that the large generating capacity of nuclear plants could raise difficulties in integrating them into relatively small grids. "You may not be able to integrate into a single NSW, Victoria or Queensland system," he said. ***************************************************************** 64 SF New Mexican: LES gets operating certificate from NRC LES and uranium enrichment resource guide By ASSOCIATED PRESS June 28, 2006 WASHINGTON (AP) - A proposed uranium enrichment plant in southeastern New Mexico became the first major commercial nuclear facility to be licensed in the past 30 years by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Wednesday. The NRC presented an operating certificate to executives from Louisiana Energy Services for the proposed National Enrichment Facility, which would make fuel for commercial nuclear power plants in Eunice. The facility will be run by Louisiana Energy Services, known as LES, which is made up of European-based Urenco, British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. and minor U.S. partners. The plant, under review for the past 2 1/2 years, would become the first U.S. installation to use centrifuge technology, rather than a process known as gaseous diffusion that has been around since World War II. NRC chairman Nils Diaz presented the operating certificate to LES executives as eastern New Mexico officials and New Mexico congressional representatives watched. The formal presentation of the operating certificate is the final step in the plant's approval process, congressional representatives said in a news release. Sens. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., and Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., welcomed the licensing. "This plant is a sign of things to come in terms of the resurgence of nuclear power," said Domenici, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Bingaman said the facility will supply about 25 percent of the nation's enrichment needs. "This project will create well-paid short-term and long-term jobs, and will have an enormously positive economic impact on southeastern New Mexico," he said. Pearce said: "This license marks the culmination of Lea County's two decade-long drive to free our economy from the fluctuation of oil and gas prices, as well as a major step forward in positioning our state on the cutting end of alternative energy development." Urenco's board is expected to give final approval to the project July 5. Company officials have said construction could begin in August, with the first production facilities scheduled for completion in late 2008. The $1.4 billion project is expected to be completed in 2013. Currently, there is no place in the United States to dispose of waste from such a plant. Critics say LES hasn't determined how waste from the plant will be disposed. Two watchdog groups based in the Washington, D.C., area _ Public Citizen and the Nuclear Information and Resource Service _ said they are considering whether to appeal the license to federal court. "The bottom line is they don't know what they're going to do with the waste," said Michele Boyd, legislative director for energy programs at Public Citizen. "We should not be licensing plants like that." LES in February 2005 reached an agreement with a French company, Areva Inc., to build a private deconversion facility to handle waste. No site has been selected for the facility, which also must be licensed by the NRC. LES officials think the waste can be disposed of by shallow burial once it has gone through deconversion. Michael Mariotte, executive director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service, said an appeal to federal court is "under active consideration" and a decision should be made in the next few weeks. He said the NRC policy for disposing of the waste is under review at the commission. "This is exactly the kind of thing that's supposed to be decided before you get the license, not afterward," he said. Mariotte said the waste would include uranium 238 and hydrogen-flouride, which is toxic and corrosive. "It's nasty stuff and my own belief is that if things stay as they are and that plant operates, the waste will never leave New Mexico," Mariotte said. 2006, Santa Fe New Mexican, all rights reserved. Opinions ***************************************************************** 65 The Herald: Locals to have final say on waste dumps Web Issue 2560 June 28 2006 TOM GORDON, Scottish Political Correspondent June 28 2006 Local communities will have the final say on whether nuclear waste is stored in their midst, Jack McConnell promised yesterday. In his most explicit statement to date on the issue, the First Minister said it would be wrong for governments to impose radioactive dumps anywhere, and they would only be sited where communities volunteered. The Scottish Executive already has the power to veto the building of new nuclear power stations under laws on planning and electricity generation. Ministers say no application for a new station will be granted until the question of what to do with the waste is resolved. But the offer of a community-level veto over waste dumps came as a surprise at one of the First Minister's press briefings. It comes as British Nuclear Fuel considers storing intermediate level waste from Chapelcross in Dumfriesshire at Hunterston in Ayrshire. Mr McConnell said: "In order to successfully dispose of nuclear waste, there would need to be areas of the country that were willing to come forward and say, 'We'll deal with this'. I think the principle of ensuring that, locally, there is a willingness to engage with that is an important one. "I do not believe governments can impose nuclear waste disposal in local communities," he added. Mr McConnell's comments echo those of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM), which is studying the handling of existing waste. In a report in May, CoRWM said it was essential that "any proposals for the siting of long-term radioactive waste facilities should be based on the principle of volunteerism." It said that in some countries payments to local communities had helped the process along. It was reported yesterday that Mr McConnell has struck a deal with Tony Blair to ensure renewable energy is put to the fore in Scotland, defusing a looming row over nuclear. The SNP was set to campaign against new nuclear plants in the next Holyrood elections, while the equally anti-nuclear Liberal Democrats had hinted they might reject a third coalition with Labour over the issue. Mr McConnell yesterday lavished praise on renewables, such as wind and tidal power, and their "massive" potential in Scotland  but said those opposed to nuclear must say what would replace it. The SNP said Mr McConnell had yet to answer the most critical question  whether there should be new nuclear power plants built in Scotland. "Once again he's dodged the issue," said Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader at Holyrood. The Greens said Mr McConnell's remarks on renewables were welcome, but warned his government's failure to invest in their development could mean nuclear flourished by default. Copyright Newsquest (Herald & Times) Limited. All Rights ***************************************************************** 66 Platts: Domenici drafts bill giving DOE interim nuclear storage authority Washington (Platts)--27Jun2006 The Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee has drafted a fiscal-year 2007 spending bill that will put the US on a path to consolidate commercial nuclear waste from 103 reactors at nearly 70 sites at an undetermined number of temporary federal storage facilities, officials said Tuesday. The $30.7 billion energy spending bill would include $270 million for the administration's Global Nuclear Energy Partnership. It also would fund the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository at $494 million, including $10 million for development of "interim storage" facilities. That would equal FY 2006's Yucca spending measure. Under the provision crafted by subcommittee chairman Pete Domenici, Republican-New Mexico, the facilities could be opened in 2011 and 2012 and be permitted for 25 years. The facilities would have to be built on federally owned land. It is due for a subcommittee vote Tuesday. "This issue moves glacially," said Scott O'Malia, a subcommittee aide who briefed reporters on the proposal. "To move spent fuel for five years or seven years doesn't make sense, but it doesn't have to stay there for 25 years," For the first time, the bill would give the Energy Department authority to open interim storage facilities, which DOE officials say they have not had. In order to secure passage on the Senate floor, the measure would need 60 votes, since it amounts to legislating on a spending bill. The interim storage provision would be unrelated to DOE's efforts to move nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain. O'Malia said DOE has indicated it would submit a license application for the repository in 2008 and that it would open the Nevada site in 2018. The proposal requires DOE to immediately take title of waste at eight retired nuclear plants if the site owner requests DOE to do so. But the waste could be left at those facilities indefinitely. For operational sites, DOE would also have to take title of the waste if the utility requests it. DOE would have to move the waste, but only if a place has been established where it can be put. It also enables DOE to fulfill its obilgation to take title of the nation's commercial nuclear fuel under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. And it could clear the way for new nuclear facilites, proponents say. Money for all the interim sites would be paid for out of the Nuclear Waste Fund. The FY 2007 money would go toward establishing an office within DOE to handle consolidation of spent fuel and preparation of a site. O'Malia said it would be up to Energy Secretary to put the interim storage policy into action. It exempts Nevada and Utah from being used as federal interim storage sites. O'Malia said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat-Nevada, supports the Domenici proposal. --Daniel Whitten, daniel_whitten@platts.com For similar news, take a trial to Platts Inside Energy at Copyright 2006 - Platts, All Rights Reserved [The McGraw-Hill Companies] ***************************************************************** 67 reviewjournal.com: Senator offers plan to store nuclear waste Jun. 28, 2006 Proposal rests on temporary sites BY STEVE TETREAULT
STEPHENS WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON -- The government would store nuclear waste at temporary sites for as long as 25 years while it worked to overcome delays in the Yucca Mountain repository in Nevada under a plan offered by the chairman of the Senate Energy Committee. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., on Tuesday advanced a nuclear waste management plan he said would break a logjam in which thousands of tons of used nuclear fuel have accumulated at power plants. Plant operators have sued the Department of Energy for not taking the material away as promised. "This provision is intended to provide a medium-term solution for spent nuclear fuel," said Domenici, a nuclear power advocate in Congress. Domenici said the plan "will not impact Yucca Mountain," where the department has faced problems and delays. Nuclear waste would be consolidated at state or regional sites for 25 years or until a Yucca Mountain repository could be opened or waste-reprocessing technologies could be commercialized. The sites would be on federal land or on property obtained from willing sellers, he said. Nevada and Utah would be exempted. Domenici said a new target date for Yucca Mountain was 2018, "which may happen or may not happen." He did not explain how the date was reached. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., negotiated the measure with Domenici. Reid said he signed off on it after concluding it would be "Yucca-neutral." He said it could buy time for the development of possible alternatives. "This measure will give us time to study the problem of nuclear waste and work towards a solution that is safe and viable," he said. Reid has argued that to transport nuclear waste is unsafe, and he has introduced a bill to keep it stored at power plants. He suggested that much of the waste might not move far or at all if DOE can gain agreements with utilities. More than 50,000 metric tons of nuclear waste is stored at plants in 39 states. Under the plan, the government would take ownership of nuclear waste stored at eight decommissioned plants and keep it there. The Department of Energy had no comment. A spokesman said officials received the bill Tuesday. Frank "Skip" Bowman, president of the Nuclear Energy Institute, said the nuclear industry was reviewing the interim storage provisions. But Robert List, a former Nevada governor who represents NEI as a consultant in the state, said the interim storage plans "do not delay the Yucca Mountain project." "Nevadans should not be deceived into believing that the temporary storage facilities, if built, would in any way slow down or stop the development of the Yucca Mountain facility," List said in a statement. The proposal adds a layer of complication to problems of nuclear waste storage and will get a chilly reception from state leaders, said Charles Pray, a nuclear adviser to the governor of Maine and co-leader of a pro-Yucca Mountain task force, which consists of utility regulators and community groups. "I would find it amazing to find any governor who would step forward and say they would be willing to provide a temporary repository for the next 25 years," Pray said. Also, if the plan comes to votes in the House and Senate, lawmakers would be asked to keep nuclear waste within their states for decades, after they voted four years ago to move it to Yucca Mountain, he said. Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1997 - 2006 Stephens Media GroupPrivacy Statement ***************************************************************** 68 Salt Lake Tribune: Panel rejects PFS nuclear storage Article Last Updated: 06/28/2006 04:05:14 AM MDT U.S. Senate: A subcommittee votes to allow facilties only in states with reactors By Robert Gehrke The Salt Lake Tribune WASHINGTON - A Senate panel dealt a blow to Private Fuel Storage's plan to build temporary nuclear storage in Utah on Tuesday, voting in favor of short-term storage, but specifically prohibiting storage at the PFS facility. The Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee included $10 million for the temporary storage facilities, but requires them to be federally run and located in states that have nuclear reactors. The spent nuclear fuel would be kept there until a technology can be developed to extract the reusable parts of the fuel and dispose of the rest. "Today's vote is good news for Utah. It eliminates the need for the PFS facility in Utah and endorses reprocessing efforts, which I have long supported," Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, a member of the committee, said in a statement. "I believe the proposal supported unanimously today makes great strides in our efforts to find a long-term solution to the nation's nuclear waste challenge." The language adopted by the subcommittee gives the Energy Secretary the authority to consult with each state's governor to consolidate nuclear fuel in a federally owned site in the state. But it specifically prohibits storing the waste in any state where a commercial, dry cask storage facility has been licensed. Utah does not have a nuclear power reactor and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a license for PFS to operate a storage site on the Skull Valley Goshute Indian Reservation, 50 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. The provision also prohibits temporary storage in Nevada. PFS spokeswoman Sue Martin said the company has not had time to study the language carefully. "It's encouraging that members of Congress are still wrestling with this whole spent fuel storage dilemma, and they are trying to come up with solutions," she said. "The thing is that when they put such stipulations on funding, they are automatically pushing the solution out eight or 10 years because any other facility is going to take that long to get licensed." © Copyright 2006, The Salt Lake Tribune. ***************************************************************** 69 AGI: ENVIRONMENT: MOLISE LAW ON RADIOACTIVE WASTES REJECTED Agenzia Giornalistica Italia - News In English Thursday June 29, 2006 h.05.57 Today in Italy Special service by AGI on behalf of the Italian Prime Minister's office (AGI) - Rome, Jun 28 - The Constitutional Court rejected Molise law n.22, 2005, on radioactive wastes. In its ruling today, the court judged the government's recourse against the law to be founded, after it had been accused of violating the jurisdiction of the government on environmental matters. Among the various parameters established by the Constitutional Court, there was the following: "The problem of waste disposal, which is a national issue, cannot be solved by regional legislator on the criterion of the so-called regional self-sufficiency, and must be accountable for the possible irregular distribution of such wastes on the national territory." (AGI) . 281748 GIU 06 COPYRIGHTS 2002-2006 AGI S.p.A. [Invia questo articolo] Invia questo articolo ***************************************************************** 70 Reid: REID SLASHES YUCCA MOUNTAIN FUNDING : 06/28/2006 Senate Budget for Proposed Nuclear Waste Dump Less Than Current Level Harry Reid (D-NV) has once again sliced the budget for the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump to a level far below what proponents had hoped for. Reid is the ranking member on the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, which today approved a bill that would provide $494 million for the Yucca Mountain project in fiscal year 2007 – slightly less than this year’s $500 million budget. Reid, Nevada’s leading opponent of Yucca Mountain, has kept the project’s budget at the same level for three years now, without even increases to offset inflation. President Bush had asked for $50 million more for Yucca than the amount in the Senate bill, and the Department of Energy estimates it would need twice as much to keep the project on schedule. “The Yucca Mountain nuke dump has been riddled with scientific, health, and safety problems from the beginning,” said Reid. “I don’t believe the dump will ever open. I think anything spent on Yucca is a waste of money, so I’m pleased we were able to keep the funding levels low, although it’s a shame we’re throwing any good taxpayer money after bad.” In addition, the $494 million budget for next year includes $10 million that would actually be used for a different project – a plan to create interim storage sites outside of Nevada. The measure contains language instructing the Department of Energy to work with states that have nuclear reactors to identify the need for, and location of, interim storage sites within those states or regions. Nuclear waste could be stored at those sites for 25 years. The bill upholds the conditions of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, which specifies that no interim storage can be placed in Nevada. “My goal is on-site, dry cask storage of nuclear waste. While this bill does not fully accomplish that personal goal of mine, it is a significant step in the right direction,” said Reid. “This measure will give us time to study the problem of nuclear waste and work towards a solution that is safe and viable. It’s a good bipartisan compromise.” The FY ‘07 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill also requires a General Accounting Office audit of the Yucca Mountain budget money. The audit would ensure that all appropriated money is spent in accordance with the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. The full Committee is expected to approve the Senate bill Thursday. ### Reno Bruce R. Thompson Courthouse & Federal Bldg 400 S. Virginia St, Site 902 Reno, NV 89501 Phone: 775-686-5750 Fax: 775-686-5757 [ /] Las Vegas Lloyd D. George Building 333 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Suite 8016 Las Vegas, NV 89101 Phone: 702-388-5020 Fax: 702-388-5030 [ /] Carson City 600 East William St, #302 Carson City, NV 89701 Phone: 775-882-REID (7343) Fax: 775-883-1980 [ /] Washington, DC 528 Hart Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 Phone: 202-224-3542 Fax: 202-224-7327 Toll Free for Nevadans: 1-866-SEN-REID (736-7343) [ /] [ /] [ /] ***************************************************************** 71 Caon City Daily Record: Cotter Corp. hit with two more Notices of Violations Publish Date: 6/27/2006 Blakely Thomas-Aguilar The Daily Record Cotter Corp. received two more Notices of Violations over the past two months surrounding activities at the uranium milling site, including an incident where a worker was hit by the lid and radioactive materials from a bulging drum, according to the May 31 NOV. The worker exited the calciner enclosure, held his breath and ran to an area where he was able to get assistance, according to the NOV. The suspension of yellowcake in the air outside the yellowcake enclosure resulted in intakes of soluble uranium. In the June 1 Fremont County Independent Outreach Committee meeting, Cotter Environmental Coordinator and Radiation Safety Coordinator Jim Cain said urinalysis data from the operator and coworkers involved in the instance did not show above-limits exposure to radiation. He said the man who loosened the bolt and nut on the sealing ring showed 85 percent inhalation and 15 percent ingestion in a quantity that Cain said is 40 percent of the weekly limit. We did a lot of work to find out what happened, Cain said. Colorado Department of Public Healths Radioactive Materials head Steve Tarlton said because the inci-dent was a procedural error on the part of the operator, there will be no fine and the two groups are in nego-tiations to rework the language and requirements on the procedures to handle a bulging drum. Cotter must respond by June 30. Since Cotter is not in operation and cannot resume operations without going through a readiness review process and receiving our approval, the activities that caused this incident are not ongoing, and there is no timetable for resumption, Tarlton said an e-mail message to the Daily Record. Concerned Citizens Against Toxic Waste, a community activist group with ties to the Superfund site, continue to argue the violations are a sure sign of a greater threat to the surrounding community. CCAT has called for the closure of the Caon City milling site . It served as a party to the licensure hearing in Sep-tember, where the group argued what it believes to be a dangerous incompetence. Every time you have an industrial operation, stuff happens, CCAT board member Bob Kichline said. Somebody has to keep an eye on it. The guys who get injured there, theyre a member of our community. Its too damn close to where people are. Cotter also is working on closing NOVs stemming from November and May air quality violations. The air quality division of the CDPHE cited the company for an opacity violation in November and a solvent viola-tion in May pursuant to its licensing conditions. Cotter mill manager John Hamrick said the company currently is trying to prove that the latter violation is unsubstantiated based on its own findings of fact that kerosene in the solvent used in the uranium extraction process does not evaporate at the rate accepted by CDPHE. Mill officials said a $15,000 fine imposed for a December violation after a male worker was injured and the emergency showers did not operate could go to the city of Caon City for an environmental clean-up project, but Tarlton said he has not received Cotters proposal for the expenditure of the fine. City Admin-istrator Steve Rabe said it is possible the money could go toward an environmental assessment for a deposit of alum sludge. For more information on the Cotter Corp. NOVs and negotiations between the milling corporation and CDPHE, visit www.cdphe.state.co.us/hm/ cotter/cotterhom.htm. All contents Copyright 2005 The Caon City Daily Record. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 72 CBC: Sask. could be home to uranium refinery, government says [CBC.ca CANADA | SASKATCHEWAN Last Updated: Wednesday, June 28, 2006 | 6:46 PM CT The Saskatchewan government is looking to put a uranium refinery somewhere in the province. On Wednesday, Premier Lorne Calvert and Industry Minister Eric Cline said they had held "positive" discussions with the French nuclear company Areva about such a project. Cline said Areva has confirmed "it will look favourably upon Saskatchewan as a location for refining and conversion facilities as the need for increased capacity arises." That could happen any time in the next decade, said Calvert, who was in France for the discussions with Areva. Calvert also said Areva has made it official its plans to proceed with a new uranium mine at the Midwest Project near the McLean Lake mill in the northwestern corner of the province. It's subject to environmental and other approvals but if it goes ahead, it will cost $200 million to develop and will employ 100 people, Calvert said. Mine development good news: Calvert Cline said it's expected development on the mine will start in 2007-08 and processing of ore from the project at Areva's McLean Lake Mill will begin in 2009-10. Calvert said that's good news for people who live in the North. The company's Canadian subsidiary, Areva Resources Canada — formerly known as Cogema — currently operates portions of several other uranium mines and mills around the province. "We've taken what at one time was a very minimal involvement to a circumstance now where there is significant involvement in northerners in employment," Calvert said. "That commitment remains with Areva and I know with Cameco, and so it's just good news for our North." + June 28, 2006 | 5:16 PM EDT more Copyright CBC 2006 ***************************************************************** 73 KVBC: New target date for Yucca Mountain The federal government has a new target date to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici says they're aiming for the year 2018 for the nuclear waste depository. However, he added that may or may not happen. The senator detailed a nuclear waste management plan yesterday, which calls for nuclear waste to be consolidated at state and regional sites for 25 years. The waste would be moved if Yucca Mountain opens or if the government comes up with another alternative. Nevada Senator Harry Reid has signed off on the bill, calling it Yucca-neutral. All content Copyright 2000 - 2006 WorldNow and KVBC. All Rights Reserved. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. ***************************************************************** 74 Knox News: Munger: Nuke threat quelled, but concern lingers By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com June 28, 2006 A criticality accident is everybody's worst fear at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant. Elaborate means are taken every minute of the day to prevent it. An uncontrolled nuclear chain reaction can happen when there's a sufficient amount of fissile material and conditions that support the fission process. The result is a dangerous release of radiation. On June 16, 1958, eight workers were hospitalized after they were exposed to high radiation fields in a production facility at Y-12. A batch of highly enriched uranium went critical when it was inadvertently mixed in an unsafe container, zapping everyone in the vicinity with neutrons. That was the only criticality accident in Y-12's history. If another one were to occur, the Oak Ridge plant might never operate again. It's that serious. The threat is a constant because Y-12 is the nation's principal repository for bomb-grade uranium. The exact amount of uranium is classified information, but it's possible Y-12 houses the world's largest inventory of fissionable material. That's why it caught my attention when staff members of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board reported last month that an excessive amount of enriched uranium was found in a filter system tied to Y-12's uranium casting operation. The amount exceeded a threshold set for nuclear safety, and the overloaded filter attracted serious attention. Workers were not allowed back into that area while a removal plan was established. It was difficult to get a good perspective because release of the safety board's reports is often delayed for weeks while they go through review for classification purposes. Also, BWXT, the government's managing contractor at Y-12, is typically slow responding to requests of a sensitive nature. At some point, the situation escalated. One reason was the presence of oil in the filter housing, a potential moderator for a nuclear reaction. The safety board's May 12 report said BWXT had declared a Category-1 nuclear criticality safety issue. The definition of a Category-1 is a loss of multiple controls with "no valid controls to prevent a criticality accident." I asked BWXT if that meant the uranium was in an unsafe condition. By e-mail, the contractor responded, "There was never a danger of criticality. The issue related to how the controls used to maintain criticality safety are documented." Additional conversations failed to clarify the apparent difference between BWXT's declaration of a Category-1 safety concern and assurances that everything was under control. After a couple of weeks of back and forth, BWXT made available Bill Tindal, production manager in the enriched uranium operation, for a telephone interview. By that time, the uranium had been removed from the filter housing, although the plant's casting operation remained shut down. Also, a formal investigation was under way, as required any time there's a Category-1 nuclear safety concern. According to Tindal, BWXT knew there was no chance of a nuclear reaction based on observations and known conditions of the uranium. However, the contractor declared a Category-1 safety issue because there were no documented controls as required in the plant's safety documents. As it turned out, Tindal said, the actual amount of highly enriched uranium in the filter was only about a fourth of what had been estimated. The safety board's report said it was thought to be about 1.4 kilograms, but the Y-12 official wouldn't confirm that. He said there wasn't enough uranium for nuclear criticality, regardless of conditions. In other words, the actions taken proved to be conservative, and the incident had a happy ending. The events, however, were unsettling. Tindal said no one at Y-12 could recall another declaration of a Category-1 situation involving criticality safety. The situation wasn't as bad as first thought, but conditions did not comply with safety requirements. "We're happy with the result, but we're still concerned," Tindal said. "We still consider it significant." Senior Writer Frank Munger covers the Department of Energy for the News Sentinel. He may be reached at 865-342-6329 or at munger@knews.com. 2006 - Knoxville News Sentinel ***************************************************************** 75 Guardian Unlimited: Audit: Labs Can't Account for Explosives From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 10:01 PM By JENNIFER TALHELM Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Hundreds of non-nuclear explosive devices are untested or unaccounted for due to poor record keeping at two of the nation's top national laboratories, a federal audit found Wednesday. The Energy Department's inspector general, who examined the Sandia and Los Alamos labs' inventory and testing of explosives between April 2005 and March, said the problems have increased the risk that the rockets, gun rounds and other items could be stolen or injure workers. For example, Sandia officials couldn't account for at least 410 items, including detonators, rocket motors, shaped explosives and bulk explosive powders. And both labs - which use explosives for defense research - have far more explosives than they need. But they failed to regularly test the safety and stability of many of the items. ``Without improvements in this critical area, there is increased risk that worker safety may be compromised and that extremely dangerous and potentially destructive materials may be subject to theft or diversion,'' auditors wrote. Lab officials said they already are updating policies and software and improving inventory and management practices. But they denied that the explosives were at risk for theft. Sandia spokesman Michael Padilla said lab officials always knew where the items were. The problem was that employees weren't always recording the location. ``We are on Kirtland Air Force Base, security is very high,'' Padilla said. ``Anyone who is using the material has to have the right or need to use the material.'' Auditors said Sandia failed to adequately inventory its explosives when they were being used at military sites and universities, among other locations not on lab property. The Albuquerque-based lab frequently couldn't find or track several items. Los Alamos is storing old, dated explosives, including 63 anti-personnel rockets that were acquired by the lab in 1986, auditors found. The rockets contained enough propellant to burn for a maximum range of 6,500 yards. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 76 Guardian Unlimited: Audit: Labs Can't Account for Explosives From the Associated Press [UP] Wednesday June 28, 2006 10:01 PM By JENNIFER TALHELM Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Hundreds of non-nuclear explosive devices are untested or unaccounted for due to poor record keeping at two of the nation's top national laboratories, a federal audit found Wednesday. The Energy Department's inspector general, who examined the Sandia and Los Alamos labs' inventory and testing of explosives between April 2005 and March, said the problems have increased the risk that the rockets, gun rounds and other items could be stolen or injure workers. For example, Sandia officials couldn't account for at least 410 items, including detonators, rocket motors, shaped explosives and bulk explosive powders. And both labs - which use explosives for defense research - have far more explosives than they need. But they failed to regularly test the safety and stability of many of the items. ``Without improvements in this critical area, there is increased risk that worker safety may be compromised and that extremely dangerous and potentially destructive materials may be subject to theft or diversion,'' auditors wrote. Lab officials said they already are updating policies and software and improving inventory and management practices. But they denied that the explosives were at risk for theft. Sandia spokesman Michael Padilla said lab officials always knew where the items were. The problem was that employees weren't always recording the location. ``We are on Kirtland Air Force Base, security is very high,'' Padilla said. ``Anyone who is using the material has to have the right or need to use the material.'' Auditors said Sandia failed to adequately inventory its explosives when they were being used at military sites and universities, among other locations not on lab property. The Albuquerque-based lab frequently couldn't find or track several items. Los Alamos is storing old, dated explosives, including 63 anti-personnel rockets that were acquired by the lab in 1986, auditors found. The rockets contained enough propellant to burn for a maximum range of 6,500 yards. Guardian Unlimited Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006 ***************************************************************** 77 Seattle Times: Hanford cleanup proposal advances in Senate Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - Page updated at 12:00 AM By The Associated Press YAKIMA  A fiscal 2007 spending bill that passed a U.S. Senate subcommittee Tuesday includes $690 million toward construction of a waste-treatment plant at the highly contaminated Hanford nuclear reservation. The vitrification plant is being built to convert millions of gallons of radioactive waste to glasslike logs for permanent disposal underground in a nuclear-waste repository. The plant has long been considered the cornerstone of cleanup at the Hanford site, but the project has been mired in cost overruns and delays. Earlier this month, the U.S. Energy Department released a new cost estimate for the project at $11.55 billion. The new estimate also delays the projected start of operations to 2019. It depends on an annual appropriation of $690 million from Congress for the project, beginning in 2007. Hanford is the nation's most contaminated nuclear site, with cleanup costs expected to total as much as $60 billion. Key to the cleanup is the removal of 53 million gallons of toxic, radioactive waste left from Cold War-era nuclear-weapons production. Copyright 2006 The Seattle Times Company ***************************************************************** 78 DOE: DOE Announces Loans of Oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve June 28, 2006 WASHINGTON, DC  U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel W. Bodman announced today that DOE has approved two loan requests totaling 750,000 barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to two Louisiana refineries. The refineries were not receiving scheduled shipments of crude oil because of the closure of the Calcasieu Ship Channel. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is a national asset that can be used in times of supply disruption. This loan will allow these two refineries to continue operations and help us maintain our nations supply of gasoline leading into the holiday weekend, Secretary Bodman said. Secretary Bodman approved the loan of 500,000 barrels of West Hackberry sour crude oil to ConocoPhillips for its Westlake refinery. He also approved the loan of 250,000 barrels of West Hackberry sour crude to Citgo for its Lake Charles refinery. Terms of the loans keep with President Bushs directive to defer SPR loan repayments until after the end of summer. Media contact(s): Craig Stevens, (202) 586-4940 [ ] Washington, DC 20585 1-800-dial-DOE | f/202-586-4403 | ***************************************************************** 79 DOE: Energy Secretary Announces $170 Million Solicitation for Solar Energy Technologies June 28, 2006 Key Element of the Advanced Energy Initiative, seeks to make solar technology cost-competitive by 2015 WASHINGTON, DC  U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel W. Bodman today announced $170 million over three years (from FY 07-09) for cost-shared, public-private partnerships to advance solar energy technology. This solicitation is part of President Bushs Solar America Initiative (SAI), an integral part of the Presidents commitment to diversify our energy resources through grants, incentives and tax credits. The SAI aims to bring down the cost of solar energy systems to make them competitive with conventional electricity sources in the U.S. by 2015. The goal of the projects funded by the solicitation is to reduce photovoltaic (PV) costs from 13-22 cents/kWh today, to 9-18 cents/kWh by 2010, on track with the SAI goals. This investment is a major step in our mission to bring more clean, renewable solar power to the nation, Secretary Bodman said. If we are able to harness more of the suns power and use it to provide energy to homes and businesses, we can increase our energy diversity and strengthen our nations energy security. I am hopeful that this funding will help reinvigorate innovation in photovoltaic technology that will lead to an expansion in the use of solar energy in this country and the world. The $170 million SAI Photovoltaic Systems R&D Technology Pathway Partnerships (TPP) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will focus on development, testing, demonstration, validation, and deployment of new PV components, systems and manufacturing equipment. TPPs will be industry-led and may include one or more companies, universities, national laboratories, and/or non-governmental organizations. Because DOE is requiring that the industry-led teams match their awards dollar for dollar, a total investment of $340 million will be realized when the private cost share is included. The prime recipient of DOE awards under this FOA must be a U.S. commercial entity with current or planned U.S. manufacturing capacity. An applicant may be a prime recipient on one award, and may also participate as a sub-recipient partner on multiple awards. The Bush Administration has made significant progress in PV over the past five years. The cost of PV generated electricity has been reduced by over 20 percent and the U.S. PV industry has doubled in size during that time. In his recent State of the Union address, President Bush announced the Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI), which seeks to reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy. To achieve this objective, the AEI includes a 22-percent increase in funding for clean energy technology research at DOE. As part of the AEI, the Presidents FY 2007 budget requests $148 million for the Solar America Initiative, a $65 million, 78% increase from FY 2006, to accelerate the development of semiconductor materials that convert sunlight directly to electricity. The $170 million solicitation, subject to Congressional appropriations, will fund projects in each of the following categories: Systems Class Projects: These larger projects will address multiple technology improvements in PV system and component design, integration, and installation. Teams will be expected to deliver full turnkey systems for testing, and will be expected to conduct pilot-scale manufacturing demonstrations. Per project, annual DOE funding will be up to $10 million per year plus a 50 percent minimum cost share, for a total project value of up to $20 million per year. Between four and ten selections are expected. Subsystems Class Projects: These smaller projects will focus on fewer technology developments on specific components or manufacturing equipment. Teams will be expected to deliver new components for testing, and will be expected to conduct pilot-scale manufacturing demonstrations. Per project, annual DOE funding will be up to $4 million per year plus a 50 percent minimum cost share, for a total project value of up to $8 million per year. Between ten and 15 selections are expected. More information on the solicitation and facts about the Solar America Initiative can be found at: . In addition to the Presidents goal of reducing our dependence on foreign oil, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, signed by the President nearly a year ago, provides incentives for purchasing and using solar equipment. Through 2007, EPAct provides a credit equal to 30 percent of qualifying expenditures for purchase of commercial solar installations, with no cap on the total credit allowed. EPAct also provides a 30 percent tax credit for qualified PV property and solar water heating property used exclusively for purposes other than heating swimming pools and hot tubs. Private property owners are allowed a credit up to $2,000 for either property, with a maximum of $4,000 allowed, if both photovoltaic and solar hot water properties are installed. Media contact(s): Craig Stevens, (202) 586-4940 [ ] U.S. Department of Energy | 1000 Independence Ave., SW | Washington, DC 20585 1-800-dial-DOE | f/202-586-4403 | ***************************************************************** 80 SF New Mexican: Two Los Alamos employees injured Wed Jun 28, 2006 6:13 pm By ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ALAMOS, N.M. (AP) - Los Alamos National Laboratory has suspended all hoisting and rigging operations after two subcontractor employees were injured Wednesday. The two workers were taken to Los Alamos Medical Center, said Jeff Berger, a spokesman for the nuclear weapons lab's manager Los Alamos National Security. Berger declined to provide the workers' names or their company. He said one of the workers was hospitalized and the other was expected to be released Wednesday after being treated. The employees were "conducting hoisting and rigging activities" in Technical Area 50, which contains the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility that handles low-level radioactive liquid waste generated at the lab. Berger declined to provide further details about what happened. The hoisting and rigging activities, such as working with cranes, are being suspended until the cause of the accident is better understood, he said. 2006, Santa Fe New Mexican, all rights reserved. Opinions ***************************************************************** 81 NT: RICHLAND: Hanford workers finish dirty job  wrecking plutonium incinerator TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA News Tribune, Tacoma, WA - Tuesday, June 27th, 2006 2:02 AM Workers at the Hanford nuclear reservation have completed demolition of a former plutonium incinerator, once one of the most contaminated buildings in that section of the site. From 1963 to 1972, the 232-Z Incinerator burned combustible material contaminated with plutonium. Plutonium ashes recovered from the process were then used to produce nuclear materials for national defense. The building was located in the Plutonium Finishing Plant complex, which produced two-thirds of the U.S. supply of plutonium for national defense between 1949 and 1990. While the incinerator building was small in stature  measuring approximately 2,100 square feet  it looms large in the history of this plant that was once a workhorse of the Cold War, Keith Klein of the Department of Energys Richland Operations office said in a statement released Monday. Workers spent two years removing contaminated equipment and debris from the building, and began tearing down the structure June 11. Under the Tri-Party Agreement, a cleanup pact signed by the state and federal governments, the U.S. Energy Department must demolish the building and remove debris by September. The agency expects to meet or beat that deadline, according to the statement. The Associated Press 1950 South State Street, Tacoma, Washington 98405 253-597-8742 Copyright 2006 Tacoma News, Inc. A subsidiary of The McClatchy Company ***************************************************************** 82 Tri-City Herald: Hanford vit plant funding restored Published Wednesday, June 28th, 2006 By Annette Cary, Herald staff writer A Senate subcommittee has approved full funding of $690 million for Hanford's vitrification plant next year, but not without criticism of project supervisors. The decision to provide full funding was made "despite poor execution, prolonged delays and engineering challenges" on the project, according to a statement from the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee. "It hasn't been easy, and there is still much work to be done, but getting $690 million for the project is a huge step in the right direction," subcommittee member Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said in a statement. The U.S. House approved $600 million for the Waste Treatment Plant to treat Hanford's radioactive wastes, and that amount will have to be reconciled with whatever final amount is approved by the full Senate. Most of the Senate subcommittee version of the Hanford budget matched the request made by the Bush administration for about $1.88 billion, up slightly from this year. However, Murray and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., also secured support for money to relocate a portion of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory campus and to operate the Volpentest HAMMER training center. The budget includes $10 million to allow national laboratory workers to be moved sooner into new buildings that will replace some of the lab and office space that is being used by nearly 1,000 workers at Hanford's 300 Area. The Department of Energy is tearing down all the buildings in the 300 Area just north of Richland, which is contaminated with radioactive and hazardous chemical materials. "This investment will help the Hanford cleanup proceed faster and at lower cost and will keep critical research jobs at PNNL at a new research campus of the future," Murray said. The House also supported more money for replacement buildings, agreeing to an additional $17 million. The administration's budget proposal included no money for HAMMER, which provides safety training for Hanford workers and for law enforcement and other emergency workers, some who travel across the country to train at the unique facility. The Senate budget includes $6 million for the center, while the House budget included $7.5 million. The House budget also included some other money not in the Senate budget. That included $500,000 for the preservation of Hanford's historic B Reactor, $20 million to develop technology for ground water contamination, and $20 million to help determine whether bulk vitrification is a viable alternative to treat some of Hanford's low-activity radioactive waste. However, overall the Senate budget for Hanford was higher thanks to full funding for Hanford's vitrification plant. Murray warned during a visit to the Tri-Cities at the end of May that money for the plant would be a tough sell this year in Congress. The latest estimate for the plant puts its cost at $11.55 billion without the contractor's fee -- which is more than double the $5.5 billion estimate from March 2003. In addition, the plant may not be operating until August 2019, eight years past its legally required startup date. The plant is being built to turn some of Hanford's worst wastes now held in aging underground tanks into a stable glass form for permanent disposal. But the first-of-a-kind project has run into problems in the past 18 months, including a need to increase the design standard for parts of the plant to withstand a potential severe earthquake. The Senate subcommittee also did not endorse the House position to shift oversight of the plant to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The House wants the NRC to conduct a safety review of the design and construction work completed and publish a safety evaluation report. The commission then would monitor DOE's implementation of the findings and provide ongoing oversight. Murray and Cantwell said they will continue to work to make sure the $690 million for the plant remains in the national energy and water budget as it moves through the appropriations process. "Securing this funding for the vitrification plant and ensuring that it's constructed and operated in a safe, effective and efficient manner is critical to Hanford cleanup," Cantwell said in a statement. The full Senate Appropriations Committee is expected to consider the budget Thursday. It will then go to the Senate floor for debate. 2006 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services ***************************************************************** 83 Olympian: $690 million for Hanford plant clears hurdle Olympia, Washington Today is Wednesday, June 28, 2006 By SHANNON DININNY The Associated Press YAKIMA A fiscal 2007 spending bill that passed a U.S. Senate subcommittee Tuesday includes $690 million toward construction of a waste treatment plant at the highly contaminated Hanford nuclear reservation. The vitrification plant is being built to convert millions of gallons of radioactive waste to glasslike logs for permanent disposal underground in a nuclear waste repository. The plant has long been considered the cornerstone of cleanup at the Hanford site in south-central Washington, but the project has been mired in cost overruns and delays. Earlier this month, the U.S. Energy Department released a new cost estimate for the project at $11.55 billion, far exceeding the $4.3 billion estimate when the contract was awarded to Bechtel National in 2000. The new estimate also delays the projected start of operations to 2019, far beyond the date of 2011 legally required under the Tri-Party Agreement, a cleanup pact signed by the state, Energy Department and Environmental Protection Agency. The new estimate depends on an annual appropriation of $690 million from Congress for the project, beginning in 2007. Securing this funding for the vitrification plant and ensuring that its constructed and operated in a safe, effective, and efficient manner is critical to Hanford cleanup, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said in a statement. I will keep working with my colleagues to make sure this funding stays in the final bill. The federal government must keep its moral and legal obligation to clean up the Hanford site, she said. The federal government created Hanford in the 1940s as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project to build the atomic bomb. Today, it is the nations most contaminated nuclear site, with cleanup costs expected to total as much as $60 billion. Join the TheOlympian.com 2006 The Olympian ***************************************************************** 84 CG: Piketon residents updated on progress of new conversion plant Chillicothe Gazette - www.chillicothegazette.com - Chillicothe, OH By JANELLE RUCKER Gazette Staff Writer PIKETON - Residents met with officials from the U.S. Department of Energy Tuesday at the OSU Endeavor Center to learn about the progress of work going on at the Depleted Uranium Hexafluoride Conversion Plant and, for some, to voice concerns about the work. Construction of the facility is 30 percent complete, said John McCoy, Uranium Disposition Services, LLC plant manager. The goal is to convert the DUF6 inventory, which at Portsmouth is 20,683 cylinders, to a more stable chemical form for beneficial reuse or disposal. They expect to complete that work in 18 years, McCoy said. He expects the facility to be complete by November and be in full operation in June 2008. DOE is also preparing to lease to United States Enrichment Corp. five buildings that are a part of the old gas centrifuge enrichment plant. The buildings were built in the 1970s, said Sandy Childers, public affairs officer for LATA/Parallax Portsmouth, LLC, but a centrifuge plant never got started. Now, USEC plans to start a commercial centrifuge enrichment program in the buildings. Under contract, USEC is cleaning out the facilities and are on track to be finished by August, said Wray Jordan, with USEC. Last July, LATA/Parallax Portsmouth, LLC, responsible for environmental cleanup at the site, removed 8,400 tons of radioactively contaminated scrap metal, said Paul Kreitz, LPP project manager. This year, nine of 14 inactive facilities were demolished and removed, including a gas ventilation stack, a storage building and an old sewage treatment plant. The rest are on schedule to be removed next year. There also has been work to clean a groundwater plume on the site, which could be completed by 2011. The public meetings are a part of DOE's commitment to the community to keep them informed and involved, said Bill Murphie, with the DOE Portsmouth/Paducah project office. The meetings usually occur once every six months, but the meeting prior to Tuesday's was almost a year ago, said resident Geoffrey Sea. While residents were interested in the progress of the numerous projects at the facility, they were more interested in getting their own questions answered. Sea led a few others in the room who were concerned about historical preservation in the area and what DOE was planning to balance the work with preservation concerns. "USEC has a tremendous siting problem," he said. "The site they picked is on one of the most sensitive archeological zones in country." Sea claims there is a Native American earthwork under the road that leads to the plant's main gate and that DOE is in violation of numerous preservation laws, including the National Historical Preservation Act, by not acknowledging it and doing nothing to preserve it. "It's a very important, unique earthwork," he said. "There's none like it in the state of Ohio. They don't want to tell anyone about it because it would throw the whole project into question." Murphie was unable to answer Sea's questions because he wasn't aware of the discovery of the earthworks and wasn't involved in studies concerning area preservation, he said. Violet Colley, who used to work at the plant as an electrician, asked many questions about the amount of hazardous materials at the facility and how they're being handled. Colley was not satisfied with the answers she received. "They don't really answer questions," she said. "We need to keep community pressure on them. Eventually, someone has to listen." Colley said her main concern is about the safety of the community and the employees at the plant, with a main focus on contamination. She doesn't understand why they're cleaning out hazardous materials from the former centrifuge enrichment plant, only to have more take its place. "The new one is not going to be any better than the old one," she said. Murphie told residents that they didn't come prepared to answer all the questions presented, but would look into getting some answers from their own department and other agencies. "When are we going to have all of the people in one room so we can stop getting the runaround year after year?" Colley asked. Officials promised to meet again in six months and plan to have more people on hand, including someone who can speak knowledgeably about the centrifuge plant, to answer questions. Contact Laura Schachter, U.S. Department of Energy Portsmouth/Paducah Project Affairs at (859) 219-4010 or the Public Affairs Office of LATA/Parallax Portsmouth, LLC at (740) 897-2336. (Rucker can be reached at 772-9372 or via e-mail at jrucker@nncogannett.com) Originally published June 28, 2006 Copyright 2006 Chillicothe Gazette ***************************************************************** 85 DOE: Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board, Paducah FR Doc E6-10182 [Federal Register: June 28, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 124)] [Notices] [Page 36764] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr28jn06-56] AGENCY: Department of Energy (DOE). ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), Paducah. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. No. 92-463, 86 Stat. 770) requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register. DATES: Thursday, July 20, 2006, 5:30 p.m.-9 p.m. ADDRESSES: 111 Memorial Drive, Barkley Centre, Paducah, Kentucky 42001. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William E. Murphie, Deputy Designated Federal Officer, Department of Energy Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office, 1017 Majestic Drive, Suite 200, Lexington, Kentucky 40513, (859) 219-4001. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose of the Board: The purpose of the Board is to make recommendations to DOE in the areas of environmental restoration, waste management and related activities. Tentative Agenda 5:30 p.m. Informal Discussion. 6 p.m. Call to Order. Introductions. Review of Agenda. Approval of June Minutes. 6:15 p.m. Deputy Designated Federal Officer's Comments. 6:35 p.m. Federal Coordinator's Comments. 6:40 p.m. Liaisons' Comments. 6:50 p.m. Public Comments and Questions. 7 p.m. Task Forces/Presentations. Site Management Plan. Paducah Remediation Services. Water Disposition/Water Quality Task Force. 8:00 p.m. Public Comments and Questions. 8:10 p.m. Break. 8:20 p.m. Administrative Issues. Preparation for August Presentation. Budget Review. Review of Work Plan. Review of Next Agenda. 8:30 p.m. Review of Action Items. 8:35 p.m. Subcommittee Report. Executive Committee. 8:50 p.m. Final Comments. 9 p.m. Adjourn. Public Participation: The meeting is open to the public. Written statements may be filed with the Board either before or after the meeting. Individuals who wish to make oral statements pertaining to agenda items should contact David Dollins at the address listed below or by telephone at (270) 441-6819. Requests must be received five days prior to the meeting and reasonable provision will be made to include the presentation in the agenda. The Deputy Designated Federal Officer is empowered to conduct the meeting in a fashion that will facilitate the orderly conduct of business. Individuals wishing to make public comment will be provided a maximum of five minutes to present their comments. Minutes: The minutes of this meeting will be available for public review and copying at the U.S. Department of Energy's Freedom of Information Public Reading Room, 1E-190, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday-Friday, except Federal holidays. Minutes will also be available at the Department of Energy's Environmental Information Center and Reading Room at 115 Memorial Drive, Barkley Centre, Paducah, Kentucky between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Monday through Friday or by writing to David Dollins, Department of Energy, Paducah Site Office, Post Office Box 1410, MS-103, Paducah, Kentucky 42001 or by calling him at (270) 441-6819. Issued at Washington, DC, on June 22, 2006. James N. Solit, Advisory Committee Management Officer. [FR Doc. E6-10182 Filed 6-27-06; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450-01-P ***************************************************************** 86 DOE: Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board, Hanford FR Doc E6-10183 [Federal Register: June 28, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 124)] [Notices] [Page 36764-36765] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr28jn06-57] AGENCY: Department of Energy. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), Hanford. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, 86 Stat. 770) requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register. DATES: Thursday, September 7, 2006, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Friday, September 8, 2006, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. ADDRESSES: Red Lion Hanford House, 802 George Washington Way, Richland, Washington 99352. Phone Number: (509) 946-7611. Fax Number: (509) 943- 8564. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erik Olds, Federal Coordinator, Department of Energy Richland Operations Office, 2440 Stevens Drive, P.O. Box 450, H6-60, Richland, WA 99352; Phone: (509) 376-8656; Fax: (509) 376-1214. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose of the Board: The purpose of the Board is to make recommendations to DOE in the areas of environmental restoration, waste management, and related activities. Tentative Agenda: Tri-Party Agreement Agencies Senior Managers' Annual Review and Update (U.S. Department of Energy, Office of River Protection and Richland Operations Office; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; and the Washington State Department of Ecology). Fiscal Year 2007 Hanford Advisory Board Priorities. Tutorial Part Two on the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant. Nominations for the new Hanford Advisory Board Chair. Training Session for Issue Managers. Discussion on Committee Leadership. Public Participation: The meeting is open to the public. Written statements may be filed with the Board either before or after the meeting. Individuals who wish to make oral statements pertaining to agenda items should [[Page 36765]] contact Erik Olds' office at the address or telephone number listed above. Requests must be received five days prior to the meeting and reasonable provision will be made to include the presentation in the agenda. The Deputy Designated Federal Officer is empowered to conduct the meeting in a fashion that will facilitate the orderly conduct of business. Individuals wishing to make public comment will be provided a maximum of five minutes to present their comments. Minutes: The minutes of this meeting will be available for public review and copying at the U.S. Department of Energy's Freedom of Information Public Reading Room, 1E-190, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday-Friday, except Federal holidays. Minutes will also be available by writing to Erik Olds' office at the address or telephone number listed above. Issued at Washington, DC, on June 22, 2006. James N. Solit, Advisory Committee Management Officer. [FR Doc. E6-10183 Filed 6-27-06; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450-01-P ***************************************************************** 87 lamonitor.com: Panel boosts warhead; adds millions to LANL budget The Online News Source for Los Alamos ROGER SNODGRASS, roger@lamonitor.com, Monitor Assistant Editor A Senate appropriations subcommittee added $35 million to the pot for the Reliable Replacement Warhead and $50 million over the administration's budget request for environmental cleanup at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A $31 billion energy and water funding bill for the next fiscal year, led by subcommittee Chairman Sen. Pete Domenici, R-NM, came out $1.25 billion ahead of the President's proposal in a mark-up session Tuesday. The full committee meets Thursday. In an announcement summarizing the allocations, Domenici said the increases took into account a flat budget for the Department of Energy, despite the addition of new initiatives, including a number of energy projects that he has promoted. "Our challenge has been to find the best configuration of resources to advance the Energy Department's national security mission, as well as its new directives to advance technologies that will make us less dependent of foreign energy sources. I believe the bill we are advancing does that," Domenici said in a statement. New projects for DOE include the Advanced Energy Initiative, the President's plan to replace 75 percent of energy imports by the year 2025, and the American Competitiveness Initiative, a $6 billion infusion to stimulate science and engineering education and preparedness. Domenici supports the new programs but not at the expense of existing programs, like weatherization grants. On restoring $50 million cut by DOE from environmental clean-up funds at LANL, the Senate panel provides $141 million to support continued compliance with an environmental Consent Order with the state. The committee report language specifies that DOE, not LANL, would be responsible for paying any fines stemming from project delays. A House version of the bill cut $100 million from proposed construction on the Chemical and Metallurgy Research Replacement facility, a project that broke ground earlier this year adjoining the Plutonium Facility at Technical Area 55. The Senate mark calls for $112 million to support the construction project that was salvaged by Domenici late in the process last year. While the House appropriation bill made its approval of the department's plan for developing the Reliable Replace Warhead contingent on consolidation plans in the nuclear weapons complex, the Senate version provides a $35 million increase, to $62 million, Domenici's office reported. The increase would accelerate the RRW design activities and include $10 million to initiate a second design competition for a replacement to one or more of the current systems. In an opening statement to the subcommittee, Domenici made national news with a proposal to solve a problem concerning storage of spent nuclear fuel at commercial reactor sites. With the commissioning of Yucca Mountain as a long-term storage repository now having receded to 2018, Domenici has proposed what he called a "medium-term" solution. The idea is to authorize the Secretary of Energy to accept spent nuclear fuel at a federally owned facility for up to 25 years, by which time it would be recycled, under the fuel reprocessing project now being developed, or deposited at Yucca Mountain, which would presumably become available by that time. The Senate energy and water appropriation measure will face several more hurdles before it is ready for the President to sign, including full Senate debate and approval and another round of approval in both houses after a compromise has been reached between their two bills. In other developments related to LANL, Domenici called attention to the following items: + LANL Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility - $14.8 million for a facility upgrade; + Roadrunner Petawatt - $60 million in Advanced Simulation Computing funding to continue progress on the LANL quest for a supercomputer able to run at a sustained performance level of 1 petaflop, or a billion million computations per second. Domenici provided $35 million in FY2006 for this project, which could eventually have 2 petaflop capabilities; + Manhattan Project Site Preservation - $300,000 to support preservation of sites associated with the Manhattan Project. The subcommittee provided $250,000 for this work in FY2006; + Global Nuclear Energy Partnership - $10 million for the LANL CMR Wing 9 hot cells, and $5 million for LANSCE Materials Test Station; + LANSCE Engineering and Design - $7 million in Readiness in Technical Base and Facilities funding to initiate pre-engineering design work for LANL's LANCE facility, Nonproliferation Within the DOE Nonproliferation account, $10 million is provided for R at Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories; + Carbon Sequestration - $10 million, from within $90 million provided overall, for LANL to support collaborative carbon sequestration R. $1.5 million was provided to LANL in FY2006; + Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves - $2 million to LANL for an environmental impact assessment associated with oil shale and tar sands R and + Nuclear Detection R - $5 million for LANL in Nuclear Nonproliferation Detection and Verification R funding to support long-term research into chemical, biological and radiological detection. Overall the bill provides $282 million, up $14 million, for this work. Printed 6/28/06 2003 Los Alamos Monitor All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 88 Northwest Progressive Institute: Our Nuclear Legacy Read a Pacific Northwest, liberal perspective on world, national, and local politics. From majestic Redmond, Washington - the Northwest Progressive Institute Official Blog. Tuesday, June 27, 2006 Our Nuclear Legacy From the Executive Director: I am honored this evening to welcome a new member and contributor to our organization. A great progressive, Marylin Olds, has joined NPI as a Contributing Editor. This is her first post on the Official Blog, with many more to follow in the coming weeks and months. As a kid growing up in the Yakima Valley, a favorite way for us to survive the desert summers was to head to the Columbia River. At the time we had no idea how closely our lives came into contact with the world's most prolific plutonium production site, our own Hanford. Who among us noticed that the top-secret Manhattan Project had roosted in our own backyards years earlier? Folks knew less back then about radioactive waste. If the government understood more than we did, they didn't care. Nine plutonium production reactors were built along 51 miles of the Columbia so that its fresh cold water could more easily cool the highly toxic process. What happened to the contaminated river water afterwards? It was kept in holding tanks for six hours and then piped right back into the river. Hanford proudly supplied the plutonium core for the atomic numb in 1945 called "Fat Man". It was dropped over Nagasaki searing and disintegrating more than 115,000 men, women and children. The goal was to force Japan to their knees and end WWII. Nagasaki's destruction was a resounding success. The Cold War brought frantic mass production of plutonium, this time as a hypothetical deterrence to the Soviet Union in the form of nuclear weapons stockpiling. Hanford performed its part admirably, providing two-thirds of all American plutonium created. Today Congress and the Dept. of Energy (DOE) are treating the Hanford waste cleanup like an aging racehorse. When her chances looked good enough to bring her government glory, she was ridden hard and put away wet. Now that there's no glory left in the eyes of her government beholders, they try to pretend she doesn't exist. Sixty-seven confirmed leaks of toxic underground waste at Hanford have (years ago) leaked through the earth and reached ground water. Gravity is moving a one million gallon plume of radioactive toxins toward the Columbia River. In 1989, the Tri-Party Agreement was signed by the DOE, the EPA and the state Dept. of Ecology to legally establish Hanford cleanup timelines and guidelines. The DOE signed on as managers and agreed to clean up 99% of the waste. The DOE has shown their lack of commitment to the project by allowing substandard design and construction practices on the new vitrification plant. The vit plant is where the toxic waste will be melted with glass for supposedly safer storage. The DOE has used courtrooms to skirt actions and has even tried to re-label some toxic wastes as less harmful than they are currently labeled. Construction of the Hanford vit plant is now on hold at 30% completion since last summer because of earthquake design flaws. The plant cost estimate is now at $11.3 billion (triple the original estimate) and the projected start of operation is set at 2018 (a delay of seven years). The longer the cleanup takes, the more possible the toxic plume will reach the Columbia. Most of us have realized by this time that the DOE is more interested in new nuclear production plants than in getting yesterday's toxic catastrophes cleaned up according to its 1989 agreement. It's up to us to keep them in line. The Columbia is the lifeline of the entire Pacific Northwest. Fishing, farm irrigation, recreational use are all jeopardized. Congressional committees are showing a frustrated lack of enthusiasm at continuing the funding of Hanford's vit plant. The project could be deserted, even as our politicians are fighting fisticuffs for the money. Hanford remains the most contaminated site in North America. Will there ever be a technology allowing radioactive toxic waste to be safely stored? No one knows for sure. Until they do, why should we consider promoting new nuclear power sites? For more on Hanford, see such watchdog sites as: Heart of American Northwest, Hanford Watch, and the Government Accountability Project. #Posted by Marylin : 5:27 PM *****************************************************************