NucNews - March 22, 2005 -------- NUCLEAR -------- australia Uranium mine start date may not be far off Tuesday, 22 March 2005 ABC WEST COAST SA http://www.abc.net.au/news/items/200503/1329209.htm?eyre Production could start on the Honeymoon uranium mine, in north-western South Australia, in the next two years, given current world uranium prices. The project will create 50 to 65 jobs and at least half of those will be based in Broken Hill. Mark Wheatley, the chief executive officer of Southern Cross Resources, says uranium is performing well on world markets. "Uranium is sitting at just under 22 cents a pound and analysts are saying it could go to $35 in a year or 18 months...certainly if we see that outcome you can add another 18 months onto that and you'd have production at Honeymoon," he said. -------- canada Canucks back PM on missiles By ALEXANDER PANETTA (CP) March 22, 2005 http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2005/03/22/pf-969232.html OTTAWA - Canadians are giving Prime Minister Paul Martin an overwhelming thumbs up for his refusal to join the U.S. missile defence project, a new poll suggests. The numbers offer some vindication for Martin as he heads into a meeting Wednesday with U.S. President George W. Bush armed with Canadian public sentiment on his side. The prime minister angered the White House and drew scorn from critics at home, but two-thirds of poll respondents - 57 per cent compared to 26 per cent - supported him, according to the survey by Decima Inc. A Canada-U.S.-Mexico summit in Texas will be the first meeting between Martin and Bush since last month, when the prime minister tried informing the president of his decision and waited days before having his phone call returned. U.S. officials said Bush was angered by Martin's failure to convey Canada's decision face-to-face when the two men met in Brussels late last month. The Decima poll indicates Martin would have flown into a public opinion hurricane had he decided to take part in Bush's missile program. Virtually every constituency in the country approved of Canada's stand - from teenagers to senior citizens, men and women, urban and rural dwellers, and a majority of respondents in every single province. Just one group fell outside the statistical norm: Conservative party supporters sided 49 per cent to 35 per cent in favour of joining the missile project. Pollster Bruce Anderson says opposition to the plan has little to do with missile defence and a lot to do with opposition to Bush's foreign policy, particularly his prosecution of the war in Iraq as well as White House trade policies. "(But) I think people would be misunderstanding these results if they came to the conclusion that this is a mandate from Canadians to be churlish with the U.S. administration," said Anderson, who conducted the survey. "Most Canadians want a friendly and closer relationship between the two countries, but there's caution and skepticism in matters of military and foreign policy." He said the poll results indicate proponents of missile defence have to do a much better job selling the concept if they ever hope to get Canadians onside. Here are some other findings of the survey of 1,023 Canadians, conducted March 10-14 and considered accurate within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20: -Lack of confidence in Bush (34 per cent) was the main reason given by the those asked to explain their support for Martin's decision. The second-most common reason given was frustration over U.S. handling of the softwood lumber and mad-cow disputes, as 21 per cent agreed "Canada shouldn't co-operate with the U.S. until the U.S. treats Canada more fairly." -The Canadian announcement was most popular with supporters of the Bloc Quebecois and NDP, followed by Liberals. Only self-described Conservatives disapproved. Seventy-two per cent of Bloc supporters agreed with the move while 71 per cent of those who identified themselves as pro-NDP said they agreed. Sixty-four per cent of Liberals supported Martin's stand, while 22 per cent were against. -Young people were by far the most supportive of Martin's move, at 74 per cent, but every age category had a similar opinion. Respondents over age 55 were 55 per cent in favour and only 29 per cent opposed Martin. -The move was most appreciated in Quebec, where 63 per cent endorsed it. It was least popular in Alberta, where 50 per cent supported Martin's announcement and 35 per cent opposed it. As early as two years ago, Martin had made it clear he supported the U.S. project but didn't sign on when he first became prime minister. His initial enthusiasm dwindled in the final days of last year's tightly fought federal election campaign, when Martin suddenly began qualifying his support in an attempt to curry favour with NDP and Bloc Quebeceois voters. Then he remained largely silent on the issue while public opposition to the project mushroomed. -------- china US Extends Waiver Of Missile Proliferation Sanctions On China "China has growing power to get what it wants" Washington (AFP) Mar 22, 2005 http://www.spacedaily.com/news/missiles-05s.html The United States has extended a waiver of missile proliferation sanctions against certain Chinese government activities, the State Department said Tuesday. "On March 17, we extended for another six months the waiver of import penalties against certain Chinese government activities under the missile sanctions law," the official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. The waiver was in connection with missile sanctions that were imposed in September 2003 against the state-run China North Industries Incorporated (NORINCO), the official said. NORINCO was accused of selling advanced missile technology to an unnamed state. The company had in the past been punished for sales to Iran. "The waiver of the import ban under the missle sanctions law was extended because it was essential to the national security of the United States to do so," the US official said, without elaborating. "It will not be appropriate to comment further concerning the extension of the import ban waiver." Sanctions, which were first imposed after it was discovered China had sold missile technology to Pakistan and other states, were first waived in September last year for six months. The sanctions were linked to "the development or production of any missile equipment or technology and activities of the Chinese government affecting the development or production of electronics, space systems or equipment, and military aircraft," according to an official notice issued last week. The waiver extension came just before Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice visited Beijing and held talks with Chinese leaders amid concerns over China's arms buildup. The United States has been repeatedly urging the European Union against lifting an arms embargo on China, imposed after the brutal Tiananmen Square crackdown on democracy demonstrators in 1989. Washington argued that any easing of the ban would send Beijing the wrong message on human rights and alter the regional military balance. Their case took on added urgency after China's parliament adopted a law on March 14 authorizing the use of force if necessary to stop Taiwan from seceding from the mainland. ---- Taiwan decision keeps Chinese arms embargo in place James Sturcke Tuesday March 22, 2005 UK Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,7369,1443495,00.html?gusrc=rss Britain wants to delay any lifting of a Chinese arms embargo until it receives assurances that the European Union's policy for selling weapons overseas is sufficiently robust, a Foreign Office official said today. The position makes it highly unlikely the ban on selling EU arms to China, in place since the violent crackdown against pro-democracy protestors 15 years ago, will be lifted before next year despite indications in December to the contrary. The change of heart comes after huge pressure from US administration and Congress to keep the ban on sophisticated weapon sales, and the decision last week in China to pass a law authorising the use of military force against Taiwan. "If we lift the arms embargo, what do we have in place [to monitor sales]?" a Foreign Office official said. "We have the code of conduct but is it sufficient? If we need to strengthen it, how do we strengthen it?" A review of the ban has been in place since late 2003. France, which introduced the review, thought it had achieved a breakthrough last December when the EU announced it wanted to end the embargo and, though no date was set in stone, it was implied a decision would be taken during Luxembourg 's presidency of the EU, which runs until the end of June. "They thought in January but it would be a quick decision but that is no longer the case," an EU source said. "I have given up trying to guess dates." The embargo on China, which has the world's largest army, was imposed after the violent crackdown on protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Russia is the biggest supplier of arms to China though the EU and US both supply some vehicles and other relatively low-grade weaponry. Any lifting of the ban is dependent on reaching agreement on how to monitor arms sales, consensus on human rights issues, and placating countries, chiefly the US and Japan, that the regional strategic balance would not be upset. The code of conduct was set up in 1998 and has become the main tool used by EU countries when deciding to which regimes arms can be sold. Last week's decision in China to pass a law authorising military force against Taiwan to prevent the island gaining formal independence worried Pacific countries about the communist state's motives for buying sophisticated weaponry. Chinese officials today reacted angrily to the reports of the delay. "Linking these two issues is unreasonable," said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Liu Jianchao. "The passage of the anti-secession law is an effort to ease tensions across the Taiwan Straits ... the key to ease tensions is to check Taiwan's secessionary forces and to stop all secessionist activities." "The arms embargo against China is political discrimination, which is not in line with today's reality," he added. "The EU should do something to contribute to the growth of bilateral relations." China says it is unlikely to buy large amounts of European arms if the embargo is lifted, but analysts say Beijing is looking to Europe for high-tech equipment that it can't get elsewhere. In 2003, EU members approved licences to sell 400m euro (£280m) of arms to China. However, a lifting of the ban could open up a defence market worth up to $15bn (£7.9bn) annually. China, which has been modernising its army since the 1991 Gulf war, is interested in buying up-to-date fighters and other sophisticated weaponry. The US, which has its own arms embargo, likewise sells some weaponry to China and has a Humvee production factory in the country. The US president, George Bush, and Congress have been pushing to keep the embargo in place. Congress has been particularly keen not to lift the ban. A European envoy, Annalisa Giannella, was sent by the European council's foreign policy representative, Javier Solana, to Washington last week to make the case that Europe would expand the code of conduct restricting such equipment. But Ms Giannella was said to have persuaded no one, especially in Congress, the New York Times reported today. It said European officials admit to have been taken aback by the ferocity of Congressional opposition to lifting the embargo, led by such Republican heavyweights as senators Ted Stevens of Alaska and John McCain of Arizona. After Ms Giannella's visit, Congressional leaders reiterated their opposition to lifting the embargo, in some cases threatening retaliation by blocking purchases of European military equipment for American forces. Britain, which went along with the EU in December, does not want any lifting of the ban while it holds the presidency of the EU from June to December, the paper reported. Italy, Sweden and Belgium are all reconsidering their support for the quick ending of the embargo, the Financial Times reported today. -------- iran Iran says won't drop nuke plans Tue Mar 22, 2005 10:58 PM GMT (Reuters) By Louis Charbonneau http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=694596 PARIS - Iran has vowed ahead of key talks with three European powers to press ahead with its nuclear fuel programme despite U.S. fears it may be planning to develop bombs. "The people and government of Iran are determined to open their way through the tortuous path of the peaceful use of nuclear technology despite all the imposed restrictions and difficulties," Mohammad Saeedi told a nuclear energy conference. Saeedi, vice president of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, spoke a day before officials from Iran, France, Britain and Germany meet in Paris to review three months of talks on Tehran's atomic plans that ended in a standoff. The European Union's "big three", sharing U.S. suspicions that Tehran may be planning to develop nuclear arms, are offering Iran political and economic incentives to give up its uranium enrichment programme. EU diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they did not expect Iran to back down and the EU too was in no position to compromise because the United States has recently backed its position. "The best that can come out of this meeting is an agreement to keep talking," said a diplomat close to the talks. The EU diplomats said they expected the talks to be finished in a single day. But Iranian officials involved in the talks, who also declined to be identified, said the negotiations would probably last two or more days as the two sides struggle to hammer out an agreement on Tehran's nuclear future. Saeedi said in his speech that Iran was determined to pursue a complete nuclear programme to meet rising energy demand caused by an increase in living standards in the Islamic republic. He said this programme would include "the provision of nuclear fuel" and the completion of a heavy-water research reactor that would be able to produce substantial amounts of bomb-grade plutonium. Saeedi said Iran intended to produce only low-grade enriched uranium fuel for peaceful power plants, not highly enriched fuel for weapons. IRAN MAY PULL OUT OF TALKS Hossein Mousavian, a senior nuclear negotiator, told Iranian state radio Tehran would consider ending the talks with the EU trio if Wednesday's review decided no progress had been made. "If the committee's report shows that there has been tangible and specific progress in the talks with the EU3, then we will continue it for three more months. "But if the report shows the other party has been wasting time, we will reconsider the process of talks with the Europeans," he said. The Iranians have refused to give up their enrichment programme, and have offered instead to permit increased inspections by the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency and to limit the enrichment to very low levels. The Europeans reject this and want the programme stopped and dismantled -- a position strengthened by the official backing of the United States for the offer of incentives if Iran will end uranium enrichment. "We both have our entrenched positions," said a Western diplomat close to the talks. "With the Americans on board, the EU three couldn't move if they wanted to." Iran has suspended its uranium enrichment programme as a confidence-building gesture but has repeatedly said this freeze will be short-lived. The EU has said that if Iran resumes enrichment work it will support a U.S. plan to refer Tehran's case to the U.N. Security Council, which could impose painful economic sanctions. -------- israel Israel has no intention of striking Iranian nuclear sites: Sharon JERUSALEM (AFP) Mar 22, 2005 http://www.spacewar.com/2005/050322110026.hcyz8d4p.html Israel has no intention of launching a strike against Iranian nuclear installations, a top official said Tuesday, quoting Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Sharon made the comments during talks with a visiting delegation from the US Congress, despite months of press reports to the contrary, the official told AFP. "Israel has no intention of attacking Iran and continues to support the diplomatic efforts of the international community, in particular the United States, to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons," he quoted Sharon as saying. Earlier this month, Britain's Sunday Times reported that Israel has drawn up plans for a combined air and ground attack on Iranian nuclear sites should diplomatic efforts fail to halt Tehran's alleged nuclear programme. Sharon's inner cabinet gave "initial authorisation" for an attack at a private meeting in February on his ranch in the Negev desert, the weekly said. US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice said immediately that Washington has not sanctioned any Israeli military strike against Iranian nuclear sites. Britain, France and Germany have been trying to secure guarantees that Iran will not seek to acquire nuclear weapons in exchange for a plethora of trade, security, diplomatic and technology agreements. The United States and Israel both accuse Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons. Washington has not ruled out military options to prevent Tehran of acquiring the bomb should diplomacy fail. Ideally, the Europeans would like to see Iran call a permanent halt to its uranium enrichment activities, which are currently suspended. Iran maintains it has the right to enrich uranium to produce atomic fuel, but once mastered the fuel cycle can be diverted to military purposes. -------- korea Rice warns N . Korea of 'other options' March 22, 2005 By Nicholas Kralev THE WASHINGTON TIMES http://www.washtimes.com/world/20050322-120410-7425r.htm BEIJING — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday that the United States would seek "other options" to resolve the North Korean nuclear standoff if Pyongyang continues to reject negotiations, hinting at economic sanctions and other penalties. Miss Rice also pressed China to persuade the North to come back to six-nation talks on its nuclear-weapons program. "It goes without saying that, to the degree that a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula gets more difficult to achieve, if the North does not recognize that it needs to do that, then of course we'll have to look at other options," she said. Miss Rice spoke more forcefully than she has in the past about alternatives, in what U.S. officials indicated was a negotiating tactic. She declined to be specific. "Obviously, everyone is aware that there are other options in the international system," she said. Those options include referral to the U.N. Security Council for economic and trade sanctions, as well as imposing bilateral travel restrictions on North Korean officials. U.S. officials have said military measures are unlikely but have declined to rule them out. North Korea pulled out of the six-way talks hosted by China last year and later announced that it had built nuclear weapons. But in a sign that diplomatic pressure is building, North Korean Prime Minister Pak Pong-ju arrived here this morning for a six-day visit. Although the focus of Mr. Pak's trip is economic relations, Chinese officials are expected to raise the nuclear question as well. A South Korean newspaper also reported today that Beijing plans to send a new envoy to Pyongyang within two months in a last-ditch bid to revive the six-party talks. A State Department official in Washington said yesterday that both President Bush and Miss Rice repeatedly have made clear that "when it comes to protecting national security, no option is off the table." "We have not ruled out other options, should North Korea refuse to return to the table," the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons is a long-standing problem, and we are not working under any artificial deadline," the official said. A senior State Department official traveling with the secretary said she had discussed "consideration of other diplomatic means" with Japanese and South Korean officials during the weekend. Miss Rice, who spoke to reporters as she completed a 24-hour visit to China yesterday, sought to balance her discussions by requesting that her hosts use their influence on North Korea and raising thorny issues such as human rights and Chinese threats to use military force against the Republic of China (Taiwan). During her stops in Tokyo and Seoul, she repeatedly sent signals to China and North Korea that Washington was serious about making the six-party talks a success. North Korea has demanded that Miss Rice apologize for labeling it an "outpost of tyranny" — remarks made during her confirmation hearings — before it returns to the talks. Miss Rice has refused. U.S. officials said Chinese President Hu Jintao told Miss Rice on Sunday that the Bush administration must show more "flexibility" in dealing with North Korea and tone down the rhetoric. Miss Rice discussed concerns about human rights and political freedom with Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing yesterday. At a solo press conference yesterday, she made extensive remarks about religious freedom. "I do hope that there is an understanding that religious communities are not a threat to transitional societies," she said. "In fact, they are very often ... a source for good, for stability and for compassion in societies that are undergoing rapid change." Miss Rice also criticized China's newly enacted anti-secession law that allows for military action against Taiwan if it declares independence. "I said to my Chinese hosts that we would hope that ... after having made dialogue across the Strait more difficult, that they would take steps to reduce tensions now with Taiwan," she said. The secretary returned to Washington last night and tomorrow will join Mr. Bush for a summit with Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and Mexican President Vicente Fox in Texas. •Sharon Behn contributed to this report from Washington. ---- N KOREA RAISES NUKE STAKES 22.3.2005 SBS http://www9.sbs.com.au/theworldnews/region.php?id=107728®ion=2 North Korea says fears of a US-led invasion had forced it to add to its nuclear arsenal, as Washington gives its strongest hint it’s prepared to introduce sanctions against Pyongyang. "We have taken a serious measure by increasing nuclear arms in preparation for any invasions by enemies," the Yonhap news agency quoted the North Korean Central Broadcasting Station as saying. "(North Korea's) nuclear weapons will remain nuclear deterrent for self-defence under any circumstances," the statement said. It said joint US-South Korean military manoeuvres that started at the weekend were "a preparatory war against us." "We've taken serious steps of boosting our nuclear arsenal and we are also prepared to mobilise all of our military force against any provocative moves by the enemy," it said. Although it’s threatened to in the past, the statement is the first time Pyongyang has actually said it had boosted its nuclear weapons programme. Opinion varies on the number of nuclear weapons, if any, North Korea might possess, with estimates ranging from zero to eight. Last month Pyongyang dramatically exited international talks aimed to halt its nuclear weapons programme and accused Washington of plotting to overthrow it. Washington believes the Stalinist state possesses one or two crude bombs and may have reprocessed enough plutonium for half-a-dozen more. The latest statement came as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wrapped up a tour of the region, applying pressure on Pyongyang’s neighbour China. US officials have appealed repeatedly to Beijing to use its influence with North Korea to bring it back to the bargaining table. She spent Monday in talks with senior Chinese officials, including President Hu Jintao and Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, in which the nuclear standoff topped the agenda. Saying Asian countries would have to find new ways of dealing with North Korea if it continued to shun disarmament talks, Ms Rice gave the strongest hint to date the US was prepared to introduce sanctions. "If we cannot find a way to resolve the North Korean issue in this way, then we will have to find other means to do it,” she said. “That goes without saying." China, Pyongyang's sole remaining major ally, has hosted three inconclusive rounds of talks involving the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia. In a break with tradition, Ms Rice ended her visit with a short display of ice skating, a sport the Secretary of State has a keen interest in. Chinese Olympic champion Yang Yang was among those who gave Ms Rice a display of their skills. Condoleezza Rice told the Chinese children how she use to figure skate as a child but said she was not nearly as good as them. Ms Rice exchanged skating tips, signed autographs and posed for photos with aspiring young skaters and their instructors before heading for Beijing airport and a flight back to the United States. ----- N. Korea Wants Japan Ditched from Six-Way Atom Talks Tue Mar 22, 2005 04:40 AM ET (Reuters) By Jon Herskovitz and Martin Nesirky http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7969278 SEOUL - Japan should be ejected from the stalled six-way talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions because its presence does more harm than good, one of Pyongyang's main newspapers said on Tuesday. A commentary in the state-run daily Minju Joson said Tokyo followed U.S. policy -- which Pyongyang says is hostile -- and had contributed nothing to the multilateral talks comprising the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States. "Japan has neither the justification nor eligibility to attend the six-party talks," the official KCNA news agency quoted Minju Joson as saying in the North's latest salvo in a rhetorical offensive against negotiations it has itself declined to attend since last June. Accusing Tokyo of seeking territorial expansion in the region, notably in its claim over the South Korean-held Tokto islands, the daily added: "It is clear that Japan's participation will make things worse rather than make things better." North Korea has said it will not return to the negotiating table unless its conditions are met. It has in the past sought to drive a wedge between other participants. The United States -- and Japan -- have indicated that time is running out for talks to take place and that other options, such as U.N. Security Council involvement, may be needed. On Monday, North Korean radio said in a commentary that Pyongyang had increased its nuclear arsenal to deter enemies. This was the North's way of toughening its stance against Washington and expressing anger about annual joint U.S.-South Korean military drills that started at the weekend, said a South Korean official who asked not to be named. North Korea said last week it might increase its arsenal to maintain a balance of power in East Asia and help prevent a U.S. attack. The radio commentary late on Monday was the first time Pyongyang said it had done so. OTHER OPTIONS "We've taken the serious steps of boosting our nuclear arsenal and we are also prepared to mobilize all of our military force against any provocative moves by the enemy," it said. Security analysts said North Korea may also have been offering a riposte to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who concluded an Asian tour on Monday by saying Washington would have to find new ways of dealing with Pyongyang if it continued to shun nuclear disarmament talks. Rice indicated in Beijing that the United States was prepared to report North Korea to the United Nations for possible economic sanctions should the talks fail. "Obviously, everyone is aware of the other options in the international system," Rice told a news conference in Beijing. Daniel Pinkston, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the California-based Center for Nonproliferation Studies, said the North was showing its hostility toward Rice's approach. "It is a signal of their displeasure toward her and the U.S. call on other countries in the region, and China in particular, to ratchet up the pressure against North Korea," he said by telephone. "It is probably to show that they are not going to respond to pressure." The North Korean statement came as the country's premier, Pak Pong-ju, went to China for talks that will probably touch on the nuclear crisis as well as economic reforms. China is the North's main benefactor and the analysts said Pak's talks in Beijing will probably cover how the North responds to Rice's visit. China has hosted three inconclusive rounds of the talks. A fourth round planned for late 2004 never materialized. Proliferation experts say the North may have one or two nuclear weapons, and could possibly have eight or more. (With additional reporting by Kim Mi-young and Kim Yoo-chul) ---- Selection of Nuke Dump Site Due by September By Seo Jee-yeon jyseo@koreatimes.co.kr 03-22-2005 17:13 Korea Times Staff Reporter http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/biz/200503/kt2005032217111611900.htm The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy (MOCIE) said Tuesday it would select a site for low-and mid-level radioactive waste by the end of September through a bid. The timetable was set by MOCIE Minister Lee Hee-beom in a media policy forum, held at the Press Center in downtown Seoul. ``The government will proceed with the site selection fairly to avoid conflict during the process, and the final decision will be made after a vote by residents of the candidate site,’’ Lee said. Lee repeatedly stressed the urgency of building the nuclear dumpsite, saying the storage capacity for low-and mid-level radioactive waste could run out around 2008. The ministry has temporarily delayed the site selection since the government’s plan to build a nuclear waste repository in Wido, an island in the West Sea, was foiled by strong opposition from residents last February. It resumed efforts to find a candidate late last year but decided to build a low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste site by 2008 first and construct a more risky high-level radioactive site later. The ministry also legally guarantees to offer economic benefits to the region that houses the nuclear dumpsite. The ministry will make a public notice for the candidate selection procedure and receive applications by the end of June, while conducting a poll among those applicants. ``So far, a couple of cities, including Pohang and Kunsan, expressed their willingness to house the site,’’ a MOCIE official said. ``If there is no applicant before the deadline, the ministry will request regions able to house the site conduct a residential poll over the issue,’’ the official said. Despite strong resistance from environmentalists, Korea has no choice but to build a nuclear waste dumpsite as Korea relies on nuclear power for up to 40 percent of the total supply. ---- North Korea has not given up on nuclear talks Tue Mar 22, 2005 2:33 PM ET Asia - AFP http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050322/wl_asia_afp/nkoreanuclearchina_050322193342 BEIJING (AFP) - North Korean Premier Pak Pong-Ju has told Chinese leaders that his country had not given up on nuclear crisis talks and was ready to resume negotiations when conditions were favorable, a Chinese official said. "The North Korea (news - web sites) side does not oppose and has not given up on the six-party talks. In the days coming, if the conditions are ripe, North Korea is willing to participate in the talks at any time," foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao quoted Pak as telling Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Tuesday. "North Korea's position on realizing a nuclear free Korean peninsula and resolving the nuclear issues through talks has not changed at all," Pak said in his talks with Wen at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing. Pak's six-day visit to China comes a day after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) called on Beijing to put more pressure on the Stalinist regime to return to the stalled talks as Washington was considering "other options" if Pyongyang refused to negotiate. North Korea responded by saying it had increased its nuclear arsenal in preparation for a preemptive invasion by the United States, Yonhap news agency quoted the North Korean Central Broadcasting Station as saying late Monday. -------- russia Russia Ratifies Nuke Accident Convention By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS March 22, 2005 Filed at 5:18 a.m. ET http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Russia-Nuclear-Convention.html?pagewanted=print&position= MOSCOW (AP) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill ratifying an international agreement on liability for nuclear damage, obliging the government to compensate victims of any future nuclear accident, the Kremlin said Tuesday. Russia's two houses of parliament voted this month to ratify the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, which requires a nuclear operator to pay damages for an accident. Since all of Russia's nuclear power plants and other atomic facilities are in state hands, the government would be liable. The issue of liability for nuclear accidents has been a key stumbling block in Moscow's negotiations with the United States and other Western nations that have pledged financial assistance to help secure Russia's nuclear stockpiles, dismantle atomic submarines and build storage for radioactive waste. But the agreement, which is not retroactive, will not cover the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in the ex-Soviet republic of Ukraine, officials said. The Soviet Union hasn't paid any compensation for the April 1986 Chernobyl catastrophe -- the world's worst commercial nuclear disaster. About 30 people died from the immediate effects of the explosion, and an estimated 5 million people were exposed to radiation. Officials and senior lawmakers emphasized that joining the convention, which requires a nuclear operator to pay at least $60 million in overall damages for an accident, would protect Russia from possible claims for much larger amounts. The 1963 Vienna Convention aimed at a worldwide system but so far has attracted a scattered membership of only 32 states. Two-thirds of the members joined in the last 10 years, including non-nuclear states such as Cameroon, Niger, Peru, and Trinidad and Tobago. ---- Russia Ratifies Nuke Accident Convention Tuesday March 22, 2005 10:31 AM (AP) http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4883448,00.html MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill ratifying an international agreement on liability for nuclear damage, obliging the government to compensate victims of any future nuclear accident, the Kremlin said Tuesday. Russia's two houses of parliament voted this month to ratify the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, which requires a nuclear operator to pay damages for an accident. Since all of Russia's nuclear power plants and other atomic facilities are in state hands, the government would be liable. The issue of liability for nuclear accidents has been a key stumbling block in Moscow's negotiations with the United States and other Western nations that have pledged financial assistance to help secure Russia's nuclear stockpiles, dismantle atomic submarines and build storage for radioactive waste. But the agreement, which is not retroactive, will not cover the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in the ex-Soviet republic of Ukraine, officials said. The Soviet Union hasn't paid any compensation for the April 1986 Chernobyl catastrophe - the world's worst commercial nuclear disaster. About 30 people died from the immediate effects of the explosion, and an estimated 5 million people were exposed to radiation. Officials and senior lawmakers emphasized that joining the convention, which requires a nuclear operator to pay at least $60 million in overall damages for an accident, would protect Russia from possible claims for much larger amounts. The 1963 Vienna Convention aimed at a worldwide system but so far has attracted a scattered membership of only 32 states. Two-thirds of the members joined in the last 10 years, including non-nuclear states such as Cameroon, Niger, Peru, and Trinidad and Tobago. -------- transportation U.S. Weapons Grade Plutonium Shipment to Depart France Tonight Common Dreams, March 22, 2005 http://www.commondreams.org/news2005/0322-09.htm CHERBOURG, FRANCE -- March 22 -- A shipment of U.S. weapons grade plutonium fuel (MOX) will depart from the port of Cherbourg later tonight. Two British nuclear freighters, Pacific Pintail and the Pacific Teal, are scheduled to pick up the dangerous cargo this evening, with departure for the U.S. expected four to six hours later. The two vessels will transport the plutonium to the port of Charleston, South Carolina. Greenpeace condemns the shipment as a major set back to global non-proliferation efforts. The plutonium was taken from U.S. nuclear warheads and transformed into nuclear reactor fuel by the French state company Areva. The fuel or MOX is to be tested in a nuclear reactor prior to the start up of a large-scale plutonium fuel program in the United States. "The nuclear industry is out of control. In Paris this week the IAEA called for an expansion of nuclear power, while at the same time it warned of the danger from proliferation and nuclear terrorism. Meanwhile, less than a few hours away in Normandy, one of the most vulnerable plutonium transports is about to take place," said Shaun Burnie of Greenpeace International. "The IAEA and their supporters in the government don't want to face the fact that the nuclear problem exists because they have created it themselves by promoting nuclear energy. The only solution is ending the trade in bomb material, a fissile material treaty and nuclear phase-out." Last week Greenpeace released a U.S. security assessment, which concluded that the U.S. transport was highly vulnerable to terrorist attack. Domestic French plutonium transports, with even less security protection, were considered at extreme risk. Greenpeace wants all plutonium to be treated as nuclear waste not as potential reactor fuel. This approach would be cheaper, faster, safer, and more secure. It also urges a ban on the production of all weapons-usable fissile materials. Notes to Editor: 1). BNFL currently has over 100 tons of plutonium at its Sellafield nuclear complex in the UK. It plans to ship 50 tons to Europe and Japan over the next 10-20 years. Areva, the French state nuclear company that manufactured the US plutonium, has between 70-80 tons of plutonium at la Hague in Normandy, all of which it plans to transport to clients in Europe and Japan within 10-15 years. -------- u.n. Experts extol nuclear energy The IAEA chief said atomic energy was a viable option Tuesday 22 March 2005, Aljazeera http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/FA1F7EA2-AF1F-4C49-9FB3-7AB5B88D0CBB.htm Only by building more nuclear power stations can the world meet its soaring energy needs while averting environmental disaster, some experts at an international conference have said. Energy ministers and officials from 74 countries were in Paris for the two-day meeting on the future of nuclear energy, as global warming and fossil fuel supply concerns renew governments' interest in atomic power. "It's clear that nuclear energy is regaining stature as a serious option," said Muhammad al-Baradai, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which organised the conference. Al-Baradai said the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol - which commits governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions - was focusing minds. Power plants fired by oil, coal and gas are major sources of carbon dioxide and other gases that cause global warming. Kyoto will force plant operators to pay for their pollution, making nuclear power more competitive by comparison. Changing priorities "In the past, the virtual absence of restrictions or taxes on greenhouse gas emissions has meant that nuclear power's advantage - low emissions - has had no tangible economic value," al-Baradai said. But the Kyoto Protocol "will likely change that over the longer term". Soaring fossil fuel costs, including the historic highs charted by oil prices over the past year, are a more immediate worry for governments - and a reminder of the petroleum shocks of the 1970s that persuaded countries such as France to intensify nuclear production. But accidents at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania, in 1979 and Chernobyl, Ukraine, seven years later, dealt blows to public confidence in nuclear power. Although there is still deep public concern about the risk of accidents and transportation and storage of radioactive waste, nuclear advocates say there is also a new awareness that relying on fossil fuels could lead to an even greater environmental catastrophe. "The climate will probably change no matter what we now do, but we should, at the very least, make every effort to slow it down," said Donald Johnston, secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, in a video statement. "We ignore its importance at our peril." Vocal opposition Green groups, however, insist that nuclear power is not the solution to the climate problem. "Today, nuclear energy accounts for 17% of electricity consumption and 3% of energy consumption," said Helene Gassin, who heads Greenpeace's energy campaign in France. The climate problem "goes far beyond the electricity issue". When Finland begins construction of a new reactor later this year, it will become the first western European country to do so since 1991. France plans to start building a new-generation reactor in 2007. Nuclear plants produce one-third of Europe's electricity, French Industry Minister Patrick Devedjian said, saving greenhouse emissions "equivalent to those of all of Europe's cars". In a message to the conference, US Energy Secretary Sam Bodman said a University of Chicago study showed that nuclear power "can become competitive with electricity produced by plants fuelled by coal or gas", thanks to new technologies delivering more efficient reactors. Echoing recent comments by US President George Bush, Bodman said: "America hasn't ordered a new nuclear power plant since the 1970s and it's time to start building again." The real boom in nuclear power is expected to focus on developing countries, particularly in Asia. China is expected to increase its nuclear production capacity from the current 6.5 gigawatts to 36 gigawatts by 2020, according to IAEA figures, while India plans to multiply its production capacity tenfold and Russia's is expected to double to about 45 gigawatts. Agencies ---- Experts Discuss Nuclear Power As Energy By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS March 22, 2005 Filed at 7:15 a.m. ET http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Nuclear-Talks-Future.html?pagewanted=print&position= PARIS (AP) -- Only by building more nuclear power stations can the world meet its soaring energy needs while averting environmental disaster, experts at an international conference said Monday. Energy ministers and officials from 74 countries were in Paris for the two-day meeting on the future of nuclear energy, as concerns about global warming and fossil fuel supplies renew governments' interest in atomic power. ``It's clear that nuclear energy is regaining stature as a serious option,'' said Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency -- the U.N. nuclear watchdog -- which organized the conference. ElBaradei said the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol, which commits governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, was focusing minds. Power plants fired by oil, coal and gas are major sources of carbon dioxide and other gases that cause global warming. The Kyoto accord will force plant operators to pay for their pollution, making nuclear power facilities more competitive by comparison. ``In the past, the virtual absence of restrictions or taxes on greenhouse gas emissions has meant that nuclear power's advantage, low emissions, has had no tangible economic value,'' ElBaradei said. But the Kyoto Protocol ``will likely change that over the longer term.'' Soaring fossil fuel costs, including the historic highs charted by oil prices during the past year, are a more immediate worry for governments -- and a reminder of the petroleum shocks of the 1970s that persuaded countries, including France, to intensify nuclear production. But accidents at the Three Mile Island facility in Pennsylvania in 1979 and at Chernobyl, Ukraine, seven years later undermined public confidence in nuclear power. Although there is still deep public concern about the risk of accidents and transportation and storage of radioactive waste, nuclear advocates say there also is a new awareness that relying on fossil fuels could lead to an even greater environmental catastrophe. ``The climate will probably change no matter what we now do, but we should, at the very least, make every effort to slow it down,'' Donald Johnston, secretary general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, said in a video statement. ``We ignore its importance at our peril.'' Environmental groups, however, insist that nuclear power is not the solution to the climate problem. ``Today, nuclear energy accounts for 17 percent of electricity consumption and 3 percent of energy consumption,'' said Helene Gassin, who heads Greenpeace's energy campaign in France. The climate problem ``goes far beyond the electricity issue.'' When Finland begins construction of a new reactor later this year, it will become the first Western European country to do so since 1991. France plans to start building a new-generation reactor in 2007. Nuclear plants produce one-third of Europe's electricity, saving greenhouse emissions ``equivalent to those of all of Europe's cars,'' French Industry Minister Patrick Devedjian said. In a message to the conference, U.S. Energy Secretary Sam Bodman cited a University of Chicago study that showed nuclear power ``can become competitive with electricity produced by plants fueled by coal or gas'' because of new technologies delivering more efficient reactors. Echoing recent comments by President Bush, Bodman said: ``America hasn't ordered a new nuclear power plant since the 1970s and it's time to start building again.'' Even in some countries that have been fiercely opposed to nuclear power, the mood is shifting. For example, Italians voted against the use of atomic energy in a referendum the year after Chernobyl, and the government began gradually decommissioning plants. ``Regarding nuclear power, we perceive a clear change in public opinion, notably by the young generations,'' Italian Industry Minister Antonio Marzano said. The real boom in nuclear power is expected to focus on developing countries, particularly in Asia. China is expected to increase its nuclear production capacity from the current 6.5 gigawatts to 36 gigawatts by 2020, according to IAEA figures, while India plans to multiply its production capacity tenfold and Russia is expected to double its capacity to about 45 gigawatts. A gigawatt equals 1 billion watts. U.S. nuclear plant builder Westinghouse Electric Co. is among contenders for an $8 billion contract for four new Chinese reactors to be awarded by year's end. ---- Annan Suggests expansion of Security Council, definition of terror Pakistan Times Foreign Desk, March 22, 2005 http://pakistantimes.net/2005/03/22/top4.htm UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has called for the boldest changes to the United Nations in the history of the world body, saying they are needed to tackle global threats in the 21st century. He urged the leaders to “act boldly” and adopt “the most far-reaching reforms in the history of the United Nations,” which was founded in 1945. One of the major proposals in the package calls for a new Human Rights Council as a major UN organ — possibly on a par with the Security Council — to replace the Geneva-based Commission on Human Rights. That panel has long faced criticism for allowing the worst-offending countries to use their membership to protect one another from condemnation. “The creation of the council would accord human rights a more authoritative position,” and put it on the same level as security and development, Annan said. Expansion of Security Council Annan also called for an expansion of the UN Security Council to reflect the global realities today, but he left the details to the General Assembly. He urged its members to decide on a plan before the September summit, preferably by consensus, but if that’s impossible by a vote. Annan backed two options proposed in December by a high-level panel. One would add six new permanent members and the other would create a new tier of eight semi-permanent members: two each from Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. He left open the possibility of other ideas. UN chief Kofi Annan warned of a “crisis of confidence” affecting global nuclear security. The secretary general said nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation efforts were being hampered by “dysfunctional decision-making procedures and the paralysis that accompanies them.” The spread of nuclear know-how, Annan said, had exacerbated long-standing tensions within the nuclear regime, arising from the fact that the technology required for civilian nuclear fuel can also be used to develop nuclear weapons. In his report, Annan proposed guaranteeing supplies of nuclear fuel for civilian use to non-nuclear weapon states, as an incentive to prevent them developing their own unranium-enrichment and plutonium-separation capacities. As well as beefing up the verification authority of the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Annan said measures were needed to strengthen the 35-year-old Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). He called for the Security Council to fix guidelines on when countries may go to war and to agree on a universal definition of terrorism. Annan said consensus among member states on when and how the use of military force might be justified was crucial if the world body was to be a forum for resolving differences, rather than “a mere stage for acting them out.” Invasion of Iraq In a clear reference to the bitter divisions caused by the US-led invasion of Iraq, Annan said it was particularly important to agree on the use of pre-emptive or preventive military action. “No state can protect itself acting entirely alone,” Annan said, proposing that the Council adopt a resolution that would guide the UN’s top decision-making body in considering whether to endorse the use of force. On the question of defining terrorism, the secretary general proposed a formula stipulating that no cause or grievance, “no matter how legitimate,” could justify the targetting of civilians. Actions by states or organisations aimed at killing or harming non-combatants in order to intimidate a population or influence government policy should be considered an act of terrorism, Annan said. -------- u.s. nuc facilities -------- nevada Yucca project reviewer raised doubts about instruments Las Vegas Review-Journal March 22, 2005 By STEVE TETREAULT STEPHENS WASHINGTON BUREAU http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2005/Mar-22-Tue-2005/news/26128912.html WASHINGTON -- Energy Department e-mail messages have raised questions about the accuracy of certain scientific instruments used in the evaluation of Yucca Mountain as a site for nuclear waste. Records for some pieces of equipment suggest they were improperly calibrated for periods of days or months when they were in use, according to e-mail written in May and June 2000 by James Raleigh, a reviewer on the project. "During the data verification review, I came across a number of items that need to be provided, reconciled or explained further," Raleigh wrote in three e-mails that listed possible errors. Mistakes in the use or documentation of instruments used in Yucca Mountain experiments could complicate or disqualify the Energy Department's effort to license a nuclear waste repository at the Southern Nevada site. Critics of the project at Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, have identified quality assurance as a potential stumbling block for a repository, and DOE officials have said they have devoted extra attention and resources to correct problems. DOE spokeswoman Anne Womack-Kolton said Monday the e-mails were a favorable sign because they showed reviewers were catching mistakes and calling on them to be fixed. Womack-Kolton said DOE officials are investigating to determine whether the problems were corrected and whether they affected work. "One would expect there are many e-mails like this as part of the quality-assurance process," Womack-Kolton said. "Work is reviewed, and if there are holes to be filled, there is communications back. This is not surprising." But Bob Loux, executive director of the Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, said the e-mails illustrate sloppiness within the project and could provide more ammunition to challenge the repository. "This tells me the (quality-assurance) program is a mess," Loux said. "Even the stuff that got through the system has tons of errors. We think there is probably more of this." A Yucca quality-assurance reviewer who examined the e-mail for the Review-Journal cautioned against reading too much into them. "These really are a snapshot in time," said the reviewer, who asked not to be identified. "It doesn't show all the work that went on afterwards to resolve these issues." At least one of the e-mails discussed errors that were found in the Yucca drift scale test, in which segments of rock deep within the mountain were to be heated for four years to simulate the conditions that would be created by decaying nuclear waste, the reviewer said. The e-mail, reported over the weekend in the New York Times, appeared unrelated to the announcement last week that at least one worker for the U.S. Geological Survey might have falsified documentation of Yucca Mountain research. That disclosure, which came during a review of e-mail messages within the project, spurred the Energy and Interior departments to start inspector general investigations. The Energy Department also began a review of Yucca Mountain science that led President Bush in February 2002 to declare the Nevada site suitable to build a repository for 77,000 tons of highly radioactive waste. Nevada Attorney General Brian Sandoval and U.S. Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and John Ensign, R-Nev., have urged U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the FBI to step in to secure documents for the investigations. Three e-mails authored by Raleigh raising questions about Yucca instrumentation were made available by Nevada attorneys. They were discovered by a consultant searching online for documents tied to last week's disclosures. Raleigh is employed in a regulatory office by Bechtel SAIC, the Yucca project's management contractor. Raleigh's secretary referred a call to a Bechtel spokeswoman, who said the company was investigating the matter. A procurement review for a digital multimeter, which measures electrical current to other pieces of equipment, indicated it was certified for calibration on a date before it was delivered, "which does not appear appropriate," Raleigh said in a June 15, 2000, e-mail. In the same e-mail, Raleigh said a review raised questions about calibration for a mass flow controller, which measures and controls the flow of gases. The procurement record for another instrument "gives the appearance that it was falsified" because one part was dated Dec. 5, 1997, while the remainder was dated May 13, 1997, Raleigh said. ---- Nevada seeks united front against Yucca Western states should stand together against the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository proposed for Nevada, says a Nevada official. Utah's 'thrown us under the bus,' official says By Joe Bauman Deseret Morning News Tuesday, March 22, 2005 http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600120317,00.html Marta Adams, a senior deputy attorney general, calls the U.S. Department of Energy "disingenuous" about Yucca Mountain. The most recent bombshell involving the site is the federal government's announcement last week that a review to validate scientific studies about water infiltration and climate may have been falsified. While Nevada organized a strong, tenacious fight against the repository, the Utah congressional delegation sided with the federal government. Rather than support the neighboring state as they should have, said Adams, Utah has "thrown us under the bus." She said Idaho also took that approach. Utah's senators did not back Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., in attempting to kill the repository and keep the 40,000 tons of waste where it is now stored — at nuclear power plants. Adams cited Deseret Morning News reports that in 2002 Sens. Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett, both R-Utah, voted for the repository after six Eastern utilities promised not to commit funds for a temporary storage site in Tooele County. Today, the Private Fuel Storage facility planned for Skull Valley, Tooele County, is gathering momentum while Yucca Mountain is stalled. "I really would encourage the West to get together here" in opposing Yucca Mountain, Adams said Monday. As an example of the DOE's maneuvering, she cited an agency press release quoted by the Deseret Morning News last week — a quotation that prompted her to contact the newspaper. The July 9, 2004, release concerned a U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decision on Yucca Mountain. The DOE statement made it seem as if DOE had won in court. "I am pleased with today's decisions handed down by the court," Spencer Abraham, then secretary of the DOE, is quoted in the release. "The court dismissed all challenges to the site selection of Yucca Mountain. Our scientific basis for the Yucca Mountain Project is sound." The only aspect vacated by the court, indicates the DOE statement, was a 10,000-year compliance period. But the compliance standard is a critical aspect of the repository, Adams indicated. "While Nevada did not prevail in all of its challenges . . . the key part of the challenge that Nevada made was to the radiation standard." The state prevailed on that standard, a safety feature that is mandated by federal law, she said. "When the court struck the environmental protection standard, the radiation standard, it also invalidated the licensing rule" that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission must apply. "There's no going forward until they get a standard that can withstand challenges." The recent announcement that U.S. Geological Survey documents may have been falsified in Yucca Mountain studies is a somewhat separate issue but pertinent to the quality and integrity of data used to support the project, she said. On Thursday, Brian Sandoval, Nevada's attorney general, wrote to U.S. Attorney Gen. Alberto Gonzales seeking immediate action on the matter. Gonzales should "direct that DOE immediately make all e-mails relevant to this matter available to my office," Sandoval wrote. (The alleged falsification was brought to light in e-mails.) "Second, I ask that your office move immediately to secure the entire Yucca Mountain data base at the project site to protect it from further manipulation. To the extent fraudulent activity has occurred, no one connected with the project should be allowed access to the very data being investigated." According to Adams, the geology at Yucca Mountain is not good for a nuclear waste repository. "Yucca Mountain itself is in one of the most seismically active zones in the country," she said. A key issue is groundwater travel time, the rate at which water flows through the mountain, she said. If water flows through the mountain relatively swiftly, in geological terms, it might erode the storage site sooner than the design standards are supposed to allow. Adams cited one study carried out in part by Los Alamos National Laboratory that groundwater can travel through the mountain in 50 years. Researchers "found a radioactive isotope from atomic testing in the Pacific" that suggested a fast travel time through the mountain. "That study put DOE in a hard position to move forward on Yucca Mountain," she said. DOE then asked the USGS to conduct another examination. It was this testing that was involved with the purportedly falsified information, she said. "We believe Yucca Mountain's in its death throes," she said. Still, "it's a very concerning situation." Adams said she believes Utah is "finally waking up (to the fact) that it's not just Nevada's problem." E-mail: bau@desnews.com ---- State officials: DOE's Yucca woes are 'tip of the iceberg' By Benjamin Grove and Mary Manning LAS VEGAS SUN March 22, 2005 http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/sun/2005/mar/22/518489314.html?"yucca%20Mountain" Energy Department officials knew they had quality assurance problems with Yucca Mountain documents well before it was disclosed last week, according to internal department documents. Document review memos from 2000 also suggest that the department may have more than just documentation problems -- several memos indicate that certain scientific data was questionable due to problems with faulty equipment. "We believe that there is so much faulty QA (quality assurance) stuff in there that we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg," Nevada Nuclear Projects Agency director Bob Loux said. Energy Department officials last week said that they had unearthed e-mails by U.S. Geological Survey employees working on Yucca that indicated USGS workers had falsified Yucca documents. Both Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and USGS director Chip Groat directed their agency inspectors general to investigate. Roughly 20 e-mails sent by a USGS geologist to a supervisor between 1998 and 2000 were discovered by Energy Department contractors on March 11 that indicated documents had been falsified. The e-mails were found as part of a massive review of millions of pages of Yucca documents, as the department prepares to submit an application to construct Yucca. Bodman disclosed the alleged falsifications last week, but did not release the actual e-mails. Nevada lawyers, seeking to find the e-mails on a Yucca Mountain document database, uncovered some documents they say are even more damning. In May and June of 2000 Energy Department employee James Raleigh noted lists of document and data problems in three separate internal reports. He was unavailable for comment. In several cases, department documents indicate that equipment was calibrated before the calibration equipment had even been received. That "does not appear appropriate," Raleigh noted. The reports catalog numerous examples of sensitive high-tech equipment not being properly calibrated, which can affect scientific data results. In one case, the instrument used to calibrate a pressure-measuring device called a transducer was itself not calibrated. "Therefore, the data acquired are not valid," the report states. In another case, Raleigh noted that calibration weights called "Troemner Weights" were themselves out of calibration and that "no impact evaluation was provided to justify the acceptability of the data obtained with this equipment." The three reports authored by Raleigh also document a number of simple bookkeeping problems, including missing record numbers, errors in document title fields, even page numbering errors. Energy Department spokeswoman Anne Womack Kolton stressed that the USGS e-mails and the Raleigh memos were completely separate sets of documents. In the first set, a federal employee allegedly willfully falsified documents, she said. The second set represent a routine "normal back-and-forth" of information between project managers, she said. It cannot be immediately known how or whether the issues in the Raleigh documents were resolved, she said. "One would expect that there are a number of documents of this sort, where people are discussing additional questions that need to be addressed," Womack Kolton said. Loux said that the documents posted on the Yucca Mountain Project Web site are the final versions prepared for submitting a license application to begin building the repository. "This is the record they intend to submit to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. This is the final record," Loux said. Before the Raleigh memos, seven pages listing questionable data, equipment not calibrated and missing information from five weather stations used at Yucca Mountain were checked by Energy Department employee Brian Mitcheltree on June 12, 2000. The U.S. Geological Survey came under fire for not calibrating automated weather stations. Instead, a technician applied "prorated data corrections" to the humidity probes in 1997, after two years' operation in the field, the report shows. Rain gauges were not calibrated at any of the five stations, although "operational checks" were done on Aug. 14 and 15, 1996, but not in the field before the gauges were removed, the report indicates. "Data produced by these rain gauges are useable for licensing purposes," the report says. In an earlier May 10, 2000, memo all review documents for the properties of water are missing as well as all supporting records for future climate analysis. Egan said that the scientific work under scrutiny in the USGS e-mails and in the Raleigh memo was part of the documentation used to convince President Bush that Yucca Mountain could contain highly radioactive wastes from commercial nuclear reactors and federal Defense Department nuclear weapons development. Bush recommended the site to Congress, which approved Yucca Mountain as a repository over the veto of Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn in 2002. That decision may have been based on fraudulent information, said Joe Egan, an attorney for Nevada. "It may be criminal," under federal and state statutes, Egan said. Egan and a team of experts were examining thousands of documents over the weekend that had been released and posted on a Yucca database by the Energy Department as part of its license application preparations. Ultimately, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will be responsible for reviewing and acting on the Energy Department's license application, an effort that could take four years. While the commission has no control over the information the Energy Department is including in its license application, commission staffers are monitoring the application data. The commission staff had questions about missing information, incomplete scientific field notes and flaws in quality assurance at the Yucca Mountain project in the 1990s, said former NRC site representative Bill Belke, who retired in 2001. -------- washington Fluor Hanford to lay off up to 200 Tuesday, March 22nd, 2005 By Annette Cary, Tri City Herald staff writer http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/story/6299353p-6175258c.html Fluor Hanford told employees Monday that it plans to lay off up to 200 workers next month. Fewer workers will be needed because of projects that have been completed, such as the removal of irradiated nuclear fuel from the K Basins, and the contractor continuing to work more efficiently, said Geoff Tyree, spokesman for Fluor Hanford. In addition, Fluor will receive less money from the Department of Energy in the current fiscal year than originally expected, he said. Earlier this month Fluor sent a memo to workers warning them to expect near-term layoffs and also more layoffs during the balance of its contract. Fluor's contract for managing the Hanford site and performing cleanup ends in September 2006. Fluor employs 4,039 people, including subcontractor employees. The layoffs may include not only Fluor employees, but also employees at Day and Zimmermann Protection Technology Hanford, Duratek Federal Services of Hanford and Numatec Hanford Corp. Union and nonunion employees may be included. Fluor is asking for volunteers through March 30. It's offering employees who are laid off a week of salary for every year worked up to 20 years and will pay the company's portion of medical premium for up to a year. Help will be offered to employees looking for new jobs, including coaching on writing resumes and interviewing, according to Fluor. Employees picked for layoffs will be notified April 18, and April 29 will be their last day on the payroll. The list of types of employees who will be considered for the job cuts is lengthy, and includes engineers, mechanics, millwrights, clerks, buyers, instrument technicians and nuclear waste process operators. In 2004, Fluor laid off 60 workers in January and 55 in June. Employees have been worried about larger layoffs since the proposed Hanford budget for fiscal year 2006 was announced last month. It proposes cutting the budget for Hanford from nearly $2.1 billion this year to a little more than $1.8 billion in fiscal year 2006. -------- wyoming 2 Wyoming firms seek OK to reopen uranium ore mill Associated Press Tuesday, March 22, 2005 http://deseretnews.com/dn/view2/1,4382,600120235,00.html?textfield=nuclear Two Wyoming mining companies have filed a request with the state of Utah to reopen a uranium ore processing mill shuttered since the early 1980s. The request from U.S. Energy Corp. and its partner, Crested Corp., comes as uranium prices register higher than they've been in decades. The mill in question is Shootering Canyon, about 15 miles north of Lake Powell near Ticaboo, Garfield County. The Shootering mill is the last and most modern uranium mill built in the United States, U.S. Energy spokesman Don Warfield said. It is one of only four uranium mills left in the country, and only two of those are now operating. U.S. Energy, which owns nearby uranium mining acreage, expects to eventually mine that property to provide feedstock for the mill. The company, however, estimates it could take up to two years to secure the necessary permits to reopen the mill, which operated only a few months after construction was completed in 1982. The companies estimate it will cost about $25 million to make the mill operational. They hope to arrange financing while the license application is processed by the Division of Radiation Control, which is part of the Utah Department of Environmental Quality. Uranium is selling above $21 per pound. It sold as low as $7.50 per pound in 2001. The surge is occurring because some are concerned uranium supplies for power plants worldwide may be within a decade of outstripping existing supplies. U.S. Energy's proposal, though, is not without critics. "It is just a bad idea to restart a mill to provide more fuel for existing nuclear powerhouses," said Sarah Fields, chairwoman of the nuclear Waste Committee of the Utah Sierra Club's Glen Canyon Group. "We still don't have a solution to the spent fuel problem, and we're still dealing with the waste from all the other mills." Uranium mining boomed in Utah after miner Charles Steen in 1952 struck a deep bed of ore near Moab. By 1955, the year the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission announced a cooperative program between the federal government and the nuclear power industry to develop power plants, there were approximately 800 mines operating in the region. The industry collapsed in 1962. -------- MILITARY -------- asia Protesters seize government sites March 22, 2005 By Kadyr Toktogulov ASSOCIATED PRESS http://www.washtimes.com/world/20050321-093605-9274r.htm OSH, Kyrgyzstan -- Thousands of protesters, some armed with clubs and Molotov cocktails, seized control of key government buildings and the airport in Kyrgyzstan's second-largest city yesterday, prompting security officers and local officials to flee and loosening the government's grip over a swath of this former Soviet republic. The opposition also took control of government buildings in four other cities and towns across Kyrgyzstan's impoverished south, Interior Ministry spokesman Nurdin Jangarayev said. Protesters burned and stomped on portraits of President Askar Akayev and seized protective shields from police. Others ran through the streets carrying bottles of flammable liquid. The protests yesterday won the first concession from Mr. Akayev, who ordered a probe into charges of widespread vote-rigging in two rounds of parliamentary elections since Feb. 27. The charges -- reminiscent of election fraud claims that toppled governments in two former Soviet republics, Georgia and Ukraine -- have led to demands for Mr. Akayev's resignation and to weeks of increasingly violent protests in this Central Asian republic. The opposition has charged that Mr. Akayev, 60, who is prohibited from seeking another term, planned to manipulate the parliamentary vote to gain a compliant legislature that would amend the constitution to allow a third term. Mr. Akayev has denied wanting another term. Abdil Seghizbayev, an aide to Mr. Akayev, vowed that security forces would not take action against the protesters, but said peace talks would be possible only after order is restored. "Neither the authorities nor opposition leaders can control the crowd right now," he said. "If an [opposition] leader emerges who can control the protesters, the government will be ready to talk to him." The capital, Bishkek, has remained calm, but the opposition vowed yesterday to press on until Mr. Akayev resigned. Roza Otunbayeva, leader of the Ata-Jurt Movement, one of the main opposition groups, and a former foreign minister, ruled out any talks with Mr. Akayev. "We have one aim only: to oust this government. ... There is no need for talks anymore," she said. But another opposition leader, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, said talks would be possible if Mr. Akayev attended. In Osh, many police, security forces and local officials fled the demonstrators, some of whom shouted, "Akayev, go." Others burned a billboard bearing Mr. Akayev's portrait. The protesters seized the governor's office and regional police and security stations. About 100 others took control of Osh Airport after meeting no resistance, police said. Security officers sat on their packs at the airport in the face of protesters, awaiting evacuation. "This is a new day in our history," said Omurbek Tekebayev, an opposition official in Osh. -------- latin america U.S. halts funds to Nicaragua in missile dispute March 22, 2005 By Rowan Scarborough THE WASHINGTON TIMES http://www.washtimes.com/national/20050321-104107-6924r.htm The Bush administration has suspended $2 million in military aid to Nicaragua after a high-level U.S. delegation failed to produce the immediate destruction of 1,000 shoulder-fired SA-7 anti-aircraft missiles in the Central American country. A senior administration official told The Washington Times the suspension is the first step in a more concerted effort to force the elimination of a weapon that Washington views as a national security threat. The official said the State Department had hoped a delegation led by acting Assistant Secretary of State Rose M. Likins last month would persuade the Nicaraguan military and opposition Sandinista party to agree on the destruction of the weapons. Ms. Likins issued a statement afterward saying that President Enrique Bolanos had reaffirmed his commitment to destroy the missiles. But the administration official, who asked not to be named, said Mr. Bolanos has little power over the issue and that Ms. Likins' delegation received a rude reception from other Nicaraguans. "It did not go well," said the official. "Little was accomplished." The Washington Times first reported in January that a joint Nicaragua-U.S. sting caught two Nicaraguans trying to sell an SA-7 they thought was going to Colombian terrorists. U.S. diplomats announced the suspension of aid Friday night in the capital city of Managua. The administration official said the arrests buttressed Washington's suspicions that elements of the Nicaraguan military have hidden as many as 400 SA-7s and plan to sell them on the black market for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Mr. Bolanos' power has been limited by Sandinista elements inside the military and the national assembly. The assembly has voted not to allow the president to destroy military equipment unless lawmakers give their explicit permission. The missiles are left over from Soviet shipments in the 1980s to aid the ruling Sandinistas in their war against a U.S.-backed insurgency. The Sandinistas subsequently lost power in national elections, but the Marxist party has gained seats in local and assembly elections in recent years and has loyal officers well-placed in the military. The SA-7 seized in January did not match any serial number of missiles inventoried by the Organization of American States. In the hands of al Qaeda or other terrorist groups, an SA-7 could be smuggled into the United States and used to shoot down a passenger jetliner. At the State Department yesterday, spokesman Adam Ereli said the $2 million "is a small part" of overall economic assistance of $46 million annually and that it was put on hold while the Nicaraguan government resolves its differences. Mr. Ereli refused to single out the Sandinistas for criticism. "I don't have a comment on one party or another party," he said. In Managua, Defense Minister Jose Adam Guerra told the Associated Press his government has decided to destroy some missiles, but keep a reserve arsenal of about 400. He said U.S.-Nicaraguan relations have suffered "a chill that we can recover from." -------- space Russia, China urge start to space weapons talks By Robert Evans REUTERS 7:09 a.m. March 22, 2005 http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20050322-0709-arms-space.html GENEVA – Russia and China declared on Tuesday that rapidly advancing technology made it increasingly urgent to start international talks on banning all weaponry from outer space to prevent an arms race. But senior diplomats from the two powers said they were still awaiting a response from the United States – which argues that no such treaty is needed – on compromise proposals for negotiations they presented nearly two years ago. "It is urgent to stop the weaponisation of outer space and maintain it for the peaceful use of all humankind," Hu Xiaodi, China's ambassador to the U.N.-sponsored Conference on Disarmament (CD), told a news briefing. Russia's deputy chief negotiator at the 65-nation CD, Anton Vasilyev, said it was vital "to start working out a legally-binding instrument (treaty) ... to prohibit the deployment of any kinds of weapons in space." They were speaking during a two-day seminar on the space arms issue that their two countries organised with the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research and a leading Canadian research centre, the Vancouver-based Simons Centre. Officials said the U.S. administration did not attend the meeting, although some independent academic bodies from the United States, along with scholars and industry representatives from several other countries, were present. "It is clear that views on this issue in the United States are divided ," Wade Huntley of the Simons Centre, which focuses on disarmament and non-proliferation issues at the University of British Columbia, told the briefing. Officials from the U.S. Bush administration, which is creating a National Missile Defence System (NMD) against attacks from "rogue states" or terrorists, routinely insist that there is no danger of a space weapons race and that no treaty is needed. In August 2003, China – with backing from Russia which has already declared it would not be the first to put arms in space – announced it was ready for talks even if they were not specifically aimed at producing a binding treaty. Previously, Beijing had insisted that there must be formal negotiations within the CD – currently holding the first of its three annual 10-week sessions – on a space arms pact, a project which has been in the air for more than a decade. "Since we offered our compromise, the United States has kept silent on whether it could agree to a modest mandate (for talks) and not made its position clear," said China's Hu. "We still keep hoping that our efforts in this field will be duly reciprocated," declared Vasilyev. -------- ENERGY -------- alternative energy Goldman Sachs To Buy Wind-Power Development Firm REUTERS USA: March 22, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/30038/story.htm NEW YORK - Investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Monday said it agreed to acquire Zilkha Renewable Energy, a wind-power development firm, adding to its growing portfolio of power generation assets. New York-based Goldman declined to disclose terms of the transaction. Zilkha Renewable of Houston, led by father and son team Selim and Michael Zilkha, is developing wind-power projects with nearly 4,000 megawatts of generating capacity in a dozen states. The purchase includes Zilkha's interest in the 200-megawatt Flat Rock Wind Power project in Lewis County, New York, and its stake in the 150-MW Blue Canyon Phase II project in Oklahoma. Both projects are expected to be completed by the end of this year. -------- OTHER -------- health Toxic Chemicals Found in Household Dust Across USA NEW YORK, New York, March 22, 2005 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2005/2005-03-22-05.asp There are many hazardous chemicals in common household dust and they are making Americans sick, says a coalition of nine environmental organizations. An analysis of dust in 70 U.S. homes released today shows that particles from detergents, packing materials, textiles, computers and cosmetics, among many other ordinary objects, can be hazardous to human health. The study, "Sick of Dust: Chemicals in Common Products - a Needless Health Threat in Our Homes," is the first in the United States to look at a wide range of chemicals used in computers, cosmetics, upholstery, pesticides and other products. All the chemicals tested are legal despite the fact that they are internationally recognized as toxic or harmful to the immune and reproductive systems. Child vacuums in her New York City apartment. (Photo credit unknown) Babies and young children are particularly at risk from exposure, the report says. "Why take a chance with the lives of our children?" asked Beverley Thorpe, international director of Clean Production Action during a press conference to release the report. "Manufacturers and retailers need to stop using toxic chemicals which are building up in our bodies and switch to safer alternatives which are readily available." In the first nationwide tests for brominated flame retardants in dust swiped from computers, two of the groups in the the Computer Take-Back Campaign and Clean Production Action found these neurotoxic chemicals on every computer sampled. The highest levels found were a form of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) called deca-BDE, one of the most widely used fire retardant chemicals in the electronics industry. These results indicate that there is exposure to certain brominated flame retardants and that computers are likely to be a source of deca-BDE exposure in the dust of homes, offices, schools, and businesses. All exposures, no matter how small, are of concern because deca-BDE is a bioaccumulative substance. This means that multiple exposures to low levels of deca-BDE add up over time and build up in the body. This report finds that computer manufacturers can prevent unnecessary risks by using safer alternatives that meet stringent fire standards in the United States and are less harmful to human health and the environment. Dusting a computer screen (Photo credit unknown) Apple, for example, is replacing the plastic exterior casings on its new laptops with metal to negate the need for flame retardants. Toshiba now uses an inherently flame resistant plastic, polyphenylene sulphide, for casings of electronics. NEC has a new biobased plastic that negates the need for brominated or phosphorus based flame retardants. In fact, exposure to all the chemicals in household dust is "unnecessary and avoidable," the coalition says. "We have a right to safety in our own homes," said Angela Grattaroti, a participant in the "Sick of Dust" study who is a mother and co-chair of a parent advisory council for special education in Leominster, Massachusetts. "It is inexcusable to subject our children to harms that can be avoided." The information collected for the "Sick of Dust" shows six main types of chemicals in people's homes. All composite samples were contaminated by all six of the following chemical classes: 1. Alkylphenols - Found in laundry detergents, textiles, hair-coloring, paints and all-purpose cleaners. These chemicals mimic natural estrogen hormones, leading to altered sexual development in some organisms. 2. Organotin Compounds - Found in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) water pipes, PVC food packing materials, glass coatings, polyurethane foams, and many other consumer products. Poisonous even in small amounts, these chemicals can disrupt the hormone, reproductive and immune systems. Animal studies show that exposure early in life can also have long-term effects on brain development. 3. Perfluorinated Organics - Used to make Teflon, Goretex and other stain-resistant materials for nonstick frying pans, utensils, stove hoods, carpets, furniture and clothing. These chemicals have been shown to damage organ function and sexual development in lab animals, and are potentially carcinogenic. 4. Pesticides - Applied in and around homes for controlling infestations of various insects and used in carpets. Pesticides include a wide range of chemicals, some associated with cancer, reproductive effects and birth defects, and many are toxic to the nervous system. 5. Phthalates - Used primarily in vinyl (PVC) products such as shower curtains, raincoats, toys, furniture and flooring. Also used in paint, pesticides and personal care products such as perfume, nail polish, hairspray. These chemicals disrupt reproductive systems in animal studies, particularly in male offspring and can contribute to male infertility. They have been linked to asthma and respiratory problems in children. 6. Polybrominated dephenyl ethers, known as brominated flame retardants - Applied to textiles or incorporated into plastics, foams and electrical goods to prevent or slow the spread of fire, these chemicals build up in the body and persist in the environment. Studies show they damage the development of the nervous and behavioral systems in young animals. American women have high levels of these chemicals in breast milk. In addition to Clean Production Action, the following groups helped collect the research for the Sick of Dust report: Alliance for Healthy Tomorrow, Center for Environmental Health, Citizens Environmental Coalition, Ecology Center, Environmental Health Strategy Center, Oregon Environmental Council, Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition and the Washington Toxics Coalition. The coalition recommends an overhaul of federal chemical regulations parallel to the process taking place in Europe. "Current regulations allow the continuing production and use of chemicals in everyday products that are linked to cancer, reproductive and neurological damage," they said today. The most toxic chemicals should be high priority for phase out and substitution with safer chemicals, the coalition urged. Meanwhile, state governments are taking action. In Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Oregon and Washington, legislation is underway to phase out some of the most dangerous chemicals. In addition to regulatory reform, the coalition is calling for corporate responsibility. They use companies such as Dell, IKEA, Herman Miller and Shaw Carpets as examples of how companies can use safer chemicals in their product lines. "Innovation is both feasible and profitable and other companies need to set similar goals and get active," the coalition said. Consumers do have options, and the coalition is recommending that consumers pay attention to the products they buy and find out if the company is working toward a safe chemicals policy. Read "Sick of Dust" at: http://www.safer-products.org