***************************************************************** 05/13/07 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 15.112 ***************************************************************** 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 IRNA: Iran nuclear diplomacy makes nations aware of energy crisis 2 IRIB PERSIAN NEWS: IAEA denies western media claims 3 Reuters: Cheney meets Saudi king, Iraq and Iran on agenda 4 Guardian Unlimited: Analysis: U.S. Balancing Act on Iran, 5 Korea Times: Another Nixon Shock? 6 Reuters: Historic Korean city wants future with nuclear dump 7 US: [NYTr] US Space First Strike Program Well Underway 8 US: antiwar.com: Tenet's Greatest Sins - 9 DAILY YOMIURI: Govt may use anime to promote N-message 10 Haaretz: Peres biography: Israel, France had secret pact to produce NUCLEAR REACTORS 11 US: [NYTr] TVA Nuke: We Didn't Need It The First Time 12 Guardian Unlimited: Comment is free | The spectre of Chernobyl 13 US: Palm Beach Post: Revisit the nuclear power option to save the pl 14 US: PoughkeepsieJournal.com: Indian Point officials to check sewers 15 US: Rutland Herald: Vernon plant shuts down for refueling 16 US: Independent: The generation gap widens as new reactors are put o 17 US: Burlington Free Press: Veto-vulnerable energy bill passes 18 US: Burlington Free Press: You Rate It: Vermont Yankee 19 US: Brattleboro Reformer: VY to shut down for refueling, maintenance 20 US: Report: Company Distancing Itself From Damage At Nuclear Plant - 21 US: Dallas Business Journal: The case for nuclear power - 22 AFP: India-US nuclear deal faces legal hurdle - 23 NEWS.com.au: Ziggy predicts nuclear power in 20 years | 24 US: New Haven Register: After nukes 25 US: News-Herald: Nuclear power full of positives, negatives 26 News & Star: Ten seconds to bring nuclear power down 27 Guardian Unlimited: British Gas seeks to be part of new nuclear gene NUCLEAR SECURITY 28 Journal Gazette: Train now to halt mistakes in real crisis 29 US: Seattle Times Newspaper: Port safety screeners tackle moving tar NUCLEAR SAFETY 30 Guardian Unlimited: Family urges public inquiry over Sellafield 31 US: Manawatu Standard: Massey tests confirm nuke veterans' genetic d 32 US: WP: Thousands of Nuclear Arms Workers See Cancer Claims Denied o 33 US: Carlsbad Current-Argus: Time to support nuclear workers 34 US: KnoxNews: Beryllium sensitivity on rise 35 Magharebia.com: Algeria takes precautions against nuclear accidents 36 US: UPI: 60 percent of nuclear cancer cases denied 37 US: HN: Exposure To Depleted Uranium From Military Action May Pose H 38 Radio New Zealand News: Radiated veterans await DNA test results 39 Guardian Unlimited: Daughter calls for inquiry after discovery of bo NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 40 US: Economic Times: Heavy duty action ahead with uranium at play-Big 41 US: The Enquirer: Rep. Jean Schmidt introduces bill on nuke waste 42 US: Chillicothe Gazette: Bill bans dumping waste at Piketon 43 Yorkshire Post Business: Forgemasters lands £60m nuclear deal 44 US: CCA: Accident involving WIPP transport results in no radiation l 45 US: Daily Echo: Chemical Scare After Canister Find 46 Scotsman.com: Nuclear groups wooing Centrica 47 US: Mineweb: 23 permits granted to explore for Niger uranium 48 US: KFDA: Authorities: No damage in crash with WIPP truck 49 US: Reuters: Uranium exploration firms flock to Niger desert 50 US: Reuters: Uranium exploration firms flock to Niger desert PEACE 51 The Observer: Eviction threat at Faslane as locals go to war US DEPT. OF ENERGY 52 [v911t] NICHOLS - More lies from Livermore nuclear weapons lab 53 ajc.com: Lab studying S.C. nuke plant to close | 54 Indybay: NICHOLS: More lies from Livermore nuclear weapons lab 55 Tennessean: ORNL's powerful isotope reactor to be restarted - 56 KnoxNews: ORNL reactor gets OK to restart 57 ContraCostaTimes.com: Tell Tauscher no new weapons 58 LocalNews8.com: Radioactive Package Delivered To Idaho Falls Home 59 NewsChannel6: INL History Tour ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** FULL NEWS STORIES ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** 1 IRNA: Iran nuclear diplomacy makes nations aware of energy crisis : ambassador - Irna Tokyo, May 12, IRNA Iranian ambassador to Japan said on Saturday that Iran's nuclear diplomacy has achieved a great deal in creating awareness among nations about the energy crisis. Mohsen Talaie further told IRNA that no international figure can overlook this great achievement. Noting that Iran's nuclear diplomacy has always had various achievements, he said that given its historical background and credible membership in the Non-Proliferate Treaty (NPT), Iran is entitled to make use of peaceful nuclear energy, and its statesmen have constantly supported the legitimate right of the nation to this technology. "Iran is transparently trying to develop its civilian nuclear program while ensuring its scientific and technological rights in the international arena," he added. The efforts are beneficial for both developing countries and the international community to inform them of their rights to meet their energy demands, he noted. According to the ambassador, countries will face crisis in meeting their energy needs because fossil fuels will one day be depleted. He added that peaceful use of nuclear energy and production of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) should be made distinct from each other and this calls for further transparency since it is looked upon as a 'taboo'. Every country, seeking to use nuclear energy independently, has faced allegations that it is pursuing nuclear technology to produce WMDs, he noted. "Crisis of energy shortage in years after 2015 is a serious dilemma which should urge all countries to consider nuclear energy as a major source to meet future energy demands," he said. "Given the lack of attention to the upcoming energy crisis, developing countries will turn into 'victims' in the next era." Referring to emerging international awareness about the importance of nuclear energy, he added that world nations overwhelmingly support Iran's rights to access peaceful nuclear technology. "The legitimacy of Iranians' nuclear activities is indisputable, because world countries are aware of the importance of nuclear energy in the future," he said. AN/2322/1412 ***************************************************************** 2 IRIB PERSIAN NEWS: IAEA denies western media claims 2007/05/12 The UN's nuclear watchdog denied on Friday a report that the Islamic Republic of Iran had blocked its inspectors from visiting its nuclear facilities. "There is no truth to media reports claiming that the IAEA was not able to get access to Natanz," said International Atomic Energy Agency Spokesman Marc Vidricaire. "We have not been denied access at any time, including in the past few weeks. Normally we do not comment on such reports but this time we felt we had to clarify the matter," he said. Iran's Ambassador to the IAEA also denied the reports. Last year, Iran held up some inspection visits to Natanz, but access was eventually restored, diplomats familiar with IAEA operations said at the time. I.R. of Iran has repeatedly stressed that it seeks only nuclear-generated electricity, not atomic weapons as some Western countries baselessly claim. sam Copyright 2004, All Rights Reserved By Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting News Network Sponsored By IRIB News Computer Center. E-Mail: Info@IRIBNEWS.ir ***************************************************************** 3 Reuters: Cheney meets Saudi king, Iraq and Iran on agenda Sat May 12, 2007 4:03PM EDT Iran says won't bow to sanctions over atomic work RIYADH (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney arrived on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. ally which has grown cold on Washington's Iraq policy, for talks with King Abdullah expected to discuss Iran's growing power. Cheney, who arrived in Saudi Arabia from the United Arab Emirates where he visited a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Gulf, has said Iran would top his talks with Arab leaders during his regional visit. Saudi television showed King Abdullah receiving Cheney in the desert town of Tabuk in the far north of Saudi Arabia. Cheney was due to leave later on Saturday for Cairo. He said on Friday the heightened U.S. military presence in the Gulf demonstrated Washington's resolve in a standoff with Iran over Tehran's nuclear plans. Saudi Arabia shares U.S. concerns about Iran's nuclear program, which the Shi'ite power says is only for civilian purposes. But Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies Egypt and Jordan want Washington to press Iraq's Shi'ite-led government into a new political deal with Sunni Muslims and are concerned about U.S. troops leaving Iraq before such an agreement. Washington wants Arab countries to do more to help stabilize the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Cheney's trip follows on from last week's conference on Iraq at the Egyptian resort of Sharm al-Sheikh. © Reuters 2007. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 4 Guardian Unlimited: Analysis: U.S. Balancing Act on Iran, From the Associated Press Sunday May 13, 2007 7:31 PM By TOM RAUM Associated Press Writer CAIRO (AP) - The prospect of direct U.S.-Iranian talks on Iraq represents an important shift in relations between the two adversaries. The development comes during Vice President Dick Cheney's visit to the region, where he is trying to convince moderate Arab states that the U.S. will stand firm against Tehran's encroachment. He also is seeking to build support for the delicate Iraqi government. Cheney is only one part of a U.S. tag team. The second member, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, seems to be playing on the other side of the street. The vice president has emphasized a hard line on Iran over the past week in stops in moderate Arab nations and talks to U.S. troops in Iraq and on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf. He has urged Arab countries to do more to help stabilize the Iraqi government and hinted that Washington would work to keep Iran from dominating the region. Rice is leading a countervailing effort to reach out to Iran despite serious doubts whether there is anyone willing to reach back. The two tracks crossed on Sunday. Iran's official news agency reported that the U.S. sought face-to-face meetings in Baghdad with the Iranians to discuss security in Iraq - and that Tehran would accept. Cheney's spokeswoman said after the vice president's meeting in Cairo with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak that the U.S. was willing to talk to Iran if the discussions just deal with Iraq and were held at the ``ambassadorial level.'' It is the first time Tehran has gone for the offer. But spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride noted that the idea of such talks had been floated before, in what the State Department is calling the ``Baghdad channel.'' White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe later said the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, would meet with Iranian in Baghdad in the next few weeks. ``The president authorized this channel because we must take every step possible to stabilize Iraq and reduce the risk to our troops even as our military continue to act against hostile Iranian-backed activity in Iraq,'' Johndroe said while traveling with President Bush in Virginia. At the State Department, spokesman Sean McCormack said, ``This is the same channel that has been open to both sides for some time. ... But it hasn't been used before in its most formal sense.'' Little by little, the administration seems to be bowing to political pressure and accepting a recommendation of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group to do more diplomatically to engage Iran and Syria. ``I was heartened to see that the United States and Iran are finally, evidently, going to sit down and talk. I've been calling for engagement with Iran for four years,'' said Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, the second-ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. ``Iran is not going to do us any favors, but it's in their interest to find some common denominators here,'' Hagel said on ``Face the Nation'' on CBS. Rice is seeking to build on a recent regional conference on Iraq that she attended with diplomats from Syria and Iran. The meeting, aimed at achieving a consensus to stabilize Iraq, did not produce the breakthrough for which Rice and others had hoped. The secretary promised the Iraqis the U.S. would follow up in trying to engage Iran and Syria and she did not rule out talks in the future at her level. The upcoming Baghdad meeting can be seen as an intermediate step. ``One needs to be very careful about confusing dialogue with progress,'' said Anthony H. Cordesman, a Middle East expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. He said huge differences remain - on nuclear weapons and long-range missiles, Iran's growing military capability and its role in Lebanon. ``There is no meaningful prospect for a `grand bargain,' in spite of some well-meaning voices,'' Cordesman said. Some Arab states are concerned about predominantly Shiite Iran's recent efforts to extend its influence, not only in Shiite-majority Iraq but among other neighbors with large Shiite populations. In his travels, Cheney sought to reassure states such as Saudi Arabia, which is predominantly Sunni, and the moderate United Arab Emirates that the U.S. would serve as a counterbalance to ambitious Iran. He pledged that ``we'll keep the sea lanes open'' and said the U.S. would join with allies to keep Iran ``from gaining nuclear weapons and dominating this region.'' Cheney has emphasized links between Iran and sophisticated roadside bombs used to kill U.S. troops in Iraq. Yet while Cheney was warmly received by Emirates leaders Saturday, Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Abu Dhabi on Sunday to great fanfare. Aaron David Miller, a former State Department adviser on Mideast issues to both Republican and Democratic administrations, said the diplomatic dance between Washington and Tehran is a difficult and high-stakes one, especially for Saudi Arabia. ``The Saudis understand that if we end up with a crisis with Iran, either because the Israelis or the Americans use military force, that they're going to be extremely vulnerable to Iranian retaliation - particularly if the Israelis use Iraqi, Saudi or Jordanian air space, which they would have to,'' Miller said. Karim Sadjadpour, an expert on Iran at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, said expectations should be ``modest, given the depth of mutual mistrust and ill will which currently exists.'' Interestingly, on Sunday, it was Cheney's staff - not the White House or State Department - that offered the first official confirmation of the upcoming talks. That appeared to reassure some top Republicans. ``Well, the vice president indicated as long as the discussions are about the Iraq security issue, the administration was comfortable with it. I don't see anything wrong with that. I think the Iranians are part of the problem in Iraq. To the extent that they want to discuss discontinuing that kind of mischievous behavior, I think that would be helpful,'' Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Senate's GOP leader, said on ``Late Edition'' on CNN. --- EDITOR'S NOTE - Tom Raum has covered national and international affairs for The Associated Press since 1973. --- Associated Press writers Anne Gearan, John Heilprin and Matthew Lee in Washington and Ben Feller in Jamestown, Va., contributed to this report. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007 ***************************************************************** 5 Korea Times: Another Nixon Shock? Opinion 05-12-2007 17:57 By Ralph A. Cossa President of Pacific Forum, Center for Strategic & Int¡¯l Studies The United States-Japan relationship is on solid ground and growing stronger by the day! As a result of their recent Camp David summit, U.S. President George W. Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo have become one another's new best friend _ perhaps not as close (yet) as Bush's ties with Abe's predecessor, but certainly close enough to allay a lot of the fears that have existed about the end of the ``special relationship¡¯¡¯ following Mr. Koizumi's departure from office last fall. So, why does everyone in Japan appear to be so nervous? Recent conversations with Japanese officials and leading scholars both in Tokyo and in the U.S. point to one central reason for rising apprehensions: fear of a new ``Nixon shock¡¯¡¯ _ the surprise 1972 rapprochement between China and the U.S. _ this time concerning North Korea. The fears grow out of events surrounding the Feb. 13 six-party talks ``breakthrough¡¯¡¯ agreement which included, from a Japanese perspective (although the Japanese are decidedly not alone in this opinion), a surprising about face by Washington in dealing with North Korea; specifically Washington's seeming willingness to turn a blind eye to Pyongyang's illicit money-laundering and counterfeiting activities, in order to cut a denuclearization deal. One can argue that the trade-off, if it works _ and we are still waiting for Pyongyang to live up to its end of the initial bargain _ will be worth it. But it was the process that has Tokyo concerned _ the suspected ``secret handshake¡¯¡¯ between U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill and his North Korean counterpart, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Gye-gwan, in Berlin in mid-January that apparently made the February deal possible. (Hill maintains that there was no deal made in Berlin, and he did proceed to Tokyo to brief his Japanese counterparts on his discussions, but I have met few Japanese who fully believe this.) Bold headlines in Japan at the time of the U.S. policy reversal shouted ``BETRAYAL.¡¯¡¯ Officials are not quite this hysterical but seem equally upset. Until February, Washington and Tokyo appeared in lock step when it came to dealing with Pyongyang. While Washington claims both still are, many in Tokyo are not so sure. Many worry, for instance, that Washington's emphasis on counter-proliferation _ keeping nuclear material out of the hands of terrorists _ may result in another secret handshake under which Pyongyang is allowed some ambiguity about its existing nuclear arsenal _ the possibility of one or two ``bombs in the basement¡¯¡¯ _ in return for its plutonium and uranium-based production capabilities and any fissile material extracted from spent fuel rods since 2003. While most Japanese understand that counter-proliferation is (and should be) the immediate concern, many feel that the ultimate goal of complete, verifiable, irreversible nuclear disarmament is not being sufficiently stressed. The fact that there is no reference in the Feb. 13 agreement to existing weapons magnifies this concern. One of Tokyo's biggest concerns is that the Feb. 13 agreement is not just about denuclearization. It also calls for normalization of relations between Washington and Pyongyang and between Tokyo and Pyongyang. Two independent sets of talks have commenced. Pyongyang's dialogue with Washington, while yet to achieve any real progress, has at least appeared constructive; it's dialogue with Tokyo most decidedly has not. While the two sets of talks _ and others aimed at denuclearization and at providing economic assistance to the North _ are to proceed independently, all must magically be concluded together. This has Tokyo very worried. If the other pieces suddenly all fall into place, Tokyo could find itself in a politically untenable situation. True, Pyongyang's foot dragging in living up to its initial obligations under the Feb. 13 agreement has eased Tokyo's concerns somewhat, but it has also raised apprehensions about further U.S. concessions to keep the process alive. Meanwhile, Ambassador Hill's unbridled optimism _ he still hopes the Feb. 13 agreement can be fully achieved by the end of the year _ sounds like a ticking clock to Tokyo, while raising concerns about new secret handshakes. Japanese officials believe that an ``understanding¡¯¡¯ exists today between Bush and Abe that no normalization of U.S. relations with North Korea will occur absent some ``resolution¡¯¡¯ of the abductee issue _ the disputed fate of Japanese citizens both confirmed and suspected to have been kidnapped by North Korea in the 1980s. North Korea claims the issue was resolved when it released the (by its account) sole surviving abductees. Tokyo suspects there are more and is demanding ``full accountability,¡¯¡¯ a politically charged and, if taken literally, unachievable milestone. Prime Minister Abe made his political reputation by standing tough on this issue. It was the demand for ``full accountability¡¯¡¯ that made normalization of relations between Washington and Hanoi impossible for several decades after the Vietnam War. Finally, and thanks largely to the effort of veterans like Senators John Kerry and former POW John McCain, the U.S. settled for ``full cooperation.¡¯¡¯ But there is no Kerry or McCain on the Japanese political horizon. Privately, Japanese officials acknowledge that they will ultimately be forced to settle for "significant progress" but acknowledge there is no agreement among Japanese policymakers as to what this would entail. More importantly, there is no common definition between Washington and Tokyo of what constitutes ``full cooperation¡¯¡¯ or ``significant progress.¡¯¡¯ It is (justifiably?) feared that the threshold may be considerably lower in a Bush administration that remains desperate for a foreign policy success than in a still hard-line Abe administration. If another ``Nixon shock¡¯¡¯ is to be avoided, Washington and Tokyo must agree today on a common definition of what constitutes sufficient progress on the abductee issue and this must be signaled to Pyongyang in no uncertain terms. A failure to do so could ultimately put the Feb. 13 agreement, or the alliance, or both, at risk. ***************************************************************** 6 Reuters: Historic Korean city wants future with nuclear dump Sun May 13, 2007 6:45AM EDT By Jon Herskovitz KYONGJU, South Korea (Reuters) - The ancient Korean capital of Kyongju's past is reflected in the royal burial mounds from over 1,000 years ago. Its future, by popular local acclaim, will be as the country's biggest nuclear waste dump. In an unusual plebiscite in 2005, South Korea dangled at least 300 billion won ($325 million) in aid and the promise of thousands of jobs to the area that would host the dump. Four cities applied. Kyongju won with nearly 90 percent of its voters saying they wanted an area that is home to dozens of World Cultural Heritage sites to eventually store nearly 800,000 barrels of radioactive waste. Residents were fed up with laws that protected relics for dwindling tourists, restricted development and kept out industry. "There was no other way for us to increase growth. The deal was the best we could get," said Lee Jin-ku, a city council member who helped lead the charge for the dump. Lee said up until the 1980s, the economy was vibrant with about 3 million tourists a year coming to see historic places of the Silla Dynasty, which started in 57 B.C, lasted for about 1,000 years and was the first kingdom to unify Korea. But passport restrictions that limited overseas travel a generation ago have gone and now only about 1 million tourists a year visit the ancient city. Some complain it is overpriced. Laws put firm limits on the types of buildings allowed in Kwongju and demand assurances that any unearthed relics will be protected. Continued... © Reuters 2007. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 7 [NYTr] US Space First Strike Program Well Underway Date: Sun, 13 May 2007 16:20:34 -0400 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit Global Network - May 13, 2007 U.S. SPACE FIRST STRIKE PROGRAM WELL UNDERWAY by Bruce K. Gagnon Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space In the House of Representatives last week Democratic Party Congress members lead the way to approve money for Star Wars research and development programs in the fiscal year 2008 budget. Rejecting the recommendations of a sub-committee, Representatives Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) and John Larson (D-CT) restored $150 million to Pentagon boost phase missile defense programs, $48 million for future missile defense systems, including space sensors, $12 million more for sea-based sensors and language to allow $160 million for a highly controversial European missile defense site. Joyfully cheering these moves to ensure continuation of space weapons research and development programs, a pro-space warfare organization called Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance (MDAA) reported in an email that, "This shift of priorities from last week's initial Strategic Subcommittee's markup shows a bipartisan movement accepted by a Democratic Majority to put forward systems to address future threats and to continue to invest into our countries most advanced boost phase missile defense system, the Air Borne Laser. " The MDAA is a very active proponent of space weapons technology development and is led by Riki Ellison, a former professional football player with the San Francisco 49ers. Ellison is particularly excited about the development of sea-based Aegis destroyers mounted with theatre missile defense systems that will be deployed in the Asian-Pacific region to surround China. The Pentagon recently announced they would soon begin to build a missile defense base on Guam, a U.S. military colony now undergoing major expansion with new runways for advanced bombers, new deployments of cruise missiles, and 8,000 new troops relocated from Japan. Activists in Guam have been undertaking major organizing efforts to get the U.S. out of their nation - the U.S. military now controls more than 1/3 of the island. Activists in Poland and the Czech Republic have also been very busy of late protesting the U.S. plan to put 10 missile defense interceptors in Poland and a new Star Wars radar facility in the Czech Republic. The Pentagon is saying these facilities would be used to protect Europe and the U.S. from a nuclear attack by Iran - which has no nuclear weapons today. But the truth is these bases, along with others planned in Georgia and Azerbaijan, will be used to tighten the military noose around Russia's neck as NATO and the U.S. military surround her. Following an International Conference against the Militarization of Europe last week in Prague, a statement was released by the participants. It said, in part, that "We voice our protest against the plans of the Bush administration to install a 'national missile defense system' for the U.S. on the territory of the Czech Republic and Poland . Most people in the Czech Republic and Poland, as well as in the rest of Europe, reject plans to host this system. We reject the official reasons given for the NMD project as mere pretexts." "The realisation of the U.S. plan will not lead to enhanced security. On the contrary - it will lead to new dangers and insecurities." "Although it is described as 'defensive', in reality it will allow the United States to attack other countries without fear of retaliation. It will also put 'host' countries on the front line in future U.S. wars." Disguised as "missile defense" the Pentagon's Star Wars program is all about offense and global control and domination. The planned deployments in Europe are just one more piece in the military space architecture that would give the U.S. "full spectrum dominance." Last October the Bush administration released its new National Space Policy that essentially gave the Pentagon a green light to move ahead with deployments of space war-fighting technologies. The Air Force Space Command's Strategic Master Plan: FY06 and Beyond says, "Air Force Space Command will deploy a new generation of responsive space access, prompt global strike, and space superiority capabilities.....Our vision calls for prompt global strike space systems with the capability to directly apply force from or through space against terrestrial targets." Russia and China understand that they are now viewed as the "enemy". A recent poll showed that 74% of the people in Russia have a "negative view of the U.S. missile defense system." On May 9 Russian President Vladimir Putin made a statement at a Victory Day parade on Red Square that left little doubt he was criticizing the United States for ''disrespect for human life, claims to global exclusiveness and dictate, just as it was in the time of the Third Reich.'' Following Putin's speech Sergei Markov, of the Moscow-based Institute for Political Research, expanded on the theme when he said, ''After the Cold War ended, the United States has initiated a new arms race,'' fueling nuclear ambitions of many nations worldwide. ''If a nation doesn't have nuclear weapons, it risks being bombed like Yugoslavia or Iraq,'' he said. ''And if it does have nuclear weapons like North Korea, it faces no such threat.'' Russia knows that U.S. deployments of missile defense systems are not intended to knock out Iranian nukes. Instead they are part of a U.S. first strike system now under development that is being supported by both Republican and Democrat party members of Congress. In a recent article Conn Hallinan, an analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus, writes "Anti-ballistic missile systems (ABM) have a dark secret: They are not supposed to stop all-out missile attacks, just mop up the few retaliatory enemy missiles that manage to survive a first strike. First strikes - called 'counterpoint' attacks in bloodless vocabulary of nuclear war - are a central component in U.S. nuclear doctrine." "If you are sitting in Moscow or Beijing and adding up the ABMs, the new warheads, and the growing ring of bases on your borders, you have little choice but to react. Imagine the U.S. response if the Russians and the Chinese were to deploy similar systems in Canada, Mexico and Cuba." A new arms race is well underway with the U.S., once again, leading the pack. The aggressive first strike space domination program stands to benefit the weapons industry and global corporations who are now moving to extract diminishing supplies of oil and other precious resources around the world. The cost will be further expansion of a militarized society in the U.S., cutbacks in social spending worldwide, and more instability for the people of the world. One key way to prevent this new arms race is to call upon the U.S. Congress to convert the growing military industrial complex to peaceful and environmentally sustainable production. Republicans and Democrats now support the expansion of the U.S. military empire. Both parties must be challenged to give up dreams of American exceptionalism and global dominance. In order to make this happen the peace movement worldwide must challenge the growing corporate domination of our governments. Bruce K. Gagnon Coordinator Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space PO Box 652 Brunswick, ME 04011 (207) 443-9502 http://www.space4peace.org globalnet@mindspring.com http://space4peace.blogspot.com (our blog) * ================================================================ .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 ================================================================ ***************************************************************** 8 antiwar.com: Tenet's Greatest Sins - by Gordon Prather May 12, 2007 There are sins of commission and sins of omission. George Tenet, former Director of Central Intelligence, has apparently decided to confess, several years after receiving the Medal of Freedom, to one or two of the latter. But in his book, At the Center of the Storm, he has, it appears, inadvertently confessed to a major sin of commission. The National Security Act of 1947 created the Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, making said DCI responsible for providing "timely, objective" intelligence "independent of political considerations" and "based upon all sources available to the intelligence community" to the President, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staffs and "where appropriate, to the Senate and House of Representatives" and the relevant committees. Beginning on September 9, 2002, Members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, began officially requesting DCI Tenet to produce for them a National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs. Why did Congress begin making those demands on beginning September 9? Well – as we now know, thanks to Walter Pincus and Barton Gellman at the Washington Post – the White House Iraq Group had been established in August by President Bush’s Chief of Staff in August, 2002, to essentially "market" to gullible consumers what was – as we now know, thanks to the Downing Street Memos – Bush’s impending war of aggression against Iraq. WHIG – which met weekly in the White House Situation Room – comprised included the President’s political advisor Karl Rove, the National Security Advisor Condi Rice, her deputy Stephen Hadley, Vice-President Cheney’s Chief of Staff Scooter Libby and various congressional and media relations flacks. WHIG reportedly "operated" out of the Vice President’s office. On August 26, 2002, Cheney declared that "We now know that Saddam has resumed his efforts to acquire nuclear weapons. Among other sources, we've gotten this from firsthand testimony from defectors, including Saddam's own son-in-law." According to Peter Eisner, WHIG had realized that the way to market the impending war to the American people was to focus on their fear of a "mushroom cloud." On September 7, Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair conferred at Camp David. On September 8, Michael Gordon and Judith Miller reported in the New York Times that Iraq "has embarked on a worldwide hunt for materials to make an atomic bomb." Not coincidently, WHIG launched that very day its "public relations campaign," featuring radio and TV appearances involving Cheney, Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, Condi Rice, Secretary of State Colin Powell and others, all citing the Gordon-Miller article and all warning about the danger of Saddam’s "smoking gun coming in the shape of a mushroom-shaped cloud." The next day, September 9, Congress began demanding that DCI Tenet provide them with timely, objective intelligence – "independent of political considerations" – and based upon "all sources available" to the intelligence community. On September 12, Bush addressed the UN General Assembly, claiming, among other things: "Today, Iraq continues to withhold important information about its nuclear program – weapons design, procurement logs, experiment data, an accounting of nuclear materials and documentation of foreign assistance. "Iraq employs capable nuclear scientists and technicians. "It retains physical infrastructure needed to build a nuclear weapon. "Iraq has made several attempts to buy high-strength aluminum tubes used to enrich uranium for a nuclear weapon. "Should Iraq acquire fissile material, it would be able to build a nuclear weapon within a year." Now, the NIE on Iraq’s WMD capabilities that Congress had just asked Tenet to prepare for them had not yet been prepared and would not be presented to them until October 9, 2002. So, who told Cheney that Saddam’s son-in-law had verified that Saddam had "resumed his efforts to acquire nuclear weapons"? And, who told Bush that Iraq "retains physical infrastructure needed to build a nuclear weapon" or was withholding "important information on weapons design, procurement logs, experiment data, an accounting of nuclear materials and documentation of foreign assistance"? Well, scroll back to 1995, when Tenet was Deputy Director of the CIA. General Hussein Kamel – Saddam's son-in-law – had just defected to Jordan carrying with him thousands of documents on Iraq's "weapons of mass destruction" program. Kameal was extensively interrogated by the CIA, and by Rolf Ekeus of the UN Special Commission and Maurizio Zifferero of the International Atomic Energy Agency Action Team on Iraq. By the time Tenet became DCI in 1997, the IAEA had determined that Kamel had told the truth in every detail. By 1995, "nothing remained" of Saddam’s nuclear, chemical and biological warfare weapons and/or infrastructure. Zifferero's interview notes were shared with the CIA and MI-6 at the time, but were not made public – "leaked" – until December of 2002. So, Tenet knew that Cheney’s inflammatory charge that -- because of Saddam’s son-in-law "testimony" – "we" know "Saddam had resumed his efforts to acquire nuclear weapons" was false. Furthermore, from the publicly available IAEA reports of 1997, 1998 and 1999 [.pdf], Tenet knew – everyone knew – that most of Bush’s inflammatory charges about Iraq’s nuclear programs were false, too. "The IAEA’s extensive verification activities in Iraq, since May 1991 have yielded a technically coherent picture of Iraq’s clandestine nuclear programme. "These verification activities have revealed no indication that Iraq possesses nuclear weapons or any meaningful amounts of weapon-usable nuclear material, or that Iraq has retained any practical capability (facilities or hardware) for the production of such material." But perhaps most important of all, the IAEA concluded that "There were no indications of significant discrepancies between the technically coherent picture that [IAEA] had evolved of Iraq’s clandestine nuclear weapons programme and the information contained in Iraq’s 'Full, Final and Complete Declaration.'" No significant discrepancies! But what about all that stuff that Bush claims the Iraqis are withholding? "Resolution of the few remaining questions and concerns ... would undoubtedly contribute to the confidence in the completeness of the technically coherent picture. However, Iraq has consistently stated that it is unable to provide any further information or documentation. "In this latter regard, Iraq states that much of the requested documentation never existed and that which did exist had been unilaterally destroyed by Iraq in 1991 and 1992. "The IAEA holds no credible information to confirm or refute Iraq’s statements." So, was the "Slam-Dunk" National Intelligence Estimate DCI Tenet provided a gullible Congress on October 9, 2002 – which formed the basis for Congress providing Bush authority to launch a pre-emptive attack on Iraq – "independent of political considerations"? And was his "Slam-Dunk" NIE based upon the "best intelligence available," – the final reports of the IAEA Action Team on Iraq and of the UN Special Commission on Iraq? Or was his "Slam-Dunk" NIE a sin of commission? Physicist James Gordon Prather has served as a policy implementing official for national security-related technical matters in the Federal Energy Agency, the Energy Research and Development Administration, the Department of Energy, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Army. Dr. Prather also served as legislative assistant for national security affairs to U.S. Sen. Henry Bellmon, R-Okla. -- ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee and member of the Senate Energy Committee and Appropriations Committee. Dr. Prather had earlier worked as a nuclear weapons physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California and Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico. Copyright 2007 Antiwar.com ***************************************************************** 9 DAILY YOMIURI: Govt may use anime to promote N-message The Foreign Ministry is considering utilizing Japanese manga and animation to underline the importance of nuclear disarmament. The ministry hopes young people throughout the world will understand the nonhumanitarian nature of nuclear weapons through Japanese pop culture, which has gained global popularity. Part of the ministry's first campaign was the distribution of an English edition of the manga "Barefoot Gen" by Keiji Nakazawa at a preparation committee for the conference to review the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, held recently in Vienna. The manga, which depicts the misery engendered by nuclear bombs, is a worldwide best seller. The ministry plans to distribute other such manga and display animation and computer graphics at international conferences. The Daily Yomiuri, The Yomiuri Shimbun © The Yomiuri Shimbun. ***************************************************************** 10 Haaretz: Peres biography: Israel, France had secret pact to produce nuclear weapons - web haaretz.com Last update - 14:22 09/05/2007 By Reuters Israel and France once made a secret deal to produce a nuclear bomb together, according to a new biography of Vice Premier Shimon Peres. The deal was later cancelled, but the disclosure in the book by historian Michael Bar-Zohar sheds new light on the depth of France's involvement in Israel's nuclear program. Bar-Zohar told Reuters his information came from recently released documents from Israeli and French government archives relating to the key role Peres, now 83, played in launching Israel's nuclear project more than half a century ago. The book divulges new details of how Peres served as a behind-the-scenes architect of Israel's military might, securing weapons secretly and buying an atomic reactor from France. The French embassy in Tel Aviv did not respond to requests from Reuters for comment. Experts believe Israel has used the Dimona reactor it built with French help in the 1960s to produce as many as 200 nuclear warheads. Israel neither confirms nor denies it has atomic weapons, saying only it will not be the first country to introduce them to the Middle East. The 500-page "Shimon Peres - The Biography", an English language edition of a Hebrew original which was recently released by Random House, recounts some new details of Peres' secret talks with Paris to seal the reactor deal. The most significant, experts say, is a secret agreement Peres signed in 1957 with then French Prime Minister Maurice Bourges-Maunoury in Paris, several months after the deal for the reactor was concluded. "It stated in so many words that the two nations would cooperate in research and production of nuclear weapons," the book says. France ultimately scrapped that agreement several years later under the weight of enormous United States diplomatic pressure for it to cease its nuclear cooperation with Israel. Still, experts find some historical significance in the mere fact the pact was made. "That they [the French] were ready to cooperate [with Israel] in the development of nuclear weapons is something very, very intimate in a political, diplomatic sense," said Avner Cohen, author of a 1998 book on the birth of Israel's nuclear program. "They were very deeply involved," he said. "The irony is of course that France in those days did what it did, and France of today is trying to prevent Iran from obtaining it [a nuclear potential]." The book goes on to discuss how Peres persevered against Israeli leaders such as Golda Meir who objected to launching a nuclear program, fearing the wrath of the West at a time when most refused to sell Israel weapons. France, which sold Israel its first jet warplanes, was closer to Israel than most of the West. Some French officials identified with Israel's conflict with the Arabs at that time, as France was battling an armed revolt against its rule in Algeria. A veteran writer and former lawmaker for the left-leaning Labor party once headed by Peres, Bar-Zohar said Peres had asked him to write the biography, and agreed to its publication without being shown an advance copy. Peres has praised the book and its author. © Copyright Haaretz. All rights reserved ***************************************************************** 11 [NYTr] TVA Nuke: We Didn't Need It The First Time Date: Sat, 12 May 2007 11:00:31 -0500 (CDT) Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit May 10, 2007 Tell the Tennessee Valley Authority: No New Nuclear Reactor Act Now: http://action.citizen.org/dia/organizationsORG/publiccitizen/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=11319 Dear Energy Activists, As you know, the nuclear power industry with a boost from the Bush administration is pushing for a nuclear rival. Nuclear power poses tremendous safety and environmental risks. And its resuscitation depends on taxpayer and ratepayer subsidies. In return, we inherent more deadly radioactive waste and put less investment in truly clean sources of renewable energy. Tell the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) not to pursue building an unnecessary reactor. TVA is currently reviewing impacts of a new reactor on the environment and people. This is our opportunity to voice our concerns and participate in the process that determines where our energy comes from. Sending our comments to TVA will alert the entire nuclear power industry to the fact that we do not want our energy generated from dangerous and polluting nuclear power. Thank you for you time and commitment to clean and safe energy. Sincerely, Allison Fisher Organizer Public Citizen's Energy Program * ================================================================ .NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems . Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us . .339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org .List Archives: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/ .Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr ================================================================ ***************************************************************** 12 Guardian Unlimited: Comment is free | The spectre of Chernobyl The public will accept new nuclear reactors only if they are reassured that disaster is unlikely Patrick Gray Monday May 14, 2007 The Chernobyl explosion and the subsequent fire that raged into the middle of May in 1986 sent a shockwave of fear around the globe, abruptly halting plans to build nuclear reactors. Twenty-one years on, with the search for environmentally friendly energy sources paramount, the prime minister has called for a new generation of nuclear power stations - a view echoed by last week's report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Far-reaching, honest debate on the lessons of the world's worst nuclear disaster can wait no longer. The dilemma is stark. The government aims to increase electricity from renewables from 2% of output to 20% by 2020. Meanwhile, by 2023 all but one of Britain's nuclear plants, which account for 19% of electricity production, are due to be decommissioned - cancelling out most of the reduction in carbon dioxide emission that the increase in renewables would cause. Nuclear power could close this gap. But if the effects of Chernobyl are as grave as campaigners suggest, the risks involved in building new reactors, even of greatly improved design, would be unacceptable. Thousands of books and articles have explored the accident, but no consensus has emerged. According to the World Nuclear Association, a total of 54 people died of exposure to radiation by 2004. The New York Post claimed 15,000 people died in the aftermath of the explosion, their bodies secretly dumped in mass graves. Greenpeace argues that 250,000 died or will die, while the UN specialist committee on radiation has predicted that Chernobyl will be responsible for 9,000 extra deaths. These disagreements partly result from a lack of scientific consensus on the long-term effects of low levels of radiation, but other factors are also important. A very large, but ill-defined, population was potentially affected in countries where epidemiology was poorly developed. Powerful vested interests became involved: the nuclear industry and, on the other side, five million individuals in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine who, by registering as "Victims of Chernobyl", became eligible for pensions and other benefits. The issues are complicated. A rise in recorded birth defects since 1986 in parts of Belarus affected by the accident has been taken to prove that Chernobyl radiation has had widespread genetic effects. But a similar pattern occurred in areas not significantly affected, suggesting that the rise may be a consequence of heightened awareness. Research must continue. The lives of those directly involved will continue to unfold over the next six or seven decades. But global warming will not wait. The time has surely come to attempt an authoritative assessment of the lessons of Chernobyl. The government should enlist a body such as the Royal Society to lead a searching inquiry. This should be grounded in the best science. It should be impartial and separate from the nuclear industry. It should address the whole range of public concerns. It should be led by specialists able to explain complex data and to help the public in comparing risks. It should assess how far it really is feasible to eliminate the possibility of a catastrophic accident in future reactors. The Swiss vote for the nuclear option in a 2003 referendum shows that, faced by global warming, approval is possible. But if science fails to lay the ghosts of Chernobyl and informed consent is not forthcoming, the government must abandon its plans to build nuclear reactors and seek other ways to reconcile the public's desire for rising living standards with a sustainable future. · Patrick Gray is a director of Oxford Policy Research and led a UN inquiry into the consequences of the Chernobyl accident. Patrick.Gray@talk21.com Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006. Registered in England and Wales. No. 908396 Registered office: Number 1 Scott Place, Manchester M3 3GG. ***************************************************************** 13 Palm Beach Post: Revisit the nuclear power option to save the planet Sunday, May 13, 2007 By JERRY LAVISH Nuclear power can be provided, and now on a competitive basis. In 1979, the cost of a barrel of oil was $22; today, it's $66, and rising. The Nuclear Engineering Institute reports that average electrical production cost in 2005 per kilowatt-hour for nuclear energy was 1.72 cents, for coal-fired plants 2.21 cents, for natural gas 7.71 cents and for oil 8.09 cents. Meanwhile, global warming threatens civilization. Glaciers are melting, our seas are becoming more acidic, and major events like Hurricane Katrina are more likely to occur. The Department of Energy reports that America, with only 4 percent of the world's population, consumes 25 percent of all the world's energy and accounts for 25''percent of pollution. Between 1990 to 2004, America's annual pollution rate increased by 17 percent. Nuclear power plants produce no controlled air pollutants, such as sulfur, or greenhouse gases. Use of nuclear energy helps to keep the air clean, preserve the Earth's climate, avoid ground-level ozone formation and prevent acid rain. As a Navy nuclear engineer with 40 years' experience, I would like to share some information with you. No question, Chernobyl in 1986 was a disaster. That reactor design, however, never would be licensed in America. In our design, when we lose coolant and the reactor heats up, the chain reaction slows down. In seconds, no additional heat from fission is added to the reactor. When the Chernobyl reactor lost coolant, it also heated up. But the chain reaction in the Soviet plant increased, adding increasingly more heat, leading to disaster. It was inexcusable that the Soviet reactor had no containment, used burnable materials inside the core, and provided inadequate emergency safety systems. Chernobyl, though, should be viewed as the product of a failed, incompetent Soviet regime, not representative of responsible reactor design. Ironically, the accident at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island reactor was a success. In every engineering venture, you test the device for failure to determine its safety margin. It would have been irresponsible for nuclear engineers to run that test. But at Three Mile Island, when we turned the reactor over to two poorly trained operators who did everything wrong, we got that test. What was the test result? No one died; no appreciable radiation escaped the containment area. After 28 years, there is no increased rate of cancer in the community around the reactor. The molten fuel did not melt through the 6-inch-thick vessel wall and go into our underground streams. The "China Syndrome" never happened because of our safe design margins. The independent commission that investigated the Three Mile Island accident reported that "human error" had converted minor equipment malfunctions into a severe accident. The most obvious and serious problem was that training requirements for reactor operators and supervisors were "inadequate" and "shallow." After the accident, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission strengthened our training requirements. In the past 28 years, we have not had a serious incident at any of the 103 nuclear plants operating in 31 states. Florida Power & Light operates four reactors, two on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County and two at Turkey Point in Miami-Dade County. Our nuclear Navy experience is more proof that reactors are safe. Since the submarine Nautilus was launched in 1954, our nuclear ships have traveled more than 150 million miles and circled the globe 40,000 times without a nuclear accident. Unlike the Soviets, we built margin into our reactors, ran our problems to ground until we knew their cause, and developed lessons learned. Since 1979, several countries have become heavily dependent upon reactors without incident. The Nuclear Engineering Institute reports that 79 percent of the electrical power in France is generated by nuclear plants. In South Korea, it's 45 percent. In Germany, it's 31 percent. In Japan, it's 30 percent. In the United States, it's only 18 percent. Copyright © 2007, The Palm Beach Post. All rights reserved. By using PalmBeachPost.com, you accept the terms of our visitor ***************************************************************** 14 PoughkeepsieJournal.com: Indian Point officials to check sewers Saturday, May 12, 2007 Tests aim to track level of isotopes BUCHANAN - Indian Point officials plan to search for traces of tritium and the more dangerous strontium 90 in the village's sewer system until they can determine how far the radioactive isotopes have traveled. The first set of test results from the most recent sampling at the Buchanan sewage treatment plant is expected next week. "Tritium results will come back first," said Jim Steets, a spokesman for Entergy Nuclear Northeast, which owns and operates Indian Point. "The strontium 90 results will take longer, so a few weeks after that." On Wednesday, the company confirmed an April 30 sample had turned up low levels tritium in the sewage effluent at an on-site pumping station near southwest corner of the 230-acre site. That test showed tritium in the sewage at a radiation concentration of 8,000 pico curies per liter - a fraction of the 10 million pico curies per liter allowed in sewage - and even below the 20,000 level allowed for safe drinking water. The first sewage samples to be tested for strontium were taken this week, and results are not expected until later this month. Officials: No threat County, state and federal regulators said there was no threat to public or worker safety because of the small amounts of tritium found. But the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the local officials want to know how radioactive material is making its way into a supposedly closed system. "This is another issue for their groundwater contamination and remediation program," said NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan. Steets said an Entergy laboratory onsite - in a preliminary evaluation of sewage samples taken Tuesday - showed tritium amount barely above detectible levels, Steets said. Sheehan confirmed that those readings were more on the order of 1,000 pico curies per liter. The tritium that has shown up in Indian Point's sewer lines was discovered because nuclear plant employees began monthly testing of the plant's sewage in October. Through the fall there were no signs tritium had made its way into the closed piping system, but as early as January officials started seeing trace amounts that had them paying closer attention to further tests. Entergy scientists wanted to make sure the results were accurate, and not an anomaly, before contacting the NRC and local officials. Follow-up tests showed varying levels of tritium, all below what the company is required to report. Company officials have said tritium is probably the safest thing in the effluent that is pumped from the nuclear plant to the village sewage treatment plant, but they opted to let local officials and the NRC know about the radiation because of the ongoing radiation leaks under Indian Point 1 and Indian Point 2. "The 8000 (pico curies) is what caused us to say something must be going on here," said Donald Mayer, in charge of the tritium and strontium 90 leak investigations for Entergy. "Even though we were well below the levels we agreed to with the village, because of all the interest from the general public, we made a decision to give a courtesy notification to the village." There's likely to be more interest with this latest development. In response to news reports about the tritium discovery in Indian Point's sewer pipes, the five local congressional representatives who have pushed for more oversight at the plant Thursday asked the Environmental Protection Agency "to investigate and remedy this potential health and environmental disaster." In a letter sent Thursday, Nita Lowey, D-Harrison, Eliot Engel, D-Bronx, John Hall, D-Dover, Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley, and Christopher Shays, R-Bridgeport, Conn., called on EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson to step in. "It is essential that the agency immediately investigate this danger and determine the extent of the contamination and the potential health impacts of these leaks," the group wrote. "Further delay is not an option." The environmental group Riverkeeper agreed. ====================================================================== No one is stupid enough to think that this is not a big problem or that there are bigger problems yet to be exposed. The emergency sirens don't work either. Not a good sign of things to come. We need nuclear energy as an alternative to fossil fuels. The three- fold benefit is a cleaner environment, energy at less cost, less dependence on oil. However, it has to be safe if it is going to be near poeple. It is scary there are problems at Indian Point after 20 years. Don't forget it was Rudolph Giuliani who several months ago told us Indian Point was safe. Somehow, I tend to doubt that is true. Entergy Nuclear Northeast has got to fix these problems. Look for other problems and fix them. I prefer the reality of safety to the perception of safety. A good publicist and political contributions to the right people doesn't do anything for my families safety. Posted: Sat May 12, 2007 6:48 am Copyright © 2007 PoughkeepsieJournal.com ***************************************************************** 15 Rutland Herald: Vernon plant shuts down for refueling Rutland Vermont News & Information May 12, 2007 Staff Report VERNON — Entergy Nuclear announced Friday that Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant would shut down this weekend for its regular refueling and maintenance outage. The Vernon reactor shuts down about every 18 months to replace one-third of its fuel rods, and do various maintenance jobs that can't be performed while the plant is operating. Entergy Nuclear has kept the shut down secret until the last minute for the past several outages, saying that in a competitive electric market the plant's shutdown would affect the price the company could get for its power on the spot market. The length of the shut down is also a closely-guarded secret. Work scheduled to be performed includes valve and pump motor replacements and switchyard work, as well as the refueling. About 800 additional specialty workers come to the Vernon plant at some point during the outage to perform various tasks, which the company stressed provides a boost to the local economy. Entergy Nuclear employs about 600 people in Vermont. © 2007 Rutland Herald ***************************************************************** 16 Independent: The generation gap widens as new reactors are put on hold - By Tim Webb Published: 13 May 2007 Plans to build new nuclear reactors to plug the looming gap in Britain's electricity generation will be delayed again by another round of wide-ranging consultation. The Government is concerned that it could face another legal challenge from pressure group Greenpeace if it does not consult properly over its Energy Review. Now nuclear companies have complained that, as a result, the Government is in effect "starting from scratch" on its plans for nuclear new build. It has also emerged that nuclear generator British Energy has approached Centrica, owner of British Gas, about being part of a consortium to build the new reactors. British Energy wants to sign long-term supply contracts for the power from any new reactors. Centrica signed a four-year deal with British Energy in 2003 to buy about a fifth of the electricity it needs to supply its own customers. British Energy wants Centrica, and other suppliers or energy-thirsty businesses such as manufacturers, to sign similar deals. Under this agreement, these companies could also take an equity stake in the reactors. Corus, the steel maker bought by Indian firm Tata Steel, is also thought to have been approached to consider a stake. These talks are at a very early stage. British Energy, which owns the sites most suitable for new build, wants companies interested in being part of a consortium to submit proposals by the end of the month. The Government had planned to publish its long-awaited Energy Review this week. Publication could now slip into June. Alongside the review, the Government will issue more consultations over nuclear power. This is after a High Court judge agreed in February with Greenpeace that the Government was pressing ahead with building more reactors without properly consulting over the move. The judge said that new discussions on the economics of new nuclear build, and how to store the resulting radioactive waste, were needed. Now the Government is planning to broaden these consultations to encompass the wider "principles" of whether more nuclear power is needed, to which companies will have to respond. The nuclear industry also fears that this new round of consultation will not be completed until early next year at the earliest. Vincent de Rivaz, chief executive of EDF Energy, has said he wants to get started on building more reactors by the end of the year so that the first would be up and running by 2017. © 2007 Independent News and Media Limited ***************************************************************** 17 Burlington Free Press: Veto-vulnerable energy bill passes burlingtonfreepress.com | Burlington, Vermont Published: Saturday, May 12, 2007 By Terri Hallenbeck Free Press Staff Writer MONTPELIER -- An energy bill that is the centerpiece of the Legislature's work this session cleared the House by more than enough votes Friday afternoon, but not with enough votes to clear a likely veto from the governor. Representatives bantered back and forth for about three hours, lauding the merits of energy efficiency and renewable energy, but disagreeing about the wisdom of a tax on the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant that would pay for the efficiency measures. They voted 85-61 for the bill, mostly along party lines. Gov. Jim Douglas wouldn't directly say Friday night whether he would veto the bill, but said, "I think everybody understands my view on raising taxes we don't need." "This Legislature has a unique opportunity," said Rep. Robert Dostis, D-Waterbury, chairman of the House Natural Resources and Energy Committee, in making a pitch for the legislation. "We can achieve greater energy independence, namely reducing dependence on foreign oil." Dostis also emphasized that the legislation would save Vermonters money on their heating bills and protect the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Those goals were not openly in contention on the House floor, but the details about how to achieve them were. In a morning Democratic caucus, members applauded work on the bill, with only minor dissent. Republicans were steadfast in their opposition. "We expected whatever we came up with, if it had revenue, we would have a battle on our hands," said Rep. Shap Smith, D-Morristown. "We have a battle." "We all want to save the world," said Rep. Joyce Errecart, R-Shelburne, vice chairwoman of the House Natural Resources and Energy Committee. "This bill raises taxes and spends money with little accountability and with little evidence of real results." Errecart took issue with an increased tax on Vermont Yankee's power generation that would bring in $25 million from 2009 to 2012 and with the details of the energy-efficiency program that the tax would pay for. The plan would tax Yankee's power generation at a rate of $.00225 per kilowatt-hour in 2009, $.0025 in 2010 and $.003 in 2011, the same rate at which wind power generations would be assessed. Supporters defended the legislation's potential for bringing savings on energy bills. Rep. Sarah Copeland-Hanzas, D-Bradford, whose family owns a furniture company, said the efficiency program would bring savings to businesses like theirs. Rep. Michael Mrowicki, D-Putney, said homeowners need the help, too. "Vermonters are getting hammered and they're looking to us for answers," he said. Entergy Corp., owner of the Vermont Yankee plant in Vernon, fought hard against the tax. Company spokesman Brian Cosgrove said he was relieved to win the backing of a few Democrats, an indication that the House lacks the votes to override a possible gubernatorial veto. "Getting over 60 was good," Cosgrove said. "I'm very pleased we got a good bipartisan vote even though we didn't win." Supporters of the legislation indicated some of the 61 who voted against the bill might be willing to vote to override the veto. Nonetheless, a veto override would be tough to pull off. Every Democrat, Progressive and independent would need to fall in line to reach 100 votes for a veto override against the 49 House Republicans. Rep. Chris Pearson, P-Burlington, who supports the legislation, criticized the Democratic majority for not doing a better job of selling its merits while allowing Douglas to focus on the tax. "The tax is one out of eight pieces of this legislation. The governor's been able to talk about one piece," he said. "I think this is really significant work," Pearson said. "It frustrates me that it's going to end up in the trash can." Contact Terri Hallenbeck at 229-4126 or thallenb@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com. Copyright ©2007 Burlingtonfreepress.com All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 18 Burlington Free Press: You Rate It: Vermont Yankee burlingtonfreepress.com | Burlington, Vermont Sunday, May 13, 2007 Published: Saturday, May 12, 2007 NAME: Vermont Yankee BACKGROUND: Vermont Yankee, the state's sole nuclear power plant, is back in the news. Senate President Pro Tempore Peter Shumlin has proposed taxes on the plant to pay for an expanded energy-efficiency utility designed to help reduce heating fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Vermont Yankee, whose operating license expires in 2012, supplies more than a third of the state's electric power. The plant's owner, Entergy Nuclear, is contracted to sell that power to Vermont through the life of the current license. Entergy has applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a 20-year extension of the Vermont Yankee's operating license. Shumlin, a Democrat from Windham, is on record as saying he would like to see the plant closed. Should Vermont Yankee's operating license be extended, and if not, where should Vermont seek the power to replace the nuclear plant's output and at what cost? PRO: Vermont Yankee proponents say the plant is a source of cheap, reliable power that cannot be easily replaced. The plant has an excellent safety record and produces no greenhouse gases when generating electricity. CON: Opponents say the mining and production of nuclear fuel produces plenty of greenhouse gases. They point to the consequences of a major release of radioactive material from the plant, either by accident or as the result of an attack. Spent nuclear fuel from the plant is stored in a cooling pool, described by the plant as "a heavily reinforced concrete structure filled with water that acts as a natural barrier to radiation and provides initial cooling to the fuel as its radioactivity decays." That pool is about full, and the Vermont Legislature has agreed to allow temporary storage above ground using a method called dry cask storage until the spent fuel can be shipped to a permanent storage site being built in Nevada. Many people worry about the security of the spent fuel from both natural and man-made disasters. WHERE: Vernon in Windham County on the west bank of the Connecticut River. CAPACITY: 650 megawatts EMPLOYMENT: More than 500 OWNER: Entergy Nuclear east, White Plains, N.Y., a part of Entergy Corp. based in New Orleans. Efficiency is cheapest option No -- Vermont Yankee should close. 1. Vermont Yankee made a deal with the state to run a nuclear reactor for 40 years in Vernon -- not 60, nor 80 years. Entergy should honor its deals. 2. While "producing no greenhouse gases while producing electricity" -- first, it does emit small amounts of radiation; second, before the production of the electricity, the fuel is enriched in a highly ozone-depleting manner powered by two 1,000-megawatt reactors. 3. The power is not cheap. The price of storing and protecting the radioactive waste for 100,000 years is not factored in among other costs. Nuclear is by far the most expensive electrical source. Lucky for them, because they are a utility, it is we ratepayers that get to pay their expenses. Not wasting electricity and developing efficiency is cheapest. GARY SACHS Brattleboro Efficiency info must be affordable I strongly feel that Vermont Yankee's license should not be renewed, based on the facts surrounding storage of the spent nuclear fuel, pollution generated by the plant, health risks, security implications surrounding nuclear fuel and the possibility of accidents, and the reality of using alternative and renewable forms of energy currently available. Our alternative sources consist of: Renewables: Solar, wind, bio, geothermal, and hydro, all of which will require serious national and local policy change to make this a reality for low- and middle-income wage earners. Citizens must lobby our officials as much, if not more than the lobbyists of small and large energy businesses such as Entergy. Reduction in use: Tracking energy use, demands of energy by appliances in one's home, and a reduction of use or replacement of energy-inefficient appliances can make a huge impact on our state and national consumption. Personally, I have restructured my own habits and consumption such that I've realized a 50 percent reduction in home energy use, as well as promoting an energy saving plan at my workplace, which aims at a 20 percent reduction in the next six months using simple steps that don't require a large amount of human energy to obtain. Education and awareness: Vermonters need a clear understanding of their energy choices and personal use. Efficiency Vermont, Vermont Energy Investment Corp., VPIRG, and many other agencies within the state currently provide that information, but it needs to be made available to people at every economic level. SEAN ZIGMUND Burlington Nuclear can wean us from bad habits Vermont Yankee, for all the right reasons, should be considered an environmental asset for Vermont. Keeping in mind that one must have good intentions, but operate within the real world, I absolutely believe it is essential that Vermont Yankee be allowed to operate 25 more years If Vermont Yankee is forced to shut down in five years and we are compelled to find electric power somewhere else, the source will more than likely be from a coal plant. While some people point to renewables such as wind and solar, I would think it unlikely one could economically develop 650 megawatts' worth in only five years' time. While safety concerns exist, they exist with all energy-producing facilities. One only has to think of a broken hydroelectric dam or a refinery fire to know that this is true. True, radioactive materials are of a special concern, but please keep in mind those radioactive hazards at Vermont Yankee, while somewhat reduced, will not disappear because the reactor has been shut off. The waste will continue to be stored there for many years to come, susceptible to accident and attack. The looming climate crisis is something all humanity will be forced to deal with much in the same manner that an individual must deal with issues of substance abuse. We are faced with breaking a habit, and then adjusting our lifestyle, or face an early demise. Vermont Yankee can act as a nicotine substitute helping to wean us off a more dangerous habit. Nuclear power as we know it and nicotine substitutes cannot be used as permanent solutions, but both can ease the transition and buy time. JAMES BOSEK Essex Junction Keep Vermont Yankee online From my home in Guilford, on a clear day, I can see the steam rising from the cooling system of Vermont Yankee. They are good neighbors and conscientious workers for clean energy. Were it not for the opposition activists, there would be no problem with accumulating nuclear waste -- it would be stashed underground at Yucca, not far from where the original uranium was mined out of the ground. That sounds like a healthy and useful life-cycle to me. Let's keep Vermont Yankee online. DAVE GARRECHT Guilford Nuclear waste jeopardizes future There are three very good reasons why Vermont Yankee should not be relicensed. 1. Nuclear power plants are dangerous. As long as there is human error, there will be Three Mile Islands and Chernobyls. 2. They are not carbon emission-free when you count the energy required to extract the nuclear fuel. 3. There is no place on earth where nuclear waste can be safely stored. By creating and attempting to store the waste, we are jeopardizing the future of generations to come. ALICE COOK BASSETT Shelburne Conservation over nuclear power I rate Vermont Yankee a zero. We need to shut down the aging Mark I GE Boiling Water reactors, including Vermont Yankee. Vermont is hosting a pre-deployed weapon of mass destruction that siphons millions of dollars out of state. It is unarguable that there exists a residual probability of an accident at Vermont Yankee, as well as a possibility of a terrorist attack. The results of an accident or attack would be horrific: hundreds of deaths, extensive uninhabitable land, the end of tourism, and decades of increased cancer rates. Vermont Yankee has a capacity of 650 megawatts, of which about half is used by Vermont. This 325 megawatts is about 1 percent of the generation capacity in New England. Since 1997, 9,300 megawatts of new generation capacity has been interconnected to the New England grid -- mostly efficient gas-fired generators. Later this month, Vermont Yankee will shut down for 20 to 40 days for a refueling outage. Hot, highly radioactive, spent fuel rods will be removed from the reactor and placed in an enclosed swimming pool seven stories above the ground. During this time, Vermont's lights will not go out. Instead, Green Mountain Power and Central Vermont Public Service will purchase power from the grid. This power will be from gas-fired plants, from hydro, from wind, and from other regional nuclear plants. This is exactly what will replace Vermont Yankee when it is shut down in 2012. The choice is simple: air conditioning and cheap toast against the low probability but catastrophic result of an accident or terrorist attack at Vermont Yankee. I prefer conservation over nuclear power, hands down. EVAN MULHOLLAND Royalton Use renewable energy, move away from nuclear I agree with Sen. Peter Shumlin in saying that Vermont Yankee should be closed, however, not before alternative sources of energy are available. Vermont Yankee should be taxed and the money generated should be used to fund clean alternative-energy projects. These may include wind turbines, small-scale solar energy projects, and crops. Wind turbines, when placed in strategic locations, can produce significant amounts of energy. One industrial-sized wind turbine can produce the same amount of energy as 1,500 small turbines. Solar panels placed on roofs can provide a considerable percentage of energy to the house. Crops such as hemp and switch grass also have the ability to provide a renewable energy source. Hemp, if made legal to grow in Vermont, could easily be used to make ethanol as well as replace many petroleum-based products (plastics, for example). Hemp out-produces corn in ethanol production 3 to 1, making it a far more efficient crop than corn. Switch grass is another plant that can be used to efficiently produce electricity. If these options are not able to replace the electricity provided by Vermont Yankee by 2012, the contract should be renewed. Whether it is in five years or 20 years, Vermont has the capability to use renewable energy as its main source of electricity and to move away from nuclear power. ROBIN HELMS Monkton Copyright ©2007 Burlingtonfreepress.com All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 19 Brattleboro Reformer: VY to shut down for refueling, maintenance BRATTLEBORO, VT By BOB AUDETTE, Reformer Staff Saturday, May 12 VERNON -- The Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant will be shut down starting this weekend to conduct refueling and regular maintenance. The plant closes every 18 months for the process and will not be producing electricity for several weeks, said Yankee spokesman Rob Williams. "The Vermont Yankee nuclear power station is completing its 26th operating cycle this weekend with the plant again proving itself a safe, reliable electricity supplier to New England consumers," Williams wrote in an e-mail to the media. There were no outages in this operating cycle, which began in November 2005, he added. The power plant is owned and operated by Entergy Nuclear. Maintenance work includes tests and inspections "on virtually all plant components, reactor refueling, valve and pump motor replacements and switchyard work." During the outage, Yankee staff will be supplemented by additional workers including Entergy employees from other nuclear plants, radiation protection technicians, engineers, inspectors, millwrights, electricians, pipefitters, boilermakers, welders, painters, equipment operators, insulators, carpenters and laborers. "The influx of maintenance workers on the plant's 18-month operating cycle and their associated taxes paid and local spending provides a major economic boost to the region," he wrote. The demand for electricity will be met by other power plants in New England, New York and Canada, said Ken McDonnell, spokesman for ISO New England, which operates the region's power grid and wholesale electric markets. An independent systems operator, ISO New England coordinates, controls and monitors the operation of the region's electrical power system "The grid in New England is built to move power from where it's available to where it's needed." said McDonnell. "There is sufficient capacity in the system to cover an outage such as this one. We plan for these kinds of outages." Bob Audette can be reached at raudette@reformer.com or 802-254-2311, ext. 273. ***************************************************************** 20 Report: Company Distancing Itself From Damage At Nuclear Plant - WEWS Cleveland Critics Call Out Company On Contradictory Information The owner of a nuclear power where an acid leak nearly ate through a steel lid on the reactor vessel is trying to distance itself from blame while fighting a $200 million insurance dispute, a newspaper reported Sunday. FirstEnergy Corp. paid a record $5.45 million fine from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and $28 million in civil penalties after acknowledging it failed to stop the leak at the Davis-Besse nuclear power plant near Toledo. The leak, discovered by investigators in 2002, was the most extensive corrosion ever seen at a U.S. nuclear reactor. It's not clear how close the plant was to an accident. The company now argues that corrosion ate through the steel lid so quickly -- in four months, not the previously accepted four years -- that normal inspections every two years couldn't have caught it, The Plain Dealer reported. FirstEnergy bases its switch on a new analysis it paid for, the newspaper said. The report by consulting engineers is based on new information, some of it from the government itself. Some industry observers said they're troubled by findings favorable to Akron-based FirstEnergy and what they said is a failure to take into account contradictory information. "I think -- and this is a personal opinion -- that some of the arguments presented in the report were selective," said Alex Marion, executive director of nuclear operations and engineering for the Nuclear Energy Institute, an industry trade group. The Davis-Besse plant was closed for two years after the damage was discovered but returned to full power in 2004. FirstEnergy spent $600 million making repairs and buying replacement power because of the shutdown. FirstEnergy's initial analysis of the leak, accepted by federal regulators, determined that cracks began as early as 1987, broke through a nozzle wall and began leaking between 1994 and 1996. The utility and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission agreed that workers would have found the growing hole years earlier if they had followed inspection rules and cleaned the boric acid piling up on the lid. Exponent Failure Analysis Associates, a consultant to FirstEnergy, now says the nozzle cracks formed much later and grew much faster than previously thought, The Plain Dealer reported. Most of the wasting-away took place after the last inspection, from October 2001 until the hole's discovery in February 2002. The nuclear regulatory agency has not decided whether it agrees with the new analysis. But the agency said its revamped reactor inspection routine should catch cracks and leaks long before corrosion could cause damage. "Even under the assumptions of the report that the large cavity could have formed in a few weeks, it would take approximately five years for cracks to become large enough to allow this amount of corrosion to occur," the agency said in a written response to questions from The Plain Dealer. FirstEnergy submitted the study in December to its insurer, Nuclear Electric Insurance Ltd., to bolster its claim that FirstEnergy bears no fault for the rust damage and deserves to collect $200 million. The matter is in arbitration. "Trying to predict the rates of degradation processes is one of the most challenging things for corrosion engineers," said Joe Payer, a Case Western Reserve University engineering professor and corrosion expert. "Knowledgeable, well-meaning people have come to different conclusions. You need more data." FirstEnergy said there is no contradiction between its past position on the rust hole's cause and the exoneration now provided by its consultant in the insurance dispute. Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. © 2007, Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. ***************************************************************** 21 Dallas Business Journal: The case for nuclear power - Building new nuclear plants makes the most sense for satisfying Texas' future power needs Dallas Business Journal - May 11, 2007 by Bernard L. Weinstein For decades, Texas has been the nation's fastest-growing large state, adding population and employment at a multiple of the national averages. The state has a current population of 23.5 million and an employment base of 10 million. According to the Texas Workforce Commission, just over 892,000 of these jobs were in the manufacturing sector, accounting for more than 9% of non-agricultural employment. The state is projected to grow to 40 million by 2030 and add nearly 5 million jobs. Implicit in these projections is an assumption that reliable and adequate supplies of electricity will be available at a reasonable cost. But by the end of the decade, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, electricity demand could well outstrip supply. Indeed, ERCOT projects Texas will need up to 48,000 megawatts of new power just to keep up with expected demand. Weinstein is a professor of applied economics and director of the Center for Economic Development and Research at the University of North Texas in Denton. © 2007 American City Business Journals, Inc. and its licensors. All ***************************************************************** 22 AFP: India-US nuclear deal faces legal hurdle - Sat May 12, 2:18 PM ET NEW DELHI (AFP) - India's Supreme Court is to hear a petition which says the country's landmark civilian nuclear deal with the United States could threaten national security, a report said Saturday. The suit, lodged on Friday in the Supreme Court, says there is an "immediate need to examine" the national security and sovereignty implications of the deal, the Press Trust of India reported. The petition, known as a "public interest litigation" or a suit filed for the protection of the public interest, was lodged by M.N. Ramamurthy, a metallurgist and a member of the Mumbai-based Forum for Integrated National Security. The pact, which would give India access to US civilian nuclear energy technology without requiring the Asian country to halt its atomic arms programme, is the centerpiece of the energy-hungry country's new relationship with Washington after decades of Cold War tensions. The petition demands the public release of the full texts of the proposed agreement and that the government refrain "from hurriedly executing any agreement" with United States until it can be examined by a committee appointed by the Supreme Court. Without such action, the consequences would be "serious and grave for the country," Ramamurthy said earlier this week. The nuclear pact was passed overwhelmingly by the US Congress in December despite some misgivings about India's refusal to sign a global test ban treaty. But differences have persisted, chiefly over a clause that says the United States would withdraw civil nuclear fuel supplies and equipment if India breaches its unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. Influential opposition Hindu nationalists and even communist allies of the Congress-led government argue the deal will compromise India's nuclear weapons programme. India has agreed as part of the deal to separate its civilian and military nuclear facilities and allow inspection of the civilian ones. But New Delhi is believed to oppose a clause that provides for US inspection of its nuclear facilities in case the International Atomic Energy Agency fails to do so. The deal, which still needs final US Congressional approval, has also hit another snag, with US senators piling pressure on New Delhi to keep its distance from Iran. US senators have objected to India's "exchange of visits between high-level officials, enhanced military ties, and negotiations of agreements to establish closer economic relations" with Iran. Copyright © 2007 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The ***************************************************************** 23 NEWS.com.au: Ziggy predicts nuclear power in 20 years | NEWS.com.au Network By Norrie Ross May 12, 2007 12:00am VICTORIA will have its first nuclear power station in 20 years, the head of the Federal Government's nuclear taskforce has predicted. Dr Ziggy Switkowski said eight nuclear power stations would be built in the state by the middle of the century. But Dr Switkowski said he believed a framework for carbon emissions trading would come first from the debate over climate change. "I think the decision to go nuclear can be made in the next few years and then you add 15 before you see the first reactors," he said yesterday. "We'll have eight in Victoria by 2050." Speaking to Rotarians at Sandown Racecourse Dr Switkowski said he could not predict the outcome of the Government's emissions trading taskforce. But he said carbon trading was a more pressing problem if deciding to go nuclear. "I know from an industry point of view that they are encouraging the development of a framework (carbon trading) in order to establish certainty in the rules," he said. Dr Switkowski told his audience Australia was such a small contributor to global warming that nothing we did would affect climate change. And the nuclear move would become viable only when a price was put on carbon emissions. He said putting a cost on emissions would also make alternative energy sources such as solar and wind power more viable. Copyright 2007 News Limited. All times AEST (GMT +10). ***************************************************************** 24 New Haven Register: After nukes Luther Turmelle and Abbe Smith, Register Staff 05/11/2007 The road leading to the decommissioned Connecticut Yankee power plant remains blocked with strict warnings of armed security personnel patrols. Arnold Gold/Register (Buy Register photos) -HADDAM ? It has been closed for more than a decade, but the end is near for the Connecticut Yankee nuclear power plant, at least as a federally licensed facility. Sometime this summer, the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission is expected to terminate the license for the 550-acre plant, said Bob Capstick, a spokesman for the consortium that owns the plant. Then, all that will remain on the property on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River is a storage facility, where 43 dry cask storage units of spent nuclear fuel are being kept until a national repository for nuclear waste is developed. Some in Haddam view the plant?s slow fade into history with some nostalgia. Seamus Danaher, who grew up in Haddam Neck, remembers hanging out near the power plant with friends as a kid. He said Connecticut Yankee was always a good neighbor to residents, even donating money and equipment to the Haddam Neck Volunteer Fire Department, where Danaher used to be a firefighter. He said the power plant, which began operating in 1968, kept taxes low in town and maintained a quiet, unobtrusive presence in Haddam Neck, which changed as the plant came tumbling down and the debris-filled dirt was carted away. "It?s louder now with all the construction trucks going in and out," Danaher said. The trucks are involved in grading projects on the site, one of the final steps before decommissioning becomes official. A contractor working for the NRC, the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, visited the Connecticut Yankee site late last month, said Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the NRC Northeast office in Philadelphia. ORISE performed surveys and took soil samples to verify that any radioactivity left at the site is within allowable levels, Sheehan said. In order for the NRC to give clearance for the Connecticut Yankee land to be used for any type of activity ? called "unrestricted release" ? radioactivity must be below 25 millirems per year, he said. "That is, a member of the public who stayed on the site for an entire year should not receive more than 25 millirems," Sheehan said. "The average American is exposed to about 360 millirems of radiation each year from natural and man-made sources." Connecticut?s limit is 19 millirems, he said. Until the NRC determines whether the Connecticut Yankee site can be released for unrestricted use, exactly what its future holds remains unclear. Connecticut Yankee has hired a consultant to determine the best possible use for the majority of the land, Capstick said. And Dennis Schain, a Department of Environmental Protection spokesman, said this week that the state agency has had preliminary discussions about purchasing the property. "It is so close to several state parks in the area," he said, adding: "It would be safe and suitable for recreational use once the decommissioning of the plant is completed." Connecticut is not alone in considering a former nuclear plant site for park land. Michigan officials announced last July that they were considering buying the 500-acre site that was formerly home to the Big Rock Point Nuclear Power Plant. The plant, which has a mile of shoreline on Lake Michigan, is located in the northernmost reaches of Michigan?s Lower Peninsula. Haddam First Selectman Tony Bondi said residents are split over what they would like to see happen with the land. He said open space or another generating plant ? or both ? would be welcome. One thing state and local officials don?t want to see the site become is a permanent storage facility for spent nuclear fuel. For the past year, Gov. M. Jodi Rell has been waging a campaign, along with other governors of states with nuclear plants, to persuade the federal government to honor its commitment to build a permanent waste storage facility in Nevada. The U.S. government established a fund in the early 1980s to build a centralized, permanent storage facility at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles north of Las Vegas. But the project has seen numerous construction delays and isn?t expected to be completed until 2017. Further complicating efforts to keep the Yucca Mountain plan moving forward is that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has vowed to block the multibillion-dollar project?s completion. All the gamesmanship between the state and federal governments has Bondi worried. "From the ?smell? we get, I?m going to have nuclear spent fuel over here in Haddam Neck for the next 20 to 30 years," he said. ©New Haven Register 2007 ***************************************************************** 25 News-Herald: Nuclear power full of positives, negatives Jeffrey L. Frischkorn JFrischkorn@News-Herald.com 05/12/2007 Editor's note: This is the second of a three-part series on the nuclear power industry. Do not do expect any pro-nuclear power plant advocate to blush when discussing the topic. "We are, by far, the nation's largest noncarbon power source. Seventy percent of all non-emitting sources of electricity - including solar, wind and hydroelectricity - is done by nuclear power," said Melanie Lyons, spokeswoman for the Nuclear Energy Institute. The NEI is the industry's spear point when it comes to lobbying on behalf of nuclear-generated electricity. Consequently, Lyons also says, nuclear-powered electricity is not an insignificant component of the nation's power supply. And this need is expected to grow by 45 percent over next 25 years, according to government figures, Lyons said. Lyons also said that what environmentalists fail to understand - or else do not acknowledge - is that the capacity factor for nuclear power plants is 91 percent, indicating unmatched reliability. As for Three Mile Island, this was a lesson well-learned, Lyons said. "That made everything a lot safer. There's a foundation of safety and reliability with nuclear power," Lyons said. Public opinion also "clearly demonstrates support" for nuclear power plants, Lyons said. Studies conducted by NEI indicate that 69 percent of adults nationwide - and 76 percent of residents living within 10 miles of a nuclear power plant - say a new reactor at that site would be acceptable. In all, about 80 percent of those surveyed believe nuclear energy will be important in meeting the nation's future electricity needs, the NEI says. "So the numbers are definitely there," Lyons said. "It's a very mature industry, having been around for 50 years." Opposing views But it might take the nuclear industry another 50 years to win over its many detractors. Environmentalists and scientists from anti-nuclear groups say the entire issue of nuclear power saving the world from greenhouse gases is overstated. They further contend that pro-nuclear energy supporters' claims that such power generation is emissions-free are a stretch. Simply because the rhetoric is there, doesn't mean it's true, says Jim Riccio, nuclear power specialist for Greenpeace International. "There's nothing to back up the claims," Riccio said. Riccio also said a recent Greenpeace report called "The Economics of Nuclear Power" found that nuclear power plant construction "can run up to 300 percent over budget and, on average, take four years longer to build than planned." And while a lot of attention has been directed at FirstEnergy's operation at Davis-Besse, less has been given to the Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Riccio also says. Which shouldn't be the case, Riccio says. "Perry has been problematic as well. There's been management screw-ups for one thing," Riccio said. This is why, Riccio says, every dollar spent on energy efficiency and renewable sources of electricity - such as wind and solar - goes seven to 10 times further in displacing global greenhouses gases than do dollars spent going nuclear. "The last nuclear power plant to be built in the country cost between $7 billion and $8 billion and took 23 years to build," Riccio said. Sunday: Part 3 of the series examines the future of nuclear power. ©The News-Herald 2007 ©2006 News-Herald- a Journal Register Property. All Rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 26 News & Star: Ten seconds to bring nuclear power down Published on 12/05/2007 Coming down: Steve Worrall, the cooling towers project manager FOR half a century they have served as a beacon of home to those living in their shadow. But in 10 short seconds, the four iconic cooling towers of the former Chapelcross nuclear power plant that dominate the Solway skyline will disappear. Four explosions will transform the landscape not only for those living in the likes of nearby Annan, but for thousands of Cumbrians who look out on to them every day. Each of the giant stacks – 295ft high and 250ft wide – can be seen clearly from the west Cumbrian coast and Northumbrian border. The massive operation has been two years in planning. Not only will it see the disappearance of an impressive engineering feat that lasted twice its anticipated lifetime but mark the end of an era as the first visible sign of the atom station’s shutdown. Workers from Dumfriesshire and Cumbria were among the 2,000 people who built the towers in the mid-1950s. Thousands more have worked at the plant since. Chapelcross site director Mike Travis, who was born in Carlisle and is a former pupil of Stanwix and Trinity schools, is well aware that the giant chimneys have been the station’s symbol and many will be sad to see them go. He said: “I think the feelings are mixed. A lot of people are sad. “Many have grown up under the shadow of these towers. They are a landmark from three counties – Dumfriesshire, Cumbria and Northumbria. “The majority of the workforce is local. They have mixed feelings but recognise we have to get on with decommissioning of the site. “There is a lot of work to be done in the next 12 to 15 years.†There had been calls from some quarters for the cooling towers to remain as a historical landmark. But Mr Travis, who began his nuclear industry career as a laboratory assistant at Chapelcross before going on to work at a number of other stations, including Sellafield, and returning to Annan for the top job in 2004, said this was not possible. He added: “Economically, people understand that there are ongoing maintenance tasks for these towers. “They are difficult to maintain. They are 50 years old – twice their estimated life.†Mr Travis added that explosive demolition was the safest way to bring the towers down and that it is safe for a nuclear site. Chapelcross still employs 460 permanent staff. Another 100 contractors currently work on the site. Dumfries and Galloway councillor Ronnie Ogilvie, of Annan, is among the workforce. He said: “They are 50 years old and I am 50. I have lived with them all my life and have worked there for 30 years. “I’ve mixed emotions. It is a landmark that is coming down, but we have got to move on. “The community feels we could keep them because they are part of Annan, but I was talking to an older fella who said there was outcry from people who said they would be an eyesore when they were built. “I have heard it said that they could be kept as a landmark, but there are all sorts of problems with trying to keep them. “The skyline will change forever. It is the end of an era. Hopefully the change is a good one.†Chapelcross, Scotland’s first commercial nuclear power plant and sister site to Calder Hall in west Cumbria, was built on the site of a World War Two training airfield. Its first reactor began producing electricity in February 1959. Within three months, all four reactors were operational. The station was officially opened in May 1959. It stopped producing electricity in 2004. At its peak, Chapelcross produced enough power to supply every home in Dumfries and Galloway, Cumbria and the Scottish Borders. The cooling towers’ demolition is just one phase in the massive operation to decommission the site, which will continue until a “care and maintenance†stage which is at least 12 years away. Among the projects currently being planned by engineers is the operation to get fuel out of the reactors, which will be shipped to Sellafield in west Cumbria this summer. Low-level waste will be taken to Drigg. Defuelling is expected to last until 2009/10. Rubble from the cooling towers will be recycled on the site and the space left by the structures could be used for other aspects of the site’s rundown. Trades unions hope the decommissioning of the current site will not end the area’s connections with power production and are already campaigning for a new-generation nuclear reactor to be built there. email CStory@cngroup.co.uk ***************************************************************** 27 Guardian Unlimited: British Gas seeks to be part of new nuclear generation Terry Macalister Monday May 14, 2007 Centrica, the parent group of British Gas, was last night trying to position itself at the heart of the nuclear debate by making clear to other power companies that it wants to be involved in a new generation of atomic power plants in the UK. The company, with a massive customer base but relatively few power plants, is likely to take a small equity stake in a nuclear consortium or help underwrite the cost by a commitment to buy electricity from these facilities, it was revealed. Centrica declined to comment but an industry source said: "Centrica has already held talks with British Energy about the construction of new plants and is expecting approaches from EDF and Areva of France on the same subject". The British group is still toying with the possibility of being an equity stake holder but is more likely to support another group of companies building plants by taking a certain volume of electricity through a long term supply contract as it already does with British Energy, he explained. The future of new nuclear remains in the balance as the government's energy white paper has been delayed by a challenge from Greenpeace. The environmental campaigners argued that Downing Street had failed to properly consult the nation. The energy white paper is expected to be published on May 24 at the earliest but could be pushed back. Despite this, ministers are convinced they will be able to seek business proposals for new stations before the end of this year. British Energy believes it is in a good position to be involved because it owns many of the ideal sites for building new reactors. It has already held talks with Centrica, Scottish & Southern Energy and Scottish Power. Eon and EDF are also keen to build under the right conditions. EDF already involved in nuclear plants in France along with atomic plant operator Areva, declined to comment last night on who it was holding talks with but sources close to the company said it had been "speaking to a lot of people." Useful links British Energy Department of Trade and Industry British Nuclear Fuels Ltd Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Greenpeace Come Clean WMD awareness programme UK atomic energy authority National Radiological Protection Board Friends of the Earth World Nuclear Association World Nuclear Transport Institute Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007 ***************************************************************** 28 Journal Gazette: Train now to halt mistakes in real crisis 05/12/2007 | By Kara Lopp Kara Lopp/The Journal Gazette Two Army National Guardsmen care for a woman who had an asthma attack after she had been evacuated to Muscatatuck after the simulated nuclear explosion. NORTH VERNON – “When’s the ambulance coming?” asked the distraught blonde woman as she held another woman suffering obvious burns and broken bones. “They’re on their way ma’am,” a soldier replied. A minute later the questions came again. “When are they going to be here? It’s been so long.” The answers were the same, they were on their way. A few minutes later, the reply was the same again. Though the victims were actors and the injuries fake – all part of a mock nuclear explosion – the responses from soldiers with the Fort Wayne-based 1st Battalion 293rd Infantry had to be real. At least 185 members of the local military unit were part of an 11-day exercise, where soldiers mixed with law enforcement, firefighters, health departments and county coroners, to simulate the response to a nuclear bomb explosion in Indianapolis. The “bomb” went off at 10 a.m. Thursday and the 1-293rd responded within hours. A first group from Fort Wayne arrived around 4 p.m. while others joined their colleagues at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center by 9 p.m. Mistakes were made, but officials say this is the place to make those mistakes before a real disaster that would require a large-scale response. Dubbed Vigilant Guard, the simulation also tests the abilities of the National Guard – units from Ohio and Illinois are also here – to respond to disasters on the home front when so much of their attention recently has been focused on overseas deployments. Second Lt. Daniel Banter, 24, of Indianapolis, expressed a sense of pride knowing he can help fellow U.S. citizens so directly. A native of Warren, Banter graduated from Southern Wells High School in 2001 and has been a member of the 1-293rd for three years. He currently leads a group of 20 soldiers. “I mean, that’s what we signed up for,” he said, resting his arm on a military vehicle. “I think it actually shows the public that we’re not gone, we’re here for you.” Saying training for disasters works better in the field, Spc. David Pranger, 23 of Fort Wayne, said being part of the simulation is a reminder of the Guard’s role on the home front. “It helps give me a sense of security if it would come up in my home state,” Pranger said. Thinking back to the year he spent in Afghanistan from 2004 to 2005, Sgt. Sam Garduno, 23, of Dyer, drew a distinct comparison between the feelings he gets from doing his Guard duties abroad and at home. Garduno specializes in nuclear, biological and chemical weapons for the unit. “It’s kind of like when you go overseas and you fight like that, it’s a historical feeling,” he said. “Since we’re at home, it kind of feels like you’re helping the community. It feels like you’re protecting your own family.” Watching the tree line where two bloodied and battered Hoosiers had just come running, yelling for help, Spc. Timothy Jacquay was glad he could be there in his Army fatigues to help. The 30-year-old from Huntington called for Army medics, helping to ease the people to the grass and calm them. Friday’s mission, which Jacquay called realistic, reminded him of the unit’s trip to Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina last year. “Honestly, for me, it feels great to know that we are helping our fellow Americans,” he said. “If somebody needs help, they can count on me.” Around a wooded area a few hundred yards away, four other people with injuries from the impact of the explosion were receiving care. As some whimpered in pain, others questions the soldiers, who had called for an ambulance. “Sir, do you know who we’ve been attacked by?” the blonde woman said, as another woman dabbing her forehead with a wet bandanna. “No ma’am,” was the reply from a 1-293rd soldier. “I’ve lost contact with my own family so I don’t even know if they’re OK.” Lying on the grass, running his fingers through the blades, a man closed his eyes while a soldier pressed a rag onto his bloody neck wound. Another woman was nauseous and another had broken bones. But the ambulance they were all waiting for never came. It was one of a few communication blunders between the military and their civilian counterparts Friday. At 9:15 a.m. Friday, the simulation was paused while organizers dealt with a group of first responders participating in the exercise who were ready to leave because things weren’t going well, came the message over radio traffic. Lt. Col. Gerald Hadley, battalion commander with the 1-293rd, said he’d prefer to work out those kinks here. “Rather than learn it when it really happens, learn it now,” he said. “You want frustration because that means there are really good things going on. Luckily, soldiers are used to hurry up and wait.” klopp@jg.net ***************************************************************** 29 Seattle Times Newspaper: Port safety screeners tackle moving targets Saturday, May 12, 2007 - Page updated at 02:02 AM By Christine Clarridge Seattle Times staff reporter JOHN LOK / THE SEATTLE TIMES U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., helps announce a new cargo radiation-detection test project at the Port of Tacoma on Friday. Officials seek ways to use new technology that won't impede train traffic. JOHN LOK / THE SEATTLE TIMES William Heffelfinger III, a deputy assistant commissioner with Customs and Border Protection, speaks at Friday's Port of Tacoma news conference, also attended by Port of Tacoma Executive Director Timothy Farrell, lower right, and other officials. TACOMA — More than $35 billion in overseas goods pass through the Port of Tacoma each year, crammed into cargo containers that should be screened for dangerous nuclear and radiological material as they are loaded from ships onto trains and sent across the country. It would be a time-consuming process that would force supply slowdowns with economic consequences in Tacoma and at similar ports throughout the country. Now, with the help of $5 million in federal funds and cooperation from various federal and local groups, the Port of Tacoma will be a testing ground for new technology that would scan the huge steel cargo containers without stopping the trains. The project's managers intend to take existing scanning technology and create a physical structure that can scan the containers for everything from a dirty bomb to a nuclear weapon sometime after they are taken off the ships but before the trains roar down the track. "You can't stop the trains," said Port of Tacoma spokesman Michael Wasem. "It plugs up the entire inland transportation system." The project was announced Friday at a joint news conference that included U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, Port of Tacoma officials, Customs and Border Protection agents, representatives of the longshoremen's union, the Department of Homeland Security and the nation's Domestic Nuclear Detection Office. "If we want to secure our ports, we have to work to develop and test new technologies and processes. We know that current technologies that are effective for trucks do not necessarily work for trains," said Murray, who has advocated increased port security and whose legislation SAFE Port Act of 2006 provides funding for the endeavor. She and port operation directors estimated there would likely be a working design that would serve as a model to ports throughout the U.S. within the year. The Port of Tacoma has four on-dock intermodal yards where cargo is offloaded and trains are pieced together, loaded with the containers and sent east. Those involved in the project don't yet know what the device will look like or exactly how it will work. The work that goes on in the intermodal yards is tightly synchronized, and project managers said they expect to have to try a lot of different ideas to find one that works, said Robert Collins, the port's director of Intermodal Services. Among other challenges facing the multi-agency creators is a way to reduce the false positives for radiation that are emitted by some innocuous cargo, such as bananas, ceramics and flat-screen televisions. Also this week, the Port of Tacoma was awarded a federal grant of $11.6 million as part of $18.3 million in port-security grants distributed across Washington. The Port of Seattle received $5.3 million. The ports of Tacoma and Seattle did not release firm plans for the funding. In general, the money will be used by ports for chemical detectors, cameras, security gates and access controls. Murray said money for enhanced port security is long overdue, in part because early anti-terrorist efforts and funding were directed mainly at airports. "This is a great step forward for safer ports," said Murray, "and because of that, a safer country." Times staff writer Kirsten Orsini-Meinhard contributed to this report. Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company ***************************************************************** 30 Guardian Unlimited: Family urges public inquiry over Sellafield Daughter's anger as new details emerge in body parts scandal Martin Wainwright and James Randerson Monday May 14, 2007 A yellow and black pattern shows full (black) and additional space (yellow) at the temporary storage of High level radioactive nuclear waste at Sellafield nuclear plant. Photograph: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty images The government is facing renewed pressure for public hearings into the Sellafield body parts controversy as new details emerge of tests done on the organs of dead workers without the knowledge of bereaved families. Papers seen by the Guardian show how organs and tissue were removed at autopsies and apparently burned by doctors looking for evidence of radiation contamination. One woman who has had confirmation that her father, Malcolm Pattinson, was among 65 people whose organs were taken without his family's consent, wants the government to hold a public inquiry into the affair, instead of hearing evidence behind closed doors. Pattinson died in 1971 from leukaemia. Yesterday his daughter, Angela Christie, 49, told the Guardian: "I'm not against research - how could I be when I work at Sellafield, just as my dad did, and so do my husband and my son? But the way these things were done has lessons for today." She has obtained documents, previously thought destroyed, which show that when her father died, doctors acting for both BNFL and his trade union had immediate access to his organs. Surviving relatives say they and the man's widow knew nothing about it. The papers confirm: · Organs including lungs, liver, spleen and bone marrow were removed; · Concerns about the risks of working at the plant were so grave that union lawyers were notified on the day of death about autopsy plans; · Evidence that BNFL tried to cover up admissions of liability. Mrs Christie said: "The law was different then, but the papers give me a sense of people doing as they pleased." The trade and industry secretary, Alistair Darling, last month appointed Michael Redfern QC to report on the removal of body parts from 65 former Sellafield workers between 1962 and 1991. Mr Redfern's inquiry into the Alder Hey children's hospital body parts scandal was praised for transparency and his appointment, followed by an expansion of the Sellafield remit to other nuclear sites, has been welcomed. But while his inquiry will be independent, it will not be held in public. Family members are pressing for a further extension to permit public hearings. Mrs Christie insisted that only such scrutiny could lay to rest the local sense of shock and suspicion about the research programme. Trade unions and the local Labour MP, Jamie Reed, said the new evidence added to concerns about the secretive way in which deaths were handled. Mr Pattinson's family won Sellafield's first court admission of liability in 1979 and £67,000 compensation after an eight year legal battle whose documents were rediscovered last week. The documents include a solicitor's account of the settlement on the day court proceedings were due to start, after a last-minute attempt by BNFL to remove references to an admission of liability made the previous February, on the grounds that the company's press office had been denying this for nine months. Mrs Christie said: "There are five more boxes of papers involving other families. It will help if it all comes out." Mr Reed said: "Michael Redfern is the right person to head this inquiry and the government has just announced that he will have a team in West Cumbria to hear from families. This should take its course, but if there are any gaps at the end, then a full public inquiry will be essential." Useful links British Energy Department of Trade and Industry British Nuclear Fuels Ltd Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Greenpeace Come Clean WMD awareness programme UK atomic energy authority National Radiological Protection Board Friends of the Earth World Nuclear Association World Nuclear Transport Institute Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007 ***************************************************************** 31 Manawatu Standard: Massey tests confirm nuke veterans' genetic damage - By MERVYN DYKES - Manawatu Standard | Monday, 14 May 2007 New Zealand naval personnel who participated in British nuclear testing in 1957-58 suffered radiation exposure leading to significant chromosome damage. This finding, one of the conclusions of a four-year Massey University study released today, has been welcomed by veterans of the testing. They claim they and their children have suffered from significant genetic disorders. Palmerston North veteran Roy Sefton suffers constant pain and chronic fatigue, and attributes this to what happened to him. He is one of the survivors of 551 men who crewed the New Zealand frigates HMNZS Pukaki and HMNZS Rotoiti, which attended a series of nine nuclear tests involved in the development of a British hydrogen bomb. In the last tests, Mr Sefton said protective clothing was decreased to the point where he was were wearing only shorts and sandals. The tests, codenamed Operation Grapple, were at Christmas and Malden Islands, in the group now known as Kiribati. Massey's study, headed by Dr Al Rowlands, involved three genetic assays as part of the complete programme. The first two showed that the veterans did not "exhibit any deficiency in their DNA repair mechanisms," but the third showed "a very high frequency of total translocations in the veterans' chromosomes as opposed to a matched control group". A translocation is where DNA breaks off from one chromosome and reattaches to another. Among the control group there was an average of 10 such translocations per 1000 cells, compared with 29 for the veterans. The report judged this result "highly significant" and concluded that it was attributable to the veterans' participation in Operation Grapple and most probably caused by radiation exposure. However, because the study involved only 50 New Zealand veterans, the report encouraged "those in authority" to seek corroboration by a similar study on British and Fijian personnel who also took part in Operation Grapple. Mr Sefton has been a leader in the campaign to obtain redress for the veterans. He served aboard HMNZS Pukaki in his early 20s. He welcomed the vindication of the report, but described it as "a bittersweet thing in terms of death and wrecked lives". "While still in the Navy (in his early twenties) I started to develop muscular and skeletal problems," he said. "At the age of 30 when I was in line for promotion to petty officer, there were so many problems that I thought sooner or later I would muck things up by being caught asleep on watch or something." He decided to forestall this by leaving the Navy. Soon after, his health deteriorated to the point where it would have been impossible to continue and he would have been pensioned out. In civilian life his attempts to find other work were at first successful, but petered out as his health worsened. Mr Sefton said that as the Operation Grapple nuclear tests progressed, "the ships were placed closer and closer to Ground Zero until the ninth detonation when Pukaki was only 20 nautical miles out (about 37km). That in itself is utter folly." Crewmen who went ashore between tests often swam in the ocean and ate fish caught locally. - More Manawatu Standard Stories © Fairfax New Zealand Limited 2007. All the material on this page has the protection of international copyright. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 32 WP: Thousands of Nuclear Arms Workers See Cancer Claims Denied or Delayed - washingtonpost.com By Michael Alison Chandler and Joby Warrick Washington Post Staff Writers Saturday, May 12, 2007; Page A01 Walter McKenzie's assignment toward the end of the Cold War was to mop up after mishaps at a nuclear weapons factory. With a crew of other laborers from rural Georgia, he swabbed away leaks and spills inside the secret buildings, until one day his body became so contaminated with radiation that alarms at the factory went off as he passed. "They couldn't scrub the radiation off my skin -- even after four showers," McKenzie, 52, recalled of his most terrifying day at the Savannah River nuclear weapons plant near Aiken, S.C. "They took my clothes, my watch and even my ring, and sent me home in rubber slippers and a jumpsuit." Walter McKenzie, who worked at the Savannah River nuclear weapons plant near Aiken, S.C., had cancer and blames radiation exposure at work. The government deemed that unlikely. (By Michael Williamson -- The Washington Post) Video Workers Seek Compensation for Exposure Most of the 103,000 workers, retirees and family members who have sought help from a federal program intended to atone for decades of hazardous working conditions in nuclear weapons plants can't prove they were exposed to something that might have made them sick. Later, when doctors discovered the first of 19 malignant tumors on his bladder, McKenzie followed the same torturous path as thousands of nuclear weapons workers with cancer: He filed a claim for federal compensation. It was denied. Unable to access secret government files, or even some of his own personnel records, McKenzie could not sufficiently prove that he was exposed to something that may have made him sick. Nor can most of the 104,000 other workers, retirees and family members who have sought help from a federal program intended to atone for decades of hazardous working conditions at scores of nuclear weapons facilities around the country. Since its inception in 2000, the compensation program has cut more than 20,000 checks and given long-delayed recognition to workers whose illnesses were hidden costs of the Cold War's military buildup. Yet, of the 72,000 cases processed, more than 60 percent have been denied. Thousands of other applicants have been waiting for years for an answer. Overall, only 21 percent of applicants have received checks. Even as the nation continues to close and dismantle many nuclear weapons sites, a growing number of those who helped build the bombs are turning to lawyers and legislators to argue they are being treated unfairly. Many complain that the compensation process is slow, frustrating, even insulting. "You get exposed to something that's so bad you have to leave your clothes behind," McKenzie said, "then they try to tell you it's not their fault that you got sick." Some evidence suggests the government has tried to limit payouts for budget reasons. Internal memos obtained by congressional investigators show the Bush administration chafing over the program's rising costs and fighting to block measures that would increase workers' chances of compensation. But Labor Department officials who oversee the program say it has been successful, pointing to the large sums distributed: about $2.6 billion in payments in five years, far more than some early estimates. Missing or unreliable records and the murkiness of cancer science, the officials say, make it difficult to satisfy all the claimants. "In a compensation program, you get benefits out to people who are eligible and you inevitably have to deal with the fact that some people are not eligible," said Shelby Hallmark, director of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs. "As for the assumption that the program is somehow trying to block people from getting compensation, nothing could be further from the truth." David Michaels, a former Energy Department official who helped launch the program in the late 1990s, said it is designed to "bend over backward" to award compensation to deserving workers. "Most of the people who should be compensated are being compensated," said Michaels, now associate chairman of George Washington University's department of environmental and occupational health. Still, Labor's management of the program has drawn bipartisan, and often fierce, criticism from members of Congress. Former congressman John N. Hostettler, an Indiana Republican who chaired a House subcommittee overseeing the program, said at a hearing last December that Labor Department memos reflect a "culture of disdain" toward workers and raise questions about whether the department exceeded its authority by using "legalistic interpretations" to limit eligible workers. "To the bean counters, I would remind you that these aren't normal beans you are counting," Hostettler said. "These funds are a small acknowledgment of the sacrifice by workers whose lives were put at risk to make this country safe." Clear Line on a Murky Issue The compensation plan was unveiled in September 1999 by then-Energy Secretary Bill Richardson. "We're reversing the decades-old practice of opposing worker claims and moving forward to do the right thing," he said in 2000. The shift was prompted in part by a drumbeat of reports about hazards at nuclear weapons plants, including articles in The Washington Post that showed how the government for years fought lawsuits from workers in Paducah, Ky., who were exposed to plutonium 100,000 times as radioactive as they were trained to handle. Under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program, the government agreed to provide $150,000 and medical benefits to claimants who developed certain diseases and cancers. Another part of the program covers those exposed to toxic chemicals. For each claim, government investigators review the evidence and decide whether a worker's illness was more likely than not caused by exposure to radiation or toxic chemicals at work. Under the act, the claim is denied if the probability is ruled to be less than 50 percent. The complex task of coming up with such estimates through reconstructing the conditions inside secret plants as much as 60 years ago was assigned to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH. The estimates are based largely on personnel files and historical radiation measurements at the plants. But the records are often so incomplete and unreliable that it can be impossible to determine a worker's true exposure. For example, workers would sometimes remove the badges they were supposed to wear to monitor their cumulative doses of radiation. "At every site, you hear stories about workers being told to put their badges in their lockers," said Mark Griffon, a radiation-safety expert who advises the government on worker exposure. "If workers wore their badges and ended up exceeding their quarterly radiation limit, they could be laid off or put in a different job." Another obstacle is that records are becoming harder to track as plants are dismantled. Early this year, for example, more than 400 boxes of medical records that had been contaminated by radiation at an Ohio weapons facility turned up in a landfill in Los Alamos, N.M. The government is deciding whether to exhume them. Long Wait in Colorado The compensation program does provide a path for the government to help workers if records are lost or questionable. But critics say officials are reluctant to pursue it. NIOSH and a White House-appointed panel on radiation exposure can recommend groups of workers from a particular site for a "special exposure cohort," making them automatically eligible for compensation if they suffer from leukemia, thyroid cancer or one of 20 other cancers. So far, groups of workers from 18 sites have been added to the special exposure cohort, and petitions are pending for workers from a dozen other sites. The process can be difficult, as people who worked at the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant who applied for that status have learned. On the rugged foothills outside Denver, there's little sign now of the sprawling plutonium facility that once employed as many as 7,000 people. The site was dismantled in a $7 billion, 10-year effort that ended in 2005 and is being turned into a wildlife refuge. Workers Seek Compensation for Exposure Most of the 103,000 workers, retirees and family members who have sought help from a federal program intended to atone for decades of hazardous working conditions in nuclear weapons plants can't prove they were exposed to something that might have made them sick. With the plant gone, many workers are struggling to re-create what happened in the 800-building complex that manufactured plutonium triggers for nuclear bombs. Thousands of fires were recorded in the plants' 40-year history, including one on Mother's Day 1969 that burned for several hours and released massive amounts of radioactive material. Of the more than 5,100 Rocky Flats claims filed, about 1,400 have been approved. Many applicants who were denied blame missing or inadequate records and petitioned two years ago for special cohort status. NIOSH officials recommended against the special status for Rocky Flats, reasoning that they could account for missing records by altering their models and overestimating exposures. Then, earlier this month, the radiation advisory board recommended the special cohort for a small number of workers -- those employed from 1952 to 1958, when gaps in the recordkeeping apparently were the largest. Advocates for the Rocky Flats workers point to multiple cases to illustrate the difficulty of meeting the government's standard for compensation without being part of the special cohort. One worker, Donald Gabel, contracted a rare form of brain cancer at age 29, after nearly 10 years at the plant, and died in 1980. Months before his death, he testified that his job required him to climb several times a day to the top of a furnace, his head inches from a pipe expelling radioactive exhaust. Government contractors said they could not find his records and could not take new measurements because the pipe had been removed. After Gabel died, his wife requested tests of plutonium levels in his brain, but she says government scientists told her they had lost most of the tissue and could not take an accurate sample. Despite the problems, Gabel's widow, Kae Williams, won a rare victory in a traditional workers' compensation lawsuit, getting about $15,000 for her three children. But when she applied for additional benefits under the new program in 2001, the claim took four years to process and was ultimately denied. A government computer program found only a 41.73 percent chance that her husband's brain cancer was work-related. "They make it sound like they are doing the right thing," Williams said. "For a glimpse, you think they are. And they are not." Ill and Unaided At South Carolina's Savannah River plant, workers may face longer odds than most. They lack the organization and lobbying advantages found at some larger sites where workers tended to be white and represented by strong unions. "Black workers in these plants were put in high-exposure areas without proper protection or monitoring," said Robert W. Warren, a lawyer who represents dozens of Savannah River workers. "They worked in some of the most dangerous places, but there are no records today to show that." When it opened in 1951, the Savannah River nuclear complex was one of the first employers in South Carolina's rural midlands to offer African Americans a shot at relatively good wages and benefits. But not all jobs at the plant were created equal. The jobs offered to black workers in those days were often menial ones: cleaning spills, scraping paint, removing waste, sometimes in the most dangerous parts of the plant, said Wayne Knox, a radiation-safety expert who was a contractor at the Savannah River plant for nearly two decades. In the '50s and '60s, he said, workers often were kept in the dark about risks. "Not just blacks, but also [white] people from poorer neighborhoods were put in a position where they had a lot of unnecessary exposures," said Knox, who now advises some families filing claims. The sprawling, 300-square-mile site still contains one of the highest concentrations of radioactive waste of any weapons plant in the country, most of it in swimming-pool-size tanks. Special exposure cohort status has not been granted for the plant's workers; in a region that remains very poor, there are few advocates available to argue the workers' case in Washington. McKenzie, the Savannah River laborer, was angered when government officials calculated the probability that his work caused his bladder cancer at only 28 percent. He became even angrier when he learned that the plant had been unable to locate many of his files -- including records for the day he became so contaminated his clothes had to be destroyed. "There were whole months where the data is missing," he said. McKenzie has asked a Labor Department appeals panel to reconsider the decision, while he struggles to pay hefty medical expenses that include regular visits to the urologist to see whether his cancer has returned. Having mostly given up hope for a government check, he now works a second job, cleaning up spills and leaks in private homes a few miles from the weapons plant. "At first it looked like I had a good claim, but it didn't go anywhere," McKenzie said wearily. "A person doing it by himself has no wind." © 2007 The Washington Post Company ***************************************************************** 33 Carlsbad Current-Argus: Time to support nuclear workers The Current-Argus Article Launched: 05/12/2007 08:57:32 PM MDT Even during the blithest years of Los Alamos National Laboratory when the place took on an especially sanitary look and lab leaders motto seemed to be "What, me worry?" savvy scientists knew they were playing with more than mere fire. Radiation poisoning was just one of the early clues; cancer wasn't far behind. But some daring people persevered in pursuit of super-weapons America's politicians hoped would deter our nemesis, the Soviet Union, from launching their nuclear bombs in our direction. Mutually Assured Destruction, as the doctrine came to be known, was MAD, all right even though there was method to it. What wasn't as clear was why this country's finest mathematicians, chemists, physicists and engineers could push the risks of contamination to the backs of their brilliant minds and take comfort in lead sheeting and other shields concocted after zapping animals and watching the results. From the nuclear garbage spewed down the arroyos outside the laboratories to the hydrogen-bomb components assembled inside, sometimes in close quarters, the wizards were working with dangerous stuff. When cancer struck, denial came with it: People everywhere get it; that's life ... Or death. Or fear prompted by certain symptoms. Or misery. Or loss of an organ, maybe only part of it. Those Northern New Mexicans who knew less about the cancer risks tend to be the bitterest about what hit them physically and bureaucratically: Can you prove that your cancer came from exposure to radiation on the job? Or was it radon that occurs naturally all over the West? Or was it something else? Decades of official responses such as that prompted Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., to push for an Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Act. Passed in 2000 while Bingaman was chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the law is good as far as it goes. But it comes with that catch: prove that you've got a radiation-induced and work-related cancer. Most people knowledgeable enough to prove that probably would have stayed away from LANL in the first place and making a case before the Bush Department of Labor seems to demand the background of a J. Robert Oppenheimer. So we're encouraged by the effort of our state's Speaker of the House, Ben Lujan of Nambe, whose constituents include hundreds of lab employees: He got a $125,000 appropriation through the Legislature to open an office of advocacy for folks who figure their medical problems come from work on the Hill. That money, most likely, isn't nearly enough. Lujan had sought $610,000, and that would only be a start. And it's strange that New Mexico taxpayers have to pay for it at all: As the speaker notes, "all we're trying to do is to get the Department of Energy to live up to its obligations. Some of these people have legitimate complaints." Maybe not all of them but where there's the slightest doubt, the federal government should err on the side of the claimants. As Bingaman points out, thousands of workers took part in experiments at LANL "and only later were some of them determined to be dangerous to their health. I strongly believe that they should receive compensation and medical care for the important work they performed." His support, and that of Rep. Lujan, come under the category of better late than never. What's needed now is legislative-branch follow-up, at the state and federal level. Copyright © 2005 Carlsbad Current Argus, a MediaNews Group ***************************************************************** 34 KnoxNews: Beryllium sensitivity on rise Although most false positives, new cases found at Y-12 plant By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com May 13, 2007 OAK RIDGE - A spike in abnormal beryllium tests last fall created a scare at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant, where exposures to the metal have been linked to chronic beryllium disease - an incurable, sometimes-fatal respiratory impairment. At least a couple of dozen workers tested positive on the lymphocyte proliferation test during a three-month period. Dr. Lee Newman, one of the world's leading experts on beryllium disease and the screening tests, was hired in December to investigate the situation. Newman found that most of the Y-12 cases were false positives, probably linked to equipment problems at an Oak Ridge analytical lab. Even after false positives were taken into account, however, there still were new cases of beryllium sensitization occurring at Y-12, he concluded. "There may be pockets of exposure associated with certain tasks and certain jobs on the site that are resulting in new (cases)," the physician said in a telephone interview from his office in Denver. Could be latent effect It's also possible that Oak Ridge workers could be showing belated effects of exposures long ago, Newman said. Although sensitivity to beryllium typically develops within a year or two of exposure, there have been documented cases of individuals where the latency period was 20 years or longer, he said. "We shouldn't be complacent," he said. The majority of people who become sensitized to beryllium will eventually develop CBD, although Newman said that issue is still being researched. Tom Ford, Y-12's industrial hygiene manager, said the plant has 17 active workers diagnosed with chronic beryllium disease and about 40 others who have tested positive for beryllium sensitization. The total number of current and former Oak Ridge workers with chronic beryllium disease is not available, but estimates are as high as 300. That includes construction workers and employees at other facilities, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the K-25 uranium-enrichment plant, where beryllium was used. Ford said there are 219 different areas at Y-12 where the presence of beryllium has been identified. He said he could not discuss how the lightweight metal is currently being used at the nuclear weapons facility. Rates not dropping Newman praised Ford and other health and safety staff members at Y-12 for their hard work in identifying beryllium problems and trying to minimize workplace exposures. But the rate of new cases hasn't really changed in recent years at Y-12, he said. BWXT, the government's contractor at the Oak Ridge plant, continues to send him data from medical testing and workplace air sampling, he said. "They were very forthcoming," Newman said. "They didn't have to bring me in." Almost everything associated with beryllium disease is complicated, including the testing program. Glenn Bell, a longtime Y-12 worker who was diagnosed with CBD in 1993, said he's skeptical about reports that blame the problem solely on equipment issues at the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education's beryllium-testing laboratory. Bell said there are so many uncertainties about the lymphocyte proliferation test - including the chance of false negatives - that it's difficult to make quick assessments about the LPT results. "I believe the announcement was premature," he said, referring to a March notice in the employee newsletter at Y-12 that reported most of the abnormal test results were false. The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education operates one of four labs in the United States that analyze blood samples for beryllium sensitivity. Other medical tests, including a lung wash, are needed to confirm the respiratory disease. Lab fix altered results According to Newman's report, an equipment failure in June 2006 at the Oak Ridge lab resulted in the replacement of key equipment and changes in the multistep procedures used to analyze samples - temporarily freezing some of the sample plates. Lab personnel also tried to adapt to the new, more precise equipment by using new "cutpoint" values that were significantly lower than those previously used in the analysis. The cutpoint values are used to define "normal" and "abnormal" test results. Newman found that the change in values partly explained the rise in positive beryllium tests, although he said the number of abnormal readings had started to retreat even before ORISE adjusted the values a second time. He suggested that other factors may have influenced the results. Because it's possible to have false negatives as well as false positives on the LPT, beryllium workers at Y-12 are tested over and over for sensitivity. For 25 of the workers who tested positive last fall, it was their first-ever abnormal blood result, Newman's report states. On follow-up tests, only four of those repeated the abnormal results, the report states. Sixteen had normal results during the next round of testing, but some of the workers declined to take a follow-up test or their results were unavailable. Workplace still a hazard? Ford said he believes the problems at the Oak Ridge analytical lab last year were the primary reason for the sharp increase in abnormal test results. However, there are ongoing efforts at Y-12 to determine if occupational exposures pose a threat to workers, he said. Y-12 has been successful in reducing the potential for beryllium contamination, using the same approach as the ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) program used for radiation safety, he said. According to Bell, however, there have been a number of incidents in recent years in which equipment exceeded beryllium guidelines, sometimes in areas that were supposed to be clean. He said the Department of Energy's Inspector General was investigating some issues raised by Y-12 workers. Newman said he believed the testing problems at the Oak Ridge analytical lab had been resolved. He said similar periods of unusual results had occurred - sometimes without explanation - at the other three U.S. labs where lymphocyte proliferation tests are conducted. He said the Oak Ridge lab probably had the best quality record of the four. Nonetheless, Ford said Y-12 has been taking duplicate blood samples for beryllium workers and sending one to the Oak Ridge institute and the other to another lab to confirm the results. Pam Bonee, a spokeswoman for the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, said the Oak Ridge lab also analyzes blood samples for other beryllium sites around the country. Those samples showed similar spikes in abnormal readings during the same period as the unusual results for Y-12, she said. Senior writer Frank Munger may be reached at 865-342-6329. Copyright 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co. ***************************************************************** 35 Magharebia.com: Algeria takes precautions against nuclear accidents Magharebia The News & Views of the Maghreb 13/05/2007 As part of its mission to develop nuclear technology for peaceful use, Algerian authorities have recently conducted a training and readiness exercise for emergency response workers that will be called upon in the event of a nuclear accident. By Fodil Lyes for Magharebia in Algiers – 13/05/2007 [File] The El Salam nuclear reactor Civil Protection at the White House in Algiers organised a training drill on Wednesday (May 9th) to practice dispatching rapid response units in the event of radioactive accidents. In remarks following the drill, Kheira Baradei, director of major hazard response for the Civil Protection Authority, explained that the event was part of a larger training programme that began on May 5th with a joint exercise between the fire department and experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Baradei revealed that "This training drill, which lasted 55 minutes, also aimed to test the co-ordination apparatus, which involves all institutions concerned with dispatching rapid response units in radioactive accidents, especially the national police agencies and security and the environment, transportation and health ministries." In a press statement, Mohamed Majqan, Director of Civil Protection, affirmed that danger to public safety could result from the release of radiation into the environment following an accident involving radioactive material. He added that radioactive substances are commonly used in the field of manufacturing. Majqan noted, "Regarding explosive radioactive accidents, three victims were recorded in the city of Setif (320km east of the capital) and one in the city of Oran (500km west of the capital) during the eighties, due to the loss of radioactive material after an accident". International Atomic Energy Agency expert Jean-Francois Lafortune deemed that this meeting demonstrates "the very good commitment" of the Civil Protection agencies in Algeria to intervene in a "quick and effective" manner in the case of a radioactive accident. In related news, Algerian energy minister Chakib Khalil announced Tuesday from Washington that Algeria had requested the United States’ help in this field. He noted that an agreement would be signed to assist his country in civilian nuclear development through an exchange of visits by experts. The Algerian minister said the agreement, to be signed this June in Algeria, aims to establish co-operation to modernise the country’s two nuclear reactors, located in Dararia in the capital, and Ain Oussera, approximately 250km to the south. The Dararia reactor, also called the "Nour" reactor, is a 3-megawatt model built with Argentine assistance. The reactor in Ain Oussera is called the "El Salam" reactor, and is a Chinese design that reportedly produces 15 megawatts. Algerian media sources noted Wednesday that the Algerian-US agreement comes after the "stumbling" of negotiations between Algeria and France aimed at reaching a similar agreement, due to many reservations on the French side. Algeria joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in January 1995, and agreed to IAEA inspections of its nuclear reactors. Last month, it hosted the African Conference on Nuclear Energy and its Use for Peaceful Purposes. This content was commissioned for Magharebia.com. Click here if you are interested in becoming a Magharebia contributor. ***************************************************************** 36 UPI: 60 percent of nuclear cancer cases denied United Press International - NewsTrack - Science - Published: May. 12, 2007 at 2:40 PM WASHINGTON, May. 12 (UPI) -- Compensation has been denied in 60 percent of 72,000 cases processed by U.S. regulators involving Cold War nuclear weapons workers stricken with cancer. The Washington Post reported Saturday that only 21 percent of applicants have actually received a check from the compensation program that was unveiled in 1999 by Bill Richardson, who was Energy Secretary at the time and is now governor of New Mexico. Walter McKenzie, 52, who worked at the Savannah River nuclear weapons plant in South Carolina, was so contaminated that radiation alarms at the facility would typically go off when he walked through, the newspaper said. Doctors later discovered 19 malignant tumors on his bladder. McKenzie's claim for compensation was denied because he could not access secret government files or sections of his own personnel files. Without the records, he could not prove the cause of his cancer. McKenzie had sought assistance under a federal program set up to "make whole" workers who were exposed to decades of hazardous working conditions at dozens of U.S. nuclear weapons facilities. A majority of the 104,000 other workers who sought such assistance have also been unable to access records to back up their claims, the newspaper said. An investigation by Congress accused the Bush administration of trying to block workers' chances for payment. © Copyright 2007 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 37 HN: Exposure To Depleted Uranium From Military Action May Pose Health Threats - Health News - Radiology / Nuclear Medicine News Article Date: 12 May 2007 - 16:00 PDT Exposure to particles of depleted uranium (DU), the source of growing international concern as a potential health hazard, may increase the risk of genetic damage and lung cancer, scientists in Maine conclude in a report scheduled for the May 21 issue of ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology, a monthly journal. DU is the material remaining after removal or depletion of the U-238 isotope of uranium. With a density about twice that of lead, DU is ideal for use in military armor and munitions, John Pierce Wise, Sr., and colleagues point out in the new study. DU dust produced in combat creates potentially frequent and widespread exposure for soldiers and non-combatants, who may inhale DU dust particles, the researchers note. However, there have been few studies on the health effects of lung exposure to DU, they add. In the new study, researchers tested the effects of DU on cultures of human lung cells. "This is the first article on the cytotoxicity and clastogenicity [chromosome damaging potential] of particulate and soluble DU in human bronchial cells," the study states. "These data suggest that exposure to particulate DU may pose a significant genotoxic risk and could possibly result in lung cancer." Article: "Particulate Depleted Uranium is Cytotoxic and Clastogenic to Human Lung Cells" CONTACT: John Pierce Wise, Sr., Ph.D. University of Southern Maine Orono, Maine 04469 ### American Chemical Society News Service The American Chemical Society - the world's largest scientific society - is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio. ***************************************************************** 38 Radio New Zealand News: Radiated veterans await DNA test results Posted at 7:36am on 14 May 2007 New Zealand servicemen exposed to British navy nuclear tests in 1957 say they want their children tested too if a study due to be issued on Monday shows radiation damaged their DNA. The New Zealand Nuclear Veterans Association commissioned Massey University to find out whether chromosomal damage could have caused ill health to them and their children. The veterans say if the radiation caused the miscarriages and diseases such as cancer that befell many of them, the next logical step is to test their children's DNA. The study's results may also be used as legal ammunition for a possible claim against the British government. Copyright © 2007 Radio New Zealand ***************************************************************** 39 Guardian Unlimited: Daughter calls for inquiry after discovery of body parts files | Sellafield Nuclear plant worker has found out what happened after father died, 36 years on Martin Wainwright Monday May 14, 2007 Angela Christie's world collapsed when she was 13. Her mother was in hospital for a routine operation, and her father, Malcolm Pattinson, a tall, fit 36-year-old, who had worked with plutonium at Sellafield nuclear plant, fell ill and asked her to accompany her younger sister and brother to school. That was in 1971, on Wednesday, May 26. The next day Malcolm was taken to West Cumberland hospital. By Friday he was dead. But it was not until a fortnight ago that Mrs Christie, now 49 and a mother of three children, discovered what had happened next. Unknown to her mother, or her aunt and uncle, who acted temporarily as guardians, parts of her father's body were removed on the day after he died following a flurry of phone calls between the local coroner, the nuclear plant, and solicitors and doctors as far away as Newcastle upon Tyne. His body parts were then tested for radiation content and damage - in some cases probably to destruction, because ash samples were needed for correct measurements. The medical programme was only revealed last month, when Mrs Christie was off sick with a heart condition from her job. Along with her husband and son, she also works at Sellafield - a plant which still dominates the economy of the Cumbrian coastline. Mrs Christie read the headlines, rang British Nuclear Fuels, and got confirmation that her father's body was one of the 65 in such investigations over 30 years. "I'm all right now," she said at home near Frizington, where she had had palpitations on hearing the news. "But I wasn't, and I can't bring myself to go back to work yet." The news, however, galvanised a determination she had learned early on while supporting her mother in a long legal battle for compensation through her teenage years. She said: "I thought, maybe there's something in there about this. I rang Crutes, the solicitors in Newcastle who had handled it for the union, and they said 'oh no, those files will all have been destroyed'." But a union friend called by to see her and heard her news. Then, a few days later, Crutes rang and said that they had "eight boxes-full" at their office. Since then Mrs Christie has conducted a one-person inquiry into the documents. Exchanges The briefest dip into them takes you to a time in Britain when big people knew what was best for smaller ones, and private doubts about health and safety were masked by public reassurances. Lawyers and medical advisers to the General and Municipal Workers' Union have led a long and successful campaign for compensation and admission of liability by Sellafield, getting backing from various public figures, such as Andrew Cunningham, an alderman whose son Jack became Sellafield's MP and a Labour cabinet minister. Among BNFL's defenders was Geoffrey Schofield, its chief medical officer at the time, who now has labs named after him at the Cumbrian coast's Westlake science and technology park. The conflict of recent times began as researchers asked about the provenance of data on plutonium damage to organs. The battle for the Pattinsons and other families caught up in the issue was fought brilliantly, but at a level, says Mrs Christie, which was "above their heads". It is a theme to which she returns repeatedly. She reads of endless exchanges about herself, her mother, and her father which, she says, the family knew nothing about. It drives Mrs Christie's determination to stop similar treatment of others in the future. "As much of this paperwork as possible should be read by as many people as possible. We need a public inquiry for that to happen. We all deserve to know what went on." Mrs Christie is not hounding BNFL as it exists today. The plant sent a doctor and nurse round the day she rang about the organ revelations, and they left her father's file with her. In contrast to the marathon battle of obfuscation and evasion in the 1970s, this transparency included memos which would make modern nuclear managers blush. Among the documents she has is a confidential one, from 1979, which asks for ways to try to avoid more embarrassing "festering" cases such as Mr Pattinson's, following the national publicity on the payout. "Surely it's in BNFL's interest as much as ours to go forward without any skeletons in the cupboard," Mrs Christie says. "I want to give them all the expert medical reports from Dame Janet Vaughan and Alice Stewart [both experts at Oxford University at the time] which the union commissioned for my dad's case. They've not been published to this day, because the company settled." Good practice She believes that a public inquiry could help point more towards good practice for the future rather than blame for the past. "There are letters in there which, I think, are not telling the truth." She says of the perceived need to test body organs, that there might have been some sensitive reluctance to ask permission: "But if they had sat down with families and explained the situation, I can't see many refusing - so long as you knew what was being done and why, and had reassurance about remains being treated respectfully." A Department of Trade and Industry spokeswoman said: "The secretary of state announced a full and thorough inquiry and the Michael Redfern inquiry is already under way. People will have an opportunity to express their concerns and submit information to the inquiry." Useful links British Energy Department of Trade and Industry British Nuclear Fuels Ltd Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Greenpeace Come Clean WMD awareness programme UK atomic energy authority National Radiological Protection Board Friends of the Earth World Nuclear Association World Nuclear Transport Institute Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007 ***************************************************************** 40 Economic Times: Heavy duty action ahead with uranium at play-Big Bucks ASHISH AGRAWAL TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ MONDAY, MAY 14, 2007 03:01:19 AM] With the New York Mercantile Exchange launching futures trading in uranium last week, the heavy-duty metal now joins a long list of commodities which are traded on futures exchanges. Uranium prices have shot up in the past three years, mirroring the trend in many other commodities, although the driving forces are different. Uranium prices, which were subdued from the eighties till the early part of this century, jumped 10-fold between ’02 and ’07 to $95 a pound. The excitement about uranium has to do with the growing importance of nuclear power in recent years, since it helps in generating power in an environment-friendly manner. There’s a shortfall in uranium supply as companies had delayed mining. Supply is expected to improve only after three years when new mines become operational. Among the major companies engaged in the sector are Canada-based Cameco and Rio Tinto Group, an Australian company. These two account for around 40% of total uranium production in the world. Areva, BHP Billiton and Kazatomprom account for another 30%. These companies have seen a major upturn in their fortunes, which is also reflected in their performance in the stock market. Producers are in a favourable position, as uranium accounts for a small portion of the total cost of production, giving suppliers more negotiating power. However, a major part of the trade is done through long-term contracts, which do not see as much variation as spot prices. Canada and Australia are the largest uranium producers, accounting for 28% and 23% of the global production. Other producers include Kazakhstan and Russia. Major consuming countries are France, Germany, the US and UK. A distinguishing feature of the uranium market is that the metal can be supplied only to countries which have signed certain treaties with respect to its usage. Despite this, the price follows normal demand-supply pattern. Currently, uranium production is around 45,000 tonnes, against a global requirement of 66,000 tonnes. The remaining requirement is met through inventories, warheads and recycling. Apart from the existing capacity, significant addition of newer capacity is being proposed. If the planned capacity comes on stream by the middle of the next decade, the total installed capacity will go up by more than 60%. Total uranium demand may shoot up to more than 100,000 tonnes. Uranium and crude oil are not exactly comparable, since global reserves of the heavy metal are adequate. These reserves can be tapped, albeit with a time lag, as and when there is a significant increase in the demand. The uranium market in India is regulated with only government-controlled companies engaged in the production. However, this may change if the Indo-US nuclear agreement finally fructifies. It may pave the way for private participation in the nuclear industry to accelerate the addition of nuclear capacity in the power sector. India has nuclear reactors with a current installed capacity of 3,900 mw. These reactors use uranium as fuel and require 600-650 tonnes of uranium per year for full capacity utilisation. However, India's fuel needs are expected to soar by '15, when post-deal projects are expected to come on stream. ccording to the World Nuclear Association (WNA), projects of more than 10,000 mw are in the proposal stage. These proposals may take firm shape in next 12-18 months. So, expect uranium to see some serious action in the years to come. Copyright © 2007 Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved. For ***************************************************************** 41 The Enquirer: Rep. Jean Schmidt introduces bill on nuke waste Last Updated: 6:46 pm | Saturday, May 12, 2007 BY MALIA RULON | MRULON@ENQUIRER.COM WASHINGTON - If anyone has any doubts about Rep. Jean Schmidt's plans for the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, a bill she and two colleagues introduced on Friday should clear that up. That bill - the Nuclear Waste Storage Prohibition Act - would ensure that no funds from the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) may be used for the creation of a permanent storage facility for spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste. The partnership is part of President Bush's advanced energy initiative that seeks to reduce reliance on imported oil. Eleven sites, including Piketon, are in the running to be chosen as a GNEP site where yet-to-be-developed technology would be used to recycle spent nuclear fuel. The concern from opponents of the plan is that the nuclear fuel wouldn't be kept at the designated location temporarily, but would be stored there long term. Schmidt, a co-sponsor of the bill, came under heavy fire during her re-election campaign last year for backing Piketon's bid to become a GNEP site. Her opponent, Democrat Victoria Wulsin, had accused Schmidt of lobbying for a nuclear waste dump in the 2nd Congressional District. Schmidt, of Miami Township, said Friday that she's glad Democratic Reps. Zack Space of Dover and Charlie Wilson of St. Clairsville have joined her on the bill. "By working together to get this bill passed, we can ensure the Piketon Plant cannot ever become a nuclear-waste dump," she said. Wulsin has announced that she'll again run against Schmidt. Space said the GNEP project would bring new jobs to Piketon and spur economic development throughout the depressed southeastern Ohio area. "With such economic potential, it just makes sense to assure our Ohioans from the outset that this project will be a safe, secure facility - never anything like a Yucca Mountain-type nuclear-waste dump," he said. Cincinnati.Com » The Enquirer » Local news » Rep. Jean Schmidt introduces bill on nuke waste www.gnep.energy.gov, Global Nuclear Energy Partnership site, which has links to site studies from all 11 proposed sites, including Piketon. Copyright © 2007 The Enquirer. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 42 Chillicothe Gazette: Bill bans dumping waste at Piketon www.chillicothegazette.com - Chillicothe, OH Saturday, May 12, 2007 Area reps don't want GNEP funds used for storage The Gazette Staff WASHINGTON, D.C. -Friday, Congresswoman Jean Schmidt with original cosponsors Congressmen Zack Space and Charlie Wilson, introduced H.R. 2282, the Nuclear Waste Storage Prohibition Act. The Nuclear Waste Storage Prohibition Act states no funds from the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) may be used for the creation of a permanent storage facility for spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste. It further states no such waste may be retained for long-term storage at a site where the facilities are intended for reprocessing of fuel or waste. "I am pleased to have the support of Congressmen Space and Wilson on this important, bipartisan bill," said Schmidt, R-Miami Township. "By working together to get this bill passed, we can ensure the Piketon plant cannot ever become a nuclear waste dump." "This bill demonstrates that economic development and public health can go hand in hand to build a brighter future for southern Ohio. I am proud to work across party lines to pass this important piece of legislation," Wilson, D-Bridgeport, said. Space, D-Dover, said, "The GNEP project would not only bring new jobs to the Piketon Plant, but it will also spur economic development throughout southeastern Ohio in other industries. With such economic potential, it just makes sense to assure our Ohioans from the outset that this project will be a safe, secure facility - never anything like a Yucca Mountain-type nuclear waste dump." The Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion plant, more commonly known as the Piketon Plant, has been chosen as one of 11 sites the Department of Energy is reviewing for the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership. GNEP is a program that plans to recycle spent fuel rods and convert them to new fuel for the nation's nuclear power plants. GNEP holds promise for revitalizing nuclear power in the United States, increasing national security, and reducing nuclear waste in the environment. Billions of dollars of investment and thousands of jobs will go to the final site selected. Originally published May 12, 2007 Print this article E-mail this to Copyright ©2007 Chillicothe Gazette ***************************************************************** 43 Yorkshire Post Business: Forgemasters lands £60m nuclear deal By Ian Briggs SHEFFIELD Forgemasters has signed the first part of a £60m 10-year deal to supply steel casks to contain nuclear waste produced in Germany. The deal is the largest and longest-running contract that Sheffield Forgemasters has entered into during its 200-year history. The initial £10m contract, signed with Gessellschaft für Nuklear-Service mbH (GNS), has seen Sheffield Forgemasters secure an initial production run of 24 forged steel casks to transport and store waste from reprocessed spent nuclear power station fuel elements. The second part of the contract, providing GNS with the option of a further 24 casks is valued at £9.1m. The 10-year contract is to produce 150 casks. Each cask weighs 61 tonnes and a sample cask will undergo stringent destructive tests carried out by the German regulatory authorities to guarantee the strength of the forgings. Last year Sheffield Forgemasters's chief executive Dr Graham Honeyman, who led a management buyout of the company in 2005, told the Yorkshire Post he expected the Sheffield-based firm to benefit from the nuclear power industry across the world. Forgemasters' sales director Volker Schaffer said it was a landmark deal for the company and for British engineering. "It demonstrates our capacity to move forward with the next generation of nuclear power and to take an engineering lead within that industry. "Germany and other European countries are basically an extension of our home market and it is a reflection of Sheffield Forgemasters reputation that we were chosen by GNS as one of the few companies in the world with the required expertise and capability to undertake this scale of production and long-term commitment." Olaf Oldiges, head of construction, development and special projects at GNS, said: "The contract to supply nuclear waste casks to GNS is a major deal and Sheffield Forgemasters were awarded the contract on the basis of the company's substantial experience in supplying similar products to other countries. "GNS needed the assurance that whichever company was to undertake the contract it would be able fulfill specific requirements over quality control, consistency and supply above other considerations. Sheffield Forgemasters were able to fulfill all of those criteria." Last Updated: 12 May 2007 Johnston Press Digital Publishing ***************************************************************** 44 CCA: Accident involving WIPP transport results in no radiation leak, minor damage to vehicle Carlsbad Current-Argus - Article Launched: 05/11/2007 09:58:39 PM MDT CARLSBAD ? There were no injuries, no major damage and no radiation leaks when a truck bearing shipments of transuranic waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad was involved in a minor traffic accident Friday morning. The incident took place at around 3:40 a.m. near Ranger, Texas. A WIPP truck hauling contact-handled, transuranic waste to the WIPP site from Savannah River, S.C., was headed west on Interstate 20, said WIPP spokeswoman Susan Scott. "Apparently another tractor-trailer that was eastbound on I-20 hit a concrete barrier, which threw pieces of the barrier into the path of our shipment," Scott said. The other vehicle involved was not associated with WIPP. The pieces of the barrier damaged four tires on the WIPP vehicle ? three on the tractor and one on the trailer. The rim of a wheel was also bent. There were no injuries. "The truck was moved to a nearby tire place," said Dave Moody, manager of the Department of Energy's field office in Carlsbad. The tires and a damaged wheel rim were replaced. Before continuing its journey to Carlsbad, the WIPP truck passed a "zero defect" inspection indicating that the vehicle was safe. The three containers on the trailer holding the nuclear waste were not damaged at all, Moody said, and no radiation leaks were detected. After the inspection, the shipment was able to continue to WIPP. WIPP has accepted shipments of transuranic waste from Savannah River for about five years. The South Carolina site averages about three shipments of contact-handled waste a week, Moody said. Copyright © 2005 Carlsbad Current Argus, a MediaNews Group ***************************************************************** 45 Daily Echo: Chemical Scare After Canister Find A RADIOACTIVE chemical container found outside a Southampton club had been there for at least four days, the Daily Echo can reveal. Parts of Shirley were at the centre of a chemical scare yesterday after the discovery of the small chemical canister in the driveway of Shirley and Millbrook Conservative Club. The canister - the size of a Coke can - was found next to a wooden post soon after 11am. Firefighters were alerted after it was discovered that the canister bore the yellow radioactive symbol. Anyone with information is asked to call 0845 045 4545. Club secretary Lynn Davis said: "The lady that does our garden spotted the container by a wooden post on the driveway on Monday, but said that she didn't really think anything of it. "When we heard about it we went outside to have a look. "It was really heavy and had a radioactive symbol on it, so we called the fire brigade." Emergency services set up a 100m cordon around the site in Anglesea Road, Shirley. Police officers sealed off Anglesea Road at its junction with Shirley Road, and nearby Griffin Road and Sydney Road were also shut after the incident, but reopened by 3pm. A police spokesman said that the amount of radiation being given off posed virtually no risk to the public. Officers, though, still want to hear from anyone who may know where it came from. 7:00am Saturday 12th May 2007Print  Email this Comment Posted by: Robert on 3:47pm Sat 12 May 07 Sounds to me as though somebody dropped their fission chips. Sounds to me as though somebody dropped their fission chips. Privacy Policy © Copyright 2001-2007 Newsquest Media Group A Gannett Company ***************************************************************** 46 Scotsman.com: Nuclear groups wooing Centrica Monday, 14th May 2007 NUCLEAR power group British Energy (BE) and French utility EDF are trying to interest Scottish Gas-owner Centrica to join them in building a possible new nuclear plant in the UK, industry sources said yesterday. However, they said Centrica is more likely to agree to be a buyer of nuclear power than to become an equity partner in a new plant. "EDF and BE would like to spread the risk," one insider said. EDF's UK unit, EDF Energy, and BE have said they would be interested in building nuclear plants in Britain if the government gives the green light. Earlier this year, BE invited companies to talk about partnering in building new nuclear stations. A BE spokesman said yesterday that the group had received "a lot of interest" in response to its invitation. However, BE, Centrica and EDF all declined to confirm whether there had been any talks on building another nuclear plant. This article: http://business.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=742632007 Last updated: 14-May-07 01:44 BST ©2007 Scotsman.com | contact | terms & conditions ***************************************************************** 47 Mineweb: 23 permits granted to explore for Niger uranium EXPLORERS FLOCKING TO NIGER DESERT Abdoulaye Massalatchi Niger has granted a wave of permits to British, Canadian and Indian mining firms allowing them to explore for uranium in its desert north, the West African country's government said on Saturday.NIAMEY (Reuters) Niger has granted a wave of permits to British, Canadian and Indian mining firms allowing them to explore for uranium in its desert north, the West African country's government said on Saturday. A total of 23 permits were granted to three Canadian firms, three British firms and an Indian company, enabling them to explore in the former French colony's Arlit and Tchirozerine regions, vast swathes of land in the southern Sahara desert. Canada's Southampton Ventures Inc, Delta Exploration Inc and UraMin Inc., Britain's COJ Commodity Investments Ltd., Agadez Ltd. and Indo Energy Ltd., and India's Taurian Resources Pvt Ltd. between them pledged to invest some $55 million in exploration activities over the next three years. Rising demand for uranium on international markets has renewed appetite for prospecting and mining in Niger, the world's third-largest producer of the mineral but bottom of a U.N. development index ranking countries by quality of life. The government is hoping the discovery of more deposits will again boost its economy, creating jobs and training, bringing development to some of its most remote communities, and raising tax revenues paid by foreign firms while they explore. It hopes rising demand from fast-industrialising China, to whom it granted a series of exploration licences last July, means the industry will be sustainable in the medium-term. The government has already granted around 70 mining exploration permits for its desert north, mostly for uranium, and around 100 more are currently under consideration. If new exploitable reserves are discovered, the state of Niger will take a 40 percent stake in the projects, 10 percent for free, while it will pay for the remaining 30 percent. DESERT BANDITS Uranium is used as a nuclear fuel in power stations and atomic submarines and vessels, in the production of nuclear weapons and armour piercing bullets and in the aviation sector. Rising demand saw spot uranium prices double last year on international markets, and a report by Deutsche Bank in January forecast they would rise by nearly 40 percent again this year. Production in Niger -- which also has reserves of iron ore, coal, copper, silver, platinum, vanadium, titanium and lithium, peaked at 4,366 tonnes in 1981 but has since fallen, standing at around 3,000 tonnes last year. But the growing presence of foreign firms in one of the country's most lawless regions is also catching the eye of Tuareg and Toubou nomads who have long complained of neglect and are demanding a share in the country's natural wealth. The light-skinned Tuareg and other northern tribesmen launched a full-scale rebellion against the government in Niamey in the 1990s and although peace deals were signed, the region remains a hotbed of resentment and is awash with arms. Suspected Tuareg rebels last month attacked a uranium mine operated by a subsidiary of French mining group AREVA, more than 1,200 km (750 miles) northeast of Niamey near the border with Algeria. The attack was the latest in a series of incidents on the ancient trade routes that criss-cross the Sahara, including the kidnapping of 20 European tourists last year, drugs and arms seizures and clashes with the army. 13 May 2007 06:24 Error occured while processing the request: URL: http://www.mineweb.net/mineweb/error/SystemError.jsp © Mineweb Holdings Limited, 1997 - 2007 | Terms and Conditions of ***************************************************************** 48 KFDA: Authorities: No damage in crash with WIPP truck NewsChannel 10 / Amarillo, TX: newschannel10.com - Associated Press - May 12, 2007 7:05 PM ET A minor traffic accident in Texas involving a truck bound for a nuclear waste dump near Carlsbad left no injuries, no major damage and no radiation leaks. That's the word from a spokeswoman for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Susan Scott. She says the truck was involved in a minor accident early yesterday on Interstate 20 near Ranger, Texas. Scott says another tractor-trailer rig hit a concrete barrier, and that threw pieces of the barrier into the path of the WIPP truck. She says the pieces damaged four tires on the WIPP truck -- three on the tractor and one on the trailer -- and bent a wheel rim. An Energy Department official says the truck was moved to a nearby tire shop and the wheel rim and tires were replaced. All content © Copyright 2000 - 2007 WorldNow and KFDA. All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** 49 Reuters: Uranium exploration firms flock to Niger desert Sat 12 May 2007, 14:09 GMT By Abdoulaye Massalatchi NIAMEY (Reuters) - Niger has granted a wave of permits to British, Canadian and Indian mining firms allowing them to explore for uranium in its desert north, the West African country's government said on Saturday. A total of 23 permits were granted to three Canadian firms, three British firms and an Indian company, enabling them to explore in the former French colony's Arlit and Tchirozerine regions, vast swathes of land in the southern Sahara desert. Canada's Southampton Ventures Inc, Delta Exploration Inc and UraMin Inc., Britain's COJ Commodity Investments Ltd., Agadez Ltd. and Indo Energy Ltd., and India's Taurian Resources Pvt Ltd. between them pledged to invest some $55 million in exploration activities over the next three years. Rising demand for uranium on international markets has renewed appetite for prospecting and mining in Niger, the world's third-largest producer of the mineral but bottom of a U.N. development index ranking countries by quality of life. The government is hoping the discovery of more deposits will again boost its economy, creating jobs and training, bringing development to some of its most remote communities, and raising tax revenues paid by foreign firms while they explore. It hopes rising demand from fast-industrialising China, to whom it granted a series of exploration licences last July, means the industry will be sustainable in the medium-term. The government has already granted around 70 mining exploration permits for its desert north, mostly for uranium, and around 100 more are currently under consideration. If new exploitable reserves are discovered, the state of Niger will take a 40 percent stake in the projects, 10 percent for free, while it will pay for the remaining 30 percent. DESERT BANDITS Uranium is used as a nuclear fuel in power stations and atomic submarines and vessels, in the production of nuclear weapons and armour piercing bullets and in the aviation sector. Rising demand saw spot uranium prices double last year on international markets, and a report by Deutsche Bank in January forecast they would rise by nearly 40 percent again this year. Production in Niger -- which also has reserves of iron ore, coal, copper, silver, platinum, vanadium, titanium and lithium, peaked at 4,366 tonnes in 1981 but has since fallen, standing at around 3,000 tonnes last year. But the growing presence of foreign firms in one of the country's most lawless regions is also catching the eye of Tuareg and Toubou nomads who have long complained of neglect and are demanding a share in the country's natural wealth. The light-skinned Tuareg and other northern tribesmen launched a full-scale rebellion against the government in Niamey in the 1990s and although peace deals were signed, the region remains a hotbed of resentment and is awash with arms. Suspected Tuareg rebels last month attacked a uranium mine operated by a subsidiary of French mining group AREVA, more than 1,200 km (750 miles) northeast of Niamey near the border with Algeria. The attack was the latest in a series of incidents on the ancient trade routes that criss-cross the Sahara, including the kidnapping of 20 European tourists last year, drugs and arms seizures and clashes with the army. © Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved. | Learn more about Reuters ***************************************************************** 50 Reuters: Uranium exploration firms flock to Niger desert Sat 12 May 2007, 12:58 GMT By Abdoulaye Massalatchi NIAMEY, May 12 (Reuters) - Niger has granted a wave of permits to British, Canadian and Indian mining firms allowing them to explore for uranium in its desert north, the West African country's government said on Saturday. A total of 23 permits were granted to three Canadian firms, three British firms and an Indian company, enabling them to explore in the former French colony's Arlit and Tchirozerine regions, vast swathes of land in the southern Sahara desert. Canada's Southampton Ventures Inc, Delta Exploration Inc and UraMin Inc., Britain's COJ Commodity Investments Ltd., Agadez Ltd. and Indo Energy Ltd., and India's Taurian Resources Pvt Ltd. between them pledged to invest some $55 million in exploration activities over the next three years. Rising demand for uranium on international markets has renewed appetite for prospecting and mining in Niger, the world's third-largest producer of the mineral but bottom of a U.N. development index ranking countries by quality of life. The government is hoping the discovery of more deposits will again boost its economy, creating jobs and training, bringing development to some of its most remote communities, and raising tax revenues paid by foreign firms while they explore. It hopes rising demand from fast-industrialising China, to whom it granted a series of exploration licences last July, means the industry will be sustainable in the medium-term. The government has already granted around 70 mining exploration permits for its desert north, mostly for uranium, and around 100 more are currently under consideration. If new exploitable reserves are discovered, the state of Niger will take a 40 percent stake in the projects, 10 percent for free, while it will pay for the remaining 30 percent. DESERT BANDITS Uranium is used as a nuclear fuel in power stations and atomic submarines and vessels, in the production of nuclear weapons and armour piercing bullets and in the aviation sector. Rising demand saw spot uranium prices double last year on international markets, and a report by Deutsche Bank in January forecast they would rise by nearly 40 percent again this year. Production in Niger -- which also has reserves of iron ore, coal, copper, silver, platinum, vanadium, titanium and lithium, peaked at 4,366 tonnes in 1981 but has since fallen, standing at around 3,000 tonnes last year. But the growing presence of foreign firms in one of the country's most lawless regions is also catching the eye of Tuareg and Toubou nomads who have long complained of neglect and are demanding a share in the country's natural wealth. The light-skinned Tuareg and other northern tribesmen launched a full-scale rebellion against the government in Niamey in the 1990s and although peace deals were signed, the region remains a hotbed of resentment and is awash with arms. Suspected Tuareg rebels last month attacked a uranium mine operated by a subsidiary of French mining group AREVA, more than 1,200 km (750 miles) northeast of Niamey near the border with Algeria. The attack was the latest in a series of incidents on the ancient trade routes that criss-cross the Sahara, including the kidnapping of 20 European tourists last year, drugs and arms seizures and clashes with the army. © Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved. | Learn more about Reuters ***************************************************************** 51 The Observer: Eviction threat at Faslane as locals go to war After 25 years, peace protesters become protest target Paul Kelbie Sunday May 13, 2007 Demonstrators living at Britain's longest-running peace camp are discovering what it is like being on the receiving end of a protest movement. Twenty-five years ago, campaigners began a two-week sit-in that grew into a worldwide symbol of anti-nuclear activism. But now it is the focus of festering discontent among residents living close to the home of Britain's nuclear submarine fleet, who feel that the daily inconvenience has gone too far. In an attempt to stop work inside the Trident base near Helensburgh, which provides jobs for around 10,000 people around the country, protesters have taken it in turns to lie down in the middle of the A814 - the main road that passes the base. However, as the traffic queues grow longer and tempers get shorter, an anti-protest protest group - Peninsula 24/7 - has been set up by irritated local residents. The hand-painted caravans, rough-and-ready tents and odd dilapidated bus that make up the Faslane 365 Peace Camp have become a permanent fixture of the landscape outside the razor-wire perimeter of the base. Vegetable gardens, earth toilets, solar panels, a wind generator, bicycle-powered lighting and wood-burning stoves have provided self-sufficient home 'comforts' for more than 10,000 activists who have travelled from all over the world to take part in the campaign over the three decades. Several years ago, Argyll & Bute council won a court case to evict the camp from its site, then chose not to enforce it. But now there is talk among residents that the time has come for the camp to go. 'The demonstrations have caused a great deal of disturbance to the area,' said Councillor Daniel Kelly, whose constituents in Clynder and Kilcreggan are among the worst affected as they have to put up with the constant blockades just to get to work or school. 'It's not just affecting those going to work at the base, but schoolchildren as well,' he said. 'I have no problem with them protesting, but they should do it in a responsible manner which does not disrupt people's day-to-day lives. 'If the disruption does not stop, it wouldn't surprise me if we looked at the eviction notice again. Others have rules and regulations to follow, why shouldn't they?' Last week rival protesters marched from nearby Garelochhead to voice opposition to the blockades. For once the usual anti-Trident signs and peace slogans were mixed with placards depicting a variety of altogether different messages, such as 'Faslane 365 - Peace Off'. 'We've had two marches so far to protest the demonstrations,' said George Freeman, councillor for Garelochhead and Cove. 'The first took place last month following a demonstration by a peace group from Germany, which caused a lot of problems. It was the final straw and people decided to make their feelings known. 'I support the individual's right to protest, but not if it affects the daily lives of others. Activating the eviction notice is an issue that some councillors continue to consider. I have no doubt it may be looked at in the future.' In addition to the daily delays which have threatened to stop local children getting to school in time for end-of-year exams and forcing others on a 21-mile detour, the expense of policing Faslane 365 has also caused anger. It is estimated that the cost to taxpayers of the year-long operation could be more than £20m as police are drafted in from other areas. 'The camp's been there too long,' said Tony Macdonald, a local resident who claims that his opinion of the camp has changed from indifference to 'extreme dislike' as a result of the blockades. 'The disruption and inconvenience is too much. It must be costing a fortune to keep all these police here. The camp is an eyesore and probably in breach of planning, so should be removed for good.' In an attempt to meet local residents halfway, organisers of Faslane 365 have attempted to start avoiding blockades before 9am and between 12 and 2pm. However the peace campaigners are adamant that the protests will continue. 'I'm not happy that it's disrupting their existence, but there's a bigger issue at stake,' said Matt Burry, 51, an activist from London who arrived last August. 'Faslane 365 are surprised it's taken the locals so long to start campaigning.' Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007 ***************************************************************** 52 [v911t] NICHOLS - More lies from Livermore nuclear weapons lab Date: Mon, 14 May 2007 01:16:27 -0500 (CDT) For Immediate Release Contact: Bob Nichols San Francisco Bay View Newspaper DUweapons@gmail.com More... http://tinyurl.com/yt9r5l http://tinyurl.com/28lmqd More lies from Livermore nuclear weapons lab by Bob Nichols Wednesday, 09 May 2007 San Francisco "Hundreds of thousands of additional deaths and maimings is the Bay Area's thanks for being good neighbors to these the 'good Germans,' the desk murderers, who are just following orders," stated Pat Gray, long time San Francisco Bay Area resident and former Green candidate for Congress. "A group of citizens of the Bay Area are seeking a lawyer to take legal action to stop the open air explosions set off by Livermore Lab in Tracy, California," she announced. "These open air explosions are sending clouds of depleted uranium oxide gas all over the Bay Area. It is well know that depleted uranium gas is a carcinogen and causes serious birth defects. "Our nation has signed a treaty to stop doing nuclear explosions in the open air but this is what Livermore Lab is doing and has been for the last 46 years. Now they have the hubris to request permission to increase the number of explosions. We hope that with legal assistance we can force the testing to be done underground." Pat Gray concluded: "Mr. Nichols, put my telephone number in the article so that people can contact me if they are concerned and would like to establish control over the activities of Livermore Lab. My number is (650) 344-2912 .. More... http://tinyurl.com/yt9r5l Or, http://tinyurl.com/28lmqd ***************************************************************** 53 ajc.com: Lab studying S.C. nuke plant to close | UGA center loses funding to monitor radiation effects as more activity is planned. By STACY SHELTON The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 05/12/07 A University of Georgia research center that provides the only academic look at radiation effects at a South Carolina nuclear weapons plant has lost its federal funding and is preparing to close. Just this year, the Savannah River Site opened a $506 million tritium extraction plant to rearm nuclear weapons, with more nuclear activity planned. The federal government intends to use the plant to mix bomb-grade plutonium and uranium to create nuclear power plant fuel, and a utility has laid the groundwork for two nuclear reactors on the Georgia side of the Savannah River. "It's a shame to lose that capability at a time when folks are getting more and more interested in nuclear power," Lee said. "I think that folks in the environment around the Savannah River Site, and really folks everywhere across the country, derive some sense of safety and security from knowing there is an independent group of ecologists and environmental scientists studying the impacts of low-dose radiation on this site." Georgia stopped testing water, air, soil, crops and wildlife for radiation on its side of the river two years ago. South Carolina still receives federal funding for testing. James Giusti, a U.S. Department of Energy spokesman at the Savannah River Site, said a government contractor monitors for radiation leaks and impacts. If additional tasks are required, he said, the department would hire an independent lab or use the contractor. "We're faced with reducing budgets and have had to make some tough decisions since the end of the Cold War," Giusti said. "It's come to a point where their research is not a top priority at the Savannah River Site." U.S. Rep. John Barrow (D-Ga.) recently lobbied the Department of Energy to save the lab. He said with the nuclear initiatives coming, it's "critical to have an independent and credible source of information on how these plans will affect the environment." The scientific community said the decision was based on politics, not science. At one time, the lab received $12 million a year from the federal government. More recently, annual grants totalled about $8 million, then dropped again last year to $4 million. This year the lab received $1.8 million, according to the U.S. Department of Energy and UGA. About 100 staff members and graduate students are left, including about 10 full-time professors. In the 1970s, lab scientists studied the harmful effects of discharging heated water from nuclear reactors. Their findings were used to site and design several nuclear power plants around the country. But the lab's primary purpose was to assess the effects of radiation on streams, forests, plants and animals at the Savannah River Site. The late UGA ecologist Eugene Odum, widely known as the father of modern ecology, founded the lab after convincing the federal government that an independent facility run by academics was needed to monitor the environmental impact of the nation's nuclear weapons complex. Over the years, its efforts expanded to include general wildlife research, especially studies of frogs and salamanders. Its location on the 198,000-acre plant site, which is carefully guarded and mostly untouched by humans in vast areas, was an ideal natural laboratory for students and researchers. Odum was able to study how nature converts farmland into woods. In the 1990s, researchers found several undiscovered bacteria in a pond known as a Carolina bay. Howard Nuefeld, a biology professor at Appalachian State University who studied cypress trees at the lab while working on his doctorate at UGA, said the lab's closing is a loss to the research community and society as a whole. © 2007 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ***************************************************************** 54 Indybay: NICHOLS: More lies from Livermore nuclear weapons lab by Bob Nichols, Project Censored Award Winner ( DUweapons [at] gmail.com ) Saturday May 12th, 2007 1:19 PM "A group of citizens of the Bay Area are seeking a lawyer to take legal action to stop the open air explosions set off by Livermore Lab in Tracy, California... livermoredirtybombsfbayarea1961.jpg San Francisco – “Hundreds of thousands of additional deaths and maimings is the Bay Area’s thanks for being good neighbors to these the ‘good Germans,’ the desk murderers, who are just following orders,†stated Pat Gray, long time San Francisco Bay Area resident and former Green candidate for Congress. “A group of citizens of the Bay Area are seeking a lawyer to take legal action to stop the open air explosions set off by Livermore Lab in Tracy, California,†she announced. “These open air explosions are sending clouds of depleted uranium oxide gas all over the Bay Area. It is well know that depleted uranium gas is a carcinogen and causes serious birth defects. “Our nation has signed a treaty to stop doing nuclear explosions in the open air – but this is what Livermore Lab is doing and has been for the last 46 years. Now they have the hubris to request permission to increase the number of explosions. We hope that with legal assistance we can force the testing to be done underground.†Pat Gray concluded: “Mr. Nichols, put my telephone number in the article so that people can contact me if they are concerned and would like to establish control over the activities of Livermore Lab. My number is (650) 344-2912.†Students and alumni at three UC campuses will begin a fast this Wednesday to demand that the University of California stop designing, engineering and manufacturing nuclear bombs. When contacted Tuesday, the hunger striking students were aware of the nuclear material detonations by Livermore. They’ve now decided to protest them strongly – along with the bomb-making – at the UC regents’ meeting next week. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, a multi-billion dollar federal government H-bomb factory dedicated to death and destruction of unimaginable Holocaust proportions, just can’t quite seem to get it right. So they try and try and lie again. Livermore recently refiled a previously botched application from Nov. 12, 2006, to continue and expand open air uranium bomb explosions that release poisonous uranium gas into the densely populated San Francisco Bay Area. The Bay Area is home to about 7 million people. According to its own statements, Livermore has already detonated and dispersed 23 tons of radioactive and deadly uranium gas at its Site 300 in Tracy, California, which is near Livermore and not far from San Francisco in the densely populated region. Uranium gas is produced when uranium bombs explode and the uranium catches on fire, producing very fine uranium aerosol or gas smoke from the fire. It’s been well known since the 1943 Manhattan Project to build an atomic bomb that there are only two reasons to use radioactive uranium gas: One reason is to kill people. The other is to contaminate their land, forever. The declassified “General Leslie Groves Memo†establishes that. It is widely available on the Internet. Gen. Groves headed the secretive Manhattan Project. Livermore’s new and expanded San Francisco Bay Area bombing plan is to release, by bombs, 200 tons of deadly uranium gas over the next 50 years. Possible increases in the amount and kinds of poisons are not ruled out. To learn more about his topic, read “Livermore to Poison San Francisco Area – On Purpose,†http://tinyurl.com/wq8c6; “Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab’s 200 Executioners Ready,†http://tinyurl.com/24x7xv; and “San Francisco: Nuclear Weapons Lab Backs Down,†http://tinyurl.com/2xmq7j. Contact Bob Nichols at bob.bobnichols [at] gmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it to book distinguished speakers for lectures, commencements and rallies. Speakers include Pat Gray, Leuren Moret, Dr. Doug Rokke, Dennis Kyne, Karen Parker, J.D., and Bob Nichols. Topics include building a positive culture in the midst of a militarized society and radiological warfare. What you can’t see does hurt and kill you. Nichols, a Project Censored Award-winning writer, is a former employee of an Army ammunition plant. http://tinyurl.com/yt9r5l © 2000–2007 San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center. Unless ***************************************************************** 55 Tennessean: ORNL's powerful isotope reactor to be restarted - Nashville, Tennessee - Saturday, 05/12/07 - Tennessean.com ASSOCIATED PRESS OAK RIDGE, Tenn. (AP) -- The U.S. Department of Energy has authorized the restart of the world's most powerful research reactor, which has been down for 16 months for repairs and upgrades. The DOE authorized the restart process of the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory late Friday night, Kelly Beierschmitt, director of nuclear operations at ORNL told The Knoxville News Sentinel. After receiving a string of safety approvals earlier in the week, workers began cooling the hydrogen loop associated with the reactor's new cold source for research experiments, Beierschmitt said. The reactor's fuel core will remain at low power while workers check all of the shielding and operators undergo retraining, he said. Beierschmitt said lab officials hope to have the reactor operating at full power by the middle of the week, with scientific experiments soon to follow. "We're very excited about this. The team has done a good job," he said in a telephone interview. The 40-year-old reactor is one of ORNL's prized research tools. Scientists study the structure and properties of materials using the reactor's high concentration of neutrons. Despite the reactor's age, Oak Ridge officials say it is expected to last for another 40 years. The lab has spent about $70 million on improvements at the reactor in recent years. The newly installed cold source cools research chambers to minus 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Using liquid helium and hydrogen, the cold source will slow the movement of neutrons, lengthen the wavelength and make the stream of radioactive particles more amenable for studies of polymers and certain biological materials. The reactor's restart is at least six months behind the original schedule. "We certainly need the neutrons. We're waiting for them rather desperately to resume our work," the laboratory's Stephen Nagler said last year as the delays were starting to mount. Copyright © 2007, tennessean.com. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 56 KnoxNews: ORNL reactor gets OK to restart By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com May 12, 2007 OAK RIDGE - The big wait is over. The U.S. Department of Energy late Friday authorized the restart of the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The world's most powerful research reactor has been shut down for 16 months for repairs, maintenance and a series of equipment upgrades. Kelly Beierschmitt, director of nuclear operations at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, said the restart process would begin immediately. After receiving a series of safety approvals earlier in the week, workers started cooling the hydrogen loop associated with the reactor's new cold source for research experiments, Beierschmitt said. The reactor's fuel core will "go critical" this weekend and remain at low power while workers check all of the shielding and operators undergo retraining, he said. Beierschmitt said lab officials hope to have the reactor operating at full power - 85 megawatts - by the middle of the week, with scientific experiments soon to follow. "We're very excited about this. The team has done a good job," he said in a telephone interview. Beierschmitt said most of the lab's nuclear staff would work long hours on Mother's Day weekend. He joked that it might be the most expensive restart in nuclear history. "Everybody out here is going to have to pay a penalty for missing Mother's Day," he said. Friday's restart authorization came from Dennis Spurgeon, DOE's assistant secretary for nuclear energy. In recent weeks, the ORNL reactor underwent a series of safety reviews, including a formal readiness inspection by DOE and an independent team of experts hired by the federal agency. Beierschmitt said no major problems were found but that some questions had to be addressed. "They wanted us to go back one more time and verify the status of all our safety systems and surveillance," he said. "It was about the fourth time that check was made." The reactor team also had to "close up a few loose ends with paperwork" and recheck the calculations associated with one of the reactor's safety criteria, Beierschmitt said. The Department of Energy has invested about $70 million in reactor upgrades during the past couple of years, including the new cold source and experimental facilities. The cold source uses liquid helium and hydrogen to cool the research chambers to minus-425 degrees Fahrenheit. That environment slows the movement of neutrons and lengthens their wavelength, which makes the neutron beams more useful for studies of polymers and certain biological materials. Researchers use neutron-scattering experiments to better understand the structure and properties of materials. The scientific community has been anxious for the reactor's return to operation, which is at least six months behind the original schedule. "We certainly need the neutrons. We're waiting for them rather desperately to resume our work," Stephen Nagler of ORNL said last year as the delays started to mount. The High Flux Isotope Reactor attracts scientists from around the world, but ORNL will restrict its research uses in the near term while the new equipment is commissioned, Beierschmitt said. "The experimenters will be people who are very familiar (with the reactor)," he said. "They need to understand the nature of the new instruments." Lab officials will pay particular attention to the cold source, and if anything unusual takes place, operations will be shut down, Beierschmitt said. "We're not going to take any chances," he said. The Oak Ridge reactor is almost an anomaly these days in the research world. At one time, dozens of U.S. universities and laboratories operated reactors as part of their scientific and nuclear-development programs. Most of those closed, however, in the 1970s and '80s. The High Flux Isotope Reactor is 40 years old, but officials said recent upgrades and continuing maintenance should make the facility operable for another 40 years. It has a replacement value of nearly $2 billion. Senior writer Frank Munger may be reached at 865-342-6329. Copyright 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co. ***************************************************************** 57 ContraCostaTimes.com: Tell Tauscher no new weapons Contra Costa Times By Bob Hanson Article Launched: 05/12/2007 03:06:29 AM PDT Our representative in Congress, Ellen Tauscher, holds the future of U.S. nuclear weapons policy in her hands. As chairwoman of the Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee, she's one of the few members of Congress who will have a say on whether the nation should pursue a new generation of nuclear weapons. At this point, it looks like Tauscher supports the concept of the "Reliable Replacement Warhead." She says she wants to make sure it is "done right." The Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center board is deeply disappointed that she would support the RRW under any circumstances or conditions. Even such "hawkish" leaders as Henry Kissinger and George Shultz have stated that the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons is key to U.S. security. If these horrible weapons are ever to be eliminated, our nation must take the lead. It will be impossible to convince other countries that they should give up their bombs or abandon plans to develop them if we build new ones. We need to stop telling the rest of the world "do as we say, not as we do." Recent studies have shown that our current weapons are perfectly reliable and will be for at least 50 more years. So, what will the estimated $150 billion cost of the program have accomplished? We hope Tauscher will realize that her legacy should be to help rid the earth of nuclear weapons, not contribute to a new arms race. Call her office at 925-932-8899 and let her know how you feel. Hanson is co-chairman of the Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center and a resident of Walnut Creek. ***************************************************************** 58 LocalNews8.com: Radioactive Package Delivered To Idaho Falls Home A package with radioactive material shows up at an Idaho Falls home Sunday, leaving the homeowner stumped. About 4:00 p.m., the Idaho Falls Hazmat team was called out to a house on Logan Drive in Idaho Falls. Police believe the suspicious package contains a medical radioactive isotope. They say it is not dangerous. Authorities suspect that this was a mistake delivery. Bonneville county dispatch says they think the package was intended to go to a medical business that deals with these chemicals. All content © Copyright 2000 - 2007 WorldNow and KIFI. All Rights Reserved. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. ***************************************************************** 59 NewsChannel6: INL History Tour Reporter: Ty Perry Fifty miles west of Idaho Falls, in the middle of the harsh desert, there is an abundance of history. Hollie Gilbert, Historical Archaeologist: "This is a homestead from 1915." The remains are one of over 700 homesteads that were built in the early 1900's and abandoned only years later. Early homesteaders left things behind like lanterns and cans, but a lawnmower there shows just how optimistic these homesteaders really were. Hollie Gilbert, Historical Archaeologist: "Actually, we call this homestead 'Shattered Dreams'. They were realy planning on having water, they were planning on having a lawn to mow." The homesteaders are just one piece of history now spread out across the land now owned by the Department of Energy and the Idaho National Lab. Every year, the lab gives a tour of the land, highlighting all the pristine land, preserved through the years. Dino Lowrey, Archaeologist: "It's nice to show people that D.O.E. does have this environmental unit that does take care of these resources." The tour includes ancient Native American artifacts and even prehistoric sites dating back more than 13 million years. This year, brothers Christian and Corey Powell were on the tour. Corey Powell: "Skipping school and learning about the people that lived out here a long time ago." Christian Powell: "You get to pick it up and actually see what it is instead of just a picture in a book." Corey Powell: "This is way better than history class." For more information on the tour or to book a spot on next year's tour, call the INL Cultural Resources Office. The tour is a 'first come, first served' basis and there are only a limited number of openings available. All content © Copyright 2000 - 2007 WorldNow and kpvi. All Rights Reserved. ***************************************************************** NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: *****************************************************************