***************************************************************** 03/22/01 **** RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL) **** VOL 9.74 ***************************************************************** RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS 1 AG fighting O'Donnell bid for railroad to Yucca 2 Nebraska pols see energy as big worry 3 Cheney: Nuclear power needs look 4 Nukes quietly deliver 5 Fire-Damaged San Onofre Reactor May Not Be Back Online Till June 6 N.H. Seabrook nuke operator not sure when unit to return 7 Sidney Siegel; Pioneer in Nuclear Energy Research 8 San Onofre accident is key story behind California blackouts 9 State Department Says No U.S.-Origin Nuclear Waste to Go to Russia 10 Uranium Institute News Briefing 01.12 | 14 - 20 March 2001 11 Sellafield Case is Heard at No 10 12 Why Russia covets world's nuclear waste 13 Russian Deputies to Vote on Nuclear Waste Imports 14 Nuclear Waste Bill Goes for Key Vote 15 Russian parliament delays contentious nuclear bill 16 DUMA DELAYS DECISION AS POLITICAL OPPOSITION GROWS TO LAW 17 S.Africa awards contract for nuclear power plant 18 Energy NW to study Plant 1 revival 19 Nuclear plant workers testify TVA denied them overtime pay NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS 1 Lawrence Livermore shows off discoveries 2 Labor Department balks at starting new program 3 Energy Department Fines BNFL Inc. for Violating Nuclear Safety 4 IHT: Soldiers Claim Italy Skewed Study on 'Balkans Syndrome' 5 Leukaemia cluster was triggered by troops 6 Gestapo couldn't add up, so von Braun counted down 7 Journalist Grigory Pasko faces second espionage trial 8 Hanford nuclear expansion sought 9 Demolishing a piece of American history 10 House, Labor feud over oversight home of sick worker plan 11 STRICKLAND ASKS THAT LABOR DEPARTMENT KEEP NUCLEAR WORKER COMPENSATION PROGRAM ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 AG fighting O'Donnell bid for railroad to Yucca March 22, 2001 By Mary Manning LAS VEGAS SUN Nuclear hotline The Clark County Nuclear Waste Division on Friday will launch a hotline to record public comment on a proposed high-level nuclear waste repository. Southern Nevada residents can offer their opinions on the proposed repository at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. All opinions will be heard by members of the county Comprehensive Planning Division staff. The number is: (702) 455-5820 Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa was expected to testify today against a state Senate resolution for a rail line to Yucca Mountain because the measure could send the message that Nevada might be willing to accept radioactive waste. Senate Joint Resolution 4, sponsored by Sen. Bill O'Donnell, R-Las Vegas, calls for building a track to the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository. No rail line leading to the mountain exists. O'Donnell, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, scheduled a hearing on the bill at 1:30 p.m. today in Carson City with a simulcast at the Sawyer State Office Building, 555 E. Washington Ave., Room 4401. Nevada's elected officials, including Del Papa, strongly oppose the burial or storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The Department of Energy does not plan to send nuclear waste to the mountain before 2010. "We believe siting the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain is fundamentally flawed," Del Papa said. "It sends the wrong message to those in Congress and the nuclear power industry," she said. "The wrong message is that Nevada is willing to accept a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain as long as transportation of deadly radioactive waste avoids Las Vegas and is accomplished by rail." Congress originally directed that geological disposal of 77,000 tons of commercial reactor and nuclear weapons waste be isolated from people and the natural environment at a dry, remote site, Del Papa said. "Yucca Mountain is in an active earthquake zone and is clearly not capable of isolating this deadly waste from the human environment," she said. Del Papa added that shipping nuclear waste from power plants mostly along the East Coast jeopardizes residents across the country and poses unacceptable risks not only to Nevadans, but to 53 million residents living nationwide within a mile of federally approved highways. A Clark County official said O'Donnell's resolution ignores the fact that the Department of Energy, in charge of studying, building and operating a repository if Yucca Mountain is proved scientifically sound, has not yet designated transportation routes. The DOE has not spelled out how it plans to ship the nuclear wastes -- up to five truckloads per day for 30 years in Southern Nevada -- from nuclear power reactors or its own nuclear weapons sites across the country, said Fred Dilger, who is in charge of transportation for the county's Nuclear Waste Division. "It's premature for the state to designate routes," Dilger said. A designated road or railroad track would have to connect to all other national routes, though none have been designated as nuclear waste avenues by the DOE, he said. "That takes years of negotiations with the states and communities along the way," Dilger said. To date, the DOE has focused studies on the Yucca Mountain site and has not considered the effect on surrounding populations, transportation or the impact on local economies, Dilger said. O'Donnell said he does not want the state unprepared if DOE, Congress and President Bush approve the Yucca Mountain repository. The senator said it is irresponsible for lawmakers not to take measures that would protect the largest population in the state and the Las Vegas tourist-based economy. Del Papa said there is an alternative to shipping radioactive waste to Nevada. "I, personally, believe that dry cask storage is a more economical and safer alternative," she said. All contents copyright 2001 Las Vegas SUN, Inc. ***************************************************************** 2 Nebraska pols see energy as big worry Journalstar.com: Nebraska Mar. 27, 2001 BY DICK SEELMEYER For the Lincoln Journal Star WASHINGTON - The national energy crisis is severe and certain to get worse within weeks, Sen. Chuck Hagel and Rep. Lee Terry say. Hagel, R-Neb., and Terry, R-2nd, serve on the Senate and House committees on energy respectively and have spoken out on the subject several times this week. "I believe the energy crisis is the most important issue facing this country right now," Hagel told 300 Nebraskans who were in Washing­ ton to attend the weekly Nebraska congressional breakfast Tuesday. "We have to start thinking of our national energy policy as a matter of national security," Terry told the U.S. Chamber of Commerce meet­ ing that same day. In additional dis­ cussions Wednesday, he said, "If America doesn't utilize the alternate sources of fuel it has available to it, our country could become vulner­ able in any number of undesirable ways." Terry said he advocated imme­ diate and concentrated develop­ ment of vast coal resources, as well as use of nuclear and renewable fu­ els. "We are the OPEC of coal," he said. "We have vast supplies of coal all across the nation. We have to take advantage of that." Terry and Hagel believe coal offers immediate exploitation because new methods of both mining and burning have been developed in recent years that remove most of the prior environ­ mental objections. Nuclear power has worked well in Nebraska for several decades, providing 40 percent of the state's electrical power today. Terry said Wednesday that there had been no problems with either plant during the period they have been opera­ tional. "I would believe it likely that, based on Nebraska's experience with nuclear energy, that it might be feasible to build additional nuclear power plants," he said. In the oil crisis in the 1970s, the United States was dependent on foreign oil for 36 percent of the na­ tion's usage. Today, that figure is 56 percent, and a goodly share of the imported oil comes from countries ruled by governments opposed to the United States. Earlier this week, OPEC officials met and agreed to lower the production of crude oil for the next three months to keep prices at their current relatively high levels. While Nebraska is somewhat in­ sulated from problems as severe as those playing havoc with California, the state is not immune, the con­ gressmen said. "Nebraska is self-contained," Terry said, "in that we can produce more power than we use at the mo­ ment." But, he added, "Where we run a risk is that if we have contin­ ued growth within the state, we can easily reach a point where existing power sources are not adequate." Hagel has been telling anyone who will listen for months that the nation has a serious problem that, unless immediately addressed by the federal government, could affect national security. "Energy policy ties together America's economy, our standard of living, our national security and our geo-political strategic interests around the world, and, of course, this nation's future," he said in a Feb. 26 Senate speech. Copyright © 2001, Lincoln Journal Star. All rights ***************************************************************** 3 Cheney: Nuclear power needs look U.S. must produce more of own energy or face serious problems, VP says Vice President Dick Cheney said his energy task force would produce recommendations in about six weeks. MSNBC STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS Vice President Dick Cheney told MSNBC Cable Wednesday that his energy policy team was considering the future of U.S. nuclear power, and that new nuclear plants could reduce greenhouse gases better than a “seriously flawed” Kyoto global warming treaty. “If you want to do something about carbon dioxide emissions, then you ought to build nuclear power plants. They don’t emit any carbon dioxide. They don’t emit greenhouse gases,” Cheney said on MSNBC’s “Hardball” program. ‘A chapter in the report will deal with the nuclear questions and whether or not we want to go forward, but no decisions have been made yet.’ — VICE PRESIDENT DICK CHENEY CHENEY ALSO WARNED that the United States must generate more of its own energy or the country risks power shortages like those in California, but on a national scale. Cheney cited estimates that the United States will need 1,300 new power plants over the next 20 years — roughly 65 each year — to have adequate generating capacity. Plus, he said, those plants will need other infrastructure, such as a means of obtaining the coal or gas and transmission lines. “Our infrastructure in the energy area is very limited,” Cheney said. “It’s very important we get on with this business of making certain we’ve got enough energy in the future or we will find that the problems in California today are in fact national in scope and affect all parts of the country.” Nuclear energy is looking up March 18, 2001 — Despite its troubled past, nuclear energy is making a comeback. NBC’s Soledad O’Brien reports. KYOTO TREATY CRITICIZED The 1997 Kyoto treaty seeks to limit industrial nations’ emissions of “greenhouse gases,” including carbon dioxide which is produced by burning fossil fuels in power plants and vehicles. Such gases help retain the earth’s heat and are thought to contribute to global warming. Cheney said the Bush administration opposes the treaty because it treats nations unequally in limiting emissions. President Bush in January put Cheney in charge of a Cabinet-level task force to develop a long-term strategy to increase U.S. energy security. Its recommendations were expected in about six weeks, Cheney said. “A chapter in the report will deal with the nuclear questions and whether or not we want to go forward, but no decisions have been made yet,” he said. A senior aide to Cheney said the task force had not yet begun to study the nuclear issue. She said Cheney’s remarks were intended as a comment on the greenhouse gas issue and not as a signal the panel would recommend new nuclear plants. But asked whether the panel would study the possibility of building new plants, she said, “they’re not going to ignore nuclear generation.” No permits to build U.S. nuclear plants have been granted since 1975, although nuclear power provides about 20 percent of U.S. electricity, Cheney said. The 1979 Three Mile Island nuclear accident, a partial meltdown of a Pennsylvania power plant that spread low-level radiation over an area near the plant, put a long-term chill on the industry. ‘SERIOUSLY FLAWED’ [HEADLINES: Fueling the future: Vying for the car vote; A pall over Texas; Fueling the Internet; Simulation: Fuel the future] Cheney drew a contrast between nuclear power and the Kyoto treaty, saying the agreement was “seriously flawed” because it did not place restrictions on developing nations such as China and India. The treaty was signed by the United States under former President Clinton, but not submitted to the U.S. Senate for ratification. “We do not support the approach of the Kyoto treaty,” Cheney said. “If you’re really serious about greenhouse gases, one of the solutions to that problem is to go back, and let’s take another another look at nuclear power, use that to generate electricity without having any adverse consequences.” Forms of electricity generation such as coal- or oil-fired plants emit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Bush last week retreated from a campaign promise to require power plants to limit emissions of carbon dioxide. The European Union responded with concern that the act signaled a U.S. retreat from efforts to fight global warming. Cheney said that Bush made clear U.S. opposition to the Kyoto treaty in his decision last week on carbon dioxide. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Bush did not include increasing nuclear power in his energy platform during his campaign. But he indicated Bush had not ruled it out. “His charge to them (Cheney’s committee) was to look broadly and to look long term,” Fleischer said. “We’ll take a look at the recommendations in their totality.” *The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this ***************************************************************** 4 Nukes quietly deliver The Cincinnati Post *Guest column by William Tucker *Twenty years ago, the popular image of nuclear power was Jack Lemmon being chased around the control room by a crazed utility executive in ''The China Syndrome.'' Today people's image of nuclear power is Homer Simpson eating donuts with Lenny and Carl at the Springfield nuclear plant. Homer and his neighbors have news for us. Almost unnoticed, nuclear power has become the safest, cheapest, and most reliable way to produce electricity in America. ''If you ask Joe Public how many reactors we've got, he'll probably tell you ten or twelve,'' says Tom Shiel, spokesman for reactor operations at Duke Power, one of the new independent energy companies. ''People don't realize we have 103 reactors producing 20 percent of the nation's electricity.'' With prices of fossil fuels rising, nuclear is now generating electricity at 1.83 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Coal goes at 2.07 cents, oil at 3.24, and natural gas at 3.52. Nuclear plants are now running at an incredible 91 percent of capacity - meaning they're generating electricity 91 percent of the time. Ten years ago they ran at 68 percent. Coal plants operate at a 69 percent capacity rate, hydroelectric at 40 percent, and oil and gas at only 30 percent (mainly because they're so expensive to run). What's happened? Basically, nuclear has escaped from the claustrophobic world of regulated utilities and jumped into the private sector. More than a quarter of the nation's nuclear reactions are now ''merchant'' plants, operated by private energy companies. These new players have introduced industry databases and sophisticated engineering tools that have created enormous improvements. ''We've built a wealth of experience,'' says David Knox, nuclear expert at Exelon, which owns the nation's largest fleet of 17 reactors. ''In the early 1990s, it took the industry up to six weeks to do are fueling. Last fall we completed one in 15 days.''Such ''uprates'' have added the energy equivalent of 23 large new reactors to the nation's grid. So have all these improvements been bought at the price of safety? Quite the contrary. ''The industry has made tremendous improvements in operating safety,'' says Victor Dricks, spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ''The number of safety-system activations and automatic protective shutdowns are one-tenth what they were in 1985.'' ''With proper management you can serve both masters,'' agrees David Lochbaum, of the Union of Concerned Scientists, which has been critical of nuclear power. ''When private companies started buying these reactors, people said, 'They'll run them until they melt down and move on to something else.' That hasn't happened. These companies know their future is riding on nuclear safety.'' Homer Simpson and his neighbors couldn't be prouder. Take the Calvert Cliffs reactor in Lusby, Maryland, which produces 25 percent of Maryland's electricity. Two years ago, Calvert Cliffs became the first reactor in the country to seek a 20-year renewal on its 40-year federal operating license. The whole town showed up in support. ''We had no local opposition,'' says Mary Krug, a former Calvert County commissioner. ''The plant employs 1,200 people and pays $20 million in property taxes. They're a very good corporate citizen.'' In fact, a pattern is emerging where small-town ''Springfields'' in the heartland are generating the electricity that people in large population centers are consuming in ever-greater amounts. ''If you're at all concerned about greenhouse gases or air pollution, you have to look at nuclear,'' says Sen. Pete Domenici, the New Mexico Republican who introduced the Nuclear Energy Electricity Assurance Act in the Senate on March 7. The secret lies in Einstein's formula, e=mc2, which says that when small amounts of matter are turned into energy, they must be multiplied by the square of the speed of light - a factor of 90 quadrillion. This is why a handful of uranium can produce more energy than a 100-car trainload of coal. If we're to survive as a civilization without burning up half the earth's furniture in the process, we ought to avail ourselves of some of that energy. *William Tucker is New York correspondent for The American Spectator and a regular contributor to The Weekly Standard. Publication date: 03-22-01 Copyright2001 The Cincinnati Post, an E.W. Scrippsnewspaper. ***************************************************************** 5 Fire-Damaged San Onofre Reactor May Not Be Back Online Till June Thursday, March 22, 2001 By SEEMA MEHTA, Times Staff Writer Nuclear power officials said Wednesday that it will cost tens of millions of dollars, and take months more work than originally thought, to fix a reactor at the San Onofre power plant that has been offline since a February fire. The shutdown at San Onofre is the largest of the many generator failures that have contributed to California's power crisis--so large that some say this week's blackouts could have been prevented if it had not occurred. The biggest gaps between demand and supply statewide were 800 megawatts Monday and 500 megawatts Tuesday, according to the California Independent System Operator, which runs the statewide power grid. San Onofre's Unit III, which can generate 1,100 megawatts, or enough for 825,000 homes in warm weather, has been shut down since an electrical fire Feb. 3. "If Unit III had been up and running . . . that 1,100 megawatts may have meant the difference," said Michael Shames, director of the Utility Consumers' Action Network in San Diego. "Ouch. It's one of the more costly mistakes made by a utility in recent history." A team of inspectors from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Wednesday that the fire was not caused by human error, but occurred after an electrical breaker failed, causing a short circuit. But NRC officials also said that the firefighting response was delayed because of an improperly trained employee, and that alarm systems in the control room failed. They said those mishaps did not make damage worse or jeopardize the public's health. A written report is expected in a month, and no administrative action or fines are expected, said Charles S. Marschall, an NRC reactor branch official. Southern California Edison officials conceded that all three of the system's lubricating systems failed, causing extensive damage to the turbine, which produces electricity. A 200-ton rotor has been shipped by rail to Richmond, Va., for repairs and is expected back in mid-April. Edison officials initially said the unit would be fixed several weeks after the fire. They now say it should be fixed by mid-June--in time for peak summer energy demand. "Nobody more than Edison wants to be back online to help out Southern California in meeting its energy needs, but the repairs have to be done right," said Ray Golden, plant spokesman. "We are working 24-7 to get it back online. We will have both units operating through the summer." Plant officials said they do not know the final price tag for repairs, beyond an estimate of "tens of millions." Golden said that except for a $2.5-million deductible, the utility's insurance will cover damage to the turbine. The downed reactor is also costing Edison $500,000 to $600,000 a day in lost revenue. Another San Onofre reactor remains in operation, and a third is being dismantled. Starting April 29, the utility's insurance will put $3.5 million aside every week until the reactor begins operating again. The money is intended to compensate Edison customers for the lost energy, though Golden said the company has not determined how the funds will be disbursed. "I can absolutely say that it's not going to shareholders or the corporation," he said. The California Public Utilities Commission will make the final decision on what happens with the money. Options range from crediting the utility's 4.5 million customers' bills to reimbursing the state, which has had to buy energy at exorbitant prices to make up for the shortfall. San Onofre is not the only power plant with maintenance woes. California this week lost 12,000 megawatts because of plant repairs--including 7,000 megawatts lost suddenly because of unscheduled maintenance at dozens of generating stations. The San Onofre outage was the largest, although the state lost almost as much from equipment breakdowns at power plants in Ormond Beach and Long Beach. Operators of the power plants say outages are more common now because they have run their aging plants at record levels to feed California's appetite for energy. Just before the San Onofre fire, operators had refueled Unit III in a record 32 days. Refueling normally takes more than 40 days, plant officials said. Twelve hours after they brought it back online, though, the fire broke out. Nuclear regulators and plant officials said the speedy refueling had nothing to do with the fire or the failed alarm or lubrication systems. Times staff writer Nicholas Riccardi contributed to this story. Copyright 2001 Los Angeles Times ***************************************************************** 6 N.H. Seabrook nuke operator not sure when unit to return [Reuters] Wednesday March 21, 1:09 pm Eastern Time NEW YORK, March 21 (Reuters) - North Atlantic Energy Service Corp. said Wednesday it was no longer certain when the 1,162-megawatt (MW) Seabrook nuclear unit in New Hampshire would return to service. Earlier Wednesday, Al Griffith, a spokesman for the plant operator, said the unit would likely return to service later today after a computer card was replaced. This afternoon, however, Griffith said the computer card had been replaced but the operator was still having problems with the plant. The unit was running at 17 percent of capacity Wednesday, down from 70 percent early Tuesday, and would hold at that level until the operator learns what is wrong. Griffith said there was no new estimate of when the unit might return to service. North Atlantic, a unit of Northeast Utilities (NYSE:NU - news), operates the station, located in Seabrook, N.H., for a consortium of New England utilities. The owners include NSTAR's (NYSE:NST - news) Canal Electric Co. (4 percent), Northeast Utilities' Connecticut Light &Power (4) and North Atlantic Energy (36), BayCorp Holdings Ltd.'s (AMEX:MWH - news) Great Bay Power (12), Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric (12), National Grid Plc's (*quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland*: NGG.L) Montaup Electric (3) and New England Power (10), United Illuminating Co. (NYSE:UIL - news) (18), and others. Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy ***************************************************************** 7 Sidney Siegel; Pioneer in Nuclear Energy Research March 22, 2001 By MYRNA OLIVER, Times Staff Writer Sidney Siegel, a pioneering developer of nuclear energy for peaceful uses such as the production of electrical power, has died at 89. Siegel, a charter member and former president of the American Nuclear Society, died Friday of cancer at his home in Pacific Palisades. Shortly before his death, Siegel described California's current electrical energy crisis as "deplorable and utterly avoidable," said his son-in-law Alan Maltun. During his long career, Siegel frequently wrote and lectured about the advantages of producing electricity with nuclear energy. Contrasting the environmental impact, economics and health hazards of nuclear power and coal, for example, he said that nuclear energy was cleaner, cheaper and safer despite the problems of waste disposal and possible reactor accidents. An American representative to the Atoms for Peace Conference, Siegel worked from 1950 to 1972 as vice president and technical director of Los Angeles-based Atomics International, a division of what was then North American Aviation Inc. There he worked on nuclear energy to power communications satellites and other space vehicles. He was as staunchly opposed to proliferation of nuclear weapons as he was firmly committed to building nuclear power plants. In 1957, Siegel helped organize the American Nuclear Society to promote research and engineering in nuclear technology. He served on the group's board for many years and was elected vice president in 1965 and president in 1966. From 1972 to 1975, Siegel was associate director for energy and the environment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. Siegel was also an accomplished photographer and sculptor who exhibited his works throughout California, including a current show at the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in Oakland. Born in New York City, Siegel earned his bachelor's and doctoral degrees in physics at Columbia University. He joined Westinghouse Electric Co. in 1938, doing early research on the effect of radiation on solids. During World War II, he helped develop torpedo triggering devices and airborne radar systems, and later went to Oak Ridge to work on nuclear reactor development. Siegel held five patents on solid state instruments and nuclear power devices. Siegel is survived by his wife of 63 years, the former Lilyan Ferges; four daughters, Gail Maltun of South Pasadena, Anne Podney of Pacific Beach, Laura Venning of Oakland and Maria Watt of Berkeley; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Copyright 2001 Los Angeles Times ***************************************************************** 8 San Onofre accident is key story behind California blackouts Nuclear Information and Resource Service NEWS FROM NIRS 1424 16th Street NW, #404 Washington, DC 20036. ph: 202.328.0002 fax:202.462.2183 nirsnet@nirs.org www.nirs.org For Immediate Release March 22, 2001 Contact: Michael Mariotte or Paul Gunter 202.328.0002 LITTLE NOTICED ACCIDENT AT SAN ONOFRE NUCLEAR POWER REACTOR IS KEY STORY BEHIND CALIFORNIA BLACKOUTS A significant accident February 3 at Southern California Edison's San Onofre-3 nuclear power reactor is a major cause of the rolling blackouts that have plagued California this week. According to published reports, California has lacked up to 800 Megawatts (MW) of power during the blackout periods. When running at full power, San Onofre-3 produces 1120 MW of electricity. Had the reactor been operating, the blackouts almost certainly would not have occurred. The accident occurred when a circuit breaker fault caused a fire-that lasted nearly three hours-a loss of offsite power, and a reactor scram. A related failure of an oil pump resulted in extensive damage to the plant's turbine. The reactor is expected to be shutdown for repairs for at least three months. Although the utility claims no radiation was released and no nuclear safety issues were involved, the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission sent a Special Inspection Team to the plant site to investigate the accident. The NRC met with SCE officials today to go over their findings. That team's report is expected to be publicly released soon. "This serious accident, which has gone virtually unnoticed in the daily attention given to California's electricity problems, highlights the vulnerability of electrical systems that rely on nuclear power, and is a clear demonstration why atomic reactors can never be counted on to meet our energy needs. Not only have nuclear plants always been too costly, they are too unreliable as well," said Michael Mariotte, executive director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), a Washington-DC based nuclear watchdog group. "When one of these large reactors goes down-and as reactors age, they will go down more often-large amounts of replacement power are needed-but are not always available. This situation is likely to worsen as time goes on, not improve." In January, California's electricity shortage was prompted in part by a storm which washed large amounts of kelp into the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant's water intake system, forcing those two reactors to reduce power to 20% to avoid a potential meltdown accident. "Using nuclear power to meet electricity needs is a lot like playing Russian Roulette," said Paul Gunter, chief of NIRS' Reactor Watchdog Project. "Most of the time you'll win, but when you lose, the results can be catastrophic." NIRS was among the organizations that opposed California's deregulation law from the beginning, and supported a 1998 referendum that would have repealed that law. But California utilities spent $40 million to defeat the referendum, thereby ensuring their steady march toward bankruptcy. "At the time, Pacific Gas &Electric and Southern California Edison were eyeing some $25 Billion in 'stranded costs' charged under the deregulation scheme to California ratepayers to pay for San Onofre and Diablo Canyon," explained Mariotte. "Much of that money seems to have been distributed to their holding companies, and has not been used for the benefit of Californians. And the bailout certainly hasn't made their reactors any more reliable, nor any safer." "Anyone who believes nuclear power is a way out of California's (or the nation's) energy problem should simply consider how much electricity could have been provided by safe, clean renewable energy and energy efficiency programs for the $25 Billion California spent on its unreliable nuclear reactors," concluded Gunter. "The choice is clear: we can meet our energy needs economically, or we can have nuclear power. We can't have both." ***************************************************************** 9 State Department Says No U.S.-Origin Nuclear Waste to Go to Russia NEWS RELEASE NUCLEAR INFORMATION AND RESOURCE SERVICE INSTITUTE FOR ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH ECODEFENSE! For Immediate Release March 22, 2001 Contact: Michael Mariotte, NIRS, 202.328.0002 Michele Boyd, IEER, 301.270.5500 STATE DEPARTMENT SAYS NO U.S.-ORIGIN NUCLEAR WASTE TO GO TO RUSSIA The U.S. State Department says it will not allow high-level atomic waste of U.S. origin to be shipped to Russia because of Russia's nuclear power collaboration with Iran. The United States will not even consider allowing such imports unless Russia first ends that nuclear collaboration, the State Department said in a letter to environmental groups opposed to the plan. This position could put an end to plans by Russia's nuclear agency Minatom to import nuclear waste from other countries and use the profits to build new atomic power plants. It also would stop a different project led by a U.S. group, the Non-Proliferation Trust, which has also proposed importing high-level waste to Russia under NPT's management, and using the funds for clean-up of contaminated sites and other purposes. In a March 14, 2001 letter to the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), Richard J.K. Stratford, Director of the State Department's Office of Nuclear Energy Affairs, said, "…[A]ny transfer to Russia of power reactor spent fuel subject to U.S. consent rights could only take place if the United States were to conclude an agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation with the Russian Federation. We have not so far been willing to negotiate such an agreement, because of our longstanding concerns about Russian nuclear cooperation with Iran." Stratford was writing in response to a letter signed by more than 150 organizations worldwide urging the U.S. to block any shipment of U.S.-origin atomic fuel to Russia. The letter was organized by NIRS, the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER) and Russia's Ecodefense!. Because most irradiated reactor fuel in the western world and Asia is either of U.S.-origin or irretrievably mixed-in with fuel of U.S.-origin, the State Department stance effectively rules out the Minatom Project. The project initially passed the Russian lower House of Parliament (Duma) in February, but a second reading was postponed today until at least late April. The State Department promised that if the Russian situation with Iran should change, and Department consideration of an agreement with Russia were considered, a notice of any proposed decision would be published in the Federal Register, and environmental groups would be invited to meet with State Department officials. ***************************************************************** 10 Uranium Institute News Briefing 01.12 | 14 - 20 March 2001 A weekly summary of international news relevant to uranium and the nuclear energy industry. [NB01.12-1]The European Parliament has voted overwhelmingly to endorse a report dealing with the safe transport of radioactive materials in the European Union (EU). The vote reflected that in the parliament's view the transport of radioactive materials in the EU is safe and well regulated. During the plenary session, Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy, speaking on behalf of the European Commission, said the report confirmed that measures taken at international and national level ensured a high level of safety for nuclear transport operations. *(Foratom, 14 March)* [NB01.12-2] A French court, at the request of Greenpeace, has halted a shipment of nuclear waste from Australia from being unloaded at Cherbourg. The waste was due at Cogema's plant at La Hague. Cogema has appealed against the decision. (Reuters, 16 March) The move has held up the Australian Nuclear Regulator from granting a licence to a new research reactor in Sydney until safe disposal could be assured. *(Asia Energy Briefing, 16 March)* [NB01.12-3] The US government plans to cut back on aid designed to help Russia safeguard its nuclear materials. The proposed budget cut for 2002 would reduce the amount from US$872 million to US$800 million that Russia would be given for nuclear non-proliferation activities. The US Department of Energy (DOE) had originally hoped for an increase up to US$1.2 billion to improve security at Russian weapons facilities, provide help to nuclear scientists and help convert weapons grade plutonium to less threatening materials. *(Associated Press, 15 March)* [NB01.12-4] Uranium shipments from the US to Russia have been agreed by the US Enrichment Corporation (USEC), Techsnabexport (Tenex) and ConverDyn who will all cooperate on the return of natural uranium to Russia. This is in line with the Russian and US Megatons to Megawatts programme through which USEC purchases diluted weapons grade uranium and in return provides natural uranium from its deposits. Tenex acts as an agent for the Russian government whilst Converdyn operates an enrichment plan in the US. *(USEC, 15 March; see also News Briefing 00.42-6)* [NB01.12-5] The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has authorised the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) to increase the enrichment level of uranium produced at its facility in Paducah. The plant is increasing its uranium enrichment capability from 2.75% to 5.5% because the only other plant that produces such a level of enrichment, in Portsmouth, Ohio, is scheduled to close this summer. Previously, uranium enriched at Paducah had to be further enriched at Portsmouth before it could be converted to usable fuel for nuclear power plants. *(NRC,19 March; see also News Briefings 01.10-10)* [NB01.12-6] The possibility of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant being the first to use mixed oxide (MOX) in Japan has been raised. After a meeting with mayors representing the area near the power plant the governor of Niigata Prefecture, Ikuo Hirayama, said that; 'If we get a clear and logical explanation from the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), it is possible that we will go ahead before Fukushima Prefecture'. This statement represents a departure from the governor's previous insistence that his prefecture would not be the first in Japan to use MOX fuel. *(Kyodo News Online, 19 March; see also News Briefing 98.19-3)* [NB01.12-7] Satellite photographs taken 27 years apart prove unequivocally the existence of global warming. The studies show less long wave radiation escaping the Earth's atmosphere in 1997 compared with 1970 and that the build up of greenhouse gases had caused this. This new evidence, not based on computer models, came in the same week that President Bush has backtracked on his promise to cut back on one of these gases (carbon dioxide) because according to the US Clean Air Act carbon dioxide is not classified as a pollutant. *(BBC News Online, 14 & 19 March)* [NB01.12-8] Taiwan's nuclear watchdog has blamed poor maintenance of high-voltage transmission lines for the failure of two electricity generators supplying the cooling system of the Maanshan nuclear power plant. Taiwan government officials stated that no radioactive materials leaked from nuclear power plant when generators were shut down on March 18 2001. *(Kyodo News Online, 19 March)* [NB01.12-9] The Temelin reactor in the Czech Republic has been started up again after adjusting the valves in a steam supply pipe which had began vibrating in January 2001. The reactor had been running at below 3% of the 1000 MWe capacity but plans were in place to gradually raise output to 55%. *(Reuters, 19 March; see also News Briefings 01.11-15)* [NB01.12-10] The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) has a new chairman, Mr Pervez Butt, who replaces Dr Ishfaq Ahmad who is to become a 'federal minister' advising the government on science and technology. Mr Butt joined the PAEC in 1963 and was closely associated with the commissioning of Kanupp, Pakistan's first nuclear power plant. *(NucNet News 01/89, 14 March)* [NB01.12-11] The Loviisa town council in Finland has agreed to the host the country's fifth nuclear reactor. The Finnish prime minister said that his government will not bow to international pressure and halt the plan to build the reactor because not going ahead with the plan would mean burning more fossil fuels. *(Nuclear Canada, 16 March; see also News Briefing 99.35-9)* [NB01.12-12] Russia plans to build a floating nuclear power plant at Severodvinsk costing US$109 million and with a generating capacity of 60 MWe. Russia has long expressed interest in using floating plants to supply electricity to remote northern and eastern regions, where severe weather makes construction on land difficult and expensive. *(Guardian Unlimited Online, 13 March; see also News Briefing 00.25-12)* [NB01.12-13] China plans to build several new nuclear power plants in coastal provinces over the next five years. The new facilities include two new generating units at Daya Bay and a new 6000 MWe plant in Yangjiang. Further developments are to take place in Shandong province with 2000 MWe planned for Haiyang and in Zhejiang province at Sanmen. *(Reuters, 14 March; see also News Briefing 00.04-15)* [NB01.12-14] Ukraine is to develop a national energy strategy for the next thirty years and beyond. A draft strategy is to be presented to President Leonid Kuchma by December 2001. *(NucNet News 01/90, 14 March)* In a separate development the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant which closed as a generator in December 2000 is to be run as a separate business entity, autonomous from Energoatom (The Ukraine's state owned utility). Chernobyl's new role would be as a state enterprise for decommissioning units. *(NucNet News 01/90, 14 March)* [NB01.12-15] US: California Coastal Commissioners agreed to allow the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant to continue storing nuclear waste for 20 years. The commission voted unanimously to approve construction by 2006 of a permanent facility to hold the waste. Commissioners required that Southern Californian Edison guarantee that it can afford lifetime monitoring of the waste. The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is expected to approve the project. *(Sacramento Bee Online, 14 March; see also News Briefing 00.11-5)* [NB01.12-16] The Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Institute (JNC) has judged that revealing the locations of survey sites for a final disposal facility for high-level radioactive waste would be counter productive and may lead to disruption of the project. An institute official said that the current site survey represented basic research and was unrelated to the process of selecting candidate sites. *(Daily Yomiuri Online, 19 March)* [NB01.12-17] US: Vermont Yankee Power Corp are to auction off the Vernon reactor to the highest bidder in Summer 2001. The move comes after rejecting a US$40 million offer from Amergen Energy Co. *(Ux Weekly, p3, 19 March; see also News Briefing 01.08-5)* [NB01.12-18] A US federal judge has criticised the manner in which the US Enrichment Corp (USEC) was privatised. Board members were forced to rely on information provided by parties with potential conflicts of interest according to Judge Gladys Kessler. *(Ux Weekly, p3, 19 March; see also News Briefing 98.28-1)* [NB01.12-19] In the wake of the Californian energy crisis and the record production levels of the nuclear industry in the US, two leading newspapers have written lengthy features supporting the future role of nuclear power. The Washington Times stressed the environmental advantages of nuclear over other options the US has in meeting its energy needs.* (Washington Times Online, 19 March)* The Times of London meanwhile focused on the need to plan for the future replacement of Britain's nuclear generating capacity and stressed the need for nuclear in order to meet global warming targets and to ensure a secure energy supply.* (The Times Online, 14 March)* Previous News Briefing NB01.11 *Prepared by the Uranium Institute Information Service. All news and views are those of the publications cited.* ***************************************************************** 11 Sellafield Case is Heard at No 10 The Whitehaven News GOVERNMENT ministers were told this week of the huge importance of Sellafield to the community. A local delegation went to 10 Downing Street on Tuesday to put their case for Sellafield's MOX plant. Although unable to meet the Prime Minister as planned, they spoke with other ministers and Mr Blair's advisers. The £300 million Mox plant needs the government go-ahead to operate. Copeland Council leader Robin Simpson and his Aller-dale counterpart, Mark Fryer, were in the Downing Street delegation as part of the Sort Out Sellafield campaign headed by Copeland MP Jack Cunningham. Dr Cunningham said: "Energy minister Peter Hain and the No 10 team gave us a very fair hearing. "We outlined the huge importance to our community of the Sellafield Mox plant in particular and the industry in general and I believe the minister recognised the force of our arguments. "Our priority is to see a start to the consultation process which we believe must precede the full commissioning of the plant. "Frustrating as it may seem, we have to wait and see what the government says but we left our meetings feeling hopeful." However, Copeland council's Tory leader Mike Graham, who is not in the campaign group, was scathing about the success of the delegation. "They have come back with nothing. This is the second occasion this drum has been beaten and again it is followed by a deafening silence. "All this business has been going on four years, with delay after delay while the future of Sellafield is at stake and I am extremely concerned about that future. "There seems to be no indication from government of whether they are minded or not to grant a licence for Mox." Coun Simpson said: "We told ministers that the Mox plant was an environmental plus: instead of potentially hazardous waste, we are creating a powerful and clean energy source." Whitehaven chamber of trade president Lavinia Garrett was also in the London delegation. She said: "I told them how Sellafield puts £100 million a year into our local tills. Without all that we simply couldn't survive." Allerdale's Coun Fryer said: "We stressed that although we were two local authorities we were one community and, without government support for Sellafield, we could put the lights out and close the door on that community." l Tony Blair apologised for not meeting the delegation due to another meeting on the foot-and-mouth crisis. ***************************************************************** 12 Why Russia covets world's nuclear waste globetechnology.com: News GEOFFREY YORK Wednesday, March 21, 2001 MOSCOW -- Lured by dreams of billion-dollar profits, Russia is preparing to approve a law tomorrow that would make it the world's biggest nuclear dump. While most countries are trying to get rid of their nuclear waste, the Russians are eagerly anticipating a $21-billion (U.S.) bonanza for their willingness to import 20,000 tonnes of spent nuclear fuel from around the world over the next decade. Russian leaders, backed by an influential group of U.S. businessmen and retired military officers, are campaigning aggressively for the nuclear storage plan. To sweeten the deal, they promise to share the profits with Russian orphans, pensioners, ecologists and impoverished villagers. But critics predict the money will go into the pockets of corrupt politicians and private businesses. The scheme could even help finance a new generation of Russian nuclear weapons, some analysts believe. A leaked report by parliamentary investigators charges that the project's biggest booster, Atomic Energy Minister Yevgeny Adamov, is secretly engaged in a host of business deals and private companies that have made him a wealthy man. Mr. Adamov's plan would see Russia earn more than $1,000 a kilogram to store or reprocess spent nuclear fuel. The material would come from Japan, China, Germany, Spain, Taiwan, South Korea, Switzerland, Bulgaria and other countries. But Russia is already finding it difficult to store its own vast quantities of nuclear waste. Its fledgling environmental movement, which is fighting fiercely against the nuclear import plan, suggests that Mr. Adamov could have personal financial motives for the storage scheme -- something he strongly denies. According to a report by the parliamentary anticorruption committee, Mr. Adamov receives regular payments "for his personal needs" from Omeka Ltd., a company registered in Pennsylvania that he helped establish in 1994. The minister received a $50,000 payment from Omeka last summer, for example, and he and his wife control 90 per cent of the company's $5-million in assets, the report says. Omeka receives $15,000 in monthly payments from the Russian Atomic Energy Ministry for "consultative services," under contracts signed in 1999, the report says. The nuclear-import project is supported by a high-powered alliance of U.S. Republicans and business lobbyists, including former Central Intelligence Agency director William Webster, two retired admirals and a former Marine commander. The American group, called the Non-Proliferation Trust, is pledging to spend more than $11-billion in Russia if the storage plan is approved, including $3-billion for environmental cleanup, $2-billion for pensioners, $2-billion for jobs in closed nuclear cities, $500-million in regional economic support and $250-million for orphans. Though the trust is a non-profit organization, published reports suggest that its Bermuda-based subsidiary could profit from the deal. Most of the spent fuel would be shipped to Russia for storage at two of its biggest nuclear sites, the 40-year-old Mayak complex in the Urals and the Krasnoyarsk facility in Siberia. Critics say the two complexes are among the most radioactively contaminated sites in the world. The Mayak facility has a long history of accidents, explosions, disasters and spills that have endangered thousands of people in the region. Opinion polls suggest that 90 per cent of Russians are opposed to the storage scheme, but the political establishment is solidly in favour of it. The State Duma, the lower house of parliament, voted 319-38 in December in favour of first reading of legislation to authorize nuclear-fuel imports. The bill is to receive its second -- and perhaps final -- reading in the Duma tomorrow. "As a result of this law, the Russian people will get nuclear waste, and the money will be stolen and transferred abroad," said Sergei Mitrokhin of the liberal Yabloko party. "The Atomic Energy Ministry has always been a top-secret body and it can do whatever it wants," he told a news conference yesterday. "This creates the perfect conditions for corruption. Its accounts are secret, so nobody can check them. This law should be called the Fraud of the Century." Despite promises that much of the revenue will be spent on environmental cleanup and new storage facilities, many analysts believe it will be diverted to finance new nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. Pavel Felgenhauer, an independent military analyst in Moscow, says the profits from nuclear storage will help pay for a new generation of battlefield nuclear weapons, including "penetrator" weapons that burrow underground before exploding. "The gist of the Adamov plan -- to make the West pay for a new generation of nukes that may be eventually used against it -- clearly captured the imagination of the Russian elite," Mr. Felgenhauer wrote recently in a Moscow newspaper. Mr. Adamov was the director of a top-secret research and design institute in the Atomic Energy Ministry from 1986 to 1998, before being named minister. He has never denied he has business dealings in the United States. "I am proud that I know how business works in a civilized country," he said in a speech to the Duma in 1999. He insists, however, that he has not engaged in any entrepreneurial activities since becoming minister. Prosecutors in Moscow have launched an investigation into the corruption allegations. But in a statement this month, the ministry said the charges are part of an anti-Russia slander campaign organized in the West. ***************************************************************** 13 Russian Deputies to Vote on Nuclear Waste Imports Russia Today - MOSCOW, Mar 22, 2001 -- () Liberal deputies on Wednesday branded moves to import foreign nuclear waste to Russia for treatment as the "crime of the century," on the eve of a key parliamentary vote. Storing and reprocessing nuclear waste from other states could earn Russia some $20 billion over 20 years say supporters of the plan, who nevertheless expect the measure to win fewer than the 320 votes won during an initial vote last December. The bill, at the second reading stage, needs 226 votes to pass to a third reading. The liberal Yabloko bloc and Union of Right Wing Forces (SPS) in the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, say the law will turn Russia into the world's nuclear dustbin even though its own nuclear waste storage facilities are crumbling. "The crime of the century is being carried out. These laws contradict the opinion of many in the country," said SPS deputy Vera Lekareva. "The atom bomb will be placed not only beneath the current generation, but beneath those yet to be born." Sergei Apatenko, of the pro-Kremlin Unity party, challenged the first reading in Russia's Supreme Court, arguing that an environmental impact study should have been completed before the bill was given initial approval. SPS deputy Yuli Ryabkov said the measure would mean "the death of Russia," adding: "The country should know the names of those who vote in favor of this bill. The country should know who its scoundrels and criminals are, those who would bring it to nuclear catastrophe." Supporters say the bill is a "green" measure which will help Russia's environment by providing desperately-needed cash to fund the disposal of its own stockpiles. "There will be firm control over the profits of this system," said Robert Migmatulin, a deputy with the centrist Russia's Regions bloc in the Duma who supports the plan. "Every year the income and expenses of the reprocessing of nuclear material will be carefully examined," he said. Under one amendment due for debate, a quarter of the profits will go to the regions handling the imported nuclear waste. The Communist Party, the biggest Duma faction, is to decide how to vote on Thursday morning. In December, the group allowed its members a free vote. Most members of the Unity bloc and the centrist People's Deputies and Russia's Regions groups are expected to back the bill, which would allow countries like Switzerland, Germany, China and Japan to export their waste to Russia. (C)2001 Copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************** 14 Nuclear Waste Bill Goes for Key Vote Thursday, Mar. 22, 2001. Page 1 By Yevgenia Borisova Staff Writer Scores of demonstrators planned to rally Thursday morning outside the State Duma as lawmakers vote on whether to allow Russia to import spent nuclear fuel and, opponents say, become the world's nuclear waste dump. At the same hour that Duma deputies take up the controversial legislation, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear an appeal from environmentalists on a nationwide referendum on the import of nuclear waste. At issue are amendments to three laws that would open the door to the import of 20,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel for reprocessing and storage over 12 years. The Nuclear Power Ministry is fiercely lobbying for the legislation, which it says will bring in $20 billion in desperately needed revenues to build and modernize nuclear power plants and clean up contaminated areas. Opponents say the ministry has no intention of putting the cash to environmental use and fear the proceeds will be embezzled or used to make new nuclear weapons. Representatives from both camps intend to picket the Duma on Thursday. "We can only call the things that are taking place in the Duma a farce," Sergei Mitrokhin, a Duma deputy with the Yabloko faction, told a news conference Wednesday morning. "Ninety percent of the Russian public is against this bill, but the Duma — with maniacal stubbornness spawned by the Nuclear Power Ministry's lobbying — is going to approve them." "Thursday will be a test of the relationship between the ruling powers and society in our county," said Lyudmila Alexeyeva, head of the Moscow Helsinki human rights group. "If this bill is passed, then it will mean that we aren't voters, taxpayers or citizens — we are just scum to them." One by one, lawmakers and environmentalists told reporters at the news conference that the Nuclear Power Ministry could not be taken for its word and that Russia already has so many polluted areas that it cannot afford to take new risks. "We have seen clear efforts [by the ministry] to hide all possible evidence that we are polluting areas and this, unfortunately, is state policy," Deputy Sergei Adamov said. The Nuclear Power Ministry, he said, has long covered up the fact that the nuclear submarine fleet polluted large parts of the Far North and the Mayak nuclear reprocessing plant poisoned the Chelyabinsk region. Just hours after the opponents' news conference, Nuclear Power Minister Yevgeny Adamov held one of his own in which he assured that Russia would not be turned into a toxic dump. The spent nuclear fuel is not nuclear waste but should be viewed as "precious national property" and "a strategic resource," Adamov said. His ministry has sent the Duma a proposal under which $7 billion of the cash earned from nuclear imports would spent on nuclear power plants and an equal amount on radioactive cleanup. The remaining funds would be split between taxes and the construction of storage and reprocessing sites. Opponents said Tuesday that the proposal is broad and gives the ministry plenty of room to divert the funds for other uses. Adamov retorted Wednesday that the figures presented to the Duma were merely preliminary and based on the assumption that Russia would be able to get 10 percent of the world's spent fuel market. Playing down concerns that Russia would not be able to safely handle the imports, the minister said Russia had the second safest nuclear record in the world after Japan. He said 684 people had contracted radioactive-related diseases and only 56 have died over the past 50 years. His estimates stand in contrast to the Emergency Situations Ministry's figures, which have been reported to indicate that at least 55,000 people have died from radiation after the 1986 disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Meanwhile, speculation was swirling Wednesday in parliament that the Nuclear Power Ministry had cut deals with lawmakers to support the nuclear bill. The legislation garnered an overwhelming 319 votes in the 450-member Duma in first reading in December. Yevgeny Ishchenko, a People's Deputy lawmaker from Volgograd, said that "rumors are widespread in the Duma that Communist faction received $15 million for their vote in December." "I don't have any proof of that, but the way Communists voted is the best proof," Ishchenko said. A Communist Party spokesman denied that his faction, which almost unanimously voted in favor of the bill in December, had accepted any money. Although eyes will be trained Thursday on the Duma vote, the hearing at the Supreme Court could also have a significant impact on the nuclear bill. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on a petition from environmental activists, who want a national referendum on the import of nuclear waste. Environmentalists collected 2.5 million signatures calling for a referendum last fall and submitted the petition to the Central Elections Commission. But the commission rejected the petition, saying a number of technical irregularities had been found. The activists want the court to validate the petition. But opponents of the nuclear bill are not holding their breath that the issue will be resolved any time soon. "I'm pessimistic," Deputy Mitrokhin said. "But I am more optimistic about the vote in the Federation Council," he added, referring to a recently published interview by Speaker Yegor Stroyev who slammed the nuclear project as unsafe. "I think the council will take the people's opinion into account more closely than the Duma deputies'." The Moscow Times ***************************************************************** 15 Russian parliament delays contentious nuclear bill BBC News | EUROPE | 22 March, 2001, The lower house of the Russian parliament, the Duma, has postponed the second reading of contentious legislation which would allow the country to import nuclear waste for reprocessing. Deputies voted by three-hundred-and-thirty-nine to ten to delay the measure until further hearings have been held. The government had called on the chamber to allow the bill to proceed. The atomic energy ministry says the legislation would allow Russia to sign contracts worth about twenty-billion dollars to reprocess twenty-thousand tons of foreign nuclear waste. Ecologists and liberal politicians say this would pose an environmental threat. But proponents say the money earned could be used to improve safety at Russia's nuclear facilities. Activists from the environmental group, Greenpeace, unfurled a banner on the steps of the Duma in protest against the legislation. An ultra-nationalist deputy, Alexei Mitrofanov, described critics of the measure as enemies of the people. *From the newsroom of the BBC World Service* ***************************************************************** 16 DUMA DELAYS DECISION AS POLITICAL OPPOSITION GROWS TO LAW ALLOWING RADIOACTIVE WASTE IMPORTS TO RUSSIA 22 March 2001 Moscow - The last minute decision by the Russian Duma today to delay law changes to allow radioactive waste imports to Russia was a sign of growing political opposition to the proposal, Greenpeace said today. The Duma decision to delay the second reading of the bill, for at least two weeks, was announced at 11.30 today after a Greenpeace action at 10.05 outside the parliamentary building where activists unfurled a large banner reading "Spent Nuclear Fuel? Duma - Think Again". At 10.15 security officers tore down the banner attached to the entrance roof overhang, endangering a Greenpeace activist hanging 10 meters above the ground. Three activists were arrested. "The delay of the Duma decision is a great success and indicates that political opposition is growing to the radioactive waste import bill, which will turn Russia into the world's nuclear waste dump" said Greenpeace International spokeperson Tobias Muenchmeyer. "More and more Duma members are finally realising how irresponsible and dangerous it would be, to open Russia's gates for thousands of tonnes of deadly radioactive waste." Last week of the head of Russian's Upper House of parliament, the Federation Council, Yegor Stroyev said he is categorically against the radioactive waste import law. "Only the mafia could be interested in laws that actually open the way to imports of nuclear wastes and turning Russia into a nuclear dump," Stroyev told repoters last Wednesday. "The idea of importing nuclear wastes to Russia is insane." Also today a Supreme court hearing began on a Greenpeace legal challenge to the Russian Central Electoral Committee, seeking to validate over 300,000 signatures calling for a national referendum against the import of radioactive waste to Russia. In November last year Russia's Central Election Committee declared 600,000 signatures invalid of the 2.5 million collected by Greenpeace and other environmentalists. This lowered the total below the 2 million threshold required, under Russian law, for carrying out a national referendum. "This is not only about ecology, this is also about democracy," said Muenchmeyer. "There are 2.5 million people who want to use their constitutional right to vote for a referendum, but some governmental agencies appear intent on denying them this right." The legislation to allow the importation of radioactive waste, being promoted by Russia's cash-strapped Atomic Ministry (Minatom), is designed to allow Russia to become the world's nuclear waste dump. Minatom believes that over the next decade it could import up to 20,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel from countries including Japan, Switzerland, Germany, Spain, Taiwan, South Korea, China - in contracts worth up to $21 billion. Earlier this month Greenpeace released a confidential report from the Russian Parliamentary Anti-Corruption Commission detailing large-scale illegal business activities of the Minister of Atomic Energy, Evgeny Adamov. "This has been a wake up call for the Duma members who voted (at the first reading) in favour of Adamov's multi-billion proposal for importing nuclear waste," said Muenchmeyer. "Many Duma members realise that this proposal is nothing more than a money making scheme for Adamov and the rest of the Russian nuclear mafia." One of the likely sites to receive foreign nuclear waste is the nuclear complex at Mayak in the Urals. It is the world's largest nuclear complex and one of the most radioactively contaminated sites in the world. According to a statement in 1998 by G.J. Dicus, a commissioner for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission:"As a result of early operational practices and some accidents at Mayak, workers at the plant and populations around the site were exposed to unusually large amounts of radiation and radioactive materials. In many cases, the doses were comparable to those received by survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings." "The fairy tales about nuclear cleanup by Minatom are nothing but public relations for their crude attempt to get Western money for an expansion of the Russian nuclear industry, whose disregard for safety and the environment is starkly demonstrated by the nuclear nightmare of Mayak and Krasnoyarsk," said Muenchmeyer. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: - Ivan Blokov (Moscow) +7 095 257 41 22 - Tobias Muenchmeyer (Berlin) +49 30 440 58 960 www.greenpeace.org/~nuclear/waste/russianwaste.html ***************************************************************** 17 S.Africa awards contract for nuclear power plant Thursday March 22, 8:59 am Eastern Time JOHANNESBURG, March 22 (Reuters) - South Africa on Thursday awarded a UK-German-South African consortium a contract to design a plant to provide fuel for the country's Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) project. NUKEM Nuklear GmbH of Germany, British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) and local firm Engineering Management Services will design a fuel fabrication plant to produce the praphite spheres or ``pebbles'' used in the PBMR reactors, PBMR said in a statement. ``This should greatly reduce the risk of having sufficient qualified fuel available when our demonstration plant starts operations in 2005,'' said PBMR Chief Executive Dave Nicholls. PMBR no details on the value of the contract. The project to develop a commercial PBMR is being led by a consortium involving South African electricity utility Eskom, the Industrial Development Corp , BNFL and U.S. Exelon Corp (NYSE:EXC - news). PBMR is a design for a new generation mini-nuclear reactor with a capacity of 110 megawatts against the 1,000 or so megawatt capacity of most modern nuclear power stations. In the PBMR helium is used as a coolant and the energy transfer medium is used to a closed gas turbine and generator system. The feasibility study into the fuel fabrication facility is expected to be complete later this year. The PBMR concept is based on prototype reactors that operated in the U.S. and Germany between the late 1960s and 1980s. Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Copyright © 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights ***************************************************************** 18 Energy NW to study Plant 1 revival This story was published 3/22/2001 By Herald staff writer Energy Northwest has decided to study the feasibility of finishing Plant No. 1 at Hanford. That after U.S. Reps. Doc Hastings and George Nethercutt sent a joint letter to chief executive officer Vic Parrish this week urging the public utility consortium to do so. Plant No. 1, which was two-thirds complete when construction was halted in 1982, would produce 1,250 megawatts, enough energy to serve 1.2 million homes. But even in an energy crisis, it's a controversial and expensive proposition. Hastings and Nethercutt, both Washington Republicans, want to find out how expensive. "Let's get a study and get something conclusive," Hastings said Wednesday in a phone interview from Washington, D.C. Energy Northwest's executive board, which toured the facility Wednesday, also gave preliminary approval to its 2001-02 budget that includes using money left in the Plant No. 1 construction account to pay for the study. The Bonneville Power Administration is expected to approve that budget next month. But Parrish said he hopes to have the study conducted within 100 days. The executive board is expected to discuss how the study is to be done at its meeting today in Richland, though it may take several weeks to reach a resolution. Energy Northwest spokesman Don McManman said the consortium wants to pursue the study as a matter of "examining all options" for building sorely needed power plants in the region. The plant was one of five projects the former Washington Public Power Supply System began building in the 1970s. Only the Columbia Generating Station at Hanford ever was finished. Of the four never completed, two of which are at the Satsop site west of Olympia, Plant No. 1 was the furthest along. Hastings said it would be irresponsible not to study the feasibility of finishing it, despite the possibility its power would cost more than other alternatives. "The cost of generating (at Plant No. 1) is a whole lot less than the spot market is," Hastings said. Parrish earlier this year estimated the cost somewhere between $3 billion to $4 billion, a jarring order of magnitude. By comparison, a gas-fired power plant Energy Northwest has plans to operate with Duke Energy North America at Satsop will produce half as much energy, but at a cost of about $250 million. "This picture doesn't compute," said Sara Patton, executive director of the Northwest Energy Coalition, an environmental advocacy group. "Why would we do this?" It's also believed it would take too long to finish construction on Plant No. 1 to attract customers willing to commit to buying its power before work begins. "There are a lot of questions regarding the completion of Plant No. 1 that make it seem a bit of a long shot," said Bonneville spokesman Ed Mosey, who noted there's enough gas-fired projects in the works to provide the resources the Northwest needs. "Even under an optimistic scenario, getting it online within three or four years would be moving. When you start to reach out that far, there's a high risk you won't need it." McManman said the consortium is not advocating the project be finished, just studied. "Energy Northwest has always thought it's important to examine every possible source," he said. Patton said the money would be better spent furthering the development of fuel cell technology or investing in conservation. "I'd rather spend the money studying things that are more realistic," she said. Dave Danner, who advises Gov. Gary Locke on energy issues, said everything he's seen suggests finishing the project would not be cost-effective. Even so, he doesn't object to the study, so long as it's credible. "If the study is objective and provides us with some good information, I'd like to see it," Danner said. "If it's going to be boosterism, it's probably going to be less valuable." Parrish said maintaining the credibility of the study will be a top priority, realizing the difficult political climate for the nuclear industry. Power plants fired by natural gas are the most popular form of generators among builders these days. They're relatively cheap to build and cleaner than they used to be. But the cost of their power largely is driven by fluctuating gas prices, making their costs more volatile. Gas-fired plants also won't last as long as nuclear projects do. Energy Northwest believes Plant No. 1 could be licensed to run for 60 years. Nuclear projects also don't produce the environmentally threatening air emissions gas plants do. But massive construction costs and indecision about what to do with radioactive spent nuclear fuel continue to hold the industry back. Energy Northwest managers were convinced even as little as 15 months ago that finishing the project wouldn't be worth considering. It took mathematically astonishing increases on wholesale power markets to change that. Costs that seemed ridiculously high for some generators before suddenly don't look so bad. "I thought it would be prudent for us to look at everything," Hastings said. "Nuclear ought to be part of that mix." Back to top stories ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2000 Tri-City Herald. All rights reserved. This ***************************************************************** 19 Nuclear plant workers testify TVA denied them overtime pay March 22, 2001 By Laura Ayo, News-Sentinel staff writer Sequoyah Nuclear Plant employees have testified in federal court that they haven't been paid overtime since TVA changed its overtime pay policy nearly five years ago. Their testimony Tuesday kicked off what is expected to be at least a weeklong trial before U.S. District Judge Leon Jordan in which the workers claim the federal utility intentionally violated the Fair Labor Standards Act when it implemented a policy June 10, 1996, that denied them overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours a week. TVA attorneys John Slater, A. Jackson Woodall and Dillis Freeman have argued the law exempts the 33 suing employees from receiving overtime. The exempt employees include those whose primary duties are managerial or those who perform office work directly related to the management policies or general business operations of their employers. Some of the employees agreed under cross examination that they oversaw or monitored the daily tasks of other workers and had authority to step in to prevent an immediately hazardous situation. But the four workers and a retired employee from three different departments within the plant, which is near Soddy-Daisy, testified they had supervisors above them that held the decision-making authority. "Where does a task supervisor stand in the chain of command in the modifications department," attorney Charles Van Beke asked one of his clients, Robert Mason. "The bottom of the list," answered Mason, who retired in May after a 26-year career with TVA. Much of Tuesday's testimony consisted of detailed job descriptions from the workers. They said they had no authority to hire, fire or discipline others. They also said they weren't the ones who decided what work was to be done. "Everybody reports to the shift manager," testified Keith Gibbs, a unit supervisor in the operations department who has worked for TVA since 1981. "He's the guy. He's the one who has the authority to make decisions based on personnel." The employees testified they all received overtime until TVA changed policies. They said they stopped getting the overtime after the policy change, including during outages, or shutdowns, at the plant. The preplanned outages occur about every 18 months and can last about a month. During those times, the employees said they work roughly 12-hour shifts seven days a week. Other plant workers offered similar testimony Wednesday. The trial marks the second time TVA has been before a judge on a question of whether it has violated overtime laws. In June 1999, U.S. Magistrate Robert Murrian ruled TVA failed to act in good faith when it decided to cut overtime pay for "manager/specialist" employees. He later ordered TVA to pay a total of more than $563,000 to 20 security employees at the Watts Bar and Sequoyah nuclear plants in civil litigation damages and unpaid overtime wages. Payment of that judgment is on hold pending TVA's appeal. Two similar lawsuits against TVA, including one class-action claim, are also pending in federal court. Laura Ayo may be reached at 865-6341 or ayo@knews.com. Keep informed! Join the KnoxNews.com mailing list. ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARTICLES ***************************************************************** 1 Lawrence Livermore shows off discoveries ContraCostaTimes.com *Published Thursday, March 22, 2001 * + The all-day event for 500 dignitaries highlighted recent advancements By Peter Felsenfeld TIMES STAFF WRITER LIVERMORE -- Local scientists showed off their latest high-tech discoveries Wednesday at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory's "Science Day" event. The 500 invited dignitaries -- including Department of Energy officials, fellow scientists, city representatives and business leaders -- were treated to a full day of speeches and demonstrations highlighting advancements in medicine, computing and weapons-related research. "This is an opportunity for us to celebrate the good science that goes on at the labs, and to share with colleagues and community leaders some of our wonderful projects," said spokeswoman Susan Houghton. The theme of the event was "Scientific Supercomputing," which Houghton said encompasses many laboratory departments. Lab director Bruce Tarter and Gen. John Gordon, administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, the Department of Energy agency that oversees the lab, welcomed the invitation-only crowd to the day's festivities. Visitors were led on a tour of the Forensic Science Center, where center director Brian D. Andresen and his staff demonstrated the newest chemical detection technology. The center participates in criminal investigations, often involving advanced DNA analysis, and helps local governments identify chemicals that surface in a variety of situations. For example, the principal of a local school once approached center scientists after finding vials of an unknown substance on school property. Lab Deputy Director Pat Grant said the principal feared the chemicals were a new drug. However, the lab identified the liquid as vitamin B12, probably used by athletes for performance enhancement. Scientists from the lab's medical division presented new technologies to combat cancer and other diseases. Advancements include radar-based medical diagnostic technology designed to assess head injuries and a probe to instantly identify a suspicious lump in a woman's breast. The laboratory is also developing technology to unclog blocked arteries in the brain that cause strokes and glucose sensors to help combat diabetes. Afternoon presentations included discussions on how the lab's super computers simulate climates and help scientists study issues such as global warming as well as how the lab's large-scale computer simulations contribute to the study of earthquake phenomena. "So often the good work we do is eclipsed by problems and controversies," Houghton said. "It's easy to forget the good science that has and always will go on here. This is what the lab is all about."* Peter Felsenfeld covers the national labs. Reach him at 925-847-2184 or pfelsenfeld@cctimes.com. ***************************************************************** 2 Labor Department balks at starting new program Mar 27, 2001 EST 7.31 p.m. ET (0031 GMT) March 21, 2001 WASHINGTON — In four months, the government is supposed to start taking applications from sick nuclear workers eligible for special federal compensation. Congress gave the Labor Department $60.4 million to set up the program. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, however, wants it run by another agency. That concerns lawmakers worried that people with incurable illnesses will have to wait too long for compensation if Chao gets her way. "Cancer is killing my constituents right now,'' said Rep. Ted Strickland, D-Ohio. "This will, in my judgment, inevitably result in a delay.'' In a letter to the White House, Chao suggested that the Justice Department be put in charge of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program. Chao noted that Justice already handles a small program that gives one-time payments to uranium miners, millers and people who lived downwind of nuclear test sites. "To create a new infrastructure when DOJ already has the tools to effectively implement and administer this program is duplicative,'' she wrote. GOP Sens. George Voinovich and Mike DeWine of Ohio, in a letter to the White House, said the payments handled by the Justice Department under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act are not part of a medical claims reimbursement program. The Labor Department, they noted, reviews medical benefit claims for federal workers, and also has a network of regional offices with claims-takers. "The Department of Justice does not have the necessary infrastructure or expertise to administer this program effectively,'' they said. The Justice Department has three attorneys, two supervisors and 14 payment clerks running the program. Its staff has received about 9,000 claims over the past decade. In contrast, the Labor Department runs a worker compensation program for government employees that has a staff of more than 900 and considered more than 19,000 wage-loss claims in 1999, the latest year for which figures were available. "Giving this new responsibility to the folks at RECA would clearly overwhelm the system and lead to a lot of dissatisfaction with the program,'' said Rep. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M. "They don't have a good record in administering the RECA program. There have been a lot of complaints -- well-founded complaints, in my opinion.'' Also joining in was a group of House members with constituents suffering from serious lung diseases or cancer as a result of their nuclear weapons-related work. The Labor Department "was selected to run this program because this agency has administered a number of other federal worker compensation programs for as long as 90 years,'' they wrote. The letter, circulated by Strickland and GOP Rep. Ed Whitfield of Kentucky, was signed by Republicans Jim Gibbons of Nevada and Zack Wamp of Tennessee, and Democrats Mark Udall of Colorado, John LaFalce of New York, Tom Udall of New Mexico, Ken Lucas of Kentucky, and Paul Kanjorski of Pennsylvania. ^ On the Net: Report on compensation issues: http://www.eh.doe.gov/benefits RECA program claims summary: http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/torts/const/reca/awards.htm © 2000, News Digital Media, Inc. d/b/a Fox News Online ***************************************************************** 3 Energy Department Fines BNFL Inc. for Violating Nuclear Safety Requirements energy.gov - Headquarters' Press Release RELEASE DATE: Thursday, March 22, 2001 [Print Friendly Benefits of Clean Coal Investment* The Department of Energy, through its Office of Price-Anderson Enforcement, has issued a $41,250 civil penalty to BNFL Inc., a contractor firm conducting decontamination and decommissioning activities at the department's East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The penalty is associated with a metal fire that occurred in the ETTP K-33 Building on April 4, 2000 during decontamination and decommissioning activities. The fire was contained in a bundle of metal tubes housed in the assembly being decontaminated. The investigation found that BNFL failed to follow established procedures and implement an effective quality improvement process to identify and correct problems. As a result, safety and worker hazards were not fully identified or analyzed. Although there were no worker exposures or release of uranium into the external environment, the fire caused the release of uranium from the metal tubes into the building while the workers were fighting the fire. Additionally, the fire department did not receive the information it needed when fighting the fire regarding potential hazards. The K-33 Building at the former Gaseous Diffusion Plant was placed into operation in 1954 to produce highly enriched uranium. The building was permanently shutdown in 1987 and decontamination and decommissioning activities began in 1998. BNFL Inc. has proposed and implemented corrective actions, including an improved work plan that addresses potential safety hazards and development of a detailed fire protection plan, to help ensure that an incident of this nature will not reoccur. The Preliminary Notice of Violation (PNOV) was issued on March 19 and becomes final within 30 days unless challenged by BNFL Inc. The firm is required to respond to the Preliminary Notice with a schedule for completing all corrective actions. The Energy Department will review BNFL Inc.'s response to the PNOV and determine whether further enforcement action is necessary. The Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 1988 requires the Energy Department to undertake regulatory enforcement actions against contractors for violations of its nuclear safety requirements. The program is implemented by the Office of Enforcement and Investigations. This action was taken with the support and participation of the department's Oak Ridge Operations Office, which will ensure that the corrective actions are fully implemented. Additional details can be found on the Internet at . Media Contact: Lisa Cutler, 202/586-5806 Release No. R-01-043 ***************************************************************** 4 IHT: Soldiers Claim Italy Skewed Study on 'Balkans Syndrome' Reuters Reuters Thursday, March 22, 2001 ROME A group representing Italian soldiers and their families on Wednesday contested a government report that said it had not yet found a link between the use of depleted uranium weapons and cancer among servicemen. The association argued that the Defense Ministry was working with questionable data, skewing results to underplay the effects of the so-called Balkans Syndrome. On Monday, Franco Mandelli, head of a scientific commission set up by the government to look into cancer among soldiers who served in the Balkans in 1995 and 1999, said the incidence of tumors was "significantly less than expected." But the military support group said the findings were skewed by including soldiers who had not worked in contaminated areas and people who had been sent to the Balkans for just one day. "The Mandelli Commission report is unacceptable and should be thoroughly redone," said Falco Accame, head of the soldiers' group known as the National Association to Help Victims Belonging to the Armed Forces and the Families of the Fallen. Mr. Mandelli's study echoed other scientific reports that have so far failed to find a link between depleted uranium weapons and the illnesses now affecting soldiers: Hodgkin's lymphoma and leukemia. A Balkans Syndrome scare broke out in January when it was reported that at least seven Italian servicemen had died from leukemia after exposure to depleted uranium-tipped ammunition used by NATO forces in the Balkans. Mr. Accame said the Italian commission needed to widen its study to include at least four tumor-suffering soldiers exposed to depleted uranium while serving with UN peacekeeping forces in Somalia. Copyright © 2001 the International Herald Tribune ***************************************************************** 5 Leukaemia cluster was triggered by troops By David Derbyshire SERVICEMEN stationed in Orkney and Shetland during the Second World War unwittingly triggered a cluster of leukaemia among local children, a new study claims. The death rate for the disease on the islands was more than three times higher while they were occupied by 60,000 British troops between 1940 and 1945. The finding adds to the mounting evidence that childhood leukaemia is caused by an infectious agent, most probably an unknown virus. The study was carried out by Professor Leo Kinlen, a cancer epidemiologist at Oxford University. He has previously shown that clusters can occur when isolated, susceptible, rural communities are exposed to urban outsiders. The childhood leukaemia cluster at Sellafield in Cumbria, once thought to be connected to pollution, is now believed to have been triggered by the influx of construction workers and scientists. Until the war, around 40,000 people lived in Orkney and Shetland. But when Germany invaded Norway in 1940, 60,000 servicemen from the mainland defended the islands, and they were joined by 3,700 construction workers and 1,200 Italian prisoners of war. Another 40,000 naval personnel were stationed on ships in Scapa Flow, and many would have taken shore leave on the islands. Most of the newcomers would have come from urban areas. Prof Kinlen looked at the leukaemia rate of 12,000 children who were either born on the islands or who lived there during the war and compared it with the rate in the Scottish population at the time. Between 1941 and 1945, deaths from leukaemia rose 3.6 times among local children. Instead of an expected 2.5 deaths among the islands' children, nine children died. However, after the war, the death rate fell. Among children born between 1946 and 1955, three died from leukaemia, compared with an expected 2.8. Prof Kinlen said: "Few servicemen stationed in Orkney and Shetland brought their families to live nearby and all deaths form childhood leukaemia involved local children. The amount of potential population mixing in Orkney and Shetland during the war was striking. Much contact took place between local people and servicemen through regular social events, servicemen buying local produce and local people working for army camps." Prof Kinlen, who reports his study in The Lancet, added: "The positive findings of our study add to the large amount of evidence that has accumulated since 1988 for an underlying infectious cause in childhood leukaemia, but the agent or agents remain to be identified." Cattle, cat and mouse leukaemia is known to be caused by a virus, while around a dozen human cancers, such as cancer of the cervix and liver, are linked to an infectious agent. Prof Gordon McVie, the director general of the Cancer Research Campaign, said: "We are now a step closer to the ultimate goal of leukaemia research, which is to track down the nature of the virus and develop vaccines against it." 8 March 2001: Watchdog casts doubt on pylon leukaemia link 18 January 2001: Leukaemia link 'is implausible' 7 December 2000: Vaccine hope for leukaemia children 28 March 1996: [UK News] Sellafield 'did not cause leukaemia' © CopyrightTelegraph Group Limited 2000. Terms & Conditionsof ***************************************************************** 6 Gestapo couldn't add up, so von Braun counted down Robert Matthews on the chilling consequences of science without constraints EVEN all these years after its demise, the Third Reich has lost none of its power to shock, with its stark demonstrations of what humans do when freed of all restraint. A four-part series beginning tomorrow night on Channel 4 reveals the depths to which scientists sank once their intellectual curiosity was cut free of ethical constraints. Medical researchers were able to indulge themselves in the then-fashionable ideas of eugenics, with appalling results. Doctors - the single biggest professional group in the SS - no longer had to content themselves with using mice as surrogates for humans in their research; they had access to vast numbers of the genuine article. While the series provides a timely warning of the dangers of giving scientists an intellectual free rein, it also casts less than flattering light on what they are prepared to do to free themselves from financial constraints as well. The final programme looks at the role of the Nobel Prizewinning Werner Heisenberg in Hitler's weapons programme. Heisenberg was Germany's most brilliant nuclear physicist - and smart enough to twig that Hitler would bankroll research into terrifying new weapons such as atomic bombs. Thankfully, Heisenberg and his colleagues never did succeed in making an atomic bomb. The evidence shows that in fact they never even really tried. Not that this stopped Heisenberg and his colleagues from portraying their work as crucial to the war effort. Even as Germany collapsed around them, they continued to extract funding from their wide-eyed Nazi paymasters. After the war, Heisenberg claimed that he and his colleagues had known all along how to build a bomb, but had deliberately put their bosses off the scent. Secret recordings made after their capture by the Allies reveal a different story, however: their real aim had been to build a research reactor for esoteric nuclear studies. In short, they bamboozled their masters into bankrolling their academic interests while their country disintegrated. The most cynical use of military funding for self-serving purposes was perpetrated by a scientist not included in the Channel 4 series, however: the rocket designer Wernher von Braun. As a teenager, von Braun had dreamed of sending men to the moon, and he had no qualms about sucking up to the Nazis to make his dream a reality. By the early 1940s, he had convinced Hitler that rockets would make a terror weapon capable of breaking the will of the Allies. In a programme that cost the Third Reich around £3 billion in today's terms, more than 3,000 V2s were launched between September 1944 and spring 1945, killing 5,000. The V2's feeble accuracy and destructive power made it the only weapon in history to have caused far more deaths in its construction - an estimated 10,000 slave labourers - than in its deployment. Some senior Nazis do seem to have been aware of von Braun's real motives; in March 1944 he was arrested by the Gestapo, who accused him of being more interested in space travel than furthering the cause of Nazism. If his Gestapo inquisitors had known more about physics, von Braun might well have been executed. A back-of-the-envelope calculation shows that rockets are a dismally inefficient means of delivering warheads, and that unless they are incredibly accurate - or fitted with nuclear warheads - their chances of destroying a given target are minimal. Fortunately for von Braun, differential equations were beyond his captors, and he was released. Almost exactly 25 years later, he watched his dream become a reality as Apollo 11 took off for the moon. It was propelled by the Saturn V booster von Braun had designed with expertise acquired from the V2 project. Never in the history of human endeavour has so inspiring a goal been achieved by such morally questionable means. + Science and the Swastika: Channel 4 tomorrow, 9pm. 27 September 1997: The legacy of Sputnik * © CopyrightTelegraph ***************************************************************** 7 Journalist Grigory Pasko faces second espionage trial RUSSIA: CPJ News Alert 2001 New York, March 21, 2001 ­ The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about the ongoing legal persecution of Russian military journalist Grigory Pasko, whose second trial on espionage charges begins tomorrow in a closed Vladivostok military court. Pasko worked for *Boyevaya Vakhta*, a newspaper owned by the Pacific Fleet. On November 20, 1997, he was arrested for providing two Japanese news outlets with information about nuclear waste dumping by the Russian Navy in the Sea of Japan. His articles were also published in *Boyevaya Vakhta* after being cleared by military censors. Pasko was charged with high treason and revealing state secrets. He spent 20 months in prison awaiting his first trial, also before a closed military tribunal in Vladivostok. On July 20, 1999, Pasko was acquitted of the original charges but sentenced to three years of prison on the lesser charge of abusing his authority as a naval officer. Pasko was then freed under an amnesty that the Russian Duma had announced earlier in 1999 for prisoners convicted of so-called less dangerous crimes. The presiding judge cited prosecutors from the Federal Security Service (FSB) for unspecified violations of due process during their investigation. On November 21, 2000, the military section of the Supreme Court annulled the July 1999 ruling, calling it "incomplete, biased and ill-founded," the *Moscow Times* reported. The court then announced its intention to send the case back to the Vladivostok military court to be heard again by different judges. If convicted, Pasko could face at least eight years in prison. "This trial is clearly a politically-motivated attempt to silence Pasko," said CPJ executive director Ann Cooper. "Rather than prosecuting individuals who pose a real threat to their country, Russian officials are squandering scarce national resources in pursuit of a journalist who did nothing more than his professional duty." ***************************************************************** 8 Hanford nuclear expansion sought Copyright © 2001 The Seattle Times Company Local News : Thursday, March 22, 2001 By Linda Ashton The Associated Press ** YAKIMA - Eastern Washington's two congressmen want a public power consortium to take a serious look at completing a mothballed nuclear plant at Hanford. Republican U.S. Reps. Richard "Doc" Hastings of Pasco and George Nethercutt of Spokane have written to Vic Parrish, chief executive officer of Energy Northwest, asking for a "thorough review" of the possibility of finishing Washington Nuclear Project 1. "The Western United States is facing an energy crisis, and it is important we fully explore every possible avenue of relief," Hastings said. "This nuclear generating facility is nearly 70 percent complete, and when running could produce 1,250 megawatts of power, enough to supply the city of Seattle." The executive board of Energy Northwest, a 13-utility public power group, has been discussing the subject the past two days. Construction on WNP-1 was halted in 1982, and the project was formally terminated in 1994. Energy Northwest, formerly known as the Washington Public Power Supply System, or WPPSS, operates the region's only nuclear-power plant, Columbia Generating Station, on leased land at the Hanford nuclear reservation. Five nuclear projects were planned for Washington in the 1970s, four of which, including WNP-1, were eventually scrapped in a huge energy-planning error that included a $2.2 billion municipal-bond default in 1983. As energy prices rose and drought became a reality in the hydropower-dependent Northwest, the Columbia Generating Station has gone from being the goat in the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) system to its reliable workhorse, producing more than $1 billion worth of electricity in less than a year. But the likelihood of building - or finishing - another nuclear-power plant in the Northwest is considered minuscule, in and out of the industry. "It's laughable," said Gerald Pollet, director of Heart of America Northwest, a Hanford watchdog group. "It just shows a lack of understanding of why there is an energy crisis in the West, and it ain't going to happen." He noted that the state Senate recently passed legislation that would exempt more power plants from the state's formal siting procedure but left intact the requirement that nuclear plants be put to a public vote and strict state scrutiny. "They know it would be political suicide to propose overturning the initiative," he said. It's not known how much it would cost to resume construction on WNP-1. A feasibility study would provide an estimate. An Energy Northwest spokesman said the vital systems remain intact at the mothballed plant, but the consortium is close to removing some major assemblies, including the generator at WNP-1, for a power upgrade at the Columbia Generating Station. If Energy Northwest's executive board approves budgeting for a study, the budget then heads to the BPA for review before the board would act on it. ***************************************************************** 9 Demolishing a piece of American history Government starting slow process of taking down K-25 building March 22, 2001 By Frank Munger, News-Sentinel senior writer OAK RIDGE -- Later this year workers will start dismantling the K-25 Building, one of the engineering marvels of the World War II Manhattan Project. The mile-long, U-shaped building housed the original uranium-enrichment operation at the government's Oak Ridge plant, which many people still refer to simply as K-25. Ultimately, the 4.5 million-square-foot building will be demolished, but that's not expected until 2008 because of the many cleanup tasks that must precede it. "The construction of the K-25 Building in 18 months earned those who built it a well-deserved place in history," said Mark Musolf, a spokesman for Bechtel Jacobs Co., the U.S. Department of Energy's environmental manager. "Tearing it down won't get us in the history books, but it's a huge undertaking. "You introduce uranium and all the other hazards, throw in less-than-perfect historical records and almost 60 years of wear and tear, and you could argue that taking it apart will be more difficult and more dangerous than putting it together." Bechtel Jacobs currently is seeking contract bids for asbestos removal and other activities in the first phase of decommissioning. Proposals for the first-phase cleanup contract are due April 16, and only pre-qualified companies will be allowed to bid. Interestingly, one of those companies is J.A. Jones Construction Co. -- the same firm that built K-25 in 1943-44. Another potential bidder is BNFL Inc., the American subsidiary of British Nuclear Fuels, which currently holds the cleanup contract for three other buildings at the DOE site. The contract also will include preliminary work on K-27 -- a smaller, companion building that was part of the early "gaseous diffusion" operation that enriched uranium for use in nuclear bombs and reactors. The enrichment process increased the level of U-235, the fissile isotope of uranium. The K-25 Building contained the top end of the Oak Ridge enrichment operation, and it was shut down in 1964 when the government stopped producing highly enriched uranium for the weapons program. Other plant facilities involved in lower enrichments for reactor fuel continued to operate until 1985. The three-level building still contains miles of contaminated pipeline and vast tons of equipment that must be removed. At the time it was constructed, K-25 was the largest building in the world under one roof -- occupying 44 acres. Workers often used bicycles to move from one part of the building to another. In recent years, the first floor was used to store nuclear wastes and other hazardous materials. Because of K-25's historic role in the nation's nuclear program, parts of the equipment will be preserved and likely incorporated into a future exhibit. One candidate for preservation is the so-called Roosevelt Cell, an operating unit that was painted and spruced up for a planned wartime visit by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. (The president's visit was canceled, but the cell has been shown to VIPs since then.) Although the K-25 facility began operations during the war, the enriched uranium used in the A-bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, came from the nearby Y-12 plant -- which used an electromagnetic technique to separate the uranium isotopes. K-25's gaseous diffusion process became the preferred enrichment option after the war, and plants later were constructed at Paducah, Ky., and Portsmouth, Ohio, using the Oak Ridge plant as a model. In addition to uranium, the K-25 Building and equipment are contaminated with other radioactive materials, including technetium. Polychlorinated biphenyls, chlorofluorocarbons and a wide variety of hazardous chemicals also are a concern. Bechtel Jacobs officials have declined to speculate on the overall cost of cleanup until additional environmental documents are completed, but the price tag likely will be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Frank Munger can be reached at 865-482-9213 or twig1@knoxnews.infi.net. ***************************************************************** 10 House, Labor feud over oversight home of sick worker plan The Paducah Sun Paducah, Kentucky DateInsert *Ed Whitfield and seven others say Labor is already set up to deal with this type of program; Labor Secretary Elaine Chao wants Justice to handle it.* By Joe Walker jwalker@paducahsun.com--*270.575.8650* U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield and seven House colleagues insist that a program to compensate sick nuclear workers be run by the Department of Labor, although new Labor Secretary Elaine Chao wants the Department of Justice to do the job. The lawmakers have written Office of Management and Budget Director Mitchell Daniels asking that the Labor Department administer the program, designed to pay as much as $150,000 to nuclear workers or their families for certain job-related diseases or death. Whitfield, R-Hopkinsville, co-sponsored legislation that created the plan and designated the Labor Department as overseer. Current and former workers at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant are covered. Chao is married to Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Louisville, who sponsored the bill in the Senate. McConnell released a statement Thursday without taking a stance on which agency should oversee the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program. A March 9 letter from the Labor Department expressed opposition to its own oversight of the worker-health program and asked Justice to run it. The letter of response stressed that the intent of Congress and former President Clinton was for the Labor Department to have control because of its long experience with similar programs and its suitable regional office network. "We want to underscore that this proposed change is at odds with congressional intent, would assign a massive set of responsibilities to agencies that lack the infrastructure to manage these claims, and will result in protracted delays in getting help to the veterans of the Cold War who are ill and expect the government to honor its commitments to help them in their time of need," the letter stated. Lawmakers wrote that the Labor Department was picked for oversight because of its expertise in handling prominent worker-health programs, notably the Longshore and Harbor Workers Act, Coal Miners' Black Lung Disease Act, and Federal Employment Compensation Act (FECA). "The Department of Labor is best suited to effectively administer this new federal compensation program, which is intended to be a non-adversarial claims program, modeled, in part, after FECA," the letter said. McConnell's statement said: "It is important that we not lose sight of the goal we all fought so hard for last fall — compensating (Department of Energy) workers who were made sick as a result of their work. Once the (Bush) administration reviews the requirements of the program and determines its appropriate home, there will be no member of Congress who will fight harder than I will to make sure the process is fair and responds to the needs of the workers it seeks to help. That should be everyone's definition of a successful program." ***************************************************************** 11 STRICKLAND ASKS THAT LABOR DEPARTMENT KEEP NUCLEAR WORKER COMPENSATION PROGRAM Congressman Ted Strickland *Serving Ohio's Sixth Congressional District* March 21, 2001 WASHINGTON – Congressman Ted Strickland today urged the Bush administration to keep the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) in the Department of Labor (DOL) where it would be administered most effectively. “These workers have waited long enough. Any further delay is intolerable and unacceptable,” said Strickland. “Senator Voinovich and I worked very hard to ensure that the compensation program would be efficient and effective. The DOL has the experience and the nationwide infrastructure necessary to quickly provide benefits to sick workers facing thousands of dollars in medical bills. The longer these workers have to wait, the less likely compensation will prove to be of any benefit at all.” The letter, which was also signed by eight other Members of Congress, was written in response to a request by Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao that the program be placed under the Department of Justice. In her request, Secretary Chao asked that an Executive Order be made by the President to move the EEOICPA out of DOL. “DOL was selected to run this program because (it) has administered a number of other federal worker compensation programs for as long as 90 years,” Strickland said in the letter. Those programs include the Coal Miners Black Lung Disease Act, and the Federal Employee Compensation Act (FECA). “We respectfully urge you to maintain DOL as the principal department implementing the EEOICPA.” The EEOICPA was signed into law last year, after the Department of Energy accepted responsibility for exposing millions of workers to radioactive materials during the Cold War. Many workers have been diagnosed with illnesses, such as specific types of cancer, that have been scientifically linked to their exposure. “These workers sacrificed their health in service to their country,” Strickland said. “Every year, thousands of former workers die from exposure related illnesses. This administrative change could result in many months of delay in getting necessary compensation to these workers. The administration should move forward quickly with its responsibilities.” ### ***************************************************************** NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: *****************************************************************