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Nuclear ice-breaker retires after 30 years
Arkitka, the flagship Russian nnuclear icebreaker, has been retired after 30 years. She will be used as a research tool to increase the lifespan of her sister ships. Arkitka, the flagship Russian nnuclear icebreaker, has been retired after 30 years. She will be used as a research tool to increase t... more
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Venezuela, France mull nuclear energy deal
PARIS, France (AP) -- The French and Venezuelan foreign ministers say they are looking at possibly collaborating on civilian nuclear energy projects in Venezuela.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro and France's Bernard Kouchner speak in Paris on Thursday.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner also says France would like to use Venezuela as a go-between with Iran in discussions about its disputed nuclear program. However, Kouchner says the Iranians have proved unreceptive to the approach.
Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro told reporters in Paris Thursday his country is interested in going nuclear, adding that humanity's future depends on it.
Kouchner said France "is ready to work with our Venezuelan friends" on the matter.
Venezuela is a major petroleum exporter, while France is home to nuclear giant Areva and is a leading exporters of nuclear technology. PARIS, France (AP) -- The French and Venezuelan foreign ministers say they are looking at possibly collaborating on civilian nuclear e... more -
Senate gives final OK to US-India nuclear deal
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate on Wednesday voted to overturn a three-decade ban on atomic trade with India, giving final congressional approval to a landmark U.S.-India nuclear cooperation accord and handing President Bush a rare foreign policy victory in his final months in office.
The accord, which the Senate passed 86-13, will allow American businesses to begin selling nuclear fuel, technology and reactors to India in exchange for safeguards and U.N. inspections at India's civilian, but not military, nuclear plants. The pact, which the House approved Saturday, marks a major shift in U.S. policy toward nuclear-armed India after decades of mutual wariness.
It now goes to Bush for his signature.
Bush hailed the Senate's vote, saying in a statement that the legislation approving the accord "will strengthen our global nuclear nonproliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner."
Congressional approval caps an aggressive three-year diplomatic and political push by the Bush administration, which portrays the pact as the cornerstone of new ties with a democratic Asian power that long has maintained what administration officials consider a responsible nuclear program. Administration officials also have championed the opportunities for U.S. companies to do business in India's multibillion-dollar nuclear market.
Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said the pact protects U.S. national security and nonproliferation efforts while building "a strategic partnership with a nation that shares our democratic values and will exert increasing influence on the world stage."
"With a well-educated middle class that is larger than the entire U.S. population, India can be an anchor of stability in Asia and an engine of global economic growth," Lugar said.
Opponents say lawmakers, eager to leave Washington to campaign for the November elections, rushed consideration of a complicated deal that they said could spark a nuclear arms race in Asia. The extra fuel the measure provides, they say, could boost India's nuclear bomb stockpile by freeing up its domestic fuel for weapons.
Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said the accord "will almost certainly expand the production of nuclear weapons by India" and help dismantle the architecture of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the global agreement that provides civilian nuclear trade in exchange for a pledge from nations not to pursue nuclear weapons. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate on Wednesday voted to overturn a three-decade ban on atomic trade with India, giving final congressional... more -
Cancer treatment under threat from transport restrictions
The UK nearly ran out of cancer treatment isotopes last week after just one delivery from Holland was delayed.
Because the medical isotopes used have a half-life of just 66 hours, speedy delivery is essential. However, the Channel Tunnel - affected by fire - seems to be the only route these goods can take into Britain. The UK nearly ran out of cancer treatment isotopes last week after just one delivery from Holland was delayed. ... more -
India and France in nuclear deal
India and France have signed a major co-operation pact which paves the way for the sale of French nuclear reactors to Delhi, officials say.
The nuclear accord was agreed in Paris between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Nicolas Sarkozy. The deal "will form the basis for enlarged bilateral co-operation in the fields of energy and research", the French presidency said in a statement. France is a leading world exporter of civilian nuclear technology.
The two leaders made no public comment after signing the deal. But a French presidential aide said that that "today we are at the intergovernmental stage, and after that the industrialists will begin their co-operation". Tuesday's signing comes after India and France agreed a Framework Agreement for Civil Nuclear Co-operation in January.
Reports say the deal includes providing India with France's latest model of the European Pressurised Reactor as well as other civilian nuclear material. Correspondents say that the deal is good news for India - which is desperately short of energy to fuel its booming economy - and places it firmly as a world nuclear power.
The deal in effect ends a ban which prevented countries from engaging in civilian nuclear trade with Delhi. The ban was imposed in 1974 when India used its civilian programme to produce and successfully test an atomic bomb. France is the world's second largest producer of nuclear energy after the United States.
(continues at link) India and France have signed a major co-operation pact which paves the way for the sale of French nuclear reactors to Delhi, officials... more -
Nuclear power to come with a designer label
New nuclear power stations in the UK could come with cool new looks, thanks to the efforts of top architects. Out with the 'concrete box' look - in with 'hi-energy techno'!
This site also has a competition to submit your own idea of what a nuclear power plant should look like. New nuclear power stations in the UK could come with cool new looks, thanks to the efforts of top architects. Out with the 'concr... more -
CFR: History of Iran’s Nuclear Program
The up-and-down history of Iran's flirtation with nuclear weapons, and where the program stands now.
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Portable Nuclear Power Shows Promise - NuScale Power for Nuclear Energy - Popular ...
New technology gets us closer to a solution for using NUCLEAR ENERGY safely!!!
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oil and energy news
LG Electronics will buy a 75 per cent stake in Conergy’s solar module plant in Germany, the South Korean company said yesterday, its first overseas foray into the lucrative sector. LG Electronics will buy a 75 per cent stake in Conergy’s solar module plant in Germany, the South Korean company said yesterday, its f... more
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The looming nuclear nightmare in the backwoods of North Carolina
Looking for weapons of mass destruction? Try the backwoods of North Carolina. The site is easy to find. You don't need infrared telemetry, informants, or a global positioning satellite. Just follow the railroad tracks deep into the heart of the triangle area to the gleaming cooling tower of the Shearon Harris nuclear plant, which rises like a concrete beacon out of the forest.
It may not look like much-a run-of-the-mill nuke, but inside the confines of the steel fence that rings the plant, resides one of the most lethal patches of ground in North America. Shearon Harris is not just a nuclear power-generating station, but a repository for highly radioactive spent fuel rods from two other nuclear plants owned by Progress Energy.
Those railroad tracks? They're for hauling nuclear waste. The spent fuel rods are carted by rail from the Brunswick and Robinson nuclear reactors to Shearon Harris, where they are stored in four densely packed pools, filled with circulating cold water to keep the waste from heating up. The pools are interconnected and enclosed within one building. That building is attached to the reactor itself. Together, they form the largest radioactive waste storage pools in the country.
All this makes Shearon Harris a very inviting target for would-be terrorists. In fact, the Department of Homeland Security has fingered Shearon Harris as one of the most vulnerable terrorist targets in the nation.
Potential atomic terrorists don't have to steal plutonium, take a crash course in physics, or concoct a bomb to manufacture a radiological nightmare scenario in the heart of the Carolinas. All they have to do is penetrate the security fence of a lightly guarded commercial reactor and find a way to ignite the pools of high-level radioactive waste. The easiest method is to disrupt the circulation of the water system that keeps the pools cool.
The resulting fire would be virtually unquenchable. Moreover, because the water system that feeds the waste pools is also connected to the Shearon Harris reactor, a pool fire could also trigger a nuclear meltdown. And so it goes.
An uncontrolled pool fire and meltdown at Shearon Harris would put more than two million residents of this rapidly growing section of North Carolina in extreme peril. A recent study by the Brookhaven Labs, not known to overstate nuclear risks, estimates that a pool fire could cause 140,000 cancers, contaminate thousands of square miles of land, and cause over $500 billion in off-site property damage. Looking for weapons of mass destruction? Try the backwoods of North Carolina. The site is easy to find. You don't need infrared t... more -
France: uranium leaked in several nuclear incidents
Several incidents at nuclear sites have shook France in recent days. In Romans-sur-Isère, officials discovered a burst underground pipe which had been broken for years and did not meet safety standards. A tiny amount of lightly enriched uranium leaked but not beyond the plant. This week, about 100 staff at Tricastin's nuclear reactor number four were contaminated by radioactive particles that escaped from a pipe. The contamination was described as "slight".
Last month an accident at a nuclear treatment centre, which is run by a company that hopes to design many of the new British nuclear reactors, saw liquid containing untreated uranium overflow from a faulty tank. Around 75kg of uranium seeped into the ground and nearby rivers.
More than 80% of France's electricity is generated by the country's 58 nuclear reactors - the world's highest ratio. But the leak has shaken French trust in nuclear safety and embarrassed President Sarkozy as he crusades for a French-led world renaissance in atomic power. Several incidents at nuclear sites have shook France in recent days. In Romans-sur-Isère, officials discovered a burst underground pi... more -
Don't Fall For Nuclear Power
While the presidential hopefuls trade barbs and accuse each other of flip- flopping, they agree with President Bush on their enthusiastic support for nuclear power.
Sen. John McCain has called for 100 new nuclear power plants. Sen. Barack Obama, in a July 2007 Democratic debate, answered a pro-nuclear power audience member, "I actually think that we should explore nuclear power as part of the energy mix."
Among Obama's top contributors are executives of Exelon Corp., a leading nuclear power operator in the nation. Just last week, Exelon released a new plan called "Exelon 2020: A Low-Carbon Roadmap." The nuclear power industry sees global warming as a golden opportunity to sell its insanely expensive and dangerous power plants.
But nuclear power is not a solution to climate change — rather, it causes problems. Amory Lovins is the co-founder and chief scientist of Rocky Mountain Institute in Colorado. He makes simple, powerful points against nuclear: "The nuclear revival that we often hear about is not actually happening. It is a very carefully fabricated illusion ... there are no buyers. Wall Street is not putting a penny of private capital into the industry, despite 100-plus percent subsidies." He adds: "Basically, we can have as many nuclear plants as Congress can force the taxpayers to pay for. But you won't get any in a market economy."
snip
The presidential hopefuls are wrong on nuclear power. Wind, solar and microgeneration (generating electricity and heat at the same time, in smaller plants), on the other hand, are taking off globally, gaining billions of dollars in private investments. Lovins summarizes: "One of the big reasons we have an oil problem and a climate problem today is we spent our money on the wrong stuff. If we had spent it on efficiency and renewables, those problems would've gone away, and we would've made trillions of dollars' profit on the deal because it's so much cheaper to save energy than to supply it." The answer is blowing in the wind. While the presidential hopefuls trade barbs and accuse each other of flip- flopping, they agree with President Bush on their enthusias... more -
Iran given two-week deadline to end nuclear impasse
Iran was given a fortnight to agree to freeze its uranium enrichment programme yesterday or face further international isolation.
After a day of inconclusive talks in Geneva, a six-nation negotiating team warned the Iranian delegation that it had run out of patience and demanded a 'yes or no' answer to a proposal it put forward five weeks ago.
Under that offer, sponsored jointly by the US, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China, Iran would not expand its uranium enrichment programme, while the international community refrained from imposing further sanctions. This phase would last six weeks, possibly paving the way for suspension of enrichment and more comprehensive talks.
The failure to reach agreement appeared likely to trigger new European and UN sanctions and to raise tensions in the Gulf. An Iranian rejection would also represent a rebuff to conciliatory moves from Washington, including the dispatch of a senior diplomat to Geneva to attend high-level talks with the Iranians for the first time in nearly three decades. The diplomat, William Burns, left Geneva without making any public comments.
Javier Solana, the European Union foreign policy chief leading the international negotiating team, said the talks were 'constructive', but admitted: 'We didn't get the answer we were hoping for. I hope very much we will get an answer to our question presented five weeks ago and we hope we will get it in two weeks.'
Solana would not specify what the consequences would be if there was no positive response from Iran in the next fortnight, but Western officials at the talks said there was consensus among the six nations, including Russia and China, that it would be interpreted as a rejection and trigger a new round of UN Security Council sanctions.
'They have been told this is your last meeting. We are not doing this again. Go back to Tehran and you have a week or two at most to give a yes or no,' one official said.
Another Western source involved in the talks said: 'There was some impatience voiced by a number of people at the meeting that we want a clear answer.'
Asked at a press conference, the chief nuclear negotiator for Iran and head of its delegation, Saeed Jalili, ducked a direct opinion on the freeze proposal. 'We have been talking about that for many hours,' Jalili said. 'What is more important is for us to have a constructive approach and bring that approach to the table, so that we can later deal with our shared worries and concerns.'
A negotiating document presented at the meeting by Jalili and seen by The Observer also talked vaguely about future co-operation but did not directly mention Iran's nuclear activities. In the next few days the European Union is due to approve new financial sanctions aimed at Tehran's banking system. Those are likely to be followed by a fresh round of Security Council talks in September on stepping up international sanctions, although both Russia and China oppose radical measures.
The US and Britain have also raised the possibility of pursuing an embargo of Iran's oil industry, including a block on imports of petrol and diesel. And the breakdown of talks is likely to strengthen the urgings of hawks in Israel for pre-emptive military action to halt Iran's nuclear programme.
Western officials in Geneva said that they were encouraged that all six nations represented in the Solana delegation, including Russia and China, presented a common front and made repeated efforts to urge Jalili to focus on the 'freeze for freeze' proposal.
The meeting took place in Geneva's 16th-century town hall, in the same room that the Red Cross was founded and the first Geneva convention on the treatment of war wounded was signed in 1864. Iran was given a fortnight to agree to freeze its uranium enrichment programme yesterday or face further international isolation. ... more -
US 'to open Iran base in weeks'
The US has refused to deny reports that it will establish a US diplomatic presence in Iran in the next month.
The UK's Guardian newspaper reports the US plans to open an interests section in Tehran, its first diplomatic presence in the country for 30 years.
The state department said its policy towards Iran was unchanged, but that it wanted to reach out to Iranians.
It comes as the US announced that a top diplomat would attend talks in Geneva with the Iranians on Saturday.
The talks will be the first time in 30 years that such a high-ranking US diplomat - the third-most senior in the US - has met Iranian officials.
Change of tone
US officials said recently that the idea of a diplomatic presence in Iran was being discussed, but that it was not being actively worked on.
The unsourced Guardian report said that the interests section - a step towards setting up an embassy - would be similar to the one in Cuba.
When asked for a comment, the state department sent out a note with past comments made by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
She said that while US policy towards Iran was known and unchanged, the Iranian people deserved better.
Ms Rice added that the US was determined to find ways to reach out to the Iranian people and wanted more Iranians to visit the US.
While Washington still insists Iran must suspend uranium enrichment - a process the West fears could be used to make nuclear weapons - there seems to be a significant change in US tone, says the BBC's Kim Ghattas in Washington.
Tehran has an interests section in Washington, where it processes visa applications and which gives it a presence on the ground in the US.
But the US has not had a diplomatic presence in Iran since the hostage crisis in 1979, and Iranians have to go to Dubai to get US visas. The US has refused to deny reports that it will establish a US diplomatic presence in Iran in the next month. ... more -
Coal ash is more radioactive than nuclear waste!
"Over the past few decades a series of studies has called stereotypes [about coal and nuclear energy] into question. Among the surprising conclusions: the waste produced by coal plants is actually more radioactive than that generated by their nuclear counterparts. In fact, fly ash—a by-product from burning coal for power—contains up to 100 times more radiation than nuclear waste...
...Developing countries like India and China continue to unveil new coal-fired plants—at the rate of one every seven to 10 days in the latter nation. And the U.S. still draws around half of its electricity from coal. But coal plants have an additional strike against them: they emit harmful greenhouse gases...
With the world now focused on addressing climate change, nuclear power is gaining favor in some circles. China aims to quadruple nuclear capacity to 40,000 megawatts by 2020, and the U.S. may build as many as 30 new reactors in the next several decades. But, although the risk of a nuclear core meltdown is very low, the impact of such an event creates a stigma around the noncarbon power source.
The question boils down to the accumulating impacts of daily incremental pollution from burning coal or the small risk but catastrophic consequences of even one nuclear meltdown. "I suspect we'll hear more about this rivalry," Finkelman says. "More coal will be mined in the future. And those ignorant of the issues, or those who have a vested interest in other forms of energy, may be tempted to raise these issues again."
ARE WE F*CKED OR WHAT?!?
Who's side are you on in the Coal VS Nuclear Rivalry? Shall I print up TEAM COAL and TEAM NUCLEAR shirts? "Over the past few decades a series of studies has called stereotypes [about coal and nuclear energy] into question. Among the su... more -
Inexorable Comeback of Nuclear Energy
Oil prices are sky high. Greenhouse gases are driving up temperatures around the world. And many are now looking to nuclear power as the possible solution. Dozens of new reactors are under construction, but in Germany the subject remains taboo -- for now.
Read more... Oil prices are sky high. Greenhouse gases are driving up temperatures around the world. And many are now looking to nuclear power as t... more -
Iran test-fires missiles for second day
Iran today test-fired missiles in the Gulf for a second consecutive day, Iranian state media reported.
The tests are likely to infuriate Israel and the US, who called on Iran to refrain from further tests after yesterday's war games.
"Deep in the Persian Gulf waters, the launch of different types of ground-to-sea, surface-to-surface, sea-to-air and the powerful launch of the Hout missile successfully took place," state radio said without giving further details of the missiles.
An Iranian satellite channel, Press TV, said Hout was a torpedo, according to Reuters.
Reports from Tehran say yesterday's tests included that of a new long-range missile that could easily reach Israel. Iran made clear that the operation was designed to show its capability to deliver a "crushing response" if attacked by the US or Israel.
Israel is today expected to showcase an advanced spy plane. The plane was first unveiled a year ago but Israel's Army Radio reported that it was to be shown now in response to Iran's missile tests.
State-run Israel Aerospace Industries planned an in-house exhibit of its Eitam airplane, which is equipped with sophisticated intelligence-gathering systems.
Israel considers Iran to be its greatest threat. An exercise by the Israeli military last month was considered to be a rehearsal for a potential strike against Iran's nuclear programme, which Tehran insists is peaceful and purely designed for power generation.
The US confirmed yesterday that it would continue to pursue a diplomatic solution to persuade Iran to abandon its nuclear programme - which it fears is geared towards the production of weapons – but would not rule out a military option. Iran today test-fired missiles in the Gulf for a second consecutive day, Iranian state media reported. ... more -
Uranium spills into two French rivers
French officials barred residents in three towns from using two rivers in southern France after waste containing uranium leaked into the waterways.
The accident happened at the Tricastin nuclear site at Bollene, about 25 miles from Avignon, the BBC reported. Residents along the Gaffiere and Lauzon rivers were banned from fishing, using water from wells, swimming in the rivers or using river water for crops.
The unenriched uranium was toxic but the French nuclear safety agency said the risk to humans was slight.
Uranium concentrations in the Gaffiere River initially were about 1,000 times higher than normal but were falling, spokeswoman Evangelia Petit said.
About 7,925 gallons of solution containing the uranium spilled from an overflowing reservoir at the site into the ground and the rivers, the British broadcaster said.
Abandon Nuclear Power, an anti-nuclear group, said it thought authorities were downplaying the danger posed by the waste.
It is impossible that such a spill, containing uranium, does not have important consequences for the environment and for health, the group said in a statement.
About 80 percent of France's electricity is from nuclear power. French officials barred residents in three towns from using two rivers in southern France after waste containing uranium leaked into t... more -
India's Communists to Decide Strategy on Nuclear Deal Tomorrow
Excerpt:
India's Communist parties will tomorrow decide their strategy on support to the government over the country's nuclear agreement with the U.S.
India will soon approach the International Atomic Energy Agency for a safeguards agreement for the deal, the Press Trust of India reported today, citing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The process will move very fast, Singh told reporters.
The Communist parties, which oppose the deal, had set today as the deadline for a clarification from the ruling coalition on approaching the global nuclear regulator as part of steps to complete the accord.
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I'd love to see Bush's face when he learns or learnt this - he is the one who made a generous offer to India to help it develop its nuclear program. India is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, and neither is Israel. Iran is a signatory and has not broken that treaty. The USA is also a signatory, and has broken it several times.
See also http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4764826.stm with regard to Bush's nuclear deal with India in 2006. Excerpt: ... more -
Forty years of the NPT
The cornerstone of international peace, the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty, is 40 years old today. On the fist day, some 61 countries signed it and now, all but four nations in the world follow its rules which describe a framework to limit nuclear weapons and allow the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The cornerstone of international peace, the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty, is 40 years old today. On the fist day, some 61 countrie... more
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Nuclear Energy
