***************************************************************** 02/21/01 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 9.48 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS 1 Ensign: Nevada in for major fight to prevent nuke waste from coming 2 Hefty N-waste taxes sought 3 A rail line to N-storage site gains board's initial nod 4 Federal Board Gives Approval for Rail Line to Goshute N-Waste 5 Anti-waste bill opposed by handful 6 Senate takes steps to avoid storing nuclear waste in Utah 7 Hanford might 'baby-sit' Ohio wastes on way to cavern 8 Energy Northwest faces worker shortage 9 Ensign underscores need for alternative to nuke burial 10 BNFL chief mum on project's finances 11 S.C. To Test Water for Uranium 12 DHEC Fields Uranium Questions 13 Indian Point Plant at Half Power After Water Leak Is Discovered 14 TVA: No plans for Bellefonte -- Sessions wants construction 15 Silicon Valley Executives Cite the Need for Nuclear Power 16 EDITORIAL: Waste transport 17 Australia Unsure On Fuel Type For Sydney Nuclear Reactor 18 Recast: Chinese Company Insures Marine Nuclear Transport 19 Protest Against the Acceptance of Non-Japanese High-Level Nuclear Waste 20 Nuclear waste cargo arrives for 50-year storage in Japan 21 Senior DPP adviser may leave post 22 Russians ponder specter of nuclear waste imports 23 'Kakrapar workers exposed to high radiation' 24 County switches lobbyists in battle over waste disposal 25 Govt rejects US stand on N-fuel amid Pak concern 26 Nuclear fuel import covered by safeguards: govt 27 India shrugs off Bush administration criticism on nuclear fuel 28 FEATURE - Sweden chooses copper for nuclear waste disposal 29 EU Energy Commissioner backs Finnish nuclear plans 30 Nordic concern over Arctic transport of nuclear waste to Japan 31 Radioactive waste conference 2-25 to 3-1 in Arizona 32 Letter: radiation levels higher than Chernobyl 33 Russia to start building nuclear reactor in Iran in 2001 34 SA: Nuclear waste poses 'no threat' 35 Ukraine's Kuchma, Under Pressure, Visits Chernobyl 36 Proposal: dump nuclear waste under Gulf NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS 1 Many downwinders will never be paid 2 Nuclear and Biological Warfare -- Easier Said than Done -- 3 Flats' closure date is delayed 4 Watchdog groups already raised concerns outlined in lawsuit 5 Union at Piketon cancels plans to appeal to Bush 6 Plant to replace corroded wells - 7 Investigation of sub accident stalled 8 Depleted uranium in weapons causing cancer -- critic 9 Surviving nuclear war, the easy way 10 Test-Firing of Thorium Missiles Stopped in Belgium 11 MoD denies health risk from shells fired into Firth 12 Protests as new tests on depleted uranium go ahead 13 Belgium Stops Test-Firing Anti-Tank Shells Due to DU Fear 14 Study calls tritium facility a health threat in major disaster 15 DOE report on NIF lands in lawyers' hands 16 Lab offers incentives to boost staffing **************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 Ensign: Nevada in for major fight to prevent nuke waste from coming CARSON Wednesday, February 21, 2001 3:33 AM *Geoff Dornan* Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., says the plan to temporarily store nuclear waste in Nevada is "effectively dead" but that the state will need every resource to prevent Yucca Mountain from becoming the permanent storage site. "In 1994, the biggest concern was interim storage," he said after his speech to the Nevada Legislature Tuesday. "That bill is now effectively dead. What we're looking at now (Yucca Mountain) becomes the biggest threat," he said. "If we're not able to give these states an alternative to burying nuclear waste, eventually they're going to cram it down our throat." He said last week's $34 million grant to begin studying "transmutation" - making dangerous radioactive waste harmless or recycling it - is a good start, but that much more money must be put into that project to make it the best solution. Ensign also pointed out that President Bush "made certain promises to our state concerning the disposal of nuclear waste" during his campaign. Bush said he would base any decision on sound science and not politics when presented with plans for Yucca Mountain. Nevada experts say if the administration will listen, they have solid evidence that Yucca Mountain isn't safe. "We intend to hold the Bush administration to those promises," Ensign said. Ensign said the other major threat facing Nevada is a proposal to ban legal college sports betting. He said he and other members of the Nevada congressional delegation have introduced legislation that funds a Justice Department fight to stop illegal sports betting. "Let's keep legal sports gambling legal and well regulated and go after the real problem, which is illegal sports betting," he said. He told lawmakers he expects a prescription drug benefit to be added to Medicare this year. And he said he places education as his top priority, including much improved special education funding. "For the first time, we should fully fund the federal share of special education," he said drawing applause from the legislators gathered in the Assembly chambers. And he said he wants local and state school officials to have more say in how all federal education money is spent. Ensign will be followed by Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., who speaks to a combined session of the Senate and Assembly tonight. February 21, 2001 ***************************************************************** 2 Hefty N-waste taxes sought [deseretnews.com] February 21, 2001 By Donna Kemp Spangler Deseret News staff writer The cost of doing business may get more expensive for all companies that ship to and store low-level radioactive waste in Utah. Envirocare of Utah, the state's only commercial radioactive waste disposal company, wouldn't be the only company to feel the hammer of new taxes and fees. HB370, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Alexander, R-Orem, would also impose taxes on "alternate feed" materials — wastes with trace amounts of uramium — being recycled at a uranium processing plant in Blanding. The bill was scheduled for its initial hearing Wednesday. House leaders have said the revenue generated by the tax would go to an education savings account to meet the cost of a projected spike in student population. Calls to International Uranium Corp., which operates the White Mesa mill near Blanding, went unreturned by press deadline. But Envirocare President Charles Judd called the proposal "outlandish." "We're talking about a huge increase," Judd said. He estimated the taxes and fees would amount to about $100 million a year, prompting generators to take their waste and dump it elsewhere. The issue of low-level radioactive waste, which is different from the high-level waste targeted for Goshute tribal lands in Tooele County, has been a hotly debated topic on Capitol Hill this session. Many lawmakers, Alexander among them, have wondered why taxes on low-level radioactive waste facilities in South Carolina and Washington generate tens of millions of dollars for state coffers, but the two Utah facilities provide practically nothing. Alexander's bill is targeted primarily at out-of-state companies that generate the waste, and it hits them hard on two fronts: state fees that go to regulating the industry and state taxes that go into the general fund. Currently, Envirocare pays $2.50 a ton to the state, just enough to cover the costs of regulating the facility in remote Tooele County. International Uranium Corp. pays nothing. Under terms of HB370, the new taxes and fees would be substantial: + Generators of radioactive waste and their middlemen would pay fees of 10 cents per cubic foot and $1 per curie, which is the standard measure of radioactivity in the wastes, primarily contaminated soils. Those revenues would go directly to the Department of Environmental Quality to regulate the wastes. + Generators of radioactive waste would pay taxes of $4 per cubic foot and $400 per curie. Those revenues would go into the state's general fund, which could be spent on any state program lawmakers choose. + Envirocare would be hit with a $5 million annual fee that would be set aside in a fund to help maintain the facility for 100 years after it closes. + Those who facilitate the transportation of the waste would be hit with a $5,000 annual permit, and generators of radioactive waste shipped to Utah would be charged $1,300 if they send 1,000 or more cubic feet of waste, and $500 if they send less. The tax would take effect July 1. Alexander's bill also calls for lawmakers to study several related issues, including whether and when the state should take ownership of the Envirocare facility. Rep. Jim Gowens, D-Tooele, has filed a bill related to that. Other issues to be studied include, whether the state should continue its own participation in a compact agreement with other states that calls for Utah wastes to be shipped to Washington and whether the state should tax the transportation of radioactive wastes. *E-MAIL: donna@desnews.com* © 2001 Deseret News Publishing Company ***************************************************************** 3 A rail line to N-storage site gains board's initial nod [deseretnews.com] February 21, 2001 By Stephen Speckman Deseret News staff writer It's only preliminary, but the federal Surface Transportation Board has given approval for a 32-mile rail line that could one day transport 40,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel to a storage facility on the Skull Valley Goshute Indian Reservation. "It's definitely a step forward," said Sue Martin, spokesperson for the electric utility consortium Private Fuel Storage LLC. "It's one of many hurdles we have to cross in order to get the facility up and operational and it's certainly not the last. We still have a year to go in the licensing process." Before final approval is given, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission must first reach a final decision on the license application from PFS. That decision probably won't come until early next year, after several more hearings planned for later this year, said Martin. The earliest construction could begin on a storage facility, she added, would be spring 2002, which means it would be operational by 2004. If built, the facility could store 4,000 reinforced casks of high-level nuclear waste generated by power plants nationwide, representing nearly all of the country's current supply of such waste. During the 20-40 year life of the facility, it would act as a temporary holding place for the waste until it is transferred to its final resting place, probably in Yucca Valley, Nev. A permanent repository is under construction there, but its fate is contested, as is the Goshute proposal. The Great Salt Lake and Southern Railroad Co. estimates the rail line would cost $20 million to $35 million, adding another $6 million for a "run-around" track, which would allow locomotives to reverse their position near the PFS site. The railroad's application to the Surface Transportation Board states that the proposed storage facility is "urgently" needed, that many reactor sites lack sufficient storage capacity for spent nuclear fuel and that the Goshute Indians would benefit from the facility's presence, with new jobs and lease payments to the reservation. The application received approval from several power companies, the Tooele County Commission and the Skull Valley Goshutes, but the state Transportation Department and Cargill Salt still have questions. "All of the rail line goes right by our front door, on the edge of our property," said Lyndon Jones, Cargill plant manager. If the Skull Valley spur of the proposed rail line should become inoperable, a transfer station proposed to be built within a mile of Cargill would be used to transfer waste from truck to train. "If there was ever an event that caused any leakage, it could basically make this place uninhabitable," said Jones. "And there will be a stigma about this place, about the whole valley out here. How do you attract people to come out and work if that type of process is going on? That's more of a perceived threat, but to some people, that makes a difference." The state, including the governor, has also expressed serious environmental and safety concerns with the application. Legislation intended to discourage the storage facility is currently making its way through the Utah Legislature. *E-MAIL: sspeckman@desnews.com* © 2001 Deseret News Publishing Company ***************************************************************** 4 Federal Board Gives Approval for Rail Line to Goshute N-Waste Storage Site The Salt Lake Tribune -- February 21, 2001* BY JUDY FAHYS Plans to store high-level nuclear waste on the Skull Valley Goshute Indian Reservation are chugging forward -- literally. Private Fuel Storage LLC, the utility consortium that wants to build the nuclear waste facility, has received approval to build a rail line for the project. The new Great Salt Lake and Southern Railroad LLC won preliminary approval from the federal Surface Transportation Board to build a 32-mile rail line and a train-to-truck transfer loop in Tooele County. The consortium wants to store 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel on the reservation, 45 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. "The nuclear power industry," the Transportation Board said, "claims that there is an urgent need to build and operate its own transportation and storage facilities for the interim storage of [spent nuclear fuel] because it is unlikely that DOE [the U.S. Department of Energy] will develop a permanent repository in the near future." "Other public benefits would result from the construction and operation of the proposed rail project, including payments to the Skull Valley Reservation, jobs for local residents and local procurement of materials and supplies." The three-person panel said its decision is only preliminary. The board still must review the line's potential environmental impacts and wait for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to license the facility before construction can begin. If built, the $3.1 billion waste facility would be large enough to hold all the spent power-plant fuel that has been generated in the history of nuclear power in the United States. The material would be deadly for anyone who came directly in contact with it, but PFS insists the material is safe from any such exposure in concrete-and-steel casks. The consortium also says the Go- shute site would only provide temporary storage until the waste travels to a permanent home at Yucca Valley, Nev. Opponents contend it will be in Utah to stay if the site is established. Familiar voices weighed in both for and against the rail line. Supporting it were many of the utilities that want to put the waste at the reservation, including Consolidated Edison of New York, Northern States Power Co. of Minnesota, the Tooele County Commission and the tribe. Only two objected, the state Transportation Department and Cargill Inc., which operates a salt plant at the southwest corner of the Great Salt Lake about 40 miles from Salt Lake City. Cargill plant manager Lyndon Jones, who wrote a letter to the transportation board, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the decision. He pointed out to the panel that Cargill's products -- water-softening salt, livestock licks and food additives -- might be affected by the nuclear-waste traffic that passes about a half-mile from the plant. In addition, the 80 employees might be endangered, he said. "It's very hard to quantify" the potential impact, he said. "It is just one step in the process," said PFS spokeswoman Sue Martin. "And there are still a lot of things that have to be done before construction can begin." The 32-mile line would cost between $20 million and $35 million, the new railroad company estimated. It would go between Low, Utah, and the yet-to-be-built storage pad. The $6 million loop would be built about 1.8 miles from Timpie, where shipping casks could be transferred from the rail cars to trucks that would transport the waste to the reservation over the road. PFS' project is opposed by Gov. Mike Leavitt, who is pushing three bills in the state Legislature to prevent the consortium from bringing waste to Utah. Those bills were approved by the state Senate on Tuesday. The Goshutes contend they have a sovereign right to do what they want with the land. ***************************************************************** 5 Anti-waste bill opposed by handful [deseretnews.com] February 20, 2001 3 measures halting N-waste storage pass Senate easily By Dennis Romboy Deseret News staff writer At least a couple of state senators say storing high-level nuclear waste in Utah's west desert wouldn't present a hazard and the state shouldn't spend money trying to stop it. "I just don't think the stuff is that dangerous when it's properly contained," said Rep. Mike Waddoups, R-Taylorsville. "And everyone is storing it properly now." Waddoups was among a handful of senators Monday who opposed a bill that would make it make almost impossible for power utilities to store spent nuclear fuel rods on Goshute tribal lands about 70 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. Despite some scattered opposition, three measures Gov. Mike Leavitt wants in his effort to keep nuclear waste out of Utah easily passed in the Senate in preliminary votes Monday. The Senate overwhelmingly gave final passage to all three bills Tuesday. SB81 would impose a $325 billion upfront tax on nuclear utilities and 75 percent tax on companies that provide goods and services for the storage site. Another bill, SB198, appropriates $1.3 million (an appropriations committee came up with $300,000) for an anticipated lawsuit, while SB199 earmarks $2 million to the Goshutes for economic development in lieu of storing nuclear waste. "We've tried to find everything we possibly could find to stop this from coming. And we've placed it in nice, handy bill form," said Sen. Terry Spencer, R-Layton, the bills' sponsor. Waddoups said he believes it's safe to temporarily store the waste in the west desert, as Private Fuel Storage proposes, until it can be transported to a permanent site in Nevada. Sen. David Steele, R-West Point, Monday voted against SB198 "because nuclear energy is not a negative. Nuclear energy, in fact, is one of the things we've got to look at or we're not going to survive." Nuclear power is not among the potential new energy sources Leavitt has identified as Utah and the West faces an electricity shortage. "This isn't an anti-nuclear energy bill," Spencer said. The purpose is to tell other states"we don't want your garbage here." At Leavitt's urging, that state would appropriate $1.6 million to defend the state against a lawsuit officials say is inevitable if SB81 becomes law. "The big issue to me is I think we're spending money on a fight we're not going to win," Waddoups said. He also said he has a problem with the Legislature passing laws on a sovereign Goshute nation. Steele, who heads the Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee, said the money would be better spent on human service needs. Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, voted against the bills saying, lawmakers ought to help the poverty-stricken Goshutes"instead of pounding them into the ground like a post." Spencer said the $2 million appropriation to the small tribe for economic development could leveraged into more than $10 million. *E-mail: romboy@desnews.com* © 2001 Deseret News Publishing Company ***************************************************************** 6 Senate takes steps to avoid storing nuclear waste in Utah w w w . s t a n d a r d . n e t Sen. Dave Steele: It is shortsighted to write off nuclear energy *Tuesday, February 20, 2001* By BOB WARD Standard-Examiner Capitol Bureau SALT LAKE CITY -- The Senate strongly approved two pieces of legislation Monday designed to squash nuclear-waste businesses in Utah. The senators also endorsed a $2 million economic development subsidy for the members of the Goshute Indian Reservation. However, some fear lawmakers and Gov. Mike Leavitt may be going too far in their zeal to keep spent nuclear fuel rods away from a proposed storage site on the Skull Valley Goshute Indian Reservation in the West Desert. "I think we'll lose this fight because of the fact we're fighting against a federal initiative to store all that stuff, and the fact that we're limiting the ability of a private enterprise, and thirdly because we're going against a sovereign nation out there," said Sen. Mike Waddoups, R-Taylorsville. Proponents of the anti-nuclear effort have argued that they're protecting the health and safety of Utahns by keeping the dangerous materials out of the state altogether. But Sen. Dave Steele, R-West Point, who usually finds himself allied with Leavitt, questioned the public safety argument. Steele said the number of accidents or deaths nationwide related to nuclear power or nuclear waste doesn't approach the number of coal industry fatalities in Utah alone. He also said it's short-sighted to write off nuclear energy. "I'm probably the only one here who's going to vote against this," Steele said. "Nuclear energy is not negative. Nuclear energy is one of the things we've got to look at, or we're not going to survive." As it turned out, Steele wasn't alone in his opposition. But all the cautionary arguments in the world weren't going to stop Sen. Terry Spencer's trio of anti-nuclear waste bills on their trip through the Senate. Layton Republican Spencer won preliminary approval Monday for three bills designed to accomplish two ends: Stop at all costs the Goshute plan to store high-level nuclear waste, and offer the tribe an economic alternative to accepting the volatile radioactive material. Senate Bill 81 is a virtual grab-bag of legal and regulatory barriers to the establishment and operation of a high-level nuclear waste business in Utah. The legislation would prohibit the formation of such a business, and pro hibit anyone else from providing goods or services to such a business. In addition, the bill would go directly for the pocketbook of the business by creating a 75 percent tax on the company's gross receipts. "This is not an anti-nuclear energy bill," Spencer said. "This just says "If you generate waste somewhere else, let it stay somewhere else.'" Should someone take issue with SB 81 in court, then Spencer's second bill, SB 198, would set aside $1.6 million for legal costs. Since the bill has already received $300,000 in funding, SB 198 was amended to allocate just $1.3 million. Some senators still felt Spencer's package was too harsh in its treatment of the impoverished Goshutes. Spencer has tried to answer those concerns with SB 199, the last in the trio of bills and the only one that received unanimous Senate support. SB 199 would allocate $2 million in economic development funds to help the Goshutes find other ways to enhance their living standards. The state money could be combined with up to $10 million in federal funds, Spencer said, to create a long-term economic development plan. "I didn't want to leave the Goshute band out there with out any resources," he said. The three bills still face one more hearing in the Senate before they move to the House, where support is expected to be equally solid. ***************************************************************** 7 Hanford might 'baby-sit' Ohio wastes on way to cavern Columbus site can't wait 2 years for approval from New Mexico This story was published Tue, Feb 20, 2001 By John Stang Herald staff writer The Department of Energy is mulling whether to send about 100 barrels of transuranic wastes from Columbus, Ohio, to Hanford later this year. The proposal is in a preliminary stage, said Tom Baillieul, DOE's on-site project manager for cleaning up a Battelle Memorial Institute lab area at West Jefferson, which is 15 miles west of Columbus. DOE's Ohio office has to get the OK from DOE's Richland office and DOE headquarters in Washington, D.C., he said. And DOE still has to approach the state of Washington about the matter. Transuranic waste is essentially highly radioactive junk -- such as tools and metal debris -- that Hanford and other DOE sites are packing into 55-gallon barrels to eventually ship to a huge man-made, half-mile-deep cavern near Carlsbad, N.M., for permanent storage. Transuranic materials, which include plutonium, can take thousands of years to decay to benign levels. Battelle Memorial Institute began researching nuclear fuels and materials at the West Jefferson lab in the 1940s -- producing transuranic wastes. Now, DOE is trying to demolish and clean up that site by 2006 at an estimated cost of $120 million. Shipping wastes to the New Mexico site -- the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP -- is a complicated undertaking involving extensive inventories, double-checking and packing. Each individual DOE site has to pass a detailed review before WIPP will accept its wastes. The Ohio site does not have adequate facilities to store transuranic wastes for the 18 to 24 months it is expected to take to get approval from WIPP. The Battelle project can ship its transuranic waste to two DOE sites equipped to temporarily store the material -- Oak Ridge, Tenn., and Hanford, which already is approved to prepare wastes to send to WIPP. Last week, Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist said his state refuses to be an interim storage site for DOE's Ohio transuranic wastes. In Washington, Mike Wilson, manager of the state's nuclear waste management program, said he is unfamiliar with any specifics on the DOE Ohio office's proposal to ship transuranic wastes to Hanford. He said he is concerned about how 100 extra barrels of transuranic wastes will affect Hanford shipping its own transuranic wastes to WIPP. Hanford began shipping barrels at a slow pace last summer. Baillieul said Ohio's 100 barrels "is a drop" compared with the 80,000 barrels that Hanford expects to send to WIPP between now and 2032. Baillieul said DOE's Ohio office hopes to resolve where it will ship its transuranic wastes within a couple of months, expecting to actually start trucking the material this summer. The actual shipping is expected to take nine to 12 months, he said. Hanford currently accepts low-level radioactive wastes and mixed wastes -- radioactive wastes containing hazardous chemicals -- from other DOE sites, including Ohio's sites. Several weeks ago, DOE declared it would not ship low-level wastes nor mixed wastes from any new sites until at least next fall. That's because the state of Washington and DOE expect to haggle over whether Hanford's acceptance of new wastes should be legally linked to Hanford's progress on building a waste glassification plant. Wilson was unsure how Ohio's transuranic wastes would fit into the existing political picture of what the state would find acceptable. Right now, the state has legal jurisdiction over mixed wastes but not over radioactive wastes. Baillieul noted that DOE's Portsmouth, Ohio, site accepted 737 tons of Hanford's leftover uranium trioxide powder last year and is scheduled to take in another 258 tons of uranium-filled cylinders from Hanford this year. Copyright 2001 Tri-City Herald. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. ***************************************************************** 8 Energy Northwest faces worker shortage This story was published Wed, Feb 21, 2001 By Chris Mulick Herald staff writer A good economy and competing jobs have Energy Northwest behind in its efforts to secure the 800 to 900 workers it needs to refuel the Northwest's only nuclear power plant in a timely fashion. Three months from now, crews will be taking the Columbia Generating Station apart, performing maintenance projects while supplying the plant with enough nuclear fuel to run for the next two years. If crews stick to a schedule that now calls for a 29-day, 20-hour outage, they would beat the plant's record for the shortest ever by almost a full work week. Wholesale power prices, lowest in the spring, are expected to recede but remain several times higher than in past years. And every additional day the 1,150-megawatt behemoth is off-line could cost the Bonneville Power Administration millions of dollars to buy replacement power off the market. The agency already has secured some juice to fill the void it expects the station to leave. But without enough temporary mechanics, painters, clerical workers, technicians and others, the work won't get done on time. And while it's still early in the hiring process, Energy Northwest may come up short on workers by the time the outage is scheduled to begin May 18, if things don't pick up. "We have come to expect we would have more encouraging signs by now," said Don McManman, a spokesman for the consortium of 13 Washington public utilities that operates the plant. The jobs pay between $13.35 per hour and $26.75 per hour. Many of the workers will be required to work six 12-hour shifts per week and will be paid overtime. But outages at other power plants up and down the West Coast plus buildups for Hanford cleanup projects are competing for those workers. "The ramifications are pretty serious if we don't get enough people," McManman said. Even so, the top priority remains getting the job done effectively. Energy Northwest may opt to extend the outage if it decides other maintenance projects can't wait. And that's just fine with Bonneville. "We want to make sure they have a reliable plant when they get done," said Ed Brost, BPA's liaison with Energy Northwest. "Thirty days is our baseline." It could be several weeks before a final schedule is decided upon. In the meantime, McManman said managers will want to get workers lined up in the next two to three weeks. Though some wouldn't be needed until later in the outage, others would need to be trained and get security clearance before May 18. "It's not a simple matter to get inside the fence of a nuclear power station," he said. Copyright 2001 Tri-City Herald. All ***************************************************************** 9 Ensign underscores need for alternative to nuke burial February 21, 2001 By Cy Ryan SUN CAPITAL BUREAU CARSON CITY -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., told a joint session of the Nevada Legislature Tuesday that nuclear waste will be "crammed down our throats" unless an alternative to burial is found. He said a good start was made last week when a $34 million grant was awarded to New Mexico for studying nuclear waste recycling technology. But he said that's only a start. In office slightly more than one month, Ensign hasn't been able to switch any votes to Nevada's side to stop the potential shipments of nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, but he said it does appear that discussions about Nevada hosting a temporary nuclear waste dump have ceased. "Just six years ago this looked impossible," Ensign said. The Department of Energy is scheduled to make a decision later this year on whether it finds Yucca Mountain -- 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas -- suitable for burial of the waste. Ensign said the 31 other states where the waste is generated at nuclear power plants must be given an alternative to storing their materials if Nevada doesn't want to end up with the spent fuel. He said Sen. Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, is a big supporter of recycling nuclear waste. But Domenici was also quoted during the election campaign as saying that if President Bush were elected, nuclear waste would start flowing to Nevada within six months. On the subject of bipartisanship, Ensign said his relations with Assistant Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., are better than expected. He said the two talk on the phone several times a week and often have face-to-face meetings to discuss issues. "I've learned nurturing one-on-one relationships is a key to success in politics," Ensign said. He said he has spent the first few weeks in Washington meeting with senators. It has paid off, he said, because for the first time, a Republican senator -- Gordon Smith, R-Ore. -- has joined with the Nevada delegation to sponsor a bill to combat illegal sports betting. The bill allocates money and staff to the Justice Department to fight organized crime and illegal sports betting. It's aimed at heading off a bill to ban betting on college sports. The freshman senator predicted that a bill adding prescription drug benefits to Medicare would be signed into law this year. He said he came up with a similar plan during his election campaign in which seniors of income of $17,000 would pay the first $1,200 and after that Medicare would pick up 100 percent of the cost. He said he was for school vouchers but added the chances are "slim" for passage of the bill this Congress. One of his goals, he said, is to funnel more federal education money to Nevada. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 10 BNFL chief mum on project's finances [Frank Munger] February 21, 2001 Jim McAnally doesn't like to share information on BNFL's financial picture. In fact, he won't. For instance, he won't say: 1. Whether the company is losing money on its six-year, $238 million Oak Ridge cleanup contract. 2. How much BNFL spent on its new supercompactor -- billed as the largest in the worldwide nuclear industry. 3. How much BNFL is seeking from the U.S. Department of Energy to cover unforeseen costs on the Oak Ridge project. McAnally, who heads BNFL's Oak Ridge operations, considers the company's finances to be proprietary information, although he offered a few insights on those issues. For instance, he did say: * Regardless of whether the company makes a profit or takes a loss, BNFL will complete the Oak Ridge project and probably complete it on schedule (the end point is still the subject of negotiations because of workload changes). Some have speculated that BNFL is taking a bath on the Oak Ridge contract after grossly underestimating the expense of various cleanup activities. Indeed, some have suggested the losses are such that BNFL will stay away from future decommissioning projects at DOE sites. McAnally disputes the latter assertion and said BNFL hopes to acquire upcoming K-25/K-27 cleanup project at the same Oak Ridge site. He also indicated that the company maintains a strong interest in the eventual decommissioning of uranium-enrichment plants at Portsmouth, Ohio, and Paducah, Ky. Because of lessons learned, however, the company probably would approach future cleanup projects differently and probably would approach the contract negotiations differently as well -- although McAnally said BNFL is not averse to fixed-price contracting. * . That the supercompactor, manufactured by Harris Manufacturing and put together by J.A. Jones Construction, is a mobile unit. Therefore, the facility can be relocated to another site or sold to another company, if need be, after the Oak Ridge work is completed. That makes the cost of the supercompactor more palatable, and McAnally hints that the specially designed mash unit cost a fortune. * BNFL has withdrawn its earlier "requests for equitable adjustment" and, in turn, submitted a series of certified claims to DOE to cover the expenses not foreseen in cleaning up the three huge uranium-enrichment facilities at the Oak Ridge site. What's the difference? Well, according to McAnally, these certified claims include heavy documentation and are more like a billing to DOE. If DOE doesn't accept those claims, there's a legal process for BNFL to appeal the judgment. McAnally insists that BNFL's relationship with DOE, despite reported differences over costs and other issues, is not contentious. "We've got a good relationship with DOE," he said. McAnally won't say how much money those Oak Ridge claims involve, but he said it is much less than some dollar amounts previously reported in Congress and elsewhere. U.S. Rep. Thomas Bliley, R.Va., last year said he'd been told BNFL was seeking as much as $210 million from the Department of Energy. * CAPTAIN NUKE: Bill Brumley is Oak Ridge chief of the National Nuclear Security Administration, the semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy that manages the nuclear weapons complex. As such, his attention is focused on the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant -- current operations there and plans to modernize the Oak Ridge storage and production facilities over the next decade. Why spend billions of dollars on a warhead plant in the post-Cold War period? In a meeting last week with U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp and others, Brumley offered this view of Y-12's importance: "We will over the next year continue to see the stockpile go down as we negotiate new treaties and better treaties. There can be an initial response to that, that as you get fewer nuclear weapons, then the need for Y-12 goes down. "But it's really exactly the opposite. "If you've three or four cars in your garage, you can afford to have one of them in the shop for a while while you get it fixed. As our number of weapons goes down, it is absolutely vital that we have those facilities to be able to repair them, get them back on the line, in the absolute minimal amount of time.... "I would argue that from a readiness standpoint, being able to provide weapons for the security of this nation, the fewer weapons we have, the more important Y-12 and other production plants are." Senior Writer Frank Munger covers the Department of Energy for the News-Sentinel. He can be reached at 865-482-9213 or at twig1@knoxnews.infi.net. This column is also available on the Web at www.knoxnews.com/editorsview/munger/ [E.W. Scripps] Copyright © 1999-2001, The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. ***************************************************************** 11 S.C. To Test Water for Uranium February 21, 2001 ASSOCIATED PRESS GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) -- The state health department plans to test water in as many as 30 additional wells for uranium after earlier inspections found high levels of the metal. Health and Environmental Control Department officials notified about 500 residents of the inspections at a meeting Tuesday. State epidemiologist Robert Marino said the radioactive element can cause kidney damage, but not cancer, and he told residents any uranium in a person's body would go away after they stopped drinking the water. Earlier this month, uranium levels more than 50 times those considered safe were found in three wells, prompting the department to gather water samples from 46 wells in the Simpsonville area, in northwestern South Carolina. The 30 additional wells are in the same area. Tests found uranium levels as high as nine times above the safety standard. Experts believe the contamination is the result of a vein of naturally occurring uranium. Health officials have said they received no reports of anyone suffering ill effects from drinking the water. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 12 DHEC Fields Uranium Questions February 21 10:00 AM EST Citizens At Meeting Concerned With Their Health People in Southern Greenville County asked some tough questions about the safety of their water at a meeting with DHEC officials Tuesday night. Last week, scientists from DHEC took samples from about 50 private wells around the Jenkins Bridge Road area. A total of nine wells in and around the Harrison Hills Subdivision were found to have traces of uranium. Because of those findings, DHEC held a meeting for people to get their questions answered. "I live on the outlining areas but own property on Jenkins Bridge Road, and planned to build. "I thought about getting a well dug this year, but not now," Charlie Lathrop told News 4's Kisha Foster after the meeting. About 500 concerned homeowners packed the Bryson Middle School Auditorium to point out their concerns. Several environmental officials fielded several questions, most of which dealt with health issues. "The real problem with uranium is not radioactivity. The problem with uranium is high concentrations that harm the kidneys," Dept. of Health and Environmental spokesman Dr. Bob Marino said. He said that there isn't any evidence linking uranium to cancer, and that everyone is exposed to small levels of the metal each day. Officials with the Greenville Water System said that it would take at least six months before the affected area could be connected with the Greenville's water system. DHEC officials plan to do an expanded water study along Highway 418, New and South Harrison Bridge Roads. Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! and . ***************************************************************** 13 Indian Point Plant at Half Power After Water Leak Is Discovered February 21, 2001 By WINNIE HU [W] HITE PLAINS, Feb. 20 — A tiny leak in a water pipe at Indian Point 2 has forced Consolidated Edison to operate the nuclear reactor at half power temporarily and has renewed safety concerns among some Westchester residents. Con Edison officials ordered the reduction in power after a plant operator spotted a wisp of steam coming from an insulated pipe in the turbine building, on the non-nuclear side of the plant, during a routine inspection Monday afternoon. After removing the insulation, the operator found a pin-size hole in the inch-and- a-quarter-thick steel pipe. Chris Olert, a spokesman for Con Edison, said a minute amount of water — nothing radioactive — had leaked out of the pipe. He said the leak was not a threat to anyone. "We discovered it, we're assessing it, and we're going to fix it and return to full power," though he said the utility did not know when. The plant in Buchanan, about 35 miles north of Manhattan, closed last February after a tiny amount of radioactive water leaked from a cracked tube. It was restored to full power on Jan. 28 after a short delay caused by another small, fully contained leak in a valve regulating the flow of radioactive coolant. Since then, Con Edison has reduced the plant's power only once, on Feb. 7, for minor repairs, Mr. Olert said. But some Westchester officials and residents have continued to criticize Con Edison, saying that it had compromised public safety by restarting the plant too quickly. An internal Con Edison report, which was made public in mid-January, acknowledged that some workers had made avoidable mistakes in bringing the reactor back online, in part because they felt pressure from their supervisors to act quickly. Representative Sue Kelly, a Republican, and several others called today for Con Edison to keep the plant at half power until a recent inspection report by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission could be reviewed and released publicly. "Since the plant was restarted, we have seen the consequences of rushing the restart process," she said. "There has been one problem after another." But Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which oversees Indian Point 2, said he saw no reason the plant could not be operated safely at full power once the leak was repaired. "At this point, it looks like they had a defect in the pipe," he said. "They caught it very early on." Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company ***************************************************************** 14 TVA: No plans for Bellefonte -- Sessions wants construction resumed at Scottsboro nuclear plant FEBRUARY 20, 2001 By Winford Turner DAILY Senior Writer One day after U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions called on the Tennessee Valley Authority to consider completing construction at the Bellefonte Nuclear Plant, a TVA spokesman said the utility is not considering his proposal. Sessions, R-Mobile, made the request at a news conference Monday at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant in Limestone County. He also asked TVA officials to restart Unit 1 at Browns Ferry. He said reactivating the Browns Ferry unit and completing Bellefonte near Scottsboro would allow TVA to rely less on its coal-burning plants, which he said produce the greenhouse gases scientists believe cause global warming. "I've talked to our officials in Knoxville and Chattanooga today, and they said that restarting Unit 1 at Browns Ferry has been discussed, but there has been no discussion about the possibility of completing Bellefonte," said Phil Harris, spokesman at Browns Ferry. Sessions said Monday he is convinced that relying more on nuclear power is the best way to relieve the U.S. energy crisis. "We're going to be facing a power crisis soon in the United States, and I think the best thing we can do right now is come with a plan to get nuclear back in the game," Sessions said. Harris said today TVA officials are looking at the possibility of restarting Unit 1 at Browns Ferry, "but I've been told that completing the Bellefonte plant is not a possibility at this point." Harris said TVA officials are basing their decision on the cost of bringing the plant on line. Willie Phillips, Sessions' deputy press secretary, said today that Sessions could not be reached for comment. "I know he is going to be disappointed that TVA will not consider completing the plant as a possible solution to the possible energy crisis," said Phillips. The U.S Environmental Protection Agency sued TVA and other utilities last year, alleging they weren't doing enough to reduce coal-burning pollution. TVA said it stopped construction at Bellefonte in 1988 because of unexpected safety-related costs at its Browns Ferry and Watts Bar nuclear plants. At that time, TVA said demand for electricity was not expected to be as much as it had projected. TVA spent more than $4 billion on the Bellefonte plant before shutting it down. TVA officials said the plant is about 80 percent complete. As work stopped at Bellefonte, many questioned the safety of nuclear energy in the wake of an accident at Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant near Harrisburg, Pa. Sessions said Monday he believes it would cost TVA $2 billion or less to complete construction of the plant. Copyright 2001 THE DECATUR DAILY. All rights reserved. AP contributed to this report. --> Copyright 2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. --> SEE ALSO: THE DECATUR DAILY 201 1st Ave. SE P.O. Box 2213 Decatur, Ala. 35609 (256) 353-4612 www.decaturdaily.com ***************************************************************** 15 Silicon Valley Executives Cite the Need for Nuclear Power Nuclear Energy Institute Feb. 13, 2001Stung by the electricity shortages that have plagued California this winter, two of the worlds top technology executives have extolled the value of nuclear energy in recent weeks. Last Thursday, at a National Press Club Newsmaker Luncheon in Washington, D.C., Scott McNealy, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Sun Microsystems, spoke of Californias energy woes and the impact they are having on his Palo Alto-based company and its employees. This country needs to figure out an energy policy & and Im going to do the politically incorrect thing and tell you the answers going to be nuclear power. I have not yet heard anybody utter the phrase nuclear power in California yet. But in terms of environmental and cost and competitiveness and all the rest of it, I just don't see any other solution & Rolling blackouts are a bad thing. Just one month earlier, Craig Barrett, president and chief executive officer of Santa Clara-based Intel Corp., voiced similar views on the urgent need for the reliable, low-cost, bulk electricity that nuclear power plants provide. As reported by Bloomberg News on Jan. 9, Barrett said his company was unlikely to expand in Silicon Valley and would instead consider building in such far-flung locations as Ireland and Israel because Californias energy crisis had made power supplies unreliable. Barrett criticized government officials for blocking new power plants, and said, Nuclear power is the only answer but its politically incorrect. McNealy said that, beyond his willingness to speak up, politicians need to exhibit the leadership to shape a comprehensive energy policy that will serve the national interest. Im happy to take the lead and take the arrows if thats what it takes, but I think the politicians have got to step up and start driving this and come up with a better energy policy that includes nuclear power. Copyright © 2000 Nuclear Energy Institute. ***************************************************************** 16 EDITORIAL: Waste transport February 21, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal How waste will be transported to Yucca Mountain if it is eventually approved as the nation's high level nuke dump remains unresolved. Will it be trucked over the highways or sent by rail? If by highway, what routes will it take? The government has not yet revealed its intentions. Despite the Department of Energy's assertion that the waste can be shipped safely, it is unlikely -- for political and practical purposes -- that any approved routes would go through major population centers, including downtown Las Vegas, or over difficult terrain, including the Hoover Dam. But even if that's the case, what will the Energy Department do to ensure truckers stick to approved highways? Recent news isn't encouraging. A quarterly report provided to the state on shipments of low-level nuclear waste to the Nevada Test Site revealed that eight of 134 transports during October, November and December of last year deviated from approved routes, going through the Spaghetti Bowl. One of the eight also went over the Hoover Dam, another violation. No system is fail-safe, of course, and the low-level shipments that inadvertently traveled local roads presented virtually no danger. But if this is the error rate we can expect for high-level transport, the Energy Department still has a long way to go before it can argue that the Yucca Mountain project won't disrupt the lives of Southern Nevadans. webmaster@lvrj.com Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1997 - ***************************************************************** 17 Australia Unsure On Fuel Type For Sydney Nuclear Reactor Wednesday, February 21 5:43 PM SGT CANBERRA (AP)--Australian officials said Wednesday they don't yet know what type of fuel their new nuclear reactor, to be built in Sydney next year, will use or how they will dispose of the radioactive waste it produces. Argentina's INVAP has been contracted to build the A$280 million Australian dollar reactor in 2002 to replace the current reactor in southern Sydney. The reactor is used for experiments and producing medical equipment and does not generate power. "We don't have sufficient information from either ANSTO (The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization) or the company about the fuel types and fuel management strategy," assistant secretary of the Environment Assessment Branch, Gerry Morvell, told a government committee. "We would expect that that would be coming forward when the detailed design of the reactor is presented." Morvell said the fuel mix related to waste management. "It's the fuel mix (that) drive(s) some of the waste management and reprocessing strategies at the end," he said. "Therefore it has to be resolved at least to the point where there is some certainty because then that will allow the government to understand what's going to happen with the waste at the end." Copyright © 1994-2001 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 18 Recast: Chinese Company Insures Marine Nuclear Transport [Xinhua News Agency] Story Filed: Tuesday, February 20, 2001 8:37 PM EST SHANGHAI (Feb. 21) XINHUA - A leading Chinese insurance company contracted here this week to exclusively offer marine transport insurance valued at 450 million U.S. dollars for materials for a nuclear power station in Lianyungang, a port city in east China. According to the contract, the China Pacific Insurance Co. Ltd has insured the transportation by sea of the bulk of nuclear equipment from Saint Petersburg, Russia, to Lianyungang from 2001 and 2004. With its first-phase investment totaling 3.2 billion U.S. dollars, the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant is a key project in China 's 10th Five-Year Plan (2001-2005), and also a large cooperation program between the Chinese and Russian governments. With its principal equipment imported from Russia, the plant plans to install four nuclear generators, each having a capacity of 1.99 million kilowatts. The plant began its construction last May, and will be completed in 2005. The insured equipment weighs some 22,000 tons in total, and 776 are super-large pieces. The voyage extends for 12,000 nautical miles, stretching across ten time zones. Copyright XINHUA NEWS AGENCY ***************************************************************** 19 Protest Against the Acceptance of Non-Japanese High-Level Nuclear Waste CNIC cnic.jca.apc.org Citizens' Nuclear Information Center 21 February, 2001 Tokyo, JAPAN Protest Against the Acceptance of Non-Japanese High-Level Nuclear Waste On 21 February 2001, 192 canisters of vitrified high-level waste (VHLW) shipped from France were unloaded at Mutsuogawara Port in Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture. This is the sixth international maritime transportation of Japanese VHLW. As it was with the last shipment of nuclear waste to Japan, the cargo includesVHLW from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel from French gas-cooled plants and fast breeder reactors and other European reactors treated at the French company COGEMA's UP-2 plant. The contracts between the Japanese companies and COGEMA specify that waste from the reprocessingof Japanese spent nuclear fuel must be returned to Japan. However, Japan has no responsibility or obligation to accept waste produced at UP-2 plant. CNIC strongly protests against the acceptance of foreign nuclear waste and shipments of such waste which completely ignores the risks involved in maritime transportation. According to a formal written answer of the Japanese government to the questions from a House of Representative member dated 20 September 1994, under the terms of the contracts between Japanesepower companies and COGEMA concerning the UP-2 plant, Japan has no obligation to accept the waste generated from the plant. The waste from UP-2 plant is forced upon local residents of Rokkasho and Aomori upon the one-sided convenience of the companies. Moreover, there are serious concerns over the quality of the VHLW since only limited information has been made public on the contents of the waste. Little has been made public on the terms of the reprocessing contracts between COGEMA, British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL), and Japanese power companies. In addition, Japanese government and power companies do not have accurate information on how Japanese spent nuclear fuel is reprocessed and how the quality of the waste is being controlled. Because they do not have detailed information on the type, quality, and amount of Japanese waste, the details of the "returning waste" documented in the "Siting Basic Agreements" signed by Aomori Prefecture and the Federation of Electric Power Companies are still unclear. The government and power companies must make public all the terms of the reprocessing contracts with COGEMA and BNFL, clearly explain the entire scope of overseas reprocessing to the Japanese public, and then consult citizens on whether or not to continue this program. By accepting "returning" waste beyond its obligation under the terms of the reprocessing contracts, Japan has opened way to the possibility of various nuclear waste produced from reprocessing in France and Briton being brought into Rokkasho under no particular order. CNIC is strongly against such unreasonable "returning" of nuclear waste. *For a Nuclear Free World - http://www.cnic.or.jp/* 3F Kotobuki Bldg., 1-58-15 Higashi-nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo 164-0003 Japan Tel: 81-3-5330-9520; Fax: 81-3-5330-9530 (C) Citizens' Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) ***************************************************************** 20 Nuclear waste cargo arrives for 50-year storage in Japan Independent By Shigeyoshi Kimura, AP 20 February 2001 A shipment of nearly 100 tons of nuclear waste generated by Japanese power plants and processed in France arrived by boat in northern Japan today for long–term storage, officials said. The shipment left the French port of Cherbourg in December, and has been heavily opposed by environmentalists who fear a leak of radioactive material, accident or terrorist attack. The so–called vitrified waste is the solid material left over after uranium and plutonium is removed from spent nuclear fuel. It was processed by France's state–owned nuclear group, Cogema. Japan has the processing done in Europe because it lacks the facilities to do so at home. Resource–poor Japan depends on nuclear power for 30 percent of its electricity needs. Nuclear facilities here, however, have been plagued with accidents, including on in September 1999 that killed two people. Tuesday's shipment, which arrived at the port of Mutsu–Ogawara, 355 miles north-east of Tokyo, was the sixth – and the largest – to arrive in Japan since the program started in 1995. The spent nuclear fuel was generated by plants owned by five Japanese power companies, said Kaoru Yoshida, a spokesman for the Federation of Electric Power Companies. The 94 tons of waste, in 192 canisters, was to be stored at Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd.'s facility in Rokkasho, near Mutsu–Ogawara, for 30 to 50 years, before it is moved to a permanent site, Yoshida said. "We don't know where the final storage site will be," he said. About 80 environmentalists held a rally near the port, but there were no clashes between police and protesters, said Ikuo Nakamura, an official of the Aomori prefectural (state) police. Nakamura said authorities expected more protesters on Wednesday, when the processed waste was to be unloaded from the ship. Controversy has dogged the shipment. Argentine authorities allowed the ship to pass the tip of South America last month despite a judicial decision that barred the vessel from Argentine waters. A shipment of MOX fuel, a mixture of uranium oxide and plutonium used in Japan's much–criticized experimental nuclear energy program, left France in January and was expected in Japan next month. © 2001 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd. ***************************************************************** 21 Senior DPP adviser may leave post The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-21 February 21st, 2001 RESPONSIBILITY: Lin Yi-hsiung, who is strongly opposed to the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, wants to resign from his post as a senior party adviser now that the Cabinet has decided to restart construction By Joyce Huang STAFF REPORTER Former DPP chairman Lin Yi-hsiung (ªL¸q¶¯), a veteran anti-nuclear activist, yesterday offered to resign from his position as the senior advisor to the party, saying "I've done my best [to push for discontinuance of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (®Ö¥|)] but I have to shoulder some responsibility [for the Cabinet's final decision to resume the plant's construction.]" Lin made the comment at a press conference after meeting with party Secretary-General Wu Nai-jen (§d¤D¤¯) yesterday morning and expressed his hope that the party's Central Standing Committee could discuss and approve his resignation today. Lin also said that other DPP politicians and government officials, including President Chen Shui-bian (³¯¤ô«ó), should examine their own wrongdoings during the party's policy-making process over the plant's fate. Lin said he believed that the party had made a very bad impression on society by first deciding to scrap the plant, only to reverse the decision later on. "The Council of Grand Justices had proposed three ways to settle the dispute over the plant, that is, passage of an energy law, the resignation of the premier and a vote of no confidence in the Cabinet. But none of those procedures was followed," Lin said, seemingly suggesting that the Cabinet should not have compromised and announced resumption of the plant's construction. Lin, who had long advocated scrapping the plant, had previously said that no DPP government official would make a decision to build a nuclear power plant, including the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, since to do so would violate the party's platform. When former premier Tang Fei (­ð­¸) was still in office and stated his intention to continue the plant's construction, Lin immediately argued that "the president should replace any Cabinet members who endorse the plant." Shocked at Lin's move, Chen, Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (±i«T¶¯) and DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (Áªø§Ê) yesterday all said that the party would do its best to persuade Lin to stay. "President Chen said whatever his decision will be, Lin will always be the party's chairman. He also said he will continue to consult with Lin on national policies," Secretary-General to the Presidential Office Yu Shy-kun said yesterday. Hsieh tried to interpret Lin's move, saying that Lin did not mean to embarrass the party, but to emphasize the DPP's insistence on turning Taiwan into a nuclear-free country and to condemn pro-nuclear politicians. Lin, in addition, embraced the idea of holding a referendum to decide the plant's fate. "It's the people's fundamental right to vote. It is also common sense in a democracy. Any politician who opposes the passage of a referendum law has undemocratic principles," Lin said yesterday, adding that holding a referendum to have people decide the plant's fate was feasible -- even without relevant legislation in place. Lin, who had promised to lead an anti-nuclear parade scheduled for Feb. 24, also said that the parade's theme would not be altered to cater to any individuals' anti-government sentiments. The demonstration will be held to appeal that a referendum be held at year's end to reverse the Cabinet's decision to continue the plant's construction. This story has been viewed 430 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/21/story/0000074537] Copyright © 1999-2001 The Taipei Times. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 22 Russians ponder specter of nuclear waste imports The Taipei Times Online: 2001-02-21 February 21st, 2001 By Monique Chu STAFF REPORTER, WITH AGENCIES A visiting Russian parliamentarian and Russian experts voiced mixed views yesterday on whether Russia should become the destination for Taiwan's nuclear waste once the State Duma passes a bill to allow Russia to import highly radioactive waste from foreign countries. While some said economic interest was what drove a majority of Duma deputies to support the bill, others opposed the import of Taiwan's nuclear waste for the sake of environmental protection. "The main purpose [for the amendment of the law] is to attract foreign currency which Russia badly needs," Alexandr Alexandrovich Karelin, a member of the State Duma, said after emerging from a briefing on Taiwan's development at the Government Information Office yesterday afternoon. Russian Nuclear Power Minister Yevgeny Adamov has claimed that Russia would earn up to US$20 billion over the next 10 to 15 years by importing foreign waste. Karelin, who won medals for wrestling at the 1988, 1992 and 1996 Olympics, said that projects would involve transnational cooperation. "There is an international aspect to the project. Not only Russia, but other countries will have shared responsibilities," Karelin added. Although polls in Russia have shown that the Russian public is unequivocally opposed to such imports, Duma deputies last December passed the first reading of a government-backed bill with a vote of 319-38 that would allow the country to import highly radioactive waste from foreign countries. The second reading of the bill is scheduled to take place tomorrow. The London-based *Guardian* newspaper reported from Moscow on Monday that a leaked document showed that the US had backed plans to turn Russia into an international nuclear dump to accommodate waste from Taiwan, South Korea and Japan. The US Department of Energy denied on Monday that it had played a role in pushing for the shipment of nuclear waste from Taiwan to Russia for permanent disposal. However, a spokesperson for Taipower (¥x¹q) admitted yesterday that although both Taiwan and Russia had shown willingness to push the deal through and that a related memorandum of understanding had been signed, the document was not legally binding and the deal not yet finalized. One Russian analyst based in Taipei voiced his opposition to the proposal, saying that imports of high-level radioactive nuclear waste could only jeopardize what they described the already "serious environmental problems" in Russia. "If the authorities decide to do this, I will be against it because it's contrary to the interests of our country ... it is a problem of environmental security," Michael Kryukov, a professor at the Institute of Russian Studies at Tamkang University, said. Noted US journalist Colin McMahon has said that it's estimated that 60 million out of 145 million Russians live in "environmentally dangerous" conditions. Russian officials such as Adamov have argued that spent nuclear fuels are valuable commodities which can be reprocessed and recycled. Meanwhile, some Moscow-based analysts such as Pavel Felgenhauer have argued that it was "defense considerations" that drove the Russian political elite to support the passage of the bill -- which would allow Russia to develop a new generation of weapons by reprocessing nuclear waste from other countries. It was immediately after Russian President Vladimir Putin -- in his capacity as then-secretary of the Security Council -- ordered the nuclear power ministry in April 1999 to speed up the development of a new generation of nuclear weapons that Adamov started to clamor for foreign nuclear waste and the bill was introduced in the Duma, Felgenhauer wrote in the *Moscow Times* on Jan. 4. This story has been viewed 195 times. URL=[http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2001/02/21/story/0000074556] Copyright © 1999-2001 The Taipei Times. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 23 'Kakrapar workers exposed to high radiation' 21 February 2001 : The Times of India The Times of India News Service MUMBAI: Chairperson of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) S P Sukhatme was critical about the safety level at nuclear power plants in the country. Addressing a seminar on ``Radiation protection ," here on Tuesday, the AERB chief cited the example of the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station near Surat, where he said the collective radiation dose received by the workers was three times more than global standards. The four-day conference has been organised by the Indian Association for Radiation Protection. According to him, while the individual exposure to workers at the Kakrapar station was 30 millciverts, which was below the international levels, the collective dosage was higher than global norms. He called upon the Nuclear Power Corporation to improve the design of pressurised heavy water reactors so that tritium leakage was reduced. However, chairperson of the atomic energy commission Anil Kakodkar claimed that safety culture at the country's nuclear power plants was total. He said compared to the radiation received from a natural background by a worker, the exposure at a work place was negligible.``We want to further reduce the level of exposure at the nuclear establishments," he said. ***************************************************************** 24 County switches lobbyists in battle over waste disposal Wednesday, February 21, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal Williams, Kincaid oppose changing firms when showdown looms over repository By JANE ANN MORRISON REVIEW-JOURNAL Clark County Commissioner Myrna Williams was on the losing end of a 4-2 vote Tuesday, unable to persuade other commissioners not to change lobbyists helping to fight the proposed nuclear waste repository in Nevada. Williams and Mary Kincaid lost in their effort to keep Alcade &Fay on the job. Instead, the $60,000-a-year contract was awarded to Cassidy and Associates, a Washington, D.C., firm that won a $13.5 million grant for University Medical Center, a $1.5 million grant for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and was recently hired by the Clark County Health District. Williams said she was concerned about changing lobbyists after eight years at "the most critical point in 20 years of battling nuclear waste. Why is this coming up now when we're at the edge of something happening?" Kincaid said she didn't like the fact the issue was placed on the consent agenda, which is often approved without discussion, and that Alcade &Fay was not notified that a change was being considered. Saying she received no explanation from staff about why the change was needed, Kincaid said, "I am concerned about the way it was handled." But Commissioners Erin Kenny and Yvonne Atkinson Gates said, because of Cassidy and Associates' success with UNLV and the medical center, the firm might be in a position to do more for the county, even though the contract is a lobbying contract for nuclear waste issues only. Commission Chairman Dario Herrera abstained from the vote because he once considered working for Cassidy. Chip Maxfield and Bruce Woodbury -- without explaining why -- joined Atkinson Gates and Kenny in voting for the contract. Both firms have political connections. Alcade &Fay employs as its lobbyist former Rep. Jim Bilbray, D-Nev., while Cassidy is represented by Las Vegas attorney Jay Brown, a neighbor of Atkinson Gates and close friend of U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. A similar push was made in June by the Las Vegas City Council, when Councilman Michael Mack tried to persuade his peers to switch to Cassidy and Associates for its lobbying. ***************************************************************** 25 Govt rejects US stand on N-fuel amid Pak concern 21 February 2001 : The Times of India NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD: The government on Tuesday dismissed US objection to Russia supplying nuclear fuel for the Tarapur power reactors even as Pakistan warned that Moscow's arms supply would further widen south Asia's conventional weapons imbalance. A foreign office spokesman said all imports of fuel for the plant had always been under the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards regime. "India has consistently and impeccably observed those safeguards. The latest import from Russia is similarly covered, the IAEA having been informed about it," the spokesman said reacting to US demand that Moscow cancel the arrangement as it was in "violation" of its nonproliferation commitments. US State Department spokesman Philip Reeker on Saturday said that Washington "deeply regrets that the Russian federation has shipped nuclear fuel to the Tarapur power reactors in India in violation of Russia's non-proliferation commitments". He called on Moscow "to cancel this supply arrangement and live up to its non-proliferation obligations." Reeker said "although Tarapur reactors are under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, India does not have such safeguards on all of its facilities and is indeed pursuing a nuclear weapons programme." As a member of the 39-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), Russia is committed not to engage in nuclear cooperation with any country that does not have comprehensive IAEA safeguards on all its nuclear facilities, Reeker said. In Islamabad, foreign office spokesman Riaz Muhammad Khan said the Pakistani government was concerned at the reported shipment. The fuel would be used for the growth of Indian nuclear capability which is outside the purview of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he said. He slammed the Russian decision as another example of "discriminatory practices" by individual nuclear states in contrast to their policy towards Islamabad. Pakistan, he pointed out, had been denied equipment required for the safety of its nuclear power reactors operating under the IAEA safeguards. Russia last week also signed an $800-million deal to supply 310 T-90 battle tanks to India. The tank deal followed a $3-billion contract in December for the licensed production of 140 Sukhoi SU-30MKI fighters by India over a 17-year period. "Such massive supply of armaments to India will widen the conventional imbalance which already exists in the region," Khan said. "This is not good for peace and security in South Asia."(PTI/AFP) ***************************************************************** 26 Nuclear fuel import covered by safeguards: govt Feb 21 2001 POLITICS NEW DELHI INDIA said on Tuesday that importing nuclear fuel from Russia for reactors at its Tarapur power plant was covered by international safeguards. An external affairs ministry spokesman rejected US criticism of the nuclear deal with Russia, and said New Delhi had "consistently and impeccably observed safeguards". "All import of fuel for Tarapur atomic power station has always been under IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) safeguards," Raminder Singh Jassal said, adding the IAEA had been informed about the shipment. The US State Department said last week that Russia’s supply of nuclear fuel to India raised questions about Moscow’s commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and urged it to call off the deal. US State Department spokesman Philip Reeker on Saturday said that Washington "deeply regrets that the Russian Federation has shipped nuclear fuel to the Tarapur power reactors in India in violation of Russia’s nonproliferation commitments". He called on Moscow "to cancel this supply arrangement and live up to its nonproliferation obligations." Reeker said, "Although Tarapur reactors are under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, India does not have such safeguards on all of its facilities and is indeed pursuing a nuclear weapons programme." As a member of the 39-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, Russia is committed to not engaging in nuclear cooperation with any country that does not have comprehensive IAEA safeguards on all its nuclear facilities, Reeker said. Meanwhile, Russia on Tuesday denied US allegations that it was engaged in "active proliferation" of weapons and asserted it had not violated any of its international obligations by supplying nuclear fuel to India for its Tarapur reactors. "We have stated our stance at nuclear suppliers group session in Geneva last month at which the US delegation raised this issue. "We don't see it a violation of our obligations and have nothing new to add," a Russian foreign ministry official told mediapersons when asked about the US State Department's call to Moscow to cancel a deal with India on the supply of nuclear fuel for Tarapur nuclear reactors. — Agencies [Previous]    [Next]   Copyright © 2000 Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved. | ***************************************************************** 27 India shrugs off Bush administration criticism on nuclear fuel 2/20/01 9:00:00 AM Copyright 2001 Associated Press. NEW DELHI, India (AP) - Shrugging off criticism from the United States and Pakistan, India said Tuesday that its key nuclear facility receiving Russian nuclear fuel is in line with international atomic energy norms. U.S. President George W. Bush's administration accused Russia on Friday of violating its nonproliferation commitments by shipping nuclear fuel to India for use in power reactors. The fuel is meant for India's Tarapur reactors in the western state of Maharashtra. Foreign ministry spokesman Ramindar Jassal said all fuel imports for Tarapur have always been under the safeguard regime of the International Atomic Energy Agency. ``India has consistently and repeatedly observed these safeguards,'' Jassal said. ``The latest import from Russia is similarly covered, the IAEA having been informed about it.'' Russia reportedly began making deliveries earlier this month. India needs fuel for its 12 existing and 16 planned nuclear power plants. Nuclear power supplies about 3 percent of India's electricity today and is planned to provide 10 percent by 2005. The government also needs fuel for its atomic weapons program, which it considers necessary for defense in a region where two of its neighbors, Pakistan and China, have nuclear arms. Pakistan, India's western neighbor and rival of five decades, also slammed the Russian decision, saying it will help New Delhi develop nuclear weapons. ``This fuel will help India in its nuclear weapons capability,'' foreign ministry spokesman Mohammed Riaz Khan said. Pakistan was being denied any nuclear equipment, including supplies to keep its nuclear power plants safe, while Russia was helping India's nuclear program, he said. ``It highlights the discriminatory practices of individual states,'' Khan added. India carried out five underground nuclear tests in May 1998. Within weeks, Pakistan followed with six nuclear explosion. This gave a lethal face to their five decades of enmity centered on the mountainous frontier province of Kashmir, which both countries claim. India controls two-thirds, Pakistan the rest, and the two countries have fought two wars over the dispute. U.S. State Department spokesman Philip Reeker had on Friday expressed ``deep regret'' over the decision, noting that Russia was committed to refrain from nuclear cooperation with any country that does not allow international monitoring of all its nuclear facilities. The United States urged Russia to cancel the supply arrangement. Although the Tarapur facilities are under IAEA scrutiny, India does not have such safeguards on all such facilities and has been pursuing a nuclear weapons program, Reeker said. ***************************************************************** 28 FEATURE - Sweden chooses copper for nuclear waste disposal ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- February 21, 2001 STOCKHOLM - Sweden, leading the way on long-term nuclear waste handling, will soon keep used radioactive uranium out of harm's way in new oxygen-free copper canisters with a life span guaranteed at 100,000 years. "We chose it because it is the best material against corrosion," said Peter Nygards, chief executive at the Swedish nuclear waste and fuel handling company, Svensk Karnbranslehantering (SKB). SKB was set up in 1984 by the power industry to run the disposal of the uranium which remains dangerously radioactive for 100,000 years. Sweden is phasing out nuclear power and plans to start the used uranium storage programme by 2015, burying 8,000 tonnes of waste underground in rock in 4,000 caskets made of 60,000 tonnes of the new oxygen-free copper. The special copper has been in use only for 15 to 20 years, and will be made into containers 50 millimetres (two inches) thick and five metres (16.5 feet) long. The uranium sticks will be placed into steel inserts inside the canisters. Copper, which is a recyclable metal and used traditionally for building roofs, water pipes, air conditioning and electrical devises to improve conductivity, has been treated for total removal of oxygen to acquire the longevity. "The oxygen-free copper has a life-time of 100,000 years but could last up to five times longer," said Perti Makinen, product manager at Finnish Outokumpu Copper Products, a major European copper producer which is developing the canisters and is vying for the Swedish business. And copper, which competes with titanium, stainless steel and glass on anti-corrosiveness, has added benefits in that it is one of the more resistant as well as cheapest materials. Nygards also said the choice of copper, which typically is recycled every 30 to 50 years, fits the bill as a natural material found in nature's circulation. "About 80 percent of the copper ever to have been produced is still in use and will continue to be recycled again without any effect on its properties," he said. Sweden is not alone as a future buyer of the oxygen-free copper, with interest growing in other countries. Neighbouring Finland, which has four nuclear reactors, has already decided to use the material to build containing barrels. "We are looking to Canada, France and east Asia for future prospects," said Makinen. Story by Eva Sohlman REUTERS NEWS SERVICE ***************************************************************** 29 EU Energy Commissioner backs Finnish nuclear plans FINLAND: February 21, 2001 HELSINKI - The European Union's energy commissioner on Tuesday backed plans by Finland's nuclear industry to build the country's fifth reactor, saying nuclear power was needed to help the EU meet its environmental goals. "Every EU member state has (to make) the decision about having or not having nuclear power," Loyola de Palacio told Finnish morning television. "Nuclear power from the point of view of carbon dioxide emissions is a clean energy, and provided there is the right management for the waste, and as long as I know this is the case, this problem is controlled," she said when asked whether Finland should increase its nuclear power. De Palacio has said in the past that nuclear power is a necessary tool for the EU in its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the Kyoto protocol by the 2008-12 deadline. She said she was in favour of renewable sources of energy, but there was a limit as to how much energy these could supply. "When you switch off a nuclear power plant, you must substitute other sources of energy for that," she said. "I am very clear on this: we can't avoid nuclear power if we want to fulfill the Kyoto commitment. There is no doubt about that." Finland's nuclear industry in November submitted an application to the government for a fifth nuclear reactor to be built in the country, with the proposal expected to be either rejected or passed on to parliament for a vote by mid-2001. The decision, which goes against the grain in a Europe shifting away from nuclear power, has led to fissures forming in Finland's ruling government coalition, with the Green Party saying it would leave the five-party group should permission to build the reactor be granted. REUTERS NEWS SERVICE ***************************************************************** 30 Nordic concern over Arctic transport of nuclear waste to Japan The Norway Post - Doorway to Norway 21. Februar 2001 The Nordic Minsters of the Environment will issue a protest against the plans for transporting nuclear waste along the coast of Norway to Japan. France, Great Britain and Japan have announced plans for transporting the nuclear waste along the Norwegian coast, past the coast north of Siberia, to Japan, assisted by a Russian ice breaker along the Arctic route. (See archive for our stories of January 23rd and 24th). It was the Danish Minister of the Environment, Svend Auken, who brought up the subject at a Nordic ministerial meeting on Tuesday. The Nordic ministers agreed to keep a close watch on the planned transport, NRK reports. (NRK) Rolleiv Solholm Share this article with others ***************************************************************** 31 Radioactive waste conference 2-25 to 3-1 in Arizona 2/20/2001 - ENN.com Tuesday, February 20, 2001 Nevada's Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage facility will be among the topics of discussion in a conference later this month. A conference, High Level Waste, Low-Level Waste, Mixed Wastes and Environmental Restoration: Working Toward a Cleaner Environment will be held Feb. 25-March 1, 2001 in Tucson, Arizona. The international meeting will address topics including progress in radioactive waste disposal and management, health risks from low-level radiation, how well-suited the Yucca Mountain site is for storing U.S. high-level waste, reindustrialization of Russia's nuclear-weapons complex and the latest development of technologies for nuclear plant waste. Science students — After a five-year decline, U.S. graduate enrollment in science and engineering programs appears to be on the rise. According to data brief from the National Science Foundation'sDivision of Science Resources Studies, the slump in enrollment began to turn around in 1999. In 1993, graduate enrollment in science and engineering peaked at more than 430,000 students. Then came a five-year decline. In 1999, the field that experienced the largest increase in enrollment was computer science. The data shows that significant increases in enrollment were found among African-American, Asian and Hispanic students. Obesity studies — The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratoryreports the discovery of a fat gene in mice. The discovery could lead to a better understanding of why some people tend to have more difficulty controlling their weight. In the study, researchers kept mice on a strict low-fat diet from the time of their birth. Despite this, some of the mice became 35 percent to 50 percent fatter than others. The scientists pinpointed a gene on a chromosome of the normal mice that they theorize is important in the transportation of fat into fat cells, where it is stored as a source of energy. ORNL researchers demonstrated that this gene works with other genes to maintain the bodys health and energy balance. Copyright 2001, Environmental News Network ***************************************************************** 32 Letter: radiation levels higher than Chernobyl The Scotsman Online - Scotland's best selling quality national newspaper Will someone please tell James Boyle (Letters, 17 February) that the "very tiny quantities" of uranium in south-west Scotland produce a nuclear radiation dose 20 to 30 times greater than the evacuation dose at Chernobyl? It is not so very long ago that plans were drawn up to mine these "tiny quantities", but were abandoned when we found we could get it cheaper abroad. "Depleted" means just that; the full-strength stuff which we have, with a load of nuclear radiation taken out. It is not usually known that, in the early days of nuclear research, a number of young men swallowed plutonium without coming to any harm. I seem to remember that one of them wrote to you on another subject. He is now a venerable old-age pensioner. ROBERT M PATE Minnigaff Kirkcudbrightshire ***************************************************************** 33 Russia to start building nuclear reactor in Iran in 2001 [ITAR/TASS News Agency] Story Filed: Wednesday, February 21, 2001 11:27 AM EST MOSCOW, February 21 (Itar-Tass) - Russia will begin major construction work in Iran this year to build the first reactor for a nuclear power plant in Bushehr. Reactor equipment and the turbine made in Russia will be delivered to the construction site, Deputy Atomic Energy Minister Yevgeny Reshetnikov told journalists on Wednesday. He said the construction of the first reactor in Bushehr goes by plan and is expected to be finished at the end of 2003. Seven hundred and eighty Russian specialists are now at work on the construction site. Reshetnikov noted that specialists from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are re-examining the Bushehr project. They have already checked about half of the equipment to make sure it meets IAEA standards and requirements for nuclear power plant construction. So far their conclusions have been positive, which may mean that the final stage of the examination will go faster. zak/ (c) 1996-2001 ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 34 SA: Nuclear waste poses 'no threat' Daily Mail&Guardian: While scientists say that there is no danger to the public from ships carrying nuclear waste, environmentalists are not convinced, reports Fiona Macleod *February 21, 2001* While scientists say that there is no danger to the public from ships carrying nuclear waste, environmentalists are not convinced FIONA MACLEOD South Africa's top nuclear scientists say the shipment of nuclear waste that passed by the Western Cape en route to Japan this week poses less of a threat to human health than smoking. The scientists moved to allay public panic about the shipment, pointing out that even in the unlikely event there was a disaster and the nuclear waste leaked into the sea, it would have a minimal effect on humans and the environment. "Much is said about the two ships carrying enough nuclear waste to build 20 atomic bombs, but they are actually less of a threat to the environment than the oil spills we have seen off the Western Cape coast," says Neil Jarvis, head of radiochemistry at the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation. Jarvis and two other local scientists - the University of Cape Town's Peter Linder and Peter Wade from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research - undertook extensive research into the safety of plutonium in the marine environment after the first shipment of nuclear waste to Japan rounded the Western Cape in the early 1990s. The material, which is shipped from European countries, is used in Japanese reactors to provide nuclear energy. A paper produced by the three scientists at a workshop convened by the Royal Society of South Africa - a multi-disciplinary scientific body - has been used by governments and shipping authorities around the world."Our research showed that if plutonium oxide somehow leaked into the sea, the impact would be minimal," says Jarvis. "The ships passing the Cape now contain reprocessed mixed oxide [MOX] nuclear waste, which is even less harmful because it is made up of compacted pellets." MOX is a combination of uranium and plutonium. The scientists argue that if there was a leakage, the nuclear waste would not dissolve in the sea water but form a sediment that would sink to the seabed. Laboratory tests, as well as the controlled release of plutonium into the Irish sea from the Sellafield plant of British Nuclear Fuels, indicate that the spreading of this sediment would be minimal and easy to contain. --> "The realistic scenario is that plutonium oxide will come into contact with sea water and remain in an insoluble form, which will sink to the ocean floor. From data collected from real situations where plutonium oxide had been released into the sea, it can be seen that the physical spreading is minimal." A 25-year study on radioactive waste dumped in the sea showed radiation affected the "bottom feeders" most in the deep sea, where there is a small biomass. Concentrations in mussels and clams were 1/100th of those in zooplankton and 1/1000th of those in seaweed. Radiation in marine organisms was tested after a United States Air Force B-52 bomber carrying nuclear weapons crashed in the sea near the Thule air base in Greenland in 1968. "By 1970 the plutonium levels in bottom animals had decreased by a factor of 10. Plutonium levels in higher animals such as fish, seabirds and marine mammals showed no increase. The conclusion of the study was that plutonium originating from the accident was confined to the bottom fauna, and that man had not been at risk," the scientists say. Even if someone swallowed contaminated seafood, the risks would be minimal because the greatest danger is inhaling radioactive material. "You would need to eat as much as one gram to induce leukaemia within five to 10 years," says Jarvis. The scientists dismiss claims that radioactivity in the marine environment would find other pathways to man. "Although workers in Britain have shown there is an excess of childhood leukaemias near certain nuclear establishments, French and American workers have not been able to find a similar tendency in their countries. This phenomenon became known as the Gardiner hypothesis. It has subsequently been shown that there is no correlation between childhood leukaemia and proximity to nuclear installations. "Perhaps the greatest evidence against the Gardiner theory is that after 40 years of study, no evidence of harmful mutations in the children of Japan's atomic bomb survivors has been demonstrated." The scientists point to a report published in the early 1990s on the 42-year medical follow-up of US workers who worked with plutonium during World War II. Four of the original study group of 26 had died by 1987, with a median age of 66. "The mortality rate of the group is considerably lower than expected US rates. Lung cancer was the most frequent malignancy, as is expected for white males. All could be attributed to smoking, with the additional risk due to plutonium inhalation indiscernible from the data. "These are the medical records of workers exposed to doses of plutonium far greater than members of the public would ever receive as a result of plutonium shipping. We therefore conclude from the scientific evidence available that the shipping of plutonium around the Cape is a safe activity." Anti-nuclear activists and members of the Green Party of South Africa, who staged a protest against the nuclear shipments in Cape Town this week, are not convinced by the arguments and point out the scientists stand to benefit from public complacency around nuclear issues. "The important thing is not how much of a spin the scientists can put on nuclear energy to make it seem like it's not a threat, but that it is totally unnecessary and the people who benefit from it are the investors, not the energy users," says Earthlife Africa's Richard Worthington. He says that nuclear waste needs to be carefully managed for thousands of years, and adds there is no scientifically proven safe exposure to nuclear products. "We are not saying that if a ship goes down, people will die tomorrow. There probably won't be any measurable effects on animals and the land," Worthington says. "The impact is more long-term, and it is an unacceptable risk from an industry that is neither economically viable nor sustainable." *-- The Mail&Guardian, February 21, 2001.* ***************************************************************** 35 Ukraine's Kuchma, Under Pressure, Visits Chernobyl Source: Reuters Online Author(s): Pavel Polityuk Story Filed: Tuesday, February 20, 2001 2:46 PM EST CHERNOBYL, Ukraine (Reuters) - Embattled Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma sought refuge from his hostile capital Tuesday by traveling to the closed Chernobyl nuclear power plant where he lashed out at Western funding bodies. Thousands of demonstrators as well as opposition politicians and rights groups have been calling on Kuchma to resign following a scandal in which tape recordings of a voice similar to his ordered officials to kidnap a journalist who is feared murdered. Kuchma, who denies involvement in the disappearance of Internet journalist Georgiy Gongadze, canceled a planned visit to neighboring Moldova and toured the silent remains of Chernobyl, site of the world's worst nuclear accident in 1986. The plant provided the cash-strapped ex-Soviet state with five percent of its power until it was shut down in December. Kuchma accused Western countries of not fulfilling pledges to help finance the building of replacement reactors elsewhere. ``Why do we go around with arms outstretched if they just hit us?'' Kuchma told reporters. ``We definitely need the loans, but we've been speaking about them since 1995... any thinking person needs to ask: do they want to give us the loans at all?'' The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has said it would lend Ukraine $215 million to build replacement reactors in western Ukraine, but, along with other institutions, tied the lending to International Monetary Fund loans. The IMF, which had lifted a year-long lending freeze in December, said earlier this month it had not reached agreement with the government on paying out a loan tranche in March, effectively putting a temporary freeze back on lending over the country's slow pace of economic reform. ``We notice that new conditions keep being piled on us... I see this as their not wanting us to build the (new) reactors,'' said Kuchma after a tour past Chernobyl's cooling lake, iced over for the first time in decades after the station's closure. He also reiterated his criticism of opponents who have been pressing him to resign following the discovery last November of a decapitated corpse, almost certainly that of Gongadze, in woods outside Kiev. ``All this is based not on the will of the people, but on money,'' he said. Kuchma accuses wealthy opponents of coordinating the campaign against him. Kuchma, first elected in 1994, also criticized parliament for seeking to summon the prosecutor general for questioning Wednesday. The prosecutor, Mykhailo Potebenko, a Kuchma appointee, has been accused of dragging his feet in investigating Gongadze's disappearance. Parliament called on Potebenko to resign last year and some political parties plan to hold another confidence vote Thursday, although the chamber has no power to oust the prosecutor. Popular protests against Kuchma have gathered pace in recent weeks, although political analysts have said they do not think Kuchma, 62, will step down. Opposition groups plan to stage a mass rally in the capital Kiev Sunday. *Copyright © 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 36 Proposal: dump nuclear waste under Gulf UPI News Article: Tuesday, 20 February 2001 18:12 (ET) LAFAYETTE, La., Feb. 20 (UPI) -- A Louisiana oilman proposed Tuesday a new solution for disposal of the nation's high-level nuclear waste using the latest oil and gas drilling technology -- bury it in salt formations 10,000 feet beneath the floor of the Gulf of Mexico. Robert Gardes, who operates an oil and gas business in Lafayette, La., said he has taken his idea to the Department of Energy, which regulates disposal of the nation's nuclear waste, and they have shown interest in the concept for future study. "At the time they began investigating methods to dispose of nuclear waste this type of technology had not even been invented," he said. "Multilateral drilling only came about in the oil and gas business in the early '90s. Its only about 10 to 15 years old." Under the proposal by Gardes' Strategic Environmental Technologies, multilateral drilling would be used to create a complex of shafts for disposal of the radioactive waste deep in ancient salt formations. The lateral shafts would be drilled from a main vertical shaft. Waterways would be used to ship the waste down the Mississippi River and along the Atlantic coast under Coast Guard escort to the Gulf, where it would be lowered in special canisters through a huge pipe to the seabed and inserted in the complex of shafts. The only current disposal site is operated by the DOE in salt formations near Carlsbad, N.M., but another site is under study at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Waste will be hauled to those sites by train and trucks over public highways, which Gardes said is more dangerous than his plan. "There is a tremendous opportunity here for nuclear waste disposal," Gardes said. "We can take material, place it in canisters and put it 10,000 feet under the surface in a formation that will be conducive to disposal versus putting in a tunnel at 1,500 feet above known ground water." Critics have raised environmental concerns about the SET proposal and possible prohibitions against the disposal at sea, The Dallas Morning News reported Tuesday. Jacqueline Johnson, a DOE spokeswoman, said the agency would not seriously consider the proposal. "The United States is a signee to a United Nations treaty, which prohibits ocean disposal of nuclear wastes," Johnson told The News. Gardes said the treaty prohibits disposal at sea, such as ships dumping waste over the side, but not under the floor of the ocean. He also noted that his concept is not limited to the Gulf of Mexico, and it could be done on land. He said the Gulf was picked because it was so remote. Officials of the International Maritime Organization in London were also critical of the project, according to the newspaper. A resolution proposed by that group that would ban ocean disposal has been endorsed by the United States and 12 other nations and it could become law by early 2003, officials said. -- Copyright 2001 by United Press International. ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 Many downwinders will never be paid February 21, 2001 By Lee Davidson Deseret News Washington correspondent WASHINGTON — I've been breaking bad news to suffering Utahns. Because of the "Toxic Utah" series the Deseret News published last week, many e-mailed me saying they believe they are downwind cancer victims of atomic bomb tests in the 1950s — and they want to know how to apply for government compensation. I believe most indeed are victims, but they don't qualify for compensation under current law. Worse, the law likely will never change because of some unfortunate political situations. Here's a letter typical of many I received the past week (I've taken out the name): "Good article on the downwinder issue. My wife was diagnosed with thyroid cancer about 10 years ago. She was born in 1937 and the doctor in California asked her if she lived in Utah or Nevada. . . . "(She) was born in Draper, Utah. Her father was a dairy farmer and raised and milked his own cows. They, of course, drank raw milk. (Note: fallout radiation often entered the human food chain via milk from cows who ate radioactive-contaminated grass and feed. Raw milk was more contaminated than pasteurized milk.). "Her family made many trips to southern Utah to visit family and friends. . . . We are wondering if (she) has a claim and, if so, how do we go about filing for a claim as a downwinder. We are convinced that the downwinder situation is true." I wrote back saying that as the law now stands, she does not qualify for the $50,000 that some downwinders may receive. To qualify, people must prove that they have a qualifying type of cancer (thyroid is one of many) and that they were a residents (not just visitors) of a relatively few counties in southern Utah, Nevada or Arizona. Atomic tests were conducted only when the wind was blowing toward Utah — and qualifying counties were those most close to the tests. Salt Lake County is NOT among qualifying areas — even though Energy Department maps obtained by the Deseret News show that the heavily populated area was actually hit with more fallout than some southern Utah areas that do qualify. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and former Rep. Wayne Owens, D-Utah, who created the compensation program in 1990, have said many areas they believed should have been eligible for compensation could not be included — because it would have made the overall program too expensive and would have killed it for everyone. Expanding the program now may be even more difficult. That's because a National Cancer Institute study a few years ago concluded that every county in America was hit with at least some fallout from the atomic tests. If the program is expanded to include, say, Salt Lake County or southern Idaho (two hard-hit areas), virtually every other county in America could also clamor to be included. That would be considered too expensive, and would block expansion — and could even threaten survival of the current program. (Hatch, however, last year did add some more cancers to the list and made qualifying easier. But the compensation program is currently out of money and is awaiting more funding from Congress.) I can relate to the frustration of downwinders. My dad died of multiple myeloma — a once rare cancer that has claimed many Utahns I knew (including former Gov. Scott Matheson). My dad bought a new house in Kearns in Salt Lake County in 1952. I imagine him and many of our neighbors working outside landscaping their new homes during the era of upwind atomic tests. I am amazed at how many in the neighborhood died of cancer. My dad — as well as many of our relatives — also occasionally had helped with a family sheep-shearing business in the western desert. I remember my uncle Art talking about how one yellowish fallout cloud produced rain that killed thousands of just-sheared sheep. Most of the sheep-shearers and ranchers that tried to help them later died of cancer, including Art. They were not full-time residents of eligible counties — so they and their survivors never qualified for compensation. They were likely victims of U.S. Cold War testing. But don't expect the government to acknowledge that — or to pay for it. Politics and money are in the way. *Deseret News Washington correspondent Lee Davidson can be reached by e-mail at lee@desnews.com* © 2001 Deseret News ***************************************************************** 2 Nuclear and Biological Warfare -- Easier Said than Done -- This may be used without permission // --Michael Quinn Sullivan 20 Feb, 2001 Ever since the World Trade Center bombing in 1992, government officials and think tank intellectuals have been worrying the threat of a terrorist incident in the U.S. that involved Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). That is, chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons. War games, computer simulations, and nearly every other analytic tool known to man have been employed to assess the potential consequences of the use of such devices against American cities. Not surprisingly, the putative consequences are nearly always horrific and almost incomprehensible. Worse still is consideration of longer-range consequences of any such attacks. Most observers understand how woefully unprepared we are to deal with such attacks, especially those in the catastrophic terrorism category. Pity the poor first responder that is the fireman or paramedic that arrives on the scene first - he is dead due to lack of the appropriate detection and protection gear. Hospitals would be quickly overwhelmed; all and all, it would be a nightmare the likes of which America has never experienced. But it hasn't happened yet. Why not, one wonders, as the experts toss around casualty figures and remediation schemes? Given the current view of the new terrorist as one interested in inflicting mass casualties, the more the better, why hasn't such a terrorist released biological or nuclear terror against an American city? Maybe because its not as easy done as said. Access to biological or nuclear materials may not be quite as simple as often portrayed. It is true that the rogue states, Iran, Iraq, etc., are assessed to maintain both chemical and biological weapons programs. The new terrorist could procure such instruments from them, but then he wouldn't be a new terrorist anymore. Back to the old state-sponsored terrorist thus exposing the state to the full retaliatory wrath of an enraged America. What about nuclear materials? There are huge repositories of such materials in the former Soviet Union and the security of these is still in question. The Clinton Administration has spent millions helping the Russians to better safeguard these materials and keep them from falling into the hands of terrorists or rogue states. The simple truth is we don't know how effective these programs have been. Pretty sure that no nuclear weapons have gone missing from the Russian arsenal, but nuclear materials do no t enjoy the same level of protection and security. Terrorists would clearly get a lot of competition from rogue states intent on building their own nuclear weapons. Most experts consider that there is sufficient information out there now to design a crude bomb, but what continues to be lacking is sufficient nuclear fuel to make the bomb actually work. Reputable media reports indicate that Iran, at least, has managed to acquire some Russian materials, but beyond that, such rumors are hard to n ail down. But maybe terrorists wouldn't have to steal nuclear materials from Russia. Incredibly, information has come to light recently that indicates terrorists may have a ready-made source of nuclear materials right here in the USA - thanks to the folks at the Department of Energy. It seems that DOE is no better at protecting nuclear materials than it is at protecting our nuclear secrets. New reports circulating in the Pentagon and available on Capitol Hill warn of lax security for the special nuclear materials under the protection of the Department. One such report, referenced in a letter addressed to new Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, concludes lax security means that terrorists have a ready supply of Special Nuclear Materials already existing and available within our borders. Security is considered inadequate both for the facilities housing the materials and a lso during the transit of these materials. Guard forces are likely to be out-gunned in event of a terrorist attack on the site; exercises conducted over the past few years show that such forces, even when augmented by local law enforcement authorities, are no match for determined, well-trained terrorist groups. Security for these materials has been routinely starved over the past eight years; DOE's response to this is the same as every other problem it encounters. Deny, de ny, then change the requirements and evaluation criteria to dumb down the process. When all else fails, shoot the messenger. The available evidence on these reports indicates that DOE is applying this tried and true methodology yet again. Considering the potential consequences of such a catastrophe, why make the job that much easier for a would-be terrorist? Is it really going to take a domestic Pearl Harbor to make the American people demand that their elected representatives take seriously continuing reports of lax security and chronic vulnerabilities in the protection of one of the nation's most precious assets? All the indicators to date suggest the answer may be yes. (Notra Trulock is the director of Media Relations at the Free Congress Foundation) Copyright 2001, Free Congress Foundation " ***************************************************************** 3 Flats' closure date is delayed [www.TheDailyCamera.com] By Beth Wohlberg *Camera Staff Writer* ARVADA — The contractor cleaning up Rocky Flats is behind schedule for a 2006 closure and has not met some safety expectations despite completion of dozens of complicated and dangerous cleanup projects in 2000. According to an annual report, safety performance improved overall at the former nuclear weapons plant, but the last few months of the year signaled the difficulties in work to come. In December, workers overpacked storage drums with radioactive materials. In November, site managers found that 10 workers in Building 771 were contaminated with plutonium. A final report to be released in mid-March is expected to show the contamination was a result of low-level, chronic exposure — rather than a one-time release of the radioactive material. The highest worker dose was 270 millirems. Another worker received a dose of 150 to 170 millirems. The other eight employees received less than 100 millirems of plutonium inside their bodies. The standard set by the federal government for workers is 5,000 milliremsa year. The safety problems at year's end resulted in a slower work schedule in the last few months. But things are improving so far this year, the cleanup contractor said. "January was a much better safety month," said Mark Spears of Kaiser-Hill. "February is looking like a safe month — we are cautiously optimistic about our improvement." Officials from the Department of Energy, Kaiser-Hill and many different advisory boards attended Tuesday night's State of the Flats meeting to discuss the successes and failures in 2000. Barbara Mazurowski, Department of Energy site manager for Rocky Flats, said that the site is now on track for closure in January 2007. But she was also very optimistic about the coming years, and Kaiser-Hill's ability to complete its workload. "We have accomplished more real work than we have in previous years," she said. "We have a contract, stable funding, Congressional and community support, unprecedented support in the Department of Energy and a skilled work force. In 2001, we have to deliver this contract. Getting to 2006 will take a great deal of effort." In 2000, the site finished some major tasks, such as completing the shipments of enriched uranium and closing the material access area in Building 776. But Kaiser-Hill is significantly behind in installing and operating the plutonium packaging system in Building 371. A union representative said his organization is feeling better about the work environment at the Superfund site. "We have tripled our work in the last year," said steelworkers' union president Tony DeMaiori. "We have now become partners with Kaiser-Hill in the closure of Rocky Flats. We are going to close Rocky Flats, and we are going to do it safely." *Contact Beth Wohlberg at (303) 473-1364 or wohlbergb@thedailycamera.com.* Copyright 2001 The Daily Camera. All rights reserved. Any ***************************************************************** 4 Watchdog groups already raised concerns outlined in lawsuit Casper Star-Tribune Casper, Wyoming Wednesday, February 21, 2001 IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) - Some allegations raised in federal court by two former Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory auditors mirror those that have been raised more recently by watchdogs. The lawsuit, first filed five years ago, claims air pollution monitors were shut off during the early and mid-1990s to hide emissions. State regulators this week planned to go through the 400-page complaint to compare the allegations against the violations for which they have already fined the INEEL over the years. More than $1 million in fines has been levied over the years for various violations. The suit, filed by two whistle-blowers who conducted environmental audits at the site, also says employees admitted monitors on smokestacks releasing radioactive and hazardous chemicals were grossly out of compliance with environmental laws. Those are among the allegations raised by the Environmental Defense Institute, Keep Yellowstone Nuclear Free and David McCoy, an Idaho Falls resident. "Finally, we're seeing a snapshot from the inside from guys that had access to many of the internal documents and who were doing interviews with the workers," said Environmental Defense Institute Director Chuck Broscious, who claims about 450 members concentrated near Moscow. A lawyer for one of the site contractors called the suit baseless because environmental problems were disclosed to federal and state regulators as they were discovered. But the suit does makes allegations that watchdog groups did not know about - that workers covered up spills, falsified records, ignored problems with respirators, dumped flammable chemicals down city drains and doctored results to make it look as if unsuccessful projects were working. Energy Department officials said last week that those problems had already been investigated or corrected. But following last year's successful battle to block a proposed nuclear waste incinerator, those groups have begun questioning the data and methods the site has used to declare it has no harmful effect on people living nearby. They have argued the INEEL has sometimes relied on emissions, rather than direct monitoring, and may have underreported pollution being released into the air. The Environmental Protection Agency is looking into the groups' recent allegations. McCoy, an attorney who has been combing through INEEL records for the past year, maintained full-scale congressional inquiry is warranted. "They should go through every facility out there and find out what the problems are, what's been addressed and what hasn't been addressed," he said. The watchdog groups raised concerns earlier this year that the site shut off an air-quality monitor for iodine-131 for three years in the early 1990s. That radioactive substance, which has been linked to thyroid cancers, is not caught by air filters and is released directly into the environment. INEEL officials said it was shut off because the calciner, the main source of iodine emissions, was not running then. They said they accurately estimated releases from other processes by sampling gases before they went up the stack. But the groups' petition to the Environmental Protection Agency cites a 1996 internal report by then-contractor Lockheed Martin that says the consistency with which the site had been calculating its annual radioactive emissions was poor. Those documents say it was possible some air pollution releases were missed in annual reports that regulators use to determine whether the site is harming the public. The auditors' lawsuit also quotes a Lockheed Martin employee in 1997 as saying the monitoring problems were comparable to those at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where 31 of the 33 major radioactivity-emitting stacks were not meeting environmental laws. ***************************************************************** 5 Union at Piketon cancels plans to appeal to Bush EST Tuesday, February 20, 2001 BY KATHERINE RIZZO *Associated Press Writer * WASHINGTON (AP) -- A union canceled plans to send 200 uranium enrichment plant workers to an appearance Tuesday by President Bush, based on signs that a freeze in federal money for the operation will be resolved, the union leader said. ``I got calls from the White House, from the Energy Department, from the governor's office, from Senator (Mike) DeWine's office, all over,'' said Dan Minter, who heads local 5689 of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union. ``We're convinced that they're going to resolve this issue, that this is being worked at high levels, including on Air Force One, since Senator DeWine is traveling with the president.'' During the president's visit to an elementary school in Columbus, Ohio, the workers had intended to urge Bush to release funds needed to save jobs at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant and preserve the ability to refire the plant if needed in the future. Production in Piketon is scheduled to end in June. The Clinton administration proposed putting the plant in what it called ``cold standby'' status, which requires winterizing and other changes at the plant that must begin soon. Ohio Gov. Bob Taft has said money from the federal government needs to start flowing by March. Taft's chief aide for business, Dave Celona, met with union leaders on Tuesday, Taft spokesman Kevin Kellems said. Kellems did not know whether the governor had discussed the plant's future with Bush. ``They are working together with a unified front to make the case together. We await a decision, understanding that this is a new administration and the governor has been working with members of Congress and communicating clearly how important this is to Ohio. We anticipate further talks soon,'' Kellems said. The Bush administration has not released the first installment of $630 million committed by the Clinton administration, and Ohio lawmakers and the union have been aggressively suggesting to the Energy Department possible ways to do that. The financial move is complicated by questions raised by the General Accounting Office and by congressional appropriators. The GAO said the Energy Department illegally went around Congress to make the money available for the standby preparations, winterization and the testing of a new technology at Piketon. Rep. Sonny Callahan, R-Ala., the House Appropriations subcommittee chairman in charge of the department's budget, subsequently urged energy officials to find some other account to get the needed funds. That has not yet happened. The government got out of the uranium enrichment business and spun off its two processing plants in 1998 in a $1.9 billion stock sale. The investor-owned company that now operates the plants, U.S. Enrichment Corp., decided last year it needs only one facility to handle all its business. It is keeping open the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Kentucky. Both plants were built after World War II to enrich uranium to bomb grade, but in recent years have only processed uranium for nuclear power plant fuel. AP-CS-02-20-01 1306EST --> ***************************************************************** 6 Plant to replace corroded wells - The Paducah Sun Wednesday, February 21, Paducah, Kentucky *At least19 wells will be replaced. The corrosion seems to be caused by normal soil conditions and not from leaking contaminants.* ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Bill Bartleman bbartleman@paducahsun.com--*270.575.8650* ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The replacement of at least 19 monitoring wells damaged by severe corrosion will start this spring at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The wells are located around landfills outside the plant's fenced area on Ogden Landing Road. Regular samples are taken from the wells to monitor the spread of trichlorethylene, technetium 99 and other contaminants. Trichloroethylene is a solvent once used to clean equipment in the nuclear fuel plant, while technetium 99 is a radioactive isotope. There are 135 wells monitored for compliance of state environmental regulations, according to Greg Cook, spokesman for Bechtel Jacobs Co., which manages cleanup at the plant. Cook said other wells also show signs of corrosion. "We don't know how many others may need to be replaced," he said. "We are still looking at that." A 150-page report prepared for the Kentucky Natural Resources Cabinet says the corrosion in the 1/16th-inch stainless steel casing is caused by enzymes created by bacteria in the groundwater and around the wells. The enzymes are known as microbial agents. "The state is not satisfied that the samples (from the corroded wells) are completely reliable," Cook said. "We aren't happy with the situation either, so they'll have to be replaced." The 19 new wells could cost the U.S. Department of Energy as much as $1.5 million, Cook said. Money earmarked for other cleanup and monitoring would be diverted to the well replacements. The report, under review by state environmental regulators, said there is no evidence that the corrosion was caused by contaminants leaking from the plant. Cook said it is a problem that could occur in any well and appears to be related to western Kentucky soil conditions. The wells, installed in the early 1990s, are 50 to 100 feet deep. Cook said alternatives to stainless steel are being studied, and that the likely alternative will be plastic, which he said is resistant to corrosion. ***************************************************************** 7 Investigation of sub accident stalled February 22, 2001 HONOLULU (Kyodo) The investigation into the Feb. 9 collision between the USS Greeneville and the Ehime Maru stalled Tuesday, as the U.S. Navy's Court of Inquiry postponed a hearing and submarine officers refused to give testimony to the U.S. National Transport Safety Board. The U.S. Pacific Fleet said the navy has rescheduled the hearing from Thursday to 8 a.m. Monday to "grant the parties involved in the proceedings additional time to prepare." The Court of Inquiry, the navy's highest administrative investigation body, on Monday will summon the Greeneville's captain at the time, Cmdr. Scott Waddle, executive officer Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer and officer on deck Lt. Michael Coen. The NTSB official said the three officers have refused to give testimony to the federal transportation accident investigation body on key points of the accident because a navy investigation is in progress. Twenty-six people were rescued but nine others -- four 17-year-old students, two teachers at the school and three Ehime Maru crew members -- have not been found. The Japanese ship was from Uwajima Fisheries High School. A Pentagon official said Tuesday in Washington that the navy plans to release interim findings from its investigation into the incident at the outset of the Court of Inquiry hearing. The findings will outline what happened from the time the sub prepared for what the navy calls an "emergency blow" surfacing maneuver to its hitting and sinking of the Ehime Maru, said the official, who requested anonymity. The classified portion of the investigation will remain secret, the official said. Earlier in the day, Pentagon spokesman Craig Quigley told a news briefing that no television cameras will be allowed in the courtroom. The navy will instead follow federal court procedures and provide audio and video feeds to reporters in a separate room. On the ongoing feasibility study of salvaging the sunken ship, Quigley said it will take several more days for remote-operated vehicles Deep Drone and Super Scorpio to complete a detailed survey of the sea floor in the immediate vicinity of the Ehime Maru. "When they have that survey data in hand, I think you'll then see the government go out and solicit proposals from world-class salvage corporations around the world as to how they might accomplish this," he said. Frederick Smith, deputy assistant secretary of defense, told a Japanese lawmaker in Washington on Tuesday that it would take four to six months to salvage the ship, even if the feasibility study indicates it is possible. The lawmaker, Eisei Ito, head of a Democratic Party of Japan fact-finding mission, said Tuesday at a press conference in Washington that the United States is considering sending a special envoy to Japan to explain the circumstances surrounding the collision. Thomas Hubbard, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific affairs, earlier in the day acknowledged the possibility that a special envoy could be dispatched to Japan to explain the incident, according to Ito. The vessel is now lying on the seabed some 600 meters below the surface off Oahu. In Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Wednesday that the government will dispatch a Maritime Self-Defense Force senior officer to Hawaii so that he can attend the court of inquiry on Monday. Vice Adm. Isamu Ozawa, chief of staff at the MSDF's Maizuru Administration Department, will attend the court as a consultant, Fukuda told a news conference. Ozawa will not be given the right to cast a vote during the court proceedings. The top government spokesman added that he hopes the court of inquiry will take place in the most "intelligible and transparent" manner. As for a request made by the families of the missing to meet with Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, Fukuda said that Mori will see them this afternoon at his Official Residence. A group of six Japanese experts also left for Hawaii on Wednesday evening to study the feasibility of salvaging the sunken training vessel. The salvage mission, led by a Foreign Ministry official and joined by maritime and salvage experts, will discuss the issue with their U.S. counterparts. Among the experts is Haruo Kawakami, an official from Fukada Salvage and Marine Works Co., which salvaged a research vessel from a depth of 230 meters off Fukushima Prefecture in 1988. "We do not yet know if it would be technically possible," said Yutaka Koyanagi, spokesman for the Yokohama-based firm. Koyanagi added that his firm has never brought up a vessel from a depth greater than that in the 1988 effort partly because of the costly nature of deep-sea salvage operations. The Japan Times: Feb. 22, 2001 ***************************************************************** 8 Depleted uranium in weapons causing cancer -- critic Monday 19 February 2001 Iraqi doctors blame Desert Storm shells for deformed babies Don Thomas, Journal Staff Writer The Edmonton Journal Canada should join Italy, Germany and other NATO partners in determining the health effects of depleted uranium used in munitions, says a prominent critic of defence issues. There's strong evidence that airborne particles of the radioactive metal used in concrete and armour-piercing bullets and cannon shells has mutagenic and cancer-causing properties when inhaled, says Scott Taylor. Taylor is editor and publisher of the Ottawa-based Esprit de Corps magazine. He was in Edmonton Saturday to publicize a new book on the Kosovo conflict, Inat: Images of Serbia and the Kosovo conflict. National Defence officials have repeatedly insisted that depleted uranium has no health effects. It claims that testing of 107 soldiers who served in the Gulf war showed no evidence of medical problems. Munitions containing depleted uranium were used extensively by U.S. and British forces in the Desert Storm war in Iraq a decade ago. And after initial denials, the British and Americans have also admitted to its use in Bosnia and Kosovo. Depleted uranium is used in armour-piercing rounds because it is dense and able to penetrate tanks. When it enters the tank, it burns, incinerating the tank crew. It's also used in some tanks' armour plating. Iraqi doctors blame the hundreds of deformed babies born in southern Iraq since Desert Storm on depleted uranium particles inhaled by civilians. Taylor last year visited Basra in southern Iraq where such weapons were used most heavily. He toured a "rogues' gallery" of deformed babies whose parents had supposedly been exposed to vapours of exploded shells containing depleted uranium. "There's hundreds and hundreds of photographs that absolutely turn your stomach. It's kids with two heads, babies born with no skin, organs on the outside. And almost every one of these kids died," he said. Italy has blamed depleted uranium for the death of eight of its peacekeepers who served in the Balkans. It has joined Germany, Greece and Norway in calling for a moratorium in its use in munitions. "The World Health Organization has been (in Iraq), did one quick test and said we need a massive international survey on this issue right now. The one blocking it is the U.S.," he said. "If Canada and the Americans are going to be serious about this, the first place they should be testing is Basra, Iraq, where they've got leukemia that is at least 10 times what it was 10 years ago. "This is the only urban centre that was exposed to a massive amounts of depleted uranium when the retreating Iraqis were hit by the coalition forces. If you're going to find any sort of link, it's going to be there." As Germany and other European peacekeeper nations question the use of depleted uranium, "I think it's up to Canadians to push our government to either get on the bandwagon or lead the charge," Taylor said. Copyright 2001 Edmonton Journal Group Inc. ***************************************************************** 9 Surviving nuclear war, the easy way Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | How I stopped worrying and learnt to love TV survival shows A L Kennedy Wednesday February 21, 2001 The Guardian So there we were at the base last Monday: monks, drummers, a mixed bag of clerics, a man in a leopard-print jacket and a variety of foreign visitors, all intent on helping to save us from ourselves. I mean, it's a grand day out, the Faslane blockade. The police enjoy their overtime (at least one of them was eating crisps on duty) and they politely arrest pensioners, pacifists and other individuals of conscience who feel compelled to interrupt a flow of traffic that would otherwise drive beyond the razor wire and watch- towers and into the naval base. Not that these comforting security measures prevent bewildered tourists and peaceful saboteurs from nipping in too, now and then, which one might say was a failing in a key nuclear installation. But, having declared my interest, you can rest assured that I won't be trying to persuade you - even though you are a Guardian reader - that any kind of protest at Faslane is justified. Simply because the international court of justice has found the use of nuclear weapons to be unlawful under all circumstances, that's no reason not be proud that Britain has them. Even though the navy didn't particularly want Trident and the British government has promised (but done nothing) to remove our nuclear capacity and the majority of British people support that removal, there's no need to get stroppy and start expressing the electorate's settled will by lying down in roads. Admittedly, the maths involved in Trident can be, well, alarming - too many big numbers. One Trident submarine (and they do try to keep at least one in working order and at sea) can probably carry at least 14 missiles, each with four warheads, each with a 100 kilotons yield. Or, to put it another way, the yield of nuclear missiles deployed on submarines in Scotland is roughly equal to 1,000 Hiroshimas, or - to be perfectly frank - approximately 130,000,000 dead people. I am, as you know, a sad bastard, but I suppose that even I might muster 300 friends and loved ones and passing acquaintances. A single Trident warhead could wipe out everyone I even slightly care about, 3,500 times over. And that's why I really feel that I should be writing about television in this column. Access to the press is a privilege and I should use it well. After all, there's no point worrying over things that (unless we take the Nuremberg principles seriously) we're absolutely powerless to alter. We should relax, kick back and let light entertainment keep us cheery - it worked for Dr Goebbels and he's still admired in media circles, even today. I realise that I've moaned, from time to time, about the proliferation of sexually exploitative hospice make-over programmes and the constant threat of a new daily series in which Carol Vorderman and Anne Robinson stalk each other live through a seal sanctuary - the victor cooking the weakest link in a range of exciting but easy styles and then using her cured skin to transform a selection of tired old furniture and fashion accessories. But, lately, my viewing choices have been looking up - now I can hardly wait to settle on my sofa and enjoy them. Because British TV has fallen in love with survival. Abandoned on a rainy hillside with a group of witless loss adjusters and a broken Swiss army knife, coaxed into the jungle while wearing unsuitable shoes, dumped with a bunch of loonies on a desert island, a rainy island, any kind of sodding island - it doesn't matter. What's important is that comfortable people should temporarily volunteer to go without, start roughing it. Naturally, each of these shows appears moderately obscene in the light of multiple refugee crises abroad and poverty at home, but they also do what they're meant to, they make their audience feel safe. I, for example, don't have to face a TV executive's daily challenges of corporate restructuring and cocaine paranoia, but I am, nevertheless, somewhat prone to stress and I can't tell you what a consolation it is that I now know how to plait a caribou, boil snakes, whittle a raft from shin bones and construct all manner of shelters. My life, such as it is, seems worth living. Which is a bit of shame in a world with at least nine variably stable nuclear powers, where President Bush is already flexing his bombing muscles and the US is upgrading its nuclear capacity in contravention of all undertakings. A fire, or an impact in just the wrong place, a computer malfunction, a rogue madman, an unfortunate escalation of geopolitical tension or just an ordinary cock-up (perhaps even a Great British one) and we will all, involuntarily, go without - no sunlight and no safe food, air or water. Still, mustn't grumble. Just keep watching those series, learning good trail craft and how to light fires - even if you're absolutely certain that you'd never want to be left standing, having those last days to survive. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001 ***************************************************************** 10 Test-Firing of Thorium Missiles Stopped in Belgium [Xinhua News Agency] Story Filed: Wednesday, February 21, 2001 8:57 AM EST BRUSSELS (Feb. 21) XINHUA - The Belgian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that the country's army had decided to stop test- firing anti-tank missiles after they were found to contain radioactive materials. The missiles, known as the Milan missiles, reportedly contain radioactive thorium in their guidance system which is believed to be as harmful as depleted uranium, though in small amount. After getting information about the content of thorium in the missiles from Britain, the defense ministry Tuesday instructed the army to stop test-firing the missiles. The recent publicity about the use of depleted uranium ammunition in the Balkans have aroused public anxiety in Belgium, where five of the Belgian servicemen sent to the Balkans had died of blood cancer and four others had suffered from leukemia. Some of the Belgian veterans who had served peacekeeping missions in Bosnia and Kosovo had grouped to prepare a lawsuit against government authorities, who were blamed for not providing the peacekeepers with the information about the risk of entering areas contaminated by explosions of anti-tank shells and missiles tipped with depleted uranium. The widows of the deceased Belgian soldiers were also preparing to take the military authorities to court for hiding information. The use by NATO and especially the United States of tank- busting shells and missiles tipped with depleted uranium heavy metal in the Balkans during the conflicts from 1995 to 1999 aroused public scare and anger late last year when reports first came out from Italy that six of its soldiers had died of leukemia, which was feared to have been caused by depleted uranium. NATO, however, has quoted the United Nations Environment Program and U.N.-affiliated World Health Organization as saying that no scientific proof has been established to link the use of depleted uranium weapons to blood cancer among peacekeepers and civilians. So far, eight European countries that have taken part in the Balkan peacekeeping missions have reported cases of blood cancer among peacekeepers and a total of 17 deaths were reported from leukemia in Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and the Czech Republic. Copyright XINHUA NEWS AGENCY ***************************************************************** 11 MoD denies health risk from shells fired into Firth ISSUE 2098 Wednesday 21 February 2001 By Auslan Cramb, Scotland Correspondent THE test firing of depleted uranium shells resumed yesterday for the first time since recent health scares linked them with cancer. Amid widespread condemnation from environmental groups and local MPs, the Ministry of Defence fired 12 shells into the Solway Firth at Dundrennan, south west Scotland, in an exercise described by campaigners as "unacceptable and insensitive". A number of soldiers blame their exposure to depleted uranium, and residents near the firing range fear the tests could affect their health and pollute the sea. Alasdair Morgan, the local MP, said the MoD was "burying its head in the sand" and ignoring mounting international concern over the armour-piercing weapons. However, the Government insisted the "routine" exercise did not pose any health risks to the civilian population or the marine environment. Dr Lewis Mooney, the defence minister, said the locals had been subjected to "scare stories" about the dangers posed by the shells. He said: "There is no known threat to health from the shells that have been fired into the Solway. We monitor continuously to ensure there is no effect on background radiation. You have to remember that there is uranium present in the sea naturally, and these shells have never been shown to alter that level." The MoD justified the tests by saying that the shells were being fired against soft targets, while the alleged health risks occur when they explode after being fired at hard targets, such as tanks. A spokesman said all ammunition ordered by the armed forces had to be tested "just as Ford tests every batch of new cars". The shells were taken from the latest delivery of 1,056 DU munitions, and another 60 will be fired into the sea from subsequent deliveries by October. Around 7,000 of the shells have been launched into the Solway Firth, an internationally important breeding ground for birds, in the past 20 years. Although the MoD insists that the health risks are minimal, after a report from the UN Environment Programme in Geneva called for servicemen to take precautions when handling the shells. Details of the screening project have not been finalised, but the MoD will publish its proposals on March 24, and expects to have the voluntary scheme in operation for soldiers and civilians who may have been exposed to spent weapons later this year. Depleted uranium is only mildly radioactive, and is valued by armies because of its high density, which allows it to punch through armoured vehicles. The health risks are posed by the radioactive and chemically poisonous dust deposited after it explodes. Ben Wallace, the Tory MSP and a former captain in the Scots Guards, called for the tests to be suspended while the screening programme was established and health checks were completed. "There's nothing wrong with saying we recognise the importance of DU shells in a war theatre, but the shelling should be suspended until inquiries are complete. I would like batches of people to be screened when they come back from a war zone. The British army probably use some of the largest amounts of this stuff in Europe, yet we are going to be one of the last countries to do the screening." Mr Morgan, a Scottish National Party MP, said: "The MoD seem to be using Galloway as a dump. We have got 7,000 shells landing in the Solway already. I realise there is a fairly minimal health risk, but I still think minimal is too much. "I'm conscious that 20 years ago landmines were an essential part of the MoD's arsenal and no modern military could do without them, but now we've reached the stage where they're internationally unacceptable. I'm sure opinion will change in this case as well. In this day and age we shouldn't be lobbing 7,000 cans of baked beans into the Solway, far less 7,000 depleted uranium shells." Dr Richard Dixon, of Friends of the Earth (Scotland), said the Government was behaving over DU shells in the way that it dealt with BSE before the health risks were fully established. Kathleen Glass, of Dumfries Community Council, said the local community could not understand why it was still necessary to "throw these things into the sea". ***************************************************************** 12 Protests as new tests on depleted uranium go ahead Independent By Kim Sengupta 21 February 2001 The Ministry of Defence faced fierce criticism yesterday after it renewed test-firing of depleted uranium shells on the Solway Firth in Dumfries and Galloway. Local pressure groups and MPs accused the MoD of arrogance and warned of mounting public protests unless a moratorium is called, pending further research into alleged links between depleted uranium (DU) and cancer. The Government has agreed to carry out medical tests on former soldiers amid widespread concern over the effect of DU-coated ammunition. A number of other Nato countries have also ordered investigations into DU after troops who had served in the Balkans contracted cancer. Alasdair Morgan, the MP and MSP for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale, said he wanted DU shells to become as unacceptable as landmines. He continued: "The MoD's attitude is that they are right and everyone else is wrong, and how dare anyone question what they are doing. They are using Galloway as a dump. Local feeling is growing. This is a quiet area where people don't get up and go on protest marches, but concern has hardened with the realisation of the nature of the DU weapons. "Twenty years ago landmines were an essential part of the MoD's arsenal and no modern military could do without them, and now we've reached the stage where they're internationally unacceptable. I'm sure opinion will change in this case as well." The Conservative MSP Ben Wallace, a former Scots Guards soldier who fought in the Gulf War, echoed calls for the tests to be suspended. He claimed the MoD's record on screening was years behind that of other European countries. "The British Army probably uses some of the largest amounts of this stuff in Europe, yet we are going to be one of the last countries to do this screening," he said. Kathleen Glass, the chairman of Dundrennan Community Council, said local feeling against the shells had strengthened in the wake of reports of DU-related illnesses during the Gulf and Balkan wars. "We are looking for health screening to be offered to civilians employed on the range so they can have that extra reassurance," she said. "We are ordinary members of the public and I don't think what we are asking for is unreasonable. "I found the MoD's attitude quite offensive. We have tolerated our neighbour on the hill and we have been quite placid about the whole thing, but there is more information available to people now." Dan Kenny, an environmental campaigner, claimed the region had an unusually high incidence of illnesses such as cancer. He said: "There should be tests for all the people of Galloway and a full independent public inquiry." Lewis Mooney, a Defence minister, said that because only a small batch of shells was to be tested and maintained there was no ground for apprehension. "I would be concerned about illness among servicemen and anything like that if there was any grounds to link it to DU," he said. "People are falling ill and that is a matter of great regret. [But] there is no evidence to link it with DU." Kevin Rudland, a former British Army engineerwho is convinced that his post-traumatic stress disorder and osteoarthritis are linked to DU ammunition used in Bosnia, said: "I am angry with the Government. I cannot understand why they are testing the shells. Instead of testing shells, the Government should spend more to discover whether there was a link between DU shells and cancer." © 2001 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd. ***************************************************************** 13 Belgium Stops Test-Firing Anti-Tank Shells Due to DU Fear [Xinhua News Agency] Story Filed: Tuesday, February 20, 2001 3:31 PM EST BRUSSELS (Feb. 20) XINHUA - The Belgian defense ministry on Tuesday said that it had decided to stop test-firing all its anti-tank shells, after Britain had informed the country that a radioactive heavy metal was found in the shells. The radioactive heavy metal found in the anti-tank shells is thorium and not the depleted uranium (DU) that had caused a public scare and thereafter anger in Belgium, after five of its service men who had been to the Balkans had died of blood cancers and four others had fallen ill to leukemia. Some of the Belgian veterans who had served peacekeeping missions to Bosnia and Kosovo had grouped to prepare a lawsuit against the government who was blamed for not providing the peacekeepers with the information about the risk of entering areas contaminated by explosions of anti-tank shells tipped with DU for better armor penetration. The widows of the deceased Belgian soldiers were also preparing to take the military authorities to court for hiding information. The use by NATO and the United States of tank-busting shells tipped with depleted uranium heavy metal in the Balkans during the 1999 air campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had aroused public scare and anger late last year when reports came out from Italy that six of its soldiers had died of leukemia. NATO, however, insists that there is no proof that the DU ammunitions pose any health risk. The military alliance quoted the United Nations Environment Program and U.N.-affiliated World Health Organization as saying that no scientific proof has been established to link the use of depleted uranium weapons to blood cancers among peacekeepers. So far, eight European countries that have taken part in the Balkan peacekeeping missions have reported cases of blood cancer among peacekeepers and a total of 17 deaths were reported from Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and the Czech Republic. ***************************************************************** 14 Study calls tritium facility a health threat in major disaster *Published Friday, February 9, 2001 * Lab maintains it has ample protections in place and risk is minimal By Joaquin McPeek STAFF WRITER A new study conducted by the city on the tritium facility of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab concludes that natural disasters near the site could be more dangerous to the city than lab officials have contended. The city's radiation consultant, Bernd Franke, suggests that if a major fire engulfed the lab, the release of radioactive tritium could cause adverse side effects such as birth defects and cancer. The 1991 Berkeley-Oakland fire and a blaze as recent as August of 1999 have some concerned with the city's safety if a future fire in the hills got out of hand. "In 1991, a shift in wind could have sent the fire racing through the lab, causing a radioactive firestorm," said Gene Bernardi, co-chair of the Committee to Minimize Toxic Waste, a group long critical of the facility. The CMTW has continued to call for the closure of the tritium facility, saying it is a health risk, partiularly to the homes near it. The new study adds fuel to the group's argument, but lab officials dispute the conclusions. "There is next to no chance that a fire of 'monumental proportions' like they describe could happen," said Ron Kolb, head of lab communications. The lab has created an elaborate vegetation management program, has good building access, and maintains a staffed fire department in the unlikely event of a huge blaze, according to Kolb. Bernardi is dubious about how much protection the facility would get with a firestorm of the propostions of the 1991 Oakland hills fire that killed 25 people, destroyed 3,400 dwellings and burned 1,900 acres. She alleges that the lab fired 40 percent of its firefighters, leaving only five per shift including a dispatcher. Kolb, however, said the lab laid off just three employees, accounting for only 15 percent of the fire staff. The facility currently has 17 employees and two fire engines, a hazardous materials vehicle, and a patrol and an ambulance. "They have an excellent fire department and they have a cooperation agreement with the Berkeley and Oakland fire departments, no questions asked," said Councilwoman Polly Armstrong, whose district includes the facility. While Armstrong doesn't question the competence of the fire staff, she shares the concern of neighbors who view it as a fire hazard and health risk. "I don't doubt that the lab is doing good work at putting protections for those of us who live around it, I just don't know if it's possible to put safety measures in place which will keep radioactive material under control in a massive fire," Armstrong said. Armstrong and the CMTW say the facility is in an area susceptible to landslides, earthquakes, and fires and those risks alone should be enough to prompt the facility to either close or relocate. The CMTW and other city officials have tried for years to regulate activity at the facility, pushing the federal Environmental Protection Agency to qualify it as a "superfund" site -- a contaminated site to be eligible for a national priorities list for toxic cleanup funds -- to help end the use of tritium. "The 15,000 curies of radioactive tritium is what we're focusing on. because it's such a high concentration," Bernardi said. Councilman Kriss Worthington believes Franke's study for the city addresses the evaluation of current exposures and "takes a stab" at the contamination issue, but says it may be lacking. "Most people seem to be saying there is a serious question of whether or not we're prepared. Maybe an independent reassessment could be performed," Worthington said. Worthington said Franke's report questions the scientific accuracy of the facility's findings that it is not a major threat to the adjacent neighborhood. He suggests the possibility of having the city spend money addressing the issue. "If we offer to pay for some of the costs, maybe it can get necessary information and health remedies," he said. Kolb agrees, saying the lab would be willing to have an independent study done. ContraCostaTimes.com ***************************************************************** 15 DOE report on NIF lands in lawyers' hands Wednesday, February 21, 2001 3:14 AM MST Document, as stands, may be ruled out of debate By Glenn Roberts Jr. STAFF WRITER Lawyers have one month to try to resolve a dispute over the Energy Department's use of a report to validate the cost and schedule of a stadium-size laser project at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. A federal court judge is expected to rule March 22 whether to grant an injunction to bar the Energy Department from publicly promoting the report as an independent assessment of the National Ignition Facility project. Technical troubles and management errors on NIF have led to a six-year delay and a $1 billion cost overrun. The project will cost an estimated $3.5 billion to $4 billion when completed, say lab and department officials. The Natural Resources Defense Council, a national environmental group, and Livermore-based Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment, a nuclear watchdog group, requested the injunction Feb. 1. A court hearing was held Feb. 16 and the judge asked litigants to try to resolve the matter, said Energy Department spokesman Darwin Morgan. Another hearing is planned Feb. 26. Howard Crystal, a lawyer who is representing Natural Resources Defense Council and Tri-Valley CAREs, said Tuesday, "The parties are discussing whether there is any way that the preliminary injunction request can be resolved." Crystal said the groups he is representing are seeking "appropriate limitations" on the use of the review team's report. The groups would accept the department's internal use of the report, he said, but would not accept the department using the report to justify project progress to Congress. The injunction is tied to a larger case filed against the Energy Department by the two groups. In a November lawsuit, the groups allege that the department failed to comply with federal openness laws in a department review of the NIF project at Livermore Lab. An August 2000 report, prepared by investigators for the U.S. General Accounting Office, requested an independent review of the NIF project. Livermore Lab and Energy Department officials insist that a subsequent review of the project was independent, though project opponents insist in the November lawsuit and the February request for an injunction that many members of the review team were too close to the project to provide an independent assessment. The August review included about 40 members, led and selected by Energy Department officials. Most of its members were employed by the department and its labs. In addition, the review included 20 corporate observers and about 30 workers who assisted the review team. The entire review process was closed to the public. In the meantime, the Energy Department has announced plans to conduct an internal review this month as a mandatory follow-up to the August review of the NIF project. The findings of this review team will be submitted to Congress as a part of a mandated update on the project's cost and schedule. ©1999-2001 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers ***************************************************************** 16 Lab offers incentives to boost staffing *February 20, 2001* FROM STAFF REPORTS LIVERMORE -- Lawrence Livermore Laboratory has launched a program to reward employees who refer job applicants. A lab employee can receive $500, $1,500 or $3,000 for referring an applicant who is hired. Some jobs are exempted from referral bonuses, and the lab has posted an internal Web site defining the rules of its new policy. Senior managers, supervisors in the chain of command for the new hire, search committee members, recruiting and employment staff and employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement cannot participate in the program. All other full-time and part-time lab employees can participate. Nuclear lab managers, facing retirement and other attrition, have also begun to offer one-time bonuses to new lab employees. In order to receive a referral award, the referred applicant must have been interviewed after Jan. 3, identified the referring employee during the interview process, and be hired into a referral-eligible position. ***************************************************************** NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. 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