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NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS
1 POLITICS / Megawatts for California / Do we seek more nuclear power?
2 Plans for Seabrook reenergize old foes_
3 Energy Department wants access to nuclear trust fund
4 Energy Department wants access to nuclear trust fund
5 NU To Shed Its Interest In Seabrook Power Station _
6 Transformer destroyed in Zion nuclear plant fire
7 Public to lose voice in major planning rows
8 Against the collective (NEW ICRP dose standards)
9 Irish govt to take legal action over BNFL's Sellafield MOX plant
10 ENVIRONMENT: We will have a silent spring
11 Nuclear talent getting scarcer
12 Yuccas meltdown of good sense_
13 DJ Judge To Mull US Bid To Consolidate Nuclear Waste Claims
14 DOE extends Yucca public comment period
15 Europe Sends Nuclear Waste to U.S.
16 Corrections and clarifications
17 Coast Guard betters safety near plant
18 Shuttle diplomacy as BNFL's future hangs in balance
19 Environment News Service: Bush Retains Parts of Mine Cleanup Rule
20 DOE Prepared for Cross-Country Shipment of Spent Nuclear Fuel
21 Havana healing: Cuba opens arms to victims of Chernobyl_
22 Move would increase funds for Yucca project
23 Bush Retains Parts of Mine Cleanup Rule
24 Richardson urges NU grads to give back
NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS
1 Thousands of Scots babies' bones removed
2 US 'planned nuclear first strike on Russia'
3 Doctor: Flats illness was preventable_
4 White house planning to lift sanctions on nuclear India_
5 Joe Carson seeks LOC support
6 Technology:Workers discover leak at SRS
7 Dirtiest job lies ahead at Fernald
8 President, Putin Should Talk Trash--Nuclear Trash, That Is
9 Our View: DOE's concern misdirected on oversight issue
10 Doctor: Flats illness was preventable_
11 A-bomb ruling taken to higher court_
12 Statement By The Press Secretary On White House Release Of
13 Lifting submarine “Kursk” is the question of several hours
14 Activist may sue over evaporator system at INEEL
15 Report: Regional Nuclear Arsenals Create Challenge
16 'Science' was just political smoke screen
17 Nuclear issues expected to dominate President's meeting with Putin
18 DOE Drops Medical Questions_
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NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES
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1 POLITICS / Megawatts for California / Do we seek more nuclear power?
June 17, 2001
Editor -- In response to the "Weigh in" question ("Should
California be looking to nuclear power to meet our energy
needs?): Nuclear power now supplies 18 percent of California's
electricity. But there is little possibility of any new
investment in nuclear power plants here in this decade. A number
of new gas-fired power plants are under construction and planned
for California.
During the last decade, two nuclear power plants (San Onofre-1,
600 megawatts, and Rancho Seco, 900 megawatts) were shut down in
response to political pressure.
California could certainly have benefited from their power in
2000 and 2001.
A. DAVID ROSSIN
Former U.S. assistant secretary for nuclear energy Los Altos
Hills
SOLVE NUCLEAR WASTE PROBLEM
Editor -- I am opposed to any new nuclear power plants until the
question of what to do with the spent fuel is resolved. And I am
opposed to any new fossil fuel power plants because of global
warming.
I realize I am probably in a tiny minority on these issues, and
that new power plants of both kinds are inevitable. However, I
would like to pose some questions that in the long run need to be
resolved:
How long will we allow energy consumption to increase? Gov. Gray
Davis has stated that California's energy demand will increase 4
percent a year. Forever?
How long will we allow population to increase? Will we keep
adding freeways, airport runways, urban and suburban sprawl?
How much longer will the term "economic growth" be seen in a
positive light? Whether or not the current energy crisis is real
or manufactured (I believe the latter is true), these questions
must be addressed for our sake and the sake of future generations
on this planet.
RALPH AVERILL
San Francisco
RISK ISSUE IS UNSETTLED
Editor -- Nuclear power enthusiasts assure us it is safe and
relatively cheap, but let us not be carried away by their
emotionalism.
I propose an impartial "free-market" test of nuclear risk:
Require plant operators to purchase enough accident liability
insurance to cover the full risk.
Right now, an old federal law restricts the dollar amount of
damages that can be paid out to victims. The same law sets up a
ramshackle accident self-insurance scheme.
Imagine what would happen if all drivers had their liability
limited to, say, $1,000, and only had to keep a fraction of that
amount in the bank for self-insurance!
Let's remove the Price-Anderson Act liability ceiling and let
professionals determine the risk and charge the real price for
it. Then we'll know if nuclear euphoria is justified.
BILL PILLING
Bishop
TURN TO RENEWABLE SOURCES
Editor -- The nuclear power debate exemplifies what's wrong with
the way the energy crisis is being discussed.
Why do the same old dangerous, polluting power sources keep
coming up on the short list for meeting our energy needs?
The fact is that renewable sources like wind power, along with
simple efficiency and conservation measures (like making SUVs
fuel-efficient) can meet California's energy needs without
putting the public in danger.
MEREDITH HORTON
Assistant director Citizen Outreach Campaign California Public
Interest Research Group Berkeley
©2001 San Francisco Chronicle Page D - 7
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2 _Plans for Seabrook reenergize old foes_
By Clare Kittredge, Globe Correspondent, 6/17/2001_
SEABROOK - A quarter century ago, New Hampshire's fiercely
pronuclear governor, flanked by snarling police dogs, taunted the
hordes protesting a nuclear plant on the state's coastal marsh.
Seventeen years after antinuclear protests engulfed state
politics, Seabrook's first reactor got the green light. But the
battle crippled its second reactor and fueled the nation's
antinuclear movement. And Seabrook's lead owner went bankrupt.
Now, the aging activists who defied then-Governor Meldrim Thomson
and successfully blocked Seabrook's second reactor vow they will
rise from their dot-com desks and corporate swivel chairs and
fight any move to build a second reactor.
Only this time around, they say, their ranks could be swelled by
a new generation of raucus, anticorporate, antiglobalization
activists.
''There would be an uproar if they tried to revive Seabrook 2,''
predicted Seacoast Anti-Pollution League lawyer Robert Backus,
who led the epic legal fight against Seabrook's first reactor.
''We have three state senators who once were arrested climbing
the fence at Seabrook,'' said Backus, now 62. ''And I haven't
changed my mind. Only this time, I might just join my friends and
climb the fences.''
With interest in things nuclear reawakening under President
George W. Bush, Seabrook and its working reactor are up for sale.
An auction sale manager should be on the case in a month or two,
predicted Seabrook Station spokesman Alan Griffith. ''And if
everything goes according to plan, prospective buyers could come
around and kick the tires next fall.''
Barring a glitch, Griffith said, the plant could change hands in
a year. And a possible bidder, Entergy Corp. of New Orleans,
recently told the Globe it may consider building another reactor
at the site.
Whether a second reactor actually produces power at Seabrook
would be up to its new owners, Griffith said.
As for rescuing Seabrook 2, the rusted hulk long abandoned amid
protests and money woes, he said, ''We've had numbers of plans
for what to do with it - beautify it, raze it, do something to
make it look more acceptable. It's not the most pleasant thing to
look at. But its future is really up to the new owners.''
Meanwhile, those who think they can resurrect a second reactor at
Seabrook without a whimper of protest are not reckoning on the
legions of grizzled Granite Staters who battled the first one,
say some boomers.
''I think there would be a firestorm of protest,'' said
Anti-Pollution League president David Hills, 47, a veteran of
four Seabrook arrests now involved with socially responsible
investing.
And while some locals have said they would welcome a new reactor
and its tax dollars, Hills insists a new breed of urban refugee
would not.
''There's a whole new population on the Seacoast that would be
aghast if they tried to build another reactor or put Unit 2
on-line,'' he said.
As for the young activist set, one twenty-something says many are
nuclear novices, but quick studies.
''The antinuclear movement was so successful that people of my
generation haven't been involved in it, and we're not that well
versed in it,'' said Alison Booth, 23, youth organizer for the
American Friends Service Committee. ''But if it becomes an issue,
I have no doubt that students in the fair trade movement will
become involved in that too. And I think there would be a roar of
protest.''
''The students who are involved in globalization would definitely
be up in arms,'' said New Hampshire Peace Action organizer
Patrick Carkin, who drops into congressional offices dressed as
Saddam Hussein to vent his opposition to US government sanctions
against Iraq.
''The truth is, the closer it gets to home, the easier it gets to
organize.''
But Nelson Lebo, 33, an environmental science teacher at Proctor
Academy in Andover, says he sees too much apathy in most young
people for them to get fired up about Seabrook.
''Global trade and nuclear power, obviously there would be some
overlap,'' said Lebo, ''but Quebec and Seattle were events people
could target. With Seabrook, it would take a lot of organizing.''
Much has changed in the Granite State in the 25 years since ''No
Nukes'' was first intoned across the Seabrook clam flats.
Thomson and his archconservative backers are gone. Gone too is
his pal William Loeb, publisher of Manchester's now somewhat
kinder and gentler Union Leader.
Sitting in the governor's office is a former state senator who
cautions in sedate terms against churning out more nuclear waste
before it has a home.
Pamela Walsh, spokeswoman for Governor Jeanne Shaheen, says the
state's first female governor feels ''the federal government
should meet its commitment to establish a nuclear waste
repository'' before making more waste.
Meanwhile, Senator Burt Cohen, one of those rebel state senators
who invoked ''higher law'' and committed civil disobedience at
Seabrook, feels vindicated by what has unfolded since.
''Look at our electric bills. The people whose feelings have
changed are not us, but PSNH,'' the New Castle Democrat said,
referring to the Seabrook lead owner bankrupted in 1988. ''We
were right and I regret nothing. PSNH was wrong.''
Public Service New Hampshire spokesman Martin Murray, who covered
a few Seabrook protests as a radio reporter for WEVO,
acknowledges that the company's stake in Seabrook led to its
financial woes.
But he says PSNH is now a completely different animal from the
one that went bust when it owned a chunk of the nuclear plant:
It's a power distributor, not a builder.
''I think Senator Cohen and others would admit we desperately
need the power Seabrook produces,'' Murray said. Electric bills
here are among the region's lowest, he maintains. ''It was very
unfortunate the utility went bankrupt.
''If any company wants to build a Unit 2, it would be a whole
different ballgame. It wouldn't be a regulated utility, it would
be a for-profit, market-driven company at its own risk - not the
risk of its customers,'' Murray said.
The nuclear industry itself has changed since the first
protesters were hauled off the rubble-strewn Seabrook
construction site.
Nuclear calamities and near misses fueled innovations that the
industry promises make plants safer. Global attitudes are
shifting, with some countries, such as Germany, abandoning
nuclear power, while others, like the United States, contemplate
a renaissance and still others, like cash-starved Russia, talk
about welcoming the world's nuclear garbage.
Closer to home, many Seabrook protesters have shed their tattered
headbands and tie-dyed duds and moved on to corporate offices.
Others, like Robert ''Renny'' Cushing Jr., an anti-Seabrook
firebrand heading an anti-death penalty group after his father's
murder, now lead factions in the social justice movement.
''The reasons that caused me to protest the plant in the first
place are still there,'' said Cushing. Now 48, he heads Murder
Victims' Families for Reconciliation, based in Cambridge, Mass.
''Entergy officials should have drug tests before they embark on
an other nuclear plant on the marsh.''
And worries about safely storing nuclear waste for 10,000 years
persist.
''The nuclear waste situation has not changed since the first
shovel went in at Seabrook I in 1976,'' groused Paul Gunter, a
cofounder of the Clamshell Alliance. Now 52, Gunter runs the
Reactor Watchdog Project for the Nuclear Information and Resource
Service in Washington.
What the government touts as nuclear renewal, Gunter sees as ''a
relapse.''
''We organized in '76 on a lot of intuition - before Three Mile
Island, before Chernobyl, and the nuclear waste question has only
proliferated since,'' said Gunter, one of the first 18 protesters
arrested at Seabrook on Aug. 1, 1976. ''And the only site the
government and industry has characterized is Yucca Mountain, and
it has 33 earthquake faults.''
But Seabrook's Griffith blames critics for the holdup.
''It's not that nobody's figured it out. We know exactly what's
supposed to happen. Unfortunately, Yucca Flats in Nevada's been a
political football for many years and still continues to be,''
Griffith said.
''By all accounts, it's ready to go,'' said Griffith. ''It was
vetoed twice by the Clinton administration, and it's now before
President Bush.''
This story ran on page 1 of the Boston Globe's New Hampshire
ZWeekly section on 6/17/2001. © Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper
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3 Energy Department wants access to nuclear trust fund
June 16, 2001
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Bush administration is considering ways to
loosen the purse strings on the Yucca Mountain project so the
Energy Department can gain access to billions of dollars sitting
in a nuclear waste trust fund now controlled by Congress.
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said this week that his
department and the White House budget office are discussing how
to tap the Nuclear Waste Trust Fund, which contains about $17
billion in utility fees earmarked to find permanent storage for
77,000 tons of radioactive spent fuel.
Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is being
studied as a potential repository.
Although the trust fund is designated for nuclear waste disposal,
Congress, through its appropriations process, determines how much
can be drawn from the account each year.
In the past five years, lawmakers have cut the Energy
Department's nuclear waste disposal budget requests by between
4.5 percent and 14 percent, amounting to reductions of millions
of dollars and leading program managers to reorganize their work
schedules and delay a repository license application by a year.
When Abraham appeared Wednesday before a House Energy and
Commerce subcommittee, several lawmakers who support a Nevada
repository suggested he revive a proposal to take the Nuclear
Waste Trust Fund "off budget," meaning its contents could be
spent as needed without caps set by Congress.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the subcommittee chairman, asked
Abraham to help remove budget caps on Yucca Mountain. Rep. John
Dingell, D-Mich., pressed Abraham on whether he planned to seek
legislation to open the waste fund. Abraham said he has been
working with Mitchell Daniels, director of the White House budget
office, "to try to move in a direction that would provide some
sort of methodology for us to have access to those dollars,"
according to a transcript.
The Energy Department could run into a much bigger budget crunch
in coming years. To maintain a schedule to build a Yucca Mountain
repository and have it open by 2010, it projects to spend more
than $1.2 billion a year beginning in fiscal 2005.
Dingell said that even under the department's projections, the
project will suffer a budget shortfall of almost $6 billion
between 2002 and 2010.
If the idea is written into legislation, it could provide a test
for Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., who has said he would try to block
legislation that would facilitate nuclear waste disposal in
Nevada.
Reid said Friday that he opposes taking the Nuclear Waste Trust
Fund off budget.
"Why should the Department of Energy, as wasteful and gluttonous
as they are, why should they have absolute control over what
happens to that money?" he asked. "They need to have some
oversight."
Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal
All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc.
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4 Energy Department wants access to nuclear trust fund
June 16, 2001
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Bush administration is considering ways to
loosen the purse strings on the Yucca Mountain project so the
Energy Department can gain access to billions of dollars sitting
in a nuclear waste trust fund now controlled by Congress.
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said this week that his
department and the White House budget office are discussing how
to tap the Nuclear Waste Trust Fund, which contains about $17
billion in utility fees earmarked to find permanent storage for
77,000 tons of radioactive spent fuel.
Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is being
studied as a potential repository.
Although the trust fund is designated for nuclear waste disposal,
Congress, through its appropriations process, determines how much
can be drawn from the account each year.
In the past five years, lawmakers have cut the Energy
Department's nuclear waste disposal budget requests by between
4.5 percent and 14 percent, amounting to reductions of millions
of dollars and leading program managers to reorganize their work
schedules and delay a repository license application by a year.
When Abraham appeared Wednesday before a House Energy and
Commerce subcommittee, several lawmakers who support a Nevada
repository suggested he revive a proposal to take the Nuclear
Waste Trust Fund "off budget," meaning its contents could be
spent as needed without caps set by Congress.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the subcommittee chairman, asked
Abraham to help remove budget caps on Yucca Mountain. Rep. John
Dingell, D-Mich., pressed Abraham on whether he planned to seek
legislation to open the waste fund.
Abraham said he has been working with Mitchell Daniels, director
of the White House budget office, "to try to move in a direction
that would provide some sort of methodology for us to have access
to those dollars," according to a transcript.
The Energy Department could run into a much bigger budget crunch
in coming years. To maintain a schedule to build a Yucca Mountain
repository and have it open by 2010, it projects to spend more
than $1.2 billion a year beginning in fiscal 2005.
Dingell said that even under the department's projections, the
project will suffer a budget shortfall of almost $6 billion
between 2002 and 2010.
If the idea is written into legislation, it could provide a test
for Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., who has said he would try to block
legislation that would facilitate nuclear waste disposal in
Nevada.
Reid said Friday that he opposes taking the Nuclear Waste Trust
Fund off budget.
"Why should the Department of Energy, as wasteful and gluttonous
as they are, why should they have absolute control over what
happens to that money?" he asked. "They need to have some
oversight."
Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal
All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc.
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5 NU To Shed Its Interest In Seabrook Power Station _
ctnow.com
, June 16
_The Hartford Courant _
June 14, 2001
Northeast Utilities Inc. is preparing to shed its interest in another nuclear
power plant.
NU subsidiary North Atlantic Energy Corp. is preparing to sell its 36 percent
interest in the 1,162-megawatt Seabrook Power Station in Seabrook, N.H.
This past week, the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission solicited for a
manager to administer the sale.
The state regulators will hold a bidder's conference on Monday in Concord,
N.H.
The deadline for applications is July 9.
Earlier this year, J.P. Morgan Chase &Co. Inc. oversaw the sale of another
former NU holding, the Millstone Power Station in Waterford, for a record $1.5
billion to Dominion Resources Inc. of Virginia.
Morgan Chase is now handling the sale of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power
station.
©2001 MyWay Corp.
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6 Transformer destroyed in Zion nuclear plant fire
June 16 08:33 AM EDT_
*By Andis Robeznieks Daily Herald Staff Writer*
Damage from a Friday morning fire at the Zion nuclear plant was
limited to a ComEd electrical transformer, officials said.
The transformer was destroyed.
The fire started around 8 a.m., was confined to one room and was
not linked to any nuclear energy operation, said Lt. Alex
Dimitrijevich of the Zion Fire-Rescue Department. No one was
injured.
"There was a rather sizeable fire inside the room, but the ComEd
guys got it under control," Dimitrijevich said. "Then we came and
mopped up."
The cause of the fire is under investigation, but Dimitrijevich
said he believes it was probably due to an electrical
malfunction.
He said the destroyed transformer was not used in any nuclear
capacity. It supplied current to keep computer batteries charged.
Although it was considered a minor fire, Dimitrijevich said
officials didn't take any chances, and calls went out to several
departments for assistance, including those in Libertyville,
Winthrop Harbor, Antioch, Newport, Waukegan and Kenosha.
"Until we figured out what was going on, we wanted to make sure
we had enough people," Dimitrijevich said. "After we knew what we
had, we sent people home."
Zion firefighters, however, stayed until about 11 a.m., he said.
No damage estimates were available, but Demitrijevich said he
believed replacing the transformer would cost "a considerable
amount." _ Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! and .
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7 Public to lose voice in major planning rows
© 2001 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
18 June 2001 05:41 GMT+1
Home > News > UK > Environment
By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor
17 June 2001
Ministers are urgently drawing up plans to prevent opposition
through public inquiries to the building of nuclear dumps and
power stations, motorways, airports and other controversial
developments.
The plans, which could allow ministers to give the green light to
hotly contested projects virtually by decree, pose the greatest
threat to democracy in planning since the system was set up by a
Labour government half a century ago. They would reduce public
inquiries to considering only "local" and "detailed" issues
such as how developments are landscaped but forbid them from
even discussing whether they are needed in the first place.
Pushed through by Tony Blair, following a campaign by the
Confederation of British Industry, the plans promise to spark
militant opposition, blighting the Government's second term.
Environmentalists yesterday denounced them as "control-freakery
of the worst kind" and warned that they would produce massive
protests.
The move follows last weekend's stripping of environmental
responsibilities from the department responsible for planning and
transport, and the creation of the new Department for the
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The remaining Department of
Transport, Local Government and the Regions has been equipped
with several pro-development junior ministers.
Lord Falconer the minister responsible for the Millennium Dome
has been put in charge of planning and given the job of pushing
the proposals through. His department said late last week that
they would be finalised and made public "as soon as practicable".
The plans have been sparked by frustration at the length of some
fiercely fought public inquiries. They are designed for large,
controversial projects and were foreshadowed in Labour's
little-noticed election manifesto for business. Senior officials
and business leaders cite the inquiry into Heathrow's Terminal
Five, which sat for a record 524 days.
The new plans aim "to reduce unnecessary debate at inquiries".
The Government will issue "national policy framework statements",
setting out the need for the developments "before they are
considered in the planning system".
"New parliamentary procedures to approve projects in principle"
will be introduced. In effect, these will allow the go-ahead for
major developments such as the Channel Tunnel to be whipped
through Westminster without the need for a special Act of
Parliament..
Ministers would be able to decide to build a motorway or nuclear
dump subject only to sharply curtailed parliamentary scrutiny.
Draft plans say that "single debates" would be held in each House
"on a motion moved by a Minister, inviting the House to approve
the proposals".
After this "a short, subsequent inquiry would consider detailed
and local matters". Specific provisions would "preclude
discussion of matters settled by Parliament's approval in
principle".
The new measures would apply to "projects of national
significance". Ministers are considering applying them to "new
airports or major extensions to airports; nuclear and other major
waste disposal sites; power stations; major rail lines; major
roads; and major minerals sites".
Draft plans acknowledge that public inquiries are "an important
feature of the democratic process" which help ensure "open and
fair" decisions. But they add "such an all-embracing process is
slow and costly and damages the economy." Late last week the CBI
welcomed the Government's "commitment" to "a more rational
inquiry process".
But the Royal Town Planning Institute said it was concerned that
people would feel they were no longer getting "a fair hearing".
Richard Macrory, Professor of Environmental Law at University
College London, said some past decisions would have been worse if
they had been made in Parliament rather than after a public
inquiry.
Tony Burton, deputy director of the Council for the Protection of
Rural England, said the plans threatened "the widest change to
the ability of the planning system to scrutinise developments
since it was established".
And Charles Secrett, executive director of Friends of the Earth,
said: "This is control freakery of the worst kind. Any attempt to
neuter public inquiries in this way will produce an explosion of
environmental protest."
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8 Against the collective (NEW ICRP dose standards)
_New Scientist_
_Tuesday June 12, 07:35 PM_
*By Rob Edwards*
A RADICAL overhaul of the international safety regime governing
radiation would give the nuclear industry a licence to pollute
the seas and air, warn scientists. It might mean a worldwide rise
in cancers in the long term.
The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP),
the world advisory body based in Stockholm, Sweden, wants to make
big changes to the way safety levels are decided for people
exposed to radiation from nuclear plants, industrial sources and
medical X-rays. But its plans, outlined for the first time last
week, have already fallen foul of experts who see no reason to
change the system agreed in 1990.
That system relies on measuring the "collective dose" of
radiation received by large populations of people over extremely
long time periods. Some regulators believe this is important
because it means they can estimate the worldwide cancer risk from
releasing radioactive isotopes into the environment with
half-lives of thousands of years (New Scientist, 24 March, p 17).
But the ICRP says that the notion of collective dose has proved
"unsuitable". Often it covers the threat posed by radiation to
the entire world population for the rest of time. Instead, the
17-member commission is thinking of introducing a "group" or
"workforce" dose limited to measuring the exposure of smaller
numbers of people over shorter timescales, though it hasn't yet
specified how many or how long.
This amounts to "a green light to continuing pollution",
according to Ian Fairlie, a consultant in environmental
radioactivity who has worked for regulatory agencies and
anti-nuclear groups. Under the new system, it may be possible to
quantify the risk to a few specific individuals from radioactive
waste pumped into the sea, for example. But it doesn't take into
account the risk of more cancers in the population sometime in
the future. "This sits uneasily with growing awareness about the
effects of radiation on the environment," Fairlie says.
Britain's advisory Committee on the Medical Aspects of Radiation
in the Environment (COMARE) has also told ICRP that it would be
"very reluctant" to abandon collective dose. COMARE chairman Bryn
Bridges says the concept gives governments and the public an
estimate of how future health will be affected by
radioactivity--but he thinks the collective dose should cover
just 500 years.
ICRP points out that the current system is founded on the risk
that ionising radiation poses to society as a whole. It wants to
shift this to a regime that concentrates on an individual's risk.
But for the moment it is not planning to abandon the underlying
assumption that any level of exposure to radiation, however
small, carries a potential risk.
ICRP chairman, Roger Clarke, denies the new system would be a
licence to pollute because it would reduce the radiation doses of
the most exposed groups of individuals. It will also make it
simpler to enforce safety limits--10 different limits, as well as
collective doses, are in operation at the moment, he says. "The
proposal is to try and rationalise this complex and widely
misunderstood system."
But radiation scientists defend the existing system. "If it ain't
broke, don't fix it," says Geoffrey Webb, president of the
International Radiation Protection Association.
More at: Journal of Radiological Protection (vol 21, p 113)
Copyright © 2001 New Scientist. All rights reserved.
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9 Irish govt to take legal action over BNFL's Sellafield MOX plant
DUBLIN (AFX) - The government said it is to take legal action
against the UK over the proposed MOX (mixed oxide fuel)
processing unit at British Nuclear Fuel PLC's Sellafield plant.
Minister of State at the Department of Public Enterprise Joe
Jacob said the legal action was being taken over the UK's refusal
to release information about the MOX reprocessing plant on the
grounds of confidentiality.
He said that the legal action would be taken to an arbitration
panel under the international anti-pollution agreement on the
marine environment in the north-east Atlantic, the Oslo-Paris
Commission (OSPAR).
The MOX facility has been completed at Sellafield but the UK
government is still deciding whether to give it the go-ahead.
MOX is a mixture of plutonium and uranium and the function of the
plant is to reprocess spent nuclear fuel which is imported from
mainland Europe, Japan and the US.
"It is a reprocessing plant very, very close to Ireland and
represents a major hazard in the view of successive government.
Ireland is totally opposed to the commissioning of this plant,"
Jacob said.
Jacob added that when they received the information, the Irish
government would pursue further action against Sellafield under
EU law.
Prime Minister Bertie Ahern has previously called for its
closure, describing it as "a clear and totally unacceptable
danger" to the Irish people.
ab/wf/cmr
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10 ENVIRONMENT: We will have a silent spring
061601 oplettersreaders 2 Jacksonville.com
I just hate it when people go around bashing those of us who want
a sustainable world. -->_
Saturday, June 16, 2001 _
*Story last updated at 10:53 p.m. on Friday, June 15, 2001*
I just hate it when people go around bashing those of us who want
a sustainable world.
We need more and cleaner ways to meet energy needs. Nuclear
energy is clean to produce, but is it cheap enough? And, what
will we do with the wastes that are left over?
If we can solve that problem, I might go for it. I do not
believe the best solution is to bury it in a mountain in Montana.
Nuclear wastes last for thousands of years. There is no guarantee
that it will not get into the drinking water of the Earth.
We were warned many years ago about the dangers of long-lasting
insecticides that not only kill bad bugs and bacteria, but good
ones as well. Spraying eliminated a great many plants that were
not intended targets.
Many plants found naturally in the environment must be left
there. For instance, much of the sagebrush out West was sprayed,
and grass was planted to feed domestic cattle. That was fine,
until the winter came. The grass was not there, and the sage that
feed the sheep over the winter and kept them from starving was
gone. Many sheep died from want of sustenance. Many wild
antelopes died, too.
The willows had been sprayed, yielding to the demands of the
cattlemen, depriving the moose of their natural food. Beavers
depended on the willows, also, and the lakes they made also
disappeared. The moose and the beavers were gone.
Fish couldn't live in the meager little streams that were left
after their master architects, the beavers, were gone. The area
that had been excellent for recreational hunting and fishing was
no longer viable.
Try to find wildflowers. There are few roads that have not been
treated with herbicides and replanted with grass. Not only does
that cheat all of us out of seeing our native plants, but the
landscape is sterile. Grass has to be mowed regularly, and it is
monotonous to look at as we travel.
There are a few surviving wildflowers in some places to greet
us, but not the big display that used to be. We can't eat those
plants, but we sure do love to see them.
Honey bees are getting scarce, too. How are crops going to be
pollinated without them?
Think about the necessities of life, and think what produces
them. When the animals and the plants go, we will, too. We are
all part of one big plan.
*_PRISSY BOWERS_ _Jacksonville_*
*****************************************************************
11 Nuclear talent getting scarcer
Jun. 16, 2001 _
_Few young workers means slow progress_
By _Tim Bonfield_ _The Cincinnati Enquirer_
_CROSBY TOWNSHIP_ — America might have plenty of raw
materials, such as stockpiled uranium and plutonium, to expand
the nation's nuclear energy capacity — but it is running short on
the people with the technical skills to make it happen.
During a tour Friday of a multibillion-dollar cleanup at
the former Fernald uranium processing plant, Sen. George
Voinovich said America needs to increase its use of nuclear
energy to reduce energy shortages like those experienced in
California.
“I'm going to do everything I can to increase production
of nuclear power in this country. We're way behind Europe,” Mr.
Voinovich said.
“I know of businesspeople willing to build six new
reactors right now” if they could get approval to act, Mr.
Voinovich said.
But actually building such plants could be a problem.
John Bradburne, president and CEO of Fluor-Fernald Inc.,
says America has more uranium and plutonium than it really needs.
What it lacks, however, are the people and the facilities to
build and run the facilities.
“We haven't built one in 20 years or more,” Mr. Bradburne
said. “If we wanted to order a plant right now, we'd have to go
to France or other countries to get it.”
In fact, the people problem goes beyond nuclear power
plants to affect the Department of Defense, the State Department
and other vital government functions, Mr. Voinovich said.
“America is facing a human capital crisis. You can have
all this stuff (such as stockpiles of nuclear fuel), but if you
don't have people to get the job done, you've got deep trouble,”
Mr. Voinovich said.
For example, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has six
times as many employees older than 60 as it does under age 30.
One third of the civilian workers in the Department of Defense
are older than 51.
At Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton — which
employs more than 10,000 civilians and serves as headquarters of
the Air Force Materiel Command — about 60 percent of its workers
will be eligible for retirement or early retirement by 2005.
By that time, less than 2 percent of its staff will be
under age 34.
Not only do the retirements threaten the loss of valuable
institutional knowledge, the lack of young people coming into
jobs means government agencies are falling even more behind on
new technology skills.
Mr. Voinovich and Sen. Mike DeWine have proposed
legislation to make it easier for retired civilians to return to
key government jobs. He also wants to see increased government
recruiting at the nation's universities, including possible
tuition or student loan repayment incentives.
Copyright1995-2001. The Cincinnati Enquirer, a Gannett Co.
Inc.newspaper.
*****************************************************************
12 Yuccas meltdown of good sense_
Letters -- The Washington Times
_LETTERS TO THE EDITOR_
June 15, 2001
As Charles Rousseaux elaborates in his Commentary columns, it certainly
is hard to understand opposition to the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste
repository ("NIMBY writ large at Yucca," June 6; "What Yucca offers ... for
10,000 years," June 7). It sits at the same site where dozens of nuclear
weapons were exploded over the past few decades. By contrast, the waste
repository will be a quiet neighbor, with engineered and carefully chosen
geological barriers between the public and the nuclear material.
This contrast reveals the true nature of the opposition to Yucca
Mountain, which is fueled by political agendas. The anti-nuclear-power
movement sees any progress toward solving the waste problem as removing the
last impediment to expanded use of nuclear power. No matter how clean and
safe, nuclear power somehow violates their ideology.
Then there are the politicians who are enhancing their statuses by making
their constituencies believe they are protecting those constituencies from the
big, bad nuclear menace. Again, the reality of how benign the repository will
be, especially compared to many other technological marvels, is irrelevant to
their political aims.
The United States needs to finally show some maturity with regard to
nuclear power. We need to close the loop and finish the development of the
repository at Yucca Mountain.
BRUCE R. BOLLER
Lexington, Va.
All site contents copyright © 2001 News World Communications, Inc.
*****************************************************************
13 DJ Judge To Mull US Bid To Consolidate Nuclear Waste Claims
PowerMarketers.com: Energy News From Dow Jones
Copyright © 2001 Dow Jones &Company, Inc.
_ _
( June 14, 2001 )
-->
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge
heard oral arguments Thursday on a government motion to
consolidate 17 claims for billions of dollars in damages sought
by nuclear utilities.
The breach-of-contract claims stem from the U.S. Department of
Energy's failure to meet a January 1998 contractual obligation to
begin storing more than 40,000 tons of spent-fuel waste currently
housed at more than 100 nuclear power plants nationwide.
The case has taken on added import in recent weeks as Democrats
have taken control of the Senate and vowed to stymie Republican
efforts to move nuclear-waste disposal legislation in Congress.
The 1998 contractual obligation was an outgrowth of the Nuclear
Waste Policy Act, which required the Energy Department to
investigate Yucca Mountain, Nev., as a long-term repository for
spent-fuel waste.
Congress directed the government to have the repository ready by
1998, but a decision whether the desert site is suitable isn't
expected until the end of this year.
The Energy Department says the earliest Yucca Mountain could
begin accepting nuclear waste is 2010, long after many nuclear
power facilities will have run out of on-site storage space.
Resolution of the spent-fuel issue is seen as key to the Bush
administration realizing its energy policy objective of
encouraging investment in new nuclear power production.
The Department of Justice, on behalf of the Energy Department,
wants to consolidate the 17 cases now slated to be heard by
several different claims court judges.
The government also wants to serve notice to utilities that
haven't yet filed damages claims to participate in a consolidated
proceeding or forfeit future claims for damages.
The Justice Department argued that all nuclear utilities must
participate in determining the schedule under which the Energy
Department would accept shipments of spent-fuel waste. Only
against such an acceptance schedule could the court weigh the
amount of damages utilities are owed.
But attorneys representing nuclear utilities opposed the motion
during Thursday's hearing, arguing it would only further slow
down resolution of their claims.
Judge John Wiese, who presided over Thursday's hearing, was
appointed by the court's chief judge to determine whether the
cases presented issues of "fact and law" enough in common to
warrant consolidation.
Wiese also was given the latitude to decide alternative
approaches, including development of a case-management plan. The
judge also could coordinate discovery proceedings and direct
development of a comprehensive spent-fuel acceptance schedule.
The judge noted that any decision to consolidate must be agreed
to by the individual judges now assigned to hear the cases.
Justice Department attorney Harold Lester argued that common
issues of fact and law justify a consolidated proceeding. The
government wants to "preclude the necessity of having multiple
trials over the same issues," Lester said.
And by providing notice to utilities that haven't yet filed
damages claims, the U.S. can avoid having to face "a new round of
litigation," Lester said.
Utility attorneys urged Wiese to adopt an accelerated discovery
proceeding. A stay still in place as a result of a previous
government appeal has prevented many utilities from advancing
their cases.
The court can't decide whether the cases have common issues of
fact and law since most haven't yet begun the discovery process,
said Melvin Blanton, a Balch &Bingham attorney representing the
nuclear operating unit of Southern Co. (SO).
The government's argument for consolidation "is theoretical given
we've had no discovery," Blanton said.
"Each utility is in a different circumstance," argued Alexander
Tomaszczuk, an attorney with Shaw Pittman representing nine
different utilities.
Excel Energy's Northern States Power Co. (XEL), for instance,
faces a waste-storage limit imposed by the Minnesota Legislature
that will require it to shut down its Prairie Island nuclear
plant unless the government meets its contractual obligation,
Tomaszczuk noted.
"It would be unjust to make us wait," said Jerry Stouck of
Spriggs &Hollingsworth, who represents three utility companies in
New England that have shut down their nuclear plants. Continued
storage of spent fuel is adding to the costs of decommissioning
the nuclear plants.
Stouck's cases were the first filed in 1998, and he expressed
frustration that the stay has delayed for two years moving to
trial to determine actual damages.
"We don't want to delay our case at all while the others catch
up," Stouck said. "We can be ready for trial in six months," he
told the judge, urging the stay be lifted so he can begin
deposing government witnesses.
-By Bryan Lee, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6647;
mailto:bryan.lee@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires 14-06-01
*****************************************************************
14 DOE extends Yucca public comment period
[Las Vegas Review-Journal]
Saturday, June 16, 2001
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
_By KEITH ROGERS _
REVIEW-JOURNAL _
_The Department of Energy on Friday extended the period for
receiving public comments on a supplement to the environmental
impact statement for the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste
repository.
Set to expire June 25, the comment period has been extended by
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham to July 6, said Yucca Mountain
Project spokesman Allen Benson.
State and local governments had requested a 45-day extension to
review the 80-page document and attachments.
"We believed the original comment period was appropriate given
the length of the document, but because we got the request we
felt the additional two working weeks was sufficient," Benson
said.
Officials for state and local governments have said the
supplement lacks assessments for an earthquake damaging
facilities where spent nuclear fuel assemblies temporarily would
be stored above ground before it is entombed in the volcanic rock
ridge, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
Nevada officials also expressed concern about the flexible
repository design called for in the report.
This story is located at:
http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Jun-16-Sat-2001/news/16335428.html
*****************************************************************
15 Europe Sends Nuclear Waste to U.S.
_June 16, 2001
NewsMax.com Wires*_
_*Saturday, June 16, 2001*_ _WASHINGTON (UPI) - Europe, which
frequently attacks U.S. environmental policies, is having spent
nuclear fuel trucked across the United States for disposal in
Idaho later this month, the Department of Energy announced
Friday.
Three casks of spent enriched uranium used in European reactors
will be hauled from the Energy Department's Savannah River Site
to the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory
along a carefully selected route while being monitored by
satellite.
"Under Department of Transportation regulations, spent fuel is
shipped on interstate highway routes that offer a limited time in
transit," the Energy Department said in a statement. "The
interstate system highways are federally 'preferred routes'
according to DOT guidelines. Routes are selected through a
peer-reviewed selection process."
The exact route and the schedule were not released, but the
agency noted that Missouri Highway Patrol officers had recently
completed a special safety training course.
"Satellite tracking will monitor the shipment," the Energy
Department said. "In addition, specific safety enhancements
agreed to by the state of Missouri and the department will govern
the Missouri leg of the shipment."
The casks are part of a shipment of nine casks of waste fuel
that had been supplied by the United States for use in European
reactors. The casks will be unloaded at Savannah River, where six
will remain; the other three will be sent to the Idaho National
Engineering and Environmental Laboratory.
The shipment will be the 20th made under the Foreign Research
Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel Acceptance Program, which was launched
under the Clinton administration as a means of preventing
U.S.-produced nuclear materials used in overseas research
reactors from falling into the hands of terrorists or foreign
governments bent on producing a nuclear weapon.
Copyright 2001 by United Press International.
*****************************************************************
16 Corrections and clarifications
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian |
_Saturday June 16, 2001
The Guardian_
• In a panel headed Heads on the block, about the aftermath of
the Conservative election campaign, page 5, June 8, we said that
Tim Collins MP had drafted William Hague's "foreign land" speech
and the briefing which led journalists to see it as an attack on
asylum seekers. Mr Collins has asked us to make it clear that he
played no part in the drafting of Mr Hague's speech. Neither did
he have anything to do with briefing journalists on the speech.
He was, however, instrumental in advising Mr Hague to sign the
Commission for Racial Equality's declaration on the need to avoid
racist language in election campaigning.
• In our reference to the proposals for a new nuclear plant at
Sellafield, page 3, June 14, we mistakenly suggested that the Mox
(mixed oxide) plant would reprocess nuclear fuel. It is not
designed to do that nor could it do so. It is designed to
fabricate mixed oxide (Mox) plutonium-uranium nuclear fuel using
plutonium separated, that is reprocessed, in either the old B-205
Magnox reprocessing plant or Thorp (the thermal oxide
reprocessing plant). It processes plutonium but it does not
reprocess it.
• Sir Michael Peat (Pass Notes, page 3, G2, June 12) is the
great-grandson of William Barclay Peat, the founding partner of
accountancy firm KPMG Peat Marwick, and not, as we suggested, the
son.
• An editing error has slightly garbled the first paragraph of
the readers' editor's column, page 7, today's Saturday Review. It
should read: Well within a year the Guardian should have an
establishment called the Newsroom - an archive and visitors'
centre - housed in a beautiful 19th-century building at 60
Farringdon Road, immediately opposite the main and
uncompromisingly plain building in which I write this, at 119
Farringdon Road. In an article Who'd live in a house like this?,
page 4, G2, yesterday, we said, "There is a term ... for the
spell a house puts on people the first time they see it. It is
called curb-appeal." That is what it is called in the US. In
Britain it would be kerb-appeal.
It is the policy of the Guardian to correct significant errors as
soon as possible. Please quote the date and page number. Readers
may contact the office of the readers' editor by telephoning 0845
451 9589 between 11am and 5pm Monday to Friday (all calls are
charged at local rate). Mail to Readers' editor, The Guardian,
119 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3ER. Fax 020-7239 9897. Email:
reader@guardian.co.uk
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001
*****************************************************************
17 Coast Guard betters safety near plant
Poughkeepsie Journal
Saturday, June 16, 2001
While officials still grapple with ensuring Indian Point 2 can
operate without mishap, the Coast Guard is making a wise decision
to promote public safety. Coast Guard officials are considering a
rule that would allow them to block vessels from a 20-mile
stretch of the Hudson River between the Tappan Zee Bridge to the
south and Breakneck Point, near the Dutchess-Putnam border, to
the north. If ever there were a radiation emergency at the
nuclear power station in Buchanan, this ''permanent safety zone''
could be declared off-limits to all vessels. In an emergency,
vessels would not be allowed into the zone, and any already
within the zone would have to leave immediately, staying upwind
of Indian Point to avoid any potential exposure to wind-borne
radiation.
But the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the state Energy
Management Office and emergency management offices for
Westchester, Putnam, Rockland and Orange counties have raised
concerns about the Coast Guard's proposal. Plant owner
Consolidated Edison, and the company it's selling Indian Point 2
to, Entergy Corp., have also objected. They say the Coast Guard's
proposal would interfere with the responsibility of area county
executives to declare an emergency.
Surely these objections can be worked out -- and should be. Local
officials do know their citizens best, and know best how to move
them to safety. But the Coast Guard knows best how to safely, yet
quickly, handle river traffic, which can include everything from
personal watercraft to sailboats to huge barges.
Communication has, in the past, been a big problem. Since
February 2000, there have been three radioactive leaks at the
plant. While none of them was particularly serious, they did
serve to highlight glitches in the emergency response system,
leading to some local and state officials not being immediately
notified of the leaks.
Officials have been working hard to ease this concern, largely
thanks to U.S. Rep. Sue Kelly, R-Katonah, who has beat the drum
of ''safety first'' for some time. Lately, she's been calling for
congressional hearings on nuclear plant safety, and plans to
demand industry-standard leakage limits be significantly lowered
nationwide.
The Coast Guard's move falls in well with other efforts to
improve safety for workers at the plant and citizens who live and
work in nearby communities. Local officials would do well to
cooperate with the Guard in ensuring citizens are protected.
*Copyright © 2001, Poughkeepsie Journal*.
*****************************************************************
18 Shuttle diplomacy as BNFL's future hangs in balance
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian |
_Jane Martinson in Washington
Saturday June 16, 2001
The Guardian_
British Nuclear Fuels expects the government to give a
preliminary go-ahead for its controversial plant at the nuclear
reprocessing centre at Sellafield in the next few weeks.
The Department of the Environment needs to approve the
commissioning of plutonium before the mixed oxide fuel (Mox)
plant can start operating. This would allow the company to start
operating for the first time after four public inquiries. Talks
between the company and the government, its main shareholder, are
at a particularly sensitive stage.
In an interview with the Guardian yesterday, Hugh Collum,
chairman of the state-owned company, described the situation at
the £462m plant as "dynamic". The plant faces a lack of orders,
calls for a judicial review and the need for government approval.
Mr Collum left the US capital yesterday after two days of
meetings with senior US officials, including US vice president
Dick Cheney. BNFL hopes to be a big beneficiary of the proposed
energy bill championed by Mr Cheney, expected to lead to the
first nuclear power plants being built in the US for more than 30
years.
The company aimed to per suade senior politicians that it has the
capacity to act as a "one-stop shop" with both the building
capabilities of Westinghouse, its US subsidiary, and clean-up
technology. The US department of energy has estimated that the
clean-up market alone is worth $300bn.
"Both Westinghouse and the clean-up operations are performing
much better than 12 months ago," said Mr Collum, immediately
after his meeting with America's second-most powerful politician.
BNFL was forced to withdraw from a nuclear clean-up project in
the US two years ago after mistakes were made but hopes to win US
regulatory approval for two new plant designs.
Almost two years ago, it also admitted to falsifying data at
Sellafield where problems have dwarfed any mishap in the US. The
DoE has withheld its approval of the new plant until the company
can prove it has enough orders to cover the costs of
contaminating the building with plutonium.
Mr Collum said yesterday that the company had orders from
Switzerland and Germany for two years. However, analysts believe
that the plant must win over the Japanese authorities, which has
a much larger supply of fuel to be reprocessed, in order to cover
its costs.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001
*****************************************************************
19 Environment News Service: Bush Retains Parts of Mine Cleanup Rule
_Bush Retains Parts of Mine Cleanup Rule_
_By Cat Lazaroff_
_WASHINGTON, DC,_ June 15, 2001 (ENS) - The U.S. Bureau of Land
Management announced today that it will retain a new requirement
that hardrock mining companies post bonds sufficient to cover
cleanup expenses after mining is complete. The decision helped
allay fears that the Bush administration would discard the
Clinton era rule, which aimed to reduce the environmental impacts
of mining on public lands.
[coal mine] Mining operations accounted for 48 percent of the
toxic emissions reported in the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's 1998 Toxic Release Inventory (Photo by Chuck Meyers,
courtesy Office of Surface Mining) The Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) said that hardrock mining operators will be required to
provide a financial guarantee, or bond, to show that they can pay
the costs of reclaiming federal land after the mining process is
completed. Hard rock mining includes mining for minerals like
gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, uranium and molybdenum.
Without the bonding requirement, taxpayers could end up paying
for between $1 billion and $20 billion in potential clean up
costs for currently operating metals mines.
The requirement is part of revised federal surface management
regulations, commonly called 3809 regulations, which were
finalized on January 20, the last day of the Clinton
administration.
The agency added that it is briefly extending the deadline for
mining operations to meet the bond requirement. The extension
amounts to two or four months, depending on whether a mining
operation has already provided a financial guarantee.
Without this brief extension, the federal government, the states
and mining operations would be unable to take the steps necessary
to achieve full compliance with the requirements, the BLM said.
[mine] The Golden Sunlight Mine in Montana produces .05 ounces of
gold per ton of ore mined (Three photos courtesy Bureau of Land
Management) "This will help the BLM more effectively administer
the regulations and give mining operators additional time to
comply with the rules," said BLM acting director Nina Rose
Hatfield. "It also emphasizes the Administration's commitment to
protecting America's taxpayers from having to foot the bill for
reclamation work."
The new rule affects mining operators who have plans of operation
that were approved by the BLM before January 20, 2001, by
extending the deadline for when those operators must meet the
financial guarantee requirements. For operators who have already
provided a financial guarantee, the deadline for meeting any new
requirements changes from July 19, 2001, to November 20, 2001.
For operators conducting operations who have not provided any
financial guarantee, the deadline is September 13, 2001.
The BLM expects to complete a rulemaking process later this
summer to address surface mining regulation issues other than
financial guarantees that the Bush administration has identified
as problematic.
In March, the BLM proposed to suspend the revised 3809 rules
entirely, citing objections by mining groups to new, more
stringent environmental standards for cleanup and reclamation of
mined lands. The mining industry has filed four lawsuits against
the new regulations.
"People have raised concerns about the new rules on both policy
and legal grounds," said acting director Hatfield. "If there are
legitimate issues which need to be addressed, we should do so
sooner rather than later."
[mine truck] The revised surface mining rules require mining
companies to pay for cleanup and rehabilitation of mined federal
lands The rules underwent a four year public comment period
before being finalized in January. Bush asked for an additional
45 day comment period on March 21, asking for public opinions on
whether to throw out the new rules, retain the new rules in their
current form, or rewrite the new rules.
"It would be better to address these concerns now in a thorough
review rather than have a partial implementation which may be
delayed or subsequently stopped," said Hatfield. "We want to
avoid creating disruption and uncertainty for the industry, the
states and the BLM which jointly regulate the mining industry,
and the public."
Environmental groups condemned the announcement as another in a
string of concessions to industry by the Bush administration.
"Bush is attacking the environment by land, water, and air," said
Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club. "His suspension
of mining rules is the latest in a recent string of assaults on
the environment and is a gift to the polluting mining industry,
paid for by taxpayers."
On May 9, members of Congress released a tally of public comments
submitted to the Bush Administration during the comment period,
showing that the more than 30,500 comments favored preservation
of the current mining safeguards 50 to 1. [mine machine] Hard
rock mining subsidies allow mining companies to extract minerals
from public lands at little cost Today, some groups offered hope
that the Bush administration will retain the rules.
"Today's mining decision by the Bureau of Land Management is a
good first step toward the comprehensive mining reform that
taxpayers deserve," said Jill Lancelot, legislative director at
Taxpayers for Common Sense. "The new rules will protect taxpayers
from billions of dollars in liability from mine cleanups."
"While the new rule is a good start, it addresses just one small
piece of the mining picture," cautioned Lancelot. "Despite these
new protections, mining companies still get taxpayer owned land
for rock bottom prices ranging from $2.50 to $5 an acre and
extract precious metals from those lands for free."
*****************************************************************
20 DOE Prepared for Cross-Country Shipment of Spent Nuclear Fuel
energy.gov - Headquarters' Press Release
RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2001 [Print Friendly Version]
*Missouri State Officials Complete Safety Training*
The Department of Energy (DOE) has completed its plan for the
cross-country transportation of spent nuclear fuel from foreign
research reactors by the end of June 2001 in accordance with the
Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel Acceptance Program.
This will be the 20th shipment under the national
non-proliferation program, and will include nine casks -- or
storage containers -- from Europe.
Initially, the spent fuel will be delivered to the department’s
Savannah River Site in South Carolina. Six casks will be unloaded
and stored at the Savannah River Site, and three casks will be
sent by truck to the department’s Idaho National Engineering and
Environmental Laboratory. These two DOE sites manage the
disposition of spent fuel based on type.
Spent fuel eligible for shipment contains uranium that was
originally enriched and provided to European reactors by the
United States. Under this program, up to 20 metric tons of spent
nuclear fuel from research reactors in 41 countries may be
shipped to the United States through 2009 for disposition.
The department will adhere to safety, routing, and security
regulations established by the Department of Transportation (DOT)
and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the transportation of
spent fuel. Under DOT regulations, spent fuel is shipped on
interstate highway routes that offer a limited time in transit.
The interstate system highways are federally “preferred routes”
according to DOT guidelines. Routes are selected through a
peer-reviewed selection process.
Satellite tracking will monitor the shipment. In addition,
specific safety enhancements agreed to by the state of Missouri
and the department will govern the Missouri leg of the shipment.
The department recently supported special safety training for
Missouri officials – including a special Commercial Vehicle
Safety Alliance inspection training course completed by members
of the Missouri Highway Patrol on June 7, 2001. Other states
previously completed similar training. Also, the state will be
allowed to track movement of nuclear shipments via controlled
computer access.
Detailed information about the nation's program to recover
research reactor spent fuel is available in a booklet, A Guide to
Foreign Research Reactor Spent Fuel, available from the National
Safety Council in Washington, D.C. The booklet also is accessible
on the World Wide Web at .
_Media Contact: _Joe Davis 202/586-4940, Lisa Cutler
202/586-5806 Release No. R-01-095
*****************************************************************
21 Havana healing: Cuba opens arms to victims of Chernobyl_
The Dallas Morning News: World
06/14/2001
_By Tracey Eaton / The Dallas Morning News_
" United Nations historical look at Chernobyl and more on a
group helping young victims in Cuba
"_ Extra content index_
TARARÁ, Cuba They laugh and prance along the beach, toss their
towels onto the sand and rush toward the turquoise-blue water,
all the while chattering away not in Spanish, but in Ukrainian.
These children's light-hearted mood belies the dark legacy that
they share, that of Chernobyl, the world's worst nuclear
accident. They didn't see Reactor No. 4 spew tons of toxins into
the air in 1986. Many of them hadn't even been born. But most
have radiation-related illnesses believed to be linked to the
disaster.
Now they are in Cuba to get well. To feel whole. To endure.
It's been more than a decade since Cuba's chief sponsor, the
Soviet Union, cut off about $6 billion per year in aid. But the
Cubans have been treating Chernobyl victims nonstop since 1990
and will soon hit a milestone: The 20,000-patient mark.
They say they carry on to show the world that much can be
accomplished with meager resources and creative approaches such
as using shark cartilage and human placenta to cure many ills.
Patients' families at the Cuban treatment center in Tarará, east
of Havana, say they are grateful.
"After my son's hair began to fall out, we tried traditional
medicine. But that didn't work," said Lena Melanchenko, 34. "Here
we are already seeing some improvement."
Explosions ripped through Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine on
April 26, 1986, nearly destroying Reactor No. 4 and releasing at
least 200 times more radiation than the atomic bombs dropped over
Nagasaki and Hiroshima in 1945.
Thirty-one people died outright. Many others the estimates vary
widely from 4,000 to 200,000 have since died of
radiation-related illness. And millions 17 million by one
estimate suffered some degree of contamination.
"It was very difficult. It was like a war," said Zinaida
Shovkova, whose son is being treated at Tarará.
_'I can't describe'_
Ms. Shovkova, 45, sat in the living room of her temporary home.
Sun streaming from a window shone on her face. She wiped away a
tear. "I can't describe with words all the suffering, the pain."
No doubt, the Chernobyl nightmare weighs heavily on the minds of
many patients at Tarará, although some marked this year's 15th
anniversary of the disaster not with tears, but with song and
dance.
Music, art, sun and sand for some patients, at least are as
important as careful medical treatment, said Julio Medina,
director of the hospital 12 miles east of Havana.
"Group therapy," he calls it.
It is also important is to treat Chernobyl patients as ordinary
youngsters even if they lose their hair or have skin problems,
he said.
"A lot of the kids arrive wearing baseball caps and long-sleeved
shirts," Mr. Medina said. "They're ashamed of how they look. But
usually after two or three weeks, they take those off. They see
that Cubans don't discriminate against them. We don't make fun of
them. We teach them that there are more important things than
looks things like intelligence."
During the first three years of the program, patients arrived
from Russia, Armenia, Moldova, Belarus and Ukraine. The Soviet
Union broke up, and now only Ukraine sends patients to the
hospital.
Cuban doctors say they have found that the patients suffer from a
double whammy of sorts not only are most of them sick, they
have also had to endure the Soviet empire's fall, which brought
with it economic trouble and declines in medical care.
One consequence is that many arriving patients have health
problems that have nothing to do with Chernobyl from cavities
to gastritis and parasites, Mr. Medina said.
_The chosen ones_
A Cuban specialist in the Ukraine selects which patients will
journey to Tarará. The patients' families must pay airfare. Once
in Cuba, the medical care is free. The hospital is just blocks
from a long stretch of sand that before the 1959 revolution drew
some of Havana's more affluent families. After Fidel Castro took
power and many of the rich fled to Miami and other cities, Tarará
was turned into a youth camp where boys and girls were schooled
in revolutionary ideals.
Now the youth camp is gone, and the government is renovating the
homes at Tarará and renting them to cash-carrying foreigners,
some of whom are wealthy. One recent visitor was the Prince of
Monaco. He and members of his entourage played volleyball on the
beach, where three-time Cuban gold medalist and volleyball champ
Mireya Luís joined them.
The children of Chernobyl frolic on the same beach almost every
day. They also attend classes, put on cultural shows and learn to
dance.
Since 1990, more than 80 percent of those treated at Tarará have
been children. About 3 percent of the patients are very ill and
stay an average of nine months to a year; 17 percent are less
sick but must be hospitalized upon arrival; 60 percent can be
treated as outpatients; and the rest appear to be healthy but are
checked for symptoms of radiation-related sicknesses, doctors
say.
_Thyroids to tumors_
Patients' health problems range from thyroid disorders to tumors.
Doctors using medicine made from human placenta and shark
cartilage say they have managed to cure up to 99 percent of some
types of skin problems. Parents of Chernobyl children say they
are hopeful, but not all are convinced that success rates are
quite so high.
Ms. Shovkova, an engineer, said she traveled to the island
because she had heard stories of Cuban medical prowess and wanted
to help her son, Nicolai, 7, whose hair has been falling out.
"I came to Cuba because people said it is the first country to be
able to treat these problems with great success," she said
through a Ukrainian translator.
But so far, she doesn't see much change in Nicolai's condition.
Adjusting to life in Cuba, which has economic troubles of its
own, has also been difficult, she said.
"Here we eat rice and beans. I can't get used to this food. In
Ukraine, we ate much better."
Like many of the children, Nicolai has picked up some Spanish.
*Buenos días *(Good morning), *Cómo está?* (How are you?), and
*Hasta mañana, *(Until tomorrow) are among his favorites. But he
is homesick and misses his father and grandfather back home.
"All I like about Cuba is the beach," he grumbled.
Then he remembered one other thing he likes: "The *canonazo*," he
said. At 9 p.m. daily, men in 18th-century military outfits fire
a cannon from a fort overlooking the Bay of Havana.
Lena Melanchenko said her son, Maxim, 7, is happy. And Cuban
medicine is working, she said.
Cuba's warm ocean waters, "sun and climate could be helping him,
too," she added. "He likes the beach, and he has started to
swim."
![]()
Story last updated at 10:35 a.m. on Friday, June 15, 2001
_by Paul Parson _
Oak Ridger staff
Joe Carson, a licensed professional engineer, has asked the
Citizens' Advisory Panel of the Oak Ridge Reservation Local
Oversight Committee for help in getting the Department of Energy
to answer a question.
The question: "Is DOE characterized by a safety-conscious work
environment and trustworthy -- ethical, competent and accountable
-- safety professionals?"
Carson said he has tried for a number of years to get the
question answered through DOE's employee concern program. He said
the federal agency has yet to respond, which is why his legal
battles with DOE continue.
Carson has won eight favorable decisions in court relating to
his allegations that DOE refused to listen to his safety concerns
and then retaliated against him for his efforts.
Norman Mulvenon, chairman of the Citizens' Advisory Panel, said
on Wednesday afternoon the group's environmental management
committee will take Carson's request under consideration.
However, Mulvenon added that it's likely the committee will
determine the request is outside the scope of the Citizens'
Advisory Panel.
So, The Oak Ridger posed Carson's question to DOE's Oak Ridge
Operations office on Wednesday.
"Yes, DOE has a safety-conscious work environment that is
staffed with trustworthy, ethical, competent and accountable
safety professionals," said DOE spokesman Steven Wyatt. "These
individuals are well-trained and fully qualified to do their
jobs. They take their jobs very seriously. We consider the same
general elements to be found in our employees as a whole, not
just those in safety-related positions."
All Contents ©Copyright* The Oak Ridger *
*****************************************************************
6 Technology:Workers discover leak at SRS
*Spokesman says cupful of radioactive waste that seeped out of a
tank is not a public threat *
*Web posted Friday, June 15, 2001
_By Brandon Haddock_ *Staff Writer*
A leak has been discovered in one of Savannah River Site's
underground radioactive waste tanks, the second leak in six
months.
Workers at the federal nuclear-weapons site discovered a
pinhole-size leak Thursday in Tank 5, a single-wall, carbon-steel
tank in the site's F-Area, said Dean Campbell, a spokesman for
Westinghouse Savannah River Co. Westinghouse operates SRS for the
U.S. Department of Energy.
About a cupful of liquid radioactive waste had seeped into a
steel saucer placed beneath the tank to catch spills, Mr.
Campbell said. None of the waste reached the soil or groundwater,
the spokesman said.
''The leak and the material are not a threat to the public, the
employees or the environment,'' he said. ''The safeguards worked
as designed.''
A similar leak occurred in January in the site's Tank 6. That
tank, also an older, carbon-steel tank with a single wall, leaked
about 90 gallons of radioactive waste into a secondary
containment vessel.
The site stores about 34 million gallons of radioactive waste in
49 underground tanks. Eleven tanks have developed leaks over the
years.
Tank 5, which holds a maximum of 750,000 gallons of waste, has
been in use since the 1950s, Mr. Campbell said. It had not leaked
before, he said.
Workers discovered the leak using a ''wallcrawler,'' a
remote-controlled vehicle equipped with a video camera, Mr.
Campbell said. The inspection was made after Monday's transfer of
80,000 to 100,000 gallons of waste into Tank 5, he said.
The tank also was inspected before the transfer, but no leaks
were found, Mr. Campbell said. New SRS policy, implemented after
the January leak, requires that waste tanks be inspected shortly
before and after waste transfers, he said.
''These are lessons learned from Tank 6,'' Mr. Campbell said.
''In this case, we pro-actively looked for a leak site within
three days of the transfer.''
A ventilation system in Tank 5 will be used to evaporate as much
as of the leaked waste as possible, Mr. Campbell said.
Site engineers will continue to examine Tank 5 to determine
whether it has more leaks, Mr. Campbell said. Engineers also will
transfer at least 80,000 gallons from the tank to lower the level
of waste below the new leak, he said.
That will leave the site unable to use about two-thirds of the
tank, according to information provided by Mr. Campbell. The site
already faces a space crunch in its waste tanks, and some
observers, including the federal Defense Nuclear Facilities
Safety Board, have raised concerns about whether the shortage
could bring key SRS operations to a halt.
Mr. Campbell said it was too early to determine whether the loss
of space in Tank 5 would affect SRS operations in the long run.
''We're still in the early stages,'' he said. ''I can tell you
that for the immediate future, there is tank space available to
continue to support site missions.''
_*Staff Writer Johnny Edwards contributed to this article.*_
_Reach Brandon Haddock at (706) 823-3409 or
bhaddock@augustachronicle.com._
1996 - 2001 *The Augusta Chronicle*. All rights
*****************************************************************
7 Dirtiest job lies ahead at Fernald
Saturday, June 16, 2001
_Cleanup hits 10-year mark; Voinovich visits_
By _Tim Bonfield_
_The Cincinnati Enquirer_
_CROSBY TOWNSHIP _— Ten years down. At least seven years
and about $2.3 billion to go to finish cleaning up the Tristate's
biggest environmental waste site — the former Fernald uranium
processing plant.
For nearly 40 years, starting in 1951, Fernald served as
an important component of America's nuclear weapons-making
industry. Thousands of workers at this once-sprawling complex
near Ross — 17 miles northwest of Cincinnati — processed raw
uranium ore into metal derbys that went on to other sites to be
used in the production of plutonium for atomic bombs.
Since 1989, however, uranium production at Fernald has
given way to a multibillion-dollar cleanup effort, started after
government officials reluctantly conceded that the plant had
polluted the environment and increased health risks for workers
and neighbors alike.
_Diminished skyline_
Ohio Sen. George Voinovich toured the Fernald plant
Friday, his first visit to the site. He said he was pleased with
the progress he saw.
So far, 92 of 273 buildings and structures at Fernald
have been demolished, cut into scraps and buried on-site,
including several of the largest buildings that created Fernald's
once easily visible skyline off Ohio 126.
Crews have completed three of seven planned waste storage
pits, where mounds of radioactive scrap will be buried under
8-foot caps of dirt and rock.
“We'll have to monitor and maintain those sites forever,”
said Dennis Carr, a Fernald staff member who led the tour.
_Ton upon ton of waste_
Meanwhile, the nation's largest ground water
contamination treatment project is processing 1,000 gallons a
minute — a job expected to continue to 2010.
From a nearby rail yard, three 60-car trains a month are
hauling 18,000 tons of waste a month for burial in Utah.
Despite all these efforts, some of the hardest work is
yet to come.
Come 2005, crews plan to start treating and hauling away
the site's most dangerous material — a slurry of radioactive
wastes stored in Fernald's aging K-65 silos.
Construction has begun on a large concrete building that
will house new tanks to hold the K-65 waste. Transfer begins next
year.
“That's going to be kind of scary for us,” said Edwa
Yocum, a member of FRESH, a citizens group that has fought for
years to clean up the site.
Overall, FRESH members are pleased with the continued
progress. However, they are not satisfied that the government has
answered all the questions about health risks posed by the old
plant.
“They've only scraped at the top level of our (health)
concerns,” Mrs. Yocum said.
*****************************************************************
8 President, Putin Should Talk Trash--Nuclear Trash, That Is
Friday, June 15, 2001
By ANDREW S. WEISS
When President Bush sits down with Vladimir V. Putin for the
first time on Saturday, he will focus on establishing a personal
rapport and defusing big-ticket items, such as missile defense
and the next round of NATO enlargement.
But Bush should not miss the opportunity to weigh in on a
controversial Russian plan, potentially worth billions of dollars
to both countries, to store thousands of tons of foreign-origin
nuclear waste inside Russia. A constructive presentation by Bush
on this issue could not only cut off dangerous Russian
cooperation with Iran's nuclear weapons program but also provide
a major boost to Russia's beleaguered democracy and teetering
nuclear complex.
The Bush administration has a de facto veto over the Russian
initiative, thanks to its control over the handling of all
U.S.-origin spent reactor fuel--nearly 70% of the world's supply.
In addition to our own vast inventory, the administration also
must approve any shipments by other countries (e.g., Japan, South
Korea, Taiwan) that use U.S.-origin fuel.
Not surprisingly, the Russian proposal has outraged Russian and
Western environmentalists alike. They fear that Russia, which
already does an abysmal job on nuclear waste management, could
become a dangerous and unregulated dumping ground. Average
Russians are also concerned--polls indicate that 80% to 90% of
the public is opposed--but they have been brazenly ignored by the
Kremlin and its allies.
Still, Bush should make clear to Putin that the administration is
prepared to move forward based on the following conditions:
* A total cutoff of sensitive Russia-Iran nuclear cooperation.
Iran's aggressive nuclear weapons program and Russia's invaluable
technical support to it have set off alarm bells in Washington
and Israel. However, the billions Russia could earn from nuclear
waste storage far overshadow the money it currently is receiving
from Iran for these sensitive projects.
Putin, who has rejected U.S. complaints about the Iran problem,
will be a tough sell. The ground may be shifting in Moscow,
however, as indicated by Putin's recent firing of one of the main
Russian proponents of clandestine nuclear cooperation with Iran.
* Firm Russian commitments to adopt stronger environmental
safeguards and to spend any proceeds on threat reduction and
nuclear clean-up projects.
The Bush administration must insist on the toughest possible
environmental protections for nuclear waste storage. It also
should require that any Russian profits be used to reduce nuclear
threats, including stemming the brain drain of former Soviet
weapons scientists to rogue states; dismantling nuclear warheads;
and preventing "loose nukes" from getting into the wrong hands.
Left to their own devices, the Russians simply will not
prioritize such projects.
* Agreement on a long-term moratorium on reprocessing of spent
reactor fuel. The Russian atomic energy ministry is keen to
reprocess some of the spent fuel for future nuclear energy use
and export. This plan is a disaster in the making and must be
blocked. Reprocessing would generate new streams of
proliferation-susceptible nuclear materials and toxic liquid
waste.
* Clear U.S. support for a Russian popular referendum on nuclear
waste storage. The Bush administration cannot afford to turn its
back on the grass-roots Russian democracy activists and
politicians, such as Grigory Yavlinsky, who are renewing calls
for a referendum on this issue. Bush also must be mindful that
the environment is one of the few issues that average Russians
actually care about.
Last December, Russian authorities quietly scuttled a proposed
referendum by invalidating the exact number of the 2.5 million
signatures necessary to disqualify the petition. Putin now needs
to hear directly from Bush that the Russian people must have a
voice in this decision.
The details of any U.S.-Russia agreement will take months to iron
out. But President Bush has a rare opening this weekend in
Slovenia to make his mark on a nuclear security issue with
far-reaching implications.
Ignoring it will only feed widespread fears in the U.S. and
Europe that the new administration is not serious about deepening
cooperation with the new Russia. - - -
Andrew S. Weiss, a Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations,
Was a Russia Specialist on the National Security Council Staff
and a Member of the State Department's Policy Planning Staff
During the Clinton Administration
Los Angeles Times
*****************************************************************
9 Our View: DOE's concern misdirected on oversight issue
Oak Ridger Online -->
Story last updated at 11:21 a.m. on Friday, June 15, 2001
The Department of Energy should be commending the Citizens'
Advisory Panel of the Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight
Committee. Instead, it is slapping committee members' collective
hand for supposedly overreaching in their oversight capacity by
commenting on a strategic plan put forth by the Community Reuse
Organization of East Tennessee (CROET).
One senses a bit of territorial tug-of-war at play here between
two local agencies operating under federal charge. If that is the
case, it shapes just one more reason why DOE should refrain from
entering the parochial fray.
But a more significant reason, we think, is that the oversight
committee is acting within its broader, rather than narrower,
mandate of gauging the local impact of DOE activities.
The Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee was created
in 1991 to represent those counties and communities affected most
directly by the Department of Energy's activities in Oak Ridge.
This includes environmental management-related activities (or
cleanup activities).
CROET is an economic development organization whose purpose is
to assist the private sector in creating jobs and accelerating
cleanup in the region by using the underutilized land,
facilities, equipment, personnel and technologies available on
the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge Reservation. CROET leases
facilities at the Oak Ridge K-25 Site to businesses. K-25 is a
major site where cleanup activities are located.
Frankly, we have expressed our concern here before about CROET
envisioning itself as something other than a local public board
subject to the full disclosure and open meetings provisions of
laws affecting public bodies in this state. CROET envisions
itself, wrongly in our view, as a federal agency operating
outside the full reach of state disclosure laws or,
alternatively, a recipient of private funds (i.e., rental income
from leased federal properties) still outside full public
scrutiny.
DOE should worry far less about the Citizens' Advisory Panel's
scope of inquiry and more about CROET's seeming unwillingness to
be held to the highest possible standard of disclosure.
All Contents ©Copyright* The Oak Ridger *
*****************************************************************
10 Doctor: Flats illness was preventable_
Denver Post.com
Brush knew of beryllium problems in '51, internal records show
_By _
_ Denver Post Staff Writer_
--> _Sunday, June 17, 2001_ - GOLDEN - If Brush Wellman Inc., the
world's leading producer of beryllium, had revealed 50 years ago
that its workers were becoming sick, it would have prevented
hundreds of other illnesses, a nationally prominent Denver doctor
testified Friday.
Lew Newman, a researcher in the field of chronic beryllium
disease at National Jewish Medical and Research Center, served as
an expert witness for four Rocky Flats workers who contracted the
disease and are suing Brush.
Newman said he treats many workers of the former nuclear plant
and others who have chronic beryllium disease, a lung ailment
that can be fatal. Many of those patients "would not be receiving
the bad news today" that they have the disease if the company had
been forthcoming, he said.
The company never told anyone that the workers at its production
plants were becoming sick, even though exposure to the metal's
dust was below the federal safety standard. But internal company
documents revealed during the lawsuit indicate that the company
knew it had the problem in 1951.
Brush's co-founder, Bengt Kjellgren, who was company president in
1951, wrote in his diary that "our records show" that practically
all of the sickened workers that year had been exposed to dust
levels below the federal safety standard.
"That would have been very important information to be sharing,"
Newman said.
It would have had a "dramatic effect" on how the toxic dust would
have been regulated and managed over the past 50 years, he said.
He also said that if the federal standard had been reduced
significantly in the 1970s, as the government had proposed, there
would have been less risk to workers and fewer exposures. Brush
fought and successfully stopped the tougher standards with the
help of the Department of Energy and politicians.
The suit filed in Jefferson County alleges the company covered up
information and conspired with the federal government to censor
what was published in medical and scientific literature. The
company and government didn't want damaging information to get
out because they wanted to keep Brush in business and the metal
flowing to nuclear weapons production, the workers claim.
Brush has countered that several articles and government reports
acknowledged the federal standard might not protect all workers
and that it was debated for decades.
But Newman testified that statements by Brush's medical director
and others supporting the company in the medical literature had
the most impact on what people and the federal government
believed.
"The kind of thing (they) were saying or publishing, this has
been the dominant force in shaping opinion about the hazards of
beryllium," Newman said.
One company's medical director said in several publications that
workers had to be exposed to dust or fumes 20 times the safety
level to become sick. Another expert for the Rocky Flats workers
has testified those statements were a lie.
Brush has also tried to portray Rocky Flats as a shoddily run
operation that exposed workers to high levels of the toxic dust.
But Newman said the four workers faced only low levels of
exposure and would have contracted the disease anyway. The four
most likely have a gene that makes them hypersensitive to the
metal.
All contents Copyright 2001 The Denver Post or other copyright
*****************************************************************
11 A-bomb ruling taken to higher court_
asahi.com news
The Asahi Shimbun
June 16, 2001
The central and Osaka prefectural governments Friday appealed a
ruling holding them responsible for failing to pay medical
allowances to atomic bomb survivors living overseas.
The appeal against the June 1 Osaka District Court ruling was
filed with the Osaka High Court, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo
Fukuda said in a news conference after Friday's Cabinet meeting.
A Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry official said a high court
decision is needed, as the Hiroshima District Court in 1999
supported the government in its decision to not provide medical
allowances for survivors living overseas. The official said the
law clearly intends that only survivors residing in Japan should
be covered.
A bill by the Japanese Communist Party to revise the law to
include overseas victims was also rejected by the Diet, the
ministry official said.
Although the government decided in May not to appeal a ruling for
former leprosy patients, out of humanitarian reasons, it will
appeal this case. On June 1, a 76-year-old Korean bomb victim was
awarded 1.16 million yen in unpaid medical allowances by the
Osaka District Court.
The man had moved to the Republic of Korea (South Korea).
The court ruled that the failure to pay medical allowances to
atomic bomb victims living abroad was unconstitutional.
Although the central government is appealing the ruling, it will
consider increasing funds for atomic bomb victims living in South
Korea, a government official said.
Copyright 2001 Asahi Shimbun. All rights reserved. No
*****************************************************************
12 Statement By The Press Secretary On White House Release Of
Analysis of the Health Consequences of the Gulf War_
WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The following was released today by the
White House:
Today, the White House is releasing the report, Health
Consequences of the Gulf War: An Ongoing Analysis. The report
provides an overview of the background, clinical programs,
research and investigations, compensation initiatives, outreach
efforts and lessons learned from the last seven years of the
Administration's efforts to better understand the causes of
illnesses arising from the Gulf War.
Both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) have established registries and clinical
evaluation programs for our veterans, as well as post-deployment
health centers. DoD, the Department of Health and Human Services,
and the VA have funded 192 peer-reviewed Gulf War research
projects at a cost of over $155 million. These research projects
have targeted the most likely causes of Gulf War Illness and have
covered topics as diverse as Depleted Uranium, Pyridostigmine
Bromide, Anthrax vaccinations, low-level chemical warfare agents,
endemic infectious diseases and stress.
Since 1994, when the VA was granted authority to compensate any
Persian Gulf War veteran suffering from a chronic disability
resulting from an undiagnosed illness, about 3,000 such claims
have been granted. DoD and the VA have reached over 80,000
service members in their town hall outreach programs. Both
Departments have established hotlines and websites to reach the
veterans community. DoD has also published 24 case narratives and
nine information papers to help veterans understand more about
specific incidents and important issues.
We have left no stone unturned in our efforts to understand the
nature of the health problems that arose as a result of the Gulf
War, President Clinton writes in the report. As we continue to
pursue research leads, the United States remains committed to
ensuring that our veterans and their families get the health care
they need, and that disabled veterans receive the compensations
they deserve.
*Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! Inc. All Rights Reserved.*
*****************************************************************
13 Lifting submarine “Kursk” is the question of several hours
Pravda.RU
Jun, 15 2001
A special expedition is being formed now by Northern Fleet, which
will be sent to the place of crash of atom submarine “Kursk”.
According to the official of Northern Fleet, captain Vladimir
Navrotski, several military ships will take part in expedition:
heavy missile cruiser “Peter the Great”, missile cruiser “Marshal
Ustinov”, anti-submarine ships “Admiral Kharlamov” and
“Severomorsk”, rescue ships “Rudnitski”, “Altai” and “Pamir”, and
some auxiliary ships of different classes.
The command post of special expedition will be situated on one of
the military ships. Besides Mikhail Motsak, the commander of the
expedition, specialists of all fleet structures and working
groups of government commission will be included into mobile
headquarter of expedition. According to captain Alexandr
Teslenko, the leader of Emergency Works Department of Northern
Fleet, some ships are repaired now in some Navy structural works.
Before ships of “Mammoet Transport BV” reach the crash place of
“Kursk”, Russian ships will install raid equipment and conduct
monitoring.
Investigation of radioactive situation in the area will be
organized also by Holland specialists. The longest operation will
be preparation for lifting submarine. According to the
specialist, the lifting itself is the question of several hours.
_Marina Romanova PRAVDA.Ru St Petersburg_
*****************************************************************
14 Activist may sue over evaporator system at INEEL
IdahoStatesman.com
June 16, 2001_
Energy Department says laboratory is operating safely
The Associated Press
IDAHO FALLS -- An environmental activist has notified the Energy
Department and state and federal environmental regulators that he
will go to court later this year if they do not stop operating a
waste evaporator in eastern Idaho he claims does not meet
anti-pollution standards.
Chuck Brocious, head of the Environmental Defense Institute in
Troy, claimed no major operating facility at the Idaho National
Engineering and Environmental Laboratory has received
environmental permits because none can meet regulatory standards.
"It is a sad commentary when the public is left with no other
recourse but litigation to protect the air and water we and
future generations need," Brocious said.
Brocious and Idaho Falls attorney David McCoy have initially
targeted an evaporator system for high-level radioactive and
toxic liquid waste.
The department maintains that even though many INEEL facilities
do not have full-fledged hazardous-waste permits, they are
operating safely and legally under the regulatory control of the
state Department of Environmental Quality and the federal
Environmental Protection Agency.
Those agencies are slowly working to bring waste storage and
treatment systems into compliance with hazardous-waste laws,
which did not apply to the Energy Department until the late
1980s.
One low-level radioactive-waste incinerator and the calciner that
turned liquid waste into a powder have been shut down by the
state because they had no permits.
Brocious and McCoy claim the evaporator system does not properly
monitor the 128 different pollutants like radioactive iodine,
mercury, cadmium and arsenic that go up the stack. They also
maintain the liquid waste being evaporated needs additional
processing to preclude air pollution.
The INEEL is preparing a hazardous-waste permit application for
state review. It would spell out more specific operating
conditions and monitoring requirements. McCoy called it a ploy to
keep an inadequate facility operating even longer.
The system has been operating under a provision giving older
facilities a grace period to come into compliance with
hazardous-waste laws. Brocious called it a loophole.
Department spokesman Tim Jackson said the facility is within the
law. He said the system is subject to more than 100 pages of
detailed environmental rules.
*****************************************************************
15 Report: Regional Nuclear Arsenals Create Challenge
U.S. Newswire
12 Jun 8:00
Can The_ _Non-Proliferation Treaty Accommodate India, Pakistan,
And Israel?_
To: National Desk
Contact: Jeff Martin of the Stanley Foundation, 563-264-1500
WASHINGTON, June 12 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is facing a serious
challenge from three nuclear powers that exist outside the treaty
framework. The leaders of India, Pakistan, and Israel feel
heavily constrained in their nuclear policy options because of
their regional security concerns. Yet the ultimate success of the
NPT depends upon it being universally accepted by all states.
This dilemma is addressed in a new Policy Bulletin and report
from the Stanley Foundation generated by a meeting of U.S., UN,
academic, and nongovernmental experts.
The report recommends a series of steps that should be taken by
the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to preserve
the nonproliferation regime. These include breaking the
perception that high-level international status requires the
possession of nuclear weapons and denying nuclear energy
assistance to Israel, India, and Pakistan unless they join the
NPT.
The majority of conference participants rejected the idea that
India, Pakistan, and Israel should be given some kind of special
nuclear status outside the NPT framework. They agreed, however,
that the challenge of these three countries cannot be addressed
without taking the entire regional situation into account and
looking at the role played by other weapons of mass destruction
and even conventional weapons in these regions.
The conference, titled "Strengthening the Nonproliferation
Regime: The Challenge of Regional Nuclear Arsenals," was held
February 23-25, 2001, in Harriman, N.Y. The event was the 32nd
annual Stanley Foundation United Nations Issues Conference. The
conference report, an interpretation of the conference
proceedings, was neither reviewed nor approved by conference
attendees. The full report and Policy Bulletin are available on
the Stanley Foundation Web site at http://reports.stanleyfdn.org.
The Stanley Foundation was created in 1956 by C. Maxwell and
Elizabeth Stanley to pursue their long-time commitment to the
effective management of global problems. From its headquarters in
Muscatine, Iowa, this private operating foundation seeks to
improve international understanding through media and educational
programs and through forums encouraging open dialogue among
policy professionals, educators, students, and citizens
interested in world affairs.
/U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/
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16 'Science' was just political smoke screen
Rocky Mountain News: Local
_By Ann Imse, News Staff Writer_
Federal officials' claim of "not (having) enough science" to
tighten safety standards for beryllium workers really means they
were halted by political pressure, according to evidence produced
Friday in a Jefferson County trial.
Some 55 people are suing beryllium producer Brush Wellman Inc. of
Cleveland, claiming it conspired with the federal government to
hide the dangers of the metal, because it was needed to produce
nuclear weapons. The plaintiffs include Rocky Flats and Coors
Porcelain workers with chronic beryllium disease.
Plaintiffs' attorneys introduced documents in which officials of
the Occupational Health and Safety Administration told General
Accounting Office investigators that they had been trying to
tighten the standard for exposure to beryllium since the 1970s.
But Brush Wellman, the departments of Energy and Defense and the
White House all pressured them to stop, the officials said. OSHA
gave up, saying publicly that science couldn't prove beryllium
was a carcinogen. But the OSHA officials said that was a "smoke
screen" and there was really plenty of evidence.
"OSHA officials said typically the argument of 'not enough
science' is used when there are other political agendas for
stopping OSHA from promulgating regulations," according to the
GAO.
Plaintiffs previously presented evidence that Brush Wellman
threatened to halt production of beryllium if OSHA tightened the
exposure standard.
Also Friday, beryllium disease specialist Dr. Lee Newman of the
National Jewish Medical and Research Center testified Brush
Wellman could have saved lives by revealing all that it knew.
If Brush Wellman had admitted that it knew of cases where victims
had breathed less than than the legal limit of 2 micrograms per
cubic meter of air, "It would have had a dramatic effect," he
said.
Many of his own 200 patients would not have come down with
beryllium disease, "because it would have changed the way we
control exposure," he said.
Brush attorneys defended their client with evidence that numerous
scientists did publish papers casting doubt on the exposure
standard during the past 50 years.
But OSHA has still not changed the standard, despite what Newman
described as a consensus in the medical community that 2
micrograms is far too high to protect the people who are
genetically disposed to the disease.
_June 16, 2001_
2001 © The E.W. Scripps Co.
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17 Nuclear issues expected to dominate President's meeting with Putin
June 15, 2001
Nuclear issues expected to dominate President's meeting with
Putin Bush aims for 'normal, constructive' relationship Peter
Goodspeed National Post, with files from news services
Alexander Natruskin, The Associated Press Russian President
Vladimir Putin,met with Chinese counterpart Jiang Zemin in
Shanghai yesterday. He meets with George W. Bush tomorrow.
The shadows of the Cold War linger over tomorrow's summit meeting
between George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin in an old castle on the
outskirts of the Slovenian capital, Ljubljana.
But where past summits between U.S. and Russian presidents
revolved around fear of the then Soviet Union's strength,
tomorrow's meeting will be dominated by international concern at
Russia's weakness.
Russia has been subjected to a decade of decay since the Soviet
collapse. Its dalliance with democracy, capitalism and the West
has left the country wallowing in corruption, on the brink of
economic collapse and riddled with uncertainty.
Yet when Mr. Bush and Mr. Putin meet, they will still represent
the world's two largest nuclear powers.
As a result, the Ljubljana summit is expected to be the high
point as well as the culmination of Mr. Bush's first overseas
tour as U.S. President. And it's bound to be dominated by
unresolved nuclear issues.
The core of the meeting will centre on Mr. Bush's call to
abrogate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty to allow
Washington to proceed with the construction and deployment of a
missile defence shield.
Mr. Bush's repeated calls for expanding NATO to include countries
that once fell within the orbit of the old Soviet Union are bound
to add another layer of conflict to the meeting.
Yet Mr. Bush insists his administration wants to develop a
"normal, constructive and realistic" relationship with Russia.
"The cornerstone of my discussions with Mr. Putin will be this:
Russia is not the enemy of the United States. That ours is a
relationship not based upon antagonism and the old prejudices of
the Cold War," Mr. Bush said this week as he left for his
five-day tour of Europe.
While no one is predicting a breakthrough on the NATO expansion
or missile defence shield issues, Mr. Bush could make some
headway by offering the Russians inducements to go along quietly
with the deployment of a missile defence shield.
Mr. Bush is expected to dangle a package of military co-operation
measures, dramatic nuclear weapons cuts and trade and investment
opportunities. He may also offer the attention-starved former
superpower a role in emerging Middle East peace talks.
Mr. Bush will also try to allay Russian fears of NATO enlargement
by saying he wants to see Russia fully integrated into Europe and
ultimately into the European Union.
"Russia ought not to fear Europe, but ought to welcome an
expanded Europe beyond its borders," Mr. Bush said yesterday at
the conclusion of a joint U.S.- European Union summit meeting in
Gothenburg, Sweden. "My vision of Europe is a large vision, of
more countries, more free trade and one which welcomes Russia and
the Ukraine."
Moscow, however, is likely to remain unimpressed. With European
opposition to missile defence hardening and with the recent
transfer of power to the Democrats in the U.S. Senate, Mr. Putin
may bide his time.
Still, as Russia's economy staggers, its conventional armed
forces continue to deteriorate and Moscow relies on its nuclear
weapons to project military might.
Some experts say Russia can afford to keep only as few as 100
nuclear-tipped missiles on alert at any one time, leaving the
country vulnerable to attack if the United States ever deploys a
missile defence shield. At the same time, Russia is struggling to
deal with a rapidly deteriorating early warning satellite system.
This week, the head of Russia's space and aeronautics agency told
Russian members of parliament they can no longer rely on ageing
military satellites. Only two to four of the nine high-
elliptical satellites Russia had in orbit in 1995 are still
functioning.
As a result, Russia may be blind to a possible U.S. missile
attack for up to seven hours a day.
To compensate, Russia leaves its active nuclear missiles on a
hair-trigger alert and U.S. experts live in terror of an
accidental launch.
They are also continually frustrated by their inability to limit
the flow of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, materials
and expertise out of Russia.
Russia's disintegrating military-industrial complex sits on more
than 1,000 tonnes of highly enriched uranium and 150 tonnes of
plutonium -- enough to build between 60,000 and 80,000 nuclear
bombs. Much of that material is stored in poorly secured sites,
manned by scientists who are not paid regularly.
"The clear and present danger is not from North Korean missiles
that could hit America in a few years but from Russian missiles
that could hit in 30 minutes, and from nuclear, chemical and
biological weapons and materials in Russia and the former Soviet
Union that could fall into the hands of terrorist groups," says
Sam Nunn, a former U.S. senator from Georgia and a leading
military expert.
"The threats we faced during the Cold War -- a Soviet nuclear
strike or an invasion of Europe -- were made more dangerous by
Soviet strength," Mr. Nunn adds. "The threats we face today --
accidental launch, the risk of weapons, materials and know-how
falling into the wrong hands -- are made more dangerous by
Russia's weakness."
_Copyright © 2001 National Post Online | Privacy Policy |
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18 _DOE Drops Medical Questions_
_Saturday, June 16, 2001
Albuquerque Journal--> John Fleck--> _By John Fleck_ *Journal
Staff Writer*
The Department of Energy has halted a controversial policy
of asking medical questions of nuclear weapons scientists as part
of its spy-hunting polygraph tests.
Instead of asking medically related questions, the
department's new policy now places the burden on workers being
polygraphed, requiring them to reveal before taking the test any
"medical or psychological condition" that might affect the test's
outcome, according to a memorandum from the department's chief of
counterintelligence.
The new policy did not satisfy the polygraph's leading
critic, who called it worse than the one it replaced.
That is because there is no way for employees, or their
physicians, to find out what medications or medical conditions
might influence a polygraph's outcome, said Sandia National
Laboratories scientist Al Zelicoff.
That leaves employees in an untenable position, with no way
to tell what medical or psychological information they ought to
reveal to the polygraphers.
The policy was changed because some employees were concerned
medical questions being asked as part of the tests were an
invasion of privacy, according to department spokeswoman Jeanne
Lopatto.
Lopatto on Friday could not explain how employees could find
out what medical or psychological conditions they should reveal.
A law passed last year in the wake of the Wen Ho Lee spy
scandal required expanded polygraphs of workers at the nation's
three nuclear weapons laboratories — Sandia, Los Alamos and
Lawrence Livermore in California.
Lee, charged with 59 counts of trying to harm the United
States by sharing nuclear weapons secrets with an unnamed foreign
country, eventually was released from jail after a plea deal
under which he acknowledged guilt for a single count of
mishandling classified information.
Reverberations from the case are still being felt, including
the polygraphs and other expanded security programs at the
laboratories.
Rather than being polygraphed because they are under
suspicion, as happened in the Lee case, workers are now being
tested solely because of the jobs that they do and the security
clearances they hold.
These polygraphs have drawn criticism because of the charge
from Zelicoff and others that they are unscientific. They are far
more likely to accidentally finger an honest person as a liar
than catch a spy, Zelicoff said.
Lopatto disagreed, noting that polygraphs are a widespread
and important part of the federal government's efforts to protect
classified information.
Lopatto said the primary purpose of the new policy is to
give workers a way to avoid having to take a polygraph if they
have a medical condition that might be exacerbated by the stress
of the lie detector test.
A person with hypertension or heart problems that might be
made worse by the stress of the polygraph should not be forced to
take it, she said. The DOE does not want a worker to suffer a
heart attack while taking the test, Lopatto said.
Workers also should be given a chance to notify the
polygraphers if they have a medical condition that might
influence the test's outcome, she said.
The policy states, "There may be situations where submission
to an examination would be inappropriate on the basis of a
current medical or psychological condition."
A form letter sent to employees advises them to consult a
physician "to determine whether ... there is any indication that
you should be precluded from being tested."
Zelicoff, a physician and physicist who works on arms
control issues at Sandia, took aim at the new policy Thursday in
a memo sent to Sandia's top management.
Zelicoff complained he reviewed the scientific literature on
polygraphs and found nothing regarding what medications or
medical conditions might influence the outcome of a polygraph.
The situation "leaves employees open to adverse action
should they somehow fail to disclose 'medically relevant'
information" without any way of knowing what might be medically
relevant, Zelicoff said.
Copyright Albuquerque Journal
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