***************************************************************** 12/07/01 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 9.288 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS 1 UK: Chernobyl (and Sellafield) 2 New Scientist 17 November 2001: UK Nuke Plants and Birth Defects 3 NRC Assigns New Resident Inspector at Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant 4 S AUSTRALIAN GOVT PLAYS DOWN ACID LEAK FROM URANIUM MINE 5 Hamaoka plant pipe ruptured instantly - 6 Sellafield controversy: Partial victory for Ireland, Minister says 7 Enviromentalists lose appeal against Mox plant 8 Urenco to build uranium enrichment plant in US 9 Europe: 'Equivalent to two Chernobyls': Pacific Sandpiper being 10 Bulgarian government expects windfall from privatization in 2002 11 NRC to Receive Comments on Draft Decommissioning Document 12 Czech minister to offer resignation over nuclear plant, premier 13 Home News: BNFL to brief on Sellafield 14 Santa Claus takes on Sellafield challenge 15 Bellona calls on EU to ban export of nuclear waste to Russia 16 Russian nuclear waste processing plant to reach full capacity 17 New "Dependent" Counsel Regulations Are Dangerously Restrictive 18 Nuclear plant won't shut down early 19 Greenpeace Calls Daschle Energy Plan 'Bush-Lite' 20 Nevada delegation meets to step up fight against Yucca Mountain 21 Minister 'unaware' of Mox licence 22 YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Lawmakers target law firm 23 Las Vegas Chamber drops national membership over Yucca 24 Nevadans plan to file complaint in Yucca case 25 IAEA Daily Press Review Date 2001-12-07 Number 234 26 Document may reveal unsealed waste shipment 27 WNA NEWS BRIEFING 01.49 | 28 November - 4 December 2001 28 Waste conversion rumors swirling - 29 Sellafield Ownership Safety Fears 30 Workforce Secure in Sellafield Deal 31 Energy Secretary Statement on Senate Energy Bill Abraham urges 32 U.S. spares Davis-Besse from safety shutdown 33 NRC Staff to Meet with U. S. Enrichment Corp. On Possible Safety NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS 1 7 Arrested for Sale of Uranium-235 2 Analysis: Strident about Trident: Since September 11, one 3 Energy body chief calls on North Korea to comply with nuclear 4 Pasko-trial postponed to December 24 5 Terrorists could easily make nuclear bomb, says veteran Russian 6 USA can amend ABM instead of quitting treaty - Russian expert 7 Al-Qa'idah terrorists conned in Kazakh nuclear weapon deal, 8 The real dirt on dirty bombs 9 Silent trees tell toxic story 10 Energy Department gives BNFL nod to resume Oak Ridge work 11 Russian TV: 7 Arrested in Nuke Bust 12 Wen Ho Lee Testifies in Lawsuit 13 Terror laws at-a-glance 14 New "Dependent" Counsel Regulations Are Dangerously Restrictive 15 Amargosa Valley residents want representation - 16 Senate vote fails to advance Reid's homeland defense push 17 Eye on a Worldwide Weapons Cache 18 Nuclear Warhead Arsenal Trimmed 19 `Dirty bombs' most effective as nuclear scare tactic 20 Reid Fights To Keep Homeland Security Package In Defense Appropriations 21 Governors want more homeland security money - **************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 Chernobyl Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2001 11:53:52 -0800 (PST) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Here is some more. L --------------------------------------------------- http://archive.newscientist.com/archive.jsp?id=21611800 Take the low road 21 Nov 98 Forget the Highlands if you're looking for a refuge after a nuclear accident SCOTLAND could a very dangerous place to live in the wake of a nuclear accident, a new study has found. Its food-in particular meat and milk-are far more vulnerable to contamination because the country's peat bogs transfer radioactive caesium to plants, and thence to sheep and cows, far more efficiently than the sandy and clay soils in England and on the Continent. The study was carried out for the European Commission and the British government by Brenda Howard and colleagues from the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology in Cumbria. They found that cattle, sheep, deer and grouse in Scotland have a high risk of long-term contamination after an accident such as that at Chernobyl in 1986. Using data from the aftermath of Chernobyl, the scientists have calculated how much caesium-137 would have to be deposited on soils across Western Europe before the level in milk was likely to exceed the European safety limit of 1 kilobecquerel per litre. The "critical load" for peat is just 80 kilobecquerels per square metre, compared with 470 kBq/m2 for sandy soils and 3370 kBq/m2 for clay (The Science of the Total Environment, vol 221, p 75). ------------------------------------------------------- http://archive.newscientist.com/archive.jsp?id=23103800 NEW SCIENTIST Champignons chauds 29 Sep 01 WILD mushrooms throughout Europe and beyond may still pose a threat to health following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986. Pavel Kalac of the University of South Bohemia in the Czech Republic has reviewed reports on consumption of wild mushrooms, which soak up radioactive caesium. He says animals such as deer that eat the mushrooms have elevated levels of radio-caesium in their tissues (Food Chemistry, vol 75, p 29). Wild mushrooms are popular in central and eastern Europe. In the Czech Republic almost three-quarters of families collect an average of 7 kilograms a year. Kalac says contamination can be reduced by drying the mushrooms and cooking them in salted water. From New Scientist magazine, vol 171 issue 2310, 29/09/2001, page 23 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Send your FREE holiday greetings online! http://greetings.yahoo.com ***************************************************************** 2 New Scientist 17 November 2001: UK Nuke Plants and Birth Defects Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2001 18:51:05 -0800 (PST) Bill Smirnow , "David G. Hoffman" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii http://www.newscientist.com/hottopics/pollution/pollution.jsp?id=23172400 Should we worry? Report into birth defects near nuclear plant falls short of an all-clear BIRTH defects around a factory in Britain that makes radioactive materials are 20 per cent higher than the average for the area, according to a government study. Radioactive emissions from the Cardiff plant run by Nycomed Amersham to make isotopes for the pharmaceuticals industry had previously been blamed by environmentalists for harming babies. It is Britain's second biggest radioactive polluter after the Sellafield nuclear complex in Cumbria. The local health authority Bro Taf commissioned the Small Area Health Statistics Unit at Imperial College, London, to investigate infant health within a 7.5-kilometre radius of the plant. Its study, published last week, showed that 907 babies were born with congenital deformities between 1983 and 1998, slightly more than you would expect in this part of Wales. Max Wallis of Friends of the Earth Cymru says this is "dynamite" because it vindicates environmentalists' claims. A report in 1999 by a local campaigner linked aerial emissions of radioactive tritium from the Nycomed plant with an increase in the number of infant deaths. But Bro Taf and Nycomed Amersham argue that the latest study provides no clear evidence of a link with pollution from the plant. The only statistically significant excess in birth defects was in families who lived between 2 and 7.5 kilometres away-and the excess is in comparison with birth defect figures for Wales that are incomplete, they say. "There is no credible evidence that the plant has caused harm," concludes Mark Temple, a public health consultant with Bro Taf. Nevertheless, he stresses that there is still a need for further investigation. Tritium and carbon-14 from the plant can be detected in fruit and vegetables grown locally, and concentrations of tritium in flounder from the Severn Estuary doubled between 1999 and 2000. Excluding fish eaters, the Food Standards Agency says that children aged one to two get the largest dose in the local population, particularly from carbon-14 in cow's milk, though even this is well within safety limits. Rob Edwards From New Scientist 17 November 2001. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Send your FREE holiday greetings online! http://greetings.yahoo.com ***************************************************************** 3 NRC Assigns New Resident Inspector at Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant NRC: Press Release Region I - 2001 - U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406 Web Site: what-we-do/public-affairs.html No. 01-069 December 7, 2001 CONTACT: Diane Screnci (610) 337-5330/ e-mail: dps@nrc.gov [opa3@nrc.gov] Neil A. Sheehan (610) 337-5331/ e-mail: nas@nrc.gov [nas@nrc.gov] Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials in King of Prussia, Pa., have selected Steven Dennis as the agency's resident inspector at the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant. He joins Senior Resident Inspector Laura Dudes at the Lacey Township, N.J., plant. Dennis joined the NRC as a license examiner and inspector in the Region I Division of Reactor Safety in office in December 1996. Prior to joining the Agency, he was a reactor operator, senior reactor operator, control room supervisor and shift manager at the Hope Creek Generating Station in Hancock's Bridge, N.J. He also served in the United States Navy. Dennis earned a bachelor's degree in applied science and technology from Thomas Edison State College in Trenton, N.J. Each U.S. commercial nuclear power plant has at least two NRC resident inspectors. They serve as the agency's eyes and ears at the facility, conducting regular inspections, monitoring significant work projects and talking with plant workers and the public. The Oyster Creek resident inspectors can be reached at 609/693-0702. ***************************************************************** 4 S AUSTRALIAN GOVT PLAYS DOWN ACID LEAK FROM URANIUM MINE Asia Pulse; Dec 6, 2001 ADELAIDE, Dec 6 Asia Pulse - The South Australian government has belittled the significance of an acid leak that contaminated groundwater near the controversial Honeymoon uranium mine during trials. Mine operator Southern Cross Resources has confirmed the incident which occurred about two years ago. Reference was also made to the leak in a government assessment report on the project which was released yesterday. Southern Cross Resources said there was some detection of what was probably a leach solution of sulphuric acid and an elevated uranium level in the middle acquifer near the mine's injection well. SA Minerals and Energy Minister Wayne Matthew said the incident was a minor one. He said the acid used in the mine leaching process was about the same strength as lemon juice. "Apparently some of that acid solution went from the bottom layer of sand, through a clay layer to the second bottle layer of sand and into the water there," Mr Matthew told ABC radio. "Both areas of water already have uranium within them so effectively it went from one saline, uranium-bearing body of water into anther saline, uranium-bearing body of water. "There was no drinkable water under threat." However, Mr Matthew said it was a concern that this movement of solution did occur, because it should not. But he said the monitoring in place detected it and the process was quickly reversed. Only last week the Honeymoon mine was given final approval by the state and federal governments with full scale mining expected to begin by the end of next year. ASIA PULSE World Reporter All Material Subject to Copyright ***************************************************************** 5 Hamaoka plant pipe ruptured instantly - Japan Today Japan News - News - Thursday, December 6, 2001 at 18:00 JST TOKYO A steam pipe at Chubu Electric Power Co's Hamaoka nuclear plant in Shizuoka Prefecture ruptured instantly under enormous pressure last month, causing a radioactive steam leak, the plant's operator and the government's nuclear body said Thursday. The utility and the Nuclear Safety and Industrial Agency, which have been looking into the cause of the Nov 7 accident, said a "ductile fraction" caused the rupture as characteristic dimples were detected in a cross-section of the pipe. (Kyodo News) ***************************************************************** 6 Sellafield controversy: Partial victory for Ireland, Minister says The Norway Post - Doorway to Norway 4. Desember 2001 -A partial victory for Ireland says Norway's Environmental Minister Boerge Brende (photo), after the International Maritime Court turned down Ireland's demand for a halt to the expansion of the British Sellafield nuclear plant. Brende believes there are positive signals in favour of the Irish in the apparent defeat in the court. The court has ordered the two nations to cooperate in order to prevent further pollution from the controversial plant. Brende points to the fact that the court has determined that Ireland has maritime rights under the Convention of Maritime Rights, and that these rights must be protected. The Hamburg court has also ruled that Great Britain is obliged to cooperate with Ireland in the dispute, and is also obliged to protect the ocean from pullution, Brende says. This may also be of importance to Norway in its dispute with Britain over the nuclear pollution from the plant, the Norwegian Environmental Minister says. Norway and other North Sea nations have repeatedly protested against the nuclear emissions from the Sellafield plant. Traces of nuclear pollution from Sellafield has been found in the waters of the North Sea and up to the polar regions. (NRK/Norway Post) Rolleiv Solholm ***************************************************************** 7 Enviromentalists lose appeal against Mox plant By Matthew Jones Published: December 7 2001 11:31 | Last Updated: December 7 2001 17:54 Environmentalists on Friday lost their appeal against the opening of a controversial nuclear fuel recycling plant in Cumbria, northwest England. Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace had urged the English Court of Appeal to overturn a High Court ruling last month that UK ministers had made "no error in law" in approving the Sellafield Mox Plant, which combines reprocessed plutonium with uranium. But Lords Justices Simon Brown, Waller and Dyson unanimously rejected the appeal at a hearing in London, saying the government was "entitled to decide these cases in the real world". British Nuclear Fuels, which owns the Mox plant, said it was delighted with the verdict. "This supports our position that the plant is viable and means we can now get on with the job of commissioning it later this month," said an official. Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth argued that ministers took a distorted view of the economics of the plant by writing off its £470m ($671.5m) build cost. Under European Union law the economic, social and other benefits of new atomic investments have to be demonstrated before they can be given the go-ahead. The groups claimed a partial victory because future nuclear projects in Britain will have to take account of the construction and other capital costs before they are approved. "The capital costs inherent in a new type of practice...are indeed a cost of the practice and relevant, therefore, when evaluating the overall economic benefit," said Lord Justice Simon Brown. Ireland is separately arguing in two international legal actions that the plant could pollute the Irish Sea and that the risk of a terrorist attack on the plant or shipment of Mox from it presents an unacceptable risk to the environment. Dublin earlier this week warned that relations between Ireland and Britain could sour after it failed to win an injunction preventing BNFL from commissioning the plant on December 20. Its legal actions, under United Nations maritime law and through the Ospar Convention, which is designed to protect marine life in the northeast Atlantic, could still succeed in closing the plant down once commissioning has begun. Joe Jacob, Irish minister responsible for nuclear safety, also said on Monday he was considering a challenge before the European Court of Justice on the UK's decision that the plant is economically justified. Decommissioning costs for the plant would be millions of pounds higher if it had to be closed after plutonium had been introduced to it. ***************************************************************** 8 Urenco to build uranium enrichment plant in US By Nancy Dunne in Washington Published: December 6 2001 21:54 | Last Updated: December 7 2001 The Urenco Group, a global uranium enrichment supplier based in the UK, is set to seek regulatory approval in January to build the first new enrichment facility in the US in half a century. Its partners in the project, estimated at $1bn, will be US energy conglomerates, Duke Power and Excelon, prime backers of the drive to revive the nuclear power industry in the US. Other partners may be added as Urenco forms a worldwide syndicate to raise the financing, said Klaus Messer, Urenco's chief executive, who was in Washington this week for preliminary meetings with regulators. Urenco, developed from a joint Dutch, German and British initiative set up in the 1970s, says it employs the most energy efficient technology yet developed, supplying more than 12% of worldwide enrichment requirements. It already has made deep inroads in the US market. Its proposed venture brings it into a highly political process. Its lone US-based competitor is Usec, a corporation created from a government entity. Struggling to survive, with expensive aging technology, Usec earlier this year pressed an antidumping and countervailing duty suits against Urenco and Cogema-Eurodif of France. The Commerce Department found little dumping by Urenco in its initial investigation, but Usec's lawyers say they are confident that a final decision will raise the level of antidumping duties to be imposed. Usec is currently the exclusive US executive agent in the US-Russian high-enriched uranium deal, under which fuel from broken down Russian missiles is blended down and delivered to the US. Corbin McNeill, Excelon chairman, and Michael Tuckman, Duke executive vice president, last month wrote to President George W. Bush asking that he "reconsider the current monopoly status" granted to Usec, which prevents Russia from other access to the US market and "provides an annual subidisation on the order of $125m." They said they were hoping to build a new enrichment plant in the US, because the US "simply must have available more than a single source of supply for enriched uranium." Phil Potter, the lead attorney for Usec's union, said the administration has ordered Usec to submit a business plan to lay out how it will continue to operate. "But $1bn is a lot of money to raise, and this is an uncertain marketplace....There's a lot of ways this can go right, and a lot of ways this can go wrong." Mr Messer and his would-be partners have been discussing their plans on Capitol Hill and with administration officials. The company expects to locate its new facility on current nuclear sites. It is considering Portsmouth, Ohio, where Usec has closed down one of its two plants, throwing thousands of workers off their jobs. It will also consider Paducah, Kentucky, the site of Usec's lone remaining facility. ***************************************************************** 9 Europe: 'Equivalent to two Chernobyls': Pacific Sandpiper being loaded at Cherbourg ready to sail for Japan via the Panama Canal. APNuclear waste shipment sparks new fears Lloyds List; Dec 7, 2001 BY BRIAN REYES THE British-registered ship Pacific Sandpiper set sail for Japan late on Wednesday carrying what Greenpeace claims is the second largest shipment ever of nuclear waste, equivalent to two Chernobyls in terms of radiation. A spokeswoman for the Panama Canal Authority confirmed that the ship's operator, Pacific Nuclear Transport, had given one month's notice of arrival, although she said itineraries were subject to last-minute changes. The ship sailed amid concern that a controversial anti-terror legislative Bill, introduced after the attacks in the US and now being debated in the British parliament, could stop journalists and activists from reporting openly on the activities of the nuclear industry. This voyage also comes at a time when the government of Panama is under political pressure to stop nuclear shipments through the canal. Opposition politicians in Panama have proposed a draft law which would ban such shipments. The canal authority and the Panamanian government have opposed the move, arguing that it would be unconstitutional and in breach of Panama's international obligations. British Nuclear Fuels, which owns Pacific Nuclear Transport, has been lobbying hard in Panama recently together with its French and Japanese partners. But many regional governments appear concerned about the shipments carried on board the British company's vessels. The matter was raised last week at a meeting of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin Americaand the Caribbean, at which a proposal to agree a ban on nuclear shipments was eventually blocked. In Britain there is confusion as to the potential impact of the anti-terror Bill under debate. Environmental groups are adamant that the measures it contains on nuclear safety are 'draconian' and will gag legitimate coverage of the industry. But an industry insider yesterday played down the issue, claiming that the matter was getting 'blown out of proportion'. He said the measures were aimed at stopping deliberate leaks of sensitive information to terrorists, not about increasing secrecy or gagging protesters and the media. A Home Office spokeswoman said the measures were aimed at preventing the disclosure of unauthorised sensitive information. ***************************************************************** 10 Bulgarian government expects windfall from privatization in 2002 BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 Sofia, 6 December: Three hundred and forty-nine state-owned companies and self-contained parts therein will be sold under the government's privatization programme for 2002. This includes 238 majority stakes and blocs of shares, 21 minority stakes in companies that have already gone private during the first wave of mass privatization and 90 self-contained parts. Forty-two industrial companies and self-contained parts, 58 trade companies, 13 tourist companies, 10 transport companies, 80 farming and forestry companies and self-contained parts, 60 construction companies, 47 defence companies, 23 energy companies, one telecommunications company as well as 10 companies doing business in the sphere of culture and five involved in education and science research will be sold. Three hundred and fifteen residual stakes and blocs of shares in privatized companies will also go under hammer. The government expects to sell all these assets for 748,493,000 leva, and get 618,523,000 leva of that amount in cash. The privatization of the trade companies is expected to generate the biggest amount of proceeds - 229,805,000 leva, in a sector-to-sector comparison; the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC) alone is expected to fetch 200m leva. The drafting of privatization appraisals, legal analyses, expert opinions and consulting services are expected to cost around 25,277,000 leva. Additional expenses have been budgeted for marketing campaigns aimed at major investors. The privatization of 40 short-listed companies, including Boyana Film, Bulgartabac Holding, the Vazov Engineering Works, Navigation Maritime Bulgare, the Bulgarian River Shipping Corporation, Sunny Beach AD-Nesebur and power plants Maritsa East 2 and 3 and Bobovdol, will be subject to approval by the Council of Ministers. BTC will be sold only after the express consent of the MPs. Atanas Paparizov, MP from Coalition for Bulgaria (CfB), wanted the same to apply to Bulgartabac Holding, Navigation Maritime Bulgare, the Bulgarian River Shipping Corporation, power plants Maritsa East 2 and 3 and Bobovdol as well as some of the assets of the National Electric Company but his proposal did not go through. The privatization of specialized hospitals of national importance and of assets in the Kozloduy nuclear plant and such related to the national electricity and gas transmission and transport infrastructure, in territorial cadastre, geodesy, geological protection, water supply and sewerage, education, scientific research and duty free zones is disallowed. The Council of Ministers will short-list the companies in the above sectors that will not be sold. The programme aims to continue the structural reform and accelerate privatization as part of a package of measures geared towards sustainable economic growth and completion of the transition to a functioning market economy. The privatization of the leftover state-owned companies, acceleration of the divestiture of infrastructure monopolies and public service companies and completion of the privatization with investment vouchers are the key priorities for 2002. The principles of the privatization process will be providing a level playing field for all participants and ensuring expedience and transparency... Ralitsa Again from the ruling Simeon II National Movement (SNM) said that not only BTC but all telcos are underpriced at the moment. After its market monopoly expires in 2002, revenue will dip substantially, she said, adding that BTC makes most of its money from international telephony. In her view, had the state sold BTC two years ago, it would have got several times the 200m leva it is asking now... Source: BTA web site, Sofia, in English 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 11 NRC to Receive Comments on Draft Decommissioning Document December 12 in Atlanta NRC: Press Release II - 2001 - 01-048 NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region II 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, GA 30303 Web Site: what-we-do/public-affairs.html No. II 01-048 December 7, 2001 CONTACT: Ken Clark (404) 562-4416/e-mail: kmc2@nrc.gov [kmc2@nrc.gov] Roger D. Hannah (404) 562-4417/e-mail: rdh1@nrc.gov [rdh1@nrc.gov] The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking public comments on its draft Supplement 1 to the "Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement on Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities, NUREG-0586." The agency will hold a public meeting in Atlanta on December 12 to discuss the document. The meeting will be held at the Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Center Avenue, from 7 to 10 p.m. In conjunction with that session, NRC staff will host informal discussions for one hour prior to the start of the formal meeting. The informal discussion will not be part of the formal comment record. The Atlanta meeting is one of a series of sessions being held throughout the United States to discuss the draft supplement. At the meeting, the contents of the draft supplement to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement will be presented and interested parties will be given an opportunity to provide comments. Persons planning to attend or present oral comments at the meeting should contact Dino Scaletti at 1-800-368-5642 (toll-free), extension 1104, or by e-mail at dgeis@nrc.gov. Members of the public also may register to speak at the meeting prior to the start of the session. Individual oral comments may be limited by the time available, depending upon the number of persons who register. The supplement was prepared because of technological advances in decommissioning operations, experience gained with shutdown plants and changes made to the NRC regulations since the GEIS was first published. It is a stand alone document to be used to evaluate environmental impacts during decommissioning, which could lead to termination of an NRC license. The draft report is available electronically through the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room at www.nrc.gov as an Agencywide Document Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) document. Use the online "find" function to search for accession number ML013090364. It is also available at the NRC's Public Document Room, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland. For help in accessing ADAMS, contact the NRC Public Document Room staff at 1-800-397-4209 (toll-free), (301) 415-4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov ***************************************************************** 12 Czech minister to offer resignation over nuclear plant, premier not to accept it BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 Text of report by Czech TV on 6 December [Announcer] Minister of Industry and Trade Miroslav Gregr told our reporter Katerina Blechova this evening that he would really offer his resignation over the delays in the nuclear power plant in Temelin [southern Bohemia]. We have also managed to obtain a statement by Prime Minister Milos Zeman: [Zeman] If the ministers who caused the seven-year delay in the completion of the construction of Temelin did not resign, then - in my view - the minister, under whose term in office the construction was delayed by several weeks, should not resign. [Reporter] In other words, you will probably not accept his resignation. [Zeman] Your understanding is absolutely correct. I congratulate you on your intelligence. Source: Czech TV1, Prague, in Czech 1815 gmt 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 13 Home News: BNFL to brief on Sellafield Irish Times; Dec 6, 2001 Experts from British Nuclear Fuels Ltd are to brief Irish officials early next month on Sellafield's ability to withstand attack by international terrorists. The offer of a briefing to the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) was made in advance of this week's court ruling by the International Tribunal for the Law of Sea. The Hamburg-based court refused to stop Sellafield's mixed-oxide (MOX) plant from opening, but it accepted that Ireland had a legal right to consultation by the British authorities. The meeting between BNFL and the RPII will take place in Dublin, not at the Cumbrian plant. 'Physically eye-balling things is not going to tell us much. It is explanations about how things are constructed that we really need,' said RPII official Mr Christopher Hone. The RPII has also had discussions about the security risks posed by Sellafield in the wake of the September 11th atrocities with the UK's nuclear installations inspectorate. Meanwhile, senior European Parliament scientific experts have criticised a Paris-based research company which carried out a review of Sellafield and its French equivalent at Cap de la Hague. In its report, WISE-Paris alleged that a nuclear accident at Sellafield could cause more damage than the Chernobyl explosion in The Ukraine in 1986. All Material Subject to Copyright ***************************************************************** 14 Santa Claus takes on Sellafield challenge Bellona activists, dressed up as Santa Clause, entered the 20 meter Norwegian Christmas tree on Trafalgar Square at 11:12 this morning, protesting against the radioactive discharges from the Sellafield plant. At 16:00 darkness had fallen - and the Norwegian tree, officially lit yesterday, was still dark (and crowding with Santas). Runar Forseth, 2001-12-07 13:35 Fully equipped with climbers' security gear, two activists climbed the tall Christmas tree at Trafalgar Square this morning, hanging out banners with the message "Stop Sellafield". The two intend to remain in the tree for as long as possible. A member of the ground team, Bellona President Frederic Hauge stated, "every year at Christmas time Norway gives a tall tree to the English people. In return Norway receives huge amounts of radioactivity from the Sellafield nuclear plant in England, contaminating our Arctic seas." Scientist have measured an alarming increase in levels of radioactive techetium-99 in sea weed and shell-fish since 1994, when Sellafield dramatically increased its discharges of the compound to the Irish Sea. Technetium-99 has a half-life of 211,000 years, and hence accumulates in the nutritional chain. Now, the British are planing to increase the discharges even further. "To save some lousy pounds, the British have chosen to keep up a pollution discharge that nobody knows the consequences of. What we do know for certain, is that we'll have to live with those consequences for posterity", Hauge said. Coincidentally, Camvista.com has put up several webcams at and around Trafalgar Square. If you're lucky, you'll see some of the activists. Publisher: Bellona Foundation, President: Frederic Hauge Information: info@bellona.no, Technical contact: webmaster@bellona.no Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box 2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway ***************************************************************** 15 Bellona calls on EU to ban export of nuclear waste to Russia The Russian Ministry of Nuclear Energy (Minatom) is actively promoting plans for large scale imports of spent nuclear fuel to Russia for storage or reprocessing. Bellona calls on EU to ban export of nuclear waste to Russia (Brussels:) At a seminar in the European Parliament today, the Bellona Foundation raised the need for a common European Union ban on export of spent nuclear fuel to Russia. Such ban should include all current member states but also affect the coming member states from Eastern Europe. Thomas Nilsen, 2001-12-06 18:21 Earlier this year, the Russian State Duma approved three bills favouring importation of spent nuclear fuel. With Russian President's signature on the bills in July this year, Russia is in principle open for receiving spent nuclear fuel from countries which do not want to take their own responsibility for their nuclear waste. It is a well-known fact that Russia is not coping with the enormous waste issues of her own nuclear industry. There are currently around 15,000 tonnes accumulated in Russia. The Russian Ministry for Nuclear Energy, or Minatom, is proposing to import 20,000 tonnes more. For that the ministry counts on receiving around $20bn. Several countries in the European Union (EU) have already been in contact with Russia for such solutions. In addition, several countries in the Eastern Europe, which apply to become member states in the EU have shipped spent nuclear fuel from their power plants to Siberia for storage and reprocessing. Many Russian environmental groups have protested the plans, stating that this might bring Russia into a position of world’s nuclear waste dumpsite. Public polls show extreme opposition to Minatom’s plans – between 70 and 90 percent oppose the importation project. Many members of the European Parliament attended the Bellona seminar in Brussels, together with officials and representatives of private business. Bellona representative Aleksandr Nikitin outlined the scope of the problems which will very well be the result of importing spent nuclear fuel to Siberia. Nikitin especially pointed out the lack of civilian control over the Russian nuclear industry. He fears that the import of spent nuclear fuel to Russia will contribute to further decrease of the environmental situation in Russia. - Shipping spent nuclear fuel to Russia could sound like a “easy solution” for many decision makers in Europe, but in fact it will only increase the problems in a part of the world (Siberia) where the problems are much worse than in rich countries inside the European Union, Nikitin said. In response, Elisabeth Scroedter, European Parliament member from Greens, suggested to create a parliamentarian commission, which could evaluate eventual attempts of some EU member states to send nuclear waste to Russia. Bellona has for many years worked actively within EU to promote efforts to assist Russia securing its spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste. Bellona President Frederic Hauge said rounding up the seminar that you do not assist nuclear safety work in Russia by sending in more waste. Publisher: Bellona Foundation, President: Frederic Hauge Information: info@bellona.no, Technical contact: webmaster@bellona.no Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box 2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway ***************************************************************** 16 Russian nuclear waste processing plant to reach full capacity shortly BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 6, 2001 Text of report in English by Russian news agency Interfax Chelyabinsk, 6 December: The radioactive waste vitrification plant at the Mayak Chemical Works in Ozyorsk, Chelyabinsk Region, will start working at full capacity this month, Yevgeniy Ryzhkov, the plant's public relations chief, told Interfax today. It will process 500 litres of liquid waste an hour, he said. The plant processes nuclear waste from Russian nuclear-powered submarines and nuclear power stations, as well as waste placed in the plant's storage tanks before it started operations, Ryzhkov said. Ryzhkov regretted the loss of some of the market, in particular supplies of nuclear waste from Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Finland and Bulgaria, and annual proceeds of 60m dollars. Source: Interfax news agency, Moscow, in English 1538 gmt 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 17 New "Dependent" Counsel Regulations Are Dangerously Restrictive ,Public Citizen Says Dec. 6, 2001 U.S. Chamber of Commerce Ignores Public Health and Safety; Sides with Nuclear Industry on Yucca Mountain Dump Proposal WASHINGTON, D.C. – Concerned citizens and representatives of national environmental and public interest groups demonstrated their opposition to the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump outside a media briefing that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce held today. The Chamber of Commerce, together with the Alliance for Energy and Economic Growth, recently launched a lobbying campaign in support of the nuclear waste dump proposal. "This is another disappointing instance of the business lobby abandoning the health and safety concerns of the communities in which they operate," said Wenonah Hauter, director of Public Citizen’s Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. In addition, there appears to be a lack of solidarity among Chamber of Commerce members over the issue. Apparently, the Chamber did not bother to seek approval from its 3,000 state and local chambers before launching its pro-repository campaign. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the third largest in the country, officially opposes the nuclear dump proposal and has resigned from the U.S. Chamber in protest. Yucca Mountain, located about 80 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nev., is the only site being considered as a potential repository for 77,000 tons of high-level radioactive waste from U.S. Department of Energy weapons sites and commercial nuclear power plants across the country. Despite numerous unresolved technical, environmental and policy issues, the pro-nuclear Bush administration appears committed to pursuing the project. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham is expected to formally recommend the Yucca Mountain site early next year, but it faces an uncertain future in Congress. Yucca Mountain is in a seismically active area and lies above an aquifer that is the only source of drinking water for area residents. Opponents of the repository project are concerned that radioactivity would eventually leak into the groundwater. High-level nuclear waste remains dangerously radioactive for a quarter-million years. Spokespeople for the Chamber of Commerce campaign have brushed aside the fundamental question of the site’s suitability and have tried to claim that it’s better to have all the nation’s nuclear waste in one spot, rather than scattered across the country. However, Yucca Mountain will not contain all of the country’s nuclear waste. This waste must be stored on-site at nuclear power plants for at least five years before it can be moved anywhere, and even then, the proposed repository is not big enough to store all the waste projected to be generated by the currently operating U.S. reactors. "The repository proposal does nothing to resolve security concerns at U.S. nuclear power plants," said Kevin Kamps, a nuclear waste specialist with the Nuclear Information and Resource Service. "To the contrary, the repository design features massive, exposed surface operations, which would establish a larger, highly vulnerable and potentially more devastating target for attack, close to a major population center." Further, the prospect of shipping 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste to Nevada raises other safety and security concerns. A severe transportation crash or terrorist attack could have grave environmental and health consequences and result in billions of dollars in damages. "Tens of thousands of shipments of dangerous nuclear waste would pass through as many as 45 states, and no one can guarantee that accidents won’t happen," Kamps said. "This unprecedented nuclear transportation scheme would introduce new risks all along the highways and railways of this country." The Alliance for Energy and Economic Growth, the other sponsor of the pro-repository campaign, is a spin-off of the nuclear industry’s lobbying organization, the Nuclear Energy Institute. "Long-lasting radioactive waste is the ugly underbelly of nuclear power, and the nuclear industry is desperate to sell policy-makers on an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ solution to this problem," Hauter said. "Now that the Yucca Mountain project faces an uncertain future, the nuclear industry has turned to its friends in the business community to help market this disastrous idea. But problems with the project extend far beyond the realm of marketing, and certainly cannot be resolved by the Chamber of Commerce." ### ***************************************************************** 18 Nuclear plant won't shut down early Published Thursday, December 6, 2001, in the Akron Beacon Journal. Federal regulators will wait until February to inspect Davis-Besse for cracks Associated Press OAK HARBOR: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has decided that safety concerns won't force the Davis-Besse nuclear power plant to shut down early. The federal agency said Tuesday that the plant, which is about 25 miles east of Toledo, can continue to operate until a scheduled shutdown in February. Plant operators then will be able to inspect the reactor to see if there is a crack in a safety feature on top of the reactor. A surprise discovery of a crack at a nearly identical plant in Seneca, S.C., nine months ago raised concerns about Davis-Besse and 12 other plants identified by a research group as being most susceptible to having problems with equipment called control rod drive mechanism nozzles. Eleven of the 13 plants have provided NRC with enough documentation to continue operating until their next refueling outage, the NRC said. Another, a D.C. Cook plant near Benton Harbor, Mich., agreed to shut down voluntarily Jan. 19 to do more inspections. Plant operator FirstEnergy Corp. of Akron will wait to inspect the reactor until Feb. 16 when the plant will be shut down for refueling. Until then, control room operators will be instructed to keep the reactor at cooler temperatures to prevent any cracks that might exist from spreading. FirstEnergy requested permission to keep operating the plant until then because it has done three inspections since 1996 and didn't find any reason to believe there are cracks, spokesman Richard Wilkins said. There typically are 69 of the nozzles in question on top of a reactor cap. They are important safety features in pressurized water reactors because they serve as passageways for control rod drive mechanism units. Those units are linked with long control rods that get plunged into the reactor core to absorb excess neutrons, a process that helps the nuclear reaction occur as it should. The nozzles are inspected routinely when plants are taken off line for refueling. ***************************************************************** 19 Greenpeace Calls Daschle Energy Plan 'Bush-Lite' U.S. Newswire 5 Dec 13:20 To: National Desk Contact: Gary Skulnik, 202-319-2492 or 202-549-3212 (cell); Kert Davies, 202-319-2455, both of Greenpeace WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The following is a statement by Greenpeace Global Warming and Energy Campaign Coordinator Kert Davies: The Democrats are giving us almost the same dirty energy plan as Bush, instead of forwarding a secure energy plan for the 21st century. The Daschle energy plan is little more than Bush-lite, with the same bad taste for working families, and the same bad consequences for global warming. The Daschle plan will not get us off our dependence on foreign oil or lead to a secure energy future. The Senate should not include more taxpayer handouts to the nuclear industry. As a recent Greenpeace report (Risky Business: The Probability and Consequences of a Nuclear Accident) points out, nuclear power is more dangerous than ever and there is little the government can do to protect plants from terrorist attack. The Senate should take action now to start a phase-out of these massive ticking time bombs near our major cities. The Daschle plan only pays lip service to the threat of global warming, the greatest environmental danger of our time. It is irresponsible for our elected leaders to push off action on a problem that's so severe while they ignore solutions that are practical and good for the economy. Any energy plan must include credible CAFE standards for cars and light trucks. Democrats should listen to the voices of their constituents in states such as California, who are demanding clean energy now. The American people want energy independence, a secure energy future and action against global warming -- these can be achieved by large-scale investments in renewable power and energy efficiency. The Greenpeace reports cited above can be found at: Risky Business, http://www.greenpeaceusa.org/nuclear [http://www.greenpeaceusa.org/nuclear] , Solar Promise, http://www.greenpeaceusa.org/solar [http://www.greenpeaceusa.org/solar] ***************************************************************** 20 Nevada delegation meets to step up fight against Yucca Mountain Las Vegas SUN December 06, 2001 LAS VEGAS (AP) - Nevada's congressional delegation vowed Thursday to file a second bar association complaint against a law firm that last week quit advising the Energy Department on a proposal to bury nuclear waste in the state. U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., emerged from a strategy meeting with Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., and Reps. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., and Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., saying he will ask the Illinois bar to investigate conflict-of-interest allegations against Winston &Strawn. The Chicago-based firm quit representing the Energy Department last week after the department's inspector general concluded the firm failed to inform the government it had lobbied for a pro-nuclear group. Berkley previously asked the District of Columbia bar to investigate the same allegation. "It's as if you have an auto accident, you settle the case and you find out your lawyer was also representing the insurance company," Reid said Thursday. No Illinois complaint has been filed. James Thompson, Winston &Strawn chairman and former Illinois governor, issued a statement Thursday through spokesman Charles Connor in Chicago denying the firm had a conflict of interest on the Yucca Mountain contract. "Nobody has found a conflict except the Nevada delegation," the statement said. Reid, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate, called the complaint to the Illinois bar part of a stepped-up effort by the Nevada delegation to derail the Energy Department's proposal to bury the nation's most radioactive waste nuclear waste 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. It comes after the congressional General Accounting Office recommended last week that the Bush administration indefinitely postpone a decision on the project. The GAO report said it could be years before technical issues are resolved. "There is more yet to come," Reid said. "We're going to do this in stages. This is the first stage." Joe Davis, spokesman for the Energy Department in Washington, said Thursday that planning for the Yucca Mountain project is moving forward. The final public hearings on the proposal are scheduled Wednesday in three Nevada locations. Davis said Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham will recommend to President Bush this winter whether Yucca Mountain is a suitable place to entomb the nation's 77,000 tons of radioactive waste. Ensign aide Traci Scott said the Republican senator will send another letter from the Nevada delegation urging Bush to resist pressure from the nuclear industry to allow temporary storage of radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain if the long-term project is delayed. The delegation sent a similar letter to the White House on Tuesday. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 21 Minister 'unaware' of Mox licence BBC News | NORTHERN IRELAND | 4 December, 2001, There are plans to store nuclear waste underground Northern Ireland's environment minister has said he was not consulted before a licence was issued for a controversial mixed oxide plant at Sellafield. Sam Foster was speaking in the Northern Ireland Assembly on Tuesday, as members unanimously called for the closure of the entire Cumbrian nuclear plant. It came on the same day a team of British and Irish parliamentarians agreed to make an investigative trip to Sellafield early next year to assess security at the plant. On Monday, an international court rejected an attempt by the Irish Government to halt the opening of the new mixed oxide nuclear reprocessing (MOX) plant on 20 December. Sam Foster: Unaware licence had been issued Mr Foster told the assembly he had not been consulted by the government on the decision to press ahead with the MOX plant. Mr Foster said he has since written to his Westminster counterpart Margaret Beckett and Trade and Industry Minister Stephen Byers on the security implications of the decision. DUP leader Ian Paisley condemned the lack of consultation, adding he would be raising the issue in the House of Commons. "The minister who is responsible to the people of Northern Ireland for this particular issue wasn't even told about it. I think that is absolutely ridiculous," he said. Alliance assembly member Kieran McCarthy tabled a joint motion with the DUP, criticising the government's decision to proceed with the mixed oxide plant, just three weeks after the attacks on the World Trade Centre. "Let us all recognise that we have a potential time bomb a few miles across the Irish Sea and after September 11 and Sunday's suicide bombing attack in Israel, anything is possible," he said. "God forbid that Sellafield should ever become a target. Not only this country but the entire British isles and further afield would be obliterated." Eddie McGrady: Veteran campaigner against Sellafield Jim Wells of the DUP said a terrorist attack on Sellafield would cause a "disaster 44 times worse than Chernobyl". "If some lunatic terrorist was to decide to bomb Sellafield then the implications for Northern Ireland are absolutely horrendous," he added. Eddie McGrady, of the SDLP, who has vehemently opposed Sellafield, tabled an amendment, calling on the government to withdraw the licence for the MOX plant and begin the rundown of Sellafield. Mr McGrady, whose amendment was unanimously accepted, said the 11 September attacks and the subsequent air strikes by the US and Britain on Afghanistan had "greatly increased the dangers of a terrorist incident at Sellafield". He said a report by an international group of scientists, reporting before the events of 11 September, had concluded the site presented a very high security risk. "The Northern Ireland Executive and in particular the Department of the Environment must take concerted action and strongly influence the British Government to ensure that Sellafield is closed down and properly decommissioned," he said. ***************************************************************** 22 YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Lawmakers target law firm [Las Vegas Review-Journal] Friday, December 07, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal CLARIFICATION ON 12/08/01 -- A pending Illinois State Bar Association complaint involving the Winston &Strawn law firm, reported in a Donrey Washington Bureau story in Friday's Review-Journal, would be the second one facing the firm related to the Yucca Mountain Project. Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., on Oct. 12 requested the District of Columbia Bar Association investigate conflict allegations involving the firm. Delegation plots strategy to stop dump By STEVE TETREAULT DONREY WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON -- Nevada's congressional delegation, invigorated by setbacks to the Yucca Mountain Project, on Thursday announced new efforts to derail the planned nuclear waste dump. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said lawmakers will file a formal complaint with the Illinois Bar Association and seek sanctions against Winston &Strawn, a Chicago-based law firm. It withdrew last week from a $16.5 million Yucca Mountain contract amid conflict-of-interest allegations. The lawmakers plan to remind President Bush, through a letter, of his promise in last year's presidential campaign to not establish a temporary nuclear waste repository in Nevada while work continues on a potential permanent site. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said there have been "rumors about some people in the Department of Energy raising that as an issue again." The possibility the department might pursue temporary waste storage of some kind was raised in a draft General Accounting Office report made public last week. Also, Reps. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., and Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said they would work together to sow new doubts among colleagues on the Energy Department's efforts to build a repository at Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The Nevada lawmakers announced their plans at the end of a 40-minute meeting in the U.S. Capitol office of Reid, the Senate's majority whip. The session capped three days of strategy talks that involved lawyers with the state and Gov. Kenny Guinn. Reid said Nevada officials plan other anti-Yucca Mountain projects but declined to discuss them. Also Thursday, Reid launched a public relations offensive by e-mailing press kits to reporters in Washington and Nevada that draw attention to recent controversies involving Yucca Mountain. The state's leadership has acted with renewed vigor against the Yucca Mountain program since the release of two investigations in the past three weeks critical of the government's efforts to pursue nuclear waste burial in Nevada. One of those was a Nov. 15 report by the Energy Department's inspector general that raised conflict questions about Winston &Strawn. The inspector general concluded the law firm, one of the oldest and largest in the nation, failed to inform the department that it was registered as a lobbyist for the Nuclear Energy Institute, a pro-Yucca Mountain organization. Investigators found that 14 Winston &Strawn employees who billed for work on the Yucca contract worked on NEI matters also. Asked how pursuing Winston &Strawn would benefit the state's fight against nuclear waste burial, Reid said, "I believe in vengeance." "Separate and apart from that, even if you don't put that into the quotient, you have a fact these people have done very bad things. They have been giving advice to two people who have divergent interests. "What they have done, I think, has so tarnished the whole process that we might find later on we can use that in some way," Reid said. The law firm's chairman, former Illinois governor James Thompson, said Thursday night he was puzzled by the Nevadans' plan. "The inspector general had not found a conflict, the DOE has not found a conflict, and we continue to believe there was no conflict," Thompson said. "It is pretty clear the Nevada delegation will do anything in their power to stop Yucca Mountain," Thompson said. "If they can keep the controversy involving Winston &Strawn alive, it's another way to sabotage the project." In his report, Inspector General Gregory Friedman recommended that Energy Department lawyers review the facts he had uncovered to determine whether Winston &Strawn had violated the conflict of interest terms of its contract or whether the firm acted "in a matter consistent with its professional ethical responsibilities to its client." A department spokesman Thursday night was unsure of the status of the review or whether it was being pursued after Winston &Strawn withdrew from the contract. Earlier Thursday, speakers at an event organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce renewed calls for Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham to move quickly to designate Yucca Mountain suitable for a spent-fuel repository. Bubba McDonald, a Georgia public service commissioner, said ratepayers in his state have contributed more than $700 million into the government fund that pays for most of the studies into Yucca Mountain. McDonald said Nevada should accept a repository for the good of the nation. "There are people who are inconvenienced by another runway at an airport or a transmission line that comes through their back yard in order that we can enjoy the electricity," he said. Georgia is home to several landfills that accept solid waste from outside the state, he said. "We all have a contribution to make," he said. "Our state met a need on the solid waste side. Nevada can meets its need." This story is located at: [http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Dec-07-Fri-2001/news/17617764.html] ***************************************************************** 23 Las Vegas Chamber drops national membership over Yucca [Las Vegas Review-Journal] Friday, December 07, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal The Henderson Chamber of Commerce voted Thursday to withdraw from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as a protest against the national group's support of a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The Henderson chamber's board of directors voted unanimously, with one abstention, to drop its membership in the national group. Henderson board members, "Just thought that no way does this stand for what the businesses in Henderson want," spokesman D.J. Allen said. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce withdrew from the U.S. Chamber last month to protest that group's support of the Yucca Mountain project. This story is located at: http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Dec-07-Fri-2001/news/17618188.html [http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Dec-07-Fri-2001/news/17618188.html] ***************************************************************** 24 Nevadans plan to file complaint in Yucca case Las Vegas SUN December 07, 2001 By Benjamin Grove WASHINGTON -- Nevada's lawmakers in Congress plan to file a formal complaint against the law firm that was shepherding the Department of Energy's Yucca Mountain project. The firm, Chicago-based Winston &Strawn, quit last week amid charges it had a conflict-of-interest with a pro-Yucca lobby group. Not content with that, Nevada lawmakers plan to file a complaint with the Illinois State Bar Association in hopes that firm lawyers may be disbarred, suspended or otherwise punished. The action is part of a larger effort by Nevada officials to kill the Yucca Mountain project. "What they have done, I think, has so tarnished the whole process that we might find later on we can use that in some way," Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said. Reid also said, "I believe in vengeance." The firm had a $16.5 million contract with the DOE, helping the department develop an application for a license to bury 77,000 tons of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Winston &Strawn lawyers said controversy about its former work for the pro-Yucca Nuclear Energy Institute was distracting the DOE -- and the firm -- from its job. Firm officials strongly deny any wrongdoing, saying allegations made by Nevada officials had "no legal merit." "Senator Reid has threatened congressional hearings, criminal investigations, and now bar proceedings," James R.Thompson, Winston &Strawn chairman, said in a written statement released by the firm. "I continue to have great respect for the senator and the entire Nevada congressional delegation, but the fact is that nobody has found a conflict except the Nevada delegation. "Neither the (DOE) inspector general nor the Energy Department has found a conflict, and we don't believe we had one either." But Nevada lawmakers see an opportunity to get more traction in their newly energized effort to kill the Yucca Mountain project. The project, in development by the Department of Energy since 1982, has not been approved by the president, Congress, or the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The four-member Nevada delegation emerged from a meeting in Reid's office Thursday offering reporters a peek at a few of their new plans to kill the Yucca Mountain project, a $58 billion first-of-its-kind proposal. The staffs of the lawmakers, along with Nevada Attorney General's office lawyers and Gov. Kenny Guinn, this week have been mapping out anti-Yucca strategies. More plans will be unveiled in the future, the lawmakers said. The long-time, hit-or-miss effort of Nevada officials to kill the Yucca project got a burst of adrenaline last week when Winston &Strawn quit, and in a separate development, a draft copy of a congressional audit said the Yucca plan should be delayed until scientific studies are complete. That General Accounting Office report flew in the face of Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham's plan to make a recommendation about the site to President Bush in the coming weeks. Nevada lawmakers wrote a letter to Bush asking him to delay a decision. Now they plan to fire off another letter, this time stressing to the president that during his campaign he promised not to pursue a temporary waste site in Nevada until the permanent Yucca site is complete. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said "rumors" were floating that the DOE may again consider establishing an interim waste site, which Nevada officials also strongly oppose. The four lawmakers also plan to send "Dear Colleague" letters to other members of Congress outlining setbacks to the Yucca project. They also are trying to generate national media interest in the story. As Nevada officials plot, pro-Yucca forces are mustering, too. One effort, led by a collection of nuclear energy company members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, plans a high-profile lobby effort in Congress. They plan to goad the government into approving and constructing the Yucca waste repository. On Thursday the Chamber group, the Alliance for Energy &Economic Growth, called on Abraham to make a decision about Yucca Mountain within the next 30 days. The Winston &Strawn controversy would not hurt the project, alliance leader John Sununu said Thursday. "Law firms are a dime a dozen," Sununu said after a Thursday press briefing in Washington. He criticized Reid for releasing excerpts of a draft copy of the GAO report to the media. "By maneuvering to sensationalize the report through a calculated leak, the report is -- in the eyes of the Department (of Energy) -- dead on arrival," Sununu said in a prepared statement. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 25 IAEA Daily Press Review Date 2001-12-07 Number 234 1. Non-proliferation DPRK denounces Japan's alleged ambition to become a nuclear power. Russian shipyard to prepare for launching and tests of new nuclear submarine which can carry ballistic and cruise missiles. (FT - 7/12) Dem. P.R. of Korea; Japan; Russian Federation 2. Illicit trafficking Over 1 kg uranium 235 has reportedly been confiscated from criminal gang in Moscow Region. (FT - 7/12) Russian Federation 3. Terrorism US officials follow up speculation that Osama bin Laden may have developed crude nuclear weapon. (R - 7/11) United States of America 4. Nuclear power Japan, Euratom reach basic agreement on atomic energy pact. New bill on US energy policy with focus on new NPP designs introduced in Senate. France keen to cooperate with India in nuclear energy sector. Russia, Ukraine to agree on joint action on Khmelnytskyj-2 and Rivne-4 NPP units but Germany also shows interest; EBRD to drop project if Ukraine fails to meet requirements. Dismantling work starts at Japanese NPP Tokai-1. (FT; NUC; R - 6, 7/12) EBRD; Euratom; France; India; Japan; Russian Federation; Ukraine; United States of America 5. Nuclear Safety KEDO chief calls on DPRK to comply with IAEA inspections. BNFL to brief Irish officials on ability of Sellafield to withstand attack by international terrorists. Leak from Australian Honeymoon uranium mine, which happened 2 years ago, prompts calls for mine review; operating company says it 'posed no threat'. (R; FT - 7/12) Australia; Dem. P.R. of Korea; IAEA; Ireland; United Kingdom 6. Chernobyl 'Chernobyl NPP' enterprise to be formally given responsibility for all nuclear facilities at the site of closed NPP. (NUC - 6/12) Ukraine 7. Radiation, health Pentagon presses for approval of novel drug that could help protect people from radiation. (NYT - 7/12) United States of America 8. Radwaste, fuel Russian nuclear waste processing plant in Chelyabinsk Region to reach full capacity shortly. France ships reprocessed nuclear waste back to Japan. First Swedish community accepts investigations aimed at determining potential location for national spent fuel repository. Swiss poll shows support for reprocessing option. (NUC; FT - 6, 7/12) France; Japan; Russian Federation; Sweden; Switzerland 9. Energy, environment Romania conducts environmental projects worth 1,5 million USD; Kazakhstan to spend about 16 million USD on ecology in 2001-2005. (R - 6/12) Kazakhstan; Romania 10. UN Pino Arlacchi, Head of UN Office in Vienna, to be probably succeeded by Patrizio Civili after expiration of his contract. (S - 7/12) UN ***************************************************************** 26 Document may reveal unsealed waste shipment The Hawk Eye Newspaper December 6, 2001 Iowa Time: 10:28 PM Local News: 12/6/2001 By Dennis J. Carroll The Hawk Eye • 1975 memo on Army plant activity bolsters need for survey, official says. A state radiation regulator sought Wednesday to reaffirm the state's call for a "fence-to-fence" radiological survey of the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant, citing a possible "waste stream" of highly radioactive materials that were shipped from the plant. "We are not backing down at all," said Dan McGhee, a health physicist with the Radiological Bureau of the Iowa Department of Public Health. "We have never changed our position about wanting a sitewide survey, and we still think a flyover is the best way to do it," McGhee said. McGhee was seeking to dispel the impression he feared he gave last week when he told a meeting of the plant's Restoration Advisory Board that 10 years would not be too long to wait to conduct a flyover. He said the 10 years was a reference to looking for depleted uranium, which likely poses no immediate threat to the environment or public health. "That does not pose a real health risk," McGhee said. He noted that much of the discovered depleted uranium is in large chunks -- impossible to inhale -- and has been cordoned off by the Army so that few if any could come in physical contact with it. "It's the other stuff we're really worried about," McGhee said. He also noted the many holes in the historical records relating to production of nuclear weapons at IAAP from the late 1940s to the mid-70s. McGhee said a recently discovered 1975 IAAP memo regarding a shipping order of materials to the Pantex plant in Texas listed various amounts of dangerous radioactive wastes, including plutonium, cesium 137 and cobalt 60 -- all used in the production of nuclear weapons. He said the records do not indicate whether the materials were confined to sealed containers. "Was it sealed or unsealed?" said McGhee. "We don't know. If it was unsealed, that means there was a waste stream of radioactive material." "We want to make sure there was no environmental insult if there was a waste stream," McGhee said. He said the recently found documents suggest there were two shipments of the materials containing radioactive wastes from the plant in 1975 that combined probably would have filled a 55-gallon drum. McGhee said it's probable the materials were not sealed. McGhee also cited anecdotal information from former workers discussing contamination wipes and clothing contaminated by radioactive materials. In addition, McGhee cited documents that referred to "ground zero" in what may have been a reference to a "criticality event" -- a runaway nuclear chain reaction in which workers may have been killed or injured and dangerous amounts of radiation released into the environment. McGhee said an overall survey of the plant would be the first step toward determining whether there are unknown hazards still lurking on the IAAP grounds. A flyover by low-flying, specially equipped aircraft would answer many technical questions, and it would be "cheaper than a six-mile line of soldiers" walking over every inch of the plant. He said the flyover would be followed up by a ground survey of any areas found to be suspect for radioactive contamination. "If during a scoping survey you find any other areas that are impacted, then you do a full characterization," McGhee said. "A flyover is not the be-all, end-all," McGhee said. "It's the beginning point." He said his office is drafting a report to Congress urging the scoping survey because of the holes in historical documents, the reports of the blue flash criticality, the possible waste streams and the references to "ground zero." "No areas can be ruled out as non-impacted," McGhee said. "All 19,000 acres must be examined." The Army, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, have hesitated to conduct a flyover, contending it's unnecessary and wouldn't accomplish what its proponents claim. The EPA's project manager at IAAP, Scott Marquess, said last week that an EPA study concluded that such a survey might be able to detect radiological hazards on the surface, but not very far under the ground. However, Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack on Friday renewed his call for a flyover as soon as possible. In addition, both of Iowa's U.S. senators, Republican Charles Grassley and Democrat Tom Harkin, have urged a flyover, saying that if the Army continues to balk, they will draft legislation insisting that it be done. [http://www.thehawkeye.com/columns/index.html] The Hawk Eye 800 S. Main St., Burlington Iowa 52601 319-754-8461 Front Desk · 319-754-6824 FAX · 1-800-397-1708 Toll Free ***************************************************************** 27 WNA NEWS BRIEFING 01.49 | 28 November - 4 December 2001 A weekly summary of international news relevant to the nuclear energy industry. [NB01.49-1] UK: A Liabilities Management Authority (LMA) will be established to take responsibility for most of the UK's public sector civil nuclear liabilities on behalf of the government, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Patricia Hewitt announced. Essentially the LMA will take on most of British Nuclear Fuels plc's (BNFL's) liabilities and assets - including reprocessing and MOX fabrication facilities at Sellafield - as well as those of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA). BNFL would then be virtually debt-free, once enabling legislation is passed by UK lawmakers. Under the plan, the LMA will hire BNFL to operate the THORP and Magnox reprocessing facilities and the Sellafield MOX Plant (SMP) under 10-15 year contracts. However, once the initial contracts end, BNFL will have to compete to continue the work. The government will reconsider the part-privatisation of BNFL in 2004/2005. A white paper will be published by the government in spring 2002 covering the proposals for the management of UK public sector civil nuclear liabilities. BNFL welcomed the announcement. Chief Executive, Norman Askew said BNFL must now 'become more competitive and further commercialise our operations. We welcome this and will meet the challenges ahead with energy and enthusiasm through our four existing business units' (Spent Fuel and Engineering, Nuclear Decommissioning and Cleanup, Fuel Manufacture & Reactor Services, and Magnox Generation). (NucNet News, 357/01, 29 November; BNFL, 28 November; SpentFUEL, 3 December, p1; see also News Briefing 01.43-17) [NB01.49-2] Upgrading nuclear security has to be one of the world's urgent priorities, according to Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). He presented a paper to the Agency's board of governors, outlining plans for substantially expanding and strengthening IAEA programmes relevant to improving nuclear security. The report identifies four main categories of potential threat: acquisition of a nuclear weapon; acquisition of nuclear material to construct a nuclear weapon or to cause a radiological hazard; acquisition of other radioactive materials to cause a radiological hazard; and, violent acts against nuclear facilities to cause a radiological hazard. The report's proposed programme of upgrades would cost an estimated US$30-50 million per year, representing an initial 10-15% increase in the IAEA's overall resources. (IAEA, 30 November) Meanwhile, the US nuclear industry has opposed a call by three leading senators for legislation that would introduce mandatory federal security at US nuclear facilities. (NucNet News, 359/01, 30 November; see also News Briefing 01.45-1) [NB01.49-3] UK: Calls from the Irish government to impose 'provisional measures' to delay the commissioning of BNFL's Sellafield MOX Plant (SMP) have been rejected by the United Nations (UN) international tribunal for the law of the sea. Ireland had hoped the move would give it sufficient time to hold a full arbitration process in February 2002. However, the tribunal did not consider the case was urgent enough to merit the award of an injunction to halt the plant's opening. The plant is expected to be commissioned by 20 December. (NucNet News, 364/01, 3 December; Financial Times, 4 December, p5; see also News Briefing 01.47-15) [NB01.49-4] Ukraine will now rely on Russian assistance to finish construction of the Rovno-4 and Khmelnitsky-2 nuclear power reactors, President Leonid Kuchma announced. Up until now, Ukraine had been relying on support from European governments and institutions. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) was expected to lend US$215 million for the project and this would be the key to substantially more international finance. However, Ukraine said that the conditions imposed by the EBRD were 'unacceptable' and would have meant 'eternal slavery for Ukraine'. (Ux Weekly, 3 December, p4; Financial Times, 30 November, p13; NucNet News, 360/01, 30 November; see also News Briefing 01.46-1) [NB01.49-5] The US House of Representatives voted in favour of renewing the Price-Anderson Act - a law that ensures that reactor operators are insured up to US$9.5 billion but which limits financial liability in the event of an accident. The compromise bill would extend the act, which expires in August 2002, for an additional 15 years. The Senate must now vote on reauthorisation of the legislation. (NucNet News, 353/01, 28 November; NEI InfoWire, #01/38, 27 November; Associated Press, 28 November; see also News Briefing 01.45-3) [NB01.49-6] Australia: Southern Cross Resources has been granted a mining licence for its Honeymoon uranium project by Minister for Minerals and Energy, Wayne Matthew. The move follows shortly after the federal government approved the project's Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and export permit. (Nuclear Market Review, 30 November, p3; see also News Briefing 01.48-1) [NB01.49-7] Austria and the Czech Republic have concluded a year-long dispute over the Temelin nuclear power plant, with Austria pledging to 'contribute constructively' to the energy-related section of negotiations about Czech membership of the European Union (EU). After a 10-hour meeting in Brussels on 29 November, the Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, and the Czech prime minister, Milos Zeman, announced that they has agreed on a stringent set of measures to improve the plant's safety and monitor its environmental impact. The Czech Republic's accession into the EU is anticipated in 2004. (NucNet News, 361/01, 30 November; FreshFUEL, 3 December, p5; BBC News Online, 30 November; see also News Briefing 01.48-11) [NB01.49-8] North Korea has given the go-ahead for an inspection of its Yongbyon isotope production facility by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and signed an agreement that advances plans for two nuclear power reactors to be built in the country. North Korea signed an agreement about quality assurance and warranties with the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organisation (KEDO), the international consortium proposing to build the two light water reactors (LWRs). The agreement stipulates the rights and responsibilities of North Korea and KEDO in taking part in quality inspections of the reactors. It also guarantees the output of the reactors and the supply of nuclear fuel to be used to start the reactors and other core parts. (Financial Times, 4 December, p13; Associated Press, 3 December; see also News Briefing 01.36-7) [NB01.49-9] Brazil: The state of Rio de Janeiro will formally back construction of the 1300 MWe Angra-3 nuclear power plant, according to the state energy department. (Ux Weekly, 3 December, p4; see also News Briefing 01.47-13) [NB01.49-10] Germany: An Operation Safety Review Team will be sent to Philippsburg-2 by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to investigate reported safety culture problems at the unit. Several other probes have also been instigated by German regulators to determine any such deficiencies at the unit, and by utility owner Energie Baden-Wurttemberg AG (EnBW) to persuade regulators to allow the reactor, which has been off-line since 8 October, to be restarted. Separately, experts from the Swiss nuclear inspectorate HSK and the Swiss Reactor Safety Commission (RSK) have been appointed by EnBW to survey the history of safety-related events at Philippsburg-2 and other EnBW reactors at Obrigheim and Neckarwestheim. (Nucleonics Week, 22 November, p5; see also News Briefing 01.44-6) [NB01.49-11] Romania: Cernavoda-1 has supplied some 25 TWh to the national grid at an average gross capacity factor of 87% since it started commercial operation five years ago. (NucNet News, 368/01, 4 December; see also News Briefing 01.04-9) Meanwhile, utility Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica (SNN) has released its environmental impact study (EIS) on completion of the Cernavoda-2 CANDU 6 reactor. The study was prepared for SNN by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd (AECL). (Nuclear Canada, 3 December, p1; see also News Briefing 01.14-8) [NB01.49-12] Sweden: Vattenfall will go ahead with a SKr1.5 billion (US$150 million) investment programme at the Ringhals and Barseback nuclear power plants, in what Ringhals management says is a clear sign the state-owned utility plans to operate its reactors for 40 years. Sweden's reactors were originally expected to shutdown after their intended 25-year lifetimes. (Nucleonics Week, 22 November, p1; see also News Briefing 00.14-12) [NB01.49-13] Ukraine: Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant might not get a decommissioning licence in 2001, as was expected, because the recently created company structure is inadequate, according to Vadim Gryshchenko, chairman of Ukraine's State Nuclear Regulatory Committee. He said the management structure does not clearly allocate responsibilities and is 'overloaded'. (Nucleonics Week, 22 November, p12; see also News Briefing 01.18-12) [NB01.49-14] Germany: 'Over-amibitious' targets for greenhouse gas emissions cuts would damage the economy and reduce national energy security, German economics minister Werner Mueller reported in a long-awaited government energy policy paper. The report presents two scenarios for greenhouse gas emissions levels in 2020. Both are based on the assumption that a 'majority' of the country's existing nuclear power plants will be shut down by 2020. The first scenario, which the ministry considers the most likely, foresees a 16% reduction in emissions levels by 2020, compared with the 1990 'baseline'. The second scenario assumes that emissions are cut by 40% by 2020, and outlines the policy measures necessary to achieve that goal and their likely consequences. Mueller has previously said that the German Green movement's dual aim of combating climate change and phasing out nuclear power may eventually lead it to 'basically re-evaluate energy policy' and 'call for the use of nuclear energy'. (NucNet News, 356/01, 29 November; see also News Briefing 00.24-4) [NB01.49-15] Russia needs to construct a new spent fuel storage facility in the European part of the country, according to atomic energy minister Alexander Rumyantsev. Storage facilities for liquid and solid spent fuel in all of Russia's nuclear power plants are said to be 60-80% full. The current on-site storage reserve capacity is expected to satisfy current needs for a further five years. (NucNet News, 366/01, 4 December) [NB01.49-16] Sweden: Vattenfall has agreed to buy a 44.8% stake in German utility Bewag for US$1.63 billion. The purchase of the stake from Mirant of the US will increase the Swedish group's total holding in Bewag to 89.6%. Lars Josefsson, Vattenfall chief executive, described the deal as 'a milestone' in its ambition to be 'a leading European energy company'. (Financial Times, 4 December, p27; see also News Briefing 01.40-15) Previous News Briefing NB01.48 Prepared by the WNA Information Service. All news and views are ***************************************************************** 28 Waste conversion rumors swirling - The Paducah Sun Paducah, Kentucky Friday, December 07, 2001 Rumors recently surfaced that funding the conversion of hazardous waste into safer materials is no longer a priority. By Joe Walker jwalker@paducahsun.com--270.575.8650 A long-awaited, job-producing project to convert about 14 billion pounds of hazardous waste at the Paducah uranium enrichment plant into safer material may face another round of federal funding scrutiny as well as environmental and safety concerns. Rumors recently surfaced within the nuclear industry that the Office of Management and Budget, Congress' financial arm, has told the Department of Energy that the conversion project is not a funding priority. That is despite a 1998 federal law calling for the work and earmarking about $373 million. DOE officials, who held an environmental public meeting Thursday night regarding the project, said they were not aware of OMB concerns. "It's news to me," said Kevin Shaw, program manager for DOE's depleted uranium hexafluoride (UF6) program in Washington, D.C. "I'll look into it when I get back." The rumors reportedly have concerned some, if not all, of the three groups of firms that are finalists for the work, which would build facilities at Paducah and its closed sister plant near Portsmouth, Ohio, to convert the UF6 into a safer material. The Energy Department is expected to name a winner this month, perhaps within days. Ken Wheeler, chairman of a local task force promoting the Paducah plant's resources, said the rumor persists. "I have not talked with anybody in the administration to confirm it, but I have the same report from two or three sources," he said. "It's frankly not clear to me how that could happen when the law of the land requires the process to move forward. But I guess the OMB is entitled to express a position." Asked about the rumor, staffers for Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Louisville, were checking its validity Thursday evening, but could not immediately respond. McConnell wrote legislation for the project, which could create about 150 jobs in each community. DOE hopes some parts of the material, particularly fluorine compounds, can be used commercially to generate about $200 million in revenue during the roughly 25 years of conversion work. If the OMB has reservations, it would not be the first time. Labor leaders, civic officials and the congressional delegation have repeatedly criticized the OMB and Energy Department for foot-dragging on the cylinder project over budgetary issues. DOE delayed bidding for more than a year before resuming the process in late 2000. Thursday night's meeting reflected continued concerns by some plant neighbors and watchdog groups about the safety of converting the material, stored in nearly 60,000 cylinders, some of which are rusty and have leaked. About two-thirds are at the Paducah plant, and the rest are at the Ohio plant and another closed enrichment facility at Oak Ridge, Tenn. Some spoke out about the potential for chemical or radiation releases from the cylinders in the event of a large plane crash. "I live right there by the plant, and I was watching TV and saw what happened there in New York," said Ray English, part of a citizens' group worried about the cylinders. "I was sitting there waiting to hear the big boom at the plant." DOE officials responded the material in the cylinders is too mildly radioactive for a nuclear criticality accident, but is a chemical threat because it emits hydrofluoric acid when it mixes with moisture in the air. Gene Hoffman, a retired DOE metals expert from Oak Ridge, asked Shaw to include a large aircraft crash scenario in an environmental impact study for the cylinder project. He said previous studies have only addressed the crash of a small, private plane. Although the risk of a large plane crash is low, it would seriously threaten workers and the public if it happened, Hoffman said. "My point is, if you don't ever consider it, how can you mitigate the damage?" he said. Chamber of commerce, economic development and county government officials endorsed the conversion project because of its economic potential and the public safety risk of continuing to store the cylinders. Shaw said the 12-foot-long steel canisters cover about 42 acres at the three sites and, containing dense uranium, have a total weight about a tenth as much as the Great Pyramid in Egypt. DOE’s preferred option of converting the material into uranium dioxide is expected to cost $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion and create several hundred construction jobs. Construction must start by Jan. 31, 2004. The environmental study will assess worker and public health and environmental impacts of the conversion project. It also will gauge the facilities’ construction and effect on local employment, income, population, housing and public services. A draft environmental impact statement is expected to be issued in June, followed by a 45-day public comment period. A final statement, preceding a record of decision, is slated for January 2003. ***************************************************************** 29 Sellafield Ownership Safety Fears THE WHITEHAVEN NEWS Thursday, December 06, 2001 Safety and employment assurances are being sought from BNFL now that the state-owned company is losing ownership of Sellafield. Workers are worried about future job security because both BNFL and the UKAEA will have to bid for vital work on the site as the company moves nearer partial privatisation. The new owners, a government Liabilities Management Authority (LMA), will take over BNFL assets together with the £35 billion cost of site clean-up work. The assets include the Sellafield Thorp and Magnox reprocessing plants as well as the new £473 million Mox fuel plant. BNFL spokesman Bill Anderton said: "We will fulfil the current order book and continue to see more business for both Thorp and SMP. We will also continue to manage Thorp and SMP once LMA is set up in 2003 and beyond, so that is a guaranteee of the first year's work. There will be a government review the following year and then the award of longer-term contracts. It is up to us to demonstrate we can deliver against key objectives and operate the business as well as possible in order to win the contract to run the site. No management changes are planned. We will have to prove we are up to the job and remain so." But David Moore, chairman of Sellafield Local Liaison Committee, which meets today, said: "A lot of questions have to be asked and answered. Safety and guarantees of employment are top of the list. What we often see with competitive tendering is a reduction in manning levels to meet tendering costs - that's something we definitely don't want to see happen. The danger is costs and profits coming before safety - Sellafield must not be dictated to by price. "These are drastic changes. As locals, we respect what BNFL has done, so it is a worry that other companies could come in and manage the nuclear site longer term." A spokesman for the Department of Trade and Industry said: "BNFL will continue to run the site until around 2004-5 or at least until decisions are taken about its future strategy including the public private partnership issue. BNFL already has signed contracts and will be getting on with this work. "Once the legislation is in place longer term contracts will be looked at. A lot depends on how well BNFL operates and how well it performs." Once the new Authority is established in 2003 it will "then contract out on the basis of competitive tender the work to operate and manage the facilities previously owned by BNFL." BNFL said: "Under the new arrangements such plants as Thorp and SMP (Mox) will be assets owned by LMA. Because of the interdependencies of plants and systems at the Sellafield site, it can only be operated safely by one licensee. BNFL will continue to manage these assets commercially under appropriate arrangements with the LMA." Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Patricia Hewitt told the House of Commons: "No change for the staff at BNFL arises from the proposals except perhaps the prospect of greater work as the company develops its business." But John Kane, convenor for Sellafield's biggest union (GMB) said: "We have to be concerned. "If BNFL bids for a contract and fails to win it, what happens to BNFL workers when there is less work? Employment is a major issue along with the continued high standards of safety. "All the reassurance and environmental monitoring has always been done by our own people and we would be worried about anyone else doing it." Copeland MP Jack Cunningham said: "Safety must be the No1 priority, whatever the changes. I am sure at the outset BNFL will get substantial contracts for work." Copeland Council leader Robin Simpson said: "I have no immediate worries but we need to watch things." ***************************************************************** 30 Workforce Secure in Sellafield Deal THE WHITEHAVEN NEWS Thursday, December 06, 2001 Security of employment for BNFL's 6,500-strong Sellafield workforce is said to be safeguarded even though the nuclear site is passing into the ownership of a new government body which will take on the massive cost of clean up work. A Liabilities Management Authority is to bear the £35 billion bill but BNFL whichwill continue to do a lot of the waste treatment and decommissioning work denies that it is being rescued from bankruptcy. An £8.5 billion bill has also been taken away from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority for future decommissioning work, including the Windscale reactor pile chimneys. BNFL and the AEA will relinquish ownership of their respective parts of the site along with all the plants and buildings, although the two companies will still be responsible for operating them. Even with liabilities already outstripping assets, BNFL insists there was no danger of bankruptcy. "We have enough money to pay our way and to pay the workforce even if we carried on as we are. BNFL has a lot of cash and was not definitely not going bust or insolvent," said Sellafield spokesman Nigel Monckton. The Department of Trade and Industry revealed that currently state-owned BNFL has a current net asset deficit of £1.7 billion. Although this means that financial liabilities for clean-up work are more than the assets, the company's finance director John Edwards said: "BNFL has a strong cash position - cash reserves that are more than adequate to continue trading and pay our workforce and creditors for at least the next 10 years." The Liabilities Management Authority is taking on the cost of civil nuclear liabilities, which is basically paying for cleaning up a legacy of radioactive waste, much of it at Sellafield and created in the early years of Britain's military and civil nuclear programme before the formation of BNFL in 1971. However, the company was saddled with a £35 billion bill for dealing with the legacy over future years and it threatened the company's long-term financial liability. This is now removed but at the expense of site ownership. Treating historic nuclear wastes arising in the early years of the nuclear programme was going to cost BNFL another £1.9 billion on top of the £35 billion burden. "As a result of this increase BNFL's long-term liabilities are estimated to exceed assets," said the Department of Trade and Industry. "The proposals outlined for restructuring the industry more broadly will address this. HM Chief Inspector of Nuclear Installations has assured government that BNFL's financial position will have no impact on the safety of its operations." Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, told the House of Commons: "The government's priority is the safe, secure and cost effective discharge of its nuclear liabilities in a way that ensures protection of the environment. "The proposals I have outlined today show the government's commitment to delivering a clear and focused long-term strategy to deal with the nuclear legacy with a firm focus on environment and safety. "We are creating a management regime which can provide the strategic direction and influence required to sustain clean-up programme extending into the next century. "We have to face up to our responsibilities and not leave them for future generations. "We need to build on the best efforts of BNFL and UKAEA and the real progress made in recent years. "We need to deepen the level and breadth of expertise in nuclear clean up in the UK, to use the best of what the public and private sectors have to offer and reward those who deliver." Focused on maintaining the highest safety, security and environmental standards, the LMA will look to optimise the use of this expertise by developing the opportunities for liabilities management, including the management of licensed nuclear sites. The LMA will take over in 12 months time and may pave the way for the partial privatisation of BNFL in 2004/5. BNFL chief executive Norman Askew said: "This new strategy clarifies the way forward for historic liabilities, many of which predated the creation of BNFL. This helps management to focus on running the business. "We now have to become more competitive and further commercialise our operations. We welcome this." ***************************************************************** 31 Energy Secretary Statement on Senate Energy Bill Abraham urges expeditious "up or down vote" energy.gov - Headquarters' Press Release RELEASE DATE: December 6, 2001 [Print Friendly Version] (WASHINGTON, DC) -- Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham released the following statement to address Majority Leader Daschle's proposed energy legislation: "Energy legislation is critical to the nation's energy security, national security and economic recovery. Although I'm disappointed that energy legislation won't be passed this year, I take Senator Daschle at his word that the Senate will act on it in January. In addition to a Senate floor vote on energy, it is important that a conference committee also complete its work and legislation be enacted as soon as possible. The Senate Democratic bill is a good first step. In order to achieve more balanced legislation, the Senate should consider serious proposals to increase domestic exploration and production of oil and gas. But I am encouraged by the common ground between the Democratic legislation, the President's National Energy Plan and the House-passed bill. Where there are areas of disagreement, the only fair way to resolve those issues is to take an up or down vote. I would urge the Senate to adopt time agreements on those measures and get the job done. We owe it to the American people to take quick action." Media Contact: Jill Schroeder, 202/586-4940 Release No. PRN-01-101 ***************************************************************** 32 U.S. spares Davis-Besse from safety shutdown toledoblade.com Ohio News | Article published December 5, 2001 By TOM HENRY BLADE STAFF WRITER OAK HARBOR - The federal government has backed off its threat to shut down FirstEnergy Corp.’s Davis-Besse nuclear power plant, despite concerns that a vital reactor safety feature could be cracked. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced yesterday that it will allow FirstEnergy to keep the plant running until Feb. 16, the utility’s new date to take the plant off-line temporarily for normal refueling. At that point, FirstEnergy could inspect the reactor head to see whether a problem exists. Until then, control room operators will be instructed to make adjustments so the reactor head - a huge, dome-like structure that covers the top of the reactor - does not exceed 598 degrees. That’s only seven degrees lower than the reactor head’s normal running temperature of 605 degrees, but regulators believe it will be enough to keep any cracks that might exist from spreading, according to Victor Dricks, spokesman for the regulatory commission’s national headquarters. "If there were any cracks, it would reduce the crack growth rate," he said. The possibility of a rare government order to shut down the plant arose because the commission was not convinced that FirstEnergy had done enough to inspect 69 devices on reactor heads known as control rod drive mechanism nozzles. Those nozzles serve a primary safety function, because they are passageways for other pieces of equipment that help operators maintain control over the reactor. FirstEnergy inspected the nozzles on top of Davis-Besse’s reactor head when the plant was being refueled in 1996, 1998, and 2000. But the Nuclear Regulatory Commission was concerned that the inspections there and at other nuclear plants with pressurized water reactors were not thorough enough because of the surprise discovery of cracks in two nozzles at the Oconee Unit 3 plant in South Carolina. That plant’s design is nearly identical to Davis-Besse’s. On Feb. 18, Duke Energy Corp. discovered unusual circumference-type cracks in two nozzles on top of its Oconee 3 reactor. That type of cracks is troublesome because they have the potential to split and make it more difficult to move control rods inside the reactor, the commission said. A government contractor, the Electric Power Research Institute of Palo Alto, Calif., identified 13 plants with pressurized water reactors as being most susceptible to those cracks. Davis-Besse was one of the plants identified. Davis-Besse had been the only plant left in that group that the government had not decided how to handle. FirstEnergy made a presentation to the commission in the Washington area last month, but the commission staff kept open the possibility of ordering a shutdown until yesterday. The government has not ordered an immediate, safety-related shutdown of a nuclear plant since 1987. "Our contention is we had no indication of a problem here. If there was, we would have been taking action," FirstEnergy spokesman Richard Wilkins said. Detroit Edison Co.’s Fermi II nuclear plant is not susceptible to this type of problem because it does not have the same type of reactor. It has a boiling-water reactor. ©2001 The Blade. Privacy Statement. ***************************************************************** 33 NRC Staff to Meet with U. S. Enrichment Corp. On Possible Safety Violations NRC: Press Release III - 2001 - 01-056 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region III 801 Warrenville Road, Lisle IL 60532 Web Site: what-we-do/public-affairs.html No. III 01-056 December 7, 2001 CONTACT: Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663/e-mail: rjs2@nrc.gov [rjs2@nrc.gov] Pam Alloway-Mueller (630) 829-9662/e-mail: pla@nrc.gov [pla@nrc.gov] The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet December 14 in Lisle, Illinois, with U. S. Enrichment Corp. officials to discuss possible safety violations at the Portsmouth, Ohio, gaseous diffusion plant. The plant formerly processed uranium for use as fuel in nuclear power plants. The meeting, called a Predecisional Enforcement Conference, will begin at 10 a.m. in the Third Floor Conference Room on the NRC's Region III office, 801 Warrenville Road, in Lisle. The meeting is open to public observation. Following the meeting, NRC officials will be available for questions and comments from members of the public. The plant is no longer processing or "enriching" uranium, and the plant staff is removing remaining uranium from pipes and other components in the course placing the plant on a standby status. On September 22, the plant staff found the plant was not meeting requirements for preventing an accidental criticality, or "chain reaction," in a portion of processing piping holding enriched uranium. These requirements set pressure and moisture conditions for the piping. NRC inspectors found possible violations of NRC requirements associated with the incident. While the requirements were not fully met, the plant's technical staff determined that an accidental criticality was unlikely because of the piping configuration and the actual conditions present. The decision to hold a predecisional enforcement conference does not mean that a determination has been made that a violation has occurred or that enforcement action will be taken. The purpose is to discuss apparent violations, their causes and safety significance, to provide the company with an opportunity to provide additional information on the situation, and to enable the company to outline its proposed corrective actions. No decision on the apparent violation or any contemplated enforcement action, such as a fine, will be made at the conference. Those decisions will be made by NRC officials at a later time. ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 7 Arrested for Sale of Uranium-235 Associated Press"> Police have arrested seven people who were trying to sell more than one kilogram of highly enriched, weapons-grade uranium, NTV reported Thursday. The men were arrested in the town of Balashikha just east of Moscow, trying to sell a capsule with uranium-235 for $30,000, NTV said. The suspects were charged with illegal handling of nuclear materials, it said. If proven true, the seizure would be the first officially confirmed case of theft of weapons-grade material in Russia. In the economic turmoil following the Soviet collapse, there have been regular seizures of nuclear materials stolen by people who tried to sell them for profit, but all involved low-active uranium or cesium unfit to manufacture nuclear weapons. Russian officials have repeatedly said that no weapons-grade nuclear materials have been stolen. The report said the suspects allegedly belonged to the Balashikha criminal ga ng. Police initially arrested those trying to sell the material at a roadside cafe, and they led them to another suspect who kept the uranium in his house. The date of the arrest and other details were unclear. A duty officer at the Balashikha police station told The Associated Press he was aware of the case, but gave no details, saying the Federal Security Service was handling the investigation. The officer asked not to be named. A spokesman at the Interior Ministry in Moscow also referred questions about the case to the FSB. A duty officer at the FSB head office refused to comment. The NTV report contained footage of a roadside cafe where several suspects were arrested and a local police headquarters. It didn't feature any officials who would confirm the arrest. NTV also interviewed Nikolai Shingarev, a spokesman for the Nuclear Power Ministry, who said there are several plants in and around Moscow where such material could be obtained. Weapons-grade uranium is sometimes used in research nuclear reactors. Alexander Koldobsky, a senior researcher at the Moscow Engineering and Physical Institute, told NTV that the quantity of uranium reportedly seized would be insufficient to make a nuclear weapon. Koldobsky voiced skepticism about the reported seizure, saying it looked more like a provocation than a real event. http://www.moscowtimes.ru ***************************************************************** 2 Analysis: Strident about Trident: Since September 11, one would have thought Britain would be doing its best to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Not so, it seems The Guardian - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 BY RICHARD NORTON-TAYLOR Nuclear weapons are regarded by the US, Britain and indeed all Nato countries as the ultimate deterrent, the ultimate guarantee of their security. Trite it may be to say so, but the vast array of nuclear weapons at the disposal of the US did not deter terrorists from attacking New York and Washington on September 11. It is difficult to contemplate any weapons, let alone nuclear ones, eradicating the elusive enemy in what the Bush and Blair administrations describe as the "war" against terrorism. However, both Washington and London are warning that they will not hesitate to take military action against terrorist groups and states harbouring them. The bombing of Afghanistan, Geoff Hoon, the defence secretary, told the Commons last week, was a "clear message" to others. In a speech on Wednesday he raised the prospect of coercive search-and-destroy raids carried out by small groups of highly mobile airborne troops. But hawks in Washington, including Hoon's American counterpart, Donald Rumsfeld, do not rule out more drastic military action as they talk up the threat of weapons of mass destruction in the hands of terrorist groups and "rogue" states, notably Iraq. They want to develop "mini-nukes", for use against underground bunkers or even mobile missile launchers. Nuclear warheads, they suggest, would be the most reliable ingredient of its missile defence project. The British government, meanwhile, maintains the position laid down in the 1998 strategic defence review that the Trident missile system (Britain's only nuclear weapon) could have a "sub-strategic" role. What targets these might include, and in what circumstances - to counter threats of chemical and biological warfare, for example - has never been explained, part no doubt of the US and British posture of "deliberate ambiguity". A report by the British American Security Infor- mation Council (www. basicint.org) says in a report published yesterday that it is time the government explained its nuclear weapons policy. Its report, Secrecy and Dependence: the UK Trident System in the 21st century, considers American moves to update its Trident system. It also covers Washington's proposal to make deep cuts in the number of its nuclear warheads in bilateral negoti ations with Russia but outside any international treaty framework; the failure of the Bush administration to take steps to counter the very proliferation it is complaining about; and the lack of any proper debate here about nuclear weapons. The Ministry of Defence has abandoned its annual defence estimates and publishes less and less relevant information about nuclear weapons policy and expenditure. Basic points out that Labour has made some cautious changes to Britain's Trident posture, reducing from 60 to 48 the number of warheads per submarine and reducing the number of Trident II missiles from 65 to 58. But the biggest change in the Labour party's thinking has been the abandoning of a "no first use" policy, quietly dropped after the 1997 general election. Britain relies on the US for the testing and servicing of its Trident system and the targeting of its missiles. Visits of scientists and technicians at the Aldermaston atomic weapons establishment to their American counterparts have increased signficantly in recent years, from just over a hundred 10 years ago, to 235 in 1998-99, according to the latest available figures. The US is working on plans to enhance the Trident missile, extend its service life and improve the effectiveness of the warhead. It is also converting two of its Trident submarines to non-nuclear use. Is Britain planning to do the same? We don't know. Bush has told President Putin that the US was prepared to cut the number of American nuclear warheads from about 6,000 to less than 2,000, a reduction Putin is only too keen to replicate given the state of Russia's nuclear stockpile and economy. Basic argues that this presents Britain with an ideal opportunity to propose an in ternational nuclear disarmament conference. The 1998 strategic defence review stated that Britain's nuclear arsenal was the "minimum necessary to provide for our security . . . and very much smaller than those of the major nuclear powers". It added: "Considerable further reductions in the latter would be needed before further British reductions could become feasible." This condition seems to be on its way to being fulfilled. Has the Blair government got the stomach to pursue Labour's traditional emphasis on multilateral arms control agreements when a unilateralist Bush administration is hostile to binding international treaties, whether on missile defence, nuclear warheads, a nuclear test ban or biological weapons? Though it seems unlikely that Britain, or even the US, would now use nuclear weapons, the prospect of the unthinkable happening in the not-so-distant-future is more likely the more weapons of mass destruction proliferate. The targets could include any state possessing those weapons, not only terrorist groups or those states harbouring them. It may be unlikely that a dictator who was willing to strike another country that possessed weapons of mass destruction would feel entirely sure that that country would not respond with the power at its disposal. Yet the talk in Washington, and in London, now is all about launching pre-emptive strikes, not of deterrence or retaliatory strikes. In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, Britain's global responsibility to contribute to efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their delivery systems - so urgent an issue, according to Whitehall - has never been more pressing, Basic argues. Britain could use its special relationship with the US (so often trumpeted by Blair) to impress on the Bush administration the need for international engagement on these issues. If the government fails to do so, then parliament could always demand it. Richard Norton-Taylor is the Guardian's security editor. r.norton-taylor@ guardian.co.uk All Material Subject to Copyright ***************************************************************** 3 Energy body chief calls on North Korea to comply with nuclear inspections BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 6, 2001 Text of article by reporter Ho Yong-pom in English by South Korean newspaper Choson Ilbo web site on 6 December Charles Kartman, the executive director of the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO), said Thursday [6 December] that the construction of light-water reactors (LWR) in North Korea will not be completed unless Pyongyang fully complies with its obligations to have its nuclear facilities inspected. Upon returning from a four-day visit to the North from 1 to 4 December, Kartman said that only when the North fully observes inspections stated in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of the Geneva Agreement, secures power transmission and substation facilities for the nuclear plant, and guarantees the safety of construction companies participating in the LWR project, would North Korea receive the key nuclear components necessary to make the reactors operational. The East Asian expert added that the North is responsible for funding the required building of power transmission and substation facilities, which will incur a substantial cost. As the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) projects that complete inspection and verification of the North's nuclear facilities and activities could possibly take several years, Kartman insisted that the inspection must begin in the near future. While Pyongyang has suggested allowing its nuclear research centre in Yongbyon to be inspected by the IAEA, Kartman emphasized that the North's questionable nuclear activities, the subject of suspicion since the heightened tension of 1994 will not be cleared up as he determined that suspected plutonium stock piles in question are not from the Yongbyon research centre. Source: Choson Ilbo, Seoul, in English 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 4 Pasko-trial postponed to December 24 Gregory Pasko, an investigative journalist who worked for the Pacific Fleet's newspaper, was arrested on 20 November 1997 by the FSB and charged with high treason for his writing about the nuclear safety issues in the Russian Pacific Fleet. Prosecutor Aleksandr Kondakov was supposed to deliver his closing speech in the Pacific Fleet Court today. He has however fallen ill and the Court had to make yet another postponement. Jon Gauslaa, 2001-12-07 13:00 Today's court session in Vladivostok sprang yet another surprise, as prosecutor Aleksandr Kondakov did not show up at the Pacific Fleet courthouse this morning. Nothing was delivered The Court was supposed to announce that the investigative part of the trial was finalised, and then give the floor to the prosecutor so that he could deliver his closing speech. It turned out that nothing was delivered. The reason was that Kondakov had fallen ill on a so far unknown diagnosis. It is however, not a 'fake illness' in order to further delay the trial. Kondakov is hospitalised. -- He did not look well at all, told journalist Viktor Tereshkin, who visited him at the hospital. -- I did however, wish him a speedy recovery, Tereshkin added. Trial postponed to December 24 Tereshkin had every reason to do so, as the further progress of the trial will depend on the speed of Kondakov's recovery. The trial has temporarily been postponed to December 24. At the time of writing it is however, unclear if Kondakov then will be able to appear in Court. The Court will therefore in the nearest days examine whether or not a new prosecutor will have to take over from where Kondakov left. This question may be clarified at the next court session, which is scheduled for December 13. As most Russian prosecutors seems to limit their closing speeches to a recitation of the indictment, such a task should be executable. It is however, reason to believe that if a new prosecutor has to step in, the trial may well be postponed for several months. ***** Journalist Grigory Pasko was arrested on November 20, 1997 on charges of espionage on behalf of the Japanese TV-channel NHK. He was acquitted in July 1999, but convicted of 'abuse of official authority' and freed under an amnesty. Seeking a full acquittal, Pasko appealed, but so did the prosecution, insisting he was a spy. On November 21, 2000 the Military Supreme Court sent the case back for a re-trial at the Pacific Fleet Court, where the re-trial has been going on since July 11, 2001. Publisher: Bellona Foundation, President: Frederic Hauge Information: info@bellona.no, Technical contact: webmaster@bellona.no Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box 2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway ***************************************************************** 5 Terrorists could easily make nuclear bomb, says veteran Russian Green BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 Text of report by Russian NTV on 6 December [Note: Previous item concerned the confiscation of over 1 kg of uranium 235 from members of the Balashikha criminal gang in Moscow Region. The gang were arrested in a roadside cafe when they attempted to sell the uranium for 30,000 dollars.] [Presenter] One is reminded of something which happened seven years ago. In 1994 a big row blew up when the FRG special services arrested three people who had flown in to Munich from Moscow. They were found to be carrying 363 grams of weapons-grade plutonium. Russia called it a provocation. But German experts claim that the so-called nuclear Mafia is international, radioactive materials can reach the international market not just from CIS countries or Eastern Europe, but also from Germany itself and other European countries. However, IAEA experts regard it as wrong to talk about a so-called black market in radioactive materials. Nevertheless, since 1993 the IAEA has recorded 175 instances of illegal trade in nuclear and fissile materials. In 18 cases it was highly enriched uranium or plutonium, i.e. materials which can, in principle, be used to make an atomic bomb. NTV now has a live interview with a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the president of the Environmental Policy Centre, Aleksey Yablokov. Hello, Aleksey Vladimirovich. What could this one kg of enriched uranium-235 have been used for? [Yablokov] Good evening. I have studied ecological terrorism and, of course, nuclear matters for a long time. To make an atomic bomb, albeit a primitive and bulky one, from uranium-235, you need 52 kg. This is enough to cause a chain reaction. If you really try, you can make do with 25-30 kg. The minimum quantity of uranium needed to make a bomb is 8 kg. These are very complete bombs. When you recall that a few months ago 2.5 kg - actually 2.3 kg to be precise - of this uranium were seized in Georgia and now over a kilogram has been intercepted here, when you bear in mind that roughly 10 per cent of these cases are cleared up, while 90 per cent of these crimes are not cleared up, it is absolutely clear that terrorists could have enough uranium to make a bomb. Of course, this would not be a bomb made in the mountains of Afghanistan. It can be made anywhere, including America. It is probably no secret that about 10 years ago the Americans, a special group at the US Department of Energy - the ministry in charge of atomic energy, tried to make a bomb "illegally". They managed it in 10 different ways, using materials that came to hand, ones that were available on the market. It is possible to make a bomb. It will be bulky, but it can be done. [Presenter] Aleksey Vladimirovich, where could criminals obtain this strategic material if everything is guarded as well as we are told it is guarded. [Yablokov] Well, what does well guarded mean? It has rightly been pointed out that there are a large number of research reactors where fissile material is kept. The leak could come from there. To lose a kilogram is, admittedly, rather strange. Grams, tens of grams, not kilograms, could disappear from there. We have three places where this uranium is produced - Tomsk-7 at Seversk, Krasnoyarsk-26 at Zheleznogorsk and the Mayak production association in Chelyabinsk Region. It is unlikely to come from there, although, on the other hand, I do know of a case at Mayak. About eight or nine years ago, for a bet, a comrade smuggled 5 kg of uranium out of the plant. He pretended to have stomach trouble, something like that, and asked for first aid to be summoned. He calmly walked out with 5 kg, then gave it back. However, he proved it could be done. There is a huge amount of uranium - 500 tonnes - which has been derived from the scrapping of the huge number of nuclear warheads that there is. You cannot steal a warhead. I agree here with our military. This is impossible. But when uranium from the warheads reaches some depot or other, it can be stolen - because there are dozens of these places in Russia, and they are hardly likely to be guarded in an ideal way. [Presenter] Thank you, Aleksey Vladimirovich. I remind you that that was a commentary by Aleksey Yablokov, a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Source: NTV, Moscow, in Russian 1900 gmt 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 6 USA can amend ABM instead of quitting treaty - Russian expert BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 [Presenter Andrey Baturin] On 5 December Russia fully met its obligations under the START-1 treaty. Under this document, Russia and the USA are reducing their nuclear warhead levels from 10,000 to 6,000... The guest of "Late-Night Vremya" is military expert and professor, Maj-Gen Vladimir Dvorkin. Vladimir Zinovyevich, good evening. [Dvorkin] Good evening. [Baturin] So Russia has met its obligations under the START-1 treaty. But what about our American partners? How are things with them? [Dvorkin] December 5 saw the deadline for the implementation of all cuts regarding START-1 levels and sub-levels. Russia fully met its obligations, and the USA also met its obligations regarding maximum ceilings and sub-levels. At the same time, we have certain outstanding objections regarding secondary matters connected, for instance, with the re-equipping of heavy bombers. But I think it is not a fundamental matter. And it can be resolved. [Baturin] By the way, during Vladimir Putin's recent trip to the USA George Bush announced that America was basically willing to reduce its strategic offensive weapons to 1,700-2,200. At the same time, it is known that Russia has basically planned to cut its nuclear arsenals to 1,500. Will the Americans be willing to accept this ceiling of 1,500? [Dvorkin] For Russia the main thing when it comes to deep cuts is the maintenance of a rough balance in strategic weapons vis-a-vis the USA. And in this matter the planned reductions to 1,500 that the president announced represent quite a flexible figure. And, in case of necessity, Russia will have no problem maintaining its strategic offensive weapons at a level of 2,000 warheads. For that you just need to make a certain adjustment to development plans the structure of the Russian Federation's strategic offensive weapons. [Baturin] The Americans are proposing that long-term treaties in the nuclear sphere be abolished in favour of a switch to unilateral steps. What is Russia objecting to? In this regard, what is the further destiny of the START treaties? [Dvorkin] This is a very fundamental question. President Bush, I believe, is under pressure from the Pentagon and certain circles from the military-industrial complex, which do not want to tie their hands in the event of the unpredictable development of the military-political situation. But it is the signing of legally-binding treaties that allows this uncertainty to be reduced. [US Secretary of State] General [Colin] Powell recently announced that codification, or rather legally-binding accords, are possible. This give rise to certain hopes that it will be possible to conclude legally-binding agreements, framework accords or treaties, thus reducing uncertainties in the development of the military-political situation. [Baturin] Do you believe that START-3 is a possibility? [Dvorkin] I think START-3 is an impossibility, but something like START-3 is possible in the form of some kind of framework agreements. But naturally they would have to have legal force. [Baturin] Washington has already stopped saying that it is essential immediately to abandon the 1972 ABM treaty. Do you think it will continue to be possible to preserve this treaty? [Dvorkin] For the Americans, abandoning the ABM treaty is a fixed idea connected with President Bush's election pledges. Nevertheless, the USA has no need to quit the 1972 ABM treaty. We know their programmes. They can conduct tests of their anti-missile defence systems - mobile, maritime and air - for another 4-5 years without quitting the treaty. And if they need to do something outside the ABM treaty, non-destructive amendments to the treaty would fully suffice. Source: Russian Public TV (ORT), Moscow, in Russian 2030 gmt 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 7 Al-Qa'idah terrorists conned in Kazakh nuclear weapon deal, Kazakh TV BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Dec 7, 2001 Text of report by Kazakh Commercial TV on 6 December The Al-Qa'idah international terrorist organization did indeed intend to purchase nuclear weapons in Kazakhstan, acording to one of the main members of the group, (?Jamal Ahmad Al Fadl), who defected to the Americans. The defector said that several years ago Al-Qa'idah's emissaries had gone to our republic to purchase components to make their own nuclear bomb. At the time Kazakhstan was the only largely Muslim state which legally possessed a nuclear arsenal. However, the Al-Qa'idah mission was not crowned with success. According to Al Fadl's evidence, terrorists despaired of purchasing [nuclear] weapons from military depots and went for the black market, where they became victims of a fraud. Dzhamal Al Fadl, who executed the deal, said that Al-Qa'idah representatives had purchased spent fuel from the Mangistau reactor [in western Kazakhstan] which could not be used further. The sellers passed it off as a secret component of the Soviet nuclear programme. Source: Kazakh Commercial Television, Almaty, in Russian 1400 gmt 6 Dec 01 /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC. World Reporter ***************************************************************** 8 The real dirt on dirty bombs By LEE BOWMAN Terrorism experts call them radiological dispersal devices, and most scenarios indicate they'd spread more panic than radiation. But like knowledge about anthrax-laced letters until a few months ago, the science of "dirty bombs" is based on assumptions about weapons never before used, and with many variables about how such bombs might be configured and where they might be used. There is heightened concern among organizations that control nuclear materials and some intelligence services that the al Qaeda terrorist network or other terror groups may have obtained radioactive material that could be used to make a radiological weapon. U.S. security officials said this week they have no indication that any such weapon has been made. And experts stress that such weapons would not produce a nuclear detonation and so would be far less lethal and damaging than nuclear weapons. Nonetheless, "the use of any weapon that releases radiation would be psychologically devastating to the community," said Theresa Hitchens, a senior fellow at the Center for Defense Information in Washington. "If it were dispersed by a bomb, and you have people talking about radiation and explosions in the same breath, a lot of people wouldn't see much distinction." Moreover, it's almost impossible to predict how much chaos or casualties such a weapon might produce. "A lot depends on the quality and quantity of the radioactive material and how well they blow it up," Hitchens said. Studies done for the Pentagon several years ago illustrate the range of threats. Under one scenario, a backpack-sized 100-pound bomb with weakly radioactive particles, such as those used in cancer treatment, detonated near the Washington Monument would kill no one with radiation. At the other extreme, a truck-mounted device with the same amount of explosive, but with more than 100 pounds of bundled spent nuclear fuel rods, would produce potentially lethal doses of radiation for up to about half a mile. "No one has ever used one of these devices, there's no such thing as the XM-48 dirty bomb on the shelf, so we have no concrete example by which to judge the effects," said Fred Wehling, a senior research associate with the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute for International Studies in California. He and other experts stress the technical difficulty of matching the right ingredients of a dirty bomb to urban terrain and weather conditions. "It's quite a trick to design it so the material is not dispersed too thinly, or not dispersed at all," Wehling said. "In all likelihood, such a device would be a more effective way of creating terror than casualties. I'd worry more about the bomb itself than the radiation." A scientific committee set up by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements last year came to similar conclusions about dirty bombs, noting in a draft report that while lethal doses of radiation might be delivered to people closest to a blast, under most scenarios "the harm is primarily psychosocial." "The biggest impact would probably be to scare the hell out of everyone," said John Poston, a professor at Texas A University who headed the committee. Other experts aren't so sure. "There hasn't been enough independent research on this, but based on what we've seen in the nuclear weapons plants, certainly a radiological attack could be catastrophic," said Dr. David Rush, a Tufts University professor and a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility, a group of doctors that has studied the health effects of nuclear weapons for four decades. Friedrich Steinhausler of the University of Salzburg, Austria, who follows trafficking in stolen nuclear materials, said even modest radioactive contamination would make any bombing scene much worse. "Picture the dust-caked office worker who survived the World Trade Center attack," he said. "He would not only be covered in dust from the detonation, he would have inhaled radioactive stuff. His body would be contaminated." But except at very high doses, radiation is not immediately fatal, nor does it necessarily produce immediate symptoms. Military and civilian health experts anticipate that most victims of a radiological attack could be decontaminated fairly easily after external exposure, but say successful treatment of internal exposure would again depend on the dose and type of material inhaled or ingested. Even relatively low doses of radiation can affect the digestive system and bone marrow. Patients could expect to face a higher risk for various types of cancer years down the road, and perhaps other genetic damage. Even if no one got sick, the reality of nuclear contamination could have a terrible impact. "Since Sept. 11, and especially since the anthrax letters, people are much more fearful about contamination of any sort, and there's always been a pretty high threshold of concern over even legitimate nuclear material in this country," said Hitchens. "Cl (Lee Bowman covers health and science for Scripps Howard News Service. E-mail BowmanL(at)shns.com) December 5, 2001 Copyright © 1999-2001 The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. All ***************************************************************** 9 Silent trees tell toxic story By CATHERINE CLABBY Scientists depend on living things to help track how pollution spreads, whether it be grasses that soak up heavy metals outside industrial dumps or water bugs that die downstream. Now, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have identified a new tool for such ecological detective work: the majestic black oak. Geologist Drew Coleman and a student have shown that the black oak appears to absorb uranium from the air and store it in its bark, preserving a record of pollution that otherwise would be lost. "There are many nuclear sites and radioactive sites in the United States that need to be monitored," Coleman said. "Instead of going out and doing a lot of expensive testing, you can just core a few trees and get the answer over a huge area very quickly. This potentially could boost safety by enhancing monitoring." Scientists have long believed that trees one day might be used as precision ecological monitors. After all, trees keep their own calendars. Their growth rings mark wood created year after year. They absorb what surrounds them - good and bad - from water to soil to air. One goal has been to find contaminants that are absorbed into tree trunks and then remain in a growth ring made the same year, creating a dated record of exposure. But nature isn't always that simple. Instead, experiments by Coleman's team and others show that toxic materials soaked up by trees don't always stay put. They sometimes travel from the sapwood - a tree's newest, outer rings - to the older heartwood closer to the center of the trunk. Precise dating, in those cases, is impossible. Still, trees have important stories to tell. Several researchers have shown how trees near tainted ground can absorb toxic metals that move through water and soil, mapping the path of pollution. Coleman's crew also has documented that trees can absorb metals at levels that match ongoing contamination in groundwater, providing a continuous indicator of pollution levels. More startling, Coleman and co-researchers uncovered evidence that black oaks appear to absorb metals from the air and store them in their bark, sometimes providing evidence of contamination that is no longer present in the air. "If you went out there and put an air monitor now, you'd find nothing," Coleman said. "But these trees have been out there for 50 years sampling the air. You can't duplicate that." As a geologist, Coleman's primary research involves reconstructing Rodinia, the great supercontinent believed to have been one of Earth's original land masses 1 billion years ago. But in the mid-1990s, while he was teaching at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he started thinking about trees. He was showing students how to find traces of uranium in bogs near a "Superfund" cleanup site in Concord, Mass., where a company once used depleted uranium to enhance armor-piercing ammunition. Depleted uranium is a byproduct of the enriched uranium used to make bombs and nuclear fuel but is less radioactive. Coleman understands uranium. He uses its decay to date rocks. And he has access to instruments that can identify its different types. He wondered what the large oaks near the "Superfund" site had absorbed from the small amount of uranium that had leaked into groundwater nearby. So with a succession of students and a collaborator at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, fellow geologist Dan Brabander, Coleman started tests. Narrow tubes of wood were cored from the trees; metals were extracted and classified. What Coleman said most surprised him was the presence of depleted uranium in trees nearly a mile from the old plant, across streams and other hydrological barriers. Water could not have carried it. Even though no air sampling was conducted there, a case can be made that air carried amounts of depleted uranium to the trees from the site, possibly in smoke from fires that once burned there, Coleman said. Coleman and graduate student Michael Bulleri have attracted attention since presenting their findings last month in Boston at a national meeting of the Geological Society of America. Scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory, who have worked with radioactive materials over the years, approached Coleman for more information. So did the U.S. Army. (Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.shns.com.) December 6, 2001 Copyright © 1999-2001 The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. All ***************************************************************** 10 Energy Department gives BNFL nod to resume Oak Ridge work By Frank Munger, News-Sentinel senior writer OAK RIDGE -- BNFL Inc. said Thursday it had received a letter from the Department of Energy giving approval for a resumption of full operations, including work with fissile materials, at the company's cleanup project in Oak Ridge. BNFL has a $238 million contract to dismantle equipment and clean up three huge buildings once used to enrich uranium for weapons and nuclear fuel. "The only thing we don't have is approval to compact fissile materials in our supercompactor, and that may not come until January," BNFL spokesman Norman Hammit said Thursday afternoon. BNFL earlier had threatened to furlough about 350 workers if DOE did not lift restrictions on certain activities at the cleanup project. In early November, based on concerns of Jessie Hill Roberson, the assistant secretary for environmental management, DOE halted all work involving fissile materials at the K-25 Site, which formerly housed operations that enriched uranium for use in nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors. Fissile materials are those capable of a nuclear chain reaction, such as uranium. DOE officials said they were concerned because the safety documentation at the Oak Ridge site was inadequate and managers there did not respond well to questions about nuclear-safety procedures. The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board also raised questions about safety documents. More than 900 people work at the BNFL cleanup project, and for the past month they have been assigned to maintenance tasks and other "non-fissile'' activities. Copyright 2001 The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. ***************************************************************** 11 Russian TV: 7 Arrested in Nuke Bust Las Vegas SUN December 06, 2001 MOSCOW (AP) - Russian police have arrested seven people accused of trying to sell more than two pounds of highly-enriched weapons-grade uranium, Russian television said Thursday. The men, arrested in the town of Balashikha just southeast of Moscow, were trying to sell a capsule containing uranium-235 for $30,000, NTV television said. The suspects were charged with illegal handling of nuclear materials, it said. If confirmed, the seizure would be the first acknowledged case of theft of weapons-grade material in Russia. In the economic turmoil following the Soviet collapse, police have regularly seized nuclear materials stolen by people who tried to sell them for profit. But all involved low-active uranium unfit to manufacture nuclear weapons. Russian officials have repeatedly said no weapons-grade nuclear materials have been stolen. The report said the suspects allegedly belonged to the Balashikha criminal gang. Police initially arrested those trying to sell the material at a roadside cafe who led them to another suspect who kept the uranium in his house. It did not give the date of the arrest or provide other details. A duty officer at the Balashikha police station told The Associated Press he was aware of the case, but gave no details, saying the Federal Security Service, the KGB's main successor, was handling the investigation. The officer asked not to be named. A spokesman at the Russian Interior Ministry in Moscow, which is in charge of the nation's police force, also referred questions to the FSB. A duty officer at the FSB head office refused to comment on the case. The NTV report contained footage of a roadside cafe where several suspects were arrested and a local police headquarters. It didn't feature any officials who would confirm the arrest. NTV also interviewed Nikolai Shingarev, a spokesman of the Nuclear Power Ministry, who said there are several plants in and around Moscow where such material could be obtained. Weapons-grade uranium is sometimes used in research nuclear reactors. Alexander Koldobsky, a senior researcher at the Moscow Engineering and Physical Institute, told NTV the quantity of uranium reportedly seized would be insufficient to make a nuclear weapon. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 12 Wen Ho Lee Testifies in Lawsuit Las Vegas SUN December 07, 2001 ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - Nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee testified that he was a scapegoat for Energy Department security lapses and never knew why when questioned during a deposition for a defamation lawsuit brought by a former Energy Department official. Former Energy Department counterintelligence chief Notra Trulock claims Lee defamed him with allegations that the Taiwanese-born Lee was targeted because of his race. Lee denied making any statements about Trulock and said under questioning he didn't know whether he was singled out for selective prosecution, ethnic profiling or racial discrimination. "Even today I don't know why I was investigated by the government," Lee said, testifying for the first time since his release from jail last year. Referring to his only previous public statement about the case - the CBS-TV "60 Minutes" episode aired Aug. 1, 1999 - Lee emphasized Trulock was not mentioned then. "I don't even think about Mr. Trulock." Lee acknowledged telling interviewer Mike Wallace: "They want to find out some scapegoat. They think I'm the perfect (one) for them to, to blame me." "I don't know who started investigation on me. I'm telling Mr. Wallace I think part of the reason, my best explanation of this, is probably because I'm Chinese," he said during a seven-hour long deposition which was sealed for weeks for classification review. "But I don't know who start this." Lee, a former nuclear scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico was indicted Dec. 10, 1999, on 59 felony counts for transferring nuclear weapons data to unsecure computer terminals or computer tapes. He was held in solitary confinement for nine months. He was not charged with spying, and denied giving information to China. He eventually pleaded guilty to one felony count of downloading sensitive material. The judge in the case said prosecutors misled him, and he apologized to Lee. Former President Clinton also said Lee's imprisonment "just can't be justified." Lee has sued the government for allegedly leaking information to the media that made it appear he had spied. One of his attorneys, Brian Sun, said Thursday that Lee's reticence about ethnic profiling was understandable since the government never turned over its evidence relating to selective prosecution. "We were seeking the evidence," Sun said. "There was a plea resolution two days before that evidence was due. We don't know because we never did get access to the evidence." Lee's criminal attorneys, Mark Holscher and John Cline, had cited statements by DOE intelligence officials Robert Vrooman and Charles Washington as evidence that Lee was racially singled out - and as reason for disclosure of whatever other evidence might exist. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 13 Terror laws at-a-glance BBC News | UK POLITICS | 13 November, 2001, Nuclear plants will be better protected The measures outlined in the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill cover a number of areas: Tracking terrorist funds The bill allows "account monitoring orders" enabling the police to require financial institutions to provide information on accounts for up to 90 days. The existing legal duty to report suspicion of terrorist financing will be strengthened so it will be an offence not to report where there were "reasonable grounds" for suspicion. Law enforcement agencies will be able to freeze assets at the start of an investigation, rather than when the person is about to be charged. Information sharing Government agencies such as Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue will be able to pass on information to police and other security services where national security is an issue. Detention without trial The home secretary will get the powers to detain suspected international terrorists without trial where their deportation is not possible. The indefinitely renewable internments require part of the Human Rights Act to be set aside, requiring the home secretary to deem the UK in a state of public emergency. Detention will be subject to regular independent review by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission. New hate crime The offence of incitement to racial hatred will be amended to include religious hatred with the penalty rising to seven years. To be prosecuted an offender must use "threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour" to stir up hatred against a group of people, in the UK or abroad, because of their religious belief. Weapons of mass destruction The law will change to punish those who help foreign groups or regimes to acquire nuclear, biological or chemical weapons. Regulations governing laboratories where "dangerous pathogens" are held will be tightened and the use of biological weapons will become a specific offence for the first time. The police force who patrol nuclear sites, as well as military and transport police, will get extended powers and jurisdictions. Communications monitoring Communications companies will be able to retain information on calls and other communication made by customers such as numbers called or e-mail addresses. They will not retain the contents of e-mails or phone calls. Currently companies are obliged to erase data when no longer needed for billing, which has a "severe impact on criminal investigations". Mass trawls or ¿fishing expeditions¿ will not be permitted under a voluntary code of conduct. Bribery The currently laws against bribery will be expanded to include cases involving foreign nationals. Anti-globalisation campaigners have previously demanded such a measure on the basis UK-based corporations could bribe officials in developing countries with impunity. No backdating The bill's measure to combat bioterror hoaxers with up to seven years in prison will no longer be retrospective. There was criticism that the backdating of the law initially planned would break basic legal principles. But it is understood that "white powder hoaxes" tailed off after the government announced its intentions to strengthen punishment. Other measures The bill will allow law enforcement agencies to see plane passenger manifests and cargo details, a measure which will also help fight people smuggling and drug trafficking. GCHQ, the communications monitoring intelligence agency, will have their role expanded, while new terrorist taskforces can be created more easily. ***************************************************************** 14 New "Dependent" Counsel Regulations Are Dangerously Restrictive ,Public Citizen Says Dec. 6, 2001 Public Citizen Urges Nuclear Industry, NRC to Support Safety Industry, Agency Opposition to Enhanced Security Measures Puts Corporate Wishes Before Public Interest WASHINGTON, D.C. —The nuclear power industry and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) are putting corporate interests before public safety by opposing legislation that would enhance security measures at nuclear power plants, Public Citizen warned today. "For the NRC and the industry to oppose this bill reflects a breathtaking disregard for the health and safety of people living near nuclear power plants," said Wenonah Hauter, director of Public Citizen’s Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. "People want assurances that they are safe from a terrorist-triggered radiological nightmare. The industry and the NRC are meeting those concerns with cold contempt." The need for sweeping security upgrades at the nation’s nuclear facilities had been well-documented prior to the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and alarm about security problems at the plants has heightened since Sept. 11. Public officials and their constituents living near nuclear facilities are now questioning the adequacy of security precautions and in some instances demanding that plants immediately be shut down. Legislation co-sponsored by Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) and James Jeffords (I-Vt.), along with Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), attempts to address some of those security concerns. The measure would federalize security forces at the plants and drastically expand the number and types of threats that security forces must envision when they determine if and how the plants can be defended against assaults. Other provisions of the bill would seek to protect the public by establishing stockpiles of potassium iodide —recently dubbed the Cipro of radiation — near nuclear plants and expand a plant’s emergency response and evacuation zone from a 10- to a 50-mile radius. Plant operators would be charged fees to pay for the nuclear security force and other provisions of the legislation. Reid has estimated the cost to the industry could be as high as $1 billion. Public Citizen cautioned, however, that the bill's language may have to be improved to assure that taxpayers are not asked yet again to subsidize the cost of nuclear power, this time by paying for adequate security at nuclear power plants. Shortly after the bill was introduced, NRC Chairman Richard Meserve and Joseph Colvin, president of the Nuclear Energy Institute, the industry’s lobbying organization, blasted the legislation. In a prepared statement, Colvin dismissed the issue of nuclear power plant security as "a problem that does not exist." In a letter to Reid, Meserve parroted the views of the industry he is charged with regulating and asserted that the bill "addresses a non-existent problem." In fact, very real security problems have been identified at the nation’s nuclear power plants. From 1991 through 1998, the NRC conducted a series of "force-on-force" tests, in which mock assailants "attacked" nuclear power plants. In nearly half the tests, it was found that a real attack would have jeopardized the reactor and potentially resulted in core damage and the release of radiation to the environment. Even before Sept. 11, watchdog groups and concerned citizens were warning that the scope of threats envisioned by plant operators and the NRC was ridiculously narrow. For instance, current safeguards don’t adequately account for attacks from air, water or large truck bombs (the latter is a particularly egregious deficiency after the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center and the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City). Current defense planning also assumes that attackers would arrive in small numbers, possess little or no technical expertise, and would not be suicidal, at least with regard to aircraft — clearly unrealistic assumptions. Since Sept. 11, news reports have quoted terrorists describing the temptation of nuclear power plants as targets of attack. The government has also acknowledged the potential terrorist threat to power plants: National Guard troops have been deployed, no-fly zones have been declared and Meserve himself declared that immediately following the terrorist attacks that an NRC review of security and procedures at nuclear power plants was warranted. The NRC even shut down its Web site, citing concerns that potential assailants might obtain sensitive information about power plants that would prove helpful in an assault. Yet now that legislation has been introduced attempting to address known security problems at nuclear power plants, the NRC opposes it, and the commission chairman claims the problems targeted in the bill don’t exist. "The NRC and the nuclear power industry are nearly indistinguishable from each other, and their coziness has been both a regulatory farce and a public disservice for years," Hauter said. "But the NRC’s lockstep agreement with industry at this particular time, and on this particular issue, is singularly odious. Richard Meserve should change his title from ‘commission chairman’ to ‘industry apologist.’ And he should hang his head in shame." While the legislation takes several steps in the right direction toward protecting the public from attacks on nuclear power plants, reactors and their high-level nuclear waste will continue to loom as an unnecessary public safety risk, Hauter said. "If they become law, the enhanced security measures in this legislation will not remove the urgency of replacing nuclear power with conservation and renewable energy sources," she said. "In fact, this legislative response to Sept. 11 underscores yet again the folly of relying on nuclear power, let alone promoting it, as Bush calls for in his energy plan." ### ***************************************************************** 15 Amargosa Valley residents want representation - Las Vegas View Neighborhood Newspapers December 07, 2001 - By MARK WAITE VIEW STAFF WRITER AMARGOSA VALLEY -- Nye County Commissioners probably didn't need a geography lesson, but more 50 Amargosa Valley residents made sure they understood their valley was distinct from Pahrump Valley during a public hearing Nov. 28 on redistricting county commission seats and a division of land ordinance. "We are very different from Pahrump. We would have no representation at all if we were part of a Pahrump district," Jan Cameron said about a plan to lump Amargosa Valley in with three Pahrump precincts as a Commission District 2. Amargosa Valley residents think their population of 1,176, using year 2000 U.S. Census figures, wouldn't have a voice as part of District 2, which would have a total of 6,726 residents, the remainder of them from Pahrump. County Clerk Sam Merlino said she was directed by the Legislative Counsel Bureau to divide the county into fifths and come within 10 percent of the exact number. "For some reason there doesn't seem to be an understanding that Amargosa Valley is not a cookie cutter of Pahrump or Beatty," Nancy Fisher said. "A lot of you told me you're philosophically north but geographically south," Commissioner Joni Eastley said. She said with all the informed people in the room they could surely field a strong candidate. Ralph McCracken talked about having a seven-member county commission so everyone is represented. Commissioner Dick Carver said he received his highest percentage of votes from Amargosa Valley when he first took office 14 years ago. "In my heart you will always be rural Nevada," Carver told residents. "The issue is who the commissioner is, not what the district is about." But Sheila Rau said, "In no way should a district be drawn that disenfranchises an area." Most of the discussion involved the proposed countywide Division of Land Ordinance. Opposition was strong enough to lead Commissioner Cameron McRae to suggest the county adopt the request to shelve the proposal rather than draw more heat from residents at upcoming hearings in Round Mountain, Beatty and Tonopah. Ed Booss, acting chairman of the Amargosa Valley Planning Advisory Board, reminded commissioners last June Amargosa Valley residents voiced opposition to the need for an Amargosa Valley planning district. "Tonight, Nov. 28, the commissioners are again meeting in Amargosa, but with the intent of having us conform to the division of land requirements that were written for Pahrump," Booss said. He said only minor changes were made to division of land requirements for Pahrump in the countywide ordinance, deleting references to a planned unit development and a development review committee. The land ordinance requires submitting final plats showing engineered plans for subdivision applications, minimum lot sizes and requiring access to streets for each lot. Open space for recreation would be required for larger subdivisions; the ordinance also sets specifications for subdivisions when paved streets are required, on-street parking, minimum right-of-ways and traffic studies; subdivisions off-tract improvements could be required for large subdivisions for a share of street or drainage improvements. Before final subdivision plats would be approved, the developer must make required public improvements pertaining to grading the lots, streets, water and sewer systems, including the dedication of public improvements to Nye County or another entity. A bond equal to 115 percent of the cost of public improvements must be filed for subdivision agreements. "Amargosa Valley is sparsely populated and growing very slowly, while Pahrump is a large town with continuing rapid growth," Booss said, reading from a written statement. "Even with the building of the technology corridor, Yucca Mountain and other NTS (Nevada Test Site) development there will not be a 16 percent per annum population explosion like Pahrump saw in the 1990s." "The rules that work for the large town do not serve the rural areas as well as some locally developed plans," Booss said. "Some of our local geriatric residents are now planning to split their property for inheritance purposes. How can we protect their interests without jeopardizing the future development of the valley?" "In order to increase the tax base in Amargosa Valley, we do not need to restrict the existing slow growth by creating a larger bureaucracy. We respectfully request that the county commissioners shelve this proposal," he said. Rich Claessens said when Amargosa Valley gets big enough for a middle school and high school, instead of sending their students to Beatty, the ordinance might make sense. He said valley residents need a sign that says, "Attention: no trespassing; keep your codes off our property." "It seems they forget there are people outside the populated area whose wants and needs are very different," he said. "If the people of Pahrump want to be mired down in a bunch of codes, that is their choice." "What does Amargosa Valley have to do with Pahrump 60 miles away?" Claessens asked. "The code that works for Pahrump certainly has no application for a place far flung." Commissioner Henry Neth said they're trying to adopt regulations for the future of the county. "This commissioner is not trying to shove anything down anybody's throat," he said. Morgan Lynn, owner of a gravel pit, said there's no mention about economic impact, if water rights are required to parcel up lots. Fisher said Amargosa Valley needs a slow growth policy and a flexible master plan. She said valley residents haven't been complaining about rapid growth. "After 25 years of stagnant growth I think we'd notice 100 people a month moving in here," Fisher said. She added, "We are not a country cousin" but reminded commissioners they were in a 20-year-old community center, next to a library and other facilities. "We have a history in Amargosa of looking ahead and building in moderation," Fisher said. "What we don't need is Pahrump's RPC at this time. We need the county commissioners supporting us, not dictating." Lavonne Selbach, chairwoman of the Southern Nye County Conservation District, said her husband acquired land through the Desert Land Entry Act in 1956 and began working on his dream to cultivate the land. However, young people are more interested in working in Las Vegas or at the Nevada Test Site. "We look at dividing our land up so our children can have a part of it and live in peace," Selbach said. "We've worked hard to develop this land, some of it may be divided into smaller parcels." Shawn Murphy said he moved from Washington state, a heavily regulated state, to settle in Amargosa Valley, not Pahrump. "We all need rules and regulations, but I think you need them when they're appropriate," Murphy said. "Rules may be necessary at some point down the road." McCracken said eloquently, "freedom has a very precious price, very dear value. This is nothing but taking away of a lot of freedoms we have." Referring to the 55 citizens in attendance, McCracken said if the same proportion of Pahrump residents showed up at a meeting, there wouldn't be a room big enough to hold them all. None of them spoke in favor of the ordinance, he said. Amargosa Valley is 400 square miles, of which only 100 square miles is private land, McCracken said. "We probably will never have a density problem like Pahrump has," he said. "One of the popular expressions here is: Get off my back; leave us alone," Charlie Holtz said. J.W. Cunningham said he moved from Dallas to Las Vegas and eventually Amargosa Valley to escape big cities, where he lives in a 35-foot motor home. "The price is right on land here in what us working folks can afford," Cunningham said. "I don't ever see Amargosa Valley being a suburb of Las Vegas like Pahrump is." Dave Myers added, "If you need the rules and regulations in Pahrump, please move there." "I think it's real premature, it's harmful to businesses located here," Rau said. "I can't say there will never be a time this shouldn't be implemented." "What you've written in this document pertains to cities," Mike Ottinger said, noting he lived in Pahrump 23 years before moving to Amargosa Valley seven years ago. "We don't want Pahrump's problems involved in our life." Ottinger suggested implementing the ordinance if the density of population reaches a certain amount, a suggestion Commissioner Eastley agreed with. Michael DeLee, a sales associate of Avery Realty Co., said he was curious to know where the county keeps coming up with requests for parceling ordinances, planning districts and water rights laws. "I don't think it's any secret, last time this was before commissioners, Amargosa Valley was unanimously opposed," DeLee said. "I'm very much interested in hearing somebody in favor of it." DeLee said the Nevada Bureau of Water Resources hasn't complained about any water shortages in Amargosa Valley. The economic incentives in Amargosa Valley are minimum restrictions and an ease in developing property, but right now, only the Ponderosa Dairy is growing, DeLee said. Individual landowners themselves encourage development by paving the roads and drilling the wells, he said. Aaron Mikkelson charged that many homes and lots are being advertised for sale in the Pahrump newspapers because spouses who inherit them can't pay the taxes. "You have a beautiful potential for a retirement community," Mikkelson said. But senior citizens moving to Amargosa Valley want the ability to buy an acre and a quarter and install their own well and septic, he said. Commissioner Carver advised Amargosa Valley residents to start thinking about their future by forming a regional planning commission, otherwise four Pahrump commissioners will soon be telling them what to do. "I've been very opposed to developers coming in here circumventing subdivision laws," Carver said. "It is control, but we want to give you control of your community." Commissioner Neth said Amargosa Valley reminded him of Pahrump Valley in the 1960s, when the dominant industry was farming, there were minimal restrictions and a subsequent parceling of land with no planning. "The result is what you see in Pahrump today: lack of planning," Neth said. "If you think it's not going to happen here, I beg you, think again." "Be creative and do something to protect your community," Carver added. Eastley said planning doesn't always mean restrictions but protection. "Look at Pahrump. You don't want to be Pahrump," Eastley said. "Protect yourselves from these people who would come in and take advantage of how wonderful Amargosa Valley is." "I do believe that this area will grow," County Commission Chairman Jeff Taguchi said. "In order to effectively accommodate that growth in the future, planning is something you should do." "You're not going to stop progress when it comes in. People from the outside are going to develop the valley," Taguchi said. ***************************************************************** 16 Senate vote fails to advance Reid's homeland defense push [Las Vegas Review-Journal] Friday, December 07, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal Bush had threatened to veto entire defense spending bill By TONY BATT DONREY WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON -- A Senate vote Thursday night dealt a blow to fading efforts by Senate Majority Whip Harry Reid to pump new money into the economy after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Reid, D-Nev., and Senate Democrats fell 10 votes short of preserving $7.5 billion for homeland security in an annual defense spending bill. The Senate voted 50-48 to keep the Democratic provision alive, but 60 were needed in the procedural vote. It was not clear Thursday night what the Democrats' next move would be, if any. Earlier in the day, Reid defied President Bush to veto the defense bill if it included the additional money for homeland defense. "Three hundred and forty billion (defense bill) vetoed over $7.5 billion? If he does that, he better take a course in political science," Reid said. But a veto apparently will not be needed after Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, requested Thursday night's procedural vote that signaled Republican opponents of the package had the votes to kill the measure. President Bush on Wednesday threatened to veto the defense bill, saying additional spending on homeland security is not yet necessary. On Thursday, the White House repeated the president's veto threat. "The timing, content and level of any additional resources ... cannot be ascertained and should not be prejudged until after the (Bush) administration has had time to complete (a) comprehensive analysis of need," said the White House Office of Management and Budget. Reid and six other Democratic senators joined postal workers, police, firefighters and county officials at a news conference Thursday outside the Senate entrance to rally support for the homeland defense money. While praising the president's leadership in the war in Afghanistan, the Democrats complained Bush is ignoring threats at home. "We offer this appropriations bill to fill a hole in the hearts of the American people," said Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va. "It's a hole that consists of a loss of confidence, a fear on the part of the American people to walk about and do the actions of their daily lives as they did before September 11." Byrd, who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, attached $7.5 billion in homeland security money to the defense appropriations bill after efforts failed to win approval of the funding as an economic stimulus. Almost $4 billion of the homeland security money would have been earmarked for bioterrorism prevention and food safety. The rest of the money would have been spent, among other things, on safeguarding mail from anthrax and increasing security at U.S. borders and nuclear power plants. The $7.5 billion package was a scaled back version of legislation Reid proposed within weeks of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. At that time, Reid envisioned a $27 billion economic stimulus to pay for infrastructure projects, many of which he hoped would provide jobs in Nevada. After Reid joined forces with Byrd in October, the emphasis shifted from jump-starting the economy to meeting security needs. In a vain attempt to gain support for their measure, Byrd and Reid agreed more than once to reduce the amount of money they requested. On Thursday, Reid said he will renew efforts next year to obtain money for roads and other infrastructure improvements in Nevada and across the nation. Even after his version faded, Reid predicted Congress would not adjourn this year without enacting some kind of economic stimulus. But on Thursday, Reid said chances of passing an economic stimulus this year are only 50-50. "If we do, there will be things in there for tourism, no question about that," Reid said. This story is located at: http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Dec-07-Fri-2001/news/17618029.html [http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Dec-07-Fri-2001/news/17618029.html] ***************************************************************** 17 Eye on a Worldwide Weapons Cache (washingtonpost.com) By Dick Lugar Thursday, December 6, 2001; Page A39 The United States is engaged in a global war against Muslim religious extremists who seek to reorder the world by destroying our country and various other nations allied with us. The war proceeds in a world awash with nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and materials of mass destruction stored principally in the United States and Russia, but also in India, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Sudan, Israel, Great Britain, France and China and perhaps other nations. Throughout much of the past decade, vulnerability to the use of weapons of mass destruction has been the number one national security dilemma confronting the United States, even as it received scant attention. The events of Sept. 11 and the subsequent public discovery of al Qaeda's methods, capabilities and intentions have finally brought our vulnerability to the forefront. The terrorists have demonstrated suicidal tendencies and are beyond deterrence. We must anticipate that they will use weapons of mass destruction if allowed the opportunity. The minimum standard for victory in this war is the prevention of any of the individual terrorists or terrorist cells from obtaining weapons or materials of mass destruction. The war effort in Afghanistan is destroying the Afghan-based al Qaeda network and the Taliban regime. It is a war meant in part to demonstrate that governments that are hosts to terrorists face destruction. But as we prosecute this war, we must pay much more attention to the other side of the equation: making certain that all weapons and materials of mass destruction are identified, continuously guarded and systematically destroyed. The Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program was enacted in 1991 to address the dominant international proliferation danger: the massive nuclear, chemical and biological weapons infrastructure of the former Soviet Union. The Nunn-Lugar program has devoted American technical expertise and money to joint U.S.-Russian efforts to safeguard and destroy materials and weapons of mass destruction in Russia. During the first 10 years of Nunn-Lugar, 5,700 Russian nuclear warheads have been separated from missiles. Many of the warheads have been dismantled and the fissile material (highly enriched uranium or plutonium) safely stored. More than 30,000 tactical nuclear weapons have been collected and stored, and peaceful employment has been provided for thousands of Russian nuclear scientists. Nunn-Lugar also has worked to contain chemical weapons in Russia, which has ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention requiring destruction of all of these weapons in 10 years. Forty thousand metric tons of chemical weapons have been stored in seven locations awaiting destruction. Progress has been made toward controlling Russian biological materials, though their status is less certain. Unfortunately, beyond Russia, there are no Nunn-Lugar-style programs aimed at nonproliferation. We lack even minimal international confidence about many weapons programs, including the number of weapons or amounts of materials produced, the storage procedures employed, and production or destruction plans. This must change. To restate the terms of minimal victory in the war we are now fighting, every nation that has weapons and materials of mass destruction must account for what it has, safely secure what it has (spending its own money or obtaining international technical and financial resources to do so) and pledge that no other nation, cell or cause will be allowed access or use. This task will be expensive and painstaking. During the first two months of the war, many questions have been raised about the security of Pakistan's nuclear program, and similar questions will be raised about India's. With United Nations inspections of Iraq suspended for more than three years, the presence and status of Iraq's weapons and materials of mass destruction are unknown. Much the same could be said of Iran, Syria and Libya. Following agreement on the KFOR program in North Korea, which provides for internationally financed nuclear power facilities and a halt to North Korea's nuclear weapons development, the world has an improved, but still imperfect, vantage point from which to watch developments in that country. Some nations, after witnessing the bombing of Afghanistan and the destruction of the Taliban government, may decide to proceed along a cooperative path of accountability regarding their weapons and materials of mass destruction. But others may decide to test our will and staying power. Precise replication of the Nunn-Lugar program will not be possible everywhere. But a satisfactory level of accountability, transparency and safety must be established in every nation with a program for weapons of mass destruction. When nations resist such accountability, or when they make their territory available to terrorists who are seeking weapons of mass destruction, our nation must be prepared to use force, as well as all diplomatic and economic tools at our disposal. The writer is a Republican senator from Indiana. © 2001 The Washington Post Company ***************************************************************** 18 Nuclear Warhead Arsenal Trimmed (washingtonpost.com) U.S., Russia Meet START I Deadline of Cuts to 6,000 Weapons Each or Fewer By Walter Pincus Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, December 6, 2001; Page A36 Hailing a "milestone in dismantling the legacy of the Cold War," Secretary of State Colin L. Powell announced yesterday that the United States and Russia have met a deadline for reducing strategic nuclear forces to no more than 6,000 warheads on each side. The deadline was contained in the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START I, which was signed by U.S. and Soviet leaders in 1991 and went into effect in 1994. Powell noted that when the START negotiations began in 1983, each side had more than 10,000 strategic warheads deployed on land-based missiles, bombers and submarines. He added that further reductions are planned in accordance with the Nov. 13 summit in Crawford, Tex., where President Bush said the United States would reduce to between 1,700 and 2,200 strategic warheads over the next 10 years and Russian President Vladmir Putin promised corresponding cuts. In Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Yakovenko marked the date with a terse statement that "Russia has completely fulfilled its commitments under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, START I." Neither country mentioned the START II treaty signed in 1993 by President George H.W. Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin. That pact, which called for reducing the number of warheads to between 3,000 and 3,500, apparently has been set aside by the current Bush administration in favor of deeper reductions without written agreement. Daryl G. Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, noted that START I permitted each side to store, rather than destroy, the warheads it removed from missile silos, bombers and submarines. Thus, he said, during the Clinton administration the United States accumulated 4,500 excess warheads as a "hedge" in case quick rebuilding of the arsenal was needed. Hans M. Kristensen, a nuclear weapons specialist and senior program officer with the Nautilus Institute in California, noted in a recent article that Bush's additional warhead reductions would increase that "hedge." Before START I, he wrote, only 5 percent of the U.S. strategic stockpile was inactive. If the "hedging" practice continues, the reserve could equal or exceed the number of warheads deployed. In a related matter, the Senate Appropriations Committee yesterday voted to cut $46 million from the administration's request for the so-called Nunn-Lugar program that finances the reduction of Russian nuclear weapon systems and helps provide security for dismantled warheads. The administration had sought $403 million for next year, an amount $40 million below the fiscal 2001 level. © 2001 The Washington Post Company ***************************************************************** 19 `Dirty bombs' most effective as nuclear scare tactic [charlotte.com] Published Thursday, December 6, 2001 CHEMICAL PLANTS, REFINERIES MORE VULNERABLE `Dirty bombs' most effective as nuclear scare tactic Weapon of mass power,destruction too hardto make, experts say By ANDREA WIDENER Knight Ridder WALNUT CREEK, Calif. -- This week's news reports sound scary - intelligence reports that Osama bin Laden may have nuclear material and may be ready to fashion it into a bomb. But the reality of a "dirty bomb" is much more complicated than the initial Hiroshima-like image that springs to mind. The amount of destruction caused by a dirty bomb could range dramatically - from slight to horrible depending on the type and amount of radioactive material acquired by terrorists. The greatest weapon in a dirty bomb war is fear. "It is more a scare bomb than a weapon of mass destruction," said George Bunn, a consulting professor at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation. An attack injuring thousands is unlikely, weapons experts say, because of the risk it poses to bombmakers - both from the hard-to-handle materials and the tricky task of transporting it to a population center. A traditional nuclear weapon uses complicated technology to direct energy released from an atom's nucleus. These bombs are difficult to make, and their materials, mainly plutonium and uranium, are hard to acquire. Terrorist groups such as al-Qaida may have much simpler plans. Dirty bombs begin with a traditional explosive such as dynamite or fertilizer. Then the creators surround it with any radioactive material - from hospital X-ray machine sources to leftovers from nuclear power plants - but not enough to trigger a nuclear chain reaction. Think the Oklahoma City bombing's truck with a frightening, nuclear twist. "You would probably kill more people if you surrounded a conventional explosive with nails," said Jon Wolfsthal of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "The benefit is the terror it causes." Acquiring the nuclear materials would be the biggest challenge in creating a dirty bomb. Plutonium and uranium, which serve as the base for nuclear weapons, are not particularly dangerous in this type of bomb and, in the United States, are fairly well-protected, said Thomas Cochran, head of the Natural Resources Defense Council's nuclear weapons and materials program. Instead, terrorists would look to other radioactive elements that are more immediately toxic. But these elements are also more dangerous to handle. In sizable quantities, they require a thick, metal covering to handle them safely - moving the radioactive core of a mail irradiation machine, for example, would require a crane. "A potential terrorist is caught in a bind between having materials that are more accessible but not very useful and having materials that are useful but not accessible," Cochran said. If terrorists could safely handle these materials, transporting them past radiation detectors at airport or border checkpoints is even more complicated. Even an immensely successful dirty bomb attack would likely spread radioactive material over a several acre area, nothing like nuclear accidents in Chernobyl or elsewhere. The main problem would not be the radioactivity itself but cleaning up afterward. "Quite frankly, I'm more concerned about protecting chemical plants and refineries," Wolfsthal said. "They are more vulnerable, and they are higher payoff targets." ***************************************************************** 20 Reid Fights To Keep Homeland Security Package In Defense Appropriations Bill Thursday, December 6, 2001 WASHINGTON, D.C. - At a Capitol Hill news conference today, Nevada Senator Harry Reid called for increased investments in Homeland Security. “This week, the Bush Administration put America on a high state of alert. At the same time the Administration ordered Senate Republicans to block new investments in Homeland Security,” Senator Reid said. “If the Administration want us as a nation to be better prepared for future terrorist attack, we need to do more than just issue statements and hold press conferences - we need to make investments in our future. Security will not come without a price.” Senator Reid and Senator Byrd have proposed increased spending on homeland defense as a way to boost the economy and protect our nation against future terrorist attacks. The $7.5 billion proposal includes funding for bioterrorism preparedness, local law enforcement and emergency responder training and equipment, border security, Postal Service security, and other areas. Bioterrorism Prevention & Response and Food Safety - $3.9 billion State and Local Antiterrorism Law Enforcement - $500 million Federal Antiterrorism Law Enforcement - $541 million FEMA Firefighters Grant Program - $300 million U.S. Port Vulnerabilities - $50 million Border Security - $591 million Airport Security - $238 million U.S. Postal Service - Anthrax Response $875 million - Nuclear Power Plants and Federal Facilities Security - $550 million “Since the September 11th tragedy, members of both parties have proven that we can work together,” added Reid. “Nevadans have told me they are pleased that Democrats and Republicans have rallied to support the President, and make our airlines safer. Now we must do the same to protect our homeland. President Bush has led us well in this war, but we need his leadership now - - here at home. “Senate Democrats are committed to building on the progress we have made. We ask the Republicans in Congress not to abandon investing in our homeland defense. Senator Reid was joined today by Senators Byrd, Mikulski, Durbin, Boxer, Johnson, and Landrieu. ***************************************************************** 21 Governors want more homeland security money - December 5, 2001 CNN.com - Governors want more homeland security money WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The nation's governors warned on Wednesday that if the federal government does not help them defray the costs of homeland security they will not get the job done. The National Governors Association estimated that the first year of homeland security alone will cost the states $4 billion. That breaks down to $3 billion for bioterrorism and emergency communications and $1 billion for guarding critical infrastructure. The estimates were extrapolated from surveys conducted in 17 states. The organization predicts that, when more responses are in, its estimates will go higher. Democratic Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont noted that these increased costs are hitting states at a time when many are having budget difficulties because of the slowing economy. "If we don't get some resources, we simply aren't going to be able to do the job that I think the public expects," Dean said. The governors were hoping to influence the outcome of Senate votes on Thursday on homeland security funding. Among the findings: States are spending an additional $100 million to enhance security at airports, an additional $58 million to beef up security at nuclear power plants, and $75 million to augment border security; The cost of recruiting and training new personnel was estimated at $350 million. ***************************************************************** 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: *****************************************************************