------- Index of Articles

NUCLEAR
*US, EU Clear Boeing Buy of Hughes Units
*Germany to Restart International Nuclear Shipments
*A year later, Japan remembers worst nuke accident
*Perry Leaves Job As Korea Adviser
*U.S., North Korea Resume Talks
*Russia To Get Help With Submarine
*PSR Condemns Rejection of Nuclear Workers Compensation
*Workers Comp a Political Issue
*Lawmakers Bar Payments for Workers on Weapons
*New York Times Concedes Lapses In Reporting of Scientist's Case
*Excerpts From Testimony at Congressional Hearing on Wen Ho Lee Case
*Reno and Freeh Still Call Acts of Scientist a Serious Crime
*Wen Ho Lee, no martyr
*Gore and Foreign Policy: Key Role, Mixed Record
*NADER CHARGES GORE WITH BREAKING INCINERATOR PROMISE
*Republicans Attack Russian Policy
*U.S. Is Criticized Over Maintaining Nuclear Weapons; Report Cites Risk
*House Passes Stopgap Measure To Keep Government Running
*Senators praise Albright's work

MILITARY
*US Plans $1.3B Arms Sale to Taiwan
*The Arms Threat
*Return of a Vanished Virus
*Colombia Air Force Denies Using U.S. Bomb in 1998 Civilian Deaths
*MANHATTAN: COLOMBIAN EXTRADITED
*MEXICO: DRUG ARREST
*Nations Reach Deal on Iraq Compensation Funds
*IRAQ: CRUMBLING EMBARGO
*After Pact on Rebuilt Railway, Two Koreas Plan More Talks
*EAST TIMOR: U.N. SKIRMISH
*Joint Chiefs Chairman to Warn of Defense Dilemma
*Albright frustrated by allies
*U.N. aide fears West Africa blowup
*Military in Struggle for Resources but Ready to Fight, Officials Say
*Commanders Ask Congress for Increase in Spending
*Shelton warns military is underprepared to fight two wars
*Pentagon kills proposal to let Navy buy foreign-built ships
*Defense memo ordered staff to rebut Schwarzkopf
*Albright: Revoking Indyk's clearance necessary

OTHER
*A Plague of Asian Eels Highlights The Damage From Foreign Species
*House approves stopgap spending bill
*Biologists are battling a deadly disease on Santa Catalina Island
*Aventis Is Suspending Seed Sales Of Genetically Engineered Corn
*Feed me the Taco Bell shells
*Protesters Paralyze Prague
*Finance Summit Starts With Protests, Calls to Fight Poverty, Globalization
*Companies Act to Keep Bioengineered Corn Out of Food
*Contaminated Corn
*Reno, Freeh Criticized on Lee Case
*Justice Dept. Takes Issue With Judge's Rebuke
*Prosecutors in Russia Charge U.S. Businessman With Espionage
*Peru's Spy Chief in Exile
*Prosecutors send spy case to court
*FBI e-mail surveillance plan gets review
*Chile to press U.S. on CIA informant
*Libyan Double Agent Testifies in Lockerbie Bomb Trial
*MANHATTAN: BAIL DENIED IN BOMB CASE

ACTIVISTS
*Anti-Capitalist Protests Diminish in Prague
*Protests Distract Global Finance Meeting
*IMF meeting closes one day early
*TURKEY: ARMENIA PROTEST
*Madonna, Travis, R.E.M. Repeat The 'Mantra' Edited
*A critic of biological warfare training



-------- NUCLEAR (by country)

-------- business

US, EU Clear Boeing Buy of Hughes Units

By REUTERS
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-transport-hu.html

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Regulators on both sides of the Atlantic on Wednesday gave Boeing Co. (BA.N) the green light to buy the satellite and components businesses of Hughes Electronics Corp. (GMH.N) for $3.75 billion.

The deal, announced in January, nets Boeing the world's leading geostationary satellite maker and a key component for its ambitious plans to expand into space, but prompted minor restrictions to preserve competition in the industry.

A consent decree announced by the Federal Trade Commission prohibits Boeing's space unit from viewing sensitive data obtained when launching competitors' satellites, among other provisions. The decree still requires approval in court.

``This consent agreement will ensure that competition in the highly specialized markets for satellites and launch vehicles will be maintained,'' Richard Parker, director of the FTC Bureau of Competition, said in a statement.

Boeing President Harry Stonecipher said he was happy the antitrust reviews were finished and that the Seattle aerospace giant could easily live with the conditions.

``We've always had to protect our customers' data in the past and if we weren't required to do it, we would have done it, anyway,'' Stonecipher told Reuters by telephone.

With its Delta rockets and Sea Launch ocean-based platform, Boeing launches satellites built by Hughes and its rivals, including Loral Space Communications Ltd. (LOR.N), Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT.N), Alcatel Space Industries (CGEP.PA) and Astrium, owned by DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (DCXGn.DE), Aerospatiale Matra (AERO.PA) and BAE Systems Plc (BA.L).

Lockheed, which also competes with Boeing in the launch vehicle market, had objected to the deal, but declined to comment on the regulators' decision.

``Because Lockheed Martin is a customer and a partner with Boeing, I hope they are satisfied with the consent decree,'' Stonecipher said.

In Brussels, the European Commission said it was satisfied with the pledges to preserve competition Boeing and Hughes had made during a four-month probe.

``The investigation dismissed earlier doubts that the operation could significantly strengthen Hughes's position in commercial geostationary communication satellites as well as the concern that the parties might induce Hughes's satellite customers to procure launch services from Boeing,'' the Commission said in a statement.

Hughes, a subsidiary of General Motors Corp. (GM.N), holds a commanding share of around 35 to 40 percent of the market for commercial geostationary satellites, the Commission said.

``It appears that (Hughes satellite unit) will probably not be significantly strengthened as a result of the transaction,'' the Commission concluded.

Boeing executives have pledged to double the revenues from its space and communications unit in five years, up from $6.8 billion in 1998.

As in its core commercial jet business, which produced two-thirds of its $58 billion in sales last year, and its $12.2 billion military aircraft and missile unit, Boeing expects major growth in services in its space unit.

The Hughes purchase will boost Boeing's space revenues by about 30 percent, but satellite makers as a whole are only growing at about 3 percent a year, after some spectacular failures by satellite telephone providers slashed demand for new orbiters.

Instead Boeing sees big growth opportunities in satellite based air traffic management and in-flight Internet service and has bought several small businesses to tap the expected torrent of new economy revenues.

``Growth in satellites is not why we acquired Hughes at all. We acquired it for its intellectual capital, for its people and their bright ideas,'' Stonecipher said. ``We think a lot of our future can really emanate from space.''

-------- germany

Germany to Restart International Nuclear Shipments

September 27, 2000 (ENS)
http://ens-news.com/ens/sep2000/2000L-09-27-01.html

BERLIN, Germany, Germany is to permit international shipments of spent nuclear fuel for the first time in more than two years, the country's radiation protection authority Bundesamt fur Strahlenschutz (BfS) has announced.

Environmental groups immediately promised massive protests. One demonstration has already taken place on Saturday at the Gorleben interim storage facility in Lower Saxony.

Under the BfS permit, eight spent fuel shipments are to be allowed this year, traveling from the power stations Stade, Biblis and Philippsburg to the La Hague reprocessing plant in France.

This is significantly fewer shipments than the nuclear industry's requested. It had sought permission for 54 shipments to the end of 2001.

According to the BfS, the limited permission was given after assurances were received that radiation limit values would be respected through the entire transport cycle.

April 1994, Ahauser station. The red railcars are specialized nuclear transport Castor containers carrying spent fuel. (Photo courtesy No Castor Campaign)

Operators will be subject to new transport documentation rules, plus stricter requirements to report any radioactive contamination discovered.

The radiation agency also limited the permits because of "missing insurance proofs for the year 2001, which are a permission prerequisite." A further restriction was the availability of transportation containers to carry the spent fuel to the atomic power plants.

The German Environment Ministry stressed that a further condition was that all plutonium deriving from reprocessing should be recycled to prevent any plutonium surplus arising. This was an element of the nuclear power phaseout agreement reached in June.

All rail movements of spent nuclear fuel were banned by Germany in 1998 after discovery of widespread surface contamination.

France and Switzerland initially took similar action, but have both since allowed transports to restart.

The German government permitted domestic fuel transports to restart earlier this year.

Poster advertising Saturday's anti-nuclear demonstration at Gorleben (Photo courtesy BI)

On Saturday, a group of about 2,000 anti-nuclear demonstrators formed a large human X in a field near the temporary nuclear waste storage facility to symbolize their resistance to nuclear power generation and the inevitable radioactive waste it generates.

A prominent speaker at the demonstration was Jakob von Uexkuell, founder of the alternative Nobel prize.

Organized by the anti-nuclear group Bürgerinitiative Umweltschutz (BI) Lüchow-Dannenberg, the demonstrators came from across Germany and included representatives of large nature protection federations and doctors from International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War.

BI said the Germany's ruling Red-Green coalition of the Social Democrats and Greens helps the nuclear power plant operators to "hush up" the problems posed by nuclear waste.

-------- japan

A year later, Japan remembers worst nuke accident

JAPAN: September 27, 2000
Story by Jason Szep
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8346

TOKYO - A year ago this week, three workers at a uranium processing plant inadvertently triggered Japan's worst-ever nuclear accident, leaving a legacy of debate over whether the country depends too heavily on nuclear power.

And a senior industry official said yesterday the task of rebuilding consumer confidence had a way to go.

"Rebuilding the damage to confidence in Japan's nuclear energy safety caused by the accident is still under way," Shojiro Matsuura, chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC), told reporters yesterday.

The accident at Tokaimura - the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986 - killed two workers, seriously injured a third and exposed at least 439 people in the area to radiation.

A year later, debate still flares over who is to blame and whether the industry is doing enough to become safe, while the rural town of Tokaimura has been shaken by reports of lingering illnesses, its busy farming industry seen as tainted.

The nuclear programme has been modestly scaled back with Japan's big electric power companies revising down the number of planned new nuclear reactors to 13 over the next 11 years, against a previous target of 16 to 20.

The government strengthened the hand of dozens of committees on nuclear safety since the accident, giving more power to the Nuclear Safety Commission and revising legislation to move faster in times of nuclear crises, Matsuura said.

Tokaimura - the town where Japan's nuclear industry began in 1957 - has elected an anti-nuclear activist to the local assembly, and a country that depends on nuclear power for a third of its electricity is asking a year later if it's all now safe.

FEW OPTIONS

With the recent surge in oil prices feeding talk of a possible global energy crisis, resource-poor Japan has few options except nuclear energy to power its hungry industries.

Matsuura described nuclear power as "indispensable" given Japan's lack of natural resources, few viable new energy sources and the price volatility and environmental issues associated with fossil fuels such as oil.

"If solar energy, or wind power or hydro power can give sufficient energy that the Japanese people need, then we do not need nuclear energy, but obviously we cannot hope for that."

After the accident, Tokyo strengthened the independence of the NSC, a body that advises the prime minister. It is now armed with 20 committees with 200 members giving advice ranging from reactor safety to waste and moving radioactive material.

Still, environmentalists and global industry watchdogs question whether Japan remains at risk of another accident.

Gaia Hoerner, a spokesman for the Tokyo-based Citizens' Nuclear Information Center, doubts the government has gone far enough to remove the risk of another Tokaimura-style incident.

RISKS

"The risks of accidents like Tokaimura happening have not been reduced," said Hoerner. "The government has concentrated on improving disaster countermeasures. There are a number of factors which pose great threats."

On the morning of September 30, 1999, three workers at the reprocessing plant 140 km (90 miles) northeast of Tokyo set off an uncontrolled atomic reaction that took 20 hours to bring under control after they used buckets to pour nearly eight times the proper amount of a uranium solution.

Hoerner said that since the accident the government have focused on new measures to act faster after crises rather than on the factors which could spark accidents such as old reactors, natural disasters and failure to enforce safety procedures.

Concern outside Japan is equally strong.

"The Japanese government has made only cosmetic changes to its nuclear regulatory system," Edwin Lyman, scientific director at the Washington-based Nuclear Control Institute, an industry watchdog, told Reuters.

Tokaimura residents handed the government a petition last week with 22,500 signatures seeking more compensation and support beyond the 12.66 billion yen ($118 million) that plant operator JCO agreed to pay to settle around 7,000 cases from the accident.

-------- korea

Perry Leaves Job As Korea Adviser

International Herald Tribune
Reuters
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
http://www.iht.com/IHT/TODAY/WED/IN/perry.2.html

WASHINGTON - Former Defense Secretary William Perry, architect of a new approach on North Korea, is giving up his duties as coordinator of policy toward that nation, the State Department has announced.

Mr. Perry will be succeeded by Wendy Sherman, who will retain her position as a counselor in the State Department, Richard Boucher, the department spokesman, said Monday.

In a policy review commissioned by President Bill Clinton and released in October 1999, Mr. Perry recommended that the United States and its Asian allies try to co-exist with the leaders of North Korea rather than undermine them or promote internal reform.

Mr. Perry spent 10 months preparing the review and made one trip to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, in the highest-level visit ever by a U.S. official. A State Department official said Mr. Perry's departure reflected the fact that he felt he had completed his task when he completed the review last year.

The Clinton administration has adopted Mr. Perry's approach toward North Korea, with which it now has several tracks of talks, although the two nations still lack formal diplomatic relations. The talks cover North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and the future of the Korean Peninsula.

---

U.S., North Korea Resume Talks

Associated Press
September 27, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-US-North-Korea.html

NEW YORK (AP) -- The United States and North Korea opened a new round of talks Wednesday aimed at ending a stalemate over the communist state's development and export of missiles.

The talks, which are expected to last a few days, also will deal with U.S. allegations that North Korea sponsors terrorism and with the terms of an accord that froze North Korea's nuclear weapons program in exchange for two civilian reactors and supplies of energy, State Department officials said.

The U.S. special envoy for North Korea, Charles Kartman, said after nearly nine hours of talks Wednesday evening that he and Vice Foreign Minister Kim Gye Gwan, who heads the North Korean delegation, would return to the U.S. mission to the United Nations on Thursday morning for another session.

He said there was a ``good atmosphere'' in the discussions and that during a working lunch at a nearby restaurant, the two sides talked about the Olympics.

``We congratulated each other on the performance of our teams,'' he said.

North Korea is believed to be capable of targeting virtually all of Japan as well as other Asian countries with its missiles. A potential long-range missile threat has been cited by the Clinton administration as one reason for considering a U.S. missile defense program -- a decision President Bill Clinton has deferred to his successor.

The talks come amid slowly improving U.S.-North Korean relations following attempts at reconciliation between North and South Korea. South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and the North's reclusive leader, Kim Jong Il, held a summit meeting in June and there are plans for another one.

The previous round of missile talks ended in July with North Korea insisting its program was a sovereign exercise in self-defense, but also with indications from cash-strapped Pyongyang that it might curb the program in exchange for payments of about $1 billion a year.

The United States maintains that North Korea shouldn't be compensated for stopping a program it shouldn't be developing in the first place.

In a related development Wednesday, the U.S.-led U.N. Command has given South Korea the right to negotiate with North Korea to reconnect a cross-border rail line, officials said.

The command controls all activities within the southern half of the 2 1/2-mile-wide Demilitarized Zone, which has separated the capitalist South from the communist North since the 1950-53 Korean War. It remains the most heavily fortified border in the world.

Last week, South Korea broke ground for reconnecting a rail line across the DMZ as part of agreements reached during the first summit between the two Koreas in June.

That project will entail the removal of up to 100,000 mines planted in the area of the rail corridor -- and coordination between the two Korean armies operating in the potentially volatile DMZ.

-------- russia

Russia To Get Help With Submarine

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 27, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Russia-Nuclear-Submarine.html

MOSCOW (AP) -- Russia will hire a Norwegian company to help retrieve the remains of 118 sailors from the sunken nuclear submarine Kursk, a top government official said Wednesday.

Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov, who is overseeing the salvage mission, told lawmakers that a contract would be initialed Saturday with a Norwegian company. He did not name the company.

Klebanov said the retrieval work would begin before Oct. 10, and could be finished next month. But he cautioned that the operation would be complex ``because sections one through five (of the submarine) are just heaps of metal,'' the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.

While Klebanov wouldn't name the company that will help Russia do the work, he said it was not Norway's Stolt Offshore. A deal with Stolt had been expected, but reportedly fell through over the amount of the fee.

According to the newspaper Kommersant, Stolt Offshore wanted $12 million but Russia offered $9 million.

Russian divers don't have the equipment or the training to conduct the operation alone.

The Kursk was shattered by an explosion and sank in the Barents Sea during exercises Aug. 12. The cause of the accident has not been determined.

The Russian ship Mstislav Keldysh arrived at the scene of the disaster on Tuesday, carrying Mir deep water capsules to examine the submarine. The capsules have been used previously to inspect the Titanic.

-------- u.s. nuc facilities

PSR Condemns Rejection of Nuclear Workers Compensation

US Newswire
27 Sep 10:28
http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/Current_Releases/0927-107.html

Physicians Condemn Republican House Leadership Rejection of Nuclear Workers Compensation To: National Desk Contact: Martin Butcher of Physicians for Social Responsibility, 202-898-0150 ext. 220

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) condemns the Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives for rejecting a package to aid workers made ill during their employment in the nuclear weapons complex. The plan, which was part of the Fiscal Year 2001 Defense Authorization Bill, would have provided compensation and medical care for workers with illnesses from exposure to radiation, beryllium and silica.

The package was included in the Senate version of the Defense Authorization Bill, but not by the House of Representatives. Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and others in the House Republican leadership have refused to allow the plan to go forward despite active lobbying by Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate, as well as the Department of Energy, unions and non-governmental organizations including PSR. House leaders opposed the inclusion of mandatory funding in the bill calling for yet more study of the worker's situation instead of compensation.

"The block on compensation for these workers is a complete disgrace," said Martin Butcher, PSR's Director of Security Programs. "They have been irradiated and poisoned in the course of producing nuclear weapons, and the nation now owes them at least the minimum of healthcare and financial support proposed in this plan. Speaker Hastert should be ashamed of himself."

PSR has long campaigned for DOE to remedy the situation of nuclear weapons workers, publishing an in-depth report on the Department's neglect in 1992. Only in April 2000 did the DOE admit its responsibility for the illnesses of the workers who built the 70,000 nuclear weapons the US has deployed. Balking at paying compensation estimated in total at as little as $1.7 billion to $3 billion over ten years, the House has allowed precisely nothing for this program from a defense budget totaling over $310 billion in FY2001, of which $35 billion will go to nuclear forces. The House Republican leadership has even turned a deaf ear to members of its own party in blocking the compensation deal. Representatives Lamar Smith (R-TX), Ed Whitfield (R-KY), and Senators Jim Bunning (R-KY), Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Fred Thompson (R-TN) have all worked hard in support of compensation.

"Congress must act to right past wrongs, Butcher said. But it must also be ready for this sorry tale of poisoned workers to continue as long as nuclear weapons are produced. All the evidence is that there is no safe way to build the bomb. Only an end to nuclear weapons will end the health and environmental disaster that is the DOE nuclear weapons complex."

---

Workers Comp a Political Issue

Associated Press
September 27, 2000 Filed at 6:14 p.m. ET
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Sick-Workers-Politics.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- If people who were sickened by working at nuclear weapons plants during the Cold War receive government compensation, it might have as much to with politics as compassion.

Lawmakers say House-Senate negotiations on a compensation plan -- an idea that has significant bipartisan support in Congress -- gained momentum Wednesday.

They broke down on Monday, but resumed the next day after Republicans such as Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson made stinging remarks accusing House GOP leaders of failing to negotiate in good faith. Republican House members said the issue could hurt them at the polls and possibly swing House control to the Democrats.

``There is a lot of pressure being put on the House and rightly so,'' said Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., who represents workers at the Oak Ridge nuclear reservation.

John Feehery, spokesman for speaker House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., acknowledged that the response from some GOP lawmakers prompted Republican leaders to go back to the bargaining table.

``It has given us a reason to change our mind and work toward getting a satisfactory conclusion,'' he said.

``Sometimes when constituents make their case in an election year, their voices are a little bit louder.''

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation at weapons plants should be compensated. The agency proposed minimum lump sum payments of $100,000.

The Senate later approved a measure calling for workers exposed to radiation and toxic chemicals to receive $200,000 in compensation from the federal government, plus health benefits, but House GOP leaders balked, expressing concern about an entitlement program whose costs were uncertain because it's not known how many workers would qualify.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the compensation proposal would cost $1.7 billion to cover approximately 4,000 workers over 10 years.

Among the places that are home to large groups of workers who might qualify for compensation are the key presidential election states of California, Ohio and Washington.

Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., who faces a tough re-election opponent in Democrat Brian Roy, has been pushing GOP House leaders to reach a compromise and redoubled his efforts after talks broke off.

``I'm sure they (GOP leaders) understand the politics of it, and that's why it's so puzzling,'' said Whitfield, whose district is home to the Paducah uranium enrichment plant. ``The reality is if you don't pass important legislation, your opponent can always talk about it.''

Wamp's Democratic opponent, Will Callaway, issued a news release shortly after talks broke down criticizing Wamp for not convincing GOP House leaders to back the compensation package.

House Minority Whip David Bonior, D-Mich., said failure to approve a compensation plan says something about the ``compassionate conservatism'' Republicans have been touting.

``It's an excellent test of that, and we'll see how compassionate they are,'' Bonior said.

---

Lawmakers Bar Payments for Workers on Weapons

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By MATTHEW L. WALD
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/politics/27WORK.html

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 - House and Senate negotiators have dropped a provision in the military authorization bill that would have provided compensation for nuclear weapons workers made sick or killed by expousure to radiation or toxic chemicals, making the bill's enactment this year very uncertain.

The Clinton Administration had been pushing for a plan, which was approved by the Senate, that would set up a program similar to workers compensation and would provide reimbursement of lost wages or $200,000, whichever is greater, plus medical expenses. But the administration did not say where the money would come from. The House Judiciary Committee favored a plan that offered $100,000 plus health care costs.

John P. Feehery, a spokesman for Speaker J. Dennis Hastert said that the House's last position had been to provide $250 million to start the compensation process but that the Senate wanted more. "They were pushing for an entitlement program, and who knows what final cost would have been, the multiple billions, probably," Mr. Feehery said.

Dr. David Michaels, the assistant secretary for environment and health of the Energy Department, said that such estimates were "outrageous exaggerations."

The Congressional Budget Office projects a cost of just under $1 billion in the first five years, and cases are emerging at a rate of 50 to 100 a year, Dr. Michaels said.

He said the payments would have to be made under an entitlement program, just as workers compensation payments are made. "You can't start paying in one year and stop the next year because you run out of money," he said. The administraiton is still trying to get a compensation provision into the bill.

Representative Ted Strickland, Democrat of Ohio, whose district includes a uranium processing plant, said, "it is almost incomprehensible that people could be so hard-hearted and heartless."

The administration said early this year, for the first time, that nuclear weapons manufacturing had caused illness and premature death in some of the 600,000 people employed for it.

-------- new mexico

New York Times Concedes Lapses In Reporting of Scientist's Case

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
By MATTHEW ROSE
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970013122857146869.htm

NEW YORK -- In an unusual 1,600-word editors' note, the New York Times conceded certain lapses in its reporting of the case of former Los Alamos scientist Wen Ho Lee.

The note came as two Senate committees jointly held a hearing in Washington where they criticized federal officials for not being aggressive in their investigation of Mr. Lee and also raised questions about how he was treated while in prison.

The note by the Times, titled "The Times and Wen Ho Lee," and placed on page 2 above the newspaper's regular corrections column, broadly defended the coverage but said, "we also found some things we wish we had done differently in the course of the coverage to give Dr. Lee the full benefit of the doubt."

In particular, the paper said it could have explored earlier evidence of weaknesses in the case against Mr. Lee and should have toned down some alarmist language. The editors also said in the note that the paper could have run other stories to provide more balance, such as a "full-scale profile of Dr. Lee, which might have humanized him …"; a closer look at Notra Trulock, an intelligence official at the Energy Department who was a leading figure on Capitol Hill driving the case against Mr. Lee; and an examination of the political context of the Chinese-weapons debate.

"In those instances where we fell short of our standards in our coverage of this story, the blame lies principally with those who directed the coverage, for not raising questions that occurred to us only later," the paper concluded, going on to exonerate its reporters, "who remained persistent and fair-minded."

Through a spokeswoman, New York Times Executive Editor Joseph Lelyveld declined to comment further. Of the two reporters on the initial story, Jeff Gerth declined to comment and James Risen couldn't be reached. Articles by Mr. Gerth and other reporters on a related issue -- corporate sale of American technology to China -- won the Times a Pulitzer Prize in 1999.

On March 6, 1999, the Times reported that government investigators believed China had accelerated its nuclear-weapons program through the use of stolen U.S. intelligence, and that the Federal Bureau of Investigation was focusing on an unnamed Chinese-American scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. While the Times editors' note points out that concerns over China's accelerated nuclear weapons program had already been reported by The Wall Street Journal, the March 6 article was the first of a number of extensive articles that the newspaper carried on the subject, in addition to pieces on its editorial pages. Many other newspapers, as well as other media, also weighed in following the original Times story.

Mr. Lee, who was later identified as the scientist in question, was fired. Investigators never tied Mr. Lee to the theft that they thought helped China, and that probe eventually included numerous other possible subjects. But in scrutinizing Mr. Lee, the FBI discovered that he had committed a separate offense, and nine months later he was charged with 59 counts of mishandling sensitive data for downloading onto computer tapes and an unsecure computer system what prosecutors called the "crown jewels" of U.S. nuclear weapons design. After being held in solitary confinement, Mr. Lee was released earlier this month, pleading guilty to one count of unlawful possession of defense information. The judge in the case reprimanded the Departments of Justice and Energy for exaggerating the security threat.

The New York Times' coverage had been criticized by supporters of Mr. Lee, civil rights and Asian-American groups, as well as certain media watchers for sparking what they called a political witch hunt against the scientist. After Mr. Lee was released, the White House singled out media coverage, in particular from the New York Times, for stimulating the Justice Department's aggressive prosecution.

The Times said in its note that it didn't pay enough attention to the possibility that the intelligence leak didn't come from Mr. Lee or that he might have played a minor role. The March 6 article mentioned that the Justice Department didn't think it had enough evidence against Mr. Lee to authorize a wire tap on his phone, but Tuesday the Times said that fact should have "been more prominent in the article and in our thinking."

Brian Sun, one of Mr. Lee's lawyers, declined to comment on the New York Times' note. Henry Tang, chairman of the Committee of 100, a civic group of prominent Chinese-Americans, said the New York Times was "honorable" in indicating shortcomings in its coverage, but expressed disappointment that it took the paper so long to publish the note. The Committee has supported Mr. Lee through requests that he receive fair legal treatment and raising concerns over alleged racial bias in prosecuting the case.

Meanwhile, in Washington, at the joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary and the Select Committee on Intelligence, Sen. Richard Bryan (D., Nev.) said the investigation "is almost a textbook example of how not to conduct an espionage case, a 'Keystone Kops' investigation. The thing that does trouble us all -- and I don't agree with characterizations that Mr. Lee is an innocent victim -- is the manner in which he was confined," Sen. Bryan said. "What were the physical circumstances of his confinement? Am I correct that other individuals who have been charged with espionage have not been subjected to that level of personal degradation, acknowledging that you don't want this individual to have access to outside contacts to pass along information?"

FBI Director Louis Freeh and Attorney General Janet Reno both said that neither the FBI nor the Justice Department required that Mr. Lee be shackled and handcuffed as part of his confinement at the Santa Fe County detention facility. Ms. Reno suggested that he wasn't treated any differently from other inmates in "administrative segregation" at the facility and in fact was treated better in many ways, including having a facility built at government expense where he could look at classified documents and meet with his lawyers.

Mr. Freeh also said "the Department of Justice and the FBI stand by each and every one of the 59 counts in the indictment." He said Mr. Lee did endanger the U.S., primarily because he downloaded nuclear secrets in such a way where Internet hackers or someone with Mr. Lee's identification codes could have had access to 400,000 pages of classified information.

Mark Holscher, criminal attorney for Mr. Lee, said "Not withstanding the egregious pretrial conditions that were imposed upon him, [Mr. Lee] still believes that our system of justice will prevail ..."

-- Gary Fields in Washington contributed to this article.
Write to Matthew Rose at matthew.rose@wsj.com

---

Excerpts From Testimony at Congressional Hearing on Wen Ho Lee Case

New York Times
September 27, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/national/27ITEX.html

Following are excerpts from the testimony of Attorney General Janet Reno and Louis J. Freeh, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, yesterday at a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on the case of Wen Ho Lee, as recorded by The New York Times:

Ms. Reno

Director Freeh and I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today to tell you what we did in the case of Dr. Wen Ho Lee and why we did it.

At the outset, I must caution that we're limited in what we can discuss here. The government has secured a commitment from Dr. Lee to cooperate and to submit to a comprehensive debriefing in the next few weeks and further inquiries for some months after that. We do not, and I am sure you do not, want to do or say anything here that would interfere with the debriefing. Some issues may also require that we go into closed session. . . .

As attorney general and as director of the F.B.I., Director Freeh and I share together an awesome responsibility to protect the national security of this nation, but at the same time to protect the Constitution and the rights of all Americans. These cases are difficult without full access to the facts, and given some of the rumors and speculations that have been reported in the press, I can understand that questions arise. But I hope that by the end of our session today you will agree that our actions made sense, were reasonable and were correct.

Dr. Lee is no hero. He is not an absent-minded professor. He is a felon. He committed a very serious, calculated crime, and he pled guilty to it. He abused the trust of the American people by putting at risk some of our core national security secrets. He had one of the highest security clearance levels possible, granting him access to the most sensitive of nuclear weapons information. He had worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory for 20 years. He had access to the Los Alamos computer system that was designed precisely to be secure against unauthorized intrusions.

What was on that secure system? Nuclear weapon design and testing data that is in effect the library of blueprints of most of the United States nuclear weapons designs, designs that are the fruit of the investment of hundreds of billions of dollars. Dr. Lee systematically, deliberately moved nuclear weapons data that was not even related to the work he was doing. He moved it from the system where it was safe and secure to a vulnerable computer in the Los Alamos system that any hacker or foreign government could penetrate. Dr. Lee did so by betraying the trust that had been placed in him to protect those secrets.

The process of transferring this data took Dr. Lee a long time, nearly 40 hours over a 70-day period. As has been pointed out, it involved the equivalent of 400,000 pages. Stacked up, that's a 13-story building. He left this information that is so vital to our national security on that unsecure computer, not for hours or days or even months. He left it there for years. He knew that it was classified. He knew that what he was doing was wrong. He moved files in such a way as to defeat security measures he knew were in place. He went further. He copied the information from the unsecure computer onto 10 portable tapes. Three were recovered by the F.B.I., seven are missing. What's more, he made copies of the portable tapes and those copies are also missing. When Dr. Lee found out he was being investigated, he took steps to cover up his actions. After his access was revoked to the part of the lab where the secure computer resided, he tried over and over again to get in, including at 3:30 a.m. on one Christmas Eve.

Despite what you read in the papers, until he entered the plea agreement Dr. Lee never had said he would admit his wrongdoing, plead guilty to a felony and tell us what he did with the tape. The plea agreement entered into by the government with Dr. Lee is our best chance to find out what happened to the computer tapes containing some of the nation's most important nuclear designs and testing information.

Mr. Freeh

As an expert from Los Alamos testified in this case, the material downloaded and copied represented the complete nuclear weapons design capability of Los Alamos at that time - 50 years of nuclear weapons development at the expense of hundreds of billions of dollars.

Quoting from Dr. Younger: These codes and their associated databases and the input file combined with someone that knew how to use them could, in my opinion, in the wrong hands, change the global strategic balance. They enable the possessor to design the only objects that could result in the military defeat of America's conventional forces. The only threat, for example, to our carrier battle groups. They represent the gravest possible security risk to the United States.

Before he created the tapes, only two sites in the world held this complete design portfolio: Division X at Los Alamos and another national laboratory.

Now, many have asked if his conduct was so bad, why did the government negotiate a plea agreement and agree to release him. Fair question. Understandable.

But it has a very simple answer: Department of Justice and the F.B.I. concluded that this guilty plea, coupled with his agreement to submit to questioning under oath and to a polygraph, was our best opportunity to protect the national security by finding out what happened to the seven missing tapes. And we found out, on the way to the courthouse, the additional copies of tapes which he has now admitted to having made.

This was always the object of this investigation and prosecution: Why did he make them? Where are they? What happened to them? And who had access to them?

From the moment we learned last year that our nation's nuclear secrets were on missing portable tapes, we have had this central goal: to find out what happened to them. This was the goal of the entire national security leadership of our government, not just the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice.

Before any charges were brought against Dr. Lee, this matter was analyzed by the highest levels of our government. Working together we carefully considered the substantial risks to our national security of proceeding with the public prosecution counterbalanced against the risks of forgoing the prosecution.

In the end there was a consensus that a criminal prosecution of Dr. Lee presented the best opportunity for discovering where the tapes were, why he made them and who, if anyone else, had access to them.

The decision to prosecute Dr. Lee was made only after repeated attempts to gain his cooperation before indictment. . . .

I would now like to address the disturbing allegations that the government engaged in selective prosecution or racial profiling in its investigation and prosecution of Dr. Lee.

There is simply no truth to these allegations. Dr. Lee was not investigated nor indicted nor incarcerated because he is an American of Asian decent.

As the attorney general and the director of the F.B.I., we are honored to head organizations that pride themselves with fair and impartial law enforcement. We would never tolerate racial profiling or selective prosecution.

---

Reno and Freeh Still Call Acts of Scientist a Serious Crime

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By DAVID JOHNSTON
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/national/27INQU.html

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 - Attorney General Janet Reno and Director Louis J. Freeh of the F.B.I. defended their handling of the Wen Ho Lee case today, asserting in a Senate hearing that Dr. Lee had committed a serious crime when he removed what they called a portable library of atomic secrets from the weapons laboratory in Los Alamos, N.M.

The two officials said they remained convinced that had Dr. Lee's case gone to trial federal prosecutors would have prevailed on each of the 59 counts of the indictment against him. But they agreed to a plea bargain, they said, based on several factors, principally that the government was the victim of "graymail," which they described as a defense strategy that would have forced prosecutors to reveal "extremely sensitive" nuclear secrets if they brought Dr. Lee to trial.

They said that Dr. Lee disclosed shortly before the plea bargain that he had not only downloaded the information onto computer tapes, but had also made copies of the tapes, a disclosure Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh said they regarded as "frightening" because it meant "that at least 7 and as many as 14 or more tapes containing vast amounts of our nation's nuclear secrets remain unaccounted for." [Excerpts, Page A17.]

Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh admitted that the government had made mistakes in its investigation, but neither expressed regret or doubts about the case, which ended two weeks ago when Dr. Lee pleaded guilty to a single felony charge of mishandling classified nuclear weapons data. He was freed after nine months behind bars.

"Dr. Lee is no hero," Ms. Reno said. "He is not an absent-minded professor. He is a felon. He committed a very serious calculated crime, and he pled guilty to it."

In an unusual joint statement that was written at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh presented what was, in effect, their most complete and detailed rebuttal to date in response to complaints from the federal district judge in the case, James A. Parker, and President Clinton about whether the government had treated Dr. Lee unfairly.

After the hearing, Dr. Lee's lawyers issued a statement on his behalf, saying: "Notwithstanding the egregious pretrial conditions that were imposed on him, he still believes that our system of justice will prevail and he remains fully committed to honoring his obligations under the plea agreement with the government."

At the joint session of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence Committees, no senators disputed the importance of the information that Dr. Lee downloaded nor did any question the seriousness of the crime to which he pleaded guilty.

But the debate over the information that Dr. Lee was accused of placing at risk continued today outside the hearing room when a former top government nuclear weapons designer who testified in Dr. Lee's defense only last month said that his remarks had been misinterpreted.

In a detention hearing for Dr. Lee, the designer, John L. Richter, said that 99 percent of the data that Dr. Lee downloaded was unclassified.

But today, in response to a reporter's questions, Mr. Richter, one of several scientific experts who testified that the downloaded material was widely known, said in an interview that he meant his comments to apply only to the software and physics that underlie the computer codes that Dr. Lee downloaded.

Mr. Richter said his comments did not apply to other data that Dr. Lee removed, including information about the dimensions of weapons and about the physical properties of bomb materials.

Still, lawmakers in both parties sharply criticized Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh for what they characterized as mismanagement of the case and missed opportunities in the inquiry and for their insistence on keeping Dr. Lee in solitary confinement - and sometimes shackled - in the months before the plea bargain.

"This is a case in which there is very little, if any, good news to tell and plenty of blame to go around," said Senator Richard H. Bryan, Democrat of Nevada. "The F.B.I., the Energy Department, the Justice Department all share the responsibility for the poor handling of this matter from the beginning, dating back to the early 1980's."

The complaints followed criticism from Judge Parker, who presided over the Lee case and called it a national embarrassment and from President Clinton, who said last week that he was troubled by the government's insistence on pretrial detention.

Some Republicans expressed skepticism about Mr. Clinton's comments. Senator Richard C. Shelby, Republican of Alabama and chairman of the Intelligence Committee said: "The president's statements criticizing the conduct of the prosecution, as if it was conducted by an entity beyond his control, was bizarre to say the least. The president knew exactly what was going on."

There was little opportunity for senators to question Ms. Reno or Mr. Freeh at length in the hearing, the first time that either official had agreed to respond to lawmakers' criticisms in depth about the case - which has drawn together Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh, whose relationship has long been frayed.

The hearing was abruptly halted when Democrats invoked a Senate rule that limits committee hearings to two hours when the Senate is in session. The action was unrelated to the Lee case. Some Democrats asked for the action to protest what some have said was the Republicans' failure to approve judicial nominees, Congressional aides said.

Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh disputed the conclusions of some senior nuclear weapons experts who have accused the government of exaggerating the case against Dr. Lee. The scientists have said that the information that Dr. Lee copied onto computer tapes was known throughout the rarified circles of nuclear weapons research.

"Dr. Lee created his own secret portable, personal electronic library of this nation's nuclear secrets," Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh said in their joint statement. "At the very least in doing so, he placed these secrets at extraordinary risk."

The two officials said that the material that Dr. Lee downloaded onto 10 computer tapes contained the "electronic blueprints of the exact dimensions and geometry of this nation's nuclear weapons."

The data, they said, represented the "complete nuclear weapons design capability of Los Alamos at the time - approximately 50 years of nuclear weapons development, at the expense of hundreds of billions of dollars."

Ms. Reno and Mr. Freeh sought to portray Dr. Lee as a scientist who, for still unexplained reasons, downloaded through computer systems a vast amount of data that was unrelated to his work. When he fell under suspicion, they said, he tried to conceal what he had done by deleting files from the laboratory's computers.

The statement by Mr. Lee's lawyers did not respond to the specifics of the Reno-Freeh statement, and people familiar with the thinking of Dr. Lee's defense team said the lawyers needed time to assess the testimony. They also said he never intended to endanger national security.

Mr. Freeh, who read parts of the statement, said that when Dr. Lee realized he was the subject of a criminal investigation, he took several steps that heightened suspicion.

Dr. Lee removed classification markings from documents, the statement said, and repeatedly tried to enter secure areas of the laboratory after his security clearance was revoked to engage in what the officials said was an effort to conceal his misuse of Los Alamos computers.

"In order to achieve his ends, Dr. Lee had to override default mechanisms that were designed to prevent any accidental or inadvertent movement of those files," the statement said. "His downloading process consumed nearly 40 hours over 70 different days."

Mr. Richter's comments came after pullback came after T. J. Glauthier, the deputy Energy secretary, said at the hearing that the scientist's assertion in court that 99 percent of the data the former Los Alamos scientist had downloaded was unclassified was wrong.

"That statement is not correct when applied to the totality of these files," Mr. Glauthier said of the characterization of the data.

While physics and mathematical aspects of Dr. Lee's downloaded data do appear in the open literature, he added, "the way they are assembled along with classified physical databases and specific weapons configurations, which are also on the tapes, is highly classified," Mr. Glauthier said.

The tapes, he conceded, "are not a complete recipe for designing and building a nuclear bomb." But the data "represent the design know- how and physics information developed by our nuclear labs over a period of 50 years and over 1,000 nuclear tests."

Mr. Richter said in an interview today that he generally agreed with Mr. Glauthier's criticism.

When he testified, Dr. Richter said, he meant to apply the 99-percent figure only to the software and physics that underlie the complex computer codes that Dr. Lee downloaded.

"That's the software," he said of his testimony, adding that figure was "probably an understatement" in terms of its security banality.

But beyond that, he said, lay two other areas where Dr. Lee had apparently downloaded secrets: the physical properties of bomb materials at high temperatures and pressures, and the engineering specifications and dimensions of the nuclear arms themselves.

Dr. Richter said he had "no way of knowing the proportion" of secret to unclassified data in Dr. Lee's downloads since "I did not have access" to the downloaded data.

Still, he maintained the government was exaggerating the significance of the downloading.

"I don't know how it happened," he said, but somehow all the federal and prosecution experts "got together and decided this is the worst thing that had ever happened."

---

Wen Ho Lee, no martyr

Washington Times
EDITORIAL • September 27, 2000
http://208.246.212.80/op-ed/ed-house-2000927193652.htm

Since federal prosecutors negotiated a one-felony-count plea bargain two weeks ago with Wen Ho Lee, the former nuclear-weapons computer scientist who was charged in December with 59 felony counts, recriminations have been flowing fast and furiously. Congressional hearings have begun. On Tuesday, the editors of the New York Times, whose investigative reports since March 1999 have been criticized for causing a political frenzy amounting to a witch hunt, published an extraordinarily critical analysis of its own reporting.

However, before Lee is given official martyr status as the supposed victim of "ethnic profiling," it is worth recalling what he has admitted to doing. In 1993, 1994 and 1997, Lee unilaterally erased classified markings on documents, which were then shifted from secure computers to open, accessible computers, where the information was then copied onto 10 portable computer tapes, seven of which are still missing. Altogether, he copied nearly 400 computer files, the equivalent of 400,000 pages of data, including the mathematical approximation of the designs of nuclear weapons, their exact dimensions, information about testing problems, actual and simulated testing results and computer programs required to design and test weapons. His colleagues have insisted that there was no legitimate reason for Lee to copy those files, to say nothing of stealing them. When prosecutors pressed for pre-trial confinement in harsh, solitary conditions, Paul Robinson, the president of Sandia National Laboratory, which develops nuclear weapons, asserted that the information Lee downloaded and transferred to tapes could "truly change the world strategic balance."

Lee has maintained that he destroyed the missing tapes. As part of the plea bargain, he will undergo extensive debriefing and polygraph exams to convince national security officials that he is telling the truth. But that begs a couple of questions: Why would he spend 70 hours, many late at night and on weekends, copying the secrets only to destroy the tapes? And why, after losing his security clearance, did he repeatedly attempt to enter a classified area?

Damage assessment in such cases has always been a major priority. The debriefings may prove to be more valuable to the nation's security than a lengthy prison sentence unaccompanied by full disclosure if Lee were found guilty by a jury - a prospect the presiding judge did not discount.

Lee's evolving martyr status becomes even more questionable considering the fact that a government report issued in November 1998 revealed that between October 1997 and June 1998 there were more than 300 foreign attacks on the Energy Department's unclassified computer system, where Lee had downloaded the secrets of the U.S. nuclear arsenal. Whether those secrets were stolen by foreign hackers is anybody's guess. But Lee would certainly bear responsibility.

Regarding the assertions that Lee was the victim of "ethnic profiling," which the FBI vigorously denies, it is worth noting that China has a long history of using Chinese-Americans, including emigres from Taiwan such as Lee, as spies. Larry Wu-Tai Chin, an analyst-linguist for the CIA and the U.S. Army, for example, spent 30 years spying for China before being caught in 1985. Lee himself admitted that he had failed to report a contact with a Chinese official, as he was required to do. Indeed, as it turned out, even though Lee was not indicted for espionage, his status as a suspect proved to be well-deserved by virtue of the felonious actions that he ultimately admitted to taking. Wen Ho Lee was not one of the good guys - not by a long shot.

-------- us nuc politics

Gore and Foreign Policy: Key Role, Mixed Record

By Steven Mufson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A01
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A24027-2000Sep26&language=printer

The chandelier lights were still burning brightly in the dining room of Vice President Gore's official residence as 10 p.m. approached on May 3, 1999, the 41st day of the NATO bombing campaign against Serb forces in Kosovo.

The occasion wasn't one of the ceremonial rituals of the vice presidency. Scattered in front of Gore on the table were coffee cups and water glasses, and beyond them sat the burly former Russian prime minister, Viktor Chernomyrdin, who was trying to mediate an end to the war, and his aides.

"We are sensitive to Serb dreams, but also to innocent people and the demands of justice," Gore said after Chernomyrdin described Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic's desire to have his own soldiers defend Serb historical sites in Kosovo. NATO required complete Serb withdrawal, Gore insisted.

Gore--flanked on his side of the table by his foreign policy aide, Leon Fuerth, Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott and national security adviser Samuel R. "Sandy" Berger--drew some lines on a piece of paper. "We're at a fork in the road," he said, according to notes from the meeting. "This first way lies bombing, continued and accelerated." But if Milosevic took "the second fork," Gore said, he might keep Kosovo as part of Yugoslavia and benefit from an international effort to meld the region into the European economy.

The scene was unusual--a vice president engaging in tough, detailed negotiations that ultimately contributed to ending the war in Kosovo by enlisting the Russians to pressure Milosevic. It underscored Gore's belief in the value of active U.S. engagement in the world's trouble spots and of the role he has played within the Clinton administration as an interventionist willing to use force to defend American values and interests in places such as Haiti, Iraq, Bosnia and Kosovo.

For the past seven and a half years, Gore has been intimately involved in the formulation and execution of foreign policy at a level that's normally the preserve of the president and his top advisers. He has acted as the administration's negotiator on an eclectic range of issues, playing a part in talks on ending the war in Kosovo, on the removal of nuclear arms from Ukraine, on the forging of international environmental protocols, on the introduction of economic reforms in Egypt and on the cultivation of U.S.-South Africa and U.S.-Russia ties. And he has acted as an influential adviser to President Clinton, summing up Cabinet debates and injecting the last word before Clinton makes a decision.

Texas Gov. George W. Bush, his rival for the presidency, has tried to turn Gore's foreign policy responsibilities into campaign liabilities, charging that he has been part of an administration whose approach to world issues has lacked focus and an overall strategy. Pointing to the ailing Russian economy and the tarnished image of the United States among Russians, Bush and other Republican critics--most recently a group of Republican House members in a report last week--dismiss the U.S. policy toward Russia as a failure. Pointing to the open-ended U.S. troop commitment in Kosovo and Bosnia, they charge that Clinton and Gore have overextended U.S. forces. And pointing to Haiti, they charge that Clinton--and Gore--have been too quick to use American soldiers to intervene in internal problems abroad.

"This administration has acted in an ad hoc and reactive fashion," says Robert Zoellick, one of Bush's foreign policy advisers.

Even some Gore supporters lament the instances when the vice president's desire to curry favor with domestic constituencies--labor unions, Jewish Americans and Cuban Americans--overshadowed other considerations on policy toward China, Israel and Cuba.

Foreign policy expertise was part of the package Gore brought to the Democratic ticket in 1992. A Vietnam War veteran, an arms control specialist and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gore compensated for the fact that Clinton, as the governor of a small state, had virtually no experience in international affairs.

Shortly after Clinton picked him for the number two spot, Gore urged Clinton to make President George Bush's failure to intervene in Bosnia a campaign issue. "Gore was very strongly urging that we take a forward-leaning posture on Bosnia," says Berger, Clinton's national security adviser and, at that time, a campaign aide. "He had the feeling that the United States was abdicating its leadership by not taking a more active role."

Once in office, Gore made sure he wasn't shut out of the foreign policy process by insisting that Fuerth, his top foreign policy adviser and alter ego, get a seat at the bureaucratic table, becoming the only administration official to take part in the meetings of principals--Cabinet-level officials--as well as in the meetings of their deputies, who often drew up policy options. Gore's weekly luncheons with Clinton provided another chance for the vice president to sway policy.

Once Clinton was elected, however, Bosnia received little attention from the new administration. The Pentagon, including Gen. Colin L. Powell, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, opposed American involvement in the Balkans; and Clinton, after stumbling over the issue of gays in the military, did not want to challenge the generals. Moreover, then-Secretary of State Warren Christopher was unable to persuade the European allies to lift the arms embargo on Bosnia and to back allied air strikes.

As it turned out, the first foreign crisis that led to U.S. intervention was the one in Haiti, where deteriorating conditions led to concerns that there would be an exodus of refugees. Clinton vowed that he would bring change to the island--and send any boat people back. But in September 1994, the United Nations authorized the use of force to topple the Haitian military dictatorship and restore the elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

U.S. forces planned to invade just after midnight on the morning of Monday, Sept. 19. The Saturday before the deadline, Powell, former president Jimmy Carter and former senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) arrived in Haiti to try to persuade the military to give up power without bloodshed. During White House deliberations, Gore argued for a time limit because, without one, the Haitian military leader "will play us like a violin," Talbott recalls.

At the Oval Office the following day, Christopher and then-national security adviser Anthony Lake urged the president to postpone the invasion to give the delegation more time, and Clinton was wavering. Then-Defense Secretary William J. Perry and Gore favored sending the troops.

"This was the first time he [the president] really had to make a major decision as to whether you put U.S. men and women in harm's way," recalls Leon Panetta, White House chief of staff at the time. At that time, Panetta says, "almost inevitably . . . Clinton would turn to Gore as to what he thought made sense."

Clinton called the mediators and gave them another half-hour. Faced with imminent invasion, the Haitian junta leaders stepped down without a fight.

Today, Haiti remains beset by political and economic troubles. The manipulative Aristide has fallen out of U.S. favor, and Bush's top foreign policy adviser, Condoleezza Rice, calls U.S. policy there an example of a failed intervention. "I'm quite sure that the people who wanted to go into Haiti really believed they were reestablishing democracy with Aristide," she says. "Nine billion dollars and how many years later, can you make that point?"

Fuerth offered a defense of the policy in a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations last week. "We saved many thousands of lives," he said. "And we've given democracy a chance in Haiti, which is all you can do."

Confronting Bosnia Crisis

With the worsening fighting between the Serbs, Croats and Bosnian Muslims, Bosnia finally appeared on the White House radar in the fall of 1994. Richard C. Holbrooke, then-assistant secretary of state for European and Canadian affairs, recalls a frustrated Gore saying that he feared a "chain reaction" would spread violence throughout the Balkans and arguing for the strict enforcement of economic sanctions.

But the turning point for direct U.S. involvement in Bosnia did not come until the following summer, with the mass killings by Serb forces of more than 7,000 civilians in the captured city of Srebrenica. The horror was symbolized by a photograph of a young woman who had tied her floral shawl and belt together and hung herself from a tree.

When Clinton gathered his foreign policy team on July 18, Gore spoke at length, arguing against any policy that would "acquiesce to genocide and allow the rape of another city and more refugees."

"My 21-year-old daughter asked about that picture," Gore said. "What am I supposed to tell her? Why is this happening and we're not doing anything?"

Usually, says Fuerth, Gore "would try not to box the president in before the president made a decision." This was the closest he came to confrontation, and the conversation helped prod Clinton to action. Over the subsequent weeks, the United States led diplomatic efforts that resulted in NATO bombing Serb areas to bring Milosevic to the bargaining table. Eventually peace talks, brokered by Holbrooke, were held in Dayton, Ohio.

Again, Gore took a tough line toward the Serb leader. Holbrooke wanted to ease or suspend the sanctions as a reward for Belgrade's agreement to negotiate. But Fuerth and Gore said no. That December, Clinton dispatched 20,000 U.S. troops to Bosnia to guarantee the peace agreement.

"Leon [Fuerth] held fast, saying that Serbia would not get one inch on sanctions until an agreement was signed," says Ivo Daalder, who was National Security Council director for European affairs at the time. Gore and Fuerth prevailed.

Throughout this time, Gore also served as co-chairman of four binational commissions, pairing him with not only Chernomyrdin, but also Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, South African President Thabo Mbeki, then-Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk and Kravchuk's successor, Leonid Kuchma. Whether Gore brought prestige and impetus to issues through the commissions or created a new layer of bureaucracy remains a matter of debate.

"These commissions drove the State Department nuts because they kept taking away parts of State's mandates," said a former senior official at the State Department. Others complained that there was pressure to manufacture "achievements" that the commissions could boast about while more intractable problems got short shrift.

In working with the Russians, Fuerth has argued that the administration made the best of what it knew to be a bad situation. Privatization "would have to take place ready or not, because privatization was the one sure way to break away from the past," while corruption would take years to cure, he said. As for dealing with then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin and his prime minister, Chernomyrdin, Fuerth asked: "If not with him, then with whom?"

Clinton administration officials say Gore helped build a relationship with the Russian leadership that helped maintain relations even in the face of Russian opposition to the war in Kosovo and the expansion of NATO.

"All the years of cultivating Cherno paid off" in Kosovo, says one former senior administration official. "Gore was seen by Chernomyrdin as his friend, and when the chits were called, they came in for our benefit."

Some commission activities were tangible. During a December 1993 session in Moscow, Gore was drawn into negotiations over the removal of 2,100 nuclear weapons from Ukraine, dispatching a U.S. delegation to Kiev that persuaded Ukraine to send its nuclear weapons to Russia in return for Russia's agreement not to challenge Ukraine's borders. The United States signed as a guarantor.

"The key to success was getting the Russians to attend that meeting," says Perry, who went to Kiev. "That was done by the vice president, who went to Chernomyrdin."

At the funeral of the Hungarian prime minister in December 1993, Gore pulled the Ukrainian leader aside to insist that he stick to the deal. Later, when the agreement seemed to be coming apart because of mistrust between Ukraine and Russia, Gore phoned Kravchuk to remind him that the United States, as a co-signatory, expected him to fulfill the accord. Finally, in 1996, the last Ukrainian nuclear weapon was shipped back to Russia.

"There were more than a dozen cases where the Ukrainians didn't deliver the warheads or Russians didn't deliver the fuel rods," says former assistant secretary of defense Graham Allison, a Gore adviser. "When it would get stuck, Gore would be there with a meeting or phone call."

Gore's famous attention to detail was of no help in his most conspicuous blunder in foreign policy, his 1997 trip to Beijing. All too aware of the campaign finance scandal stemming from the 1996 election campaign and of one of the most sensational allegations to come out of it--that Gore and Clinton had received campaign contributions from Chinese citizens--members of the vice president's advance team attempted to avoid any situations that would result in embarrassing photographs. They particularly wanted to avoid having Gore photographed with his counterpart, China's then-Premier Li Peng, who had signed the martial law order that preceded the bloody 1989 crackdown on demonstrations in Tiananmen Square.

But just after a ceremonial signing of a Chinese contract with two American companies, "boom, the doors open and from behind a partition were Chinese servants with champagne glasses," recalls Dennis Alpert of the Gore advance team. The resulting picture--and Gore's awkward attempts to explain it--seemed to highlight his unfamiliarity with diplomacy as well as with China.

Back in the United States, domestic politics continued to clash with policy. For fear of angering labor unions whose support he needed, Gore remained conspicuously silent about his support for the free-trade pact that would allow China to join the World Trade Organization.

This clash has not been limited to China policy. Eager to appeal to Cuban American voters in Miami, the vice president earlier this year stumbled over his stance on whether the administration should give asylum to the 6-year-old Cuban boy, Elian Gonzalez, who had been rescued at sea off the coast of Florida. And it remains doubtful that Gore, after giving virtually unequivocal support to Israel since his first run for president in 1988, would be accepted as a mediator by the Palestinians the way Clinton has been.

'Forward Engagement'

In a speech in April that provided the closest thing to a road map to what the foreign policy of a Gore administration would look like, Gore spoke about the need for "a new security agenda for the global age based on forward engagement."

Bruce Jentleson, a Gore adviser and director of Duke University's public policy school, said that this agenda is based on the idea "that the end of the Cold War didn't mean threats were going away. . . . At the same time, he has a real sense for the new agenda: environment, trade, and HIV/AIDS as a public health and security issue for democracies."

Gore has already highlighted that agenda, most notably in his last-minute decision in December 1997 to become involved in pushing for a treaty on global warming, in Kyoto, Japan. But critics say his real impact on new-agenda issues has been minimal. The Kyoto pact still has not been submitted to a vote in the Senate. And while Gore has stressed the importance of combating AIDS in Africa, the administration's assistance to poor nations amounts to a fraction of what is needed.

Fuerth says that if Gore is elected, such issues will receive more attention. He asks: Can a world with 1.5 billion people living on less than $1 a day be stable and democratic? When framed that way, Fuerth says, moral and security issues merge. "At that point," he says, "it becomes an interest of the United States rather than a charitable impulse."

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NADER CHARGES GORE WITH BREAKING INCINERATOR PROMISE

September 27, 2000 (ENS)
http://ens-news.com/ens/sep2000/2000L-09-27-09.html

EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio, Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader called on Vice President Al Gore today to honor a promise he made eight years ago by shutting down the Von Roll Waste Technologies Industries incinerator. Gore is running for president on the Democratic ticket. The hazardous waste incinerator in East Liverpool burns 60,000 tons of hazardous waste every year, making it one of the largest incinerators of its type in the world. The incinerator's permits expired in 1995. The Von Roll incinerator has failed test burns and was criticized in a 1994 report requested by Gore. "Mr. Gore, after seven years of double talk and delays, the time has come to shut down this incinerator," said Nader. "Workers should be given two years full severance pay by their negligent employer, WTI."

The incinerator is located in an area with a history of environmental contamination, on a flood plain, and less than 400 yards away from an elementary school, in violation of state and federal environmental regulations. Among the toxins that the incinerator releases into the air are dioxins, furans, and metals such as chromium, mercury, lead and arsenic. "Any incinerator that emits almost a pound of mercury into the air every day can't be good for our children's ability to learn," Nader said. Campaigning for vice president in 1992, Gore called the incinerator, then under construction, "unbelievable," adding, "the Clinton-Gore administration is going to give you an environmental presidency to deal with these problems. We'll be on your side for a change."

----

Republicans Attack Russian Policy

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-US-Russia.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State Madeleine Albright came under attack Wednesday from House Republicans regarding Russia policy.

The Clinton administration has failed ``to truly stand up to the massive corruption in the Yeltsin government,'' said Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman, R-N.Y., chairman of the International Relations Committee.

``Will anybody now call the Putin government to account for the sake of democracy?'' he asked Albright, setting the tone for a two-hour hearing, possibly Albright's last as Secretary of State.

The criticisms were wide-ranging.

--Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., accused the administration of secretly supporting the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban movement in Afghanistan, a charge Albright flatly denied.

--Rep. John Cooksey, R-Calif., said the administration had not pressured Russia to close what he called an espionage facility at Lourdes in Cuba.

--And Rep. Jim Leach, R-Iowa, said the administration ``has not identified with the problems of the Russian people and more closely identified with the new Russian oligarchy.'' As the economy declines and the health of Russian children grows worse, ``relations with Russia are worse in many different ways than they were a decade ago,'' he said.

Albright countered that ``democracy is hard'' and ``it has been especially difficult in Russia, whose people have no living memory of political and economic freedom to guide them.''

``The Clinton-Gore administration has not seen Russia through rose-colored glasses,'' she said. ``We have been very realistic. And we have dealt with something that has never been dealt with before: how you deal with a former adversary that had an empire and help to manage the devolution of that empire.''

Democrats rallied to Albright's defense, with one suggesting the allegations were politically motivated.

``Some people have a need to make politics out of Russia's problems,'' said Rep. Sam Gejdenson, D-Conn., adding that the Clinton administration had made the United States safer with arms control agreements that have reduced Russia's nuclear arsenal.

Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., said the administration had pursued ``the only rational way'' of dealing with Russia.

``It is beyond our prerogative and power to determine Russia's future,'' Albright said, telling the Republicans, ``We can work together on a bipartisan basis to explore every avenue for cooperation with Russia'' on arms control and security.

Alluding to the political season, Albright, a longtime Democrat, said that when she became secretary of state in 1997, ``I had my political instincts removed.''

But now, she said, ``maybe I have to see the surgeon again.''

-------- u.s. nuc weapons

U.S. Is Criticized Over Maintaining Nuclear Weapons; Report Cites Risk

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
By JOHN J. FIALKA Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
http://address.mail.yahoo.com/yab/us/1631518149/

WASHINGTON -- Leaky roofs, fire hazards and other symptoms of deferred maintenance at U.S. weapons plants have delayed reliability tests and repairs of major nuclear weapons, according to the Energy Department's inspector general. Maintenance problems have also set back the schedule for disassembling some of the nation's older warheads, the IG's office said.

A report released Tuesday blames the problem on budget-cutting. It estimates the agency will need an additional $5 billion to $8 billion over 10 years to cope with the backlogs in its "Stockpile Stewardship" program, designed to keep the U.S. nuclear-weapons force effective without testing warheads.

In a written response to the inspector general's findings, Madelyn R. Creedon, deputy administrator for defense programs at the Energy Department, said the agency agrees. She said that while the problems have not harmed the reliability of U.S. nuclear weapons, "we face a number of challenges if we are to meet future requirements."

The report said the reliability of several weapons systems is "at risk because component surveillance testing has been delayed." According to the report, needed modifications for warheads in two of the nation's premier long-range missile systems -- the land-based MX and submarine-based Trident I -- have been delayed for years because of budgeting and maintenance problems at two weapons facilities: Pantex, near Amarillo, Texas, and Y-12, at Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Deferred-maintenance problems at these two plants and a third weapons complex in Kansas City, Mo., increased by 25% between 1998 and 1999, according to the report. Roof leaks at Pantex delayed a program to dismantle old weapons. Upgrades to promote fire and radiation safety and to improve the plant's lighting were cited as causing lengthy delays in a planned overhaul of the MX missile warhead.

At Oak Ridge, the inspector general found that the DOE had incomplete data on the extent of its maintenance problems in 87 buildings. The agency had "no one individual" assigned to coordinating nuclear-weapons support activities with maintenance problems, the report said.

There are more than 6,000 parts in a nuclear weapon. When the U.S. stopped the explosive tests of nuclear weapons in 1992, the DOE adopted a program of more intensive surveillance and testing of parts, which age at different rates. While some can be replaced, others require remanufacturing because original parts are no longer made.

The budget problems at the facilities, the report said, are caused in part by delays in weapons talks with the Russians and a mismatch between military requirements and budget plans. Since 1997, according to the report, the DOE has been providing money to support 3,500 weapons. Meanwhile, Pentagon requirements call for a stockpile of 6,000 weapons.

The budgeting was further complicated, the report added, by several "unfunded" requirements to address safety and health concerns imposed by the DOE that have caused plant managers to stretch existing funds.

Write to John J. Fialka at john.fialka@wsj.com

---

House Passes Stopgap Measure To Keep Government Running

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
By DAVID ROGERS Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970012086491289748.htm

WASHINGTON -- The House approved a stopgap funding bill to buy time for budget talks and keep the government operating for the first week of the new fiscal year that begins Sunday.

The 415-2 vote came as House and Senate negotiators neared agreement on an estimated $23.6 billion energy and water budget that has ballooned by $1.9 billion since first passed by the House in June. In final bargaining, the administration salvaged much of its request for the National Ignition Facility, a powerful fusion laser under construction at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Elsewhere, lawmakers went far beyond the president, adding close to 35 new water projects in a $4.5 billion Army Corps of Engineers budget, about $375 million over current funding.

The projects are popular this election year, and reflect a growing trend: Republicans outspending the president not only on the military but on domestic programs. As talks continue Wednesday, the natural-resources budget is expected to top $18 billion and exceed the president's budget request by several hundred million dollars. A third draft measure, providing more than $55 billion for transportation programs, has shown less change, but even here the final numbers are expected to exceed Mr.Clinton's request.

Meanwhile, the two sides have closed the gap on the Treasury budget, and the GOP is prepared to add back an estimated $323 million cut from the administration's request, including $215 million for the Internal Revenue Service. The addition comes on top of earlier concessions in July and should bring the total IRS budget up to approximately $8.8 billion, or 7%, above this year's.

To date, only two of the 13 annual appropriations bills have been enacted into law, and the stopgap bill approved Tuesday is just the first in a series of interim funding measures, as lawmakers work through this backlog. Embarrassed by the lack of progress, the GOP leadership wants to begin sending bills to the president this week, but problems keep popping up.

The White House again threatened to veto the energy and water bill over a Senate provision restricting the ability of the government to pursue a plan to restore a more-natural ebb and flow of water levels in the Missouri River. Meanwhile, divisions exist among Republicans and within the White House about how best to pursue legislation dedicating billions of dollars to buy up and protect environmentally valuable lands threatened by development. With little fanfare, Congress and the administration seem poised to embrace a new national drunk-driving standard of 0.08% blood-alcohol content. Fearing a backlash from the beer and restaurant industries, negotiators are reluctant to announce a compromise. But the final transportation bill is expected to uphold the new standard, to be enforced by sanctions threatening states with the loss of as much as 8% of their federal highway aid if they fail to come into compliance during a period of four to six years.

Write to David Rogers at david.rogers@wsj.com

---

Senators praise Albright's work
She makes pitch for more overseas spending during last appearance before committee

Spokane Spokesman Review
September 27, 2000
Associated Press
http://www.spokane.net/news-story-body.asp?Date=092700&ID=s857714&cat=

WASHINGTON -- It was, Sen. Jesse Helms observed, the first time a secretary of state had executed a curtsy.

"It's been our pleasure," the North Carolina Republican said as Madeleine Albright ended her 18th and probably final appearance before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

She bowed, curtsied and was clearly moved by the praise heaped on her by Helms, senior Democrat Joseph R. Biden Jr., D-Del., and other members of the committee in what was billed as a final review of President Clinton's foreign policy.

"May I ask, Sen. Biden: Is it in order if all of us give her a hand?" Helms asked with a straight face.

"I think it's in order," Biden replied.

The cavernous Dirksen Building hearing room echoed with applause.

"You have been great partners," she told the senators who oversaw and often clashed with the administration on foreign policy.

Helms noted that he and the secretary of state had "agreed to disagree agreeably."

The chairman, for instance, led the charge in blocking ratification of a treaty to ban nuclear weapons tests, an unrealized keystone of the Clinton arms control program.

And even as Clinton pursued agreement with Russia to clear the way for a U.S. anti-missile defense, Helms warned the president in March that such an initiative would be "DOA -- dead on arrival" at his committee. Clinton eventually left the decision on whether to deploy a system to his successor.

Albright made a pitch for restoration of a $2 billion cut in Clinton's request for funds on overseas spending. "Our diplomacy and our diplomats are our first line of defense," she said with the platitude that only a penny of every government dollar is used for foreign aid.

She asked Helms for his help in unlocking a string of Clinton's ambassadorial nominations that have been held up for months.

And in a rough exchange with Sen. Rod Grams, R-Minn., she was accused of failing to provide notice that the security clearance of Martin Indyk, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, had been suspended.

"It would be better to alert the committee," Grams said.

-------- MILITARY (by country)

-------- arms sales

US Plans $1.3B Arms Sale to Taiwan

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-US-Taiwan-Arms.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon said Thursday it plans a series of arms sales to Taiwan valued at $1.3 billion, including 200 supersonic air-to-air missiles and advanced military communications systems.

China, which regards Taiwan as part of the motherland, strongly opposes U.S. arms sales to the island. Under the Taiwan Relations Act, the United States is committed to providing Taiwan with defensive arms.

Like most nations, the United States has diplomatic relations with China and has promised Beijing that it will not have formal ties with Taiwan, which split with the mainland amid the communist revolution in 1949.

The Pentagon said it plans to sell to Taiwan 200 AIM-120C medium range air-to-air missiles to enhance the defensive capabilities of Taiwan's F-16 fighters. Although Taiwan has previously requested to buy this type of missile, this is the first time the Pentagon has approved it. That portion of the deal is valued at $150 million.

Congress has the authority to block any Pentagon arms sale, although such action is rare.

In written statements announcing each part of Thursday's arms sale, the Pentagon said the additional weaponry in Taiwan would ``not affect the basic military balance in the region.'' China argues that U.S. arms sales amount to interference in internal Chinese affairs and could embolden Taiwan to seek independence.

The Pentagon said it also would sell Taiwan a military communications system, known as the Improved Mobile Subscriber Equipment system, for $513 million. It will provide secure voice and data communications service to all levels of Taiwan's field military forces.

A separate package, valued at $405 million, includes 146 of the U.S.-made 155mm self-propelled howitzers, 79 M2 machine guns, 160 night vision goggles and other equipment.

Taiwan also would get 71 Harpoon anti-ship missiles and related equipment valued at $240 million.

In June, the Pentagon announced arms sales to Taiwan valued at $356 million.

-------- biological weapons

The Arms Threat

Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A22
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A24400-2000Sep26&language=printer

In his Sept. 12 news story, "Soviet-Era Work on Bioweapons Still Worrisome," Michael Dobbs outlined the challenges of responding to the threat of weapons of mass destruction in the former Soviet Union. His article highlights the need for a two-track approach.

The first track must target the elimination of weapons of mass destruction and their means of production and delivery. These efforts are succeeding. In 1991, then-Sen. Sam Nunn and I introduced legislation that led to the creation of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program. The program has assisted in the dismantling of more than 600 ballistic missiles, more than 450 missile launchers, 62 long-range bombers, 12 strategic missile submarines and 194 nuclear test tunnels. Perhaps most important, 5,014 warheads that were on delivery vehicles have been deactivated.

The second track is to redirect efforts of scientists who created the weapons and materials of mass destruction. This has proven more difficult because of the extreme limitations of the Russian economy. Distant locations, questionable infrastructure, an unreliable legal system and dismal investment prospects have frustrated attempts to cultivate viable commercial opportunities at many former Soviet weapons facilities.

The safety and security of the American people depend on our efforts to eliminate the weapons and redirect the efforts of the scientists that threatened our country during the Cold War.

It will never be easy, but we must rededicate ourselves to confronting the threat that proliferation of weapons of mass destruction poses to our country by pursuing both tracks simultaneously.

RICHARD G. LUGAR
U.S. Senator (R-Ind.)
Washington

---------

Return of a Vanished Virus

By H.R. Shepherd and Peter J. Hotez
Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A23
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A24424-2000Sep26&language=printer

We just completed a century that saw more than 65 million people die in two world wars. This toll pales, however, compared with the carnage caused by the smallpox virus. Best estimates indicate that 300 million to 500 million people died from smallpox in the 20th century--several times the number of deaths from all wars combined.

Humankind's greatest single accomplishment of the last century arguably was the eradication of smallpox. Thanks to the smallpox vaccine and a global immunization campaign, the World Health Organization certified the world smallpox-free in 1980. So vanished a virus that caused disfiguring pustular rash, internal hemorrhage and excruciating death.

Now, smallpox is back.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, many of its military secrets have been divulged. One disturbing revelation is that a Soviet biological warfare program produced millions of infectious doses of smallpox virus that still exist today. Intelligence officials and world health experts are convinced that, through black markets, the virus is in the hands of terrorist and rebel groups and possibly even lone individuals. It would be a simple exercise for any of these to mount a devastating terrorist attack with smallpox.

If it is important to prevent an attack with nuclear weapons, it is just as crucial to prevent an attack with bioweapons such as smallpox virus. Militaries, including ours, spend billions of dollars to develop and maintain "stealth" technologies, such as aircraft invisible to radar, capable of striking with little or no warning. Smallpox may be the ultimate stealth weapon. Tens of millions of smallpox virus particles will easily fit into a hand-held container. Using store-bought materials assembled into a primitive aerosol device, a terrorist could spray the virus in a public building. The microbe would be invisible and odorless, and could be unleashed without being noticed.

The consequences of an attack are starkly illustrated in a new book by bioterrorism expert Michael T. Osterholm titled "Living Terrors." Without an explosion or any sound, a terrorist attack using smallpox would go unnoticed by either security personnel or its victims. Only eight to 16 days later when victims show up in hospital emergency rooms would the magnitude of the attack become apparent. By then, it would be too late. Highly contagious, the smallpox virus from a single assault could strike hundreds of thousands of people. More than 30 percent would die. Survivors would suffer a permanent and disfiguring rash on the face.

Beyond the dreadful human consequences of a smallpox bioterrorism attack are momentous social, political and economic consequences. Hospitals are unprepared to deal with such an onslaught. The ranks of front line health care workers would be decimated by the contagion. Confidence in public institutions and elected officials would erode. We would fear going outside our homes, never knowing when and where the next invisible, lethal attack would happen. The work force and productivity would dwindle.

The United States is dangerously underprepared to combat a bioterrorist attack using smallpox. Few individuals have been vaccinated against smallpox since 1972, when eradication allowed immunization to be discontinued. And protective immunity is thought to have worn off for all but 10 to 20 percent of those who were vaccinated. Thus, approximately 90 percent of the U.S. population is susceptible to smallpox. Our stores of available vaccine are meager and inadequate to handle an outbreak.

The government has taken the first steps to prepare for and prevent such an attack. The Centers for Disease Control received funds in 1999 to develop coordinated federal, state and local plans, educate health care and public health professionals about handling such an attack, and develop and strengthen surveillance systems for early detection of outbreaks. Last week, the government ordered 40 million doses of smallpox vaccine for a stockpile. These initial steps are positive, but much more needs to be done. The smallpox vaccine stockpile should have at least 100 million doses. The estimated cost for this expansion of the stockpile is less than $100 million--cheap compared with the costs of nuclear preparedness. Serious consideration should be given to accelerating vaccine research and development for other potential bioterrorism agents.

The United States--indeed, the world--is vulnerable to a catastrophic bioterrorist attack. Production of economical and effective vaccines to prevent the calamity is feasible and would be an easily attainable countermeasure.

H. R. Shepherd is chairman of the Albert B. Sabin Vaccine Institute, a nonprofit education and research institute based in New Canaan, Conn. Peter J. Hotez, M.D., Ph.D., is an institute adviser and chair of the Department of Microbiology and Tropical Diseases at the George Washington University Medical Center.

-------- colombia

Colombia Air Force Denies Using U.S. Bomb in 1998 Civilian Deaths

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
Associated Press
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970008330188044151.htm

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Fueling charges of a military cover-up in the 1998 bombing deaths of 16 villagers, a Federal Bureau of Investigation analysis has found that fragments from the site matched a type of bomb that Washington has provided to the Colombian air force.

The finding, contained in a ballistics report seen by The Associated Press, would appear to cast doubt on claims by the Colombian air force that the deadly explosion in Santo Domingo was caused by a truck bomb set by leftist guerrillas.

Responding to the FBI analysis, a Colombian air force commander claimed Monday that rebels planted the bomb fragments at the scene in an attempt to frame the military.

The controversy puts the Colombian military's already tarnished reputation into further question at a time when Washington is vastly increasing military aid to this South American country.

Villagers and their lawyers, citing eyewitness accounts, claim the air force dropped a bomb on the hamlet of Santo Domingo, near the country's eastern border with Venezuela, killing 16 villagers, including six children.

Troops at the time were battling guerrillas in nearby fields, and the air force itself acknowledges helicopters fired rockets and machine guns as close as six-tenths of a mile to Santo Domingo, a strip of about two dozen wooden houses and a gas station straddling a paved country road.

The FBI report, given to Colombian investigators in May, says fragments found at the scene of the Dec. 13, 1998 blast are "consistent with" a 20-pound AN-M41 bomb designed in the United States. The bomb is meant to be dropped from at least 400 feet.

An FBI spokesman, Paul Bresson, verified Tuesday that the report seen by the AP was produced by the FBI and confirmed its contents.

Colombia's military has received that type of bomb from the U.S. government, which is dramatically increasingly support for Colombia's military as part of a $1.3 billion anti-drug aid package.

Three members of a Colombian helicopter crew face possible homicide charges in the case in a military court.

But in an interview Monday, acting Air Force Commander Gen. Jairo Garcia said rebels set off the explosion with a truck bomb and later planted the bomb fragments at the scene.

"It was a tail piece they had for some time and placed it there, a very old and rusted tail section," Gen. Garcia said.

While not disputing that the FBI had correctly identified the bomb parts, Gen. Garcia said the Air Force has not used the AN-M41 bomb for at least five years.

Gen. Garcia also dismissed a report by Colombia's Medical Forensic Institute concluding that shrapnel found in bodies could not have come from a car bomb. He said medical examiners were unqualified to make that judgment.

The U.S. Embassy has confirmed that the Washington donated or sold to Colombia all seven of the aircraft used during the fighting near Santo Domingo, including two Black Hawk helicopters.

A U.S. lawmaker opposed to military aid to Colombia was suspicious.

"We don't know yet whether or not this was a tragic accident. But it does appear that there has been an attempt to cover up what happened by the Colombian military," Sen. Patrick Leahy (D.,Vt.) said Monday.

Citing the FBI report, Sen. Leahy has demanded explanations from the State Department, and suggested that human rights restrictions placed on U.S. military aid to Colombia have been violated.

---

New York Times
September 27, 2000
Metro Briefings
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/nyregion/27MBRF.html

MANHATTAN: COLOMBIAN EXTRADITED A man has been extradited from Colombia and accused of the murder of Donald E. Pagani Sr., a retired New York City police detective. The United State's attorney's office said yesterday that the man, Nelson Baez, is believed to be a member of the Restrepo Organization, a Colombian gang that robbed many criminal and legitimate businesses, including drug dealers and jewelers. The killing of Mr. Pagani occurred during an August 1999 armed robbery of a meat company in the Bronx. (NYT)

-------- drug war

New York Times
September 27, 2000
World Briefing
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27BRIE.html

THE AMERICAS

MEXICO: DRUG ARREST A former director of the federal highway police, Enrique Harari Garduńo, is under arrest in a continuing investigation of officials linked to the Juárez drug cartel, the police said. Mr. Harari Garduńo is accused of receiving more than $1 million and using military vehicles to transport drugs, said Wilfrido Robledo, the drug enforcement agency chief. Tim Weiner

-------- iraq

Nations Reach Deal on Iraq Compensation Funds

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By BARBARA CROSSETTE
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/continuous/28CND-SANC.html

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 27 - In a concession to nations seeking to soften rigid restrictions on Iraq, the Clinton administration agreed today to reduce the money set aside to compensate victims of Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. In return, Russia and France will allow a disputed reparations claim of $15.9 billion to be paid to the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.

The consensus agreement, to go into effect in December, is expected to be announced on Thursday at a meeting of the Iraq compensation commission in Geneva. The deal allows Washington to avoid a showdown vote in the commission that would further widen divisions among the five permanent members of the Security Council, with the United States and Britain on one side and France, Russia and possibly China on the other.

The Iraqi compensation commission has the same membership as the 15-nation Security Council, where the United States has lost broad support for its overall Iraq policy and is now seeing it being whittled away on several fronts.

Some United Nations officials and diplomats in Geneva, where the commission is based, say that the United States had the votes to win the battle on the Kuwait claim, as American diplomats were predicting they would. Both sides decided, however, to go for a political compromise.

"We were willing to go to a vote if we had to," said Ambassador James B. Cunningham, the deputy chief representative of the United States here and the envoy who handles the Iraq issue in the Security Council. "But this is one of the remaining processes that works well that was set up under the sanctions and compensation regime. Going to a vote after a long period of taking decisions by consensus would in a way open up the process to a spirit of contention that hasn't existed up until now."

Decisions in the commission have been made by experts in international law, Mr. Cunningham said in an interview, adding that the panel "should just get on doing its work without dragging in the political differences that we know we have."

Since the oil-sales program went into effect in 1996, 30 percent of the money Iraq earns from its supervised exports has been earmarked for reparations, and more than $8 billion has been paid in claims. Under today's agreement, the money set aside will be reduced to 25 percent in December, when a new phase of the "oil for food" program begins. The level will be reviewed again in six months.

Until 1995, Iraq rejected the oil-sales plan and the only money available for reparations was in Iraqi funds frozen abroad, most of them inaccessible.

Because of high oil prices and the removal last year of all restrictions on how much oil Iraq can sell, there is now much more money available to the fund. Coincidentally at the same time, the compensation commission, having disposed of many smaller claims, is now dealing with the largest ones, among them those from oil companies.

Russia and France had objected to the payment of large claims to Kuwait while Iraqi civilians were still suffering the effects of sanctions. Under the agreement today, money saved from the reduction in the compensation commission's share will be funneled into specific relief or rehabilitation projects still to be decided, an American diplomat said.

The deal was struck just as more nations prepared to send flights to Baghdad in contravention of a longstanding air embargo on Iraq. Today, Royal Jordanian became the first Arab country in more than a decade to send a passenger airliner to Baghdad's newly reopened airport. Iceland has approved a flight, and France and Russia plan to send more planes after initial flights over the last two weeks. India is also thinking of joining the movement to force open the skies over Iraq.

For most of these flights, including the one from Jordan, governments have followed the rules and notified the Security Council, saying that the intention is to deliver relief goods, which are permitted to enter Iraq with council approval. But the notification process has been reduced to something of a fiction in recent days in the face of multiple flights carrying avowedly anti-sanctions delegations.

Many diplomats here seem to accept that the air embargo - always honored though frequently disputed because of differing readings of the legalistic language governing it - is now at an end.

"We're very concerned about this and we've been very vocal about it," Mr. Cunningham said today. "We think this is a very unfortunate development and it's not in keeping with the resolution, and we'll have to go back and try to reestablish some degree of coherence in how we go about implementing the resolution."

The Clinton administration, with only four months remaining before it is replaced by a new administration, is now fighting to salvage its Iraqi policy here with Richard C. Holbrooke, the chief American representative, absent from the fray. Other council members say that Mr. Holbrooke may not want to associate himself with a policy that was inflexible and may be doomed in the face of worldwide criticism because of its effects on ordinary Iraqis.

Mr. Holbrooke has said repeatedly that he has other crucial jobs to do, first among them is to win agreement for a reduction in American dues to the United Nations. In Washington, administration officials, including Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, argue that the Iraqi leadership, not sanctions, is largely to blame for Iraqi suffering.

The ban on air travel, one of a host of restrictions imposed on Iraq, was a major irritant for Iraqi officials, who had to travel in and out of the country overland through Jordan. United Nations officials and diplomats also had to make the daylong desert trek from Amman to Baghdad and back. Rare exceptions were made by the Security Council for United Nations arms inspectors, who could fly in from Bahrain, and for Secretary General Kofi Annan, when he flew to Baghdad on a plane belonging to the president of France in February 1998.

France and Russia now say they never accepted that there was a passenger air embargo, and that only cargo flights were prohibited. But the de facto ban was never flouted until this month.

---

New York Times
September 27, 2000
World Briefing
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27BRIE.html

IRAQ: CRUMBLING EMBARGO Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright expressed concern to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee about recent French and Russian flights to Iraq, which have severely weakened the longstanding ban on air traffic to Baghdad. France, which allowed an antisanctions group to fly from Paris last week, has approved a second flight. Jordan may become the first Arab nation to violate the ban, officials said in Amman. Barbara Crossette (NYT)

-------- korea

After Pact on Rebuilt Railway, Two Koreas Plan More Talks

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By HOWARD W. FRENCH
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27KORE.html

CHEJU, South Korea, Sept. 26 - North and South Korea agreed today to a limited reopening of the demilitarized zone that separates the countries to repair a railway link that has been severed for more than 50 years.

The agreement, announced at the first talks between the two sides' defense ministers since the Korean War, is the highest level confirmation of the reconciliation between the two countries since a summit meeting in June in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital.

Seeming to overcome the initial reticence of the North to include anything other than rail reconstruction on the agenda for these talks, the defense ministers, Gen. Kim Il Chol for the North and Cho Seong Tae for the South, agreed to "working level" military talks. Those talks are to start next month, followed in November by a second round of ministerial meetings in Pyongyang.

Lt. Gen. Kim Hee Sang, a spokesman for the South Korean defense forces, said the two sides had agreed to discuss in the future meetings the creation of a hot line that would link the two military commands. South Korea had also pushed for mutual notification of major troop movements and for observations of each other's military exercises.

At another meeting held simultaneously in Seoul, finance ministers from both countries reached an accord on legal protections for South Korean companies that invest in the economically devastated North. Additionally, South Korea said it would provide the North with 600,000 tons of food aid, in loans, in the next year. The aid, worth $97 million, is the latest of several grants of economic assistance from the South since the two countries' presidents met in June.

Reopening the long-severed railway has emerged as one of the reconciliation's few potential short-term economic payoffs for the South. Seoul has already committed $444.8 million to repair the track and build a 12- mile-long highway across the four- mile-wide DMZ. Cooperation from the North Korean military is indispensable, though, because the four- mile-wide area has up to one million land mines.

"Getting these links open would be a big boost to the process of reconciliation," one diplomat said. "It would prove there is a real willingness to work on common problems, and furthermore it would give South Korea its first land link with the rest of Asia."

-------- u.n.

New York Times
September 27, 2000
World Briefing
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27BRIE.html

EAST TIMOR: U.N. SKIRMISH United Nations peacekeeping forces shot and killed a pro-Jakarta militia member in a clash in East Timor, which voted to become independent from Indonesia last year. Meanwhile the militia groups, accused of killing three United Nations aid workers, demanded the return of more than 1,000 weapons surrendered over the weekend. Calvin Sims (NYT)

CYPRUS: U.N. AIDE HOPEFUL Talks about the future of Cyprus "are beginning to break new ground," a United Nations official, Álvaro de Soto, said in New York. After two weeks of separate talks with the Greek Cypriot leader, Glafcos Clerides, and his Turkish counterpart, Rauf Denktash, Mr. de Soto said that the decades-old dispute seemed to be moving toward a settlement. Talks resume in November. Barbara Crossette (NYT)

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Joint Chiefs Chairman to Warn of Defense Dilemma

By Roberto Suro
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A21
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A23875-2000Sep26&language=printer

The Pentagon's top brass will testify on Capitol Hill today that the next president should either adopt a less ambitious view of the U.S. military's role in the world or endorse huge increases in defense spending, according to officials familiar with the testimony.

Gen. Henry H. Shelton, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, argues in prepared testimony already circulating in Congress and the White House that front-line fighting units are no longer declining in readiness, thanks to recent budget increases. But Shelton warns that vastly higher spending will be necessary over the next several years to maintain current capabilities.

The testimony by Shelton and the chiefs of the four uniformed services appears to contain some good news, and some bad news, for each of the leading presidential nominees. Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the Republican, will find ammunition for his argument that building up the military should be a top priority for the next administration. Vice President Gore, the Democrat, will get support for his claims that Bush is exaggerating the Pentagon's problems.

Both candidates, however, may suffer sticker-shock when they start to add up the cost of the military's wish list. Although Shelton does not give a bottom-line figure in his prepared testimony, he cites needs that easily could add $50 billion or more a year to annual Pentagon spending of about $286 billion, according to officials familiar with his testimony.

Boosting the Pentagon budget by that much would require both candidates to rethink domestic programs--such as a Medicare prescription drug benefit--that have been the most contested battleground in the campaign.

Shelton and the service chiefs will argue that the strategy behind current defense structures and spending plans was developed in 1997 and is outdated. The worst-case scenario in current plans is fighting both North Korea and Iraq more or less at the same time, or what the military calls two overlapping "major theater wars." In recent years, the military has tried to remain ready for a pair of such conflicts, even as it conducts major peacekeeping operations in the Balkans and dozens of other small-scale missions around the world.

All of the extra work is wearing out equipment and personnel faster than expected, requiring increased spending just to hold military readiness at current levels, the Pentagon says. As a result, budget increases that have boosted Pentagon spending by about $25 billion over the past two years have barely stemmed declining readiness in the fighting forces, according to Shelton's testimony.

The next president will have to decide whether to keep the two-war strategy, which would require added spending, and whether to continue the fast pace of other missions, which would require still more forces, weaponry and money for operations and maintenance, Shelton's planned testimony says.

The military will offer the new administration its own view on the proper match of strategy and military forces next spring, when it completes the Quadrennial Defense Review, an extensive analysis of capabilities and missions that is delivered at the start of each presidential term.

Shelton's testimony is expected to suggest that military leaders still favor the two-war strategy as a matter of prudence, and that the Pentagon views some peacekeeping duties and small interventions as an important way to assert U.S. national interests and prevent crises, such as the Serbian campaign against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo last year, from becoming full-blown regional conflicts.

The hearing today, called by the Senate Armed Services Committee, initially appeared to be an effort by congressional Republicans to have the military buttress Bush's claims that the Clinton administration had allowed the armed services to decay. Public opinion surveys show that Bush is scoring well with this approach among voters who rank military strength as a high priority. In the meantime, Bush has offered only a few specific proposals on the military, and his campaign has said a complete defense plan will be developed only after the election, if Bush wins.

In the chiefs' testimony, Bush will find the cost of his campaign promises escalating. The Republican advocates new pay raises and health benefits for the military, as well as a much larger national missile defense system than the one proposed by the Clinton administration. Shelton will argue that in each of these areas Congress and the administration will have to provide additional funds rather than expect the military to find the money from other programs for them.

While Bush has argued that the military is overextended, Gore backs a policy of "forward engagement" that would continue the frequent use of the armed forces as a key foreign policy tool. Shelton's testimony will buttress Bush's claim that multiple missions overseas are sapping military readiness, highlighting the need for substantial increases in spending to pay for military activism.

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Albright frustrated by allies

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
By David Sands THE WASHINGTON TIMES
http://208.246.212.80/world/default-200092721536.htm

Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright expressed growing frustration yesterday as an increasing number of allies mounted challenges to U.N. sanctions against Iraq.

Following the lead of France and Russia, the government of Jordan today plans to dispatch a plane carrying government officials, lawmakers and doctors to Baghdad in what Jordanian officials are calling a "solidarity flight" to assess the humanitarian situation in Iraq a decade after the economic sanctions were imposed.

Critics of the U.N. embargo say it deprives the Iraqi people of desperately needed medical help, food and other basic items.

France plans its second flight in seven days to the Iraqi capital on Friday, and India, Iceland and Syria have also said they are ready to challenge a strict interpretation of the U.N. ban favored by the United States and Britain.

"We are concerned that people can't seem to get the facts straight on Iraq," Mrs. Albright told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday.

"I know there is a great deal of compassion for the Iraqi people," she said. "We have compassion for them. It is [Iraqi leader] Saddam Hussein who does not have compassion for his own people."

Mrs. Albright conceded that administering the Iraq embargo is "complicated," and several allies have argued that the flights do not violate U.N. rules so long as the panel overseeing the sanctions is notified in advance.

"We have to make our point that these flights need approval, and we will continue to press on this," Mrs. Albright said. The U.S. government has complained directly to France, Russia and Jordan, she said.

Mrs. Albright's remarks came during a hearing that otherwise had the feel of a valedictory address in a committee room where she has testified 18 times.

The secretary, who has enjoyed an effusively cordial relationship with committee Chairman Jesse A. Helms, even as she has clashed fiercely with the North Carolina Republican over policy, faced only gentle questioning and was given a round of applause by the senators at the hearing's conclusion.

When the nation's first-ever female secretary of state rose to acknowledge the ovation, Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., Delaware Democrat, observed: "Surely no secretary of state has ever curtseyed to this committee before."

With just months to go in her tenure, the secretary touched on a number of issues, including:

• Russia. Prodded by Mr. Helms over President Vladimir Putin's record on human rights, respect for democracy and the war in Chechnya, she credited the administration's engagement policy with Russia with reducing the danger from the nuclear arsenal inherited from the Soviet Union.

She said the administration believed Mr. Putin's March 26 election victory was legitimate and reflected a popular desire for order, but added: "We have to watch carefully that it's 'order' with a small 'o' and not 'Order' with a capital 'O'."

• The State Department's budget. Mrs. Albright again appealed to lawmakers to approve President Clinton's full $22 billion request for foreign operations, saying congressional proposals to cut $2 billion would harm U.S. efforts on peacekeeping, debt relief, promoting trade and funding international financial institutions.

"You can't cut this much out of our budget," Mrs. Albright argued. "Our diplomacy and our diplomats are the first line of defense, and I think we underfund them at our own jeopardy."

• Yugoslavia. Just hours before Yugoslav officials announced a presidential runoff vote would be needed next month, Mrs. Albright voiced the strongest American criticism to date of President Slobodan Milosevic's conduct in Sunday's voting.

"Despite threats from Milosevic's thugs, the opposition waged a courageous campaign for change, and now they have won a sweeping endorsement at all levels from the Serb people," she said. "The authorities in Belgrade used every trick in the book to rig the election and distort the results, but they have fooled no one."

Despite her comments on Iraq, Mrs. Albright said the United States was not prepared to impose penalties and foreign aid restrictions available under U.S. law to countries like Russia that have approved flights to Baghdad.

"We give assistance to Russia because it's in our national interest," she said.

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U.N. aide fears West Africa blowup

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
World Scene Combined dispatches and staff reports
http://208.246.212.80/world/worldscene-2000927214643.htm

MONROVIA, Liberia - A top U.N. human rights official voiced concern yesterday over the tensions engulfing three neigboring West African countries - Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Assistant High Commissioner Soren Jessen-Petersen of the U.N. High Commission on Human Rights (UNHCR) warned of "an explosion with devastating consequences" within the Mano River Union, a customs and economic grouping of the three countries.

His visit was part of a tour that has also taken him to Sierra Leone and Guinea.

-------- u.s.

Military in Struggle for Resources but Ready to Fight, Officials Say

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By STEVEN LEE MYERS and ERIC SCHMITT
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/national/27MILI.html

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 - The nation's senior commanders will warn Congress on Wednesday that the armed services are struggling with aging equipment, shortages in spare parts and shortfalls in training that will require billions of dollars in new spending, officials said today.

Gen. Henry H. Shelton, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the commanders of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, will argue that the nation's front-line combat forces remain ready to fight.

But they will also warn that the readiness of some support units has fallen, despite two years of budget increases approved by President Clinton and Congress, officials familiar with the planned testimony said today.

Beyond the state of today's military, the chiefs will also focus on tomorrow's forces. They plan to argue that the Pentagon's procurement budget - the money for new weapons and equipment - has not risen quickly enough to begin replacing aging weapons and equipment built during the 1980's.

The chiefs' testimony comes as a highly charged political debate rages about the American military, and the officials said the warnings would offer ammunition to both sides.

Their argument that readiness remains high among combat forces undercuts accusations from some Republicans, including Gov. George W. Bush of Texas, that American military might is fraying.

At the same time, their warnings about other readiness problems and aging weapons echo many made recently by Mr. Bush and by other military officials.

The officials said that the chiefs would use Wednesday's hearings to start making the case for increases in spending and the size of the force, now at 1.4 million troops, though they might not propose specific figures.

While the Clinton administration has raised the procurement budget to $60 billion, from $43 billion three years ago, the chiefs believe they need $70 billion or more as new weapons arrive in the years ahead, a senior military official said. Others have suggested the figure should rise to nearly $100 billion.

"We've got an aging force structure - in terms of airplanes, ships, tanks, et cetera - where obsolescence will start to come into play," an official familiar with the chiefs' planned testimony said today.

"If we don't accelerate the pace of replacing ships and airplanes," the official added, "we are not going to maintain the steady-state requirements to keep the age of the force at the current level - not to mention modernizing it."

Debates over the Pentagon's budget have always been political, but the hearings before the armed service committees of the House and the Senate on Wednesday are expected to cast this year's debate in an increasingly partisan hue.

Congress has already adopted a $295 billion military budget for the fiscal year that begins on Sunday, and President Clinton has signed it.

That has prompted administration officials to complain that scheduling the hearings before Election Day was simply a partisan effort to force the chiefs into voicing readiness concerns raised by Mr. Bush and his running mate, Dick Cheney.

Senator Carl M. Levin of Michigan, the senior Democrat on the Senate's armed services committee, said he had urged that the hearing be postponed until after the election, only to be overruled by the committee's Republican chairman, Senator John W. Warner of Virginia.

"I don't think we should put the chiefs in a position where they're caught in a political crossfire," Mr. Levin said. "I don't know how it's avoided in this setting, given the timing."

Still, the chiefs appear intent on using the hearings as a platform to begin making a case for increased spending by the new administration, regardless of who wins in November.

Both major-party candidates have proposed increasing military spending. Mr. Bush has called for $45 billion more over the next decade; Vice President Al Gore has gone even further, proposing the spending of another $80 billion over the same period.

While the officials said the chiefs had not yet completed specific budget requests, it was clear that the shortfalls they planned to cite would cost more to fill than the $4.5 billion and $8 billion annually that the two candidates have proposed.

"The chiefs' appetite will be larger than anybody can satisfy," a senior military official said today. "We are going higher, but they want to go higher still."

The current debate over the military's readiness - and its budget - began two years ago, when the chiefs at the time appeared at similar hearings and warned that the reductions in forces and spending after the cold war had left them strapped.

At the time, President Clinton proposed increasing Pentagon spending by $112 billion over six years. With added financing from Congress and emergency supplements to cover peacekeeping operations like those in Kosovo, the Pentagon's budget is now projected to grow by nearly $160 billion, rising from $295 billion in the newly adopted budget to $332 billion by 2005.

With the spending debate intensifying, the administration recently added another $19.5 billion to future Pentagon budgets.

The officials said the chiefs would emphasize steady improvements in readiness, citing gains in morale, among other things, following increases in pay and benefits. One official said that the real impact would be felt in the year ahead as spare parts and other equipment the budget increases paid for began reaching bases around the country.

The chiefs, though, are expected to argue that current readiness continues to face strains because of the high pace of operations overseas, which forces the services to give a lower priority to forces that are not deployed.

One official said that a fighter wing based in Italy, for example, can maintain peak performance, but it comes at the cost for readiness by similar units in the United States, which must make do with scarce parts and less money for training.

In recent weeks, senior military officers have warned of readiness problems. In testimony before a subcommittee last week, the Army said it needed $4.6 billion to buy new weapons, from Abrams tanks to Apache helicopters. The Navy's inspector general warned in a report released last week that the readiness of the service's aircraft had declined because of shortages in spare parts and training.

As he stepped down as commander of forces in the Persian Gulf in August, Gen. Anthony C. Zinni warned of growing strains on American troops. In an interview he, too, warned that the military was stretching the life of aging equipment - a point the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. James L. Jones, is expected to make on Wednesday.

"I climbed in a CH-46 helicopter when I was a lieutenant in Vietnam," General Zinni said. "My son is a lieutenant and he climbs into the same helicopter."

With increasing warnings about readiness from the senior ranks, Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen met with the chiefs early this month and cautioned them not to use politically charged debate as a means to argue for raising their budgets.

The Pentagon's spokesman, Kenneth H. Bacon, said that Mr. Cohen told them "not to beat the drum with a tin cup in hand to try to generate more pressure for defense spending but, on the other hand, to talk honestly about pressures they face."

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Commanders Ask Congress for Increase in Spending

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By STEVEN LEE MYERS
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/continuous/28CND-MILIT.html

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27 - The nation's senior military commanders told Congress today that the armed services needed an increase in defense spending that would exceed what has been proposed by either major presidential candidate and would consume a large part of the budget surplus.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Henry H. Shelton, and the chiefs of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps testified before the House and Senate that aging weapons and equipment were threatening to erode military readiness and that only an infusion of dollars would sustain American military might in the future.

Although the chiefs did not formally propose increases, they offered estimates, when pressed, of what they believed they would need.

Gen. James L. Jones, Commandant of the Marine Corps, said $1.5 billion a year was needed over the next seven years to make a "modern Marine Corps." Gen. Eric K. Shinseki of the Army called for an increase of $10 billion. The chiefs of the Navy and Air Force went further, calling for increases of $20 billion to $30 billion a year - much of it for purchasing new aircraft, ships and other weapons.

"We must find the resources necessary to modernize the force," General Shelton told members of the Senate's Armed Services Committee this morning.

Today's hearings - in the midst of a presidential race in which the state of the American military has been hotly disputed - had little to do with current Pentagon spending since the budget for the next fiscal year has already been passed and signed. Instead, the chiefs outlined what amounted to their argument over how to use the nation's surplus.

Coincidentally, President Clinton announced at the White House this morning that the federal government had a record surplus of $230 billion for the fiscal year that ends on Saturday.

Earlier this month, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would cost $50 billion a year more than current spending to sustain the military at roughly the same size it is today. While Pentagon officials disputed the report's methods, the chiefs today largely endorsed its findings, saying that for years they had diverted money from new weapons to pay for current operations.

What went unspoken at today's hearings before the armed services committees of the Senate and House, where members are generally more supportive of defense spending, was how that defense spending would absorb much of the estimated budget surpluses over the next five years, leaving little else for tax cuts and other spending programs that politicians on both sides support.

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Shelton warns military is underprepared to fight two wars

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
By Bill Gertz
http://208.246.212.80/national/default-2000927235725.htm

The decline in combat readiness in U.S. military forces has increased the danger that fighting two major wars could result in greater casualties and lost territory, according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Gen. Henry H. Shelton stated in testimony prepared for delivery before the Senate Armed Services Committee today that front-line forces remain capable of carrying out the national strategy of fighting two major regional wars at nearly the same time.

"But as I have consistently testified, the risk associated with the most demanding scenario has increased over the past several years," Gen. Shelton stated.

Specifically, the risks of fighting one major war are viewed as "moderate" while the dangers associated with an additional conflict are viewed as "high," the general said.

The four-star general said the military needs more money to fix the problems and the exact amount will be set after the four-year defense posture review is completed next year.

U.S. forces still would prevail in the two-war scenario but "it would take us longer to respond to hostilities" and "this can mean territory lost and the potential for a longer fight with increased casualties," he said.

A copy of Gen. Shelton's testimony was obtained by The Washington Times. The testimony echoed his testimony before Congress last year and a recent Pentagon report on military preparedness problems.

The combat preparedness problems reported by the services and joint war-fighting commands include shortfalls in "manning, training, and equipment readiness for several years . . .," Gen. Shelton said.

Most of the problems are with forces used as reinforcements or support functions. Still, "some forward deployed" and "first-to-fight" forces - though ready - also have experienced some of these difficulties, Gen. Shelton said.

Past funding increases and efforts by the services to arrest the decline are starting to work and the situation is improving "in most cases," he said.

Aside from the problems with the military services, the war-fighting commands have reported deficiencies and shortfalls with command and control, intelligence and reconnaissance, transportation, defenses against terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, and information operations, Gen. Shelton said.

Other key problems are "stresses on the force from ongoing contingency operations; and the ability to disengage quickly from ongoing operations to meet timelines for a two [major-theater-war scenario]," he said.

The testimony supports charges by Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush and vice-presidential candidate Richard B. Cheney that U.S. forces are in decline.

Gen. Shelton stated that the ability of the U.S. military to sustain material and equipment over the long term is "slipping" because of increased operations, such as peacekeeping in the Balkans and the enforcement of air exclusion zones over Iraq.

He stated that "we will need additional funding from the administration and Congress" to fix the readiness problem and modernize the force "so that when we place our men and women in uniform in harm's way they continue to have substantial technological advantages."

Army Gen. Eric Shinseki, the Army's top officer, also will tell the committee today that the Army plans to revise its standards used to measure combat readiness. The plans were drawn up after two U.S. Army divisions were declared unprepared for combat in November because of extended peacekeeping in the Balkans.

Meanwhile, defense officials said the service chiefs are preparing to ask Congress to add up to 50,000 more troops to the armed forces, which now number about 1.4 million people.

The officials stated that the Army wants to add up to 40,000 soldiers and the Air Force would like 10,000 more airmen. The Marine Corps also is seeking a boost in the number of Marines. The Navy will keep its number of sailors at 375,000.

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Pentagon kills proposal to let Navy buy foreign-built ships

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
By Rowan Scarborough
http://208.246.212.80/national/default-2000927232323.htm

The Pentagon said yesterday it has killed a proposal from its acquisition office that would have allowed the Navy to buy support ships from foreign builders.

Rear Adm. Craig Quigley, a Pentagon spokesman, said the idea is "emphatically not" endorsed by Defense Secretary William S. Cohen or other senior leaders.

"People in the building in various levels come up with ideas all the time," Adm. Quigley said. "But in this case, there is no intention to move that forward from here."

Members of Congress vehemently objected to the idea, first disclosed yesterday in The Washington Times.

The Times reported that Pentagon acquisition officials drafted a legislative proposal to change current law and allow the defense secretary to authorize the purchase of auxiliary ships abroad. A ban on foreign-built combat ships would remain in place.

The unsigned draft memo defends the change as a way to increase competition and foster new relationships with U.S. allies. A Pentagon official briefed ship contractors on the proposal Sept. 6.

"[The Defense Department] is 'vetting' proposed statutory changes to domestic source restrictions that it intends to include in its legislative package," the memo says. "The proposed changes would expand the authority of the secretary of defense to grant domestic source limitation waivers on an increased number of different items that would include certain classes of ships."

Lawmakers from ship-producing states moved quickly to kill the idea before it ever reached Congress. Any change would require congressional approval.

Rep. Duncan Hunter, California Republican, sent letters to the Senate and House Armed Services chairmen. Mr. Hunter urged Sen. John W. Warner, Virginia Republican, and Rep. Floyd D. Spence, South Carolina Republican, to add language to the pending defense authorization bill that would state Congress' strong opposition.

"I believe this proposal would have a devastating impact on our shipbuilding industrial base," Mr. Hunter of San Diego wrote. "With the Pentagon building on average only six ships per year for the past eight years, our six remaining shipyards are operating well below their production capability. Allowing naval support vessels to be built overseas would likely result in additional shipyard closures. I believe a further erosion of our shipbuilding industrial base is a clear threat to our national security."

San Diego is home to National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. National, along with Avondale Industries in New Orleans, are the country's two principal builders of Navy auxiliary ships.

Sen. Charles S. Robb, Virginia Democrat and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wrote to Mr. Cohen yesterday urging him to kill the idea. Virginia is home to Newport News Shipbuilding Inc.

"Several of my Senate colleagues and I are eager to help the Navy find the resources to adequately fund its near and long-term ship construction requirements, but I cannot accept the idea that we must do so at the peril of America's high quality, competitive and affordable shipbuilding industry," Mr. Robb wrote. "I urge you to reject any proposal to send Navy ship construction to foreign shipyards - it is operationally unnecessary and the risk to our industrial base is apparent."

The Navy is said to have been unaware of the proposal and is expected to oppose it. Jacques Gansler, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, is said to deny any knowledge of the proposal.

The American Shipbuilding Association, which represents the country's six defense shipyards, wrote Mr. Cohen on Sept. 20, asking him to kill the proposal first circulated in the Pentagon in August. The association said the number of defense shipyards already has shrunk from 21 to six as the Navy's average annual buy of ships dipped from 19 in the 1980s to six.

"The bill would be absolutely devastating to our business," said James C. Scott, vice president for marketing at National Steel. He said the 3,000-employee company is now building roll-on, roll-off transport ships and plans to bid this Friday on the TADC(X), the next-generation resupply ship.

Rep. David Vitter, Louisiana Republican, also wrote to Mr. Cohen yesterday.

"With just six shipbuilders left for the armed forces, this is just crazy," Mr. Vitter, whose district includes Avondale workers, said in an interview.

"We would probably go down to four shipyards, and that makes our ability to build up forces in a moment of crisis virtually impossible. We would be at the whim of other governments and other economies to build up forces in a time of crisis. That would absolutely put us at a severe disadvantage."

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Defense memo ordered staff to rebut Schwarzkopf

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
By Rowan Scarborough
http://208.246.212.80/national/default-2000927232634.htm

Pentagon civilian employees were ordered in a memo to come up with data to rebut statements by retired Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf that military readiness dropped during President Clinton's watch.

The urgent Aug. 3 memo went to 17 workers in the Pentagon office concerned with personnel and readiness the day after the Desert Storm commander spoke to the Republican National Convention via satellite from a decommissioned battleship.

The memo asked them to assemble - in a matter of hours -data on quality of life issues and said the importance of the task was "high."

The memo has raised questions among some Defense Department workers as to whether the order injected presidential politics into what is supposed to be a nonpartisan office. The Pentagon denies the charge.

The memo explicitly mobilizes civilians to gather data that only supports one point of view - the White House's and, by extension, that of Vice President Al Gore. The memo does not ask for any information that would support the criticisms made by Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush.

The order asks that data immediately be sent to Victor Vasquez, deputy assistant secretary of defense for personnel, support, families and education.

The memo, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Times, is titled, "Reclama [response] to Schwarzkopf/ Republican claim that military Qol [quality of life] is worse today."

The memo stated: "The front office has asked for information by COB [close of business] today to rebut Republican convention statements that the military's Qol is worse today than it was 10 years ago (or during the current administration's leadership watch.) Please send bullets to me for Mr. Vasquez to review by 1400 [2 p.m.]. Focus on achievements, funding figures, all Qol [quality of life] measures, per capita, etc. Thanks in advance for your timely reply."

A follow-up memo carries the notation "negative replies are required," which means Mr. Vasquez wanted to ensure that everyone saw the request and attempted to find data. If no data turned up, the employee was required to respond.

A Pentagon spokesman yesterday defended the memo. He said that during "this partisan atmosphere" the Pentagon has stayed out of the presidential debate. But it believed Gen. Schwarzkopf uttered errors in facts that had to be corrected.

Mr. Vasquez issued a statement to The Times:

"I felt that retired Gen. Schwarzkopf had it very wrong in several areas. I felt that our current DOD team - civilian and uniformed military - had accomplished much more than it was being given credit for. So to set the record straight, I asked my staff to gather specific, factual data to rebut. I would have done the same to correct the record no matter who was making these statements."

Some defense workers familiar with the memo said it seemed to be politically motivated because it only requested information supportive of Mr. Gore, the Democratic candidate.

"When an executive branch employee orders subordinates to gin up data to support one political candidate over another, this is unconscionable and beyond the pale," said a Pentagon employee, who asked not to be named. "[The memo writer] clearly forgot [his] salary is paid by our citizens, not by the Democratic Party."

Since Mr. Bush raised military preparedness as the campaign issue, the debate has permeated the Pentagon. The top brass fret over publicly discussing the issue, fearful they could offend Republicans or the White House - depending on how they describe the problem.

The anonymous Pentagon official said that since the campaign began "I have seen similar efforts to spin the facts in such a way as to hide the truth. Instead of saying 'give us data to help the VP,' we are told to 'provide data to show that things are getting better over the last two years, which ignores the fact that things hit rock bottom four years ago; hence, the only way to go was up."

The Joint Chiefs of Staff are scheduled to testify today before the Senate and House Armed Services committees. It was roughly two years ago that the chiefs of the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy acknowledged before the same committees that combat readiness had slipped severely and asked for billions of dollars in new funds.

Military analysts blame the drop-off on the fact the defense budget came down sharply in the 1990s at the same time Mr. Clinton sent U.S. troops on a peacetime record number of peacekeeping and war missions.

Officers complain of old equipment, poor housing, scarce spare parts, lack of training time and difficulty retaining top personnel.

Defense Secretary William S. Cohen said yesterday the chiefs are free to speak their minds.

"The only instructions that I've given to the members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is to go up and tell the members of Congress what the facts are," Mr. Cohen said. "They are free to say exactly what they feel is necessary in order to protect the American people's national security interests."

He said that combined increases proposed by Mr. Clinton and Congress will boost defense spending by $180 billion the next five years.

"There are still things that need to be done," the defense secretary said. "I think the chiefs will testify that we have addressed some of the readiness concerns. We have addressed the issue of the procurement needs. . . . I think that they will indicate that more will have to be done in the future to address real property maintenance and infrastructure, and that we will need to address some of the shortfalls that they will identify."

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Albright: Revoking Indyk's clearance necessary

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
By David Sands
http://208.246.212.80/world/default-2000927215435.htm

Revoking the security clearance of America's ambassador to Israel was personally painful but necessary because of the severity of the potential security breach, Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright said yesterday.

In her first public comments on the latest embarrassing security lapse to hit her department, Mrs. Albright defended the handling of the case of Ambassador Martin Indyk, effectively sidelined from his post in Israel late last week amid charges he may have kept classified notes and data on unprotected personal computers.

"I did have the opportunity to overturn [the suspension], and it was very difficult," Mrs. Albright told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday.

"Ambassador Indyk is a good friend, and I respect his work highly," she said. "But I also believe that the governmentwide security procedures that we are following in the State Department need to be abided by."

She noted that Mr. Indyk, who retains his title and position as the probe proceeds, is cooperating fully with investigators, and that it is not believed that intelligence information was compromised because of the ambassador's actions.

But Sen. Rod Grams, Minnesota Republican and chairman of the Foreign Relations subcommittee on international operations, complained of being "caught by surprise," learning of the charges from an anonymous caller days before the story hit the newspapers.

"Understanding all the confidentiality surrounding this, I believe it would be better for the department to alert the committee to such sensitive, ongoing investigations," said Mr. Grams.

Mrs. Albright defended the handling of the investigation, saying her department planned a private briefing for lawmakers only after taking into account Mr. Indyk's privacy rights and national security concerns.

"There would have been a briefing when we believed we had all the facts in place," she said. "I believe the secretary of state has the right to look at the issues carefully and be able to make sure things are done right."

Mr. Indyk's troubles come as Middle East talks between Israel and the Palestinians are warming up again, with negotiators from the two sides in Washington this week for the latest round of talks seeking a final peace deal.

"Obviously, he will be missed within the peace process," Mrs. Albright said. " . . . What is already a difficult task has not been made any easier as a result of this."

-------- OTHER

-------- environment

A Plague of Asian Eels Highlights The Damage From Foreign Species

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
By MARK ROBICHAUX Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970017741134463943.htm

MIRAMAR, Fla. -- An aluminum boat carrying federal biologists roars down Canal C-9, a 20-mile-long waterway that passes a stone's throw from Pro Player Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins.

The boat, which is equipped with an "electro-fishing unit," slows to a stop, and one of the men lowers two chandeliers of thick wires into the water. With the press of a pedal, he unleashes up to 800 volts into the murky depths. The scientists are stalking one of the newest, most indestructible aquatic predators in the U.S.: the Asian swamp eel.

The more scientists learn about the eel, Monopterus albus, the more discouraged they become about stopping it. Here is what is known so far: It has a bottomless appetite for any aquatic life in its path -- fish, frogs, shrimp, crayfish and insects. A nocturnal hunter, it is rarely seen by humans. The three-foot-long adults have no known natural enemies, with the possible exception of alligators.

By Land or by Sea

The eel's most alarming trait, though, is its uncanny ability to survive extreme conditions. In one study by a Harvard zoologist, an Asian swamp eel lived seven months in a damp towel without food or water. The olive-brown creature prefers tropical waters, yet it can flourish in sub-zero temperatures. It prefers fresh water but can tolerate high salinity. It breathes under water like a fish, but can slither across dry land, sometimes in packs of 50 or more, sucking air through a two-holed snout. It breeds year-round, with one eel laying as many as 1,000 eggs at a time. No mates nearby? No problem: Almost magically -- scientists still don't know how -- the eel can change into a female from a male. Even more of a riddle is how to kill the eel: It thus far appears almost immune to poisons and dynamite.

"We can't find a chink in its armor," says Leo Nico, a biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, the nation's largest water, earth and biological science agency.

As if this weren't cause enough for concern, the eel is now within a mile of the ecologically fragile Everglades National Park, a 1.5 million-acre oasis of rare plants, animals and fish, and the subtropical jewel of America's park system. If the eels reach the park, there's a chance they could start gobbling their way through one of America's most-threatened ecosystems.

The tale of the eel's discovery in the U.S. offers a window into one of the most vexing problems facing the environment in America today, rivaling wildfires, logging, flooding, earthquakes or tornadoes in sheer economic damage -- the vast and silent explosion of invasive species. In a trend accelerated by the globalization of the world economy, about 50,000 introduced and invasive nonnative species have entered the U.S. to date. Some, such as corn, wheat, rice, cattle and poultry, proved their value to the economy and culture long ago.

But the problems caused by other newer invaders is taking its toll. Introduced and invasive species cost the U.S. an estimated $138 billion annually according to a study last year by four researchers at Cornell University.

In Louisiana, for instance, Formosan termites chew up historic homes in the French quarter of New Orleans and a sheriff's SWAT team shoots beaver-size, nonnative swamp rats from South America overtaking drainage canals. Suppressing a 1996 infestation of Asian long-horned beetles in New York City cost the state and federal governments more than $4 million. In the Great Lakes, Zebra mussels introduced by Russian freighters in 1986 now cause an estimated $5 billion in damage annually to pipes, boats and other structures. Exotic weeds and plants -- a particular nuisance to Western ranchers -- are expanding their range at a rate of 4,600 acres a day.

The environmental cost, meanwhile, is incalculable. Nonindigenous species disrupt delicate food webs and upset rare breeding sites. About 42% of the species listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act are there because of competition or predation by foreign species. And there's no end in sight: Every minute, 40,000 gallons of ballast water are dumped into U.S. harbors, some of it containing exotic organisms that could alter or destroy marine ecosystems, according to the Department of Commerce. Even baby's breath, the tiny white flowers from Eurasia that float on a bride's veil, is a menace to unique habitats in the West.

Concerned about the federal and state governments' scattershot and overlapping response to the problem, President Clinton 18 months ago signed an executive order creating the National Invasive Species Council, for the first time coordinating the efforts of 20 federal agencies. In a detailed "management report" to be released next week for public comment, the council outlines ambitious plans to create an early-detection team, educate the public, strengthen import controls and design an online database of species where scientists around the world can share information.

"America's landscape is being transformed by swamp eels, cheatgrass and a host of other creatures and weeds that don't belong," Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt said in a written response to questions. "The national invasive species plan now being proposed is a big, first step in turning back this unwelcome tide."

The Asian swamp eel would still be in hiding today were it not for the abiding curiosity of a Smithsonian Institution scientist named Wayne Starnes, who discovered the eel on the North American continent. Along the way, a hurricane, a part-time snail specialist, a student in Jakarta, and a spontaneous roadside stop by a piranha expert all played a crucial role in understanding what scientists know so far about the species.

In late September 1994, Mr. Starnes, an ichthyologist with a Ph.D. in ecology, flew to Atlanta from his Washington lab for a conference sponsored by the American Zoological Association, where he was eager to pitch a book project on freshwater fish. One evening, on a lark, he joined his co-author, a professional nature photographer named Dick Bryant, in a 20-minute drive north of Atlanta to judge a nature photography contest at the Chatahoochee Nature Center, a log-cabin style museum surrounded by ponds and winding trails. While touring the exhibits at night with a staffer, he noticed a dish on a table that held a three-inch worm as thin "as a thick pencil lead."

"Where did you get this?" he asked the staffer. Earlier in the day, children were collecting bugs and crawfish and "these worms" to study in the center, the man replied. Mr. Starnes lifted the dish to his eyes. It looked like a tiny eel, he said to himself. But American eels wouldn't be this far inland -- they spawn in the ocean. Was it a siren, the eel-shaped salamander with no hind legs, or perhaps a Southern Brook Lamprey, which is native to the Chatahoochee River?

Dr. Starnes slipped the eel in a small vial with formaldehyde and carried it in his briefcase back to the lab at the Smithsonian in Washington. Adjusting the focus of the microscope, Mr. Starnes stared at the eel and whispered to himself, "Oh man, I've seen this face before." It was the same family of eels he had seen on research trips to South America and Central America. This particular family of eels is also found in India, African swamps and flooded rice fields in Asia. The eels had been spotted in Hawaii years ago.

Crash Diet

To further educate himself, Mr. Starnes relied on several early eel studies, including one by a Harvard professor named Karel Liem, whose research reached back to the 1960s. Prof. Liem's own first encounter with the eels was memorable: As a graduate student at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, he traveled one night in 1961 to a swamp to collect frogs for his thesis project. Suddenly, his headlamp lit up a herd of eels moving across land. Shocked and intrigued, "I collected 87 live specimens in maybe less than an hour," he said. He's studied them ever since, focusing on their amazing resilience. In one landmark study, he starved 40 eels for as long as seven months to gauge their ability to survive prolonged drought and food deprivation.

Still curious about the eels, Mr. Starnes flew back to the nature center in Georgia in August 1996, where he met with two men from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. They were armed with backpack electro-fishing devices, which momentarily stun fish. At the first crackle of electricity, Mr. Starnes quickly saw the orange bellies of three-foot adult eels as they turned rigid in the murky water. "They were thick as hair on a dog's back in there," he recalls. After two hours, they collected 24 eels from three ponds. Mr. Starnes found sunfish and bass in the eels' bellies, and the ponds were depleted of smaller fish.

In the fall of 1997, Mr. Starnes returned to the site with the Georgia DNR, and shocked and scooped up 19 eels. More troubling to Mr. Starnes, though, was the fact that the tropically inclined eels had survived a bitter winter in the Atlanta area that paved ponds with a foot of ice. Mr. Starnes, who by then had taken a job as research curator of fishes at the North Carolina Science Museum, put the eels in a large tank to observe. All of Mr. Starnes's notes jibed with Mr. Liem's observation 40 years earlier. "The limits of their gluttony are hard to establish," he wrote in a paper with Mr. Bryant and others. In captivity, they will eat "minnow after minnow." Particularly eerie was to "walk into a room and have five ominous heads rise to the surface, orient your presence, and follow you about the room with almost demanding expectancy."

A second population wasn't revealed until three years later, in June 1997, nearly 700 miles southeast of Atlanta. A Florida International University student named Carol Curtis was studying electric knifefish, another exotic species. She netted several small baby swamp eels in a pond that drains into a waterway known as canal C-9, north of Miami. She was collecting samples of water hyacinth, an invasive flower species, for her aquarium. The eel found its way to FIU Prof. Joel Trexler, who has a doctorate in biology. "The minute I saw it, I knew it was not from here," he said.

Yet another group of eels emerged around the same time. While driving home to Gainesville, Fla., from a boating seminar in St. Petersburg, Mr. Nico, the federal biologist, wondered if the roadside ditches held any Oriental weatherfish -- a peculiar specimen he was researching whose behavior allegedly can predict weather. In a rural area southeast of Tampa Bay, he eased onto the shoulder of the road and pulled out his pole-nets.

Killer Fire Ants

Mr. Nico, who wrote his thesis on piranhas in South America, knew the area held promise. South Florida is a mecca for more than 100 uninvited, or nonnative, species. Fire ants from South America, for example, harass homeowners, even killing an elderly woman there earlier this year. Melaleuca trees from Australia dry up the Everglades, lowering the water table and creating a fire hazard. In the ditch, Mr. Nico scooped up several Oriental weatherfish and two wriggling eels, each about a foot long. Fascinated, he took them back to the lab at the Florida Caribbean Science Center, where he correctly identified them as Asian swamp eels, a species he studied as a student in South America.

Mr. Nico's boss, USGS branch chief Jim Williams, made the connection with the Georgia eels immediately -- Mr. Starnes was a buddy from years back. News of the eels spread slowly on the scientific grapevine, and a network of scientists formed. Mr. Starnes flew down to Florida to study specimens in the FIU lab. Meanwhile, Prof. Trexler asked his students visiting home in Southern China -- where eels are sold in baskets of grass as food items -- to bring back specimens for comparison. And Mr. Nico brought back some tissue samples of baby eels from Venezuela.

That spring, Mr. Nico sampled the C-9 canal in North Miami, a virtual freeway for exotic fish in Florida. Mr. Nico and his team found "dozens of eels of all different sizes" -- the biggest infestation yet. Mr. Nico began surveying every month with the electro-fishing boat, which stuns fish in a 10-foot radius long enough to net them.

Off With Their Heads

Even with all the technology, the eels are extremely difficult to grab. On a recent return to the site, the boat driver yelled directions to the two men manning the nets. "There he goes! Behind that rock! On the bank!" On a small table on the bank, Jeffrey Herod, clad in a long blue plastic apron, called out the weight and length of each eel. Using a small pair of shears, he cut off the heads, which are helpful in gauging the eels' age. "Watch out for these boys," Mr. Herod said to his staff. "They're bleeders."

Soon several agencies pitched in with research and sampling, including the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the South Florida Water Management District, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, as well as the USGS offices in the Caribbean Science Center and the Everglades.

Despite the number of experts involved, though, basic questions remained unanswered. How did the eel get here? How fast and how far can it spread? How do we get rid of it? Theories on their entry are many. The eels could be unwanted aquarium pets dumped into the wild -- pet stores sell baby eels nearby -- or escapees from an aquarium-fish farm, say, during a flood. Another theory is the eels were intentionally introduced as food by Asian immigrants. Considered a delicacy, the eels are cut up in sections, either grilled or stir fried, and served over rice, usually with a sauce.

On Sept. 23, 1998, the Florida scientists flew to Washington to inform executives at the Department of the Interior. Afterwards, the eels were listed by the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force, a group of seven federal agencies dedicated to control aquatic nuisances. "The question everybody wanted answered is this: Is there any way to keep this from getting into the park? There was a real desire to contain it or even eradicate it," says Prof. Trexler, who attended the meeting. Among the ideas: a network of underwater electronic fences in strategic locations, similar to the ones used in the Great Lakes region to contain the spread of lamprey eels. The interior department "took it seriously from the beginning," says Prof. Trexler. "They said they'd do everything they can to keep it out of the park. I was amazed at the high level of concern." But the meeting didn't change Mr. Nico's mind. "I just didn't think it could be contained."

'Snakes' in the Nursery

Hurricane Irene slammed the Florida keys in the fall of 1999, dumping more than a foot of rain in the Miami area. In Homestead, pastures turned into lakes. Canals flooded over banks. One alarmed owner of a nursery reported several "snakes" around his business, where large potted palms are sold. Bill Loftas, a senior USGS scientist in the Everglades, investigated. He found his first swamp eel run over in the nursery. The next day, with Mr. Trexler, Mr. Loftas found three dead eels and a live one. More questions demanded attention: Had the eel moved across land? Were these eels from the same family in Miami or in Tampa or even Georgia? Or were they a new population?

This past winter, concerned that the eel had already breached the park, Mr. Loftas took the electro-fishing unit in a marsh boat and searched for hours with an FIU postdoctoral intern. They found nothing. "But that that doesn't mean they're not there." Like many of the scientists studying the eel, he believes quick action is critical. "This is not a lot of arm waving," said Mr. Trexler. "This is a real threat."

Over Christmas, Mr. Trexler kept the eel tissue samples from the nursery in his freezer and called Tim Collins, snail specialist and a molecular systematist at FIU. "Could you throw this into your works?" Mr. Trexler asked him. Mr. Collins conducted DNA tests through the Christmas break. "When we found the answer, we were floored," said Mr. Trexler. The eels were a "separate introduction" from previously discovered populations in Georgia, North Miami, and Tampa. After extensive DNA testing, they concluded four different introductions of eels had occurred in the U.S.

After a flurry of exchanged e-mails, phone calls and faxes, state and federal biologists agreed to gather in January at FIU to draw up a plan to deal with the eel. Meetings continued through the winter and spring. Today, USGS scientists, working with researchers at FIU and biologists from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, are actively and regularly searching waters where the eels were previously found. The USGS is preparing a rapid response team to find and "contain" the eel.

But killing the eels, which are estimated to number in the tens of thousands in the U.S. now, may prove tricky. Dynamite, a crude but effective way to kill fish, doesn't work well on eels because they lack the large air bladder that makes fish susceptible to concussion blasts, and they can retreat to their burrows. Poisoning the entire length of the infested canals still wouldn't kill all eels. In tests using rotenone, a poison that makes it impossible for fish to use oxygen, the eels simply raise their snouts above water and breathe air.

Any such efforts would certainly incite protest over the Everglades. Just two years ago in California, the state Game and Fish Commission poisoned Lake Davis -- the entire lake -- to rid it of northern pike, worried they'd become a threat to native trout. Protests, loud and long, continue today. "Which is worse?" asks Mr. Trexler. "The spread of the invader or the risk associated with containing it?"

Write to Mark Robichaux at mark.robichaux@wsj.com

---

House approves stopgap spending bill

USA Today
09/26/00- Updated 05:57 PM ET
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washdc/ncstue08.htm

WASHINGTON (AP) - With the two parties mired in budget disputes and a midnight Saturday deadline looming, the House easily approved a stopgap measure Tuesday that would keep federal agencies functioning for six more days.

The measure, approved 415-2, would keep government agencies open through October 6, while White House and congressional negotiators work through their disagreements. The Senate is expected to approve the bill quickly and ship it to President Clinton for his promised signature.

Just two of the 13 annual spending bills for fiscal 2001, which starts Sunday, have become law. The rest have bogged down as Clinton seeks billions more dollars for schools and other programs. Policy fights over issues including federal standards on drunken driving and Cuban sanctions are also to blame.

The overwhelming passage underlined how, with the presidential and congressional elections just six weeks away, neither party wants a federal shutdown that it might be blamed for. Even so, Democrats used the debate to criticize Republicans for not completing their budgetary responsibilities on time.

''It's an admission of failure, a failure of the partisan ways the Republicans run this House and their failure to do the people's business,'' said Rep. Robert Menendez, D-N.J.

''Legislative train derailments have become as much a part of autumn as football,'' said Rep. David Obey of Wisconsin, top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee.

Republicans in turn blamed the Democrats for raising obstacles to smooth passage of budget bills so they can talk about a GOP-led ''do-nothing'' Congress.

''Put America ahead of your ambitions,'' Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, told the Democrats. ''Set aside just for a few days your all-consuming drive to take power.''

Several stopgap bills are likely to be needed before all the spending bills can be completed. White House budget office spokeswoman Linda Ricci said Clinton would sign a series of short-term measures ''if that's what it takes for Congress to buckle down and finish its work.''

Short-term spending bills have been a fixture of autumn budget battles in Congress for years. Since the current budget process began in 1977, such measures have been unnecessary only three times: in fiscal years 1989, 1995 and 1997.

Meanwhile, negotiations on many of the overdue spending bills continued. House-Senate bargainers neared agreement on a $23.6 billion measure financing energy and water projects.

But in a letter, White House chief of staff John Podesta wrote that Clinton would veto the measure if it contained a provision blocking the Army Corps of Engineers from raising water levels on the Missouri River, a fight that has pitted environmentalists against downstream farmers and shippers. Republicans vowed that, at least for now, the provision would stay in the bill.

Even so, in the latest example of the spending bills' steadily rising price tags, the compromise energy and water measure was $1.9 billion bigger than the House-passed version, and $1.1 billion larger than the Senate bill.

Included were millions for projects included in neither measure, including $3 million for a new water project in DeSoto County, Miss., and $3 million for work on Baltimore's harbor.

In addition, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bill Young, R-Fla., said Republicans had agreed to provide $4 billion of the $6 billion extra the White House has been demanding for a measure financing education, health and labor programs. The overall bill will cost more than $300 billion. But disputes remain over how much local control to provide over federal funds for hiring teachers and repairing schools.

---

USA Today
09/27/00
States
http://usatoday.com/news/states/all50.htm

California

Avalon - Biologists are battling a deadly disease on Santa Catalina Island that threatens to eliminate native foxes. Veterinarians began trapping and vaccinating foxes Monday on the island 26 miles south of Los Angeles. The vaccine is the scientists' only weapon against the canine distemper virus believed to have reduced the island's fox population from some 1,300 in 1998 to fewer than 200.

Delaware

Wilmington - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will conduct a study on the Delaware River, thanks to a U.S. Senate measure that passed with near-unanimous support Monday. Regulators will try to determine how sprawl, pollution and other stresses are affecting the river basin, which provides nearly 10% of the nation's population with water.

-------- genetics

Aventis Is Suspending Seed Sales Of Genetically Engineered Corn

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
By SCOTT KILMAN Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970012157209187725.htm

Aventis SA said it is suspending seed sales of the genetically modified corn that tainted Kraft Foods' taco shells.
http://interactive.wsj.com/pj/q-quote.cgi?sym=ave&type=company

The French pharmaceutical and agricultural company, inventor of the corn, said it won't resume U.S. sales of the seed until Washington approves the crop for use in human food, which regulators say won't happen anytime soon. It is the first time a major crop-biotechnology firm has frozen sales of a genetically modified seed.

Aventis, began licensing U.S. companies to market the genetically modified seed, called StarLink, in 1998 after the Environmental Protection Agency cleared the corn for use in livestock feed and for making ethanol fuel. The corn, engineered to make its own insecticide, isn't approved for human consumption. Regulators aren't convinced the bug-killing protein, called Cry9C, isn't a potential food allergen.

Kraft, a unit of Philip Morris Cos., New York, began voluntarily recalling millions of taco shells from U.S. supermarkets Friday after independent laboratory tests conducted for it confirmed a report from an antibiotechnology group that some shells illegally contain ingredients from StarLink corn. The shells are marketed under a license from Taco Bell, a fast-food chain owned by Tricon Global Restaurants Inc.

Aventis' move won't have noticeable financial impact on the company, which had revenue of $20.7 billion in 1999 on a pro-forma basis. Aventis, created by the December 1999 merger of European pharmaceutical companies Hoechst AG and Rhone-Poulenc SA, is generating roughly $1 million this year from licensing the fledgling StarLink gene to U.S. seed firms. In 4 p.m. New York Stock Exchange composite trading Tuesday, Aventis rose 44 cents to $74.44 a share.

Aventis said its suspension is designed to reassure the public that StarLink corn won't get into the food supply in the future. "It isn't in our interest to sell corn seed if it is causing confusion," said Aventis spokesman Rick Rountree. Stephen L. Johnson, EPA deputy assistant administrator for pesticides, called Aventis' decision "a prudent action that we fully support."

It is unclear whether Aventis can prevent the corn from entering the food chain. StarLink is grown on 315,000 acres on farms scattered from Texas to Illinois.

Federal regulators aren't yet sure how the taco-shell debacle happened in the first place. Some food industry officials suspect airborne pollen from a StarLink field might have blown into fields of conventional corn being grown under contract for the Azteca Milling facility in Plainview, Texas, which makes corn flour for Kraft's taco shell.

The EPA requires that farmers plant StarLink seed at least 660 feet from other cornfields to prevent cross-pollination. Organic farmers, who have turned their backs on biotechnology, have complained that such buffers aren't sufficient to protect their fields from pollen drift.

It is also possible that a farmer or grain handler accidentally mixed a shipment of StarLink corn with grain destined for Azteca Milling. Both types of corn look so similar that chemical analysis is needed to tell them apart.

The StarLink plant uses a gene transplanted from a common soil organism, Bacillus thuringiensis, to make a protein toxic to certain insects. StarLink's gene expresses a slightly different protein from the sort made by the other types of insect-resistant corn already approved for use in food. Of the 40 or so genetically modified crops on the market, StarLink corn is the only one that isn't approved for human consumption.

The taco-shell incident revealed that the food industry lacks a quick and reliable way to screen its products for the presence of genetically modified organisms.

It took Kraft several days to determine whether StarLink corn is in its taco shells, and some biotechnology officials still doubt Kraft's results. Some food companies testing their products in wake of the Kraft recall complain privately that the same sample can test positive and negative for StarLink, depending on what method is used.

Capitalizing on the confusion, Strategic Diagnostics Inc., a Newark, Del., testing firm, began selling the first rapid-field test for StarLink only yesterday. Arthur A. Koch Jr., Strategic Diagnostics chief operating officer, said the company is so swamped with orders from grain handlers it is rationing the kits. The field test is designed to detect the StarLink protein in raw corn, which means it doesn't work on processed foods such as taco shells.

The recall was ammunition for antibiotechnology groups in a Senate health committee hearing Tuesday. Groups such as Friends of the Earth want far tighter regulation of the young science by the Food and Drug Administration, among other agencies. They're lobbying for mandatory labels on food products that contain genetically modified organisms, an idea most big food companies oppose.

"It is not lost on consumers that the problem was discovered not by the FDA or EPA, but by Friends of the Earth," Consumers Union researcher Michael Hansen told the committee.

-- Sara Leuck in Washington contributed to this article.
Write to Scott Kilman at scot.kilman@wsj.com

---

Feed me the Taco Bell shells

USA Today
09/27/00- Updated 02:33 PM ET
By James Freeman
http://www.usatoday.com/news/comment/columnists/freeman/ncjf93.htm

If Kraft still has any recalled Taco Bell taco shells that haven't been destroyed, I'm prepared to eat them. In the interests of science, and for the purposes of investigating the effects of this latest alleged consumer threat, I'm willing to consume four or five of the taco shells, depending on my appetite. In addition, because it's crucial to establish the appropriate laboratory conditions for this clinical test, the shells must contain seasoned beef, lettuce, grated cheddar and a medium-hot, tomato-based sauce. I'll accept guacamole if the testing lab is unequipped with salsa. If, as the subject of this human clinical trial, I'm entitled to one side order, make it pintos-'n'-cheese.

That's right, I'm volunteering to eat taco shells that may contain bio-engineered corn, that may contain the notorious protein Cry9C, which comes from the dreaded Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) bacterium. This stuff is deadly to a moth larva called the European corn borer, but I just have a hunch that I'll survive. Kraft only has to give me a time and a place, and I'll be there, ready to chow down.

Why am I so confident that I can eat the forbidden shells and suffer only the standard indigestion enjoyed by all of us in the Taco Bell family of consumers? Well, Professor Bruce Chassy, associate director of the University of Illinois' Biotechnology Center, appears ready to take the plunge, too. Says Chassy in a recent email, "I will take all the [taco shells] they dispose of if they'll give them to me. I'm satisfied that they are as completely safe as anything in our food supply. ...The issue isn't one of food safety but regulatory compliance."

So what was the compliance problem? Well, the government has approved about 40 genetically-modified crops for use in the United States. All of them have been approved for use in animal feed. The one that ended up in the taco shells, Starlink Bt corn, is the only one that has not also been approved for use in our food. Why not? Well, no one has proved that the protein in this corn won't give someone an allergic reaction. There's no evidence that the protein will hurt anybody either, but the government wants proof that it's safe.

It's hard to prove that something can never hurt anyone. Genes that already are known to cause reactions in some people, like the ones you find in peanuts, aren't used in genetically modified foods. And when scientists find out that a new protein can cause an allergic reaction, then it too is barred from use crops. The question is whether to keep foods out of our diet if we can't prove that they'll never cause a reaction in anyone.

Says Professor Robert Hollingworth of the National Food Safety and Toxicology Center at Michigan State University: "It seems to me that this is a hard risk to completely eliminate, but, strangely, it is one we take every day when a new plant variety, or even a new plant food type such as kiwi fruit or macadamia nuts, is put on the market. These may contain many proteins new to the human diet, yet no one expresses concern about allergy testing before we proceed. Also, one cannot help but note that even where foods contain allergens known to cause severe reactions and even deaths, they are still on the market (e.g. peanuts). So the concern over allergens in genetically engineered foods, taken in that context, seems way overblown."

Anti-technology zealots paint a picture of strange scientific creations with unknown dangers being let loose in our food supply. The truth is that we know more about genetically modified foods than many of the other things we eat, because the new crops have been so thoroughly studied and tested by the EPA, the FDA, the Department of Agriculture, private companies and academics. Most other foods never go through that process. Heck, if you really want to venture into unknown territory, try an herbal supplement or a stew of exotic, organically grown vegetables.

Henry Miller, a longtime official at the FDA and now a Senior Research Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, points out that we've all been eating genetically engineered foods for decades. They're known to farmers as "wide crosses," or as Miller describes them, "hybridizations in which genes are moved from one species or one genus to another to create a variety of plant that does not exist in nature. ...Plants that have undergone those slight but important alterations have been an integral part of European and American diets for decades; they include corn, wheat, oats, tomatoes, potatoes, black currants and pumpkins."

Miller says that the Bt corn is even better for you than the natural stuff. "The gene-spliced corn not only repels pests, but it also is less likely to contain Fusarium, a toxic fungus often carried into the plants by the insects. That, in turn, reduces the levels of the fungus' toxin, fumonisin, which is known to cause fatal diseases in horses and swine that eat infected corn and esophageal cancer in humans."

Almost everyone I contacted said that when it comes to a real expert on the safety of genetically modified foods, Professor Steve Taylor of the University of Nebraska's Food Science and Technology Department is the man. Taylor is the former chairman of an international panel of scientists formed to develop a way to assess the safety of these foods. And like many other scientists in the field, he doubts that anyone was harmed by a taco shell. Says Taylor, "I must say that I was dismayed that a product was allowed on the market for animal feed use when it had not been approved for human food use. I believe that was a mistake; however, I do not believe there has been any risk to the public."

Well, that's good enough for me. I'm ready to munch on those recalled shells. And if Kraft will agree not to let all that good food go to waste, you're welcome to join me.

James Freeman writes the weekly TechnoPolitics column for Forbes.com. His column appears each Wednesday on USATODAY.com. To talk back to James Freeman, click here.

mailto:jamesfreeman@blackwellcorp.com

-------- imf / world bank

Protesters Paralyze Prague

By William Drozdiak and Steven Pearlstein
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A16
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A21913-2000Sep26&language=printer

PRAGUE, Sept. 26 -- About 8,000 activists railing against the inequities of economic globalization disrupted a meeting here today of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, clashing with police and paralyzing traffic in the Czech capital.

In scenes reminiscent of protests outside a meeting of the two institutions in Washington in April, delegates from 182 countries found themselves trapped for six hours inside a downtown convention center as demonstrators blocked all exit routes.

While delegates listened to a chain of speeches from the heads of global finance, several protesters attacked police with firebombs and cobblestones in an effort to storm the meeting. Police repelled them with tear gas, water cannons and stun grenades. An Interior Ministry spokesman said 30 people were injured, 20 of them police officers.

The throng of protesters--the vast majority of whom behaved peacefully--reflects a swelling tide of resentment against the twin institutions, which are accused of spoiling the environment, propping up dictators and aggravating disparities between rich and poor nations.

"Those of us who came to Prague are saying it is time for these organizations to start putting people ahead of money and capital," said Olivier de Marcellus, head of the Geneva-based Global Action coalition. "We want them to live up to their responsibilities or go out of business."

Supporters of the bank and the IMF, international lending institutions based in Washington, say they are crucial to fostering economic development and protecting the world against cross-border financial panics.

Anti-globalization protests, which also disrupted trade talks in Seattle late last year, have become something of a worldwide institution. A traveling alliance of environmentalists, union members and debt-relief crusaders now tries to undermine almost any gathering it feels brings together forces of multinational capital.

A calendar of events is propagated over sites on the World Wide Web; some protesters said they were already arranging another rendezvous next month in Montreal for the Group of 20, an international gathering in which wealthy and developing nations exchange views.

"London, Seattle, continue the battle," chanted a group of demonstrators meandering today through Prague's Wenceslas Square, the focal point of peace protests a decade ago that helped topple communism in what became known as the Velvet Revolution.

"People used to feel threatened by nuclear weapons. Now they worry about things like the environment, human rights or the debts carried by so many poor countries, but those problems often lead to the doorstep of the World Bank and the IMF," said Stewart Savage, 24, a part-time caterer from Baltimore.

Michael Morrill, a consumer activist from Reading, Pa., made the pilgrimage to Prague because of what he called the "devastating impact" wrought by globalization on his community. "We've lost 7,000 jobs over the last five years that can be directly attributed" to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which opened up markets between the United States, Mexico and Canada. High unemployment has increased the suicide rate and domestic violence, he said, adding: "I don't call that progress."

The turnout was not as large as organizers had forecast, in part because Czech authorities turned back hundreds if not thousands of suspected protesters at the border. Organizers expressed disappointment that a tiny minority of protesters provoked violent clashes with police rather than peacefully bottling up delegates with human chains. Within the safe fortress of the convention center, delegates and officials--many of whom had arrived at dawn to avoid clashing with the protesters--gathered on terraces to watch the demonstrators square off against police.

"I know what they're against but have no sense of what they're for," said Trevor Manuel, South Africa's finance minister, who chaired today's session. But among other speakers, there was acknowledgment that the IMF and the World Bank must find more effective ways to help billions of people who are not benefiting from globalization.

"We live in a world scarred by inequality," said World Bank President James D. Wolfensohn. "Something is wrong when the richest 20 percent of the global population receive more than 80 percent of the global income . . . and when 2.8 billion people still live on less than $2 a day."

While deploring the violence in the streets, Wolfensohn said that "many of them are asking legitimate questions, and I embrace the commitment of a new generation to fight poverty."

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Finance Summit Starts With Protests, Calls to Fight Poverty, Globalization

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
Associated Press
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB96997429036999310.htm

PRAGUE -- Protesters waged a battle outside the International Monetary Fund and World Bank summit Tuesday, throwing firebombs and rocks at police, who responded with tear gas and water cannons.

Inside, the head of the World Bank said he shared the "passion" of demonstrators outside as global finance leaders opened their annual meeting protected by metal barriers and thousands of police officers.

Police spokeswoman Iva Knolova said 30 people were injured, including 20 police officers and 10 protesters, and an undetermined number of people had been arrested.

Delegates had to pass hundreds of helmeted police guarding the perimeter of the conference center, which is connected to downtown by a single bridge -- not far from the scene of the fighting between police and demonstrators in the early afternoon.

South Africa's Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, chairman of the summit, said it was "a pity that it has descended into violence." He said that it was unclear what the activists were seeking in their fight against economic globalization.

"I know what they're against, but have no sense of what they're for," Mr. Manuel said.

Earlier, World Bank President James Wolfensohn took note of the estimated 5,000 protesters parading through Prague's cobblestone streets -- far fewer than expected.

"Outside these walls, young people are demonstrating against globalization," he told delegates in his opening remarks. "I believe deeply that many of them are asking legitimate questions, and I embrace the commitment of a new generation to fight poverty. I share their passion and their questioning."

Mr. Wolfensohn conceded that the IMF and World Bank had a "lot to learn" about improving their efforts to combat poverty and indicated that the two giant multinational lending agencies, with headquarters in Washington, were ready to listen. "I believe that we can move forward only if we deal with each other constructively and with mutual respect," Mr. Wolfensohn said.

Mr. Wolfensohn and IMF Managing Director Horst Koehler called for greater action to lift the living standards of the world's poor, focusing on better education and health care.

Mr. Koehler urged rich countries to lower their trade barriers on exports of farm goods and other products from poor countries, saying this could mean $100 billion annually in extra sales by poor nations.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers told delegates that he supports the reforms being undertaken by the IMF and World Bank to streamline their lending practices and provide greater openness on their decision-making processes. But he said moving away from economic globalization would set back efforts to lift billions of people out of poverty.

Mr. Wolfensohn said that the processes tying the world more closely together economically can't be stopped.

"We cannot turn globalization back. Our challenge is to make globalization an instrument of opportunity and inclusion -- not of fear and insecurity," Mr. Wolfensohn said.

Police said 5,000 protesters had turned out for the opening of the three-day annual meetings. But there were 11,000 police out, giving them more than a two-to-one numerical advantage. Protesters were still able to raise a ruckus, pushing against police lines and spurring fights that left people injured on each side.

The demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails and rocks and some of them began building a huge barricade on a street. Earlier, demonstrators hurled stones at a McDonald's outlet that had been closed, cracking the glass door and breaking in to destroy the furniture.

Deviating from the strategy protesters employed in Seattle in December and Washington in April, the activists didn't try to stop delegates from getting into the meetings. Instead, they vowed to block delegates from leaving the conference center.

Worries about the weak euro and high oil prices topped the agenda at three days of policy-setting committees ahead of the opening ceremony. But conference attendees were greeted with good news Monday. The euro held firm in reaction to central-bank purchases of euros on Friday and oil slipped following the Clinton administration's decision to release 30 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

---

Companies Act to Keep Bioengineered Corn Out of Food

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By BARNABY J. FEDER
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/business/27CORN.html

Moving to address safety concerns, agribusiness companies took steps yesterday to limit the chances that a strain of bioengineered corn not approved for human consumption could end up in food products.

The corn, approved for use only in animal feed, was found last week in a sampling of taco shells sold in stores under the Taco Bell brand, prompting Kraft Foods to recall the more than 2.5 million boxes of the product believed to be in distribution.

Yesterday, Aventis CropScience, which engineered the corn to make it more pest-resistant and marketed the technology under the StarLink name, told seed companies not to sell any of the corn for planting next year.

Affirming a policy adopted Monday by the Biotechnology Industry Organization, a Washington-based trade group, Aventis also said it would no longer market bioengineered products for any use until they had been cleared for use in food.

"We agree that it's prudent," said David Witherspoon, president of the Garst Seed Company, Aventis's biggest licensee. Mr. Witherspoon said Garst, based in Slater, Iowa, would store StarLink corn seed harvested this year on the assumption that StarLink would eventually be cleared for food use.

While it has not been established that the StarLink corn poses a risk to human health, tests have found it to carry a protein that has some characteristics of allergens.

Mr. Witherspoon said Garst would direct farmers who want next year's crops engineered to fend off the corn borer, a common pest, to use corn strains based on Monsanto's YieldGuard technology, which has government clearance for food uses.

Aventis said yesterday that the company and regulators were discussing the fate of the 315,000 acres planted with StarLink this year. Aventis said it was close to announcing new measures developed in consultation with farmers to confine the current crop to approved uses. Aventis said that containing this year's crop should not be a major challenge since it represented much less than one-half of 1 percent of the 73 million acres planted in corn this year.

As Aventis moved to halt sales of the corn seed, the company that milled the corn in the taco shells moved yesterday to halt further shipments of yellow corn products from its mill in Plainview, Tex. The company, Azteca Mills of Dallas, said it was testing for evidence of the unapproved corn and expected to resume full production within a week. The Plainview mill has been identified as the source of the corn meal for the Kraft taco shells, which were made at a plant in Mexico owned by PepsiCo.

Kraft said yesterday that as far as it could determine, all Taco Bell shells were off the shelves. "We will not destroy the products that are being returned until we hear from the Food and Drug Administration what it wants to do with them," said Michael Mudd, a company spokesman.

The recall will cost Kraft millions of dollars at a minimum, but the final figure, including lost sales, will not be known until Kraft finds a new mill to make the shells and starts producing them again, Mr. Mudd said. In any event, the losses are not expected to hurt the earnings of Philip Morris, Kraft's parent.

The Taco Bell restaurant chain, meanwhile, said that tests had turned up "no reason to believe" that the unapproved corn had found its way into the shells used in its restaurants. Taco Bell's suppliers include the PepsiCo plant in Mexico, although its shells use a different recipe than Kraft's.

The restaurant chain, a subsidiary of Tricon Global Restaurants in Louisville, Ky., said all shells now being shipped had been made from corn grown in regions other than the Plainview area as an added precaution.

Biotechnology critics said that even with the corporate steps being taken to deal with the episode, a thorough government investigation was in order.

"You can't identify a solution until you have a better understanding of the problem," said Margaret Mellon, senior scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington.

The case was mentioned several times yesterday during a Senate committee hearing on biotechnology. Joseph A. Leavitt, director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the Food and Drug Administration, commended Kraft for "acting responsibly" in the taco shell recall. He told the committee that the incident reinforced the need for vigilance by federal authorities and "other interested parties" to make sure that "the rules pertaining to bioengineered foods are being fully adhered to."

The StarLink corn is a latecomer among the several first-generation biotechnology products that use genes from the Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, family of bacteria, to produce a protein deadly to corn borers. It was approved for use in corn for animal feed or industrial products in 1998.

The StarLink protein attaches to a different part of the insect gut than those produced by other Bt-engineered plants. Evidence suggesting that it might cause allergies because it is not so easily broken down in the human digestive system led the Environmental Protection Agency to demand more tests before clearing it for use in food corn.

Identifying which altered corn has the StarLink gene can be tricky. Aventis yesterday endorsed a test developed by Strategic Diagnostics. But even that test cannot pick out processed foods made from StarLink corn because the Bt protein typically is broken down by heating and other food processing.

---

Contaminated Corn

New York Times
September 27, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/opinion/L27COR.html

To the Editor:

Re "Kraft Recalls Taco Shells With Bioengineered Corn" (Business Day, Sept. 23):

While the gene that made its way into these taco shells was likely not particularly harmful, the incident does not bode well for the safety of other genetically engineered corns already in the field.

If oversight by the industry and the Food and Drug Administration could not keep unapproved corn out of taco shells, then who is to ensure that genetically engineered corn being grown to produce a variety of industrial chemicals and pharmaceuticals also does not reach our dinner plates?

If we can't contain it, should we be growing it?

BETH BURROWS Edmonds, Wash., Sept. 23, 2000

The writer is director of the Edmonds Institute, a nonprofit group focusing on environmental issues.

-------- spying

Reno, Freeh Criticized on Lee Case

By David A. Vise and Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ; Page A04
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A22370-2000Sep26&language=printer

Members of Congress criticized Attorney General Janet Reno and FBI Director Louis J. Freeh yesterday, saying they had undermined confidence in the criminal justice system by bungling the Wen Ho Lee case.

Citing the failure of government officials to strip Lee of his top-secret security clearance at Los Alamos National Laboratory despite questions that have loomed since the early 1980s, Sen. Richard H. Bryan (D-Nev.) accused federal officials of handling the case poorly from start to finish. He said the Department of Energy and the FBI failed to respond to the "disturbing and troubling pattern" of Lee's alleged misconduct.

Bryan also said officials mishandled the prosecution; an FBI agent was forced to recant his testimony about Lee's motives at trial, undercutting the credibility of the government's case.

"It is almost a textbook case of how not to conduct an espionage investigation," Bryan said.

"I believe the FBI's counterintelligence investigation was a gravely flawed exercise characterized by inadequate resources, lack of management attention and missed opportunities," said Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.). "Like many of my colleagues and many Americans, I am concerned about the apparent imbalance between the serious charges against Dr. Lee and the leniency of the sentence agreed to in the plea bargain."

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), who has headed a task force looking into the case, said the FBI and Justice Department used coercive tactics, including harsh prison conditions, to pressure Lee into a guilty plea.

"I disagree very strongly," Freeh replied.

Lee pleaded guilty to a felony count of mishandling secret nuclear data earlier this month and agreed to answer questions under oath about why he copied the rough equivalent of 400,000 pages of nuclear data from the classified computer system at Los Alamos onto portable tapes. Although he had been charged last December in a 59-count indictment that carried the possibility of life imprisonment, he was set free under the terms of the plea bargain.

Appearing yesterday before the Senate Intelligence and Judiciary panels, Reno and Freeh argued forcefully that the plea bargain offered the best chance to protect national security by finding out what Lee did with the computer tapes. They also rebutted accusations of "racial profiling" in the case and said they were unaware of the harsh conditions of the Taiwanese American scientist's incarceration until recent news reports.

"Dr. Lee is no hero," Reno said. "He is not an absent-minded professor. He is a felon."

Also yesterday, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on Reno to appoint a special counsel to conduct an independent inquiry. "Only an outside investigation, not partisan wrangling and finger-pointing, will give the American public--and especially the Asian American community--confidence that this case is being reviewed in a wise and fair manner," Schumer wrote.

Justice Department officials reacted coolly. "We received a letter during the hearing and are reviewing it, but as the attorney general announced Friday, we have already opened a review through our Office of Professional Responsibility," said Justice Department spokesman Myron Marlin.

In their testimony, Reno and Freeh described the FBI's long focus on Lee. Although most of what they said has been made public previously, they provided new details on one incident, Lee's attempt to hook into the secure computer system at Los Alamos while he was visiting a Taiwanese research institute in 1998.

Freeh disclosed that in March 1998, while Lee was a guest lecturer in Taiwan, he called the computer "Help Desk" at Los Alamos "to determine if he could access the secure Los Alamos computer system from overseas." Freeh testified that Lee "was told he could not."

However, during a court hearing last December on the case, it was disclosed that Lee did log on to Los Alamos's unclassified computer system from Taiwan and into his own files, where he had placed some classified information. The materials he withdrew while in Taiwan "were unclassified," according to Cheryl Wampler, a Los Alamos computer expert.

Freeh also outlined the many attempts Lee subsequently made to get into his office to delete classified files he had downloaded without authority.

"Dr. Lee improperly attempted, without success, to enter his [office] five different times on the evening of December 23," Freeh said. He tried again on Christmas Eve at 3:30 a.m. and "made 12 other attempts" prior to Feb. 12, 1999, the FBI director said. In January 1999, Lee also got the Los Alamos "Help Desk" to reinstate his secure computing privileges by not telling them his access had been removed. Lee then deleted files from the system, Freeh said.

Public advocacy groups reacted strongly to the testimony by top federal officials that they were unaware of the conditions of Lee's incarceration.

"Their saying they only heard about it for the first time is unbelievable," said Helen Zia, an official with the Coalition Against Racial and Ethnic Scapegoating. Lee's lawyers said they raised the issue with prosecutors soon after Lee's imprisonment last December.

"Unfortunately, it appears that Director Freeh was not only kept in the dark about the shackling of Wen Ho Lee, but he was also not told about his own agent's threats regarding execution," said Mark Holscher, Lee's attorney.

--------

Justice Dept. Takes Issue With Judge's Rebuke

By David A. Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A28555-2000Sep27&language=printer

Justice Department officials went on the offensive today, criticizing U.S. District Court Judge James A. Parker's stinging rebuke of the government's handling of the Wen Ho Lee case earlier this month.

James Robinson, head of the Justice Department's criminal division, said Parker's rebuke of Justice and the FBI was misguided. Norman Bay, U.S. attorney for New Mexico, said Parker didn't know the extent of plea bargain discussions that prosecutors and defense counsel had for months while the scientist was in solitary confinement. He ultimately pleaded guilty to a criminal felony count for mishandling nuclear secrets.

After apologizing to Lee, the judge said earlier this month that the Justice Department and FBI had misled him and "embarrassed" the nation through their handling of the case. The judge's remarks prompted President Clinton to raise questions about Lee's pretrial incarceration and touched off an ongoing debate over the tactics used by prosecutors and FBI agents and the harsh conditions of Lee's incarceration.

"I've got great respect for Judge Parker but don't know if he was aware of all of the details," Bay told a Senate Judiciary Committee task force headed by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.). "When we were sitting in the courtroom at sentencing, his comments came as a complete surprise to us. . . . To be honest with you, I was very much blindsided by the judge's comments."

Robinson said the judge was "making those comments for the galleries," a reference he said referred to the public. He also said these kinds of cases frequently are not prosecuted because of the potential disclosure of secrets that could damage U.S. national security.

Specter challenged the government lawyers, saying they could have entered into a plea bargain with Lee's lawyers before he was indicted on 59 criminal felony counts in December. Bay said no earlier deal included a polygraph test and would have protected the government's interest by ensuring it learned what happened to approximately 400,000 pages of classified information Lee downloaded to portable computer tapes.

Bay also said that during the course of mediation, an attorney for Lee threatened to take the government on a "long slow death march" by forcing disclosure of nuclear secrets in open court if he didn't agree to the terms of a plea bargain stipulated by the defense.

"If someone had told me they were going to put me on a long slow death march, I would have told them, 'Let's start walking,' " said Specter, a former prosecutor.

"I believe you," a chuckling Bay replied.

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Prosecutors in Russia Charge U.S. Businessman With Espionage

Wall Street Journal
September 27, 2000
Associated Press
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB970062417667084049.htm

MOSCOW -- Russian prosecutors officially charged American businessman Edmond Pope with espionage and sent his case to court, officials said Wednesday.

"As the result of the investigation, E. Pope has been incriminated in espionage," said a terse statement by the prosecutor-general's office.

The prosecutors sent Mr. Pope's case to the Moscow city court on Monday, after reviewing the charges drawn up against him by the nation's Federal Security Service, the statement said. Mr. Pope faces 20 years in prison if convicted.

Officials said earlier that the trial would take place in October, though no specific date has been set. Last week, the court turned down Mr. Pope's appeal for release on health grounds. He has been in jail for almost five months.

Mr. Pope, 54 years old, asked to be released to undergo treatment for cancer, but the court decided that the espionage charge was too serious. According to his family and U.S. officials, Mr. Pope has a rare form of bone cancer that was in remission when he was arrested, and he can't get adequate medical attention in jail.

Authorities have also turned down other defense appeals, Mr. Pope's lawyer, Pavel Astakhov, said Wednesday. Mr. Pope wasn't allowed to call his ailing father in the U.S., even though a prosecutor had previously promised to let him.

"The prosecutor said that there would be no problem, and prison officials even asked Pope about the phone number, but then they refused to allow him to make a call without giving any reason," Mr. Astakhov said.

The Federal Security Service, the main successor to the KGB, arrested Mr. Pope on April 5, saying he had illegally bought plans for a torpedo.

The prosecutors' decision Wednesday was mostly a procedural move. However, they could have asked for more investigation into Mr. Pope's case, further dragging out proceedings.

Mr. Pope denies doing anything illegal. His representative in the U.S. Congress, John Peterson, said Mr. Pope was seeking information on an underwater propulsion system that is at least 10 years old and has already been sold abroad.

Mr. Astakhov said he urged prosecutors to take into account a conclusion by independent experts who said that the information Mr. Pope was seeking wasn't confidential, but the prosecutors have refused to include the document in the case.

Mr. Pope, a former Navy captain, worked for the Applied Research Laboratory at Pennsylvania State University after retiring from the U.S. Navy. He later founded CERF Technologies International, a company specializing in the study of foreign maritime equipment. He traveled to Russia frequently.

---

Peru's Spy Chief in Exile

New York Times
September 27, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/opinion/27WED22.html

Vladimiro Montesinos, Peru's Rasputin, is now in Panama City awaiting a decision on whether he will get political asylum there. Mr. Montesinos, the intelligence chief and all-around fixer for Peru's president, Alberto Fujimori, fled the country after a videotape was televised that showed him apparently bribing a congressman. His departure on Sunday from Peru was, perhaps, the only way to break his hold on power there. But Mr. Montesinos must ultimately be brought to justice. He is accused of serious human rights abuses, and granting him asylum would be an insult to genuine victims.

Panama should hold him with the goal of returning him to Peru for trial when that becomes possible. If that date seems too far away, then Panama should open an investigation to prosecute him for torture - which any nation may do.

Mr. Montesinos, who ran the intelligence police, was so powerful that many Peruvians believed the president worked for him. He has been credibly accused of crimes ranging from running death squads to election fraud, and the United States finally acknowledged that he has had a long relationship with American intelligence services.

The tape of Mr. Montesinos apparently bribing a legislator to switch parties surfaced two weeks ago, and Mr. Fujimori promptly announced he would hold new elections and not be a candidate, and that he had dissolved the intelligence police. Mr. Montesinos dropped out of sight, and there were rumors that his military allies were exploring the possibility of a coup. On Sunday he flew to Panama.

Panama has long been a haven for unwanted despots. But it did not want Mr. Montesinos, initially refusing to take him when Peru asked. But after pressure from Washington, the Organization of American States and several of Peru's neighbors, Panama agreed to let him in on a tourist visa while it considers his request for asylum..

The best course would have been for Peru to arrest Mr. Montesinos. But his exile will at least allow Peruvians to begin to erase some of his malevolent influence on their government. But Washington should stop pressing to get him asylum. The only guarantee that Mr. Montesinos should receive from Panama is that he will face justice, either in Panama on charges of torture, or in Peru once it has elected a government that can try him.

---

Prosecutors send spy case to court

USA Today
09/27/00- Updated 09:42 PM ET
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/nw1.htm#sinks

MOSCOW - Russian prosecutors have officially charged American businessman Edmond Pope with espionage and sent his case to court, officials said Wednesday. The trial is set to take place sometime time in October, though no specific date has been set. Pope faces 20 years if convicted on epsionage, claiming he had illegally bought plans for a torpedo. Pope, 54, asked to be released to undergo treatment for cancer, but the court decided that the espionage charge was too serious. According to his family and U.S. officials, Pope has a rare form of bone cancer that was in remission when he was arrested and he can't get adequate medical attention in jail.

---

FBI e-mail surveillance plan gets review

USA Today
09/27/00- Updated 10:21 PM ET
http://www.usatoday.com/news/digest/nd1.htm#suit

CHICAGO - A team of legal scholars and information technology experts affiliated with the Illinois Institute of Technology has been chosen to review the FBI's controversial ''Carnivore'' e-mail surveillance system. Six people, four from the IIT Research Institute's Virginia facility and two legal experts who specialize in privacy issues, will begin the analysis at a laboratory in Lanham, Md. on Wednesday. The Justice Department hired the group Tuesday to analyze whether ''Carnivore'' has adequate protections against abuse.

---

Chile to press U.S. on CIA informant

Washington Times
September 27, 2000
World Scene Combined dispatches and staff reports
http://208.246.212.80/world/worldscene-2000927214643.htm

SANTIAGO, Chile - The Chilean government said yesterday it will ask Washington for more details of a report claiming the head of the South American nation's secret police was a paid CIA informant during the regime of former dictator Augusto Pinochet.

Foreign Minister Soledad Alvear, referring to a report to the U.S. Congress that revealed last week the CIA had contacts with Manuel Contreras, head of Gen. Pinochet's feared DINA, said a diplomatic note will be sent to the United States in the coming days.

"We are going to send . . . a note to the U.S. government in a bid to attempt to clear up some situations," Miss Alvear said at a news conference.

-------- terrorism

Libyan Double Agent Testifies in Lockerbie Bomb Trial

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27LOCK.html

CAMP ZEIST, the Netherlands, Sept. 26 - The Libyan double agent considered the most crucial witness in the Lockerbie trial testified today that the two defendants brought a brown Samsonite suitcase to Malta like the one believed to contain the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103.

But if the prosecution was anchoring its case on the witness, Abdul Majid Giaka, as it had indicated, it may have been disappointed. He never said he saw a bomb put in the suitcase or the suitcase put aboard a flight.

Nor did he say that either defendant made any admission to him about the bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988 that killed 270 people.

Mr. Abdul Majid, who became an informant for the C.I.A. just four months before the bombing, spent only half a day testifying, mostly before the prosecution. He will resume testifying, under defense questioning, on Wednesday.

"I think it's all over," Robert Black, a University of Edinburgh law professor who has closely followed the trial, said of the prosecution's case. "They didn't get the damaging evidence, the actual smoking gun. They needed him to say `I saw them putting the bomb in the suitcase.'"

Scottish prosecutors do not outline their cases in opening statements and do not update the press on how they are doing, so it is difficult to tell what they hope to accomplish with each witness. But the British press was once full of speculation that Mr. Abdul Majid, as a former intelligence agent, would firmly link the two accused to the bomb plot.

The trial, which began in May, is taking place in the Netherlands under Scottish law, under a deal worked out with the Libyan leader, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, who agreed to surrender the two defendants only if they would not be tried in Britain or the United States.

Mr. Abdul Majid, who at the time of the bombing was the deputy station manager for Libyan Arab Airlines at the Malta airport, said today that he had discovered that his desk's drawers contained 25 pounds of TNT.

He said his boss, the defendant Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah, who shared the desk and kept the key, told him it had been given to him by the chief of airline security, who is the second defendant accused of blowing up Pan Am 103, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al- Megrahi. Mr. Fhimah and Mr. Megrahi, both Libyans, have denied the charges against them.

The purpose of the TNT was never explained; Pan Am 103 was not blown up with TNT.

Mr. Abdul Majid also testified that in 1986, shortly after American jets based in Britain bombed Libya, he wrote a report saying it would be possible to slip an unaccompanied suitcase aboard a British plane at the airport where he worked. Mr. Megrahi found out about the report, Mr. Abdul Majid testified, and cautioned him, "Don't rush things."

It became clear today that Mr. Abdul Majid was not a high-level operative. He said he joined Libya's secret service in 1983 as an auto mechanic, resigned two years later and was rehired as a file clerk. Even at the Malta airport, despite his "deputy station manager" title, he spent his time checking passenger lists and helping Libyan V.I.P.'s clear customs.

He did have one conversation about the bombing with Mr. Fhimah in 1991, he testified. In it, Mr. Fhimah angrily denounced America for bombing Libya in 1986, and said, "They never looked at the possibility of a reaction," Mr. Abdul Majid recalled. But he said nothing clearly indicating that he had bombed Pan Am 103. Mr. Fhimah never even admitted being an intelligence agent, Mr. Abdul Majid said.

One lingering mystery was not explored today: if Mr. Abdul Majid, as he testified, became a turncoat by walking into the United States Embassy in Malta in August 1988, four months before the bombing, why did he not tip anyone off about it?

Even if he had not known in time to thwart it, why did American and Scottish investigators spend a whole year thinking their chief suspects were a group of Syrian-backed Palestinians in Germany?

Mr. Abdul Majid's testimony was considered the prosecution's best chance to link the two defendants to the bomb itself. Other witnesses have established that the two were in Malta when the bomb was put on a Malta Air flight that connected to Pan Am 103, and that Mr. Megrahi had in earlier years bought Swiss bomb timers.

Another witness, a Malta clothing store owner, was asked to confirm that Mr. Fhimah had bought clothes that were later found, singed, in the plane's debris, but his identification, 12 years after the sale, seemed shaky.

Because he has been given a new identity in the United States federal witness protection program, Mr. Abdul Majid's face was not seen today except in the court itself. A white screen covered the glass wall of the public gallery, and the closed circuit TV carrying the trial reduced his face to a jumble of black and yellow squares. His voice was electronically distorted until it sounded like Darth Vader speaking Arabic slowly. Speaking on condition of anonymity, someone who saw him said he wore a gray suit, was not masked and has "Pavarotti-like jowls."

Published reports have said he is so afraid of being assassinated that he agreed to meet prosecutors recently only on a moving bus while wearing what was described as "a Shirley Bassey wig."

Mr. Abdul Majid's testimony was supposed to begin last month, but the defense and prosecution fell into a dispute over 25 C.I.A. cables about interviews with him between August 1988 and 1991, when he was spirited aboard a United States warship off Malta and given asylum.

The defense was given copies with whole pages blacked out; the C.I.A. claimed those parts would jeopardize American security. After the defense protested and the court agreed, the agency handed over less edited transcripts and 36 more cables.

Those gave the defense a wealth of material for attacking Mr. Abdul Majid's credibility. Apparently, after he was hired but before he emerged in the bomb case, his C.I.A. debriefers - one of whom worked undercover as a baggage handler - became worried that he was an opportunist and possibly a fraud.

He approached the United States Embassy in August 1988 out of fear, he testified today. He had been ordered back to Tripoli to explain an incident in July.

He said Mr. Fhimah, his boss, had made what was interpreted as a sexual advance on an 18-year-old woman passenger, an Egyptian who turned out to be a very angry relative of the late Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser.

Rather than be recalled to Libya for questioning, Mr. Abdul Majid wanted to defect to America. But the agency asked him to become a double agent and paid him $1,000 a month, hoping he could penetrate upper levels of the secret service in Libya. He also asked the C.I.A. to pay for sham surgery on his arm that would leave a scar and to provide certification that he was unfit for military duty.

Today he said the agency helped pay for a $2,000 operation, explaining that his doctor broke his arm and had it treated at a Malta hospital. He also asked for a $30,000 loan to start a car rental agency in Malta. Defense lawyers have said the C.I.A. thought he had another $30,000 that he might have made by using his job for low- level smuggling.

By 1990, the agency was considering cutting him off. He had little information and the arm surgery also made him ineligible for intelligence agency service, which his handlers then suspected had been his real reason all along.

This afternoon, William Taylor, a defense lawyer, lashed into him on cross-examination, beginning by asking "You aren't required to be very bright to mend cars, are you?" and demanding when the witness got confused, "Would you agree with the statement that a liar has to have an excellent memory?"

---

New York Times
September 27, 2000
Metro Briefings
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/nyregion/27MBRF.html

NEW YORK

MANHATTAN: BAIL DENIED IN BOMB CASE An Orlando, Fla., man who prosecutors say is a member of an organization led by the Saudi exile Osama bin Laden was refused bail yesterday after a federal judge in Manhattan concluded he might flee before his trial. The defendant, Ihab M. Ali, was recently charged with perjury and criminal contempt for refusing to testify before a grand jury investigating the bombings of two United States embassies in Africa in 1998. Mr. Ali was jailed for 16 months after being found in civil contempt for refusing, on religious grounds, to testify. Benjamin Weiser (NYT)

-------- activists

Anti-Capitalist Protests Diminish in Prague

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By JOSEPH KAHN
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/continuous/28CND-FUND.html

PRAGUE, Sept. 27 -- Anti-capitalist protests diminished sharply in Prague today, as financial officials and many demonstrators condemned the outbreak of violence and vandalism that turned a conference of aid officials into a street battle.

The officials wound up the conference a half-day early, explaining that the formal presentations on the agenda were completed ahead of schedule. The officials insisted that the decision to advance the concluding ceremony, originally planned for Thursday, to this afternoon had nothing to do with the protests. Some bilateral meetings and news conferences are still scheduled for Thursday.

The delegates have been meeting here for a week, and while some began leaving today rather than staying overnight, the senior officials of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, which sponsored the annual event, remained in Prague.

But shattered glass still covered the sidewalks along Wesceslas Square, where hundreds of protesters -- many of them black-masked anarchists armed with clubs -- smashed a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant, a Dunkin' Donuts shop and a Mercedes dealership late Tuesday. Earlier in the day they had repeatedly clashed with police near the hilltop conference center where officials from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund held their annual meetings.

About 100 people were injured, 63 of them police, according to a local government spokesman. There were 420 arrests, though many of those taken into custody were quickly released.

Police today sealed the protesters' center of operations in an old factory building on the outskirts of Prague. This afternoon, two cordons of police in full riot gear surrounded several hundred protesters in a downtown square, holding them in place until they agreed to disperse.

The violence helped the demonstrators generate publicity but highlighted a gulf between them and representatives of poor nations that they often claim to represent.

"Violence has no place in a civilized society," Yashwant Sinha, India's finance minister, told delegates this morning. "I stand here on behalf of India, the land of Mahatma Gandhi who espoused the cause of non-violence, and I condemn the violence which was unleashed here."

Czech government officials complained that the protesters had lied to them when they promised peaceful sit-ins during marathon negotiations before the meetings.

But protester organizers distanced themselves from what they called hoodlums and extremists who had no ties to the main protest march. Even some anarchists criticized the violence.

"We agreed to non-violence, and it all turned out badly," said a 24-year-old Brazilian who gave his name as Ivan, and wore a "Punk not Dead" T-shirt caked with dust. He sat with other protesters on Peace Square today, hemmed in by police who would not let them march.

"But I should say that I respect the people who committed the violence. They are not my enemy. The enemy is the I.M.F."

Though protesters distracted the media from the aid conference, just as they had helped undermine trade negotiations in Seattle late last year, some said the almost ritualistic violence common to several recent anti-globalization protesters had obscured the protesters' main message. Many have argued that the World Bank and the I.M.F. do more harm than good in poor countries and need to be either radically overhauled or abolished.

"The media only care about the violence, not about our arguments," said Katarina Bartovicova, 22, of Bratislava, Slovakia. "They are making us pay for yesterday."

---

Protests Distract Global Finance Meeting

New York Times
September 27, 2000
By JOSEPH KAHN
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27FUND.html

PRAGUE, Sept. 26 - Black- masked protesters hurled cobblestones ripped from Prague's medieval streets and attacked police with homemade gasoline bombs today, trying desperately - but unsuccessfully - to shut down the global finance meeting here.

The riot police had to escort government ministers attending the annual conference of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank into special subways cars to whisk them away from their meeting at the end of the session, though by evening, normal access had been fully restored.

The violence, which both police and many protesters said was provoked by squadrons of European anarchists and communists, did not stop the meetings.

But it did steal the media spotlight, giving protesters who had vowed to re-create the blockade of the trade talks last year in Seattle.

Inside the halls, financial leaders who are here to discuss aid policies tried to show that they are at least as passionate about the poor as the protesters are. Many pledged to rededicate themselves to fighting poverty, even to inspiring a new spirituality.

Everyone seemed to cite the statistic that 3 billion people live on $2 or less a day.

"Something is wrong when the richest 20 percent of the global population receive more than 80 percent of the global income," James D. Wolfensohn, the president of the World Bank, said in his keynote address. "Our challenge is to make globalization an instrument of opportunity and inclusion - not fear."

The leaders of the World Bank and the I.M.F., and finance ministers from some rich nations that back them, said they would speed up debt relief, allow poor countries to have more say in planning loan programs and consider replacing some loans with grants.

But by afternoon, protesters had stolen the show, at least as far as the television cameras were concerned. The demonstrators included Czech anarchists, Italian Communists, British schoolteachers and German truck drivers, many of whom contended that the lending agencies are the problem, not the solution.

The Prague police had prepared for a siege, with 11,000 officers around the city. In the end, police estimated there were 6,000 demonstrators. The protesters, who once expected 20,000, claimed they actually had 10,000. Even if they were right, they still failed to match police one for one, and they fell short of the tally in Seattle and at other recent protests.

Early in the day, in what has become the signature vandalism, several people smashed the windows and tore up the interior of a McDonald's in Wenceslas Square, the site of the peaceful protests during Czechoslovakia's Velvet Revolution in 1989.

Near the hilltop Congress Center, where the meetings were held, a small group of demonstrators provoked the police by hurling fist-sized stones that later littered the street behind police lines. Some protesters wore black masks and carried the red-and-black flag of anarchists. Several threw Molotov cocktails, igniting the uniforms of officers stretched in a line across the street.

The police responded with repeated shots of tear gas. They sprayed water from cannons to disperse the crowd, while armored personnel carriers raced into position to close off the streets.

Police said as many as 65 people were taken to hospitals with injuries, most of them officers involved in the melee. There were dozens of arrests. A few demonstrators were hurt by the police who seized them, with one man bleeding from the face after four officers threw him to the ground.

The skirmishes spread to the valley below the meeting hall, where demonstrators burned barricades of wood and tires to keep the police back, then smashed windows and destroyed a car. An American flag was burned, while protesters yelled, "No new world order."

Tomas, a 19-year-old from the Moravia region of the Czech Republic with orange hair and a rooster cut, was there throwing plastic bottles at the police. "I hate the police and they hate me," he said. "I would like some real fighting to happen."

A 23-year-old man from Berlin who refused to give his name carried several cobblestones as he prepared to rush police lines. He removed his black mask to reveal his face, seared red from pepper gas.

"To fight them for me is symbolic of fighting the I.M.F., which will never change on its own," he said.

Today's protests did succeed in blocking access to the conference center for several hours in the afternoon. But at that time meeting participants had already arrived, and their sessions continued uninterrupted, though delegates surrounded television monitors to get the latest news from the barricades.

By late afternoon, some attending the meeting were complaining to guards that they had planes to catch and had to leave the center immediately, prompting authorities to open a subway station to officials only.

Protesters had been gathering in Prague for a week, with many of them vowing to turn this session into a repeat of Seattle, when demonstrators briefly kept delegates away from their meetings.

Many protesters decried the violence.

"We're really disappointed," said Chelsea Mosen, an organizer. "We were really hoping for a nonviolent protest on the basic issues of the I.M.F. and the World Bank, but instead now the focus has shifted to the streets of Prague."

Catherine Devon, 38, a teacher who traveled from Birmingham, England, by train for 24 hours to reach Prague this morning, said, "This is not what I came for." She said she decided to join the demonstrations because her son often woke up in the middle of the night, frightened about global warming.

"I want to tell him I am doing something about it," she said. "We must show up every time these people meet. Someday, they will get the message."

Though they attracted less attention, delegates at the meetings from developing countries also challenged the lending agencies and wealthier governments to improve their policies.

Trevor A. Manuel, South Africa's finance minister and the honorary chairman of this year's meetings, scolded the representatives of wealthy nations for pressuring poor nations to embrace free markets while often protecting their own markets from the goods that developing countries produce.

"The robust state of the global economy is due in no small measure to the success of the fundamental reforms undertaken by developing countries," Mr. Manuel said. "Their boldness needs to be matched by the richer countries."

The United States treasury secretary, Lawrence H. Summers, who addressed the opening ceremonies early in the day, prodded the World Bank to spend more on human development projects, including education. Such proposals have met some resistance on the bank's board.

Mr. Summers also called on the bank to provide some grants as well as its traditional loans, echoing a recommendation first made by a Congressional review panel that was highly critical of the bank's practices.

Mr. Summers said the grants would go to programs like those that help prevent the spread of AIDS, whose benefits cannot be measured in money.

It was left to Vaclav Havel, the Czech president and former dissident, to try to reconcile the demands of protesters with the money controlled by the ministers. He asked whether all the proposals to increase material well-being had obscured the task of improving spiritual health.

"We often hear about the need to restructure the economies of the poorer countries and about the wealthier nations being duty bound to help them accomplish this," Mr. Havel said. "But I deem it even more important that we should begin also to think about another restructuring - a restructuring of the entire system of values that forms the basis of our civilization today."

---

IMF meeting closes one day early

USA Today
09/27/00- Updated 09:42 PM ET
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/nw1.htm#sinks

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - The leaders of global capitalism said Wednesday they were finishing the annual summit of the IMF and World Bank one day early, but insisted their business was done and they had not been derailed by violent street protests. Trouble in the streets broke out again early Wednesday when dozens of people scuffled with police outside a hotel where IMF and World Bank delegates were staying. Top IMF and World Bank officials insisted the demonstrators had it all wrong - that the agencies are not the enemies of the world's 2.8 billion poor but the biggest lenders to poor countries.

---

New York Times
September 27, 2000
World Briefing
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/27/world/27BRIE.html

EUROPE

TURKEY: ARMENIA PROTEST Angry about a bill in Congress labeling as genocide the 1915 killings of hundreds of thousands of Armenians in Turkey, protesters rallied outside the United States Consulate in Istanbul. The House International Relations Committee is expected to approve the bill on Thursday. Whether it reaches the House before adjournment Oct. 6 is uncertain. The administration opposes it, arguing that history should decide. Douglas Frantz (NYT)

---

Madonna, Travis, R.E.M. Repeat The 'Mantra' Edited

Billboard
September 27, 2000, 11:30 a.m. EDT
by Jonathan Cohen
http://www.billboard.com/daily/2000/0927_02.asp

Madonna, Travis, and R.E.M. are among the artists who have contributed tracks to the forthcoming benefit album "Mantra Mix," to be released Oct. 24 on the Narada World label. Proceeds from the album have been earmarked for the Foundation For The Preservation Of The Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), which aids the Tibetan refugee community throughout the world.

Other artists offering songs include David Byrne, Fatboy Slim, the Chemical Brothers, Suede, Massive Attack, and Ben Harper. According to a statement, all tracks were chosen because they contain "some positive element" appropriate "for inclusion on an album to honor The Dalai Lama."

The release will be augmented with a bonus CD featuring music from electronic/experimental acts such as Chris Hinze & Junkie XL, composer Philip Glass, and a prayer from the Dalai Lama himself. The interactive portion of the disc offers contact information for Tibetan charities, musical instrument demonstrations, and more.

Here is the tracklist for "Mantra Mix" :

Fatboy Slim, "Right Here, Right Now" Suede, "Everything Will Flow" Chemical Brothers, "One Too Many Mornings" Madonna, "Shanti / Ashtangi" Travis, "The Connection" (previously unreleased in North America) Sinead O'Connor, "This Is Mother To You" Propellerheads, "History Repeating" R.E.M. "Lotus (Weird Mix)" (previously unreleased in North America) David Byrne, "Ain't Got So Far To Go" (previously unreleased) Massive Attack, "Angel" Leftfield, "Rino's Prayer" Kula Shaker, "Tattva (Lucky 13 Mix)" Natalie Merchant, "Seven Years" Moby, "Everloving" Peter Gabriel, "Games Without Frontiers (Massive/DB Mix)" Ben Harper, "One Road To Freedom"

-- Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

-------- biological warfare

USA Today
09/27/00
States
http://usatoday.com/news/states/all50.htm

Louisiana

DeRidder - A critic of biological warfare training planned at Fort Polk says public hearings will show why those who live in the area should be concerned about the plans. Kathy McDaniel claims to have proof there are documented medical problems associated with the biological agent. A Fort Polk spokesman said the training poses no threat to the public or environment.

-------


NucNews - Please circulate -- help educate! - http://prop1.org

1. NucNews 00/09/27 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements
From: Ellen Thomas

3. Ms. Caroline Holmes on CONpensation and Congress
From: easlavin@aol.com

4. Let's Get NMD/TMD/Star Wars On C-Span
From: "Bill Smirnow"
5. Dragon Gas
From: ivan buchbinder
6. Unleashing `Mini-Nukes' Will Bring Dire Consequences
From: Guin
7. Reactor Coolant Leak At Sequoyah Discovered While Investigating Malfunctioning Coolant Pump
From: "Bill Smirnow"
8. NucNews 00/09/28 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements
From: Ellen Thomas
----------

Message: 1
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: Ellen Thomas
NucNews 00/09/27 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements

Washington Times Daybook,
September 27, 2000,
Agence France Presse
http://www.washtimes.com/national/daybook-200092721328.htm

9 a.m. - Military readiness - The Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing to receive testimony on the status of U.S. military readiness. Gen. Henry H. Shelton, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, testifies. Location: 216 Hart Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-3871.

9 a.m. - Senate Judiciary's administrative oversight and the courts subcommittee holds a hearing on "Oversight on the Wen Ho Lee Case." Location: 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-5225.

9:30 a.m. - Violence in movies - The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee holds a hearing to examine the motion picture industry's marketing of violence to children. Location: 253 Russell Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-5115.

10 a.m. - House Government Reform's national security, veterans affairs and international relations subcommittee holds a hearing to examine findings of Institute of Medicine's recent study on Gulf War veterans' illnesses. Location: 2247 Rayburn House Office Building. Contact: 202/225-5074.

10 a.m. - House International Relations Committee holds a hearing on "Russia: How Vladimir Putin Rose to Power and What America Can Expect." Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright testifies. Location: 2172 Rayburn House Office Building. Contact: 202/225-5021.

10 a.m. - House Joint Economic Committee holds a hearing to review the Strategic Petroleum Reserve's resources and the options available to policy-makers. Location: 311 Cannon House Office Building. Contact: 202/224-5171.

2 p.m. - House Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on the state of the armed services and future military requirements. Gen. Henry H. Shelton, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, testifies. Location: 2118 Rayburn House Office Building. Contact: 202/225-4151.

7 p.m. - Nitze tribute - The Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) presents "America's Place in the World: A Tribute to Paul Nitze," SAIS co-founder and principal author of National Security Council Paper No. 68, adopted 50 years ago this month. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott delivers a keynote address. Location: Colonial Room, Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave. NW. Contact: 202/663-5626.

-- PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

- George W. Bush - California Wednesday, September 27 - 8:45 a.m. - Discussion on education recession, Ascension School, 517 111th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90044, (323) 756-4064

- Al Gore - Iowa today 10 a.m. - Leads a discussion on the need for better prescription drug benefits in Medicare, Greater Altoona Community Services Center, Altoona, Iowa.

- Ralph Nader - Wednesday, Sept. 27 - East Liverpool, and Youngstown, OH 10:00 - 11:00 AM - Press Conference with Ralph Nader, East Liverpool School Administration Building, 500 Maryland Street, East Liverpool, OH 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM - Ralph Nader Speech, same location 2:00 - 3:00 AM - Ralph Nader Speech, Chestnut Room, Kilcawley Center Youngstown State University (Wick Avenue and Lincoln Street), Youngstown, OH 3:00 AM - 3:45 PM - Press Conference same location

Thursday, September 28 - Nader on DAVID LETTERMAN SHOW; 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM. - Rally outside the Ed Sullivan Theatre, 1697 Broadway (bet. 53rd & 54th Sts.) The show tapes at 5:30 PM and the studio audience has to be at the theatre no later than 4:15, so please try to be there at 4 o'clock or even earlier to preach the good news of Nader's candidacy and the Green Party platform to the ticket-holders.

-- ANNOUNCEMENTS --

- Bad news - Plan to Aid Ill Nuclear Workers Is Rejected by House Leaders http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16506-2000Sep25.html ,,,Under the Senate aid plan, workers who suffered from certain cancers and other occupational diseases would have been eligible for medical benefits as well as compensation for lost wages or a lump-sum payment of $200,000. An alternative plan crafted by House Republican leadership last week would have allowed the nominal creation of a compensation program while withholding any funding pending further studies.

- U.S. Campaign to Free Mordechai Vanunu Conference Date: Wednesday 27 September Time: Dawn to dusk Place: Israeli Embassy, 3514 International Drive NW For more information, e-mail samday@chorus.net.

- Tomorrow, September 28th is International Nix-MOX Action Day. Questions? call 828-251-2060 -
- Appeal for full funding for international debt relief Participate in a Call-in Day, this Thursday, September 28, to your representatives in Congress, urging that they support full funding for existing debt relief programs, as step toward Jubilee 2000 goals. Call for: 1) Full funding for debt relief, by appropriating at least $435 million for debt relief in the conference report to accompany the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2001, 2) The inclusion of legislation to permit the International Monetary Fund to use the earnings from gold revaluation for the purposes of debt relief 3) NO conditions on the relief that harm people or the environment Notice: Senators Gramm and Helms, backed up by Sens Lott and McConnell are saying no funding for debt relief unless countries privatize all industries, end all government subsidies, and meet strict (in fact, unrealistic) criteria for political freedom. 5 countries, at most, would qualify for debt reduction, if these Senators get their way.LET'S MAKE THOSE PHONES RING OFF THE HOOK! Call Senators at 202/224-3121; Call Members of Congress at 202/225-3121 ==< we urgently need support from Kentucky, Texas, North Carolina and Mississippi! Drop me a line if you live there :-) [From: David Bryden
- Message from Nader Campaign -- DIRECT ACTION MISSION: The debate chickens have appeared with great fanfare at protests all across the country. This week we would broaden the protest message to include the Issue Ducks. Let everyone know how you feel about the way Bush and Gore duck all the important issues. Wave signs: "Universal Health Care: Ducking the Issue" or "Death Penalty: Ducking the Issue" or "Living Wage: Ducking the Issue" or other issues that matter to you. A chorus of duck calls complements a "let Ralph debate" chant quite nicely. Remember: always civil, always peaceful, always polite, but let's get the point across, let's get the cameras' attention, and let's get Ralph into the debates!

- "STOP STAR WARS" RALLY AND NONVIOLENT DIRECT ACTION AT VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE; part of an International Day of Protest to Stop the Militarization of Space WHEN: SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2000; rally begins at 1 pm. Speakers include: Medea Benjamin, Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate; Bruce Gagnon, Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space, and Carah Ong, Abolition 2000. Main gate nonviolent direct action begins at 3 pm. Back country occupation all day. WHERE: VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE; Main Gate, 8 miles north of Lompoc, California on Highway 1 WHY: Vandenberg Air Force Base is the launch site for U.S. ballistic missile flight tests and spy satellites. The next BMD interceptor test is planned for January 2001 from Vandenberg. [From: Jackie Cabasso
- Interesting article: Key Players Control World Money Supply By John M. Berry, Washington Post Staff Writer, Sunday, June 28, 1998 http://www.newslibrary.com/download.asp?DBLIST=wp98&DOCNUM=34001&TERMV=213:4 :217:1:219:5: BASEL, Switzerland - Ten times a year, the financial barons who control the world's supply of money gather here on the bank of the Rhine River for drinks and dinner - and secret conversations that can shape the course of the global economy. The 13 members of this economic cabal meet on the glass-walled 18th floor of the round headquarters tower of an obscure institution known as the Bank for International Settlements. From their seats at the conference table, they can look across the city and the river to Germany's Black Forest or farther west to French Alps on the horizon. As they arrive and greet one another by their first names, waiters hover with drinks - they know each one's favorite. For privacy and candor, no staff members are present, only the principals and occasionally a guest, such as Michel Camdessus, managing director of the International Monetary Fund. The members of this secretive group are the governors of the central banks of the Group of 10 industrial nations, plus Switzerland. The most powerful voice in the room is the U.S. representative - Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan or, if he can't attend, Vice Chairman Alice M. Rivlin. As befits its power, the United States alone has a second seat at the table, occupied by William J. McDonough, president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank. The 13th participant is the BIS's general manager, Andrew Crockett, a former Bank of England official. This is how global finance does its most sensitive business, in these quiet Sunday-night meetings. The central bankers talk informally - with no agenda other than what is on their minds. The financial intelligence that emerges from these meetings - and perhaps more important, the personal trust - helps keep the international banking system steady in turbulent times, such as the financial crisis that has swept Asia over the past year. Roots in a War But what, exactly, is the strangely named organization that hosts this secret conclave? The BIS was established in 1930 to assist in the payments of reparations owed by Germany and other losers in World War I to the victors. Over the years it has become a central bank for central banks. It has also emerged as a clearinghouse for regulators - helping them supervise commercial banks, oversee foreign exchange markets and protect the world financial system.....

----------

Message: 3
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: easlavin@aol.com

Ms. Caroline Holmes on CONpensation and Congress

Good afternoon: A repost of Ms. Caroline Holmes' eloquent message of 1:21:12 9/27/2000 -- let those who are backing this bad DOE-drafted bill debate it, instead of hiding in D.C. Ed Slavin:

Subj: [downwinders] New life in CONpensation beast!
Date: 9/27/00 1:21:12 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: caroline.holmes@usa.net (Caroline Holmes)
downwinders@egroups.com

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/15667.shtml

House leaders revive talks on money for ill nuke workers
September 27, 2000
By Katherine Rizzo,
Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- A day after talks broke down, House leaders said Tuesday they would resume negotiations with the Senate on a compensation plan for workers made sick by Cold War-era jobs in nuclear weapons plants.

A new House proposal was being drafted and will be presented to conferees on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Folks I am sorry for having to speak out about this and in doing so probably insulting or offending a few of you, but I just can't sit back any longer and watch this seemingly endless freak show running back in Washington over the "Feel your pain" CONpensation bill. I just have had enough, especially with this latest development.

For the love of the holy mother of god I cannot see or understand how anyone can see this new development as a repreive of sentence or manna from heaven as some have, cheering "It isn't dead yet"!

Likewise I am getting real sick and tired of hearing how this is all the fault of the GOP leadership in Congress and the next Congress with different leadership will make it all better. I will fully agree this is indeed a symptom of major leadership problems, but they start from the top down and are not the sole sin of the GOP. When an administration, any administration truly is committed and truly believes in its heart some bill or new program is just, right, and needs to be passed, they fight for it. They turn the screws down everywhere they can turn them. Put the pressure on any goodies up on that hill they can clamp down on to get the votes. Hold press conferences, make phone calls, fight, fight, fight. I believe it's called the American way!

So where was good old B.J. Clinton and saintly Al "green" Gore? Right out there with the GOP leadership, off to lunch.

But at least the administration has provided me with the example of the proper moral and ethical climate to discuss this latest development, and the whole damned CONpensation affair in. Starting with speaking my mind on what I think of the relationship that has developed over this past year between this nation's Cold War victims and those pushing this pile of garbage -- the politicans, our so-called friends inside DOE, the White House, the Unions, and the professional activists and advocates who have for decades made "feeling our pain" and doing nothing about it their livelyhood.

And in a perspective I am sure this administration and this bill's supporters can understand, that relationship can best be described and explained by a quote I saw on a store wall recently while visiting family in a big city back east.

"THIS RELATIONSHIP SUCKS xxxx IT'S GONE FROM HOPE, TO HYPE, TO HERPES"

The relationship between those trying to cram this bill down on the few selected victims it covers and those supporting the bill have proven that relationship is no different than the one painted in big red letters on that wall. They have caved in, cut up, toned down, revised, gutted and regutted the bill, until it has gone from less than a whole loaf to begin with and then of questionable quality, to half a loaf, to less than half, to a mere slice, to a very, very thin slice at that, to some crumbs and stale crust, to just crumbs, to this week's gutting into micro-crumbs at best, and likely pico, or nano crumbs by the time the Congess goes home.

How in god's name can someone breathing new life into that horrible infectious beast be seen as wonderful news???

And please spare all of us one more reading of the imortal words we had shoved every place anybody could shove them for six straight Congress runs on RECA -- "well we have to pass something so we can at least get our foot in the door and fix it next year." How with the ten years it took to get even a very few tiny little problems remotely fixed with RECA no matter how big and fat a foot the advocates had put in the door, can anybody with a functioning brian buy the same old shit about "something, foot in the door, and fix it next year"?

Sure it sounds good and produces a good feeling inside, but it's nonsense and nothing but hype. It was the carrot that was dangled in front of everybody all during the RECA days. Foot in door, then fix next year. Foot in door, fix next year. One step at a time. One step at a time. And when that carrot was finally passed it turned out to be rotten and full of carrot flies. Without worth.

It is sweet talk. Pure sweet talk designed to feed off all the victims' hope and desires. In fact it is probably even better to address it in terms this administration and the bill supporters can best understand from the moral climate of the times.

A lesson this wrinkled up old gal learned the hard way 75+ years ago. "THERE IS FOREPLAY, AND THERE IS COMMITTED FOREPLAY, AND THERE ARE ALL KINDS OF FOREPLAY THAT CAN MAKE YOUR MOMENT AND PAVE THE WAY, BUT NO MATTER HOW GOOD AND HOW WONDERFUL, IN THE END YOU ALWAYS END UP THE SAME WAY -- SCREWED!

And if the Cold War victims being stroked and sweet talked and played with don't see the foreplay for just that, guess how they are going to end up very soon too?

Caroline Holmes

----------

Message: 4
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
Let's Get NMD/TMD/Star Wars On C-Span

Let's Contact C-Span [see below & http://www.c-span.org] and ask them to air some of the October 7th international demonstrations and have Bruce Gagnon, Karl Grossman, Michio Kaku and/or other experts on to discuss the Outer Space Treaty and ABM Treaty that the Pentagon is threatening. Also, to discuss http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace which make NMD and TMD look like child's play. C-Span contact info is below: C-Span is ofetn very open to this kind of material, hence your phone call WILL be worthwhile.

http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace

Postal Mail Address all non-electronic correspondence to: C-SPAN 400 North Capitol Street N.W. Suite 650 Washington, D.C. 20001 Telephone Contact C-SPAN about inquiries or offer comments:

a.. Front Desk (202) 737-3220
b.. Jobs Line (202) 626-7983
c.. Viewer Services: (765) 464-3080 (programming questions)
d.. C-SPAN Archives: 1-877-ON-CSPAN (877-662-7726) (Order videotapes)
e.. Washington Journal: Democrats (202) 624-1115
f.. Washington Journal: Republicans (202) 624-1111
g.. Washington Journal: Others (202) 737-6734

-Bill Smirnow

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Message: 5
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: ivan buchbinder
Dragon Gas

Y'all, Ah yes the Dragon's trot out a supposedly "Revered Scientist" of the Green Party, and you know those wacky environmentalists... can't trust um. This should prepare y'all for the massive media onslaught for the Dragon's policies. Later "Some time in the next century, when the adverse effects of climate change begin to bite, people will look back in anger at those who now so foolishly continue to pollute by burning fossil fuel instead of accepting the beneficence of nuclear power" "Is our distrust of nuclear power and genetically modified food soundly based?"

James Lovelock http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/et?ac=000118613908976&rtmo=pIeBesUe&atmo=99999999&pg=/et/00/9/28/ngre28.html

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Message: 6
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2000
From: Guin
Unleashing `Mini-Nukes' Will Bring Dire Consequences

San Francisco Chronicle
Thursday, September 21, 2000
Martin Butcher, Theresa Hitchens
mailto:chronfeedback@sfgate.com
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/09/21/ED35855.DTL

SOME U.S. LEADERS are toying with an idea for a new nuclear bomb that could have turned NATO's campaign in Kosovo into a nuclear war. For more than 50 years, there has been a taboo against unleashing the terrible power of the atom in war, but some in the U.S. nuclear weapons establishment and their political allies now envision a world where nuclear combat could become almost a commonplace event.

Sound crazy? Unfortunately, it's true.

Top Senate Republicans already have pushed through a measure that will allow U.S. weapons labs to begin studies on a so-called ``mini-nuke,'' intended not to deter a potential enemy but for use in small, regional wars. The measure is expected to pass when Congress debates the defense budget bill later this month. And even though the Pentagon says it ``has no requirement'' for such a new weapon, no one in President Clinton's lame-duck administration is expected to take on the issue.

Sens. John Warner, R-Va., and Wayne Allard, R-Colo., ensured that the Senate version of the Defense Authorization Bill for fiscal year 2001 contains a provision to allow initial development studies on a nuclear weapon with an explosive yield of less than five kilotons. The senators acted in answer to an Air Force request for permission to explore creation of an earth-burrowing nuclear warhead that could be used in regional wars, such as the Gulf War or Kosovo, to destroy underground bunkers.

The aim would be to kill national leaders such as Saddam Hussein or Slobodan Milosevic, or to destroy stocks of biological/chemical weapons held by so-called ``rogue'' states. The thinking -- detailed in a recent paper, ``Nuclear Weapons in the 21st Century'' by Stephen Younger, associate director for nuclear weapons at Los Alamos National Laboratory -- is that such bunkers are often in urban areas, where use of a ``normal'' nuclear weapon would cause unacceptable damage and casualties to the civilian population. A ``mini-nuke,'' proponents argue, would be a sure way of killing a dictator, or wiping out stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, with little or no release of those agents into the environment.

Obviously, the development and deployment of a weapon with a relatively small explosive yield -- the Hiroshima bomb, regarded today as tiny, was a 15 kiloton weapon -- would be extremely dangerous, precisely because the military would regard it as ``usable.'' The negative political ramifications of launching a nuclear war apparently go unheeded by Younger and others promoting such a new weapon.

It is also absurd to assert that such a weapon could be employed without endangering civilians. A mini-nuke dropped on San Francisco might only destroy Twin Peaks, not the entire city. But, even a small nuclear weapon would kill thousands of people and bring appalling suffering to thousands more victims of burns, radiation sickness, blindness and other injuries. Eventually, thousands more would suffer as the result of genetic deformities -- exactly as has happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

And even with today's precision weapons, accurate delivery cannot be ensured. The accidental bombing of the Chinese embassy during NATO's Kosovo air war is a case in point.

War aside, a number of immediate negative consequences can be expected if the United States pursues ``mini-nukes.''

In the near term, nuclear weapons design and development activity at Department of Energy labs would be intensified. Eventually, there would be strong pressure to resume nuclear testing, as the weapon scientists seek to prove to the military that their new designs work. This would wreck the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, already weakened by its rejection by the Senate last year. In fact, there already is strong pressure from the U.S. nuclear labs, and members of Congress such as Sen. Allard, to abandon the test ban treaty and the U.S. moratorium on nuclear testing. The United States' move to develop mini-nukes has the potential to spur proliferation. The refusal of the ``nuclear-haves'' to live up to obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty to pursue nuclear disarmament already has piqued India and Pakistan to acquire nuclear capability.

How can the world take seriously Washington's pledge, made during the May Non-Proliferation Treaty 2000 Review Conference, to make an ``unequivocal undertaking'' to work toward eliminating nuclear weapons, when at the same time U.S. officials are promoting new, more usable bombs?

Moreover, the United States has signed so-called negative security assurances -- promising not to launch a nuclear attack on non-nuclear countries.

Doesn't the development of a ``mini-nuke'' make a mockery of those promises?

Is the U.S. government really ready to overthrow the international consensus that nuclear war would be the ultimate disaster, just for the chance to drop a bomb on Saddam Hussein? Does such a policy make strategic sense for a peaceful 21st century?

Those touting the use of battlefield nuclear weapons need to look up from their blueprints and recognize the potentially frightening results of their laboratory experiments.

Martin Butcher is director of security programs at Physicians for Social Responsibility. Theresa Hitchens is research director at the British American Security Information Council.

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Message: 7
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
Reactor Coolant Leak At Sequoyah Discovered While Investigating Malfunctioning Coolant Pump

Please notice the usual line below- what do they mean when they say USUALLY? How usual? What if this were one of those UNUSUAL events? Why dosen't the spokesperson elaborate? Or the reporter? Why is only the industry quoted and not an objective source? Where's the BEEF??? Remember what NRC themselves have said:

1. http://www.geocities.com/mothersalert/probability.html
2. http://www.geocities.com/mothersalert/crac.html
3. This is from Joseph Mangano, not NRC: http://www.geocities.com/mothersalert/infant.html

This sort of event "usually involves something that does not pose any immediate threat to plant safety or personnel," Clark said.

-Bill Smirnow

From: magnu96196@aol.com
TVA reactor shuts down at Sequoyah plant
http://www.oakridger.com/
September 27, 2000
by Duncan Mansfield Associated Press

KNOXVILLE -- A Tennessee Valley Authority reactor was shut down for repairs after a pump problem led to a brief reactor coolant leak, officials said Tuesday.

"This is really an operating problem. It is not a safety event," said Ken Clark, spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in Atlanta.

A main pump supplying water to steam generators at Seqouyah Nuclear Plant's Unit 1 reactor malfunctioned at about 10:30 a.m. EDT Monday. The plant is in Soddy-Daisy, about 20 miles north of Chattanooga.

The 1,100-megawatt reactor had been operating at full power for 187 days. It shut down as designed and "posed no danger to employees or the public," TVA spokesman John Moulton said.

Sequoyah officials decided to take the reactor down to a cold shutdown so another problem could be fixed -- a reactor coolant pump that had been vibrating excessively.

While cooling off the reactor, Sequoyah workers discovered a 45-gallons-per-minute coolant leak. It took 10 minutes to stop. The coolant was contained in a pressurized relief tank and never left the containment building.

"The NRC staff will look into it to see what conditions existed and if TVA should have declared an 'unusual event,"' Clark said, referring to what the NRC considers its lowest-level of emergency.

This sort of event "usually involves something that does not pose any immediate threat to plant safety or personnel," Clark said.

Moulton said the TVA nevertheless notified the NRC.

The reactor will remain off line indefinitely to make repairs. "We don't normally predict a (restart) date," Moulton said.

Meantime, Sequoyah's identical Unit 2 reactor continues in operation. It has been running at full power for 249 days.

The Sequoyah station went into service in 1981. It is one of three nuclear stations owned and operated by TVA, the nation's largest public power producer.

TVA provides electricity to nearly 8 million people in Tennessee and parts of Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Missisippi.

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Message: 8
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2000
From: Ellen Thomas
NucNews 00/09/28 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements

Washington Times Daybook,
September 28, 2000,
Agence France Presse
http://www.washtimes.com/national/daybook-2000928214311.htm

9:30 a.m. - Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on U.S. policy toward Iraq. Gen. Anthony Zinni, former U.S. Central Command commander, testifies. Location: 216 Hart Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-3871.

9:30 a.m. - Sierra Club news conference - The Sierra Club announces a major campaign to inform people where their congressional and presidential candidates stand on environmental issues. Location: Salon B/C, JW Marriott, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Contact: 202/675-6698.

10 a.m. - House Veterans' Affairs oversight and investigations subcommittee holds a hearing on human subjects protections in VA medical research. Location: 334 Cannon House Office Building. Contact: 202/225-9164.

10:30 a.m. - Foreign Relations Committee holds a hearing on slavery throughout the world. Location: 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-4651.

3 p.m. - Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hold a hearing, "Climate Change: Status of the Kyoto Protocol After Three Years." Location: 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-4971 or 202/224-4651.

-- PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

- George W. Bush - 11:50 a.m. - One-on-one, TOSCA, Limited, 1032 Bay Beach Road, Green Bay, Wisconsin 54302, (920) 465-8534 4:20 p.m. - Pontiac, Michigan: There will be a photo opportunity only upon arrival at Daimler Chrysler Aviation, at Oakland County International Airport. Be on site at 7310 Highland Road in Waterford, Michigan, by 4:20 p.m. For directions call (248) 666-3630. Evening - Troy, Michigan, reception for the Michigan Republican party.

- Al Gore - Unknown

- Ralph Nader - Thursday, September 28 - Nader on DAVID LETTERMAN SHOW; 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM. - Rally outside the Ed Sullivan Theatre, 1697 Broadway (bet. 53rd & 54th Sts.) The show tapes at 5:30 PM and the studio audience has to be at the theatre no later than 4:15, so please try to be there at 4 o'clock or even earlier to preach the good news of Nader's candidacy and the Green Party platform to the ticket-holders.

-- Note: Nader leads Gore in Time.com poll. [25% to 16% - Bush is at 54% as of 8 a.m. 9/28/00.] Check it out and add your vote. (You have to scroll down to nearly the bottom of the page.) http://www.time.com/time/campaign2000/ BE HEARD! [From: "Nader for Prez! www.votenader.org"
-- ANNOUNCEMENTS --

- PRESS CONFERENCE 10:00 AM, THURSDAY, SEPT. 28, LAFAYETTE PARK, IN FRONT OF WHITE HOUSE WITH LONG-TERM FASTER, RELIGIOUS LEADERS AND OTHERS - Andrés Thomas Conteris, 39, United Methodist lay missioner and member of the Fellowship of Reconciliation enters the 10th week of fasting (65 days overall, 45 on water-only) urging the President to schedule an audience with the Puerto Rican church and community leaders. The fast enters a very critical stage. He has lost 59 pounds. Many others in Puerto Rico, across the U.S. and elsewhere are fasting on a rotating basis in support of peace in Vieques. The President has not responded directly to these pleas. In Vieques, on October 1, thousands of residents together with other Puerto Ricans will march in support of the civil disobedience campaign seeking to pressure the Navy to immediately and permanently withdraw from their island. This follows a Sept. 22 event where over 2000 gathered nonviolently in front of the White House and looks toward a Oct. 21 March in New York City. Visit www.viequesfast.org for details. The Navy has scheduled a new round of bombing exercises for the month of October and the nonviolent campaign in Vieques will continue to enter the firing range to try to serve as human shields against the bombing.

- Today, September 28th, is International Nix-MOX Action Day.
- CAMPAIGN FOR THE ACCOUNTABILITY OF AMERICAN BASES (CAAB) 8 Park Row, Otley, West Yorkshire, LS21 1HQ, England, U.K. Tel/fax no: +44 (0)1943 466405 0R +44 (0)1482 702033 email: mailto:caab.lindis_anni@virgin.net Website: http://www.gn.apc.org/cndyorks/caab/ "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world: indeed it's the only thing that ever does." Margaret Mead

- Opposition uses baby rattles to defy Milosevic http://sg.dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/world/afp/article.html?s=singapore/h eadlines/000928/world/afp/Opposition_uses_baby_rattles_to_defy_Milosevic.html ...The sound of the small plastic, red, yellow and green toys could be heard along the main Belgrade Terazije avenue where opposition activists were distributing 10,000 baby rattles. The use of the baby rattles was meant to send a message to Milosevic that his regime was "broken like a baby rattle" in line with an old Serbian referring to utter destruction.

- PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES BETTY BUMPERS AS A MEMBER TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR THE INSTITUTE OF PEACE. [Wife of former Senator Dale] Bumpers, of Little Rock, Arkansas, she is founder of Peace Links.... The United States Institute of Peace is a bipartisan board established in 1948 by an Act of Congress to promote international peace and the resolution of international conflict without violence through education, training, research, and public information. [From: The White House
Note from ET: I attended a meeting of the Institute of Peace in the '80's and was very unimpressed -- pale white males sitting on a stage conversing drily about economics and other esoteric subjects more suitable to their university days than to a real effort to achieve peace in the world. Let's hope Ms. Bumpers has some fresh ideas. I haven't been terribly impressed by Peace Links, either - they don't return phone calls, respond to faxes, or appear at any events in D.C. I think their main success was arranging cultural exchange programs with the Soviet Union, swapping kids. If anyone knows otherwise, please let me know - mailto:prop1@prop1.org (Ellen Thomas).

-------------------------------------------------------


DOEWatch List ----A Magnum-Opus Project
Subscribe online: http://www.onelist.com
DOEWatch page: http://members.aol.com/doewatch

1. Warrants To Arrest Bill Clinton, 13 Other NATO & Western Leaders
From: "Bill Smirnow"
2. Platts - Wednesday, September 27, 2000
From: "Paul Maser"
3. White Oak Lake will have to wait
From: magnu96196@aol.com

4. House leaders revive talks on money for ill nuke workers
From: magnu96196@aol.com

5. Fluoride and the Phosphate Connection
From: magnu96196@aol.com

6. GOP, ADMINISTRATION DEBATE BUDGET FOR RADIATION VICTIMS
From: magnu96196@aol.com

7. Submitted letter to editor------ORHASP mistakes
From: magnu96196@aol.com

8. New E-Group Re Radiation Relases, Especialy in UK
From: "Bill Smirnow"
9. Let's Get NMD/TMD/Star Wars On C-Span
From: "Bill Smirnow"
10. Guest column: Let's build on DOE teamwork - Prosecution Immunity Questions
From: magnu96196@aol.com

11. Hoffman addresses effects of iodine releases
From: magnu96196@aol.com

12. Sick workers bill has pulse
From: magnu96196@aol.com

13. TVA reactor shuts down at Sequoyah plant
From: magnu96196@aol.com

14. Thumbs up for SNS? Joint Committee OKs SNS, Mouse House funding
From: magnu96196@aol.com

15. Our Views: Science is big winner in budget appropriation
From: magnu96196@aol.com

16. Petition To Let Nader Debate-78,000 Signatures So Far
From: "Bill Smirnow"
17. Sick worker plan revived in House after criticism
From: magnu96196@aol.com

------------

Message: 1
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
Warrants To Arrest Bill Clinton, 13 Other NATO & Western Leaders
DU in Kosovo II
Belgrade gives Clinton, others 20 years in jail

Thursday, 21 September 2000 13:19 (ET)
Virtual New York http://www.vny.com/
By STEFAN RACIN
http://www.vny.com/cf/News/upidetail.cfm?QID=120278

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- The district court in Belgrade Thursday sentenced President Clinton, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and 13 other top Western and NATO leaders to a maximum 20 years in prison for the use of weapons prohibited under international law and crimes against the civilian population during last year's NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia.

Veroljub Raketic, the presiding judge, said the arrest warrants would be issued for the convicted leaders and their sentences would start as soon as they are arrested.

During the four-day trial in the biggest courtroom in the Palace of Justice, in which 14 seats labeled with the names of the accused were left vacant, the officially appointed lawyer defending Clinton told the court he could cite as an extenuating circumstances that Clinton came from "an incomplete family and lived with a step-father which probably left a mark on his overall behavior."

Another court-appointed lawyer defending Albright asked the court to take into account her repressed psychological state as a woman subordinated to the U.S. president and the fact that she had never before been sentenced for war crimes.

Apart from Clinton and Albright the convicted included Defense Secretary William Cohen; British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Foreign Secretary Robin Cook; French President Jacques Chirac, Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine and Defense Minister Alain Richard; German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Foreign Minister Joschka Fisher and Defense Minister Rudolf Scharping; the former and present NATO Secretaries General Javier Solana and Lord George Robertson; and the former NATO Supreme Commander in Europe, Gen. Wesley Clark.

They were ordered to pay legal costs within 15 days of the sentences taking effect under pain of enforcement.

The indictments said that the accused were responsible for NATO forces using 31,000 shells each with 300 grams of depleted uranium at eight locations in Serbia and Montenegro and that 10 tons of this kind of ammunition were dropped on Kosovo. This specifically polluted the environments of villages in the vicinity of Vranje, Bujanovac and Presevo in southern Serbia causing various types of cancer and death, according to the indictments, the court said.

NATO also dropped a huge quantity of cluster bombs in the areas of Nis, Sombor, Kurumlija, Podujevo, Kraljevo, Novi Sad, Mount Kopaonik and other places, killing 34 people including an 8-month pregnant woman and leaving many other people seriously or slightly injured, the indictment said.

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Message: 2
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Paul Maser"
Platts
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
Karachi (Nucleonics Week) 27Sept2000

Second Pakistan nuclear plant begins operating The Chashma Nuclear Power Plant (Chasnupp) was handed over to the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) by the vendor, China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC), in a ceremony held Sept. 25, the PAEC said in a statement. The 300-MW PWR is based on China's indigenous-design Qinshan-1 and is the first power reactor exported by China. Chasnupp first went critical May 3 and generated its first electricity for Pakistan's energy-short grid in mid- June. The Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Board had reviewed Chasnupp's commissioning tests and authorized the PAEC to assume full operating responsibilities. Chasnupp was built under a turnkey contract with CNNC signed Dec. 31, 1991. Pakistan's other nuclear plant, the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant, is an early Canadian design built before western vendors cut relations with Pakistan because of nuclear nonproliferation concerns. The 137- MW heavy water reactor has been operating since 1972.

Lake Tahoe, Calif. (Nuclear News Flashes)-September 26, 2000 Electricity generation has room for more consolidation, utility executive says There is a lot of room for more consolidation in the electricity generation business, said James Malone, vice president of nuclear fuel management at Commonwealth Edison, which is merging with PECO Energy to create Exelon. Malone, speaking yesterday at a Nuclear Energy Institute uranium conference here, said he expects that utilities in Japan and South Korea soon will invest in generation outside of those countries. "We are only seeing the leading edge of consolidation. There is much more to come, and anyone claiming to know exactly what will happen is not facing reality," Malone said.

Washington (Nuclear News Flashes)-September 26, 2000
House-Senate conference committee boosts DOE's FY-01 spending to $18.3-billion

A House-Senate conference committee today said it was raising DOE funding for fiscal 2001 to $18.3-billion, topping the $17.9- billion in the Senate version of the energy and water funding bill and the $17.3-billion in the House bill. The increase came after the bill's cap for all agencies was increased to $23.58-billion, exceeding totals in both the House and Senate bills. The final bill would set funding for DOE defense activities at $13.48-billion in FY-01. Non- defense activities--which include water projects and independent agencies, as well as DOE non-defense work--would be funded at $10.1-billion. Though the totals are set, House-Senate conferees were to hammer out funding details for various programs and projects during a closed-door session this afternoon. Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.), chairman of the Senate appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over the bill, said he hoped a final bill could move to the House floor tomorrow.

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Message: 3
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

White Oak Lake will have to wait
September 27, 2000
By Frank Munger News-Sentinel staff writer
http://www.knoxnews.com/editorsview/munger/fm09272000.shtml

Back in the mid-1980s, when the environmental cleanup at Oak Ridge was just being formulated, there was a dispute between the U.S. Department of Energy and the state of Tennessee over White Oak Lake.

The Oak Ridge lake once was dubbed the most radioactively polluted body of water on the planet (a statement that obviously predated knowledge of some of the nuclear cesspools in the former Soviet Union).

DOE contended it was unfeasible, if not downright impossible, to close and clean up the lake that receives drainage from the broad basin around Oak Ridge National Laboratory, including a series of old nuclear burial grounds.

The lake has been used for decades as a giant-sized settling pond, allowing much of the pollution from ORNL to settle into the sediments before reaching the Clinch River and downstream reservoirs.

White Oak Dam was constructed during the early nuclear operations to keep that system intact, and a second dam was built in more recent years to keep contaminated sediments in the embayment (between the lake and the river) from washing away.

Without the presence of the lake system, unwanted discharges from the laboratory conceivably would flow straight into the Clinch and pose a threat to downstream water supplies.

Despite the federal protests years ago, the state insisted on White Oak Lake's closure as a long-term goal. To do otherwise would be to settle for a cleanup far less than clean.

It apparently will be a long time, however, before the lake is removed from the map.

The cleanup of White Oak Lake was not included in a milestone agreement signed last week by DOE, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The official record of decision on the Melton Valley cleanup commits DOE to spend about $165 million over the next 14 years to improve environmental conditions and reduce the nuclear leakage. But that still doesn't set the stage for a cleanup of White Oak Lake.

Dick Green, the waste-management chief for EPA's Region 4, made a poignant comment at the press conference announcing the Melton Valley cleanup agreement.

While calling the decision an "extremely ambitious undertaking" and a major step forward in the Oak Ridge cleanup effort, Green said he looked forward to an even greater day when the same parties come together to sign documents signaling the completion of those activities.

Better yet, I suggest, will be the day when Melton Valley is clean enough to remove ORNL's environmental safety net.

GUESS WHAT: There are endless rumors about the U.S. Department of Energy, but some of the best (worst?) ones get started within the department itself.

Take this example of recent vintage:

Mary Dennis Lentsch, a nun with the Catholic order Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, created a big stir within DOE last week when she camped out in front of the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant.

Given the regularity of protests in the Stop The Bombs campaign, why would Lentsch's peace presence become a topic of discussion at DOE headquarters in Washington?

What took place, to paraphrase a film line of years ago, was a failure to communicate.

Her arrival at the Oak Ridge warhead factory happened to coincide with the end of the appeals period for the Y-12 management contract recently awarded to a team headed by BWX Technologies and Bechtel National.

When Oak Ridge officials reported to their Washington counterparts, "We've got a protest at Y-12," that message apparently was misinterpreted (at least by some folks) to mean a protest against the contract award.

The rumors died down pretty quickly but not before some uncomfortable moments for those who would hate to see the Y-12 contract award stalled (much like another one recently won by BWXT/Bechtel at the Pantex Plant in Texas).

Frank Munger covers the Department of Energy for the News-Sentinel. He can be reached at 423-482-9213 or at twig1@knoxnews.infi.net. This column is also available on the Web at www.knoxnews.com/editorsview/munger/

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Message: 4
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

House leaders revive talks on money for ill nuke workers

September 27, 2000
By Katherine Rizzo, Associated Press
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/15667.shtml

WASHINGTON -- A day after talks broke down, House leaders said Tuesday they would resume negotiations with the Senate on a compensation plan for workers made sick by Cold War-era jobs in nuclear weapons plants.

A new House proposal was being drafted and will be presented to conferees on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Hastert and other House Republican leaders were criticized harshly by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans, such as Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., after talks broke down Monday.

Thompson said "the House leadership refused to even consider the issue," and Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., called their failure to agree "callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country."

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation exposure at weapons plants should be compensated.

The agency proposed minimum lump-sum payments of $100,000.

When the Senate passed its version of the Defense Authorization Act, it included a provision awarding $200,000 plus health benefits to harmed workers.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the measure would cost $1.7 billion over 10 years, based on a Department of Energy estimate that at least 4,000 workers either contracted life-threatening diseases from radiation, silica or beryllium exposure or already have died from the diseases.

Wary of an entitlement program with uncertain costs, the House passed only a resolution recommending compensation.

During negotiations, senators backed off from the $200,000 offer and told the House they could accept $100,000 as the minimum payment if that would get the proposal passed.

House negotiators offered a $250 million down payment on a compensation program that would need to be set up in future legislation following additional study.

David Michaels, the Energy Department's top health official, said sick workers should not have to wait for more government study.

"For the last decade we've spent more than $150 million studying the health of workers at DOE sites," he said. "We don't think additional studies are needed, and we don't think additional legislations are needed."

The DOE has said most people likely to qualify for compensation would come from the Hanford nuclear reservation in Washington state; Oak Ridge Reservation in Tennessee; Savannah River Site in South Carolina; Nevada Test Site; Rocky Flats Complex in Colorado; Pantex Plant in Texas; Mound Plant and Fernald Environmental Management Project in Ohio; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California; Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico; and gaseous diffusion plants at Piketon, Ohio; Paducah, Ky.; and Oak Ridge, Tenn.

---------

Message: 5
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Fluoride and the Phosphate Connection

by George C. Glasser
http://www.earthisland.org/eijournal/fluoride/fluoride_phosphates.html
Cities all over the US purchase hundreds of thousands of gallons of fresh pollution concentrate from Florida - fluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6) - to fluoridate water.

Fluorosilicic acid is composed of tetrafluorosiliciate gas and other species of fluorine gases captured in pollution scrubbers and concentrated into a 23% solution during wet process phosphate fertilizer manufacture. Generally, the acid is stored in outdoor cooling ponds before being shipped to US cities to artificially fluoridate drinking water.

Fluoridating drinking water with recovered pollution is a cost-effective means of disposing of toxic waste. The fluorosilicic acid would otherwise be classified as a hazardous toxic waste on the Superfund Priorities List of toxic substances that pose the most significant risk to human health and the greatest potential liability for manufacturers.

Phosphate fertilizer suppliers have more than $10 billion invested in production and mining facilities in Florida. Phosphate fertilizer production accounts for $800 million in wages per year. Florida's mines produce 30% of the world supply and 75% of the US supply of phosphate fertilizers. Much of the country's supply of fluoro-silicic acid for water fluoridation is also produced in Florida.

Phosphate fertilizer manufacturing and mining are not environment friendly operations. Fluorides and radionuclides are the primary toxic pollutants from the manufacture of phosphate fertilizer in Central Florida. People living near the fertilizer plants and mines, experience lung cancer and leukemia rates that are double the state average. Much of West Central Florida has become a toxic waste dump for phosphate fertilizer manufacturers. Federal and state pollution regulations have been modified to accommodate phosphate fertilizer production and use: These regulations have included using recovered pollution for water fluoridation.

Radium wastes from filtration systems at phosphate fertilizer facilities are among the most radioactive types of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) wastes. The radium wastes are so concentrated, they cannot be disposed of at the one US landfill licensed to accept NORM wastes, so manufacturers dump the radioactive wastes in acidic ponds atop 200-foot-high gypsum stacks. The federal government has no rules for its disposal.

During the late 1960s, fluorine emissions were damaging crops, killing fish and causing crippling skeletal fluorosis in livestock. The EPA became concerned and enforced regulations requiring manufacturers to install pollution scrubbers. At that time, the facilities were dumping the concentrated pollution directly into waterways leading into Tampa Bay.

A Phosphate Worse than Death In the late 1960s, EPA chemist Ervin Bellack worked out the ideal solution to a monumental pollution problem. Because recovered phosphate fertilizer manufacturing waste contain about 19% fluorine, Bellack concluded that the concentrated "scrubber liquor" could be a perfect water fluoridation agent. It was a liquid and easily soluble in water, unlike sodium fluoride - a waste product from aluminum manufacturing. It was also inexpensive.

Fate also intervened. The aluminum industry, which previously supplied sodium fluoride for water fluoridation, was facing a shortage of fluorspar used in smelting aluminum. Consequently, there was a shortage of sodium fluoride to fluoridate drinking water.

For the phosphate fertilizer industry, the shortage of sodium fluoride was the key to turning red ink into black and an environmental liability into a perceived asset. With the help of the EPA, fluorosilicic acid was transformed from a concentrated toxic waste and a liability into a "proven cavity fighter."

The EPA and the US Public Health Service waived all testing procedures and - with the help of the American Dental Association (ADA) - encouraged cities to add the radioactive concentrate into America's drinking water as an "improved" form of fluoride.

The product is not "fluorine" or "fluoride" as proponents state: It is a pollution concentrate. Fluorine is only one captured pollutant comprising about 19% of the total product.

By 1983, the official EPA policy was expressed by EPA Office of Water Deputy Administrator Rebecca Hanmer as follows: "In regard to the use of fluosilicic (fluorosilicic) acid as a source of fluoride for fluoridation, this agency regards such use as an ideal environmental solution to a long-standing problem. By recovering by-product fluosilicic acid from fertilizer manufacturing, water and air pollution are minimized, and water utilities have a low-cost source of fluoride available to them."

A Hot New Property In promoting the use of the pollution concentrate as a fluoridation agent, the ADA, Federal agencies and manufacturers failed to mention that it was radioactive. Whenever uranium is found in nature as a component of a mineral, a host of other radionuclides are always found in the mineral in various stages of decay. Uranium and all of its decay-rate products are found in phosphate rock, fluorosilicic acid and phosphate fertilizer.

During wet-process manufacturing, trace amounts of radium and uranium are captured in the pollution scrubber. This process was the subject of an article by H.F. Denzinger, H. J. König and G.E. Krüger in the fertilizer industry journal, Phosphorus & Potassium (No. 103, Sept./Oct. 1979) discussed how radionuclides are carried into the fluorosilicic acid.

While the uranium and radium in fluorosilicic acid are known carcinogens, two decay products of uranium are even more carcinogenic: radon-222 and polonium-210.

During the acidulation process that creates phosphoric acid, radon gas contained in the phosphate pebble can be released in greater proportions than other decay-rate products (radionuclides) and carried over into the fluorosilicic acid. Polonium may also be captured in greater quantities during scrubbing operations because, like radon, it can readily combine with fluoride.

In written communications to the author, EPA Office of Drinking Water official Joseph A. Cotruvo and Public Health Service fluoridation engineer Thomas Reeves have acknowledged the presence of radionuclides in fluorosilicic acid.

Radon-222 is not an immediate threat because it stops emitting alpha radiation and decays into lead-214 in 3.86 days. Lead-214 appears to be harmless but it eventually decays into bismuth-214 and then into polonium-214. Unless someone knew to look for specific isotopes, no one would know that a transmutation into the polonium isotope had occurred.

Polonium-210, a decay product of bismuth-210, has a half-life of 138 days and gives off intense alpha radiation as it decays into regular lead and becomes stable. Any polonium-210 that might be present in the phosphate concentrate could pose a significant health threat. A very small amount of polonium-210 can be very dangerous, giving off 5,000 times more alpha radiation than the same amount of radium. As little as 0.03 microcuries (6.8 trillionths of a gram) of polonium-210 can be carcinogenic to humans.

The lead isotope behaves like calcium in the body. It may be stored in the bones for years before turning into polonium-210 and triggering a carcinogenic release of alpha radiation.

Drinking water fluoridated with fluorosilicic acid contains radon at every sequence of its decay to polonium. The fresher the pollution concentrate, the more polonium it will contain.

As long as the amount of contaminants added to the drinking water (including radionuclides in fluorosilicic acid) do not exceed the limits set forth in the Safe Drinking Water Act, the EPA has no regulatory problem with the use of any contaminated products for drinking water treatment.

Big Risks: No Tests Despite the increased cancer risk from using phosphate waste to fluoridate drinking water, the EPA nor the Centers for Disease Control have never commissioned or required any clinical studies with the pollution concentrate - specifically, the hexafluorsilicate radical whose toxicokinetic properties are different than the lone, fluoride ion.

Section 104 (I) (5) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) directs the Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the EPA, the Public Health Service and the National Toxicology Program to initiate a program of research on fluoride safety. However, after almost 30 years of using fluorosilicic acid and sodium fluorosilicate to fluoridate the drinking water, not one study has been commissioned.

The fluoride ion only hypothetically exists as an entity in an ideal solution of purified water - and tap water is far from pure H2O. All clinical research with animal models is done using 99.97% pure sodium fluoride and double distilled or deionized water. Among the thousands of clinical studies about fluoride, not one has been done with the pollution concentrate or typical tap water containing fluorides.

Synergy Soup The fluorosilicic acid is also contaminated with small traces of arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead, sulfates, iron and phosphorous, not to mention radionuclides. Some contaminants have the potential to react with the hexafluorosilicate radical and may act as complex ionic compounds. The biological fates and toxicokinetic properties of these complex ions are unknown.

The reality of artificial water fluoridation is so complex that determining the safety of the practice may be impossible. Tap water is chemically treated with chlorine, soluble silicates, phosphate polymers and many other chemicals. In addition, the source water itself may contain a variety of contaminants.

The addition of a fluoridation agent can create synergized toxicants in a water supply that have unique toxico-kinetic properties found only in that particular water supply. Consequently, any maladies resulting from chronic ingestion of the product likely would be dismissed as a local or regional anomaly unrelated to water fluoridation.

Technically, artificially fluoridating drinking water is a violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). Under statutes of the SDWA, federal agencies are forbidden from endorsing, supporting, requiring or funding the practice of adding any chemicals to the water supply other than for purposes of water purification. However, the Public Health Service (PHS) applies semantics to circumvent Federal law in order to promote and fund the practice.

PHS states that they only recommend levels of fluorides in the drinking water, and it is the sole decision of a state or community to fluoridate drinking water.

Federal agencies are forbidden from directly funding or implementing water fluoridation but Federal Block Grants are given to States to use as they see fit. Through second and third parties (such as the American Dental Association, state health departments and state fluoridation coordinators), PHS encourages communities to apply for Federal Block Grant funds to implement fluoridation.

The legality of using of Federal Block Grant funds to fund water fluoridation, a practice prohibited by Federal law, has never been addressed in the courts.

Vendors selling the pollution concentrate as a fluoridation agent use a broad disclaimer found on the Material Data Safety Sheet that states: "no responsibility can be assumed by vendor for any damage or injury resulting from abnormal use, from any failure to adhere to recommended practices, or from any hazards inherent to the product." [Emphasis added.]

The next time you turn on the tap and water gushes out into a glass, reflect on the following disclaimer from the EPA's 1997 Fluoride: Regulatory Fact Sheet: "In the United States, there are no Federal safety standards which are applicable to additives, including those for use in fluoridating drinking water."

George Glasser is a Florida-based writer whose work has appeared in Newlife, Whole Life Times, the Sarasota ECO Report and the Tampa Tribune.

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Message: 6
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

GOP, ADMINISTRATION DEBATE BUDGET FOR RADIATION VICTIMS GOP LEADERS CONTEND PLA

By Michael Kilian Washington Bureau September 27, 2000
http://www.chicago.tribune.com/news/nationworld/article/0,2669,SAV-0009270224,FF.html

WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department on Tuesday accused congressional Republicans of trying to block passage of legislation to aid victims of radiation exposure in government nuclear facilities, including Illinois' Argonne National Laboratory.

The Clinton administration estimates that the measure would cost less than $1 billion over five years. House Republicans contend the cost might rise to $50 billion.

That estimate is "outrageous," countered Assistant Energy Secretary David Michaels in a conference call with reporters. "They got that figure out of thin air."

House GOP leaders countered that the aid package was attached to a defense appropriation bill at the last minute and needs study because it did not go through the proper committee process.

Michaels said there have been 11 public hearings on the issue. "It doesn't need any more study."

In a bipartisan vote, the Senate earlier this session adopted the radiation sickness compensation measure to assist 4,000 to 6,000 nuclear workers who have contracted cancer or other illnesses from exposure to radiation or toxic chemicals used in nuclear weapons development and production.

The Clinton administration, citing Congressional Budget Office estimates, said the package would cost $938 million over the next five years and would be largely limited to those 6,000 or fewer victims.

Modern safety practices have eliminated the dangerous kinds of exposure that caused the illnesses in those victims, Michaels said.

Technically, however, the Senate measure would make similar compensation available to all 600,000-plus workers in nuclear plants operated by the federal government or under contract to it.

The Republican House leaders argued that an open-ended compensation law could ultimately cost the government $50 billion over 10 years.

They said the aid should be subject to annual congressional appropriations and not doled out in perpetuity.

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Message: 7
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

ORHASP mistakes

Dear Editor,

There is lots in the news of late and public meetings about Owen Hoffman and his complaints on ORHASP and emphasis only on the I-131 shortcomings.

Hoffman's team had three tasks for ORHASP, one was the screening study or Task 7 that was suppose to screen for all significan toxicants. This set the up the individual task studies early on for ORHASP. Second was Task 4 or the Clinch River Study, and third was the I-131 Task 1 study.

All the noise is over Hoffman's complaints on I-131 and negative letters written in complaint against Hoffman for cost overruns and delays by some on ORHASP. Hoffman and Blalock are products of the ORNL Environmental Sciences Division. ORNL ESD did much of the Clinch river studies and others at the lab and these workers were told not to talk to anyone about it. At ORNL cost overruns on research are common. ORHASP was managed to attempt to stay on cost and on schedule, and the state's persons were under pressure to produce. The state did manage and produce, and the contractors and DOE did not.

It appears all the smoke screen on the I-131 is more about the biggest failing of ORHASP. ORHASP screening processes failed to pick up the huge losses of K-25 process gas and HF emissions, which dominte the health effects in OR. Task 6 of ORHASP was the uranium emissions studies and this did cover some of the UF-6 emissions, but used defective by design dose reconstruction, as some managers say K-25 lost 10% of the process gas. It is intuitively obvious that HF is important from the K-25 uranium emissions.

Hoffman did dissertation studies on Tc-99 releases from gas diffusion plants that showed the losses from the plant, and uranium and HF gas were lost by the exact same process. As a result, it could be expected that Hoffman should know HF was important in task studies or early screening.

Yet, Hoffman is currently running around OR playing up I-131 and thyroid damage and omitting his and other ORHASPers screw up that failed to screen for HF emissions or make it an official task. UF-6 has chemical, heavy metal, and radiation properties. It is shameful that thyroid damage effects are being played up from I-131 and totally ignored from HF releases by Hoffman. Hoffman also cost overrun the Task 7 screening study and used admitted defective by design screening techniques. ChemRisk took over and this continued.

The thyroid disease information from persons at these public meetings told of pharmacist admitted high consumption of thyroid hormones in the region, high rates of thyroid ills diagnosis by local doctors, and even high rates of undiagnosed thyroid ills in local autopsy data. Though long known, and easy to find, this does not appear in ORHASP reports.

ORHASP is over and it did fail to do its' job, part due to panel members, part due to contractors and subcontractors. Its biggest failing was ignoring the HF, and this appears to both stem and continue from the OR home team of Hoffman's mistakes, cost overruns, and failings to even know about fluorides.

In my opinion, the states and others letters against Hoffman are warranted and the largest failings in ORHASP lie with Hoffman mistakes and his current smokescreens. I am finding Hoffman's continued games, mistakes, and excuses so distasteful that I can well complaign that he not be included in any future risk or dose reconstruction studies for this area. He claims to be open, but he won't answer serious questions on HF in public meetings. This primadonna home team failed OR miserably and should be held in contempt by the state. We don't need to repeat these same mistakes again and again, nor do we need any more misplaced I-131 studies in OR, or Hoffman's public whining.

Sincerely,
Jim Phelps

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Message: 8
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
New E-Group Re Radiation Relases, Especialy in UK

The website address for joining it is: http://www.egroups.com/group/rad-UK
People just need to go to that site and click on "Subscribe"

Description Join Now! Rad-UK is a discussion group and message board dealing with all issues pertaining to the release of man-made ionising radiation, particularly in the UK, but also elsewhere in the world. Please use this space to post information about legislation, licensing hearings, campaigns, personal testimonies, conferences, useful scientific references, etc. The group has been set up with the understanding that current dose-risk estimates do not accurately reflect the real effects of internalised radionuclides. You are not a member of this group

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Message: 9
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
Let's Get NMD/TMD/Star Wars On C-Span

Let's Contact C-Span [see below & http://www.c-span.org] and ask them to air some of the October 7th international demonstrations and have Bruce Gagnon, Karl Grossman, Michio Kaku and/or other experts on to discuss the Outer Space Treaty and ABM Treaty that the Pentagon is threatening. Also, to discuss http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace which make NMD and TMD look like child's play. C-Span contact info is below: C-Span is ofetn very open to this kind of material, hence your phone call WILL be worthwhile.

http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace

Postal Mail Address all non-electronic correspondence to:
C-SPAN 400 North Capitol Street N.W. Suite 650 Washington, D.C. 20001

Telephone Contact C-SPAN about inquiries or offer comments:
a.. Front Desk (202) 737-3220
b.. Jobs Line (202) 626-7983
c.. Viewer Services: (765) 464-3080 (programming questions)
d.. C-SPAN Archives: 1-877-ON-CSPAN (877-662-7726) (Order videotapes)
e.. Washington Journal: Democrats (202) 624-1115
f.. Washington Journal: Republicans (202) 624-1111
g.. Washington Journal: Others (202) 737-6734

-Bill Smirnow

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Message: 10
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Guest column: Let's build on DOE teamwork ----< Prosecution Immunity Questions

September 27, 2000
http://www.oakridger.com/

I'm afraid that Mr. Phelps and Mr. Slavin both misinterpreted my reference to fingerpointing, although I admit there certainly has been a lot of it going on recently, which makes their confusion easy to understand.

However, I was referring to the fingerpointing by the ill workers toward the present and retired workers (many of whom are or would have been union members) who would have actually performed the work if cross-connections had been made at K-25.

One ill worker came to a meeting on the drinking water issue and began calling for criminal prosecution of Department of Energy or other personnel, particularly any who knew of cross-connections and had not informed their supervisor or the people drinking the water -- something another worker had implied at a previous meeting.

In fact, an ill worker actually asked DOE for a guarantee of legal immunity for some of these workers in exchange for their coming forward to help with the historical cross-connection investigation that is being planned.

Not long after making this request, however, the ill workers rescinded their participation in the sampling effort. Nevertheless, they were given every opportunity to help develop the sampling plan (and several additional sites were added as a result of their direct input), to pull their own samples, and to participate in all activities of the Sampling Planning and Oversight Team (SPOT), the first-of-its-kind team for the DOE-ORO.

Through SPOT, independent members of the community were given the opportunity to have real-time influence on a DOE trouble-shooting effort. This is opposed to our having to dig for information and commenting after the fact as we usually do, which has been one of our major complaints about the public participation process.

In fact, by being a member of SPOT we were able to make arrangements that should have made it impossible for DOE to cheat (e.g., direct receipt of data from the laboratories and the state) and to keep our own notes and records.

In addition, because we have no ties to DOE, we have no obligation to follow their "rules" on dissemination of information, chain-of-command, and political correctness -- something that is very risky if they plan to cheat but, in my mind, essential to accountability.

Mr. Phelps' reference to my "partial admissions that DOE caused health problems," in fact, refers to my acknowledgment that a few reported cases of historical events that could have exposed workers to contaminants have been openly discussed.

However, I have not focused on these historical issues because, frankly, my time has been consumed (and time-consuming it has been) with determining if the water is safe to drink today and reporting the results to the workers and the public in an understandable format.

In addition, my "admissions" refer to the fact we all know that individuals at K-25 have been made ill by known and unknown sources of beryllium (nothing new and now well documented by Drs. Lockey and Bird). . . .

I also acknowledge Mr. Phelps' concern about hydrogen fluoride (HF) releases, and it is possible that more investigation could potentially be justified, but I'm not convinced that additional dose reconstruction is necessary.

Nevertheless, Mr. Phelps' claim that damaged pine trees are a result of HF releases seems to ignore the fact that damage is widespread across the Southeast and the largest HF releases likely occurred in the past rather than in recent years.

Therefore, I would rather look forward and spend money dealing with problems that we know we have (i.e., sick individuals) and those that we know are likely to come (i.e., more sick individuals), rather than looking back.

In particular, I would rather see the money spent on multiple chemical sensitivity research, a clinic, and worker advocacy, as opposed to additional dose reconstruction and other things that will not really help the sick.. . .

It is my opinion that we essentially have DOE "pinned to the mat" and now the time has come to stop the pummeling (at least for now, as I said before) and to begin building on the teamwork established through the K-25 drinking water sampling effort . .

Susan Arnold Kaplan is a resident of Solway.

Comments:

It is my opionion that many of the ORNL national security persons that covered up the HF problems and nuclear accidents need to be prosecuted and charged with toxic tort and in some cases murder.

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Message: 11
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Hoffman addresses effects of iodine releases

September 27, 2000
by Paul Parson Oak Ridger staff
Source: http://www.oakridger.com/

Milk is supposed to be good for the body, right?

Well, one local scientist said Tuesday night that it's also an important factor in the link between thyroid disease and historic releases of radioactive iodine.

Owen Hoffman, leader of SENES Oak Ridge and known for his expertise in radiation-dose assessments, supported his theory before a small crowd attending a Scarboro Community Environmental Justice Council workshop at the Scarboro Community Center.

Hoffman, who along with his SENES staff, played a key role in doing research for the Oak Ridge Health Agreement Studies Project. The final report on the project concluded that iodine-131 releases in the 1940s and 1950s increased the likelihood of thyroid cancer for people living around Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Hoffman has been critical of the final report of the state-run study because he said portions of his work were omitted from it.

In his presentation Tuesday night, "The Health Implications of Exposure to Iodine-131," Hoffman pointed out that from 1944 to 1956 routine operations at ORNL resulted in the release of 6,300 curies to 36,000 curies. However, the total amount of iodine-131 released from the site, including that emitted during accidents, is between 8,800 curies to 42,000 curies.

While there was iodine-131 released locally, Hoffman's presentation indicated that Oak Ridge would be more affected by releases from the Nevada Test Site.

From 1952 to 1957, 150 million curies were released from that site during atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons.

So, why does milk play a part in the link between iodine-131 releases and thyroid disease? Hoffman said it's because cows and goats, the main sources of milk for human consumption, eat the grass contaminated by the iodine-131 releases.

Hoffman then used computer software, known as an interactive risk and dose calculator, to conduct several demonstrations assessing an individual's risk of thyroid disease from iodine-131 exposure, based on when the individual was born, where he lived and how much and what type of milk he drank.

Hoffman's presentation drew mixed reaction among residents of the Scarboro neighborhood.

Larry Gipson and L.C. Manley, both of South Benedict Avenue, said they wanted to see some solid evidence -- not just claims -- that Scarboro was impacted by the iodine-131 releases.

However, Fannie Ball of Houston Avenue praised Hoffman's presentation.

"It has enlightened me," she told the crowd. "He has taken an interest in getting out the truth."

The workshop, which began at 6 p.m. and was supposed to end at 8, was finally ended by J.B. Hill, chairman of the Scarboro Community Environmental Justice Council, around 8:45 p.m.

Al Brooks, a member of the Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee's Citizen Advisory Panel, pointed out that he was supposed to have an opportunity to share his thoughts on Hoffman's conclusions. But Hill did not allow that to happen, stating the purpose of the workshop was to hear from the three guest speakers.

However, Brooks did provide The Oak Ridger with a written summary of his canceled presentation.

Brooks cited several problems he had with Hoffman's theories. Brooks said that as Oak Ridge Reservation stakeholders consider their response to the past releases of radioactive iodine into the environment, they should consider that while the Oak Ridge Health Agreement Studies dose reconstruction studies for the most part were state of the art and were carried out with great diligence, there were several limitations, including "numerous and some large uncertainties in much of the required input data used to compute exposures to the public."

Brooks also said, "While this technique should not invalidate the use of the central value estimates, it does cast great doubt on the validity of using the upper 95 percent confidence limit to estimate individual doses as has been done. Many experts believe that one should use the better established, most probable (central) value which results in lower and more realistic doses."

Brooks also said the epidemiological evidence that low doses of iodine-131 in the thyroid cause cancer is controversial.

He said thyroid cancer is a slowly developing disease which does not spread during its early development. Its typical incidence is one case in 450 for men and one in 150 for women.

By comparison, he said, breast cancer is about one in eight, it spreads rapidly and is best discovered early. The survival rate for thyroid cancer after removal when detected by normal methods is 95 percent at 10 years and 90 percent after 30 years. Early detection does not seem to improve these rates.

Brooks said limited resources spent on thyroid cancer screening would be better spent on better coverage for breast cancer screening.

The ORHASP study is under a comprehensive peer review and Brooks advised stakeholders to await its publication before reaching conclusions. He said these reviews will undoubtedly be discussed publicly this fall by the Oak Ridge Reservation Health Effects Subcommittee now being formed.

-----------

Message: 12
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Sick workers bill has pulse

September 27, 2000
from staff and wire reports
Source: http://www.oakridger.com/

A day after talks broke down, House leaders said Tuesday they would resume negotiations with the Senate on a compensation plan for workers made sick by Cold War-era jobs in federal nuclear facilities.

A new House proposal was being drafted and will be presented to conferees on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Hastert and other House Republican leaders were criticized harshly by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans, such as U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., after talks broke down Monday.

Thompson said "the House leadership refused to even consider the issue," and U.S. Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., called their failure to agree "callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country."

U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District, said, "I refuse to give up on getting this included in the Conference Report on the Defense Authorization bill and will continue to push to have it included in some other measure if that becomes necessary. We cannot throw in the towel.

"We are trying every angle and continuing to put pressure on the House Leadership to support an adequate compensation plan for these Cold War warriors in Oak Ridge and around the nation who worked in defense of their country and became ill as a result."

Wamp added, "If we are unable to use the defense bill to pass this legislation, we will continue to work for the remainder of the legislative session to find other ways to get a compensation bill passed. We knew this would be very hard to accomplish from the very beginning. But we will not stop giving this our every effort."

Ann Orick, who suffers a host of illnesses after working at the former K-25 uranium enrichment plant in Oak Ridge, was very disappointed.

"It's just taken everything out of me," she told WIVK radio in Knoxville. "I was in hopes that maybe I had worked five years and done something to help somebody out there.

"I knew it wasn't going to help me," she said, "but I thought there's 3,000 to 4,000 people across this country that may not have to become as ill as I've become. I'm just heartsick."

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation exposure at weapons plants should be compensated. The agency proposed minimum lump sum payments of $100,000.

When the Senate passed its version of the Defense Authorization Act, it included a provision awarding $200,000 plus health benefits to harmed workers.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the measure would cost $1.7 billion over 10 years, based on a Department of Energy estimate that at least 4,000 workers either contracted life-threatening diseases from radiation, silica or beryllium exposure or already have died from the diseases.

Wary of an entitlement program with uncertain costs, the House passed only a resolution recommending compensation.

During negotiations, senators backed off from the $200,000 offer and told the House they could accept $100,000 as the minimum payment if that would get the proposal passed.

House negotiators offered a $250 million down payment on a compensation program that would need to be set up in future legislation following additional study.

David Michaels, the Department of Energy's top health official, said sick workers should not have to wait for more government study.

"For the last decade we've spent more than $150 million studying the health of workers at DOE sites," he said. "We don't think additional studies are needed, and we don't think additional legislations are needed."

The DOE has said most people likely to qualify for compensation would come from the Hanford nuclear reservation in Washington state; the Oak Ridge Reservation; the Savannah River Site in South Carolina; the Nevada Test Site; the Rocky Flats Complex in Colorado; the Pantex Plant in Texas; the Mound Plant and Fernald Environmental Management Project in Ohio; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California; Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico; and gaseous diffusion plants in Oak Ridge and at Piketon, Ohio, and Paducah, Ky.

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Message: 13
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

TVA reactor shuts down at Sequoyah plant

September 27, 2000
by Duncan Mansfield Associated Press
http://www.oakridger.com/

KNOXVILLE -- A Tennessee Valley Authority reactor was shut down for repairs after a pump problem led to a brief reactor coolant leak, officials said Tuesday.

"This is really an operating problem. It is not a safety event," said Ken Clark, spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in Atlanta.

A main pump supplying water to steam generators at Seqouyah Nuclear Plant's Unit 1 reactor malfunctioned at about 10:30 a.m. EDT Monday. The plant is in Soddy-Daisy, about 20 miles north of Chattanooga.

The 1,100-megawatt reactor had been operating at full power for 187 days. It shut down as designed and "posed no danger to employees or the public," TVA spokesman John Moulton said.

Sequoyah officials decided to take the reactor down to a cold shutdown so another problem could be fixed -- a reactor coolant pump that had been vibrating excessively.

While cooling off the reactor, Sequoyah workers discovered a 45-gallons-per-minute coolant leak. It took 10 minutes to stop. The coolant was contained in a pressurized relief tank and never left the containment building.

"The NRC staff will look into it to see what conditions existed and if TVA should have declared an 'unusual event,"' Clark said, referring to what the NRC considers its lowest-level of emergency.

This sort of event "usually involves something that does not pose any immediate threat to plant safety or personnel," Clark said.

Moulton said the TVA nevertheless notified the NRC.

The reactor will remain off line indefinitely to make repairs. "We don't normally predict a (restart) date," Moulton said.

Meantime, Sequoyah's identical Unit 2 reactor continues in operation. It has been running at full power for 249 days.

The Sequoyah station went into service in 1981. It is one of three nuclear stations owned and operated by TVA, the nation's largest public power producer.

TVA provides electricity to nearly 8 million people in Tennessee and parts of Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Missisippi.

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Message: 14
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Thumbs up for SNS? Joint Committee OKs SNS, Mouse House funding

September 27, 2000
by Paul Parson Oak Ridger staff
Source: http://www.oakridger.com/

"It's a very good day for science," Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Bill Madia proclaimed during a phone interview late Tuesday afternoon.

Madia, who at the time was on Interstate 40 driving to dinner, had just received word from several legislative figures that some key projects at the federal laboratory were receiving more funding than expected.

Specifically, $278.5 million has been allotted for construction on the Spallation Neutron Source and $2.5 million has been allocated for the creation of a new Mouse House.

The conference committee approved the full $278 million requested by the Clinton administration for the coming fiscal year. SNS officials had contended that amount was needed to give the multi-year project its biggest boosts toward completion. Earlier Senate and House action had funded the project at much lower levels.

The conference committee recommendation now goes back to the full House and Senate for approval.

Madia said the funding of the two projects is just the tip of the iceberg. He said fusion, material, computational and biological science work at the lab will also be affected by the fiscal year 2001 Energy and Water Appropriations bill, which includes the funding for the Mouse House and SNS.

The current Mouse House contains about 70,000 genetically mutated mice. Scientists at the facility have been involved in the Human Genome Project.

SNS, a $1.4 billion project, will use a long beam of fast-moving neutrons to test a variety of materials. Neutron research is responsible for improvements in jets, credit cards, pocket calculators, compact discs, computer disks, shatterproof windshields, adjustable seats, satellite weather information, materials used in high-temperature superconductors, powerful lightweight magnets, aluminum bridge decks and stronger, lighter plastics.

"I'm certainly delighted with the support," said SNS Director David Moncton this morning. "The Tennessee delegation worked hard on behalf on the project."

U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District, added, "This is one of the biggest days in the history of the lab. The benefits are immeasurable."

In fact, the city of Oak Ridge is expected to reap a lot of benefits from the funding of the projects.

"It will definitely benefit Oak Ridge economically," said Parker Hardy, president of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce. The construction phase of the SNS should create 2,300 jobs while at least 1,600 jobs are expected to be produced when the project is completed.

"These are jobs that pay good money," Hardy said.

In fact, officials say the entire state of Tennessee will benefit from the SNS.

The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development recently prepared a report detailing the economic effects of the SNS. It is estimated that the annual state sales tax revenue during the construction of the project will be $3.6 million, while ongoing operations at the facility should generate $2.2 million annually.

---------

Message: 15
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Our Views: Science is big winner in budget appropriation

September 27, 2000
Source: http://www.oakridger.com/

Tuesday was a great day for the sciences, political and applied.

Led by the Clinton administration and Tennessee's delegation in the Congress, the cause of science was served up a hugely generous share of funding during the important work of a House-Senate conference committee.

There was never much question but that the Spallation Neutron Source project, now under way at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, would gain some kind of funding this year.

The question, the critical question, was just how much would be budgeted. Too little an appropriation seemed likely to assure the ambitious science project's ultimate doom. Privately, SNS proponents had noted that unless the project got locked into a higher level of funding, it could languish at lower funding levels for years until an impatient and indignant Congress ultimately brought a halt to it.

Much of that concern seemed to fall to the wayside on Tuesday when a House-Senate conference committee penciled in this premier $1.4 billion project at $278 million for the coming fiscal year, a figure requested by the Clinton administration and well above the amounts earlier approved during separate House and Senate deliberations.

The conference committee also approved funding for ORNL's new Mouse House, a major boost for genetic research at the lab.

The conference committee action must now go back to the House and Senate for approval. But it represents the kind of grunt work compromise that usually does not get undone by either of those full chambers. U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, whose Third Congressional District includes Oak Ridge, predicted the funding "should easily win approval" by the full House and Senate.

If this optimism is borne out by subsequent congressional and White House approval of SNS and Mouse House funding, it will represent a boost to the Oak Ridge and East Tennessee economy to be sure. But, more than that even, it is a tremendous boost to the cause of scientific endeavor. When complete, SNS will unlock the mysteries to composition of minute matter, a breakthrough that holds substantial promise for science and industry.

This is a great day for Oak Ridge, and for the science that goes hand in hand with its great history.

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Message: 16
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000
From: "Bill Smirnow"
Petition To Let Nader Debate-78,000 Signatures So Far

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Message: 17
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2000
From: magnu96196@aol.com

Sick worker plan revived in House after criticism
Democrats and even fellow Republicans lashed out at House leaders for exaggerating the price tag and abandoning the bill Monday.
http://www.paducahsun.com/cgi-bin/view.cgi?200009/27+01Wp_news.html+20000927

WASHINGTON--Stung by wide-ranging criticism, some even from political allies, House leaders renewed talks with the Senate on Tuesday over compensating nuclear weapons plant workers robbed of their health because they weren´t protected from radiation. Lawmakers from states with nuclear weapons plants were informed that the conference committee that abandoned compensation talks Monday afternoon would reopen negotiations.

A new House proposal was being drafted and would be presented to conferees working on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert.

``They´re still trying to work something out,´´ he said. ``We want to get something done on this.´´

The speaker, he added, ``wants to find a compensation plan that will be fiscally responsible.´´

Hastert and other House leaders had been taking a verbal beating, both by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans such as Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn. Thompson said that ``the House leadership refused to even consider the issue.´´

``It´s callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country,´´ said Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev.

House negotiators, concerned about the eventual price tag of an open-ended program exempt from having to get annual appropriations, previously offered a $250 million down payment on a program that would get set up in future legislation, following additional study.

But some of the toughest criticism of abandoning compensation talks came from Dr. David Michaels, the Department of Energy's top health official, who called the claim by Republican House leaders that compensating sick workers will cost $50 billion over 10 years "an outrageous exaggeration."

Michaels said the program will cost about $1.7 billion during the next decade to help 4,000 to 6,000 workers or their families. His numbers are supported by DOE and the Congressional Budget Office, he said.

"We don't need additional studies and we don't need additional legislation," Michaels, DOE assistant secretary for environment, safety and health, said Tuesday in a telephone news conference.

He said the cost eventually will diminish because there are only about 50 to 100 new cases yearly. Most of the workers got sick from radiation and chemical exposure many years ago, he said.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Hopkinsville, said he still hopes to get the language included in one of several year-end spending bills before Congress adjourns, perhaps by mid-October. He has proposed to give at least $200,000 per worker who contracted specific diseases from working at DOE facilities, including the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant.

"This is a fluid situation," Whitfield said. "All I can say is, it's not over yet."

Whitfield also took issue with the $50 billion figure.

"Many members of Congress, including myself, have been puzzled about that number and where it came from," he said. "Actually, many of us had never heard that number."

Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, said a group of interested senators met informally on the Senate floor in anticipation of a new offer from the House negotiators.

``We agreed we aren´t going to accept it unless it´s fair to these individuals,´´ DeWine said. ``They´re victims. They´re people who have been victimized by our government.´´

Michaels said DOE spent more than $150 million studying workers at some of its plants during the past decade. Since the health bill was proposed two years ago, there have been 11 public meetings involving thousands of workers and three congressional hearings, the latest of which was last week before the House Judiciary Committee, he said.

At the last hearing, all 20 witnesses said the House should pass the Senate version of the bill, Michaels said.

House leaders also oppose guaranteeing benefits to workers and want to make compensation subject to annual appropriations. But Michaels said the program is "a classic entitlement," which means sick workers and families must be paid over a lifetime.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, who led the bill's passage in the Senate, said he would continue to work on getting the legislation enacted another way. He would not predict the chances of passage this fall.

David Fuller, president of the atomic workers' union at the Paducah plant, called the resistance of the House Republican leaders "contemptible" and a hindrance to Whitfield's campaign for re-election.

"They certainly didn't do Ed Whitfield any favors in his political race down here," Fuller said. "He has spent a lot of time and energy trying to push this bill, and the House leadership has just reacted terribly, both in seeing to Whitfield's interests and in doing the right thing for the workers."

Sun Business Editor Joe Walker and staff writer Bill Bartleman contributed to this report.

Comments:

This cost is in flux, mainly because Michaels and company are trying to ramrod a bill that does not include the HF effects at gas diffusion plants. Also, increasing are criminal charge issues for these coverups.

Michaels is not presenting accurately, more like despirately.


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NUCLEAR POWER CONTENTS

1 Governor says no water for Nevada nuke dump
2 TVA reactor shuts down at Sequoyah plant
3 YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Guinn vows to squeeze project dry
4 No TVA rate increase expected in 2001
5 Uranium Institute News Briefing 00.39
6 CALL TO SCRAP NUCLEAR POWER
7 UPDATE - A YEAR LATER, JAPAN REMEMBERS WORST NUKE ACCIDENT
8 Ukraine President signs decree to shut down Chernobyl
9 Ukraine Mulls Mysterious Poisoning
10 Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission takes over Chashma nuclear
11 Guinn threatens $1 million-a-gallon fine if water imported for
12 Halting of nuclear power plant may lack legal basis
13 Tribes learn how to measure pollution on reservations

----------

NUCLEAR POWER ARTICLES

1 Governor says no water for Nevada nuke dump
CARSON Wednesday, September 27, 2000 5:09 AM
GEOFF DORNAN, APPEAL STAFF WRITER

Gov. Kenny Guinn says Nevada should prohibit the use of water for any nuclear waste storage site in the state and fine the Department of Energy $1 million a gallon for any violation.

His comments followed the federal court ruling that the department's request for groundwater permits for Yucca Mountain must be handled in a state court, not U.S. District Court.

Guinn said the energy department official's reactions to that ruling was to say they would just sidestep Nevada water permitting by trucking in any water they need to build and operate the dump.

"They can't be so cavalier when they come out of a federal court and say, 'Oh, well, that doesn't matter, we'll just truck it in,'" he said.

Guinn said that followed the statement that the Department of Energy wants to start construction of the Yucca Mountain facility "even before the site has been ruled acceptable."

"I think it's extremely aggressive for them to say we want to start construction at Yucca Mountain before it has even been approved," he said.

Guinn said he will propose legislation making use or even transportation of water for Yucca Mountain illegal.

"I am determined not to allow them an end run around this federal court decision," he said. "We will do everything within our means to see that the Yucca Mountain project dies of thirst."

He and Conservation and Natural Resources Director Mike Turnipseed questioned whether it would even be possible to truck in that much water. Turnipseed said the department has requested 438 acre feet of water rights for the construction of the repository. That translates to more than 140 million gallons of water a year.

"That's a lot of trucks," Guinn said.

U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt dismissed the federal appeal of Nevada's decision denying use of ground water for Yucca Mountain, saying the issue should be handled in state court.

Assistant Attorney General Tom Patton said he expects the Department of Energy to appeal the ruling to the federal Ninth Circuit Court in San Francisco.

As it stands, following Hunt's ruling, the issue will be decided by District Judge John P. Davis in Tonopah and, presumably, appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court.

Guinn said in any event, Nevada should have a specific law baring use or transportation of water to build or operate any nuclear waste storage facility - permanent or temporary - and stiff fines for any violation.

"I think a million dollars a gallon would be a sufficient deterrent even to the DOE," he said. "I'm going to initiate the legislation regardless.

"As long as I'm governor, I will explore every option and use every tool at my disposal to prevent a single drop of Nevada's water being used to create a nuclear waste dumping ground in our state."

Copyright, tahoe.com. Materials contained within this site may not

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2 TVA reactor shuts down at Sequoyah plant
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
BY DUNCAN MANSFIELD Associated Press

KNOXVILLE--A Tennessee Valley Authority reactor was shut down for repairs after a pump problem led to a brief reactor coolant leak, officials said Tuesday.

"This is really an operating problem. It is not a safety event," said Ken Clark, spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in Atlanta.

A main pump supplying water to steam generators at Seqouyah Nuclear Plant's Unit 1 reactor malfunctioned at about 10:30 a.m. EDT Monday. The plant is in Soddy-Daisy, about 20 miles north of Chattanooga.

The 1,100-megawatt reactor had been operating at full power for 187 days. It shut down as designed and "posed no danger to employees or the public," TVA spokesman John Moulton said.

Sequoyah officials decided to take the reactor down to a cold shutdown so another problem could be fixed--a reactor coolant pump that had been vibrating excessively.

While cooling off the reactor, Sequoyah workers discovered a 45-gallons- per-minute coolant leak. It took 10 minutes to stop. The coolant was contained in a pressurized relief tank and never left the containment building.

"The NRC staff will look into it to see what conditions existed and if TVA should have declared an 'unusual event,"' Clark said, referring to what the NRC considers its lowest-level of emergency.

This sort of event "usually involves something that does not pose any immediate threat to plant safety or personnel," Clark said.

Moulton said the TVA nevertheless notified the NRC.

The reactor will remain off line indefinitely to make repairs. "We don't normally predict a (restart) date," Moulton said.

Meantime, Sequoyah's identical Unit 2 reactor continues in operation. It has been running at full power for 249 days.

The Sequoyah station went into service in 1981. It is one of three nuclear stations owned and operated by TVA, the nation's largest public power producer.

TVA provides electricity to nearly 8 million people in Tennessee and parts of Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Missisippi.

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3 YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Guinn vows to squeeze project dry
Governor to seek laws prohibiting importation of water by nuclear

Wednesday, September 27, 2000
Las Vegas Review-Journal
WHALEY DONREY CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY--Gov. Kenny Guinn said Tuesday he will seek state legislation prohibiting the importation of water into Nevada for the purpose of building a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. "We will do everything within our means to see that the Yucca Mountain project dies of thirst," he said.

The proposed legislation, which will include fines of $1 million per gallon, will be sought to head off any efforts by the U.S. Department of Energy to import water to build the nuclear waste dump following a federal court water rights ruling issued last week favoring Nevada.

"My message today to the Department of Energy is clear: As long as I'm governor, I will explore every option and use every tool at my disposal to prevent a single drop of Nevada's water being used to create a nuclear waste dumping ground in our state," Guinn said.

The proposed legislation, which will be drafted for consideration by the state Legislature when it meets in February, is in response to a statement by an Energy Department official following the ruling last week by U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt. "If the DOE tries to transport water into our state for use at Yucca Mountain, as a DOE spokesman said recently, I think a million-dollar per gallon fine would be a sufficient deterrent, " Guinn said. "I am determined to not allow them an end run around this federal court decision, which is so important to this state."

The proposed law would also prohibit the purchase of water in Nevada from other sources for use in building a repository. Yucca Mountain Project spokeswoman Gayle Fisher said it is premature to speculate about whether water could be imported into Nevada to build a nuclear waste repository. Some water was trucked in several years ago by the agency to perform scientific work at Yucca Mountain, she said. Conservation and Natural Resources Director Michael Turnipseed, who as the state engineer earlier this year denied the Energy Department's permit applications to withdraw up to 430 acre-feet of water per year from five wells in Nye County for the Yucca project, said the request was equal to 130 million gallons of water a year.

Guinn said he did not know if trucking in that volume of water would be realistic, but that the proposed legislation would make Nevada's position clear to the department. "We have to respond, and no one has disputed that statement," he said.

State officials said Hunt's ruling, issued Thursday, was a major victory for Nevada. Hunt said the federal government's appeal of a state denial of the water needed to build a repository at Yucca Mountain is an issue that should be decided in the state court system, not the federal courts. Hunt's ruling, which can still be appealed by the Energy Department to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, puts the dispute over the water permits in state district court. The issue is before Nye County District Judge John Davis. Turnipseed, in denying the Energy Department's request for the groundwater, cited threats to public health, safety and Nevada's tourism-based economy.

The Energy Department is completing studies to determine whether Yucca Mountain is suitable as an underground repository to house about 77,000 tons of high-level radioactive wastes from nuclear power plants. The site is about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The repository would not open before 2010. But the Energy Department needs the state engineer's permission to use water after its temporary permit expires in 2002. Water would be used for road building, dust suppression and domestic purposes.

Turnipseed issued the Energy Department a 10-year permit in March 1992 to pump about 95 acre-feet of water per year from an existing well near the site in order to conduct exploratory studies in the mountain. Those permits expire in 2002. An acre-foot is the amount of water that would cover an acre to the depth of 1 foot--about 326,000 gallons, or enough to meet the needs of a Las Vegas family of five for a year.

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4 No TVA rate increase expected in 2001
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
BY DUNCAN MANSFIELD
Associated Press Writer

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP)--Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority on Wednesday approved a record $6.7 billion budget that provides money for more and cleaner power without a rate increase.

"Thanks to all the efforts of the men and women of TVA we've had a great year," TVA Chairman Craven Crowell said. "This budget permits us to provide a reliable power supply and reduce the debt without an increase in price. This is great news for power consumers in the Tennessee Valley."

TVA is the nation's largest public power producer, serving nearly 8 million customers through 158 municipal distributors and electric cooperatives in Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Virginia and North Carolina.

It went a decade before raising rates the last time--in 1997 -- and that was intended exclusively for debt reduction.

At its height, interest costs on TVA's nuclear power-driven debt of $28 billion sapped nearly one of every three dollars TVA brought in. Today it is closer to one of every four dollars.

Chief Financial Officer David Smith predicted TVA would end fiscal 2000 this weekend with a debt of just under $26 billion, and forecast an additional reduction of $452 million next year.

But the self-financing government corporation has had to adjust its grand plan for halving its debt in a decade because of rising power demand.

While TVA has cut its debt, hundreds of millions of dollars once expected to pay off bonds are instead being used to build new capacity and pay for pollution controls.

Growth in the valley, at close to 4 percent annually, is pushing the change in priorities.

TVA set all-time power records twice in August as temperatures hit 99 degrees across the valley, eclipsing records set the year before. The new top demand is 29,344 megawatts.

That has forced TVA to invest in gas turbines for peak power capacity and a new coal-burning facility in Mississippi. More expenditures for these purposes are expected next year.

The agency added 860 megawatts of new capacity this year and plans to spend $81 million on new generation next year.

Another big-ticket item is environmental cleanup. TVA is spending $82 million on clean-air investments in the coming year, including its program to reduce pollutants from 59 coal-fired units. It also has embarked on a green power program.

Still, environmentalists and the Environmental Protection Agency are pressing for more aggressive action, pointing particularly to growing air quality problems in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

"Our 2001 budget will help TVA carry out its commitment to the quality of life in the valley by improving air quality, while at the same time meeting growing power demand," said TVA director Skila Harris.

The budget approved Wednesday is a 2.2 percent increase over the current year.

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5 Aweekly summary of international news relevant to uranium and the nuclear energy industry.

Uranium Institute News Briefing 00.39
20 - 26 September 2000

[NB00.39-1] CHINA: CONSTRUCTION WORK IS REPORTED TO HAVE BEGUN ON TWO MORE REACTORS AT THE TIANWAN nuclear power station at Lianyungang in Jiangsu province, under a Sino-Russian project to build four VVER-1000s at the site. Construction of the first two units began 1999, and is scheduled for completion in 2004. The second pair of units is due to start up in 99.42-1)

[NB00.39-2] CANADA REMAINED THE WORLD'S TOP URANIUM PRODUCER IN 1999 DESPITE AN ALMOST 25% DROP in production from 1998, according to Natural Resources Canada's (NRCan) annual assessment, Uranium in Canada. The government office's report noted an average price for deliveries under export contracts of C$49.10 per kg, down about 4% on 1998. Spot sales in 1999 represented less than 1% of all deliveries under Canadian export contracts. The country's total known recoverable uranium resources as of January 2000 were 417 000 tonnes, down 4% from January 1999. (FreshFUEL, 25 September, p5)

[NB00.39-3] US: DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES AT THE HIGHLAND ISL URANIUM PROJECT IN WYOMING WILL BE SUSPENDED from 1 October, Power Resources International has announced. PRI also plans to scale production back from 700 000 pounds U3O8 (269 tU) in 2001 to 500 000 pounds U3O8 (192 tU) in 2002 and 300 000 pounds U3O8 (115 tU) in 2003. Current market conditions have been cited as the reason for the cutbacks, but PRI has the ability to ramp up production quickly should the market require. (Ux Weekly, 25 September, p5)

[NB00.39- 4] US ENERGY CORP AND CRESTED CORP (USECC) IS TO FOCUS ON NATURAL GAS EXPLORATION and development activities, the companies have announced. With the current low prices, the companies have 'significantly reduced their financial exposure to uranium and gold projects', according to US Energy Corp president Keith Larsen. USECC's uranium holdings include the Sheep Mountain and Green Mountain deposits and the Sweetwater mill in Wyoming, and the Tony M deposit and Shootaring Canyon mill in Utah, although USECC recently announced that all of its interest in the Green Mountain Mining Venture (GMMV) is to be transferred to Kennecott Uranium Company. (Nuclear Market 4)

[NB00.39-5] US: FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT HAS SUBMITTED A LICENCE RENEWAL APPLICATION FOR TURKEY POINT and also plans to submit renewal applications for St Lucie. Turkey Point-3's current licence expires in 2012, and Turkey Point-4's in 2013. St Lucie-1 and -2's licences expire in 2016 and 2023 respectively. (Nucleonics Week, 21 September, p3)

[NB00.39-6] SWISS VOTERS HAVE REJECTED THREE INITIATIVES THAT WOULD HAVE INTRODUCED NEW TAXES on nuclear electricity, and a vote in the canton of Berne has strongly rejected a proposal to close the Muhleberg nuclear power plant. (NucNet News, 431/00, 25 September)

[NB00.39-7] TAIWAN: NO GOVERNMENT ACTION TO STOP CONSTRUCTION OF THE COUNTRY'S FOURTH NUCLEAR PLANT has been taken despite a 9- 6 vote in favour of ending construction by a review panel set up by the economics ministry. Premier Tang Fei has threatened to resign if the project is scrapped but a decision by the Executive Yuan is not expected for some time. Separately, Taipower has warned that northern Taiwan will face a serious electricity shortage if the plant is not completed, with a shortfall of 2550 MW - 15% of the region's requirements - by 2007. (Nucleonics Week, 21 September, p7; Ux Weekly, 25 September, 8]

US: USEC IS TO BEGIN DESIGN AND EVALUATION WORK ON A NEW GAS CENTRIFUGE based on technology developed by the Department of Energy in the 1980s. Under a one-year Cooperative Research and Development Agreement, USEC will fund a US$4 million research and evaluation programme by employees from USEC and DOE's Oak Ridge Laboratory. USEC has already said that it expects to select an advanced technology programme in 2002 and is involved in ongoing discussions with Urenco's German and Dutch shareholders, as well as evaluating the Australian SILEX laser-based technology. (USEC, 19 September; Fresh

FUEL, 25 AND DUTCH SHARES IN URENCO WAS EXTENDED beyond the original deadline of September 15th for 'at least seven days' following a request from Cogema, it is reported. Cogema is said to have been in talks with BNFL about a possible joint venture to buy the shares. Cameco is also reported to be interested, and commentators speculate that the bidding process might lead to a number of joint venture options as none of the interested parties 'has enough money to buy up all the shares' at the asking Briefing 00.22-1)

[NB00.39-10] THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION (EC) IS EXPECTED TO RULE ON THE PROPOSED SIEMENS-FRAMATOME nuclear activities merger in early to mid December, according to an EC spokesperson. The EC formally has until 19 December to decide whether to approve the formation of Framatome Advanced Nuclear Power. (NuclearFuel, 18 September, p3;

THE TRANSPORT OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL FROM GERMANY FOR REPROCESSING IN FRANCE LOOKS SET to resume after Germany's radiation protection agency announced its first approval of spent fuel transports since a ban was imposed in 1998 following the discovery of contamination on transport casks. Eight transports in total are now expected to be made this year, from the Stade, Biblis and Philippsburg plants for reprocessing at La Hague. Transports of spent fuel within Germany resumed in January. (NucNet News, 312/00, 22 September; see also News Briefings

EUROPEAN UNION LAW REQUIRING SPECIFIC EXPORT LICENCES FOR NON-SENSITIVE NUCLEAR materials will enter into force on 30 September. The law was originally drafted as a non-proliferation measure and was intended to harmonise rules across the EU but non- sensitive materials, previously allowed to circulate freely under generic licences, were inadvertently included in an annex to the main text. The European Dual-Use group had been trying to amend the rule but an amendment was not agreed in time. A revised regulation is expected to enter into force by the end of the year, but in the meantime EU exporters of natural and enriched uranium including fabricated fuel, as well as other non-sensitive materials, will have to obtain specific licences from their national governments. (NuclearFuel, 18 September, p10)

[NB00.39-13] CANADA: A SINGLE AIR SHIPMENT OF 15 KG OF MOX FUEL FROM RUSSIA TO AECL'S CHALK RIVER laboratory has been approved by Canadian regulators. The fuel, along with US-produced MOX, is to be tested as part of the Parallex programme to investigate the feasibility of using Candu reactors to burn MOX fuel made from surplus plutonium. (SpentFUEL, 25 September, p1; see also News Briefings

GENERAL CONFERENCE HAS ADOPTED RESOLUTIONS ENDORSING THE AGENCY'S programmes for strengthening its nuclear verification, safety and technology activities. Resolutions on steps for enhancing the contribution of nuclear technologies to human and sustainable development included: supporting the development of power and non-power applications in member states with a view to preserving nuclear knowledge and sustaining nuclear infrastructures; obtaining information on nuclear's role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, including case studies and potential projects; promoting information exchange and cooperation in the field of nuclear desalination and the development of small and medium reactors for the production of potable water; and to facilitate efforts for possible uses of the sterile insect technique, building national radiotherapy capabilities, and study the possibility of using nuclear techniques to locate landmines. (IAEA, 22 September)

[NB00.39- 15] US: CONVERDYN'S EFFORTS TO LOBBY CONGRESS AND THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION TO HELP AVOID having to close the Metropolis conversion plant are continuing, it is reported. ConverDyn claims it was 'substantially injured' by the US government's decision to give USEC substantial inventories of UF6. (NuclearFuel, 18 September, p14)

[NB00.39-16] ARMENIA: A 2004 CLOSURE DATE FOR THE METSAMOR NUCLEAR POWER STATION is 'no longer realistic', despite a pledge to the European Union to close the plant by then, according to the country's Energy Ministry. The plant supplies 40% of Armenia's generation and the country no longer believes it will be possible to find alternative energy sources in the next Briefing 00.10-18)

[NB00.39-17] CZECH REPUBLIC: HOT TESTING AT THE TEMELIN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT HAS BEEN COMPLETED successfully, leaving one further set of tests to be completed before the plant can obtain permission to start up from the state nuclear safety office. (NucNet News, 310/00, 21 September)

[NB00.39-18] RUSSIA IS REPORTED TO BE DISCUSSING A POSSIBLE JOINT NUCLEAR POWER DEVELOPMENT programme with Japan. Accoridng to Minatom minister Yevgeny Adamov, Japanese investors would be asked to finance a construction programme to build up to 12 reactors in Russia's far east, and be paid 'in kind' with electricity. (NucNet News, 306/00, 19 September)

[NB00.39-19] US: VERMONT REGULATORS HAVE POSTPONED A DECISION ON WHETHER TO APPROVE THE SALE of Vermont Yankee to AmerGen, saying that the sale needs to be compared with the recent sale of the Millstone plant. Based on the sale of Millstone for US$1.3 billion, opponents of the Vermont Yankee sale say the price of US$23 million is too low and there should be a re-bid. The state regulator's decision is expected in early October. (Ux Weekly, 25 September, p2; see also Elsewhere, commentators are questioning whether the high price commanded by Millstone will set a trend for plant sales or if it is an aberration. (Nucleonics Week, 21 September,

Prepared by the Uranium Institute Information Service.

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6 CALL TO SCRAP NUCLEAR POWER
Asahi Shimbun
September 27, 2000

In tandem with growing global trends, the influential Japanese Federation of Bar Associations will call for the step-by-step removal of nuclear power plants during a conference on human rights being held in Gifu on Oct. 6, officials said.

It is the first time the federation has called outright for an end to nuclear power generation.

Its proposals on energy reform follow the nuclear accident in Tokaimura, Ibaraki Prefecture, a year ago and Germany's decision to abolish the use of nuclear power.

The federation will propose alternative uses of energy.

The gist of its report will be to shut down all nuclear facilities and put a freeze on new ones being built; prohibiting the recycling of spent nuclear fuel and proposing the ``freeze burial'' of nuclear waste.

The federation has long campaigned against the use of plutonium. It decided to press harder for a cleaner environment after getting a consensus from its members.

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7 A YEAR LATER, JAPAN REMEMBERS WORST NUKE ACCIDENT
Story by Jason Szep
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
JAPAN: September 27, 2000

TOKYO - A YEAR AGO THIS WEEK, THREE WORKERS AT A URANIUM PROCESSING PLANT INADVERTENTLY TRIGGERED JAPAN'S WORST-EVER NUCLEAR ACCIDENT, LEAVING A LEGACY OF DEBATE OVER WHETHER THE COUNTRY DEPENDS TOO HEAVILY ON NUCLEAR POWER.

And a senior industry official said yesterday the task of rebuilding consumer confidence had a way to go.

"Rebuilding the damage to confidence in Japan's nuclear energy safety caused by the accident is still under way," Shojiro Matsuura, chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC), told reporters yesterday.

The accident at Tokaimura - the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986 - killed two workers, seriously injured a third and exposed at least 439 people in the area to radiation.

A year later, debate still flares over who is to blame and whether the industry is doing enough to become safe, while the rural town of Tokaimura has been shaken by reports of lingering illnesses, its busy farming industry seen as tainted.

The nuclear programme has been modestly scaled back with Japan's big electric power companies revising down the number of planned new nuclear reactors to 13 over the next 11 years, against a previous target of 16 to 20.

The government strengthened the hand of dozens of committees on nuclear safety since the accident, giving more power to the Nuclear Safety Commission and revising legislation to move faster in times of nuclear crises, Matsuura said.

Tokaimura - the town where Japan's nuclear industry began in 1957 - has elected an anti-nuclear activist to the local assembly, and a country that depends on nuclear power for a third of its electricity is asking a year later if it's all now safe.

FEW OPTIONS

With the recent surge in oil prices feeding talk of a possible global energy crisis, resource-poor Japan has few options except nuclear energy to power its hungry industries.

Matsuura described nuclear power as "indispensable" given Japan's lack of natural resources, few viable new energy sources and the price volatility and environmental issues associated with fossil fuels such as oil.

"If solar energy, or wind power or hydro power can give sufficient energy that the Japanese people need, then we do not need nuclear energy, but obviously we cannot hope for that."

After the accident, Tokyo strengthened the independence of the NSC, a body that advises the prime minister. It is now armed with 20 committees with 200 members giving advice ranging from reactor safety to waste and moving radioactive material.

Still, environmentalists and global industry watchdogs question whether Japan remains at risk of another accident.

Gaia Hoerner, a spokesman for the Tokyo-based Citizens' Nuclear Information Center, doubts the government has gone far enough to remove the risk of another Tokaimura-style incident.

RISKS

"The risks of accidents like Tokaimura happening have not been reduced, " said Hoerner. "The government has concentrated on improving disaster countermeasures. There are a number of factors which pose great threats."

On the morning of September 30, 1999, three workers at the reprocessing plant 140 km (90 miles) northeast of Tokyo set off an uncontrolled atomic reaction that took 20 hours to bring under control after they used buckets to pour nearly eight times the proper amount of a uranium solution.

Hoerner said that since the accident the government have focused on new measures to act faster after crises rather than on the factors which could spark accidents such as old reactors, natural disasters and failure to enforce safety procedures.

Concern outside Japan is equally strong.

"The Japanese government has made only cosmetic changes to its nuclear regulatory system," Edwin Lyman, scientific director at the Washington- based Nuclear Control Institute, an industry watchdog, told Reuters.

Tokaimura residents handed the government a petition last week with 22,500 signatures seeking more compensation and support beyond the 12.66 billion yen ($118 million) that plant operator JCO agreed to pay to settle around 7,000 cases from the accident.

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8 Ukraine President signs decree to shut down Chernobyl
KPnews.com--News about Ukraine
COMPILED BY KPNEWS KYIV
26 Sep 2000

Committee formed to handle Chernobyl shutdown, Sept 26 - President Leonid Kuchma has signed a decree on measures to shut down the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, cite of the world's worst nuclear accident, which sets up an organizing committee in charge of the closure, Interfax-Ukraine reported. The presidential press service said that the president nominated the head of his administration, Volodymyr Lytvyn, to chair the committee, the report said. The document was passed in execution of Ukraine's commitment to the world community to shut down Chernobyl before December 15 of this year, according to the report. According to the decree, Kuchma has instructed the committee to draft a plan within two weeks' time for his endorsement that would lay down the measures to be taken to close the nuclear plant and resolve the problems related to dismissal of the plant's personnel after its closure, the report said.

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9 Ukraine Mulls Mysterious Poisoning
LAS VEGAS SUN
September 27, 2000
ASSOCIATED PRESS

BOLESLAVCHYK, Ukraine (AP)--The cluster of four villages in southern Ukraine was bathed in scorching summer heat when the mysterious illness struck, creeping from one house to another.

Hundreds of people were soon complaining of symptoms that included drowsiness, head and stomach pains, burning eyes and skin rashes.

About 400 of the more than 2,600 village residents were hospitalized in July and August. Doctors were unable to diagnose the ailment, which also affected the livers and pancreases of victims, saying only that it was apparently caused by an unknown chemical agent.

But some residents thought they knew the cause: rocket fuel and debris from Soviet-era missiles that had been based less than a mile from their homes in the villages of Boleslavchyk, Pidhiria, Michuryno and Chausovo. They rejected the Defense Ministry's denials, and suspected the military wasn't interested in discovering the truth.

"It must be something military, what else? But I have my remedy," said an elderly man named Mykola, fishing in a pond in Boleslavchyk. He swallowed the last drops from a small bottle of vodka.

Just outside Boleslavchyk, a peaceful village of small white houses, overgrown bushes conceal heaps of broken concrete--the remains of a destroyed missile silo. The area once held liquid-fuel nuclear missiles and still serves as a base for solid-fuel SS-24s.

Ukraine inherited 46 SS-24s and 130 SS-19 missiles from the Soviet Union. Kiev has since surrendered all its nuclear warheads to Russia and destroyed the SS-19s, while most of its SS-24s along with their silos are to be destroyed under a disarmament plan running through 2001.

Many in Boleslavchyk maintain the health menace can be traced to a farm where the Soviet army supposedly buried debris while dismantling outdated missiles in the late 1970s. Metal scavengers recently excavated an old pit there, and some villagers swear they saw a strange cloud that later swept over Boleslavchyk.

But retired tractor driver Ivan Muliar was skeptical. He said that plenty of people had worked at the farm for years and never gotten sick, and the scavengers weren't among the victims of the mysterious illness.

"Look, those boys who dug out the metal did not get sick," argued Muliar. "There must be some other reason."

The Defense Ministry adamantly denies the missiles or their fuel could have caused the poisoning, and health experts have backed off from their initial finding that the soil and water contained traces of substances usually produced by decomposing missile fuel.

The region has a host of other environmental scourges, including an ammonia pipeline and an abandoned nickel plant. Official explanations for the poisoning range from excessive amounts of nitrates presumably used in fertilizer to poisonous fumes released by scavengers burning plastic insulation off copper cables.

U.S. experts from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Atlanta- based Centers for Disease Control, an Israeli medical team and Ukrainian investigative commission have all visited the site. None could offer any conclusive explanation and said full analysis would be costly and time-consuming.

The mystery could remain unsolved forever.

Yet it has brought some good to the area 190 miles south of the capital, Kiev, throwing a spotlight on its poverty and environmental ills. Charities have sent food and clothes. The government is building a running water supply and has promised a pipeline network to provide household gas.

The victims have recovered, the investigators have gone, and life in the villages is returning to normal. Yet the residents remain fearful.

"We don't know what caused all this," said Oleksandra Pochekha, the mayor of Boleslavchyk. "But we want a clear answer.... Next year, spring will come, it will be hot again and this could start all over again."

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10 Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission takes over Chashma nuclear power plant -DAWN
27 September, 2000
BY OUR CORRESPONDENT

ISLAMABAD, Sept 26: The Chashma Nuclear Power Plant (CHASNUPP) crossed another landmark when the plant was handed over to Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission by the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) in a simple ceremony held here on Monday.

The agreement of provisional acceptance of the plant was signed by Mr Zhao Hong, Senior Advisor, CNNC and Mr Parvez Butt, Member (Power) PAEC.

Speaking on this occasion, Dr Ashfaq Ahmad, Chairman PAEC congratulated the Chinese and the Pakistani engineers and appreciated their painstaking efforts to make the project a success.

Dr Ishfaq said CHASNUPP is a symbol of successful South-South cooperation in high technology and another landmark of everlasting Pakistan-China friendship.

He hoped that in future Pakistan and China would have much greater cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Member (Power) also praised the efforts of the Chinese and Pakistani engineers who made it possible to complete the project.

He further said that PAEC engineers have gained valuable expertise by participating in various stages of plant construction and commissioning and are ready to take the responsibility of operation and maintenance of the plant.

Earlier, Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Board (PNRB) held a meeting to review the Performance and Reliability Demonstration Tests (PRDT) of CHASNUPP. After a detailed scrutiny of the performance of the plant, the Board authorized CHASNUPP Project director to take over the plant from CNNC and its subsidiary CZEC, and assume full operational responsibilities.

CHASNUPP is Pakistan's second nuclear power plant, the first being KANUPP. CHASNUPP has been built under a turn-key contract with China National Nuclear Corporation signed on 31st December 1991.

PAEC undertook a significant part of the construction work beside manufacturing some mechanical equipment for the plant. A number of Pakistani companies were also involved in this project. The construction of the plant has significantly contributed towards improvement of infrastructure in the area and acquiring of technical know-how by the Pakistani engineers and technical staff.

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11 Guinn threatens $1 million-a-gallon fine if water imported for nuke dump
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
By Brendan Riley
Associated Press
Wednesday September 27th, 2000

Gov. Kenny Guinn threatened to impose $1 million-per-gallon fines for every gallon of water the federal Department of Energy tries to truck to a proposed nuclear dump site in southern Nevada.

Guinn issued the warning Tuesday after last week's ruling by a federal judge that state courts must decide whether the Energy Department can use ground water at Yucca Mountain for the dump.

That ruling was hailed as a major victory for the state in its fight against the high-level radioactive waste repository, which the DOE wants to operate 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Federal officials have said that without a right to pump water within the state, they could always resort to trucking the water in from outside Nevada.

Guinn said that to prevent such water imports, he will ask the 2001 Legislature to pass a law imposing the big fines. A $1 million-per- gallon fine "would be a sufficient deterrent," Guinn said.

"I am determined to not allow them an end run around this federal court decision which is so important to this state," he said. "We will do everything within our means to see that the Yucca Mountain project dies of thirst."

State Conservation and Natural Resources chief Mike Turnipseed, whose ruling against the Energy Department's water-pumping efforts was preserved by U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt's decision Thursday, said the DOE wanted to pump as much as 140 million gallons a year for the dump.

Guinn joked that he'd settle for a $1 million-per-gallon fine on just 100 gallons of water. He added the fine is a serious proposal that's needed in light of an "extremely aggressive" effort by the DOE to keep the Yucca Mountain project moving ahead.

DOE spokeswoman Gayle Fisher said the agency didn't comment after the federal court ruling last week and would have no comment on Guinn's proposal.

Hunt's ruling, that the DOE didn't have a constitutional right to usurp state jurisdiction on water rights, was hailed Monday by state Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa.

Del Papa said it means state courts instead of federal courts will determine whether Turnipseed acted properly in ruling against the DOE.

"We now have a clear road to the Nevada Supreme Court, which will give that court the opportunity to weigh in on the question of whether the storage of nuclear waste in Nevada is against our public interest, "Del Papa said.

Turnipseed, in denying the DOE's request for the ground water earlier this year, cited threats to public health, safety and Nevada's tourism- based economy. He was the state's water engineer at the time, and has since been elevated to the cabinet-level post of state conservation and natural resources director.

Yucca Mountain is the only national site being studied to store about 77,000 tons of high-level radioactive waste. If it is found scientifically suitable, the dump could open by 2010.

The DOE has temporary permission to use ground water to study Yucca Mountain through March 2002, but applied for permanent rights for more water to build and operate the dump.

The amount sought is equivalent to the amount of water needed to keep a 110-acre golf course irrigated each year, Turnipseed said.

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12 Halting of nuclear power plant may lack legal basis
The Taipei Times Online: 2000-09-26
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26TH, 2000
BY STEPHANIE LOW STAFF REPORTER

An Executive Yuan official yesterday said the government may have trouble finding a legal basis to discontinue the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant budget, even if the Cabinet decides to scrap the project.

Lin Chuan (ŞLĄţ), head of the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics said even the Budget Law, which is the law most likely to be cited in terminating the power plant project, may not allow the project's termination. According to the Budget Law, the government can only stop using a budget in the case of a national emergency.

"It is uncertain whether a policy change on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant project is applicable to this condition," Lin said.

Lin made the remark when briefing lawmakers on the Executive Yuan's review of the budget for the project.

The power plant, which was proposed by the former KMT government as a solution to Taiwan's power shortages, has been a source of controversy over the past decade and the focus of protests from environmental groups.

The DPP has actively campaigned against the project and has officially adopted an anti-nuclear power energy platform. Finding ways to have the project stopped has become one of the most important tasks facing the DPP now that it is in power.

Despite the fact that the project is already 30 percent complete, the Ministry of Economic Affairs has formed a committee to re-evaluate the feasibility of the project. Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Hsin-yi (ŞL"H¸q) is expected to submit his recommendation on whether to continue the project to Premier Tang Fei (­đ­¸) on Saturday.

At yesterday's meeting, DPP lawmakers argued that since there is no law requiring the government to finish its budget, the government would not violate any law if it decided to discontinue the project's budget and halt construction of the plant.

"This only involves a change of policy and failure to execute the budget," said DPP legislator Lai Chin-lin (żŕ"lĹď).

Lin, however, warned that discontinuing the budget may provoke a struggle with opposition legislators who make up a majority in the legislature.

In 1996, the legislature adopted a resolution to cancel the NT$112 billion budget that had been passed in 1994 for the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant.

The Executive Yuan at the time requested the legislature reconsider its decision, after which the budget was restored.

"The Executive Yuan is obliged to execute the resolution reached after the reconsideration process, because it is legally binding, " Lin said.

Lin's explanation apparently failed to convince DPP lawmakers, who said they planned to file for an interpretation from the Council of Grand Justices to reach a final ruling on the issue. This story has been viewed 247 times.

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13 Tribes learn how to measure pollution on reservations
September 27, 2000
BY MARY MANNING
LAS VEGAS SUN

Indian tribal leaders, Environmental Protection Agency officials and technical professionals opened an air quality training center in Las Vegas today that will teach 400 tribes how to sample air pollution.

On a concrete pad behind the EPA's quality assurance laboratory at UNLV, Indians from as far away as Florida are learning how to measure pollution and dust particles that sweep across vast reservations.

The Tribal Air Monitoring Support Center managed by the EPA and the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals of Flagstaff, Ariz., uses cutting-edge technology to train participants under real-world conditions, such as sunlight shining in their eyes as they try to read monitors and wind blowing field notes, the center's technical director Gregory Budd said.

By becoming partners with the EPA, tribes are closing the gap between pollution information gathered in urban areas, which have been blanketed with monitors for the past 20 years, and pollution never studied on closed reservation lands.

Since tribal lands are considered sovereign nations not under the authority of federal agencies, the EPA/Indian partnerships are unique, said Jed Harrison, director of the EPA's Radiation and Indoor Environments Laboratory in Las Vegas. The attention to tribal land came after Congress amended the Clean Air Act in 1990.

The EPA spent about $1.2 million to set up the center to teach tribes to study the quality of reservation air, which can affect and be affected by neighboring air quality.

"It's the concept of helping them help themselves," Harrison said of the three-day training sessions that take participants from an 800-page reference book filled with federal air quality regulations to learning how to sample the air outdoors.

Another $800,000 has been spent in three grants to the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community near Scottsdale, Ariz., for equipment and basic training, B. Bobby Ramirez, an air quality engineer, said.

Tribal leaders bring a unique perspective to the EPA.

"Tribes are tied to Mother Earth, so there is a cultural dimension to the technical work," Ramirez said.

Ramirez began his work as an air quality technician in El Paso, Texas, but moved to Arizona three years ago because of the opportunity for advanced training.

"This program is building a tribe's capacity to monitor the environment, the same as states and local governments have had for the past 20 years," Ramirez said.

"It's a two-way street," Harrison said. The EPA gains new information about the environment as well as tribal cultural concerns, he said.

"Most reservation lands are considered rural areas," Dwayne Beaver of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, said. Those lands were considered pristine.

But ozone levels discovered on Cherokee lands drifting from Tulsa about 50 miles away surprised both federal officials and tribal representatives, Beaver said.

Beaver said he has been monitoring air pollution for three years and started training as an instructor in November.

Classroom training has been available over the past three years at the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals, said Dennis Wall of the institute, but there was no hands-on experience.

The institute has four major environmental programs covering training in air quality and environmental education, a tribal environmental resource center and professional training such as that done with EPA, Wall said.

"The tribes have the same concerns about the environment everybody else does," Wall said, noting that 125 tribes have teamed up with the EPA and the institute to learn about air pollution monitoring.

For David Sanchez of the Pojoaque Pueblo near Santa Fe, N.M., it was the first time he had worked with a dust sampler that can measure particles of 2.5 microns, a fraction of a human hair's width.

Sanchez and Adam Duran, also of Pojoaque Pueblo, will take back fresh knowledge to their people living 15 miles north of Santa Fe.

Duran said he had done ground water sampling and indoor air pollution studies before coming to the Las Vegas training center.

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NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTENTS

1 GOP, ADMINISTRATION DEBATE BUDGET FOR RADIATION VICTIMS
2 Testimony on Nuclear Workers
3 Aid for Nuclear Workers - Robert Alvarez
4 Incinerator investigation continues at INEEL -
5 White Oak Lake will have to wait
6 Thumbs up for SNS?
7 Hoffman addresses effects of iodine releases
8 Sick workers bill has pulse
9 Public meeting on ORNL expansion plans
10 Opinion - Guest column: Let's build on DOE teamwork
11 Disclosure at 2 chemical plants urged
12 IEER Report: Plutonium End Game
13 CIA sees Iran as nuclear threat within 10 years
14 House To Revive Sick Workers Plan
15 Nuclear workers' chances fading
16 REID VOWS TO CONTINUE FIGHT FOR NUCLEAR WORKERS COMPENSATION
17 Editorial: Forget a dose of compassion
18 House leaders revive discussion of compensation for sickened
19 AID FOR NUCLEAR WORKERS PLEDGED
20 EDITORIAL: A shameful decision

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NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARTICLES

1 GOP, ADMINISTRATION DEBATE BUDGET FOR RADIATION VICTIMS GOP LEADERS CONTEND PLAN MAY BE TOO COSTLY
Chicago Tribune
Nation World--GOP, ADMINISTRATION
SEPTEMBER 27, 2000
BY MICHAEL KILIAN Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON-- The Energy Department on Tuesday accused congressional Republicans of trying to block passage of legislation to aid victims of radiation exposure in government nuclear facilities, including Illinois' Argonne National Laboratory.

The Clinton administration estimates that the measure would cost less than $1 billion over five years. House Republicans contend the cost might rise to $50 billion.

That estimate is "outrageous," countered Assistant Energy Secretary David Michaels in a conference call with reporters. "They got that figure out of thin air."

House GOP leaders countered that the aid package was attached to a defense appropriation bill at the last minute and needs study because it did not go through the proper committee process.

Michaels said there have been 11 public hearings on the issue. "It doesn't need any more study."

In a bipartisan vote, the Senate earlier this session adopted the radiation sickness compensation measure to assist 4,000 to 6,000 nuclear workers who have contracted cancer or other illnesses from exposure to radiation or toxic chemicals used in nuclear weapons development and production.

The Clinton administration, citing Congressional Budget Office estimates, said the package would cost $938 million over the next five years and would be largely limited to those 6,000 or fewer victims.

Modern safety practices have eliminated the dangerous kinds of exposure that caused the illnesses in those victims, Michaels said.

Technically, however, the Senate measure would make similar compensation available to all 600,000-plus workers in nuclear plants operated by the federal government or under contract to it.

The Republican House leaders argued that an open-ended compensation law could ultimately cost the government $50 billion over 10 years.

They said the aid should be subject to annual congressional appropriations and not doled out in perpetuity.

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2 Testimony on Nuclear Workers
IEER

Written Testimony for the Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims,
Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives

Delivered by Lisa Ledwidge, Outreach Coordinator and Editor of Science for Democratic Action, Institute for Energy and Environmental Research representing Dr. Arjun Makhijani, President of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research

September 21, 2000

My name is Lisa Ledwidge. I am the Outreach Coordinator of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research and editor of its quarterly newsletter Science for Democratic Action. IEER is a non-profit technical institute that provides the public and policy-makers with thoughtful, clear, and sound scientific and technical studies on a wide range of issues. Our aim is to bring scientific excellence to public policy issues to promote the democratization of science and a healthier environment.

My education includes Masters' degrees in environmental science and public affairs, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology. I am here representing Arjun Makhijani, the president of IEER, who is away. Dr. Makhijani, as well as his colleague Bernd Franke, are among the authors of the studies and articles that I will be discussing in this testimony, and have worked in the radiation and health field for about 20 years each.

I prepared this testimony under Dr. Makhijani's guidance. You may have questions that I am not able answer here. I that case, I or other IEER staff will provide answers to the subcommittee for the record as soon as possible after this hearing.

Dr. Makhijani and I appreciate this opportunity to present some of the findings of the work of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research before you.

I will be discussing 3 IEER studies of nuclear worker exposures and off-site radiation releases. I will conclude with recommendations.

USA Today Study

IEER recently completed a study for USA Today newspaper. We would like to request that our report of this study be made part of the record.

This study assessed internal radiation doses of workers at three nuclear materials processing facilities, two in New York and one in Ohio. The plants were selected, in part, because they all were privately owned and performed a variety of uranium processing operations during portions of the 1940s and 1950s. The study was a preliminary and partial evaluation of worker exposure. Its purpose was to perform screening-type calculations to ascertain whether the doses to workers in at least some locations or job categories were high enough to cause serious health concerns. We used government and contractor records of workers and workplace conditions. Further details about the study's methodology used can be found in the written report.

I will describe 3 of IEER's main findings:

1) We found that working conditions at these three plants were extremely poor. Workers were severely overexposed, even for then-prevailing standards. Based on our screening calculations, doses to many workers are likely to have exceeded the dose limit which was then about 15 rem per year. This chart [slide #1] shows the cumulative lung dose per worker as it relates to the number of months exposed (i.e. on the job), and also to different multiples of the then-prevailing Maximum Allowable Concentration (MAC) of uranium in the air. It shows that the more months a worker was exposed, the higher the cumulative lung dose, and the higher the level of uranium in the workplace air (i.e. the higher the number of multiples of MAC), the higher the dose.

The data and our calculations suggest that the highest exposed workers had a high probability of dying from cancer as a result of the exposure. The estimated mean lung dose in the highest exposure category (8, 400 rem) would be equivalent to an effective dose (or "whole body" dose) of approximately 1,000 rem. Using the International Council for Radiation Protection (ICRP) cancer risk factor of 0.04%, this corresponds to about a 40% risk of dying from cancer. This is a 200 percent increase in fatal cancer risk compared to unexposed persons.

Other types of health problems, including kidney damage, would also be likely among those workers exposed to the more soluble forms of uranium. We found that the government and the contractors seem to have completely ignored the air concentration limit established for protecting the kidney from uranium toxicity--we found no evidence that the contractors followed it, or that the government enforced it. Plant documents indicate that kidney damage among workers was in fact reported.

We have arrived at these conclusions even though our dose calculations are partial and do not cover the entire periods of plant operation and all types of doses. It also should be noted that the amount of material processed does not necessarily correspond to individual worker exposure level. In other words, the plant that processed the smallest amount of uranium did not necessarily have the lowest worker doses.

2) IEER's study also found evidence that plant authorities and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), which contracted with these private companies to process material for its nuclear weapons program, were aware that workers at these plants were being overexposed over prolonged periods of time. Furthermore, there is no indication that the authorities shared this overexposure information with the plant workers. In fact, there are documents that indicate that plant authorities and AEC personnel lied to the workers about the levels of radiation to which they were being exposed. For example, in a January 1948 letter to the Vice President of Harshaw Chemical Co., Harshaw's Medical Manager wrote: "...it is obvious that concentrations considerably above the preferred level are common in Area C." (Area C is an area in the Harshaw plant.) He also wrote, "...a distinct hazard does exist in Area C." In the same letter he states that the Medical office "still believes" that the "logical method of approach" is to continue telling the employees at Area C "that all of our records indicated that no unusual hazard existed..."

3) One of the most surprising outcomes of our findings is that they call into question whether the doses to these workers were less than their Soviet counterparts. Until now, we have assumed, based on available evidence, that worker exposures were far higher in the Soviet Union than in the United States. But the partial estimates that we have made in this study are so high that this assumption may need to be revisited for many of the workers at these nuclear weapons plants. A comparative evaluation of US and Soviet nuclear materials processing plants of that era should be done.

Fernald Worker Study

In 1994, IEER performed a study of worker doses at the Feed Materials Production Center, located in Fernald, Ohio, near Cincinnati. The Fernald plant is similar to the three facilities that IEER analyzed for USA Today in that uranium processing took place there. This study was completed as part of expert testimony in a class action lawsuit filed by Fernald workers against National Lead of Ohio, the Department of Energy's contractor there until 1985. The aim of the study was to examine whether then-prevailing dose limits had been violated. This study was, to our knowledge, the first independent assessment of internal radiation doses based on raw data from official DOE and contractor records of the workers. We are submitting this study and request that it be part of the record.

I'll describe 2 findings of IEER's Fernald worker study:

1) Similar to the 3 aforementioned facilities, IEER found that the working conditions at the Fernald uranium processing plant were appalling, especially in the 1950s and early 1960s. They were typified by high air concentrations of uranium in many areas of the plant. They often exceeded the Maximum Allowable Concentration (MAC) by tens, hundreds, even thousands of times. One 1960 plant document lists the air dust concentration in the breathing zone of a worker cleaning under a certain piece of equipment as 97,000 times the MAC. I am submitting this document for the record.

This chart [slide #2] shows the proportion of workers at the Fernald plant who were exposed to more than the allowable limits due to lung burdens of uranium. It summarizes IEER's conclusions: that doses due to uranium inhaled by workers between 1952 and 1962 were above then-allowable limits (15 rem per year to the lung) in more than half the cases in every year but one. In 1955, the worst year for worker exposure, IEER estimated that almost 90 percent of workers were exposed to more than the allowable lung dose limit. As you can see, significant proportions of workers continued to suffer overexposure after 1962.

2) Similar to our analysis of worker doses at the 3 private uranium processing facilities, Fernald workers were not told about their internal radiation overexposures by AEC and its successor agencies nor by contractor officials until at least 1989. One of the most startling findings in the course of this study was that the urine and lung counting data (in other words, internal dose measurements) of the Fernald workers had never been converted into radiation dose estimates. Worker radiation dose records - that is, the records actually given to workers when they ask for them--contained only external radiation doses, such as those recorded on film badges worn by workers. Therefore, we found that the assurances given to workers by that they were, on the whole, well protected, were based on very partial information. In the case of Fernald, these assurances did not even take account of the most important route of exposure: inhalation of contaminated dust.

Just after the presentation of IEER's findings in court in 1994, the Department of Energy settled the lawsuit on behalf of National Lead of Ohio, providing workers with lifetime medical monitoring and other benefits.

Our suspicion that the situation at Fernald may not have been an exception in this regard was confirmed when, three years later, the Department of Energy finally admitted that from the beginning of the nuclear era until 1989, radiation doses from radioactive materials inhaled or ingested by workers were not calculated or included in worker dose records, even though the data had been collected and was available to the DOE and its contractors.

While there was no regulatory requirement until 1989 for DOE to actually calculate worker doses, the lack of internal radiation dose estimates in worker dose records means that the records of workers who were at risk of internal exposures are incomplete, misleading, and inaccurate. The overall result is that large numbers of workers have received information about their radiation exposures systematically understating their actual exposures.

The state of the external dose records is also troubling. For instance, in a 2-1/2 page document titled "Deficiencies in Reporting of Worker Exposure to Radiation and Toxic Material," the DOE admitted that: "The type, use, and positioning of dosimetry was poor in some cases, resulting in inaccurate determination of radiation exposures."

"In some cases, occupational radiation exposure records are missing years of radiological dose data."

"Radiation exposure data stored on electronic media did not accurately reflect the data on the original record."

"Employee files do not contain the required information related to occupational radiation exposure and radiological working conditions."

"Internal and external occupational exposure records were found to be incomplete."

"Because of inadequate administrative procedures and practices employees that had lost their dosimetry badges were able to enter radiation areas before obtaining replacement dosimetry."

According to the document, this information was obtained from Technical Safety Appraisals conducted during the period 1989 to 1992. It was submitted by the Department of Energy at a hearing of the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on March 17, 1994.

This photo [slide #3] further illustrates some possible flaws in external worker dose data. This worker is stamping a label on a uranium ingot, a job that was done routinely throughout the history of the Fernald plant. The external dose to the worker's gonads, and hence the effective whole body dose equivalent that might be calculated from that, are likely to be far in excess of what was recorded on the film badge. First, the film badge is not facing the radiation source, which allows some of the radiation to escape detection. Second, the distance between the radiation source and his gonads is shorter than that between the source and his film badge. Because radiation deposits its energy relative to distance, the dose to this worker's gonads is likely much greater than what his film badge would indicate.

Fernald Off-Site Release Study

The Fernald worker study was actually the second Fernald study performed by IEER. The first one, completed in the late 1980's, was done as part of expert work in a lawsuit filed by neighbors of the Fernald plant. This study was the first ever independent assessment of radiation releases form a nuclear weapons plant. IEER focused its work on estimating uranium losses because uranium was the main material processed there and because data on other materials released to the air were scarce or non-existent.

IEER found that radioactive releases of uranium from Fernald were at least double the official calculations by the Department of Energy and its contractors. After the study was released, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention commissioned an independent study of the radiation doses to the public arising from Fernald's operation. That study, done by John Till, corroborated IEER's findings in regard to uranium releases. As shown in this table [slide #4], the official sources (NLO and Westinghouse) had greatly and systematically underestimated releases.

These underestimates were largely due to scientific flaws in the estimates and in the way in which the records were kept and the measurements were made (or not made). For example, for a number of years, many entries showed zero releases when no measurements had actually been made. As another example, the plant made an assumption that scrubbers, designed to remove uranium from highly acidic exhaust, always operated within manufacturer specified efficiency, despite internal plant data to the contrary. The formula used by the contractor to calculate releases from the scrubber was wrong under conditions of variable efficiency and resulted in high release estimates when actual releases were low and low release estimates when actual releases were high. Moreover, this method was known to plant officials to be wrong, since it was described in a 1971 plant document as "inherently deceptive."

The DOE, which defended the lawsuit on behalf of the contractor, National Lead of Ohio, settled the suit for $78 million in mid-1989, but admitted no wrong-doing or even any technical problems in its own or its contractors' work. (Under the terms of its contract with the government, National Lead of Ohio was immune from all liability, including that arising from negligence or violations of regulations.)

These two Fernald studies are summarized in IEER's newsletter from October 1996, which I am submitting for the record. Information on the serious flaws in Department of Energy worker data is described in the November 1997 issue of Science for Democratic Action, which I am also submitting for the committee's record.

In conclusion, IEER has found that when worker exposures and off- site releases are carefully and independently studied, the results indicate that worker overexposure and environmental releases of radioactivity are larger than officially acknowledged. These, as well as other, similar findings over the past several years have been important pieces leading up to the official announcement that was made in April by Energy Secretary Bill Richardson--after decades of denial by the US government--that the production of nuclear weapons has harmed workers.

I will conclude with 3 recommendations for your consideration:

1. First, health monitoring, treatment, and where appropriate compensation of the affected workers, is an urgent priority because many are very sick and dying. Practical recognition of the role of the government and its contractors in their suffering is long overdue.

2. It is important to not force workers to prove their exposure to the last decimal point. The burden of proof should be on the government and its contractors, which failed to keep good records, failed to make sufficient measurements, and all too often assured workers of their safety when conditions were unsafe. Where there are large uncertainties due to lack of sound data, the benefit of the doubt should be given to the sick workers.

There also is limited understanding about the health effects of exposure to chemicals used in nuclear weapons production. Examples include fluorine gas, carbon tetrachloride, tricloroethylene (TCE), hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, chlorine trifluoride, and beryllium. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Diseases Registry, high exposures to these substances, which might be expected for at least some workers, can cause lung, liver, kidney and central nervous system damage, cancer, impaired heart function, impaired fetal development, and in some cases death. Exposure to toxic substances could also aggravate the health effects of radiation exposure (and vice versa) yet there is little or no research on the possible synergisms.

3. A process should be created for fairly and responsibly addressing the Cold War health legacy. There is a lot of information out there about the harm to human health and the environment from nuclear weapons production, and this is typical of all nuclear weapons states. To its credit, the United States so far has been more forthcoming about this problem, but problems continue to fester and many are still coming to light in a haphazard fashion, through efforts of public interest groups, media stories, congressional investigations, and lawsuits. Workers should be centrally involved in creating this process, because they were, on the whole, the most exposed group of people. But it should be acknowledged that non-workers were also exposed, including workers' family members, downwinders, those downstream, and other neighbors. The process for deciding how community exposures can be fairly and responsibly addressed, without the anguish and expense of lawsuits like the one at Fernald, should begin. ATTACHMENTS

Slide #1: Estimated Cumulative Lung Doses at Harshaw for Different Multiples of Maximum Allowable Air Concentration and Differing Times of Exposure

Uranium Lung Burden Corresponding to a Lung Dose of 15 Rem or More (Fernald)

Slide #3: Worker Sitting on Depleted Uranium Metal Ingot (Photograph by Robert Del Tredici)

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS Partial Dose Estimates from the Processing of Nuclear Materials at Three Plants during the 1940s and 1950s. Prepared by the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research under contract to USA TODAY, 6September 2000.

B. Franke and K.R. Gurney, Estimates of Lung Burdens for Workers at the Feed Materials Production Center, Fernald, Ohio, (Takoma Park, Maryland: IEER), July 1994.

Memo from F.J. Klein to R.H. Starkey, "Subject: Cleaning Under Burnout Oxide Conveyors--Plant 5," National Lead Company of Ohio, December 7, 1960.

Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
Takoma Park, Maryland, USA
SEPTEMBER 2000

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3 Aid for Nuclear Workers - Robert Alvarez
EDITORIALS & COMMENT
October 9, 2000
AID FOR NUCLEAR WORKERS
Robert Alvarez

In May of 1928 Marie Curie, the famed discoverer of radium and double Nobel Laureate, received a disturbing letter from an American journalist. It told of young women at a radium watch dial plant in Orange, New Jersey, who were dying from necrosis of the jaw, a rare degenerative disease. The women would tip radium-laden brushes in their mouths, blithely ingesting this intensely radioactive substance-at levels more than 10,000 times that allowed under today's standards. Plant managers had told them that radium would enhance their vitality.

At the time, Madame Curie herself was paying dearly for her pioneering work. Reading the letter was not easy, as she suffered from radiation- induced cataracts and from painful radiation burns on her hands. True to form, she refused to accept that her discovery had anything to do with this tragedy and advised the women to eat calves liver. By 1934 Curie was dead from severe bone marrow damage and America was experiencing its first industrial epidemic of radiation-induced diseases.

Madame Curie's denial of radiation dangers is emblematic of the legacy we now face as America's romance with the atom draws to a close. The once dynamic and sprawling US nuclear weapons program, which underwent spectacular growth in the past fifty years, is winding down, leaving behind a tragic health legacy that, once again, is borne by working people. In the next few weeks, Congress will decide whether to enact a federal compensation program for the 700,000 people who helped make our nuclear weapons.

The current attention dates to the summer of 1999, when the Clinton Administration, spurred on by Energy Secretary Bill Richardson, proposed legislation to compensate nuclear weapons workers. In January of this year, a report prepared for President Clinton found that workers at fourteen federal nuclear facilities across the United States have higher than expected risks of dying from cancer and nonmalignant diseases following exposure to radiation and other substances. This official concession that nuclear weapons workers were harmed led to an unprecedented public outpouring in politically conservative company towns near federal nuclear sites. Workers told of being overexposed, getting sick and then having to battle against the government, which spared no expense to block claims. "The people in this area have been forced into poverty-they fall through the cracks, and they die, " said Kay Sutherland, a cancer victim, at a meeting near DOE's Hanford site in Washington.

In June an amendment to the 2001 defense authorization bill offered by Senators Fred Thomson and Jeff Bingaman was unanimously adopted by the Senate. The measure would create a federal program to provide compensation for illness, disabilities and deaths due to exposure to radiation or to beryllium or silica, two hazardous substances. The Senate provision is far from perfect, but it's a good start.

However it looked likely at press time that the Senate provision was in serious jeopardy. Instead, the Congress led by House republicans were fashioning a symbolic gesture that greatly reduces the benefits and provides no actual funds to compensate people.

I started working on this issue twenty-five years ago, first as an environmental activist involved in the lawsuit on behalf of the parents of Karen Silkwood, a contaminated nuclear worker in Oklahoma who was killed in November 1974 while trying to deliver safety documents to the New York Times. While it is personally gratifying to see this change take place, it still remains a tragedy for many who could have been helped as long ago as 1951, when the first official recommendations to help sick, overexposed weapons workers were secretly turned down. As we come to terms with the aftermath of the nuclear arms race, it is time for Congress to provide justice to working people who were put at risk without their knowledge and who paid with their health and lives.

Robert Alvarez is a former senior policy adviser to the Secretary of Energy.

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4 Incinerator investigation continues at INEEL -
By Anne Minard
Idaho State Journal
SECOND FLAME WORRIES OFFICIALS
BY ANNE MINARD Journal Writer

POCATELLO - An incinerator at Idaho's nuclear site is still shut down while officials decide why a secondary flame burned unsupervised during recent range fires.

The incinerator at the Waste Experimental Reduction Facility at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory was shut down on Sunday, Sept. 17 due to the approach of a lightning-caused range fire.

After the operating crews evacuated the facility, a flame reignited in the secondary chamber of the incinerator, according to Stacey Francis, a spokesperson for the site. An operator reportedly found the flame burning upon returning to work Monday, Sept. 18.

"The switch is a switch that you push in to shut. They were trying to get out of their because the fire was rolling over the hill. The operator couldn't remember if he pushed is back out," Francis said.

She said the mishap presented no risk to workers "because they weren't there." She said the risk to the environment was also minimal because no waste ever goes into the secondary chamber where the flame burned. Its function is to boost temperature to ensure proper destruction of the hazardous portions of the waste.

Francis said the flame itself does not produce significant emissions.

"The risk could have been if the temperature had gotten too hot, it could have damaged some of the equipment," she said. "

You could have exceeded the temperatures of what the filters can stand or the bag house. You'd have to go in and replace parts."

The temperature in the secondary chamber on Monday morning was 1800 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperature ranges during normal operations are between 1700 and 2100 degrees.

Management at the facility are investigating to determine why the secondary chamber was lit and reviewing performance data to evaluate potential impacts. Results so far show that the control used to stop fuel oil from reaching the burner did not remain in the off position, resulting in reignition of the flame.

Francis said incinerator operators are undergoing special training sessions prompted by the incident.

"We're emphasizing the need to double-check and triple-check before you leave," she said.

The incinerator was scheduled to go down last week for maintenance, and Francis said site officials are using the incident-related shutdown to accomplish that work. She said the results of the incident investigation should be complete later this week.

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5 White Oak Lake will have to wait
The Knoxville News-Sentinel

Back in the mid-1980s, when the environmental cleanup at Oak Ridge was just being formulated, there was a dispute between the U.S. Department of Energy and the state of Tennessee over White Oak Lake.

The Oak Ridge lake once was dubbed the most radioactively polluted body of water on the planet (a statement that obviously predated knowledge of some of the nuclear cesspools in the former Soviet Union).

DOE contended it was unfeasible, if not downright impossible, to close and clean up the lake that receives drainage from the broad basin around Oak Ridge National Laboratory, including a series of old nuclear burial grounds.

The lake has been used for decades as a giant-sized settling pond, allowing much of the pollution from ORNL to settle into the sediments before reaching the Clinch River and downstream reservoirs.

White Oak Dam was constructed during the early nuclear operations to keep that system intact, and a second dam was built in more recent years to keep contaminated sediments in the embayment (between the lake and the river) from washing away.

Without the presence of the lake system, unwanted discharges from the laboratory conceivably would flow straight into the Clinch and pose a threat to downstream water supplies.

Despite the federal protests years ago, the state insisted on White Oak Lake's closure as a long-term goal. To do otherwise would be to settle for a cleanup far less than clean.

It apparently will be a long time, however, before the lake is removed from the map.

The cleanup of White Oak Lake was not included in a milestone agreement signed last week by DOE, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The official record of decision on the Melton Valley cleanup commits DOE to spend about $165 million over the next 14 years to improve environmental conditions and reduce the nuclear leakage.

But that still doesn't set the stage for a cleanup of White Oak Lake.

Dick Green, the waste-management chief for EPA's Region 4, made a poignant comment at the press conference announcing the Melton Valley cleanup agreement.

While calling the decision an "extremely ambitious undertaking" and a major step forward in the Oak Ridge cleanup effort, Green said he looked forward to an even greater day when the same parties come together to sign documents signaling the completion of those activities.

Better yet, I suggest, will be the day when Melton Valley is clean enough to remove ORNL's environmental safety net.

GUESS WHAT: There are endless rumors about the U.S. Department of Energy, but some of the best (worst?) ones get started within the department itself.

Take this example of recent vintage:

Mary Dennis Lentsch, a nun with the Catholic order Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, created a big stir within DOE last week when she camped out in front of the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant.

Given the regularity of protests in the Stop The Bombs campaign, why would Lentsch's peace presence become a topic of discussion at DOE headquarters in Washington?

What took place, to paraphrase a film line of years ago, was a failure to communicate.

Her arrival at the Oak Ridge warhead factory happened to coincide with the end of the appeals period for the Y-12 management contract recently awarded to a team headed by BWX Technologies and Bechtel National.

When Oak Ridge officials reported to their Washington counterparts, "We've got a protest at Y-12," that message apparently was misinterpreted (at least by some folks) to mean a protest against the contract award.

The rumors died down pretty quickly but not before some uncomfortable moments for those who would hate to see the Y-12 contract award stalled (much like another one recently won by BWXT/Bechtel at the Pantex Plant in Texas).

Frank Munger covers the Department of Energy for the News-Sentinel. He can be reached at 423-482-9213 or at twig1@knoxnews.infi.net. This column is also available on the Web at www.knoxnews.com/editorsview/ munger/

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6 Thumbs up for SNS?
JOINT COMMITTEE OKS SNS, MOUSE HOUSE FUNDING
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
BY PAUL PARSON Oak Ridger staff

"It's a very good day for science," Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Bill Madia proclaimed during a phone interview late Tuesday afternoon.

Madia, who at the time was on Interstate 40 driving to dinner, had just received word from several legislative figures that some key projects at the federal laboratory were receiving more funding than expected.

Specifically, $278.5 million has been allotted for construction on the Spallation Neutron Source and $2.5 million has been allocated for the creation of a new Mouse House.

The conference committee approved the full $278 million requested by the Clinton administration for the coming fiscal year. SNS officials had contended that amount was needed to give the multi-year project its biggest boosts toward completion. Earlier Senate and House action had funded the project at much lower levels.

The conference committee recommendation now goes back to the full House and Senate for approval.

Madia said the funding of the two projects is just the tip of the iceberg. He said fusion, material, computational and biological science work at the lab will also be affected by the fiscal year 2001 Energy and Water Appropriations bill, which includes the funding for the Mouse House and SNS.

The current Mouse House contains about 70,000 genetically mutated mice. Scientists at the facility have been involved in the Human Genome Project.

SNS, a $1.4 billion project, will use a long beam of fast-moving neutrons to test a variety of materials. Neutron research is responsible for improvements in jets, credit cards, pocket calculators, compact discs, computer disks, shatterproof windshields, adjustable seats, satellite weather information, materials used in high-temperature superconductors, powerful lightweight magnets, aluminum bridge decks and stronger, lighter plastics.

"I'm certainly delighted with the support," said SNS Director David Moncton this morning. "The Tennessee delegation worked hard on behalf on the project."

U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District, added, "This is one of the biggest days in the history of the lab. The benefits are immeasurable."

In fact, the city of Oak Ridge is expected to reap a lot of benefits from the funding of the projects.

"It will definitely benefit Oak Ridge economically," said Parker Hardy, president of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce. The construction phase of the SNS should create 2,300 jobs while at least 1,600 jobs are expected to be produced when the project is completed.

"These are jobs that pay good money," Hardy said.

In fact, officials say the entire state of Tennessee will benefit from the SNS.

The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development recently prepared a report detailing the economic effects of the SNS. It is estimated that the annual state sales tax revenue during the construction of the project will be $3.6 million, while ongoing operations at the facility should generate $2.2 million annually.

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7 Hoffman addresses effects of iodine releases
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
BY PAUL PARSON Oak Ridger staff

Milk is supposed to be good for the body, right?

Well, one local scientist said Tuesday night that it's also an important factor in the link between thyroid disease and historic releases of radioactive iodine.

Owen Hoffman, leader of SENES Oak Ridge and known for his expertise in radiation-dose assessments, supported his theory before a small crowd attending a Scarboro Community Environmental Justice Council workshop at the Scarboro Community Center.

Hoffman, who along with his SENES staff, played a key role in doing research for the Oak Ridge Health Agreement Studies Project. The final report on the project concluded that iodine-131 releases in the 1940s and 1950s increased the likelihood of thyroid cancer for people living around Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Hoffman has been critical of the final report of the state-run study because he said portions of his work were omitted from it.

In his presentation Tuesday night, "The Health Implications of Exposure to Iodine-131," Hoffman pointed out that from 1944 to 1956 routine operations at ORNL resulted in the release of 6,300 curies to 36, 000 curies. However, the total amount of iodine-131 released from the site, including that emitted during accidents, is between 8,800 curies to 42,000 curies.

While there was iodine-131 released locally, Hoffman's presentation indicated that Oak Ridge would be more affected by releases from the Nevada Test Site. From 1952 to 1957, 150 million curies were released from that site during atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons.

So, why does milk play a part in the link between iodine-131 releases and thyroid disease? Hoffman said it's because cows and goats, the main sources of milk for human consumption, eat the grass contaminated by the iodine-131 releases.

Hoffman then used computer software, known as an interactive risk and dose calculator, to conduct several demonstrations assessing an individual's risk of thyroid disease from iodine-131 exposure, based on when the individual was born, where he lived and how much and what type of milk he drank.

Hoffman's presentation drew mixed reaction among residents of the Scarboro neighborhood.

Larry Gipson and L.C. Manley, both of South Benedict Avenue, said they wanted to see some solid evidence--not just claims--that Scarboro was impacted by the iodine-131 releases.

However, Fannie Ball of Houston Avenue praised Hoffman's presentation.

"It has enlightened me," she told the crowd. "He has taken an interest in getting out the truth."

The workshop, which began at 6 p.m. and was supposed to end at 8, was finally ended by J.B. Hill, chairman of the Scarboro Community Environmental Justice Council, around 8:45 p.m.

Al Brooks, a member of the Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee's Citizen Advisory Panel, pointed out that he was supposed to have an opportunity to share his thoughts on Hoffman's conclusions. But Hill did not allow that to happen, stating the purpose of the workshop was to hear from the three guest speakers.

However, Brooks did provide The Oak Ridger with a written summary of his canceled presentation.

Brooks cited several problems he had with Hoffman's theories. Brooks said that as Oak Ridge Reservation stakeholders consider their response to the past releases of radioactive iodine into the environment, they should consider that while the Oak Ridge Health Agreement Studies dose reconstruction studies for the most part were state of the art and were carried out with great diligence, there were several limitations, including "numerous and some large uncertainties in much of the required input data used to compute exposures to the public."

Brooks also said, "While this technique should not invalidate the use of the central value estimates, it does cast great doubt on the validity of using the upper 95 percent confidence limit to estimate individual doses as has been done. Many experts believe that one should use the better established, most probable (central) value which results in lower and more realistic doses."

Brooks also said the epidemiological evidence that low doses of iodine- 131 in the thyroid cause cancer is controversial.

He said thyroid cancer is a slowly developing disease which does not spread during its early development. Its typical incidence is one case in 450 for men and one in 150 for women.

By comparison, he said, breast cancer is about one in eight, it spreads rapidly and is best discovered early. The survival rate for thyroid cancer after removal when detected by normal methods is 95 percent at 10 years and 90 percent after 30 years. Early detection does not seem to improve these rates.

Brooks said limited resources spent on thyroid cancer screening would be better spent on better coverage for breast cancer screening.

The ORHASP study is under a comprehensive peer review and Brooks advised stakeholders to await its publication before reaching conclusions. He said these reviews will undoubtedly be discussed publicly this fall by the Oak Ridge Reservation Health Effects Subcommittee now being formed.

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8 Sick workers bill has pulse
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

A day after talks broke down, House leaders said Tuesday they would resume negotiations with the Senate on a compensation plan for workers made sick by Cold War-era jobs in federal nuclear facilities.

A new House proposal was being drafted and will be presented to conferees on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Hastert and other House Republican leaders were criticized harshly by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans, such as U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., after talks broke down Monday.

Thompson said "the House leadership refused to even consider the issue," and U.S. Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., called their failure to agree "callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country."

U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-3rd District, said, "I refuse to give up on getting this included in the Conference Report on the Defense Authorization bill and will continue to push to have it included in some other measure if that becomes necessary. We cannot throw in the towel.

"We are trying every angle and continuing to put pressure on the House Leadership to support an adequate compensation plan for these Cold War warriors in Oak Ridge and around the nation who worked in defense of their country and became ill as a result."

Wamp added, "If we are unable to use the defense bill to pass this legislation, we will continue to work for the remainder of the legislative session to find other ways to get a compensation bill passed. We knew this would be very hard to accomplish from the very beginning. But we will not stop giving this our every effort."

Ann Orick, who suffers a host of illnesses after working at the former K-25 uranium enrichment plant in Oak Ridge, was very disappointed.

"It's just taken everything out of me," she told WIVK radio in Knoxville. "I was in hopes that maybe I had worked five years and done something to help somebody out there.

"I knew it wasn't going to help me," she said, "but I thought there's 3,000 to 4,000 people across this country that may not have to become as ill as I've become. I'm just heartsick."

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation exposure at weapons plants should be compensated. The agency proposed minimum lump sum payments of $100,000.

When the Senate passed its version of the Defense Authorization Act, it included a provision awarding $200,000 plus health benefits to harmed workers.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the measure would cost $1.7 billion over 10 years, based on a Department of Energy estimate that at least 4,000 workers either contracted life-threatening diseases from radiation, silica or beryllium exposure or already have died from the diseases.

Wary of an entitlement program with uncertain costs, the House passed only a resolution recommending compensation.

During negotiations, senators backed off from the $200,000 offer and told the House they could accept $100,000 as the minimum payment if that would get the proposal passed.

House negotiators offered a $250 million down payment on a compensation program that would need to be set up in future legislation following additional study.

David Michaels, the Department of Energy's top health official, said sick workers should not have to wait for more government study.

"For the last decade we've spent more than $150 million studying the health of workers at DOE sites," he said. "We don't think additional studies are needed, and we don't think additional legislations are needed."

The DOE has said most people likely to qualify for compensation would come from the Hanford nuclear reservation in Washington state; the Oak Ridge Reservation; the Savannah River Site in South Carolina; the Nevada Test Site; the Rocky Flats Complex in Colorado; the Pantex Plant in Texas; the Mound Plant and Fernald Environmental Management Project in Ohio; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California; Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico; and gaseous diffusion plants in Oak Ridge and at Piketon, Ohio, and Paducah, Ky.

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9 Public meeting on ORNL expansion plans
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
BY PAUL PARSON Oak Ridger staff

The expansion and modernization plans for Oak Ridge National Laboratory will be the topic of a public meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5.

The event, sponsored by the Advocates for the Oak Ridge Reservation, will feature Tim Myrick, director of the Facilities Revitalization Project for UT-Battelle.

Myrick will present details and answer questions on the plans during his 30-minute presentation, with a question and discussion period following. The meeting will be held in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center.

The ORNL project, which is expected to begin in 2001, includes the construction of 11 major facilities and the renovation of several others over the next five years. The project was announced by Energy Secretary Bill Richardson on Sept. 11.

The proposed facilities in ORNL's modernization plan include a new Mouse House, chemistry facilities, a facility for computational sciences and a facility to house the Oak Ridge Center for Advanced Studies.

When construction and renovation are completed in 2006, ORNL, which is managed by UT-Battelle, will have replaced 1.8 million square feet of outdated space with about 600,000 square feet of modern, energy- efficient buildings. Officials say this is good news considering more than half of the buildings at the federal facility were built during or immediately following World War II.

The modernization effort is expected to upgrade ORNL's research capabilities, improve safety, reduce energy consumption and reduce operating costs at the lab.

ORNL, which is a a multiprogram science and technology laboratory, employs more than 4,000 people and is housed on a 58-square-mile site located on Bethel Valley Road. However, in this time of growth, the managers of the federal facility are looking to lay off around 300 employees.

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10 Opinion - Guest column: Let's build on DOE teamwork
Oak Ridger Online
Wednesday, September 27, 2000

I'm afraid that Mr. Phelps and Mr. Slavin both misinterpreted my reference to fingerpointing, although I admit there certainly has been a lot of it going on recently, which makes their confusion easy to understand.

However, I was referring to the fingerpointing by the ill workers toward the present and retired workers (many of whom are or would have been union members) who would have actually performed the work if cross-connections had been made at K-25.

One ill worker came to a meeting on the drinking water issue and began calling for criminal prosecution of Department of Energy or other personnel, particularly any who knew of cross-connections and had not informed their supervisor or the people drinking the water -- something another worker had implied at a previous meeting.

In fact, an ill worker actually asked DOE for a guarantee of legal immunity for some of these workers in exchange for their coming forward to help with the historical cross-connection investigation that is being planned.

Not long after making this request, however, the ill workers rescinded their participation in the sampling effort. Nevertheless, they were given every opportunity to help develop the sampling plan (and several additional sites were added as a result of their direct input), to pull their own samples, and to participate in all activities of the Sampling Planning and Oversight Team (SPOT), the first-of-its-kind team for the DOE-ORO.

Through SPOT, independent members of the community were given the opportunity to have real-time influence on a DOE trouble-shooting effort. This is opposed to our having to dig for information and commenting after the fact as we usually do, which has been one of our major complaints about the public participation process.

In fact, by being a member of SPOT we were able to make arrangements that should have made it impossible for DOE to cheat (e.g., direct receipt of data from the laboratories and the state) and to keep our own notes and records.

In addition, because we have no ties to DOE, we have no obligation to follow their "rules" on dissemination of information, chain-of- command, and political correctness--something that is very risky if they plan to cheat but, in my mind, essential to accountability.

Mr. Phelps' reference to my "partial admissions that DOE caused health problems," in fact, refers to my acknowledgment that a few reported cases of historical events that could have exposed workers to contaminants have been openly discussed.

However, I have not focused on these historical issues because, frankly, my time has been consumed (and time-consuming it has been) with determining if the water is safe to drink today and reporting the results to the workers and the public in an understandable format.

In addition, my "admissions" refer to the fact we all know that individuals at K-25 have been made ill by known and unknown sources of beryllium (nothing new and now well documented by Drs. Lockey and Bird). . . .

I also acknowledge Mr. Phelps' concern about hydrogen fluoride (HF) releases, and it is possible that more investigation could potentially be justified, but I'm not convinced that additional dose reconstruction is necessary.

Nevertheless, Mr. Phelps' claim that damaged pine trees are a result of HF releases seems to ignore the fact that damage is widespread across the Southeast and the largest HF releases likely occurred in the past rather than in recent years.

Therefore, I would rather look forward and spend money dealing with problems that we know we have (i.e., sick individuals) and those that we know are likely to come (i.e., more sick individuals), rather than looking back.

In particular, I would rather see the money spent on multiple chemical sensitivity research, a clinic, and worker advocacy, as opposed to additional dose reconstruction and other things that will not really help the sick.. . .

It is my opinion that we essentially have DOE "pinned to the mat" and now the time has come to stop the pummeling (at least for now, as I said before) and to begin building on the teamwork established through the K-25 drinking water sampling effort . .

Susan Arnold Kaplan is a resident of Solway.

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11 Disclosure at 2 chemical plants urged
Sept. 25, 2000,
BY JANET RODRIGUES
HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Two chemical plants in Pasadena and Texas City that extracted uranium from radioactive materials for weapons in the 1950s may have posed a health hazard to area residents as well as workers at that time and should be surveyed for contamination, U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson said today.

However, a Texas Department of Health official said the two plants have been inspected numerous times because of concerns expressed about possible radiation hazards related to the 1950s work, and that inspectors believe there is no lasting danger.

Lampson, D-Beaumont, and others at a news conference called for full disclosure on the sites and the workers involved in producing uranium to fuel the nation's nuclear weaponry during the Cold War.

They also asked that workers and their families be compensated for any health problems related to the materials and their health monitored.

Federal officials said they have no idea how many people may have been affected, directly or indirectly, by the by-products of the radioactive material or by its disposal.

Department of Energy officials say about 50 pounds of uranium were produced at the Amoco Chemical Co. in Texas City and Pasadena Chemical Co., now Olin Matheson Chemical Corp., in Pasadena.

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12 IEER Report: Plutonium End Game
Plutonium End Game: Managing Global Stocks of Separated Weapons-Usable Commercial and Surplus Nuclear Weapons Plutonium
ARJUN MAKHIJANI
September 2000
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

A huge and unjustifiably large sum - on the order of $100 billion worldwide - has already been spent over the past five decades on attempts to create a plutonium economy. There is no end in sight to the subsidies and there is no reasonable way to resolve the many problems that are still outstanding in the foreseeable future. By any rational economic and security criteria, the commercial plutonium fuel and breeder industries should have made a complete exit from the stage of energy choices at least a decade ago. Yet, commercial plutonium separation continues in several countries, adding to the problem. Plans for breeder reactors also remain in place in some countries. Uneconomical use of plutonium as a fuel (in the form of mixed uranium and plutonium oxide or MOX) in existing reactors grew considerably in the 1990s, creating a new set of subsidies for the plutonium industry.

The prospects for plutonium use received their latest dramatic setback in late 1999, when Japan suspended its purchases of British MOX fuel. The very first shipment sent by British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) was found to contain fuel whose quality control data had been partly fabricated. This was followed by a finding by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (the British government agency that oversees nuclear safety) that BNFL suffered from systemic problems in its management and safety culture. The overall result has been a severe crisis in BNFL that has thrown into question the future of reprocessing and MOX fuel fabrication operations in Britain, the country with the world's largest commercial separated plutonium stocks. The Japanese MOX fuel crisis was compounded by the criticality accident in a uranium fuel processing plant at Tokai-mura in late September 1999, which resulted in the deaths of two workers from exposure to high levels of radiation, the first such deaths in Japan since the bombing of Nagasaki.

Even if military and commercial plutonium separation were to stop immediately, there would still remain an immense problem of the management of separated commercial plutonium stocks, which are now beginning to approach the scale of military plutonium stocks. But commercial plutonium separation continues in several countries, adding to the problem. It is therefore urgent both to stop commercial reprocessing and to create a plan to put separated commercial plutonium and surplus military plutonium into non-weapons-usable form as expeditiously as is consistent with safety, health, and environmental protection.

Main findings 1. ATTEMPTING TO MAKE PLUTONIUM A MAINSTAY OF ELECTRICITY SUPPLY IS A VERY COSTLY, FAILED IDEA.

Roughly 70 billion dollars (1999 dollars) have been spent worldwide on building relatively large breeder reactors, commercial reprocessing, and subsidies for MOX fuel use. These costs do not include costs of relatively small breeder reactors, costs of research and development on reprocessing, notably the Japanese reprocessing plant at Rokkasho- mura which is under construction (with a price tag of about $20 billion), the net operating costs of breeder reactors, the costs of extended storage of separated plutonium, and decommissioning and clean-up costs. When these major costs so far are taken into account, the total cost of chasing the dream of a plutonium economy so far comes to about $100 billion. Even if further large-scale efforts to commercialize plutonium were to stop now, the final global price tag for the failed attempt to create a plutonium economy will be well over $100 billion, once future costs such as decommissioning of reprocessing plants and breeder reactors are taken into account. 2. REPROCESSING OF SPENT FUEL FROM COMMERCIAL NUCLEAR POWER REACTORS IS UNECONOMICAL AND IS NOW, BY FAR, THE MAIN CONTRIBUTOR TO THE GLOBAL BUILD-UP OF WEAPONS-USABLE MATERIALS

The major powers have formally stopped producing more plutonium and highly enriched uranium for military purposes. Essentially no highly enriched uranium is being produced for commercial or research applications. The operation of military reprocessing plants, supposedly for non- military fuel management purposes, adds far less to the stock of separated plutonium than the surpluses from commercial reprocessing, even after the use of commercial plutonium as MOX fuel is taken into account.

The technical and economic failure of breeder reactors overall and the high cost of reprocessing and MOX fuel for light water reactors relative to low-enriched uranium fuel are the principal reasons for a rate of plutonium use far lower than the rate of its separation from commercial spent fuel. The increase of commercial plutonium stocks is about 10 metric tons per year. The overall stock of separated commercial plutonium is about 200 metric tons. The continued accumulation of global commercial plutonium stocks is only possible through continued governmental and electric ratepayer subsidies.

Uneconomic reprocessing and MOX fuel use are resulting in huge direct costs as well as in indirect costs such as separated plutonium storage, and discharges of radioactive contaminants into the environment, notably into the Irish Sea and the English Channel, from where they have spread. 3. THE HUGE AND GROWING STOCK OF SEPARATED COMMERCIAL PLUTONIUM HAS CREATED A LARGE NEW PROLIFERATION PROBLEM.

Plutonium from commercial power plants can be used to make nuclear weapons. Such plutonium is not likely to be used to make nuclear weapons in nuclear weapons states, since they have weapon-grade plutonium, which has a higher plutonium-239 content. But non-weapons states and that do not now have nuclear-weapons-usable materials and terrorist groups would not hesitate to use it for such a purpose should they have access to the material and the desire to build nuclear weapons. It takes about 7 or 8 kilograms of reactor grade plutonium to make a relatively crude nuclear weapon. On this basis, the current separated commercial plutonium stock is equivalent to over 25,000 nuclear bombs. 4. CONVERTING SURPLUS MILITARY WEAPON-GRADE PLUTONIUM INTO A FUEL AND USING IT IN COMMERCIAL POWER REACTORS RAISES A HOST OF TROUBLING ISSUES.

The vast majority of commercial reactors were designed for uranium, not mixed oxide (MOX) fuel, in which plutonium isotopes provide the fissile material. Modifications to these reactors to accommodate more control elements may be needed. Weapon-grade plutonium has never been used as a commercial fuel in reactors, though plutonium derived from commercial spent fuel is now being used in commercial power reactors in France, Germany, Belgium, and Switzerland. The consequences of an accident in a reactor with MOX fuel would be more severe than one with uranium fuel. New proliferation risks will be created. Moreover, there is no realistic prospect that the serious liabilities arising from the program, notably compensation in case of a severe accident, can be realistically resolved. 1. IMMOBILIZATION OF COMMERCIAL PLUTONIUM IN ONE OF SEVERAL WAYS WOULD BE A SAFER, FASTER, AND CHEAPER WAY TO PUT SEPARATED PLUTONIUM INTO NON-WEAPONS-USABLE FORM.

The use of plutonium as a fuel will not be economical in the foreseeable future. In other words, its management must be seen mainly with a view to ensuring that safety, non-proliferation, and environmental goals are met both in the short- and long-term. Immobilization represents a far safer, faster, and more economical approach to the management of separated plutonium than its use as MOX fuel.

2. CORPORATIONS, SUCH AS COG&EACUTE;MA OF FRANCE, WITH AN EXPERTISE IN REPROCESSING, RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT, AND MOX FUEL FABRICATION COULD APPLY THEIR EXPERTISE AND EXPERIENCE IN PLUTONIUM IMMOBILIZATION INSTEAD.

Plutonium immobilization technologies have a great deal in common with MOX fuel fabrication and vitrification technologies. The processing steps needed for immobilization are, in some cases, close to those needed for MOX fuel fabrication. The ideological commitment to a plutonium economy of corporations, such as Cog‚ma and British Nuclear Fuels, as well as nuclear ministries, such as Russia's Minatom, is hindering recognition of the non-proliferation, environmental and economic realities, all of which point to plutonium immobilization. Workers' fears of losing their jobs has been a major factor in preventing a halt to reprocessing. However, this problem would be considerably alleviated or possibly eliminated by the construction and operation of plutonium immobilization facilities for all commercial separated plutonium as well as surplus military plutonium and by implementation of better clean-up plans for contaminated sites. 3. FRANCE, THE COUNTRY WITH THE LARGEST PLUTONIUM INFRASTRUCTURE, HAS SPENT A TOTAL OF ALMOST $20 BILLION SO FAR ON ITS PLUTONIUM PROGRAM SINCE ABOUT 1960, NOT INCLUDING SEVERAL IMPORTANT COST ELEMENTS OR FUTURE LIABILITIES FROM THE PAST PROGRAM. IT CONTINUES TO SPEND ON THE ORDER OF $1 BILLION PER YEAR ON ITS MOX FUEL PROGRAM.

France has built the largest single breeder reactor, it has the largest capacity for reprocessing commercial spent fuel, has reprocessed more commercial spent fuel (its own plus that of other countries) than any other country, and overall, has the largest plutonium infrastructure. The net costs of the French plutonium program so far amount to about $20 billion. These costs do not include R&D costs for breeder reactors, the net operating costs of breeder reactors, and the costs of modification of light water reactors to use MOX fuel. Future costs, including future reprocessing and decommissioning costs of existing reprocessing plants and breeder reactors will also add to this total. France continues to spend on the order of $1 billion per year (net) on its plutonium program, not including many research and infrastructure costs. These are net cost estimates, which take into account the fact that MOX fuel use reduces the uranium fuel needed to operate nuclear power plants. 4. CORPORATIONS THAT PARTICIPATE IN THE US-RUSSIAN PROGRAM TO USE SURPLUS WEAPONS PLUTONIUM AS A FUEL IN LIGHT WATER REACTORS FACE SERIOUS UNRESOLVED LIABILITY QUESTIONS THAT COULD HAVE SEVERE ADVERSE FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR THEM IN CASE OF A REACTOR ACCIDENT ON THE SCALE OF CHERNOBYL.

Despite years of negotiations, the United States and Russia have been unable to arrive at an agreement on who would bear the liability for the MOX fuel program. Russian light water reactors are acknowledged in the West not to be up to western safety standards. MOX use in LWRs, as a method of plutonium disposition, is being pursued at western, rather than Russian, insistence. Hence, corporations and western governments participating in the program could face substantial liabilities in case of a severe accident. 5. ACHIEVING THE SPENT FUEL STANDARD IS NOT AS CRUCIAL AS CREATING SUFFICIENT BARRIERS TO THEFT AND RE-EXTRACTION BY NON-NUCLEAR WEAPONS STATES AND NON-STATE GROUPS.

The choice of the "spent fuel standard" for plutonium disposition has restricted disposition policy greatly without corresponding benefit in non-proliferation. (The standard requires that the difficulty of stealing and re-extracting plutonium after it has been processed for disposition should be equivalent to that for light water reactor spent fuel.) This is because neither the United States nor Russia is likely to re-extract plutonium that is immobilized or in spent reactor fuel for weapons purposes. Both countries already have large surpluses of separated weapon-grade plutonium that would be faster and cheaper to use to make more weapons, should they decide to so. Further, Russia plans to re-extract the plutonium from MOX spent fuel in the next few decades, making an insistence on the spent fuel standard even less meaningful. This is because separated plutonium is weapons-usable and hence the farthest one can get from the spent fuel standard.

Recommendations

Our main overall recommendation is that all direct and indirect attempts to create a plutonium fuel economy or an infrastructure for that economy should be halted. Existing plutonium stocks should be managed in ways that minimize proliferation, environmental, and health risks.

Our specific recommendations are as follows: 1. ALL COMMERCIAL REPROCESSING SHOULD BE HALTED.

It is crucial that commercial reprocessing be halted for non-proliferation, cost, and environmental reasons. It is necessary to put an end to the build-up of separated commercial plutonium that will cost further large sums of money to store, safeguard, and put again into non-weapons usable form. 2. THE USE OF SEPARATED COMMERCIAL PLUTONIUM AS A REACTOR FUEL SHOULD BE HALTED AND THE PROPOSED USE OF SURPLUS RUSSIAN AND U.S. MILITARY PLUTONIUM AS MOX FUEL SHOULD NOT BE PURSUED.

MOX fuel use is the economic fig leaf that rationalizes continued commercial reprocessing. Halting MOX fuel use will provide the needed impetus to stop reprocessing. Such a step is economically justified since there is a huge economic penalty to reprocessing spent reactor fuel and fabricating the plutonium into MOX fuel, relative to using low-enriched uranium fuel.

France, the country that provides the inspiration to advocates of plutonium fuel, is using MOX fuel in 20 power reactors despite the 1989 opinion of its nationalized electric utility, El‚ctricit‚ de France (EDF), that MOX fuel is uneconomical. EDF went along with its use because it felt that failing to do so would have "detrimental consequences for the nuclear option as a whole."

MOX fuel use for the purpose of military plutonium disposition is being justified as the way to convince Russia to put some of its military plutonium into non-weapons usable form (MOX spent fuel). However, Russia has made it clear that it will use the plutonium disposition program to further its aims for creating a commercial plutonium infrastructure, defeating the stated aim of putting surplus weapons plutonium into non-weapons usable form. Hence both commercial MOX fuel use and plans for MOX fuel use for military plutonium disposition should be abandoned. 3. ALL COMMERCIAL PLUTONIUM AND AS WELL AS SURPLUS MILITARY PLUTONIUM SHOULD BE PUT UNDER THE SAFEGUARDS SYSTEM OF THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY (IAEA).

Putting weapons-usable plutonium, whether of commercial or military provenance, under IAEA safeguards is an essential institutional step for reducing the likelihood of diversion for weapons purposes by third parties or by the country in which the plutonium is located. Some military plutonium is in shapes that may reveal some aspects of nuclear weapons design. Such plutonium pits should be put storage containers that can be verified without revealing design data. Further, such plutonium should be converted into non-classified shapes expeditiously and put under IAEA safeguards.

Like many national agencies responsible for nuclear matters, the IAEA both promotes nuclear energy and serves as a non-proliferation watchdog. The safeguards function is at odds with its promotion function. This conflict of interest should be addressed by removing the promotion functions from its charter. 6. COMMERCIAL AND MILITARY PLUTONIUM DISPOSITION SHOULD BE PLANNED AS PART OF AN OVERALL IMMOBILIZATION AND STORAGE PROGRAM.

Both commercial and surplus military plutonium should be put into non-weapons-usable forms, since both can be used to make nuclear weapons and represent significant proliferation risks. The immobilization of both will greatly reduce these risks. 7. THE APPROACH TO IMMOBILIZATION SHOULD SUIT THE SITUATION IN THE PARTICULAR COUNTRY WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF OVERALL PROLIFERATION-RESISTANCE.

There are a number of immobilization approaches to making plutonium proliferation-resistant. The specific approach chosen is likely to depend on the circumstances in any particular country, such as the size of the plutonium stock to be immobilized, the amount of liquid high-level waste available for mixing with plutonium, the existing technological infrastructure, etc. The main criteria for proliferation resistance should relate to the prevention of theft and the degree of difficulty for non-nuclear-capable states or terrorist organizations to re-extract plutonium from immobilized forms. 8. CORPORATIONS THAT NOW HAVE REPROCESSING AND MOX PROGRAMS SHOULD PUT THEIR EXPERTISE TO USE FOR PLUTONIUM IMMOBILIZATION INSTEAD.

A halt to reprocessing and MOX fuel use is needed to focus the attention of corporations, notably Cog‚ma and British Nuclear Fuels, as well as the Russian nuclear ministry, Minatom, on immobilization. Continued reprocessing and MOX reinforce the inertia and the utterly unrealistic hopes of the past half-century for plutonium fuel use.

A halt to reprocessing and MOX fuel use, coupled with a program for maintaining jobs, can result in an early creation of immobilization programs at the same places that are now reprocessing centers. 9. THE SPENT FUEL STANDARD, WHILE DESIRABLE AS A GOAL FOR DISPOSITION, SHOULD NOT BE A PRIMARY GOAL, SINCE SUCH A STANDARD UNDULY RESTRICTS THE CHOICE OF DISPOSITION APPROACHES.

The main goals of disposition should be the prevention of theft and the creation of significant barriers to re-extraction by third parties that do not now possess large stocks of plutonium. The spent fuel standard biases policy in favor of MOX fuel use, especially in Russia. The irony is that Russia plans to reprocess the MOX spent fuel, a step that would defeat the goal of the spent fuel standard by recreating separated plutonium. Even though this separated plutonium would be under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency, it would be in a form far inferior to immobilized plutonium, so far as non-proliferation criteria are concerned. Hence, the achievement of the spent fuel standard should be regarded as a very secondary goal that should not be allowed to compromise otherwise satisfactory plutonium disposition schemes. 10. BEFORE JAPAN AND WEALTHY EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AGREE TO PROVIDE FUNDS FOR THE US-RUSSIAN MILITARY PLUTONIUM DISPOSITION, THEY SHOULD INITIATE A DETAILED STUDY AND A BROAD PUBLIC DEBATE OF ITS RISKS.

Full report available soon
Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
Takoma Park, Maryland, USA
SEPTEMBER 2000

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13 CIA sees Iran as nuclear threat within 10 years
ISSUE 1951
Wednesday 27 SEPTEMBER 2000
BY MICHAEL SMITH, DEFENCE CORRESPONDENT

IRAN is rapidly developing its nuclear weapons capability and will be able to fire an inter-continental ballistic missile that could reach London or New York some time within the next decade, the CIA believes.

Russia, China and North Korea are all providing Iran with technology that could be used to produce long-range missiles or weapons of mass destruction, it says. Iran is seen by the CIA as one of the top five potential threats to world peace despite the reformist policies of President Mohammad Khatami, who has moved to improve relations with Western countries.

Norman Schindler, deputy director of the CIA's non-proliferation centre, said Teheran has "an elaborate system of covert military and civilian organisations" to acquire the means of building nuclear weapons. He told a Senate sub-committee on international security and proliferation: "Iran is attempting to develop the capability to produce both plutonium and highly-enriched uranium."

Under cover of assisting Iran's nuclear energy programme, Russian experts were advising the Iranians on a variety of techniques applicable to nuclear weapons production, he said.

Robert D Walpole, the agency's national intelligence officer for strategic and nuclear programmes, told the sub-committee that some of its analysts believed Iran could test fire an inter-continental ballistic missile within the next five years. Its Shahab-3 medium- range ballistic missile, which could reach Israel and most of Saudi Arabia and Turkey, is already being deployed.

Although Iran was going through a period of "vibrant and potentially tumultuous debate about change and reform", there was unlikely to be any fundamental shift in its national security policy, he said. Despite Teheran's ratification of both the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological Weapons Convention, it continued to produce both, with assistance from Russia and China.

Mr Walpole said: "Teheran, no matter who is in power, will continue to develop and expand its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes as long as it perceives threats from US military forces in the Gulf, a nuclear-armed Israel and Iraq."

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14 House To Revive Sick Workers Plan
LAS VEGAS SUN
September 26, 2000
ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON (AP)--A day after talks broke down, House leaders said Tuesday they would resume negotiations with the Senate on a compensation plan for workers made sick by Cold War-era jobs in nuclear weapons plants.

A new House proposal was being drafted and will be presented to conferees on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Hastert and other House Republican leaders were criticized harshly by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans, such as Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., after talks broke down Monday.

Thompson said "the House leadership refused to even consider the issue," and Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., called their failure to agree "callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country."

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation exposure at weapons plants should be compensated. The agency proposed minimum lump sum payments of $100,000.

When the Senate passed its version of the Defense Authorization Act, it included a provision awarding $200,000 plus health benefits to harmed workers.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the measure would cost $1.7 billion over 10 years, based on a Department of Energy estimate that at least 4,000 workers either contracted life-threatening diseases from radiation, silica or beryllium exposure or already have died from the diseases.

Wary of an entitlement program with uncertain costs, the House passed only a resolution recommending compensation.

During negotiations, senators backed off from the $200,000 offer and told the House they could accept $100,000 as the minimum payment if that would get the proposal passed.

House negotiators offered a $250 million down payment on a compensation program that would need to be set up in future legislation following additional study.

David Michaels, the Energy Department's top health official, said sick workers should not have to wait for more government study.

"For the last decade we've spent more than $150 million studying the health of workers at DOE sites," he said. "We don't think additional studies are needed, and we don't think additional legislations are needed."

The DOE has said most people likely to qualify for compensation would come from the Hanford nuclear reservation in Washington state; Oak Ridge Reservation in Tennessee; Savannah River Site in South Carolina; Nevada Test Site; Rocky Flats Complex in Colorado; Pantex Plant in Texas; Mound Plant and Fernald Environmental Management Project in Ohio; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California; Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico; and gaseous diffusion plants at Piketon, Ohio; Paducah, Ky.; and Oak Ridge, Tenn.

The bill numbers are HR675, HR3418, HR3478, HR3495, HR4263, HR4398, HR5189, SB2519

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15 Nuclear workers' chances fading
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
Las Vegas Review-Journal
BY STEVE TETREAULT DONREY WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON-- Prospects are rapidly dimming for thousands of people to receive compensation for diseases they contracted after working with radioactive or poisonous materials at U.S. nuclear weapons plants during the Cold War. Negotiations among lawmakers and the Clinton administration are close to collapse after House leaders on Monday rejected plans to grant medical benefits of $200,000 to 4,000-6,000 sick workers exposed to toxic dust and fibers at the Nevada Test Site and other nuclear arms facilities.

A more modest counterproposal was offered by House leaders concerned about cost and the broad scope of the claims program. That offer was refused by the administration and by a coalition of senators and congressmen who have been pushing for quick aid. The exchange capped weeks of behind-the-scenes talks on what has become one of the more emotional issues needing to be resolved in the final weeks of the congressional session. A compensation drive has been under way since disclosures more than a year ago that former employees at weapons plants in Kentucky and Ohio have died or are dying of diseases contracted through years of building the nation's nuclear arsenal.

The effort was expanded to include former workers in Nevada and other states. A top Energy Department official on Tuesday described the compensation talks as broken-down. Some lawmakers, including Democrats from Nevada, began assigning blame to House Republican leaders. But several Republicans said members of their party, including an assistant to House Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois, met later in the day to consider new offers. "We still have life in this effort and we're going to see a recommendation come out of our efforts," said Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev.

He said a new proposal could authorize mandatory compensation for sick workers but would put off setting specific amounts. It would recommend formation of a blue ribbon panel to determine the scope of coverage. Dr. David Matthews, the Energy Department's undersecretary for environment, safety and health, said what's needed now is money and not more studies. Two reports by Clinton officials documented the relationship between chronic diseases and exposure to hazardous substances among contract workers at energy sites, he said.

"This issue has been studied to death," said Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev. "How much more information do they need to figure out that these workers were lied to by the government and are dying now as a result of their diseases?" An amendment pushed through the Senate in June would grant benefits and a cash payment to about 800 former workers at the Nevada Test Site who got sick through exposure to radiation or silica dust in tunnels where nuclear bombs were detonated. Compensation also would be granted to many more workers who took ill and died after being exposed to dust from beryllium, a toxic metal used in weapons assembly. In cases where workers have died, their survivors could claim compensation.

Earlier this year, dozens of former Test Site workers turned out for meetings in Las Vegas where they described illnesses they said were linked to their jobs, and the difficulties of winning workers compensation because symptoms sometimes emerged years after their employment. "It is absolutely unconscionable that Congress is on the verge of turning a blind eye and not providing the compensation that these workers who helped us win the Cold War need right now," Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., said. "Tens of thousands of people were exposed to things that made them sick," said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.

"Talk about not being compassionate." The compensation plan drew scrutiny by some lawmakers and officials within the Clinton administration who expressed concern about a broad compensation program. Cost has been a factor as well. Originally calculated to cost about $2.4 billion, the bill's supporters made changes to bring its price tag down. Michaels said the latest version would cost $938 million over five years.

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16 REID VOWS TO CONTINUE FIGHT FOR NUCLEAR WORKERS COMPENSATION
NEVADA DELEGATION SLAMS HOUSE FOR REJECTING MEASURE
September 26, 2000

Washington, D.C. ­ Nevada Senator Harry Reid vowed today to continue working to provide compensation for Americans who developed serious illnesses after working in the country's nuclear industry. during conference talks for the FY 2001 Department of Defense Authorization Bill.

facilities around the country are veterans of the Cold War, and they deserve the same respect as any of our other veterans," said Reid. "They put their own health at risk to help us win the Cold War, and I'm not going to forget their sacrifices."

Berkley of Nevada at a news conference today. The three sharply criticized

"The House Republican leaders' decision underscores their twisted priorities," said Reid. "They wasted massive amounts of time trying and then refused to consider this measure that would provide critical care for seriously ill people who did vital work for our country."

for the Senate compensation measure, so it could still be included in an omnibus spending bill, if one is passed at the end of this legislative year. Reid promised to reintroduce the measure next year if that does not happen.

"This administration has been the first to recognize this serious problem, and I know I'll continue to have Al Gore's support in the next administration." said Reid.

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17 Editorial: Forget a dose of compassion
LAS VEGAS SUN
September 27, 2000

Bullheaded opposition from the Republican House leadership likely has dashed any hope this year to create a compensation package that would have helped thousands of workers who became ill from working at nuclear-weapons plants, including those who once worked at the Nevada Test Site. On Monday even Senate Republicans grew disgusted with the intransigence by their Republican colleagues in the House. So senators ended negotiations after the Republican House leadership refused to establish a permanent compensation fund, which would have allowed eligible workers to receive $200,000 and medical care.

Typically, when disputes among members of the same party arise -- especially when there is just two months before a general election -- legislators downplay their differences. Considering that the Republicans' margin in the House is so precarious, and feasibly could fall into the hands of Democrats if just a few Republican incumbents lose, there is even more incentive for Senate Republicans to bite their tongues.

That's why it was so refreshing to see the candor of Sen. Fred Thompson, a Tennessee Republican. Thompson's home state includes the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, some of whose former workers would have been compensated under the plan. "Unfortunately the House leadership refused to even consider this issue," Thompson told Gannett News Service. "They never put a serious offer on the table. They apparently don't agree with us that people who are sick as result of their service to our country deserve help." This rebuke and others like it apparently stung--GOP House leaders said late Tuesday they want to revive talks.

In the wake of being portrayed as mean-spirited when the Republican- controlled House was under Newt Gingrich's helm, House Speaker Dennis Hastert has tried to project a warm and fuzzy image. Nevadans, however, already have witnessed firsthand what a ruse this has been, as Hastert has tried mightily to send high-level nuclear waste to Nevada. Now Hastert has shown what little sympathy he has for nuclear-plant workers -- some even died as a result of their job-related illnesses--and how much he will cater to budget hawks who opposed the compensation plan. The federal government lied to these workers for decades, refusing to acknowledge that their illnesses were tied to exposure from radiation, beryllium or silica. What a travesty it is, then, to derail this thoughtful compensation plan.

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18 House leaders revive discussion of compensation for sickened workers
LAS VEGAS SUN
September 27, 2000
BY KATHERINE RIZZO ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON - House leaders on Tuesday renewed talks with the Senate over compensating nuclear weapons plant workers robbed of their health because they weren't protected from dangerous materials.

Lawmakers from states with nuclear weapons plants were informed that the conference committee that abandoned compensation talks on Monday afternoon would reopen negotiations.

A new House proposal was being drafted, and would be presented to conferees working on the Defense Authorization Act, said John Feehery, spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert.

"They're still trying to work something out," he said. "We want to get something done on this."

The speaker, he added, "wants to find a compensation plan that will be fiscally responsible."

Hastert and other House leaders had been taking a verbal beating, both by Democrats from weapons-plant states and from some fellow Republicans such as Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., who said "the House leadership refused to even consider the issue."

"It's callous disregard to people who gave their lives to this country, " said Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the House leaders' decision "underscores their twisted priorities."

And Congresswoman Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., called the decision an "embarrassment" and a "slap in the face to the American people."

House negotiators, concerned about the eventual price tag of an open- ended program exempt from having to get annual appropriations, previously offered a $250 million down payment on a program that would be set up in future legislation, after additional study.

David Michaels, the Energy Department's top health official, said there was no need for sick workers to wait for completion of another government study.

"For the last decade we've spent more than $150 million studying the health of workers at DOE sites," he said. "We don't think additional studies are needed and we don't think additional legislations are needed."

Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, said the compensation proposal's advocates would try to emphasize to the House leaders that the years of workers being exposed to dangerous substances such as radiation, beryllium and silica without any protection have passed, so "this is not some kind of benefit that will go on for eternity.

"We're trying now to make sure that whatever we do here is intellectually honest, and not some Saturday night special that is not going to get the job done for the people that need it," he said.

"I've looked enough of those people in the eye that I could not go to them with a bad program."

Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, said a group of interested senators met informally on the Senate floor in anticipation of a new offer from the House negotiators.

"We agreed we aren't going to accept it unless it's fair to these individuals. They're victims. They're people who have been victimized by our government."

Last spring, the Energy Department reversed 50 years of federal policy by declaring that workers injured or killed by radiation exposure at weapons plants should be compensated.

The agency proposed minimum lump sum payments of $100,000.

When the Senate passed its version of the Defense Authorization Act, it included a provision calling for $200,000 plus health benefits for affected workers.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the measure would cost taxpayers $1.7 billion over 10 years, based on DOE estimates that at least 4,000 workers either contracted life-threatening diseases because of radiation, silica or beryllium exposure or already have died from those diseases.

During negotiations, senators backed off from the $200,000 offer and told the House they could accept $100,000 as the minimum payment if that would get the proposal passed.

Michaels said his office estimates that as many as 100 new workers would become eligible for benefits each year for the next decade.

However, about 600,000 people worked at the weapons plants during the Cold War era, and all potentially could be in the pool of beneficiaries, depending on whether they develop cancer or one of the other work- connected diseases specified under the compensation proposal.

About 100,000 workers helped in the development of nuclear weapons from 1951 to 1992 at the Nevada Test Site, 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas. ---

The bill numbers are HR 675, HR 3418, HR 3478, HR 3495, HR 4263, HR 4398, HR 5189 and SB 2519

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19 AID FOR NUCLEAR WORKERS PLEDGED
The Galveston County Daily News
The Daily News
September 26, 2000

Officials from the U.S. Department of Energy said Monday the federal government had not been diligent in tracking the health of workers at more than 100 old nuclear weapon sites across the country.

But they said the government was now trying to find sick workers and provide them with care.

"Instead of fighting workman's compensation claims, we will now help workers get those benefits," said Kate Kimpan, senior policy adviser with the Energy Department.

U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson called the meeting in Houston Monday to give the public a chance to hear first-hand the government's response to his request for more disclosure on the scope of work carried out at the nuclear sites.

The old Texas City Chemical Plant on FM 519 and Grant Avenue was one of the 150 secret nuclear weapons plants that contracted with the government during the Cold War.

Several former workers said they wanted to know how much the government knew about the potential dangers of the plants. Several family members of former workers also attended.

Some asked whether the radiation could have contaminated the clothes of those who worked at the plant and whether family members could have been exposed. Others asked about cleanup efforts.

As early as Feb. 14, 1952, Texas City Chemicals was a contractor for the federal government.

The plant's job was to produce uranium for nuclear weapons. The plant extracted uranium compounds from phosphoric acid.

The Texas City plant extracted 50 pounds of uranium from phosphates already being produced at the plant, said John Arthur, an energy department official from New Mexico.

Energy Department officials conceded the government had not done its part to check on the health of workers.

"A year and half ago we set out to see if any workers who had worked on nuclear weapons during the Cold War had been made ill," said Kimpan. "They have. But we have not been successful in tracking all of them and providing them with medical screening."

Lampson, whose district includes Galveston County, has pressed the administration at the energy department to release documents detailing the work involved at the 150 forgotten nuclear sites.

He also is asking that the government perform site surveys and institute prompt medical monitoring of all the workers.

Lampson called for an amendment to the Senate Defense Armed Services Bill that would qualify sick Cold War nuclear workers or their families for workman compensation benefits.

Energy officials said they would work to get sick nuclear weapons workers benefits under that program.

But depending on how long workers were employed at the site, they might not be eligible.

Ron Witt, who represented International Union of Operating Engineers Local 450, said his members had moved on-site materials at the old plant and inhaled its dust.

"We went out there with nothing on us because we didn't know about this," he said. "We might have breathed more of that stuff than anybody."

Witt said he was worried that during a rainstorm the runoff from the plant might have affected the community at large.

However, Darren Beaudo, BP's governmental affairs representative, said that the area had been fenced and did not pose a threat to the community.

BP now owns the old Texas City Chemical site.

Sonny Sanders, secretary-treasurer for PACE Local 449, said the meeting did point him in the direction to look for more answers but he was still concerned about where the material on the property had been moved.

Lampson is also trying to put Texas into a growing number of states eligible to participate in the defense authorization bill. That legislation entitles workers to medical testing for things like beryllium.

It is only up and running, however, in 10 states, said Kimpan.

U.S. Rep. Ken Bentsen joined Lampson at the meeting and said the government owed former nuclear workers an explanation.

"We need to find out who it was that was affected by this contamination, " he said.

Lampson encouraged former workers and family members to tell the federal government their stories so that more information on the sites would be available.

"We've made some decent first steps," he said. "We need to give good, legitimate information to the federal government."

If you are a former worker at the Texas City plant or a family member of a former worker, call the U.S. Department of Energy's help-line at (877) 447-9756.

Alicia Gooden can be reached at (409) 683-5343 or alicia.gooden@galvnews.com.

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20 EDITORIAL: A shameful decision
Wednesday, September 27, 2000
Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Republican House leadership on Tuesday quashed the effort to compensate men and women exposed to radiation and toxic chemicals during Cold War government defense work. Speaker Dennis Hastert & Co. should hang their heads in shame. The legislation had previously been amended to include workers at the Nevada Test Site. Over the past year, Congress has held six congressional hearings on the issue and the Department of Energy has conducted nine field hearings.

A presidentially appointed panel concluded in 1999 that there was "credible evidence" that some workers had suffered health problems triggered by exposure to toxic chemicals and radiation during the design, building, assembling and testing of nuclear bombs at dozens of sites across the nation. In addition, the bill earned widespread bipartisan support in the Senate. So why would House leaders reject the notion that those who suffered as a result of toiling in the service of their country deserve to be fairly compensated?

Speaker Hastert wasn't saying much Tuesday, but he and others had previously expressed dismay at the cost of the legislation, which would have provided about 4, 000 workers who suffered certain ailments with medical benefits and compensation for lost wages or a lump sum of $200,000. Total tally? Just under $1 billion over five years.

It's laudatory that the GOP seeks to exercise fiscal restraint. Yet given all the wasteful and counterproductive federal endeavors that manage to survive the budget process, the House can't see fit to embrace a program that is not only inexpensive by Washington standards, but ethically and morally just? "The House Republican leadership has turned its back on these deserving workers who sacrificed their health to protect our nation during the Cold War," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass. Added Sen. Fred D. Thompson, a Tennessee Republican: "The last thing we need at this point is more studies. We need a program that will compensate those the government has made sick." Unfortunately, it now looks like the program will have to wait until next year--when perhaps the House GOP rank and file can convince the leadership to come to its senses.