Nuclear Energy

Fukushima Report Downplays Ongoing Health Risks

September 3, 2015 Deirdre Fulton, www.commondreams.org Educate! Fukushima, Japan, Nuclear Energy

By Deirdre Fulton in Common Dreams - A new report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) "downplays" the continuing environmental and health effects of the Fukushima nuclear meltdown while supporting the Japanese government's agenda to normalize the ongoing disaster, Greenpeace Japan charged on Tuesday. The Vienna-based IAEA released its final report Monday on the 2011 triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. While the agency pointed to numerous failings, including unclear responsibilities among regulators, weaknesses in plant design and in disaster-preparedness, and a "widespread assumption" of safety, it was more circumspect with regard to health concerns. The Fukushima disaster released vast amounts of radiation, leading to fears that cases of thyroid cancer in children would soar as they did following the Chernobyl disaster of 1986.

YES To Iran Agreement: Stop The Threat . . . From The U.S.

August 25, 2015 World Beyond War, www.worldbeyondwar.org Resist! Imperialism, Iran, Nuclear Energy, Wars and Militarism

By World Beyond War - We must uphold the Iran nuclear agreement, but upholding it while pretending that Iran has a nuclear weapons program, or is threatening anyone, will not create a stable and lasting foundation for peace. Upholding an agreement with both proponents and opponents threatening war as an alternative is perilous as well as immoral, illegal, and — given the outcome of similar recent wars based on similar recent propaganda — insane. Please spread the above message on Facebook here, Twitter here, Instagram here,Tumblr here, and Google+ here. Please post your thoughts as comments below this page, where World Beyond War leaders will be engaging in discussion with you re the facts of the matter, the politics at work, and what can be done. Read our statement: World Beyond War Supports Iran Deal In the U.S. sign these petitions: one, two, and join these events. More events all over the world, and tools for creating your own are here.

70+ Nuclear Nonproliferation Experts Support Iran Deal

August 22, 2015 Arms Control Association, www.armscontrol.org Educate! Iran, Nuclear Energy

By Arms Control Association - More than 70 of the world's leading nuclear nonproliferation specialists issued a joint statement outlining why the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) “is a strong, long-term, and verifiable agreement that will be a net-plus for international nuclear nonproliferation efforts.” The group of experts write in their statement that the July 14 agreement “ … advances the security interests of the P5+1 nations (China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States), the European Union, their allies and partners in the Middle East, and the international community." The statement concludes: “… we believe the JCPOA meets key nonproliferation and security objectives and see no realistic prospect for a better nuclear agreement."

‘The Iranian Threat’: Who Poses Gravest Danger To World Peace?

August 22, 2015 Noam Chomsky, www.truthdig.com Educate! Iran, Nuclear Energy, Peace

By Noam Chomsky in TruthDig - Throughout the world there is great relief and optimism about the nuclear deal reached in Vienna between Iran and the P5+1 nations, the five veto-holding members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany. Most of the world apparently shares the assessment of the U.S. Arms Control Association that “the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action establishes a strong and effective formula for blocking all of the pathways by which Iran could acquire material for nuclear weapons for more than a generation and a verification system to promptly detect and deter possible efforts by Iran to covertly pursue nuclear weapons that will last indefinitely.” There are, however, striking exceptions to the general enthusiasm: the United States and its closest regional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Fukushima Operator’s Legal Woes To Fuel Nuclear Opposition

August 22, 2015 Kentaro Hamada, www.reuters.com Educate! Environment, Japan, Nuclear Energy

By Kentaro Hamada in Reuters - Four and a half years after the Fukushima disaster, and as Japan tentatively restarts nuclear power elsewhere, the legal challenges are mounting for the crippled plant's operator. They include a judge's forced disclosure of a 2008 internal document prepared for managers at Tokyo Electric Power Co warning of a need for precautions against an unprecedented nuclear catastrophe. Also, class actions against Tepco and the government now have more plaintiffs than any previous Japanese contamination suit and, overruling reluctant prosecutors, criminal charges have been levelled against former Tepco executives for failing to take measures to prevent the 2011 meltdowns and explosions. Radiation from the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986 forced 160,000 people from their homes, many never to return, and destroyed businesses, fisheries and agriculture.

Volcano Near Nuclear Plant Raising Concerns In Japan

August 22, 2015 Moira Lavelle, www.pri.org Educate! Environment, Japan, Nuclear Energy

By Moira Lavelle in PRI - Just under a week after the first nuclear power plant re-opened in Japan, critics are voicing conerns about safety. Oh, and there's a volcano. After the Fukushima nuclear disaster of 2011, all of Japan's nuclear reactors were shut down. To reopen, plants must pass new safety requirement. Plants must have an upgrade plan, an engineering work plan and receive pre-service inspections. These upgrade plans must include disaster preparedness — one plant in Hamaoka built a 70-foot-high, mile-long tsunami seawall in December in order to comply with the new regulations. Reactor Sendai 1 is the first one to receive full approval, and the plant opened last Tuesday. But there are now concerns that a nearby volcano will erupt and threaten the reactor.

‘Hey FERC: No New Permits!’ Protest

July 16, 2015 Donald Weightman, www.popularresistance.org Resist! FERC, FERCus, Fracking, Nuclear Energy, Oil and Gas

By Donald Weightman of Beyond Extreme energy. Washington, DC - As Beyond Extreme Energy (BXE) promised, it returned to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) this morning, renewing its May "FERCus" demonstrations, to stage three new interrelated demonstrations, demanding that there be "no new permits" for fracked (aka "natural") gas infrastructure. Two demonstrators got through heavy federal police security to enter the FERC Commissioners' meeting. When the meeting was underway, they stood up to address the Commissioners and demand that there be "no new permits". The protesters were escorted from the building by federal police.

Nuclear Freeze Prevented Apocalypse, Climate Movement Can Too

May 27, 2015 Duncan Meisel, www.wagingnonviolence.org Strategize! Climate Change, Nuclear Energy, Wars and Militarism

2014 was the hottest year in recorded history. 2015 is on track to be even hotter — and yet, before the most important international climate talks of the decade, even the most ambitious promises of action will fall short of what science demands. At the same time, the movement to stop climate change is also making history — last year the United States saw the biggest climate march in history, as well as the growth of a fossil fuel divestment movement (the fastest growing divestment campaign ever), and a steady drumbeat of local victories against the fossil fuel industry. In short, the climate movement, and humanity, is up against an existential wall: Find ways to organize for decisive action, or face the end of life as we know it. This is scary stuff, but if you think no movement has ever faced apocalyptic challenges before, and won, then it’s time you learned about the Nuclear Freeze campaign.

Did We Almost Lose New York?

May 18, 2015 Harvey Wasserman, www.ecowatch.com Educate! New York City (NYC), Nuclear Energy

For the third time in a decade, a major fire/explosion has ripped apart a transformer at the Indian Point reactor complex. News reports have taken great care to emphasize that the accident happened in the “non nuclear” segment of the plant. Ironically, the disaster spewed more than 15,000 gallons of oil into the Hudson River, infecting it with a toxic sheen that carried downstream for miles. Entergy, the nuke’s owner, denies there were PCBs in this transformer. It also denies numerous studies showing serious radioactive health impacts on people throughout the region. You can choose whether you want to believe the company in either case. But PCBs were definitely spread by the last IP transformer fire. They re-poisoned a precious liquid lifeline where activists have spent decades dealing with PCBs previously dumped in by General Electric, which designed the reactors at Fukushima.

Transform Now Plowshares Anti-Nuke Protesters Released

May 16, 2015 Frank Munger, www.knoxnews.com Resist! Criminal Justice, Environment, Law, Nuclear Energy

Attorneys for Sister Megan Rice, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed plan to seek the protesters’ immediate release from federal prison following last week’s appeals court ruling that overturned their conviction on sabotage charges for the July 28, 2012 break-in at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge. Bill Quigley, a law professor at Loyola University New Orleans and a member of the legal team, said attorneys hope to free the three pending the government’s possible appeal of the ruling by the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals or the resentencing hearing that’s tentatively scheduled for July 8 in Knoxville. Attorneys for the government and the defense participated in a teleconference Monday with U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar, who presided at the trial and sentencing two years ago, about possible dates for resentencing if the case proceeds in that direction.

Transformer Explosion At Nuclear Plant Causes Oil Spill

May 11, 2015 Steve Lieberman and Matt Spillane, www.lohud.com Educate! Environment, New York (NY), Nuclear Energy, Public Health

The owners of Indian Point are planning to clean up several thousand gallons of oil that potentially spilled into the Hudson River after a Saturday night transformer explosion and fire. The fire, which began at 5:50 p.m., sent smoke billowing into the air and oil overflowing the plant's moat, said Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. "The plant's fire suppression system automatically sprayed water on the transformer fire," Sheehan said Sunday. "Oil made its way into the drains and into the water. Several thousand gallons may have overflowed the transformer moat." The fire didn't cause the release of any radiation and didn't pose a threat to workers or the public, according to a statement by Entergy Corp, the owner of the nuclear power plant.

Kincardine Nuclear Waste Site Gets Federal Seal Of Approval

May 10, 2015 John Spears Business and Lauren Pelley, www.thestar.com Educate! Canada, Nuclear Energy, Nuclear Waste

Tabuns wasn’t surprised that the report was favourable towards the project. “I just haven’t found that the regulators have been sufficiently critical or skeptical in their thinking when dealing with these proposals,” he said. “With the Harper government, you can’t expect safety and the environment to be the first things on their minds.” Kincardine Mayor Anne Eadie said the project has always had the consistent support of her municipality. “What I’ve been saying all along is we need the experts to decide, and they have put forward their recommendation,” she said. “I want to stress that it was an objective assessment. The Joint Review Panel even opened up another session for public input last fall, just to make sure that everything was covered off … I feel it’s been quite an extensive investigation in many different areas, not just the geology of the site.”

Ploughshares Nuclear Weapons Protest Conviction Overturned

May 9, 2015 Transform Now Plowshares, www.transformnowplowshares.wordpress.com Resist! Civil Disobedeince, Law, Nuclear Energy

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals handed down a decision in favor of the Megan Rice, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed who were convicted in 2013 of sabotage for their July 28, 2012 Transform Now Plowshares protest of nuclear weapons production at the Y12 Nuclear Weapons Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. “The purpose of the action of Michael, Megan and Greg was to call attention to the ongoing production of thermonuclear weapons components at the bomb plant in Oak Ridge and, more specifically, to oppose plans to build a new, multi-billion dollar bomb plant—the Uranium Processing Facility—at Y12,” said Ralph Hutchison, coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance.

Nuclear History: Did Uranium In Water Kill Infants In St. Louis?

May 1, 2015 Ryan Schuessler, www.america.aljazeera.com Educate! Children, Nuclear Energy, St. Louis

On a Saturday afternoon in late February at the Immaculate Conception Parish of Dardenne, a fresh snow was falling on the graves of more than a dozen infant-sized tombstones. The church bells tolled, signaling the beginning of Mass as parishioners walked briskly through the cold. It was at this Roman Catholic parish where, some 15 years ago, the small congregation’s streak of infant deaths caught the attention of locals and media, both of whom drew connections to the area’s atomic history that left groundwater in the area contaminated with uranium. But the state of Missouri said nothing was out of the ordinary. A health study published by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in 2001 determined that St. Charles County did not have a statistically significant higher rate of infant deaths.

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