***************************************************************** 02/15/01 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 9.42 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS 1 --> Whistle-blower wins ruling vs. Ga. Power 2 DEFENDING NUCLEAR ENERGY 3 Uranium Test Results Returned 4 Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. Signs Definitive Agreement 5 Tighter radiation limits urged 6 Uranium Institute News Briefing 01.07 | 7 - 13 February 2001 7 BNFL FACES NEW CHARGES 8 PLUG PULLED ON IRISH STUDENTS' SELLAFIELD TOUR 9 JAPANESE MOX FUEL PROGRAMME IN DISARRAY AS PREFECTURES ANNOUNCE 10 Ruling DPP Regrets Resuming Construction of Nuclear Power Plant 11 Premier swallows his pride 12 Taipower now expects plant to be opened a year late 13 Angry anti-nuclear activists promise to continue the battle 14 AEC denies talking with Russia on nuclear waste 15 Taiwan renewing efforts to ship nuclear waste to North Korea 16 Prague agrees to N-plant environmental study 17 Second breeder reactor to be built at Beloyarsk NPP 18 Hoping to Tap More Revenue for Utah, House GOP Sets Sights on NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS 1 Twilight of nuclear weapons era? 2 Admiral: Sub skipper should've seen ship - 3 Sub inquiry could result in criminal charges 4 Civilian: I triggered sub disaster 5 Spotlight on sub safety 6 Facing the risks of depleted uranium 7 SLAPDASH ATTITUDE TO SAFETY ON SITE 8 New Nato nuclear trouble in Spain 9 Cancer gave Utahn a healthy mistrust 10 Atomic tests went on despite criticism 11 State nixes bid to store nuke waste at Oak Ridge 12 Wamp appointed to subcommittee that handles federal funding 13 Incinerator's April trial burn may be postponed due to revising 14 Researcher Sues DOE for Historical Documents on Los Alamos ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 --> Whistle-blower wins ruling vs. Ga. Power The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Matthew C. Quinn - Staff Wednesday, February 14, 2001 Georgia Power Co. has been ordered to reinstate and pay an estimated $5 million in back pay, damages and attorney fees to a nuclear plant executive fired in a 10-year-old whistle-blower case. The utility said it will appeal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals a U.S. Labor Department administrative review board ruling that Marvin B. Hobby be reinstated with $250,000 in compensatory damages for "emotional distress, humiliation and loss of reputation'' plus back pay and other costs. Hobby claimed Georgia Power fired him in 1990 because he questioned decisions on control of the utility's two nuclear power plants, contending they violated federal operating licenses. Hobby's Washington attorney, Michael Kohn, on Tuesday estimated the final award at $3 million in back pay plus another $2 million in legal fees, costs and damages. The review board issued the ruling last Friday. Kohn is associated with the National Whistleblower Center, a Washington-based activist group. He called the award the largest resulting from a series of U.S. environmental whistle-blower laws enacted during the 1970s. Hobby, 54, lives and is employed in metro Atlanta but was not available for comment Tuesday. Kohn said the company is required to make full payment to Hobby within 30 days. But Georgia Power spokesman Todd Terrell said the company will ask the appeals court to suspend the order while the appeal is litigated. He also disputed Kohn's calculation of $5 million in damages but didn't put a value on the award. Parent Southern Co. and Georgia Power denied Hobby's accusations. It's the latest turn in a legal saga that dates to 1990, when Hobby filed his original complaint with the Department of Labor. Hobby alleged he was dismissed on Feb. 2, 1990, as general manager of Georgia Power's Nuclear Operations Contract Administration in retaliation for voicing concerns inside the company over transfer of control of the utility's two nuclear power plants to an unincorporated subsidiary of Southern Co. Hobby said the transfer violated Southern's Nuclear Regulatory Commission operating license. A Labor Department administrative law judge initially ruled in Georgia Power's favor. But Robert Reich, then labor secretary, threw out the ruling in a 1995 decision that found the decision to fire Hobby "was based solely on retaliatory animus.'' In his decision, Reich said A.W. "Bill'' Dahlberg, then Georgia Power president and now Southern Co. chief executive, and another senior executive had denied knowing about Hobby's concerns. "I discredit their testimony,'' Reich said. Reich remanded the decision to another administrative law judge, who in 1998 ordered Georgia Power to pay Hobby back pay and damages. That decision was upheld last week by the review board. In 1997, Georgia Power reached an out-of-court settlement with another nuclear plant whistle-blower also represented by Kohn. Alan Mosbaugh had been dismissed in 1990 after alleging nuclear plant safety violations at Georgia Power's Plant Vogtle to the NRC and secretly taping high-level executives. > ON THE WEB: For more information about the Hobby case and the National Whistleblower Center: www.whistleblowers.org ***************************************************************** 2 DEFENDING NUCLEAR ENERGY Chicago Tribune | Print Edition -- George Wilhelmsen * February 14, 2001 * MORRIS, Ill. -- I read with interest "Nuclear power" from David A. Kraft (Voice of the people, Feb. 3). But Mr. Kraft, in his vitriolic diatribe, managed to find little but old answers in his "Jeopardy"-style quiz. In doing so, he painted a bleak picture but one that is no longer true. Looking at where nuclear power is today in Illinois and across the country, we can now ask the same question, and come up with far more recent and positive answers. So, what energy source: - Has become cheaper and safer through deregulation, helping to reduce your electric rates by more than 15 percent in the last few years? - Does not produce greenhouse gases in the production of electricity? - Has helped to alleviate millions of dollars of flood damage by helping to safely melt ice from the Kankakee River to avoid ice jams? - Has absolutely nothing to do with nuclear proliferation because the technology to make a reactor and a bomb are so disparate that only an ill-informed Luddite could conclude that the two were associated? - Can help to keep your energy costs low because its fuel is not purchased on the spot market on a daily basis, and thus is not subject to wild swings in price? - Doesn't dump tons of waste into the air we breathe on a daily basis? - Doesn't contribute to acid rain, smog or horrid air quality? - Deserves a chance to be in the energy mix of the Chicagoland area? Further, Mr. Kraft manages to completely miss the point with his attacks. Nuclear power in this area was expensive because it was poorly managed and rate-regulated. Worse yet, the regulated utility industry did not reward frugal behavior. If you need any validation of this fact, you need only look to the changes in the performance of the nuclear plants in this area since John Rowe and Oliver Kingsley arrived at Commonwealth Edison along with deregulation. Mr. Rowe made it clear to all the employees: The plants would run safely and well, or he would shut them down for good. The plants now meet Mr. Rowe's requirements, as well as those of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with all of the plants in this area off the NRC's list of troubled plants for a number of years. Further, all the plants in Illinois are either already operating in the top quartile of safety and performance, or are well on their way to operating there. Still, there is one good point in Mr. Kraft's message, which was somewhat lost in one of his attacks--that of the need to conserve energy. That is one point we can and should all agree on. Is nuclear power the solution to the energy crisis of today? To answer this in part, a new generation of inherently safe reactors is on the drawing board. These plants, which will even further reduce waste, are designed to be assembled quickly and can be operated by a small staff, should be considered in the energy mix of the country. To be blunt, the market for power, and the cost of building new generation, will answer the question of whether another nuclear plant will ever be built. If such plants can be built at competitive costs compared to other sources of energy, the market will call for them to be built. ***************************************************************** 3 Uranium Test Results Returned Wednesday February 14 07:15 PM EST DHEC Will Hold Public Hearing On Water Safety Well-water tests from an area in southern Greenville County have been completed by the state, but the results will not be made public until all of the homeowners have been notified. Last week, scientists from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control too samples from about 50 private wells. The tests were ordered when tests of the water at three houses in the Jenkins Bridge Road area turned up abnormally high levels of naturally occurring uranium. Long exposure to high levels of Uranium can cause health problems, including cancer. DHEC will hold a public meeting about the issue at Bryson Middle School in Simpsonville on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! and . ***************************************************************** 4 Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. Signs Definitive Agreement to Purchase 100% of East Tennessee Materials and Energy Corporation Wednesday February 14, 7:59 am Eastern Time Press Release ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 14, 2001-- - East Tennessee Materials and Energy Corporation (``M&EC'') is Licensed to Operate the Only Non-Governmental, On-Site Mixed Waste Treatment Facility at the U.S. Department of Energy's Mixed Waste Storage Site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee - Initial DOE Contracts Granted to M&EC Valued at a Minimum of $100 Million PERMA-FIX ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES, INC. (Nasdaq: - news) announced today that it has signed a Definitive Agreement to purchase all of the outstanding voting stock of East Tennessee Materials and Energy Corporation (``M&EC''), as opposed to 80% as originally disclosed. M&EC is licensed to operate a low-level radioactive and hazardous waste (``mixed waste'') treatment facility at the U.S. Department of Energy's (``DOE'') storage site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The two-acre M&EC facility is the only non-government operated mixed waste (waste containing both low level radioactive and hazardous waste) treatment facility that is physically located within the government's Oak Ridge, Tennessee, site. The Oak Ridge nuclear storage site is one of the largest of more than 100 such nuclear weapon facilities throughout the country, currently being operated by the DOE and other agencies of the U.S. government. M&EC will process mixed waste under three Broad Spectrum Contracts granted to M&EC. These contracts were awarded by Bechtel-Jacobs Company, LLC, who manages the DOE Oak Ridge site and are valued at a minimum of $100 million. According to the terms of these contracts, M&EC will treat mixed waste located at the Oak Ridge storage facility, over a remaining three-year period, with options to continue thereafter. The transaction to acquire M&EC is subject to completion of due diligence, regulatory approval and other conditions. If this acquisition is completed, Perma-Fix could become one of the industry's leading providers of treatment services to the DOE and other government agencies in the nationwide clean up of certain types of mixed and other forms of hazardous waste. The facility is presently under construction and should be operational by the end of the first quarter of 2001. Dr. Louis F. Centofanti, President and CEO of Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. commented, ``The acquisition of M&EC, when completed, will represent a major milestone toward achieving our goal of establishing Perma-Fix as one of the leaders in the proprietary treatment of mixed, hazardous and toxic wastes, serving agencies of the U.S. government such as the DOE, the DOD and the U.S. Army, as well as leading corporations. The M&EC facility is strategically located within the DOE complex and through its Broad Spectrum contracts, has the ability to move rapidly in the treatment of mixed waste at DOE and other government operated waste storage facilities. If the acquisition of M&EC is completed, this will complement our recent acquisition of Diversified Scientific Services, Inc., as well as the expansion of our mixed waste facility in Gainesville, Florida.'' Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. is a national Environmental Services company, providing unique hazardous, mixed and industrial waste management services. The Industrial Services Division provides waste treatment services for a diverse group of customers including Fortune 500 Companies, numerous Federal, State and local agencies and thousands of smaller clients. The Nuclear Services Division provides radioactive and mixed waste treatment services to hospitals, research laboratories and institutions, numerous Federal agencies including the Department of Energy and Defense and Nuclear utilities. The Company operates nine major waste treatment facilities across the country. This press release contains ``forward-looking statements'' which are based largely on the Company's expectations and are subject to various business risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the Company's control. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the information concerning possible or assumed future results of operations of the Company, the initial DOE contracts granted to M&EC being valued at a minimum of $100 million, with the possible acquisition of M&EC, Perma-Fix becoming one of the industry's leading providers of treatment services to DOE and other government agencies in the nation wide cleanup of certain types of mixed and other forms of hazardous waste and the acquisition of M&EC representing a major milestone toward achieving our goal of establishing Perma-Fix as one of the leaders in the proprietary treatment of mixed, hazardous and toxic waste, servicing agencies of the U.S. Government. These forward-looking statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. While the Company believes the expectations reflected in this news release are reasonable, it can give no assurance such expectations will prove to be correct. There are a variety of factors which could cause future outcomes to differ materially from those described in this release, including without limitation, future economic conditions, industry conditions, competitive pressures, ability to obtain and/or retain its permits and licenses necessary to operate and to grow, inability to raise additional capital through the issuance of equity or additional debt in an amount sufficient for Perma-Fix to grow M&EC and its current facilities and to achieve continued profitability. The Company makes no commitment to disclose any revisions to forward-looking statements, or any facts, events or circumstances after the date hereof that bear upon forward-looking statements. *Contact:* Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc., Atlanta Dr. Louis F. Centofanti, 404/847-9990 or Strategic Growth International, Inc. Stan Altschuler, 516/829-7111 Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of ***************************************************************** 5 Tighter radiation limits urged February 15, 2001 Nevadans call on Bush to apply standards passed at end of Clinton administration By Mary Manning LAS VEGAS SUN Nevada's senators, governor and a dozen consumer and environmental groups are urging President Bush to keep stricter limits on radiation exposure at a proposed high-level nuclear repository at Yucca Mountain. As a 30-day review of 11th-hour Clinton administration regulations nears an end, Bush on Wednesday was asked to protect public health by applying tighter standards to a repository at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The mountain is the only site under study as a potential dump for highly radioactive wastes. The Clinton administration signed a regulation on Dec. 8 under the Safe Drinking Water Act that would require drinking water supplies to be free of all radiation. The Bush administration, when it took over Jan. 20, suspended all recent Clinton regulations for a 30-day review. The review is due to end Tuesday. The freeze included a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency for limits on radiation exposure from a Yucca Mountain repository. The EPA offered an annual 15 millirem total limit, with 4 millirems allowed in ground water. A typical chest X-ray can range between 5 and 10 millirems. The Energy Department and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which will license a repository, prefer a 25 millirem-per-year limit without a stricter limit on ground water. That standard is under review. Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and John Ensign, R-Nev., Gov. Kenny Guinn and the groups are asking Bush not only to keep the stricter drinking water standards, but also to apply them to Yucca Mountain, a rule that would be tighter than both the EPA and NRC standards. They also want Bush to require that the ground water be measured for contamination at the edge of the repository, another tighter restriction. The repository boundary has not yet been defined, but the EPA proposal would measure between 12 and 20 miles away from the repository for contamination. The closest community, Amargosa Valley, is 12 miles away. Guinn said he had received assurances from Bush that radiation-protection standards would not be lowered or transferred to other agencies. The governor hopes to meet with Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham later this month. "I have every confidence this administration will follow through on promises made during the campaign to let the Environmental Protection Agency set those standards," Ensign said. Reid called for a veto if needed. "Last year, it required a presidential veto to stop efforts to strip away the role of the Environmental Protection Agency in establishing radiation standards for Yucca Mountain," Reid said. "I would hope the new administration will pledge to do the same if required." The environmental groups want the strongest possible limits so radiation will not escape the mountain for the entire time that the wastes will be radioactive, said Kalynda Tilges, nuclear issues coordinator for Citizen Alert, a statewide environmental watchdog group. The groups include Alliance for Nuclear Accountability, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, U.S. Public Interest Research Group, Women's Action for New Directions, Women's Legislative Lobby, Citizen Alert, Healing Ourselves and Mother Earth, Nevada Desert Experience, Nevada Nuclear Waste Task Force and the local Sierra Club. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 6 Uranium Institute News Briefing 01.07 | 7 - 13 February 2001 A weekly summary of international news relevant to uranium and the nuclear energy industry. [NB01.07-1] UK: British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL) will cease uranium hexafluoride (UF6) conversion operations at its Springfield facility after March 2006, the company announced. The decision to end the conversion operations follows BNFL's announced schedule for shutting down its eight Magnox plants. BNFL emphasized that production of Magnox fuel and UF6 conversion share manufacturing facilities, and that it would be uneconomical to continue UF6 conversion after Magnox fuel production ends 'sometime after 2005'. Meanwhile, BNFL has sold its uncommitted UF6 conversion capacity to Cameco Corp. Under the agreement, BNFL will cease marketing UF6 conversion immediately, and all production other than that needed to fill existing contract requirements is committed to Cameco, who must take a specified minimum quantity of conversion. *(FreshFUEL, 12 February, p1)* BNFL will study the feasibility of adding a second head-end on its Thorp reprocessing plant at Sellafield to allow Thorp to reprocess both the oxide fuel from British Energy and its overseas customers, as it does already, and Magnox fuel from its two youngest first-generation Magnox plants, Wylfa and Oldbury. This would enable Wylfa to continue operating until 2021, if it remained economic to do so, and Oldbury for a few years less. *(Nucleonics Week, 1 February, p7; see also News Briefing 01.05-1)* [NB01.07-2] Rio Tinto reported an 18% increase in earnings for 2000 to US$1507 million. Rio Tinto's Energy Group contributed 17% of net earnings in 2000. The company expanded its uranium business by acquiring North Ltd, parent company of Energy Resources of Australia (ERA). In Namibia, the company's Rossing uranium mine produced 2195 tonnes U3O8 (1861 tU) in 2000, just 1% higher than output in 1999. *(Nuclear Market Review, 9 February, p3; see also News Briefing 01.05-7)* Rio Tinto reportedly wants to divest its interest in the Ranger and proposed Jabiluka uranium mines in Australia. The company acquired 68% of Energy Resources of Australia (ERA), which operates the mines, when it took over North Ltd in 2000. *(ABC News Online, 6 February; see also News Briefing 00.43-2)* [NB01.07-3] Cameco reported net earnings in 2000 of C$45 million (US$29.5 million), up 7% from the C$42 million (US$27.5 million) reported for 1999. However, the company took a one-time after-tax charge of C$121 million (US$79.3 million) related to a writedown in US in-situ leach (ISL) assets in the third quarter, and a provision of C$11 million (US$7.2 million) for the management of low-level radioactive wastes in Ontario. Total revenue in 2000 fell 7% to C$689 million (US$451.8 million), compared with C$742 million (US$486.4 million) in 1999. Cameco reported that total uranium production in 2000 reached 16.6 million pounds U3O8 (6385 tU), slightly down from 1999's output of 16.8 million pounds U3O8 (6462 tU). In Canada, McArthur River (70% owned by Cameco) produced 9.7 million pounds U3O8 (3731 tU), Key Lake (83% owned by Cameco) totalled 1 million pounds U3O8 (385 tU) and Rabbit Lake produced 7.3 million pounds U3O8 (2808 tU). In the US, Cameco's ISL operations at Crow Butte and Highland produced 800 000 pounds and 900 000 pounds U3O8, respectively. Uranium conversion in 2000 totalled 9327 tU, down 17% from 11 231 tU in 1999. Meanwhile, Cameco announced that the Cigar Lake mine will be delayed until 2005 because of the time needed for licensing and construction. Cameco also said it will double its investment in 2001 in the Inkai ISL project in Kazakhstan, which is undergoing geological evaluation. *(Ux Weekly, 12 February, p2; see also News Briefings 00.18-5 and 99.18-5)* [NB01.07-4] France: Development of the Silva atomic vapour laser isotope separation process will cease by 2003, the Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique (CEA) announced. Instead, the CEA will resume R&D work on gas centrifuge enrichment technology that was suspended in 1983, when research efforts were focussed on laser enrichment technology. CEA Administrator General Pascal Colombani said that Silva proved 'difficult to implement and had an uncertain commercial future'. *(Nuclear Fuel, 5 February, p1; see also News Briefing 98.44-3)* [NB01.07-5] The US National Security Council has agreed to an Enrichment Oversight Committee review of the Clinton administration's last-minute approval of USEC Inc's proposed commercial SWU contract with Russia's Tenex. *(FreshFUEL, 12 February, p3; see also News Briefing 01.03-4)* [NB01.07-6] British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL) is discussing possible contracts with Electricite de France (EdF). EdF is considering opening all of its nuclear contracts to competition, including reprocessing of spent fuel, reactor maintenance and atomic fuel supply. Cogema has up until now been the sole supplier of reprocessing services to EdF. *(Financial Times, 7 February, p4)* [NB01.07-7] Switzerland's five operating nuclear power reactors generated a record total of 25.053 TWh of power during 2000, according to the Swiss association for atomic energy (SVA). Total net electricity production was 24.97 TWh. Output from the individual plants was as follows: Leibstadt, 8.823 TWh (load factor 90.2%); Gosgen, 7.804 TWh (92.3%); Beznau-1, 2.538 TWh (79.4%); Beznau-2, 3.071 TWh (95.8%) and Muhleberg, 2.817 TWh (90.1%). *(NucNet News, 43/01, 8 February; see also News Briefing 00.07-4)* [NB01.07-8] Slovakia: The four VVER-440s at the Bohunice nuclear power plant increased their output in 2000, exceeding the planned production by 7% at the two first-generation units and by 3% at the two second-generation units. Together they produced 10.55 million MWh of electricity, 306 884 MWh more than planned, operator Slovenske Elektrarne announced. *(Nucleonics Week, 1 February, p5)* [NB01.07-9] Russia: Plans to construct the Beloyarsk-4 BN-800 fast reactor will be 'actively restarted' in 2001 at a cost of about US$1.2 billion, it was announced by atomic energy minister Yevgeny Adamov and Sverdlovsk region governor Edward Rossel. The project has long featured in Russia's fast reactor development programme, and now about 570 million roubles (around US$21 million) has been set aside towards finally getting construction started. Beloyarsk is scheduled to be completed in 2009. *(NucNet News, 47/01, 13 February; see also News Briefing 98.05-9)* [NB01.07-10] Japan Atomic Power Co planned to reactivated Tsuruga-1 on 9 February in a test after being offline for 18 months. The reactor - Japan's oldest - is expected to resume normal operations in early March. *(Japan Times Online, 9 February)* [NB01.07-11] A proposed fifth nuclear power reactor could be built in Finland in line with Finnish safety requirements, the country's nuclear safety authority, STUK, has concluded in a preliminary assessment of the project. *(NucNet News, 45/01, 9 February; see also News Briefing 00.48-5)* [NB01.07-12] Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) has asked General Electric Co (GE) to resume construction of two almost completed reactors at Taiwan's fourth nuclear power plant. Regardless of whether the project to complete the plant is resumed or not, Taipower is contractually committed to purchase the reactors and turbines from GE. Lungmen-1 is reportedly 95% complete. *(Ux Weekly, 12 February, p3; see also News Briefing 01.06-2)* [NB01.07-13] Romania's prime minister, Adrian Nastase, said that resuming construction of Cernavoda-2 is 'a priority' in his government's 2001 budget plans for dealing with electricity supply 'difficulties'. The unit is said to be about 45% complete, and commercial contracts are reportedly being concluded with AECL of Canada and Ansaldo of Italy to complete the reactor. *(NucNet News, 48/01, 13 February; see also News Briefing 00.38-8)* [NB01.07-14] US: A proposed private interim storage facility in Utah would be too costly to operate under legislation introduced in the state legislature. Under the legislation, Private Fuel Storage (PFS) would have to pay a gross receipts tax of 75% and post a US$150 billion cash bond to pay for potential damages stemming from facility operations. PFS - a consortium of eight utilities - is still reviewing the legislation. *(SpentFUEL, 12 February, p2; see also News Briefing 00.41-9)* [NB01.07-15] Bulgaria: Operation of a new US$30 million facility at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant for reprocessing and conditioning low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste (LLW and ILW) will start this week. Around 100 000 cubic metres of radioactive waste are expected to be reprocessed in the next few years. *(Reuters, 8 February; see also News Briefing 99.26-16)* [NB01.07-16] Russian lawmakers will consider legislation to amend a 1992 law banning imports of nuclear waste in a second reading scheduled for 22 February. To take effect, the bill must clear the second and third readings in the Duma, be passed by the Federation Council, the upper chamber of the Russian parliament, and be signed by President Vladimir Putin. *(SpentFUEL, 12 February, p4; see also News Briefing 01.01-6)* [NB01.07-17] The acquisition by Electricite de France (EdF) of a stake in Energie Baden-Wurttemberg (EnBW), a rival German utility, has been cleared by the European Commission. However, conditions were imposed that will open up the French electricity market to competition. EdF agreed to make 6000 MWe of power available to rivals for five years. EnBW will also sell its 24% stake in Swiss utility Watt to maintain competition in the Swiss market. *(Financial Times, 8 February, p32; see also News Briefing 01.04-10)* [NB01.07-18] Japan: Fear of creating overcapacity in electricity supply has driven Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) to suspend plans for 12 new power facilities, either in the planning stage or currently under construction. Only almost completed plants will be finished. The company stressed that it will go ahead with the existing schedules for nuclear power plants, citing the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to maintain relations with localities hosting the plants. *(Nikkei Weekly, 12 February, p2)* [NB01.07-19] EU countries have agreed to the US request to reschedule the next formal attempt to finalise the Kyoto climate protocol from May to July 2001. A formal decision on when to resume COP6 is expected to be made next week.* (NucNet News, 44/01, 8 February; see also News Briefing 01.05-19)* [NB01.07-20] Mr Robert G Van Adel has been appointed President and Chief Operating Executive (CEO) of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd (AECL) for a five-year period, as of 5 February 2001. He replaces Mr R Allen Kilpatrick, who became President in 1998. *(AECL, 1 February; see also News Briefing 98.29-18)* Previous News Briefing NB01.06 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Prepared by the Uranium Institute Information Service. All news and views are those of the publications cited.* Home | Feedback | News | Search | Glossary | Sitemap ***************************************************************** 7 BNFL FACES NEW CHARGES The Whitehaven News Thursday, February 15, 2001 BNFL is back in court at Whitehaven next week - only five months after being fined £24,000 for similar alleged breaches of the Radioactive Substances Act. Whitehaven Magistrates imposed the fines last October when BNFL pleaded guilty to failing to look after radioactive sealed sources on the Sellafield site. The latest prosecution brought by the Environment Agency follows an investigation started last April. It alleges that BNFL kept or used mobile radioactive apparatus without registration at Sellafield, also at its Drigg low-level radioactive waste disposal site and on the UK Atomic Energy's Windscale site at Sellafield. A second allegation relates to BNFL keeping or using radioactive materials at Ramsden Dock, Barrow, and another that BNFL Instruments Ltd, a subsidiary, kept mobile radioactive equipment illegally at AEA Windscale site. The Agency say there is a system of registration of radioactive sources essential "for the successful control of these materials in order to protect the environment and ensure no risk to human health." The prosecution will come before Whitehaven Magistrates on Thursday, February 22. Sealed sources are stainless steel tubes containing radioactive material and used for testing instruments which can detect radioactive leaks. ***************************************************************** 8 PLUG PULLED ON IRISH STUDENTS' SELLAFIELD TOUR The Whitehaven News Thursday, February 15, 2001 SIXTY students from Limerick were this week stopped from touring Sellafield for safety and security reasons. BNFL had agreed they could have a bus tour of the site, on Tuesday, but quickly changed its mind after hearing that the university students had taken part in the previous day's big anti-nuclear protest outside the Trident submarine base at Faslane, on the Clyde. However, despite BNFL's cancellation attempt, the Irish party presented themselves at Sellafield in a fleet of buses. Sellafield spokeswoman, Tracey Riley, said: "They congregated at the Visitors Centre and were not happy that they were not being allowed on the site. We had reason to believe they were involved in the Faslane demonstration and that a number of them had been arrested, so we decided to cancel the visit on safety and security grounds. The students said their visit to Sellafield was for peaceful purposes but if we had let them on the site and they had caused trouble it would not have been fair on our work force. Their safety is a priority." Deputy head of site, Paul Croft, talked to the students who were allowed to look around the visitors centre. BNFL admitted their was no trouble or protest. Up to 700 protesters took part in the Faslane demo. Ministers from the Church of Scotland and a Labour MP were among those arrested. It was backed in a phone call by Sir Sean Connery who sent his apologies for absence because of filming commitments." ***************************************************************** 9 JAPANESE MOX FUEL PROGRAMME IN DISARRAY AS PREFECTURES ANNOUNCE DELAY IN LOADING OF FUEL 15 February 2001 London - The Japanese plutonium (MOX) fuel programme is in disarray today after a key Prefecture announced a major delay in the loading of the controversial nuclear fuel and demanded "total review" of the country's proposed programme, Greenpeace said today. The reactor in Fukushima Prefecture was to be the first Japanese reactor to load MOX fuel. However, yesterday Fukushima governor, Eisaku Sato, told reporters, that there would be consultations over the loading of MOX fuel "with the people of Fukushima over the next year", indicating there would be no use of MOX in Fukushima until at least 2002. Governor Sato also called for a review of Japan's whole MOX fuel programme. Since August last year, a court case, now backed by nearly 2000 citizens, was launched in Fukushima seeking an injunction against the loading of the MOX fuel on the grounds that it contains falsified quality control data and that it will increase safety risks at the reactor. The legal action is being backed by Greenpeace and other Japanese anti-nuclear organizations. A court ruling on the case is expected in March. The court case follows a similar legal action in 1999 which forced British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) to admit that it had falsified vital quality control data for MOX fuel produced for Japan. This has led to their multi-billion MOX program being delayed further, with no contracts signed with BNFL as a consequence. Even its competitor the state-owned French company Cogema has failed to secure large scale contracts with Japanese electrical utilities. BNFL is seeking to persuade the Blair government to license a new large £300 million MOX plant at Sellafield, even though the plant has contracts for only 6.7% of capacity – none for Japan). The other Japanese reactor scheduled to load MOX fuel is Kashawazaki-Kirawa, in the Niigata prefecture, in western Japan. However Niigata governor Ikuo Hiroyama, yesterday told reporters that Kashawazaki "we won't be the first to load MOX fuel" in Japan, indicating it would not use MOX fuel until after the reactor in Fukushima. The delays in the loading of the plutonium MOX programme in Japan come as another plutonium MOX fuel shipment bound for Japan was entering the Southern Ocean between South Africa and Australia. The MOX fuel, produced by Cogema, is being carried by armed British flagged vessel, the Pacific Pintail, with its armed escort vessel Pacific Teal, to the Kashawazaki reactor. "The Japanese MOX programme is in disarray with major delays and growing political pressure to cancel the programme," said Shaun Burnie. "The countries along the route of the plutonium shipments, like South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, are being exposed to huge environmental and health risks for a plutonium fuel programme that is collapsing." In total about 2,000kg plutonium has been delivered to Japan in the last 15 years, none of which has been used in reactors. It requires as little as 5kg of this plutonium to make one nuclear weapon. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: - Shaun Burnie 31 629 00 11 33 (mobile) - Jon Walter on 31-20523 6608 or visit the Greenpeace International website www.greenpeace.org/~nuclear/transport/mox00/ ***************************************************************** 10 Ruling DPP Regrets Resuming Construction of Nuclear Power Plant 2001.02.15¡@2:50am Taiwan time updated Taipei, Feb. 14 (CNA) The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) issued a statement Wednesday to express its regret over the Executive Yuan's decision to resume construction of the island's fourth nuclear power plant. "The party deeply regrets that the Executive Yuan, forced by the present political situation, has to take a move against its original decision," said the statement issued by the party's Central Standing Committee. It criticized the opposition alliance for using the nuclear power plant as a bargaining chip in its attempts "to engage in political struggle." Premier Chang Chun-hsiung announced a halt to the construction of the partially-completed nuclear power plant last October. But in accordance with an agreement reached by Chang and Legislative Yuan President Wang Jin-pyng Tuesday, he announced the Cabinet's decision to immediately resume the construction Wednesday, which he said was in the interests of political stability. The DPP statement, read to the media by the party's Chairman Frank Hsieh, attacked the opposition camp for "creating political instability to force the new government to accept its demand." It claimed that "such a move would not only cast a shadow on the development of the country's democratic politics, but also hurt society." The party stressed that creating a nuclear-free homeland is the party's unswerving stance, and added that it will redouble its efforts to seek more public support in the next legislative election, so as to realize the party's ideals and stabilize the political situation. China Times Inter@ctive Main Page (in Big-5 Chinese) ***************************************************************** 11 Premier swallows his pride The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-15 Thursday, February 15th, 2001 SHAMED: A chastened Chang Chun-hsiung had to face the music yesterday about the decision to resume construction of the power plant, but insisted he would not step down By Joyce Huang STAFF REPORTER Less than four months after halting construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (®Ö¥|), Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (±i«T¶¯) officially announced yesterday that the project would go ahead after all, saying the move was an unavoidable political compromise. Yesterday's widely expected announcement follows months of political wrangling and represents an about-turn from the Cabinet's Oct. 27 decision to shelve the plan. On that day, Chang held up to TV cameras a photograph of a mother kissing her dead child -- a victim of the Chernobyl nuclear accident -- as a way of explaining the Cabinet's decision to discontinue the project. "Any move that will sabotage political stability is out of the question. I will continue to act in my current capacity." *- Premier Chang Chun-hsiung* Still, despite the policy turnabout, Chang said yesterday he was opposed to nuclear energy. "To me, this is a painful decision and an inevitable responsibility," Chang said after yesterday's weekly Cabinet meeting. The premier added that turning Taiwan into a nuclear-free country was still his "main goal." Chang said that after negotiations between the Cabinet and legislature restart, the Cabinet would make the passage of a referendum law (¤½§ëªk) its top priority, in the hope of devising a way for major policy disputes to be settled by the public. But the premier brushed aside questions about whether he intended to propose the law with an eye toward having the power plant controversy eventually decided by voters. Still, the DPP said yesterday the plant's fate should be decided by a referendum -- a consensus reached after the party's central standing committee meeting. "To expand people's direct participation in the policy-making process, major controversial policies should be decided collectively by all citizens, as is the practice in democracies the world over," DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (Áªø§Ê) said. Hsieh also said the party hoped to win a majority of seats in the legislature during elections at the end of the year in order to have the final say on national policies. In addition, the DPP chairman also claimed that the opposition alliance in the legislature was pro-nuclear, even though lawmakers have paid lip service to the idea of a nuclear-free country. Chang, in addition, said that the Cabinet would go all out to facilitate alternative sources of energy and shut down the first, second and third plants as early as possible. A Cabinet-level "Nuclear-free Country Advisory Committee" («D®Ö®a¶é«Å¾É©e­û·|) would also be formed to further promote the government's anti-nuclear stance, he said. When asked whether he would resign to shoulder the political responsibility for the Cabinet's inconsistent decision on the plant, Chang flatly rejected the possibility. "Any move that will sabotage political stability is out of the question. I will continue to act in my current capacity," Chang replied, adding that his previous decision to scrap the plant was neither a violation of the law nor the Constitution. Chang argued that a new government had every right to change policies after a transfer of power, however, he said he realized now that support from the legislature was also necessary. With regard to an anti-nuclear parade to be held on Feb. 24 in protest of the Cabinet's announcement, the DPP said yesterday that its members would be allowed to attend the rally. This story has been viewed 746 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/15/story/0000073738] Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001 The Taipei Times. All rights ***************************************************************** 12 Taipower now expects plant to be opened a year late The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-15 Thursday, February 15th, 2001 By Richard Dobson STAFF REPORTER Operation of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (®Ö¥|) will be delayed by one year due in part to the over three-month halt in construction that came to an end yesterday, according to Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, ¥x¹q). Before work on the plant was halted last October, construction had already fallen behind schedule and the original July 2004 date for operation of the first reactor had been pushed back until the end of that year, Taipower said. Now, with the 110-day halt to construction and a reported additional delay of around three months while contractors prepare to return to work, operation of one of the plant's two reactors will be pushed back until July 2005, said Taipower. Restarting work on the US$5.6 billion project is no simple matter. Once Taipower receives official notice from the Cabinet to recommence building, it will ask all contractors to submit a detailed plan of how they intend to pick up where they left off three and a half months ago. At the same time, Taipower will enter into negotiations with contractors about the amount of compensation they will be paid for the duration of the stoppage, Taipower said. "Contractors will have to present all relevant documents and receipts pertaining to extra expenses incurred during the delay and we will consider what is an appropriate amount to pay," said a Taipower executive. Taipower has admitted previously that the delay was inflicting losses on the company of NT$6.5 million per day -- totalling over NT$700 million over the last three months -- in interest on loans and maintaining the work site. If it takes another three months for work to begin, Taipower's losses on interest and maintenance for the combined delay could top NT$1.4 billion, which does not include compensation to contractors. A good piece of news for Taipower in terms of getting the project back on track is an apparent softening of Ta Tung Construction (¤j´É) on its intention to pull out of the project due to the long delays. Hsieh Cheng-che (Á©ӭõ), senior executive at Ta Tung -- one of five contractors that have signalled their desire to walk away from the project -- told the *Taipei Times* yesterday that there is "room for discussion" with Taipower on whether his company would continue to seek an annulment of its contract. "There are many problems with the project we must discuss ... and we will certainly be talking compensation with Taipower," said Hsieh, who added that in light of yesterday's decision, Ta Tung had not made a final decision on its request for annulment. Taipower shook off talk that a departure by Ta Tung, which is building a special receiving dock in Kungliao (°^¼d) township for the two 1,350-megawatt nuclear reactors, would delay their delivery from Japan. "Although construction of the dock is behind schedule, its present condition would allow a ship to dock and unload the reactors," a Taipower executive said. "Even if Ta Tung sticks with its decision to bail, other contractors can be sought and the dock should be ready to receive the first reactor by September," he added. This story has been viewed 422 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/15/story/0000073739] Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001 The Taipei Times. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 13 Angry anti-nuclear activists promise to continue the battle The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-15 Thursday, February 15th, 2001 BACKLASH: Activists and Kungliao residents have vowed retribution for what they see as an act of betrayal by the DPP for agreeing to continue construction of the plant By Chiu Yu-Tzu STAFF REPORTER Antinuclear activists expressed their strong opposition yesterday to what they called the Executive Yuan's "surrender" to the Legislative Yuan, in agreeing to resume construction of the halted Fourth Nuclear Power Plant. Residents of Kungliao (°^¼d) township, Taipei County, where the plant is located, yesterday condemned political figures who they said had broken residents' hearts by betraying antinuclear activists. "We look down upon those DPP members who have betrayed the people, lied to their supporters, and turned their backs on the party's anti-nuclear platform," Kungliao township Chief Chao Kuo-tung (»¯°ê´É) said. Angry residents said that Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (±i«T¶¯), a DPP member, should have visited Kungliao to see the real situation there. Because of declining fishery resources off the north coast of Taiwan, Kungliao fishermen are struggling to survive. The high unemployment rate there has forced young people look elsewhere for a living. Fishermen in Kungliao complained that the construction of the plant had contributed to a deterioration of the marine environment. Kungliao residents in the Yenliao Anti-Nuclear Self-Help Association (ÆQ¼d¤Ï®Ö¦Û±Ï·|) called President Chen Shui-bian (³¯¤ô«ó) "a traitor," and vowed to punish him severely. Activists from more than 50 groups protested in front of the Executive Yuan yesterday morning, railing against what they called the "illegal" resumption of construction. Activists urged the Executive Yuan to heed censures pertaining to the construction issued by the Control Yuan. The Control Yuan issued three censures in April, May and November, 1999 relating to the environmental impact assessment for the plant, and the discovery of an Aboriginal historic site inside the construction site. "If construction is to be resumed, the least the Executive Yuan can do is to order a new environmental impact assessment," said Shih Shin-min (¬I«H¥Á), chairman of Taiwan Environmental Protection Union (TEPU). Shih said that activists were particularly angry at the decision to resume construction because issues such as environmental damage, insufficient safety measures and radioactive waste disposal remained unaddressed. TEPU has allied with other groups to establish a Nuclear Free Country Action Alliance («D®Ö°ê®a¦æ°ÊÁp·ù), which will demonstrate in Taipei on Feb. 24 for a referendum to decide the future of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant. Activists said that at least five advisors to the president, including former DPP chairman Lin Yi-hsiung (ªL¸q¶¯), plan to join the demonstration. Activists said that more than 10,000 people will express their anger on the streets that day. This story has been viewed 216 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/15/story/0000073756] Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001 The Taipei Times. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 14 AEC denies talking with Russia on nuclear waste The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-15 Thursday, February 15th, 2001 CNA, TAIPEI The Cabinet-level Atomic Energy Council (AEC) denied on Tuesday that it has spoken with Russian officials about storing state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, ¥x¹q) nuclear waste in Russia. AEC Vice Chairman Chou Yuan-ching (©P·½­ë) issued the denial in reaction to rumors that AEC officials have gone to Russia in the past year for talks on the issue. Nuclear waste can be divided into two kinds -- high radiation and low radiation. At present, Taipower disposes of high radiation waste by storing it in nuclear plant areas, Chou said, adding that since Taipower could build an interim storage facility for a storage period of 40 years, it is not a matter of great urgency to seek storage areas for high radiation nuclear waste, he claimed. He said that Taipower now badly needs low radiation waste storage sites and noted that even if Russia loosens restrictions on the import of high radiation waste, as has been reported, it will do little to help solve Taipower's problem of low radiation waste storage. Taipower in the past has dumped its low radiation nuclear waste on offshore Orchid Island (ÄõÀ¬), but increasing opposition by the residents of the island put a stop to the practice. Chou said the AEC has picked a small Taiwan-administered island in between the Kinmen and Matsu island groups named Hsiao Wuchiu (¤p¯QËú) as a possible dump site, but must complete an environmental impact plan first. This story has been viewed 169 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/15/story/0000073758] Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001 The Taipei Times. All rights ***************************************************************** 15 Taiwan renewing efforts to ship nuclear waste to North Korea welcome to Korea Herald!!_National http://www.koreaherald.com Taiwan is pursuing a plan to ship 60,000 barrels of nuclear waste to North Korea as soon as the North solves technical matters regarding how it will go about burying the waste, a diplomatic source here said yesterday. "We haven't confirmed where the shipment will be stored in North Korea yet, but the Hwanghae Province area, which has a number of abandoned coal mines, seems to be the most likely choice," the source said. The area has been frequently mentioned by the western media as a possible site for a North Korean nuclear waste dump. Taiwan virtually abandoned its plan to ship nuclear waste to North Korea years ago when South Korea put up strong resistance to the project, citing the danger of environmental contamination and arguing that the North's storage facilities are insufficient to handle radioactive materials. (C) Copyright 2000 Digital Korea Herald. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 16 Prague agrees to N-plant environmental study AUSTRIA: February 15, 2001 VIENNA - The Czech Republic has pledged to study the environmental impact of its Temelin nuclear power plant in an effort to allay safety concerns, the Austrian government said yesterday. Austrian Environment Minister Wilhelm Molterer and Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan said in a joint statement they had agreed on a procedural framework for the study. Austrian environmentalists have threatened to block the Austrian-Czech border this weekend unless the Czech authorities agree to a full environmental study, to be carried out along with another safety inspection of the Soviet-built facility. The environmentalists, who staged a series of border blockades last year, were expected to decide whether or not to resume their action after consultations with the Austrian government on Wednesday. Temelin, which lies some 50 km (30 miles) from the Austrian border and which began operating last October, has been the focus of a bitter diplomatic row between Prague and Vienna. Austria believes the plant, which has been upgraded with western control systems, is unsafe but the Czechs insist it is not. In order to allay Austrian fears, Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman and Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel agreed another safety inspection at a meeting last December. The International Atomic Energy Agency began a safety inspection of the facility on Monday. REUTERS NEWS SERVICE ***************************************************************** 17 Second breeder reactor to be built at Beloyarsk NPP The Russian nuclear ministry and governor of Sverdlovsk region agree to resume construction of a new fast-breeder reactor at Beloyarsk NPP. Vladislav Nikiforov, 2001-02-14 18:39 The governor of Sverdlovsk region, Edward Rossel, held a meeting concerning construction of a new breeder reactor at Beloyarsk NPP. Earlier, the governor met the Russian nuclear minister, Evgeny Adamov, who promised $20 million to resume the construction, which was frozen after the Chernobyl disaster. The total cost of the project is $1.2 billion. The construction work is scheduled to continue until 2009. It was mentioned at the meeting that the project documentation for reactor no.4 has passed all the necessary expertise and checks. Reactor of BN-800 type can generate heat energy by burning power- and weapon-grade plutonium. Beloyarsk NPP director, Oleg Sarayev, said that the new reactor is environmentally safe and capable to burn the weapon-grade plutonium. The huge investment is also good for the region economy, Sarayev added. Beloyarsk nuclear power plant in Sverdlovsk county currently has only one operational nuclear installation of BN-600 type, the only breeder reactor in Russia. The two other reactors at Beloyarsk Power Plant were put in operation in 1964 and 1967, respectively. They were shut down in 1983 and 1990. These were of the AMB-100 and AMB-200 type, which are an earlier version of RBMK graphite-moderated reactors. No decision has been taken on how to handle the spent fuel from these reactors. While all the fuel was taken out of the first reactor installation, the AMB-100, a few fuel assemblies still remain inside the second reactor. The onsite storage facility holds 4,990 fuel assemblies now. A part of the cladding is no longer tight, leading to contamination of the cooling water. Radioactivity in the water increased during the last three years by a factor of 1.6. Although the first reactor installation at Beloyarsk was taken out of operation back in 1983, the decommissioning is still not completed. In recent years Beloyarsk NPP reactor suffered a number of incidents. The last one was on January 30th 2001, when a malfunction in the 5th generator led to a capacity reduction for 33%. On January 29th 1993, the safety area around the plant was expanded from 8km till 30km. The same area exists around Chernobyl NPP. From 1964 till 1979 the first reactor suffered numerous crackings in the fuel assemblies on the 1st reactor units. In 1977 the half of the fuel assemblies was melted down on the second reactor. On December 31st 1978, after the fire broke out on reactor no.2 the control cable was burned, and reactor was left without control. In August 1992, abnormally high concentrations of Ci-137 and Co-60 were found near Beloyarsk NPP. On June 6th 1994, the second reactor suffered a leak of non-radioactive sodium from the second circuit what resulted in serious fire. Even the fire brigade could not stop it. The fire stopped itself after all the sodium was burned down. The construction of the new and bigger fast-breeder reactor, the BN-800 type, began back in 1987. The work was stopped in 1988 after vigorous protests from the people living in the region. In 1992, President Yeltsin ordered the construction resumed, but due to lack of finances, very little has been done. The comeback of the fast-breeder project echoes the extensive plan of the Russian Ministry for Nuclear Energy to burn both power and weapon-grade plutonium in commercial reactors. France has been striving after fast-breeder reactor technology the past decades but had to abandon the project in the 90-s. www.bellona.no : russia : russian npps : beloyarsk npp | back to Publisher: , President: Frederic Hauge Information: , Technical contact: Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62 * P.O.Box 2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway ***************************************************************** 18 Hoping to Tap More Revenue for Utah, House GOP Sets Sights on Envirocare Tax *Thursday, February 15, 2001* BY DAN HARRIE THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE Republican lawmakers are pressing ahead with plans to impose a tax on low-level radioactive waste coming in to Utah for storage at Envirocare of Utah in Tooele County. "There is no sense to put this off any longer," said Rep. Jeff Alexander, R-Lindon, House chairman of the main budget committee. "A tax is due. We no longer should allow this waste into our state without this. We have become a dumping ground for the nation," said Alexander, who is preparing a tax bill. The Republican caucus -- controlling a commanding majority in the House -- voted to look at a tax this legislative session, which runs through Feb. 28. GOP leaders will come up with a plan and a recommended amount for the tax. Envirocare of Utah President Charles Judd sat glumly through the presentation during an open caucus meeting. "It really seems like what they propose is to shut us down," Judd said in a later interview. "I don't know why they have singled us out in a year when they have $680 million" in extra cash. The catalysts are two recent reports that compare Utah with a radioactive waste site in South Carolina and indicate Utah could be reaping tens of millions in revenue from a radioactive waste tax. Judd helped kill public release of one study that was set to go to the Republican caucus last week when he called the consultant authoring the report and said he had a conflict of interest because of a previous contract with Envirocare. That report -- which suggested Utah could collect more than $100 million annually -- was officially squelched but leaked to news organizations. The consultant's identity has remained secret. A report released Tuesday by legislative fiscal analysts also alluded to large, although unspecified, revenue that could be tapped by the state. "A higher surcharge competitive with South Carolina, based on cubic foot volumes and curie densities could give the state of Utah a viable tax surcharge," said the state report. At present, Utah charges a fee of $2.50 per ton of waste going to Envirocare, which raises enough to pay for regulation of the facility and sometimes a few hundred thousand dollars extra. South Carolina estimates it will bring in $148.5 million in waste taxes this year. © Copyright 2001, The Salt Lake Tribune All material found on Utah OnLine is ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 Twilight of nuclear weapons era? Ex-lab physicist predicts no breakaway from tested designs *February 14, 2001* By Glenn Roberts Jr. STAFF WRITER LIVERMORE -- A retired Lawrence Livermore Laboratory physicist says it may be twilight time for new nuclear weapons development. While low-tech "wooden" bombs, ground-penetrating weapons and an upgrade of an existing warhead may reach the drawing board at U.S. nuclear weapons labs, Ray E. Kidder says he doesn't expect new weapons designs to get much farther than that. Kidder, 77, who continues to work one day each week as a visiting researcher at Livermore Lab, says the era of booming nuclear weapons development and testing has run its course. "When we were doing this work a long time ago, we did so much that it's a pretty hard act to follow. We've done just about everything there is to do," he says. Kidder will present these conclusions Friday during a public policy presentation at the American Association for the Advancement of Science's annual meeting in San Francisco. The presentation, which will feature five speakers, is titled, "Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and U.S. National Security Interests." Though some analysts have suggested that weapons scientists could build a new, low-tech, cheaper line of nuclear warheads that are extremely conservative in their designs and easier to maintain than existing weapons in the arsenal, Kidder says he doesn't expect the concept will ever fly. The explosive yield of these "wooden" bombs, as he calls them, would likely be reduced because of a simpler design. And weapons already in the stockpile "have been tested and are conservative, in my view," he says. Also, in breaking away from known and tested weapons designs, "there is also sort of a lingering doubt that maybe you slipped up somewhere." And because the United States halted nuclear testing in 1992, new designs cannot be tested with actual nuclear detonations. Instead, weapons designers use computer simulations, laser and X-ray experiments, and non-nuclear explosions to study nuclear weapons explosions, effects and degradation. Earth-penetrating, low-yield nuclear weapons, which members of Congress have suggested could be used to target weapons materials stored underground, seem to be a dead-end technology, Kidder says, as conventional explosives can be effective in pinpointing targets. The sole role for nuclear weapons, he says, will likely continue to be deterrence. --->"With the exception of a lot of useful improvements, all of the principles of design for nuclear weapons were finished by 1962," Kidder says. He adds, "When you actually look at the history of nuclear weapons and the way they have waxed and waned, it's obvious to me that nuclear weapons are definitely on their way out." ***************************************************************** 2 Admiral: Sub skipper should've seen ship - , February 15, 2001 The Detroit News. Navy acknowledges the presence of visitors may have been distraction to captain, crew By Thomas E. Ricks, and Donald Phillips / Washington Post WASHINGTON -- The commander of the Navy's Pacific Fleet told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee in a closed-door meeting Wednesday that he did not understand how the captain of a U.S. nuclear-powered submarine had failed to realize that it was surfacing directly beneath a fishing trawler last Friday. "He should have seen the ship," Admiral Thomas Fargo said in the hour-long briefing. "It's hard to see how they missed it." The Navy has not publicly explained the cause of the accident, which sank the Japanese trawler Ehime Maru in 1,800 feet of water off Hawaii, with nine Japanese crew members lost. Fargo's comments were the first time that a senior officer has suggested that blame may lie with the commander and crew of the USS Greeneville. The skipper, Capt. Scott Waddle, has been relieved of duty pending investigations of the collision by the Navy and the National Transportation Safety Board. The NTSB's civilian investigators expressed frustration Wednesday that video and sound recording devices in the control room of the submarine were not operating during the accident. Sixteen civilian visitors were aboard the ship, and Navy officials acknowledged Wednesday that their presence might have distracted the captain and crew. Two of the civilians -- whose identities and affiliations the Navy has refused to make public -- were seated at important control stations, with crew members closely supervising them, according to the Navy. Asked on PBS's NewsHour Wednesday night whether there is any evidence that the civilians' presence contributed to the accident, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said: "None whatsoever." ***************************************************************** 3 Sub inquiry could result in criminal charges By Associated Press, 2/15/2001 ASHINGTON - The US Navy admiral investigating a submarine collision with a Japanese fishing boat is considering a line of inquiry that could lead to criminal charges because of the likelihood of deaths, Navy officials said yesterday. Officials also said they cannot rule out the possibility that civilians aboard the USS Greeneville, including two at control positions, were a distraction to the crew and contributed to the sinking of the Japanese vessel off the coast of Hawaii on Friday. No evidence of that has turned up yet, but investigators will examine the possibility, the Navy officials said. In seeking to determine how the accident happened, the Navy is considering an inquiry that could result in charges against the nuclear-powered submarine's captain or members of his crew, according to Navy officials, who discussed the matter on condition they not be identified. A decision on how to direct the investigation is being weighed by Rear Admiral Charles Griffiths Jr., who as commander of Submarine Group Nine, based at Bangor, Wash., is in charge of ballistic missile submarines assigned to the Pacific Fleet. He was dispatched to Hawaii shortly after the accident. The captain of the submarine - Commander Scott Waddle of Austin, Texas - has been relieved of duty pending the outcome of the investigation. The Greeneville is an attack submarine and does not carry nuclear missiles. The fishing boat is lying on the seabed at a depth of 1,800 feet. This story ran on page 9 of the Boston Globe on 2/15/2001. © Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company. ***************************************************************** 4 Civilian: I triggered sub disaster Reuters | BBC News | Sky News | Photos Thursday February 15, 03:14 PM A civilian has said he pulled the levers that led to a US nuclear-powered submarine ramming and sinking a Japanese fishing boat. The attack submarine USS Greeneville was sent rapidly towards the surface off the Hawaiian islands last Friday where it sank the Ehime Maru, leaving nine people dead. John Hall told NBC's Today show: "I was to the left in the control room, and I was asked by the captain if I would like the opportunity to pull the levers." "I said, 'Sure, I'd love to do that.'" The USS Greeneville was conducting a drill in which the submarine dives to about 120 metres (400 feet) and then rapidly surfaces - known as an "emergency main ballast blow." Submarine 'shuddered' Mr Hall, one of 16 civilians on the submarine, said a crew member was closebeside him during the drill. "Immediately the submarine began to rise and it came very quickly," he said. Mr Hall said as the submarine rose out of the water, he could feel the nose come down. "Just when it was starting to come down... there was a very loud noise and the entire submarine shuddered." According to Mr Hall, submarine captain, Commander Scott Waddle, said "Jesus, what the hell was that?," immediately looked out the periscope and said they had hit the fishing boat. "He said the name of the boat," Mr Hall said. "He must have been able to see the stern of the ship." Of the 35 people aboard the fishing boat, 26 were rescued and nine, including four students, are dead. Mr Hall said the crew had surveyed the area with a periscope several times before rising. He remembered "a lot of crewmen calling out to (the commander) that they had gone through their proceedure and the proceedures were okay". Diplomatic disaster He said "maybe 10 minutes" passed between the visual sweeps and the sub coming out of the water. US officials said on Wednesday that two civilians were at the controls, but said there was no indication that they had a role in the accident. However, US naval officials have admitted they could not rule out the civilians being a distraction to the crew. The BBC's Washington correspondent says the incident is rapidly turning into a diplomatic disaster for President George W Bush. Mr Bush had hoped to strengthen ties, already strained over incidents involving US troops in Japan's Okinawa island. Civilian role Mr Hall's admission came as Japan warned of serious consequences if it was found that the civilians on the USS Greeneville had contributed to the accident. Foreign Minister Yohei Kono also protested to US Secretary of State Colin Powell over Washington's failure to inform Japan about the civilians' role. He told Mr Powell it was regrettable that he had learnt the news from a television report. Mr Powell has promised that the Pentagon would carry out a "thorough investigation" and inform Tokyo promptly of the findings. The US Navy is considering charging the captain and crew of the submarine. More controversy There is further sensitivity over reports that the man who arranged for civilians to be on board was a retired US admiral who himself was once at the centre of a controversy with Japan. In 1996, Richard Macke was forced to apply for early retirement after he suggested that three US servicemen who rented a car to allegedly abduct and rape a 12-year-old girl in Okinawa should have hired a prostitute instead. The collision between the submarine and the fishing boat has been front page news in Japan for days. On Thursday, newspapers published accounts from survivors describing the horror in the accident. "Everyone was in a panic," deck hand Shukuo Nakamura said. "'Everyone go up"' someone was shouting... And then a big wave crashed against us and I was thrown into the water." The crew have said it was "absolutely unforgivable" for civilians to have been operating the submarine. ***************************************************************** 5 Spotlight on sub safety BBC News | ASIA-PACIFIC | Wednesday, 14 February, 2001, 16:33 Civilian visitors were at the controls of USS Greeneville The BBC's Defence correspondent Jonathan Marcus looks at submarine safety issues after news that at least one civilian was at the helm of the USS Greeneville when it crashed into a Japanese trawler, sinking the vessel with the loss of nine crew. The incident happened as the USS Greeneville was practising a rapid rise to the surface. The US Navy confirms that civilian visitors were seated at two of the three main control positions of the submarine when it surfaced beneath the Japanese fishing boat. Survivors return to Japan One was at the helmsman's position and the other at the ballast controls that help control the submarine's ascent or descent. In all 15 civilians were aboard the USS Greeneville at the time of the accident. US Navy officials said there was no evidence any of them had distracted the crew, but acknowledged it was possible such a thing could have happened. A former nuclear submarine captain says it is not unusual for civilians to visit submarines and to even man some control stations. Captain Richard Sharpe, who served in the Royal British Navy, told the BBC that submarines are sometimes opened up for family days, VIPs and visits from contractors. 'Nothing to do with guests' But Captain Sharpe says the activity of the civilians should be irrelevant to the cause of the accident: President Bush has apologised to Japan "The accident was purely the fault of the command, who miscalculated where this fishing vessel was," said Capt Sharpe. The USS Greeneville was conducting a drill in which the submarine dives to about 120 metres (400 feet) and then rapidly surfaces - known as an emergency main ballast blow. Captain Sharpe says a person would have acted on an order when releasing the ballast, making the submarine shoot to the surface. The real mistake, he says, was the decision to execute the manoeuvre in the first place. "The [civilian] person would have been doing exactly what he was asked to do, which is to release the ballast tanks. Why they decided to surface when they did is the command's problem." The US Navy said it was considering a criminal inquiry that could result in charges against the captain of the submarine, or against crew members. Unanswered questions While it is not uncommon to have civilians in control positions during a visit, it is perhaps surprising that they should be in such positions during a critical manoeuvre. Clearly the US Navy will want to be sure that their presence did not lead to any distraction of the crew. The navy is already looking into why the submarine did not see the fishing vessel before it surfaced and lessons may be learnt for the future. 'No rescue effort' But the Japanese authorities have also criticised the US for failing to give adequate help to the victims. [Crew from Japanese vessel being rescued] The USS Greeneville did not participate in the rescue operation The US Navy has blamed the sea conditions, with waves breaking over the submarine, and stresses that a submarine's huge circular hull and poor sea-keeping qualities on the surface made any rescue effort impossible. All of this may be technically correct, but it still leaves the question, despite the risks, about whether more could have been done. Given the unpopularity of the US military in parts of Japan this is a highly charged issue. The US Navy needs to be able to show that every care was taken in operating the submarine and that every effort was made to rescue survivors. On both counts it still has to convince a sceptical Japanese public. *With additional reporting by BBC News Online's Lars Bevanger* ***************************************************************** 6 Facing the risks of depleted uranium [REUTERS] --> Karen Howells: We have to look at the local population. 15Feb01 * AlertNet member People in Aid has just published guidelines to protect NGO staff from depleted uranium and other hazards in Kosovo. Ruth Gidley spoke to the booklet's author Karen Howells, a former health visitor who is now a consultant in travel health. AN: How did you get into this field? * KH: I've been a specialist in travel health for many years, having set up my own business, mainly to advise nurses and doctors about how to assess travellers going abroad, but my heart has always been with aid. I think I asked my first travel health and safety question when I was helping to evacuate people from Beirut. We had a young journalist working for one of the NBC crews, and had no previous war experience, and I was very concerned that he hadn't been prepared in any way. That's where it started for me, because I began to look at organisations sending people abroad and what criteria they used. Over the years, I've been on a slight soapbox about it, but when I started -- about ten years ago -- travel health wasn't known as a subject. Gradually, with the development of People in Aid, it became a nice avenue to work with them to actually to begin to get organisations in the aid sector to look at what systems they had in place to advise people going abroad and to be prepared and to manage when they were abroad. * AN: Had you looked into the subject of risks from depleted uranium before? * KH: I started doing it last year because some queries arose from two charities and I thought I'd better investigate this. There seemed to be a lot of differing information out there, which is very confusing. While we don't know a lot of facts or certainties, I think you can begin to extract the basic principles of what you would do when you've got dust particles that could be a risk. * AN: How well do you think that most NGOs do that at the moment? * KH: That's a very leading question! There's room for improvement. * AN: Where did you begin? * KH: I had a good look at an environmental report. This is what alerted me. Partly through my own experience in that part of the world as well, and asking people. When I read the initial U.N. environmental report, it made for very worrying reading for anyone there longer-term. And one of my strong issues, and why I wanted to write the report, was that we have to look at the local population as well, that's going to live with this and possibly be subject to pollution. * AN: Do you think that NGOs could be concerned at implementing these guidelines because it could look as if international NGOs place a different importance on the value of their staff from the local population? * KH: There's always been a dilemma with "them" and "us" syndrome in the aid world and I think a lot of aid agencies are extremely aware of, and sensitive to, this issue. They feel the need to tackle it but they feel it is difficult when the systems in the aid agency's country of origin are more advanced or in a better state than the infrastructure of the country you're working in. So we've tried to do what one could in that country, given access to facilities that would be the best practice. * AN: Do you know if there are comparable risks in Bosnia, where a lot of NGOs operate reconstruction programmes? Or would that be more in terms of building materials commonly used in the region? * KH: I would say so. I thought there was actually a greater potential risk from the asbestos than depleted uranium and I was getting more concerned about them not wearing protective equipment. * AN: Your booklet recommends that some people -- specifically women of reproductive capacity or who are pregnant -- should possibly be exempt from working in a risk area. * KH: We're dealing with poor information and no facts, but it's the principle of better to be safe than sorry. So there is a possibility, theoretically, that if you have got depleted uranium and somebody's actively working with it or near the site, then they could be exposed. * AN: And if you are talking about a fertility risk, would that be equal for men and women? * KH: Yes. But the main worrying factor with depleted uranium is whether it is ingested or inhaled. And it's the dust particles, whether they are disturbed post-explosion or not. * AN: And then main potential effects would be either liver damage or a higher risk of cancer? * KH: Yes, because it's taken into the body. * AN: You mentioned that one NGO found a staff member in Mitrovica with raised levels of lead in his blood screen, and was limiting the amount of time its staff could spend there. Have you heard since then of any further screening results by NGOs, since so many have staff there? * KH: I've called for a meeting to clash heads together and see what everyone is doing and what they've come across, so we can begin to work out a sensible way forward. They would need to do screening if they were concerned about lead. We're also looking at the duration of exposure. So short-term duration will decrease exposure. * AN: From the information side, do you think there is still more information on the subject that the military or governments could or should release? * KH I think a lot of people are uncertain. That's my feeling from all angles. That includes the military side too. Because any tests that have been done with DU have tended to be animal-based. I think there are a lot of ifs and buts and I feel that from the armed forces, too. So I'm not going to say I think they've got a hidden agenda, because I'm not sure they've got one. * AN: I have found that often people who live and work in risky situations are less likely to take safety precautions. * KH: This comes back to all the work I've been doing for years. What I've started to do is look at the legal situation, and we haven't got any legislation which directly relates to people working overseas. It's all indirect. However, there is a duty of care and through that people can actually argue, and have argued in the past quite successfully, that as an organisation you have a duty of care to provide good information for risk management and health and safety to your work force. It's an EU directive. It's like a solo campaign sometimes. I know people look at me and think: "What is she on about?" But really, when people get used to it, it will become like wearing a seatbelt. It becomes automatic. * AN: Do you think that this booklet can help to reassure people, by giving reliable information and concrete steps to follow both before and after exposure to potential health risks? * KH: I think the aid agencies have got a lot of people there that will have read about the depleted uranium, which was in the media in a big way earlier this year. A lot of people will be concerned, but really they might not have that much of a risk factor. It really depends what work activities and where they were and what they were doing. But rather than hide your head in the sand, and wait to see what happens, you can't ignore that risk. As an employer, you should face it and say 'we don't know a lot of information, but this is what we can put in place as best practice for prevention and we can also inform anyone who has worked there, be that our staff or local staff, and we can try and look at the possibility that if anyone thinks they were at higher risk or has it confirmed, they've got someone they can talk it through with.' I think we need more practical guidance. That's why I did the guidelines. You could be in circumstances where you can't put in all those systems, but it's having the knowledge that this is what you should be doing for best practice and be aware that you're going to try and head towards that. But if you haven't got the facilities, you haven't got the facilities, so you have to do what you can within the constraints of your situation. And to me people are then fulfilling their duty of care and doing what they can. + To find out more about the work of People in Aid or to order a copy of Karen Howell's booklet, visit the >People in Aid website Reuters Foundation accepts no responsibility for the accuracy, copyright ***************************************************************** 7 SLAPDASH ATTITUDE TO SAFETY ON SITE The Whitehaven News Thursday, February 15, 2001 ANTI-nuclear group Core (Cumbrians Opposed to a Radioactive Environment) has accused BNFL of taking a slapdash and dangerous approach to safety following an incident in the Sellafield high-level waste storage plant. There was no release of radioactivity but for two hours part of the B215 plant lacked cooling air. This triggered a flashing light to which operators failed to respond . Nuclear inspectors are satisfied there was no real risk of an explosion but the incident has led to another reprocessing shutdown of Thorp. B215 houses the high-level liquid waste tanks which contain Sellafield's most potentially hazardous radioactive materials. Martin Forward. for Core, said the tanks had to be actively cooled and ventilated 24 hours a day in order to prevent a build up of explosive gases otherwise there could be "a catastrophic off-site release of radioactivity". But BNFL insisted there was never any danger of that. Sellafield spokeswoman Ali Dunlop said: "This loss of ventilation would have had to go on for days, if not weeks, before the safety of the site or the general public could have been jeopardised in any way." She said evacuation was not necessary because there was no escape of radioactivity. The Government's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII), which recently ordered BNFL to reduce its high-level waste stocks, said the risk of a hydrogen explosion was very small. "We considered it and discounted it," said spokesman Mark Wheeler. "Our immediate concern was whether there was any radiological risk to workers in the immediate area and whether there was any release to the atmosphere." A Core spokesman claimed: "This slap-dash and dangerous approach to safety confirms that Windscale Man is still alive and kicking despite last year's criticisms of safety management by NII and BNFL's promises to clean up its act." Sellafield's director of operations, Brian Watson, has ordered an inquiry. He is particularly concerned about the lack of response to the alarm. Mr Watson has also suspended the movement of high-level waste while the inquiry is going on and, because reprocessing produces the waste products, Thorp has been shut down again. BNFL said the problem arose from the installation of a new piece of equipment for treating the plant's ventilation gases. It meant that part of B215 lost ventilation for a couple of hours. Although the flashing light went off, workers failed to follow the procedures they should have done in attempting to restore the correct volume and flow of air. Only about 11 people work in the plant per shift and a handful of operators were in the affected part of the plant. The NII sent in a team of four inspectors after the incident on the night of January 26. It has ordered BNFL to come up with a report within a month and told it not to connect up the new ventilation scrubber without the NII's consent ***************************************************************** 8 New Nato nuclear trouble in Spain Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Owen Bowcott in Seville Thursday February 15, 2001 The Guardian American plans approved by Madrid to transform the Nato docks and airfield at Rota, in Andalucia, into the main US nuclear base for the Mediterranean and north Africa are encountering local hostility. Provincial politicians argue that the Pentagon's proposal, "Rota Vision 2010", will damage relations with north African states at a time when concern about radiation hazards has been highlighted by the presence in Gibraltar of a crippled British nuclear submarine. Last month the Andalucian government wrote to the conservative prime minister, Jose Maria Aznar, in protest at his approving the scheme to upgrade base, just outside Cadiz. Andalucia, with a population of seven million, is Spain's biggest province.The leader of its socialist government, Manuel Chaves, is opposed to an increase in US forces at Rota. "There is no transparency, nor information respecting the scheme," he has said. It was his party that backed a protest by 60,000 people last month against repairs on the reactor cooling system of the submarine Tireless being carried out in Gibraltar. "We are concerned Rota will be used as a base for nuclear weapons as well as nuclear-powered submarines," a regional government spokesman in Seville said. "It may become a handicap for Andalucia in its relations with neighbouring countries [Morocco, Algeria and Portugal] and upset stability in the Mediterranean. "We probably cannot stop it but we want to participate in strategic decisions. There is a statute [Article 23/1] which says regional governments must be informed about international treaties where they are affected." Overall, the US has been reducing its military presence in Spain since the end of the cold war. Bases at Torrejon, near Madrid, and Zaragossa, in the north, have closed. Apart from Rota, the only other US site is an air force station nearby at Moron de la Frontera. Built under the Franco dictatorship in the 1950s, Rota is nominally a Spanish Nato base but the upgrading, expected to cost £120m and take until 2010, will boost its prominence in US defence networks. Sixteen hangars will be built for the giant C-5 transport planes, and extra jetties added, allowing more submarines from the US Sixth Fleet to dock. Up to 3,000 US troops live on the base, the number limited by the terms of a Spanish-US treaty. Rota's combined air and naval facilities make it important for Nato or US operations in the Middle East, southern Europe or North Africa. "Rota is going to be modernised and enhanced but the physical boundaries of the base will not grow," a spokesman at the US embassy in Madrid confirmed. "It's a Nato base. It will reduce refuelling time for aircraft from two hours to 20 minutes and will become a primary facility. "There is sensitivity about the plan and objections from the Andalucian government. But Spain is a good Nato partner and it understands Nato's capacity needs." Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001 ***************************************************************** 9 Cancer gave Utahn a healthy mistrust [deseretnews.com] Thursday, February 15, 2001 By Elaine Jarvik Deseret News staff writer She has no heartbreaking story about being bundled into the family Chevy to watch bombs explode across the desert sky. When the government was conducting nuclear tests in the Nevada desert in the mid-1950s — showering atomic dust on unsuspecting southern Utahns — Mary Dickson was living 300 miles comfortably to the north, taking her first baby steps at her parents home in Salt Lake County. ['Image'] Mary Dickson's "Downwinders All" details the difficulty of tracking down the causes of cancer. [''] *Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News* So she is not an official downwinder. But that doesn't mean her thyroid cancer wasn't caused by nuclear fallout, says Dickson. Now 45 and director of creative services for KUED-TV, Dickson was diagnosed with cancer when she was 29. Thyroid cancer has a excellent cure-rate and Dickson is now healthy. But the experience has left her wary of official rhetoric that downplays the effects and reach of nuclear testing. And her distrust doesn't stop there, she says. "Here we come to the other end of the Cold War and people want to store spent nuclear fuel rods (in Utah's western desert). It amazes me that Utahns aren't more outraged." Dickson's story highlights the pitfalls and frustrations of trying to track down the cause of any particular cancer. How do you know when to chalk an illness up to bad luck or the environment? How do you separate exposure to fallout from exposure to another carcinogen. "There's no way I can prove how I got it," says Dickson about her thyroid cancer. "But there's no way they can prove that's not how I got it either." Although her claims would have been dismissed as a leap of logic just a few years ago, a 1997 report released by the National Cancer Institute found that much of the nation was blanketed with fallout from the 141 atmospheric tests performed at the Nevada Test Site from 1951 through 1962. "Downwinders All" is the title of Dickson's essay that appears in "Learning to Glow: A Nuclear Reader," published this year by the University of Arizona Press. "There wasn't a magic shield in Richfield that kept fallout from going anywhere else," says Dickson. "People need to know that what happens in other people's back yard also happens to them." Although some people were exposed to radiation by direct exposure — the atomic dust actually landed on their bodies and wafted through their windows — there was also another, more insidious route: air-to-grass-to-milk. The isotope Iodine-131 (just one of several radionuclides in fallout) lands on grass, is eaten by cows, collects in milk and is deposited in human thyroid glands. Because children have a higher metabolism and generally drink more milk, they are most affected by I-131. Those who drank milk from back-yard cows and back-yard goats in the 1950s, got the highest doses, but commercial milk was also a culprit. From her stack of documents and articles — and letters from other people who have cancer — Dickson produces a report called "Exposure of the American People to IODINE-131 from Nevada Nuclear-Bomb Tests." Published in 1999 by the National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine, it notes that data from the 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chernobyl points to a clear link between thyroid cancer and exposure to I-131. The accumulated fallout exposure from the Nevada Test Site was three times as much as that from Chernobyl, noted scientist Owen Hoffman in 1998 congressional testimony. Hoffman is former chief scientist for the International Atomic Energy Agency. The National Cancer Institute's Web site provides a "dose calculator" for fallout from the Nevada Test Site: rex.nci.nih.gov/INTRFCE_GIFS/radiation_fallout/radiation_131.html. Chose a state and a county and type in a birth date and you'll be given fallout doses for "average diet milk consumption," "high milk consumption" etc. But don't expect to understand the numbers; they're expressed as geometric standard deviation rather than as absolute rads. And the dose *range* they provide is enormous, because scientists still aren't sure what the exact doses were. In addition, as the NCI notes, "we don't know exactly how much the risk (of thyroid cancer) goes up with each rad of exposure." Type in Mary Dickson's birth date and county (and get a scientist to explain what the numbers mean) and you'll discover that above-ground tests plus leaks from underground tests added up to between 3.7 and 39 rads of I-131 for Dickson, who drank a lot of milk as a young child. Currently the FDA's protective action guides for radiation exposure is 1.5 rad to 15 rad (the latter is the level at which the government confiscates milk from market before distribution). According to Chuck Wiggins, director of the Utah Cancer Registry, rates for thyroid cancer in the United States have increased "consistently" since 1973 (the national registry's first year). There is no way to prove, though, that this increase is a result of nuclear testing. Joseph Lyon, a chronic disease epidemiologist at the University of Utah, is waiting for the federal government to free up funding for a thyroid study of 5,000 southern Utahns exposed to fallout in the 1950s. This would be be third part of a longitudinal study, begun in the late 1960s, of adults who were children when exposed. "I don't think the federal government wants to know the answer, because guess who the polluter is," says Lyon. "It's so frustrating to be the people who are sick and trying to figure anything out," Dickson says. As usual, she says, the burden of proof lies with the victim. She spends many of her evenings now attending meetings — Families Against Incinerator Risk and HEAL Utah — because stopping the storage of spent nuclear rods "is the most important issue we can be fighting now." She expects no compensation as a downwinder, she says. "I just want the government to admit the fallout was more widespread than they've ever admitted." *E-mail: jarvik@desnews.com* © 2001 Deseret News Publishing Company ***************************************************************** 10 Atomic tests went on despite criticism [deseretnews.com] Thursday, February 15, 2001 Tests in Utah in the early 1950s drew criticism from the public and from then New Mexico Sen. Clinton Anderson, head of the congressional Joint Committee on Atomic Energy. Several Nevada tests were cancelled due to weather patterns and conditions. And under concern that tests would be sent back to the Pacific if not successfully administered in the Nevada desert, the topic was raised at a meeting of the Atomic Energy commissioners in February and March 1955, and documented in a book, "Killing Our Own," by Harvey Wasserman and Norman Solomon. AEC Commissioner Willard F. Libby fumed that moving tests back to the Pacific would "set the weapons program back a lot." But disregarding weather conditions in Nevada would bring more fallout to the St. George area — "which they apparently always plaster," according to AEC Chairman Lewis L. Strauss in the minutes. Strauss said he had "forgotten the number of people at St. George." Informed that 4,500 people were living there at the time, Strauss said, "so you can't evacuate them." "St. George is hypertensified. It is not a question of health or safety with St. George, but a question of public relations," commented AEC fallout expert John C. Bugher. "You remember the uproar at St. George last series." After the experience with the last set of bomb tests, Bugher recollected, "We regarded southern Utah as a forbidden zone for future fallout in this series." But the AEC apparently decided the people of Utah were less important than the atomic testing schedule. And Former Rear Admiral Strauss advocated to "get on with the test," according to commission meeting minutes at the time. "I don't think we can change them at this stage of the game," said Strauss, referring to Nevada testing criteria. The following conversation is excerpted from minutes of the Atomic Energy commissioners meeting of March 14, 1955: *"People have got to learn to live with the facts of life, and part of the facts of life are fallout."* — Willard F. Libby, AEC commissioner *"It is certainly all right they say if you don't live next door to it."* — Lewis L. Strauss, AEC chairman *"Or live under it."* — K.D. Nichols, AEC commissioner *"We must not let anything interfere with this series of tests — nothing."* —Thomas Murray, AEC commissioner © 2001 Deseret News Publishing Company ***************************************************************** 11 State nixes bid to store nuke waste at Oak Ridge February 15, 2001 By Frank Munger, News-Sentinel Senior Writer State nixes bid to store nuke waste at Oak Ridge OAK RIDGE -- The state has strongly rejected an overture from the U.S. Department of Energy to use Oak Ridge facilities as a temporary storage site for western-bound nuclear waste. "This is not an option," Gov. Don Sundquist said in a letter to the DOE manager who oversees waste operations at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico. "Tennessee will not become an interim radioactive waste storage facility for the DOE complex," Sundquist wrote in the letter, dated Wednesday, to Dr. Inez R. Triay, manager of DOE's Carlsbad (N.M.) Office. A DOE spokesman confirmed that federal officials were considering the possible shipment of so-called transuranic waste from Battelle Laboratories in Ohio to Oak Ridge for storage. Transuranic waste is a particularly hazardous category of nuclear waste, involving radioactive materials such as plutonium. Walter Perry of DOE's Oak Ridge office said the agency was interested in storing the Ohio waste in Oak Ridge until it could be treated, packaged and sent to the New Mexico disposal facility. It's not clear how many shipments would be involved, although a DOE letter indicates the storage needs involve about 100 drums or 10 truckloads. However, the Oak Ridge treatment plant currently under construction by Foster Wheeler Environmental is not expected to begin operation until late 2002, with initial shipments to WIPP in early 2003. That means the transuranic waste from Ohio probably would be stored at Oak Ridge for at least a couple of years. "It's an outrage," Justin Wilson, the policy deputy to Gov. Sundquist, said Wednesday evening. "We're not going to be a dumping ground for DOE. "We want very much to work with the Department of Energy wherever possible on national solutions. But, to this, the response is real simple: No. We're not going do it." In his letter to DOE, Sundquist said state authorities would consider treating and packaging out-of-state waste for WIPP on a "case-by-case basis" once the Oak Ridge treatment plant is operational and once Oak Ridge waste is being routinely shipped to New Mexico. Frank Munger can be reached at 865-482-9213 or twig1@knoxnews.infi.net. ***************************************************************** 12 Wamp appointed to subcommittee that handles federal funding Oak Ridger Online --> Story last updated at 1:12 p.m. on Thursday, February 15, 2001 by Paul Parson Oak Ridger staff U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District, has landed a key committee appointment that could prove financially beneficial to Department of Energy-related projects in Oak Ridge. In a phone interview this morning, Wamp said he was appointed to the "influential" Energy and Water Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee. Because all discretionary federal spending comes through the Appropriations Committee, he added this seat is a "prize" that virtually everyone in Congress pursues. "For me to join this subcommittee is really wonderful," Wamp said. "This is a goal I set several years ago." Funding for numerous Oak Ridge DOE projects will come from the Energy and Water Subcommittee. Those projects include construction work on the $1.47 billion Spallation Neutron Source and the planned modernization efforts for the Y-12 National Security Complex and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The subcommittee will also provide funds to invest in new research initiatives and fund environmental cleanup activities throughout the East Tennessee. The current year's funding in the Energy and Water bill for programs carried out in East Tennessee is approximately $2.4 billion. Wamp is beginning his fifth year on the House Appropriations Committee. He has also been reappointed to the Interior Subcommittee, which he has served on for several years. "I've landed the two best seats Š to represent the Oak Ridge Operations office," Wamp said. All Contents ©Copyright* The Oak Ridger * ***************************************************************** 13 Incinerator's April trial burn may be postponed due to revising plan Oak Ridger Online --> Story last updated at 1:13 p.m. on Thursday, February 15, 2001 by Paul Parson Oak Ridger staff A trial burn scheduled in April for the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge incinerator could be postponed. "It's pretty ambitious to say that we'll make it to April," said Joy Sager, DOE program manager for the incinerator. "We may slip a little past that." The reason, Sager said, is because DOE is revising the trial burn plan for the Toxic Substances Control Act Incinerator based on a pre-trial burn that occurred in November. She shared the information during Tuesday's meeting of the Citizens' Advisory Panel of the Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee. A trial burn consists of a series of tests to determine the facility's compliance with emissions standards and other regulations. These tests help determine if the incinerator, which burns hazardous, low-level radioactive waste, receives new operating permits from environmental regulators. If the trial burn plan is revised, it will need to be reviewed by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the Environmental Protection Agency. Sager said the actual burn plan for fiscal year 2001 includes 1.7 million pounds of liquid waste and 375,000 pounds of solid waste. That plan is available for review in the DOE Public Reading Room and the Information Resource Center. Since full operations began in April 1999, the incinerator has treated more than 21 million pounds of waste through September 1999 from 12 DOE facilities in six states. Most of the waste treated, however, has been from the Oak Ridge Reservation. The actual radiation dose from incinerator emissions historically has averaged only about 7.5 millirems, or 2 percent of the allowable dose -- about half the radiation received during an X-ray, DOE officials have said. Sager pointed out that those figures are based on DOE's assumption that 100 percent of the waste's radioactivity was being emitted. Sager said it is now assumed that 30 percent of the radioactivity is released. Currently, the incinerator is also undergoing annual routine maintenance work, which Sager said should continue through March. Sager also pointed out that DOE's planned closure of the incinerator is scheduled for the end of fiscal year 2003. That date could be changed based on alternatives to incinerating toxic waste being made available. Former Energy Secretary Bill Richardson established a panel last year to explore possible alternatives. The incinerator is located at the Oak Ridge K-25 Site and is operated by IT Corp., a subcontractor to Bechtel Jacobs Co., DOE's environmental management contractor. All Contents ©Copyright* The Oak Ridger * ***************************************************************** 14 Researcher Sues DOE for Historical Documents on Los Alamos Environmental Releases February 5, 2001 PRESS RELEASE for more information: at 505-820-1143 A doctoral candidate in environmental health at Boston University School of Public Health today filed a lawsuit in federal district court demanding that the Department of Energy provide him with specific historical documents pertaining to releases of radioactive materials from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). At issue in the lawsuit are three requests for specific documents filed by Ken Silver in June and July, 2000 under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). “I requested about three dozen documents by their titles, dates and specific locations on the shelves in the LANL Archives and the Occurrence Reports Collection,” said Silver. “But the DOE wrote back that ‘other documents may exist’ and that they were still searching for the information,” he said. “I made it so easy for them. I gave them the precise locations of the records. But they’re playing games,” Silver charged. “Public health research isn’t supposed to be a game,” he said. Silver hopes the documents will shed light on three key questions about LANL’s possible impacts on public health (see “Background Document...” for further details): + How much radioactive iodine was emitted from Omega West Reactor in the late 1960’s, in particular in 1967, a year in which 15,000 curies of “mixed fission products” were released into air from Omega site? + What is the total quantity of plutonium isotopes emitted into air from stacks at the Chemistry and Metallurgical Research (CMR) Building in 1971 to 1973? + Why do air monitoring records from DP West, the Lab’s old plutonium facility, carry the hand-written notation “These figures should not be recorded on yearly report” alongside very high levels of airborne radioactivity in work areas in July 1969? In 1997 Silver arranged for a set of finding aids to historical documents in the LANL Archives to be placed in the Community Reading Room in Los Alamos. From those finding aids (called “Records Transfer Request forms”) he honed in on specific documents which he needs to answer the above questions and complete his doctorate on historical emissions from LANL. Silver temporarily shelved his use of FOIA as a research tool when the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced in 1998 that they would be reviewing every box of LANL historical records for evidence of off-site releases, and placing copies of key records in the public domain. But CDC has been locked out of the main LANL records facilities since June 2000 because of security concerns. “These documents deal with environmental releases. They have nothing to do with the details of weapons design. So DOE and LANL can’t legitimately claim that the documents are ‘classified’ for national security reasons,” Silver asserted. Silver is represented by Attorney Richard Mietz of Santa Fe. "Mr. Silver requested a few very specific documents. He also pinpointed their exact locations in LANL's records facilities. Given the limited nature of records sought in this request, there’s no excuse for DOE taking seven months to respond, when the FOIA statute requires a determination within 20 working days" Mietz said. “If tenacity were money, Ken would be millionaire,” said Dr. Richard Clapp, Associate Professor of Environmental Health and Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH). Clapp, who specializes in community-oriented epidemiology, is Silver’s advisor. “Unfortunately, serious public health researchers who focus on DOE facilities take a lot of lumps and face tremendous obstacles in seeking information about past exposures,” he said. The BUSPH Environmental Health program, home to one of the few groups of scholars and technical experts in environmental health sciences who eschew financial support from private corporations and the operators of polluting facilities, attracts mid-career public interest scientists and advocates. They specialize in assisting communities and labor groups in understanding the activities of polluting facilities. Mr. Silver has 20 years’ experience as a public interest scientist and advocate. He holds a master of science degree from the Harvard School of Public Health. “I’d much prefer to pursue my research hypotheses like a normal researcher, in a low-key, deliberate manner,” said Silver. “But DOE and LANL are so intransigent when it comes to sharing historical data. They’ve left me no choice but to file this lawsuit in a public way,” he said. ***************************************************************** 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: *****************************************************************