NucNews - July 1, 2005 -------- NUCLEAR -------- accidents and safety Emergency Declared at FitzPatrick Nuclear, Plant Shut Down OSWEGO, New York, July 1, 2005 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2005/2005-07-01-09.asp#anchor1 An emergency was declared last night at the James A. FitzPatrick nuclear power plant eight miles northeast of Oswego, and the plant was manually shut down from full power. During a scheduled inspection carried out only once every 15 years, inspectors discovered a "small through wall crack" below the waterline of the large tank surrounding the drywell that contains the reactor, and "a small puddle below leak." After “further engineering analysis determined that operability of the primary containment was not assured,” the reactor was ordered shut down by the shift manager at 7:30 last night. Normally the tank surrounding the drywell is half full of water. The crack challenged the structural integrity of the reactor's primary containment and forced the plant, operated by Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., to be shut down. Entergy could not be reached for comment on the incident. The FitzPatrick plant is located on the shore of Lake Ontario, about 50 miles northwest of the nearest large city Syracuse, New York. FitzPatrick has a boiling water reactor manufactured by the General Electric Company. FitzPatrick is equipped with GE’s Mark I primary containment design, sometimes called a lightbulb in a donut because of its shape. Nuclear engineer David Lochbaum with the Union of Concerned Scientists questions the scope and frequency of the inspection program at FitzPatrick. On July 28, 2003, he recounts, Entergy asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for permission to perform integrated tests of containment integrity at FitzPatrick every 15 years instead of every 10 years. In that request, Entergy described its inspection program for the primary containment saying, "These inspections [of the drywell] provide a high degree of assurance that any degradation of the containment will be detected and corrected before it may provide a containment leakage path. The inspections to date have not identified degradation that threatens the structural integrity of the containment." The NRC approved Entergy’s request to reduce the frequency of the integrated containment integrity testing at FitzPatrick. Lochbaum says the inspection program for the primary containment at FitzPatrick appears deficient because this event shows that it failed to assure “any degradation of the containment will be detected and corrected before it may provide a containment leakage path.” "A small puddle on the floor beneath a through wall crack in the torus is rather compelling evidence the inspection program failed its mission. The inspection program is not supposed to find puddles," Lochbaum said. "It is supposed to prevent puddles." ---- Leaky tank closes nuclear plant for repairs 7/1/2005, 10:09 p.m. ET The Associated Press http://www.syracuse.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-13/1120268867174900.xml&storylist=ny SCRIBA, N.Y. (AP) — A leaky water-storage tank shut down the James A. FitzPatrick plant Thursday night, and the plant remains closed for repairs. An "unusual event," or the lowest level of four emergency classifications, was called when inspectors found what they called "a small puddle" by the tank designed to serve as a backup cooling system for the plant's reactor core. Plant officials declared the unusual event over on Friday evening. Repairs will take less than two weeks, and after that it will take a day or two to restart the plant, officials said. The plant has been in commercial operation since 1975. Oswego County's Director of Emergency Management Patricia Egan was notified, and one of the plant's two Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspectors was called in to observe the closing. The Washington-based Union of Concerned Scientists said the leak raised concerns about the inspection process at the plant. "The inspection program is not supposed to find puddles, it is supposed to prevent puddles," a statement from the group said. Kenneth Klapp, spokesman for the New York Independent System Operator, which runs the state's power grid, said his organization tries to keep a power reserve that is more than double the FitzPatrick plant's 855-megawatt output. This is the first such event at the FitzPatrick plant since 2003, when a wave of blackouts caused unusual events at nuclear plants throughout the region, plant officials said. Since 1993, when changes created the current notification system, there have been four unusual events at the FitzPatrick plant. Information from: The Post-Standard, http://www.syracuse.com ---- DOE monitoring Britain spill to learn from mistakes there 7/1/2005, 3:00 p.m. PT By SHANNON DININNY The Associated Press http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/washingtonstate/index.ssf?/base/news-14/1120254162105660.xml&storylist=orwashington YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — Federal officials are closely monitoring the investigation into a leak at a nuclear waste treatment plant in Britain — a plant managed by the same company that was initially hired to design, build and operate a similar plant at the Hanford nuclear reservation in south-central Washington. Officials with the U.S. Department of Energy, which manages the Hanford site, do not believe the leak will have any effect on the design of Hanford's waste treatment plant. However, they continue to monitor Britain's investigation into how the leak occurred — and went undiscovered for months — to learn from any mistakes that may have been made there, said John Eschenberg, project manager for the Energy Department's Office of River Protection. "The bottom line for me is that there's no real corollary between that plant's design and our plant's design," Eschenberg said this week. "But we're not going to blow it off and say their plant is so different from ours. That would be foolish." The leak at the Sellafield nuclear site in Britain — an estimated 22,000 gallons of liquid nuclear waste — was discovered April 19. An investigation by the British firm that manages the site, British Nuclear Group, determined the leak had gone undetected for three months. The leak was limited to a sealed room, and no radiation was released, said Carla Hages, spokeswoman for BNG America. British Nuclear Group, formerly British Nuclear Fuels, is the parent company of BNG America, formerly BNFL Inc., which won the original contract to design, build and operate the waste treatment plant at the Hanford site. The Energy Department fired BNFL in 2000 after the company's construction cost estimate ballooned from $6.9 billion to $15.2 billion. Portions of the original design by BNFL have been continued by the new contractor, including the concept of sealed rooms around waste tanks, but the design of the piping and the tanks is very different, Eschenberg said. Metal fatigue has been blamed for the pipe leak in Britain. "If in fact, they identify any engineering shortcomings, we'll make sure we can take advantage of those as they might apply to our design here," Eschenberg said. "My focus is on the lessons learned from an operational standpoint, and then going forward, on what they learn as they clean the cell." The Hanford plant will use a process called vitrification to turn highly radioactive waste into glass logs for permanent disposal in a nuclear waste repository. The waste, about 53 million gallons, is stored in 177 aging underground tanks less than 10 miles from the Columbia River. The plant is being designed as it is being built. Earlier this week, The Associated Press learned that Congress had requested an investigation into the plant. The review is likely to center on its skyrocketing cost, which was estimated at $4.35 billion before the contract was awarded to Bechtel National in 2000. Already, the cost has grown more than 30 percent — to $5.8 billion — and is expected to rise even further as the Energy Department evaluates seismic concerns in light of a new seismic review released earlier this year. The Energy Department announced Tuesday it was halting construction on parts of the plant most affected by seismic concerns. For 40 years, the Hanford reservation made plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons arsenal. Today, work there centers on a $50 billion to $60 billion cleanup, to be finished by 2035. -------- business They Celebrated 1,100 Miles Of Pipeline, While We Mourned Our Dead Friday, 1 July 2005, 3:57 pm Opinion: Vincent L. Guarisco By Vincent L Guarisco http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0507/S00011.htm "There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people for a purpose which is unattainable." U.S. Historian ~Howard Zinn, 1993 As the war in Afghanistan and Iraq rolls onward like a well-heeled Greek wheel, a little under-the-radar event went unnoticed by the disserving mainstream news media. Less than a week before Memorial Day, while we as a nation prepared for another mournful day of remembrance of those who died while serving bravely in the Armed Forces, another special celebration was in the works: On May 25th 2005, with hardly a smidgeon of news coverage, U.S. officials celebrated the completion of the first section of a 1,100-mile U.S.-backed pipeline bringing Caspian Sea oil to Western markets. British Petroleum (B.P.) Chief Executive John Brown, whose company leads the venture that built the pipeline, was in attendance and ecstatic with dollar signs dancing in his head (and in his bank account). It was after all, a "pipedream" come true after years of denial from a Clinton Administration who prevented American businessmen from doing business with terrorist regimes. The $3.2 billion project is expected to deliver 1 million barrels of "Texas Tea" a day from the world's third-largest oil and gas reserves, through Georgia to the Mediterranean. That's a lot of oil even by "Texas" standards. And for those who stand to gain immensely -- undoubtedly, this venture is considered a pot of black gold at the end of a very bloody rainbow. However, it's common knowledge that before you can enjoy a rainbow, you must first weather the storm, and no one can appreciate a depleted-uranium hailstorm more than the Afghan and Iraqi populations. I don't speak Afghan or Iraqi, but - I'm sure the horrified expression on the many faces of young and old alike served as a chilling interpretation, as coalition bombers delivered their "hard steel rain." I guess it's safe to say that "fear" is a universal language that anyone can understand, sort of like speaking in war tongues, if you catch my meaning. I want you to think about this for a moment: while thousands of Americans made painful pilgrimages across this vast nation to honor our fallen and to pay their respects at cemeteries and churches on Memorial Day, U.S. officials joined BP officials and other oil tycoons in celebrating their pipeline. And they continue to celebrate it even today as our sons and daughters continue to perish on multiple battlefields. I guess British Petroleum, and the rest of the shrewd gang concluded that oil is much thicker and far more profitable than the spilled blood of American soldiers and innocent civilians. Indeed. They must. And logic dictates in the wake of this madness that if you want something bad enough, anything can be made to happen or be "fixed" in order to achieve that means, including Pearl Harbor events, manipulation of national foreign policy, and wars being fought under the pretense of lies. Hummm, a haunting phrase comes to mind as they celebrated their pipeline, as they count their blood money and as they continue on with their grim war agenda -- "Mission Accomplished." Americans are not stupid; they are beginning to understand that this bunch of greedy warmongers is the worst collection of cowards ever to land on the throne of power -- in this "freedom-loving" country anyway. It does not set well with the American people for a group to get away with murder just because they have the money and power to do so. And they despise those who are willing to sacrifice the lives of their fellow citizens as well as innocent women and children for no other reason than to extend that power. Generation after generation has always seen the yellow stripe that runs down the backs of rich preppies who are shielded from the horrors of war by their rich and powerful parents. Even the village idiot in the White House can appreciate the fact of gentility. He fully understands that, when the rich start their wars, it's not the rich who get sent to fight them. Oh sure, a few of them go as they put together a political career, but we know who toes the frontline. Hey George, can you say champagne unit three times real fast and keep a straight face? I didn't think so. So remember, next time you see the commander-in-thief propped up in front of his corporate media teleprompter, blathering on about spreading bunker-buster democracy -- and how we must not retreat from war -- remember, he held the coats as others fought in his absence during the Vietnam War. And currently, while his oil buddies high-five each other in celebration of their new oil pipeline, our sons and daughters will continue to pay for their greed with their lives. They will continue to die for the lies that were fixed to support their policy of greed, power and imperialism. My motive in writing this essay is quite simple, I want you to get angry. I want you to get very angry and demand that this madness be stopped. History has proven time and time again that when the warmongers lose the mob (society), war comes to an abrupt end. Spread the word, peace is patriotic, bring the troops home now. Vincent L Guarisco is a freelance writer from Bullhead City, Arizona, a contributing writer for many web sites, and a lifetime founding member of the Alliance of Atomic Veterans. Replies welcomed at vincespainting1@hotmail.com ---- FERC approves PSEG/Exelon merger Friday, July 01, 2005 From Staff Reports, New Jersey Sunbeam http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-0/112020604322350.xml&coll=9 Chicago-based Exelon Corporation and and Newark-based Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated Thursday received approval of their proposed merger from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The approval is one of just several -- including shareholder approval -- the two utility companies will need for the deal to be finalized. The FERC determined that the Exelon/PSEG merger satisfies the public interest standard of the Federal Power Act. "We are delighted that the commission has acted to approve the merger expeditiously, recognizing the very real benefits that it will deliver. This is a significant milestone toward completion," said Betsy Moler, executive vice president of government and environmental affairs and public policy at Exelon. "We look forward to reviewing the formal order as soon as it is available." Ed Selover, senior vice president and general counsel of PSEG, said, "We offered a substantial and comprehensive mitigation proposal, and we are gratified that the Commission recognized it as robust. This was the outcome we had hoped for and expected." PSEG is the parent company of PSEG Nuclear, operator of the Salem 1, Salem 2 and Hope Creek nuclear reactors on Artificial Island in Lower Alloways Creek Township. The complex is the second largest commercial nuclear complex in the country. The companies, in December 2005, announced their plan for the merger. A management team from Exelon in January took over the day-to-day operations fo the three nuclear plants in LAC for PSEG. The merger now requires the approval of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities and Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, as well as reviews by U.S. Department of Justice, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New York Public Service Commission, and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. Shareholders of both companies will take action on the merger in July. Exelon and PSEG expect to close the merger by the second quarter of 2006. Exelon is one of the nation's largest electric utilities with approximately 5.2 million customers and more than $14 billion in annual revenues. PSEG is a major integrated energy and generation company with more than $10 billion in annual revenues. It serves about 2 million electric and 1.6 million gas customers in New Jersey. ---- BNFL puts Westinghouse up for sale Fri Jul 1, 5:16 AM ET (AFP) http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050701/wl_uk_afp/britainusnuclear_050701091630 LONDON - Nuclear reprocessing firm British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) announced it was putting up for sale Westinghouse, its power station building arm in the United States. State-owned BNFL -- operator of the Sellafield waste reprocessing plant in Cumbria, northern England -- said in a statement there had already been a "number" of approaches for Westinghouse. The group was being advised on the sale by investment bank NM Rothschild and Sons. The US unit was a prime asset with "all the skills to prosper in the private sector", BNFL added Friday. Mike Parker, group chief executive, said: "Westinghouse is a very successful operation in its own right. "It has reached all its targets, continues to win new business and is in an excellent position to capitalise on the China new build programme." The sale process would determine whether a disposal would realise appropriate value for the US-based nuclear power station construction and services business, Parker added. --- British Nuclear Approached About Westinghouse Unit (Update5) Last Updated: July 1, 2005 13:04 EDT (Bloomberg) http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10001099&sid=aliAej57D8b4&refer=energy July 1 -- British Nuclear Fuels Plc said its Westinghouse unit, whose technology is used by almost half of the nuclear plants in the world, has drawn interest from 15 potential buyers as record oil prices spur interest in alternative energy. The approaches included some ``fairly high offers,'' said Belinda Yates, a spokeswoman for the company in London. She didn't identify the potential buyers. Westinghouse was bought by British Nuclear in 1999 for $1.1 billion, Yates said. More than $200 billion will be spent on nuclear power by 2030, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency, an adviser to 26 of the world's largest energy users. A surge in oil to a record above $60 a barrel and concern that the carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels leads to global warming are driving the revival. ``The overall cost of generating from nuclear is much more competitive than two years ago,'' said Andrew Whalley, who helps manage the equivalent of $186 million for Premier Fund Management in Guildford, England. ``Companies are making enormous profit from their nuclear plants.'' Companies with nuclear technology businesses include General Electric Co. in the U.S., Germany's Siemens AG and Areva SA of France. Westinghouse, based in Pittsburgh, had sales of 1.1 billion pounds ($2 billion) in the year ended March 31, British Nuclear said in a PR Newswire statement earlier today. It had pretax profit of 18 million pounds. NM Rothschild & Sons is advising on the sale, the company said in the statement. Nuclear Revival Asian countries including China, India, South Korea and Japan are leading the global nuclear construction program. Westinghouse is competing with Areva for an $8 billion contract to build four Chinese reactors. The Chinese government may reach a decision by the end of this year, said British Nuclear Chief Executive Officer Michael Parker during a conference call earlier today. The four planned reactors are the first of more than 20 in a $54 billion push to quadruple Chinese nuclear-power capacity by 2020 -- an effort to ease power shortages in an economy that grew 9.5 percent last year. ``Areva is considering its position and nothing is decided yet,'' Charles Hufnagel, a spokesman for the company, said of possible interest in the Westinghouse unit. Areva has a market value of about 12.7 billion euros ($15.2 billion). New Reactors Paris-based Areva trades at about 1.1 times its sales of about 11.1 billion euros, although the company isn't comparable to Westinghouse because Areva is more profitable, said Axel Funhoff, an analyst with Bear Stearns & Co. in London. Finland is building the first nuclear plant in Europe approved since 1986 and France is planning a $3.6 billion reactor. NuStart LLC, a group of utilities including New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. and Constellation Energy Group, said in May it expects to select two sites by October for the first U.S. nuclear power stations in 30 years. Westinghouse is ``attractive because there's a belief we'll be building nuclear plants in the U.S. in the next decade, with possibly a huge ramp-up in orders in 10 years after new designs are developed and proven,'' said Barry Abramson, who helps manage about $28 billion at Gabelli Asset Management in Rye, New York, including shares of Entergy and Exelon Corp., the two biggest U.S. nuclear plant owners. First Nuclear Plant Westinghouse was founded by George Westinghouse, who patented a rotary steam engine in 1865, according to the company's Web site. The company was a pioneer in electric lighting and railcars, and later built jet engines. In 1957, it helped build the first commercial nuclear power plant, at Shippingport, Pennsylvania. U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair said on June 27 that nuclear power may be needed to meet future electricity needs. Still, the U.K government has postponed a decision on whether to build new reactors until next year, when the Committee for Radioactive Waste Management finishes a report on how to handle the waste. British Nuclear, based in Daresbury, England, transferred ownership of its Magnox nuclear stations, its nuclear liabilities and the Sellafield fuel reprocessing plant to the state-owned Nuclear Decommissioning Authority on April 1. British Nuclear now plans to focus on contracting services for the NDA such as running and decommissioning nuclear stations. Full-Year Loss ``Our strategy review concluded that British Nuclear's businesses would be managed to deliver value and control risks to the U.K. taxpayer,'' said Chairman Gordon Campbell in the statement. ``In line with this strategy, we are starting a sales process for the Westinghouse business.'' British Nuclear today reported a loss of 344 million pounds in its fiscal year, compared with a loss of 194 million pounds in the previous year, because of reorganization costs. Sales from continuing operations rose to 2.4 billion pounds from 2.3 billion pounds, British Nuclear said. In Western Europe and the U.S., nuclear approvals ground to a halt after the Chernobyl explosion in Ukraine sent radiation as far away as Sweden. Death rates among the more than half a million workers who participated in the cleanup operation soared, and thyroid cancer rates in Gomel, Belarus, increased 22-fold from 1986 through 1990. The Three Mile Island meltdown in Middletown, Pennsylvania, in 1979 was the most serious U.S. nuclear incident. The accident caused ``negligible'' harm to people and the environment though it led to ``fear and mistrust'' of the industry and the government, according to a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission fact sheet. Greenpeace Opposition Even Ukraine, where the 1986 Chernobyl blast killed 31, the world's worst nuclear disaster to date, sees nuclear energy as a way to break a reliance on Russia for oil. Environmentalists including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth still oppose nuclear energy for being ``dirty and dangerous.'' Nuclear waste ``has no solution'' and will ``threaten ourselves and future generations,'' Greenpeace said on its Web site. Nuclear waste is the 1 percent of a plant's radioactive fuel that can't be reprocessed and that has to be stored either in sites or buried underground. Any spillage of the waste could lead to cancer if ingested by humans, according to Greenpeace. To contact the reporter on this story: Elena Moya in London at moya@bloomberg.net Mathew Carr in London at m.carr@bloomberg.net --- Germany Arrests Man Suspected of Aiding Libyan Nuclear Program July 1, 2005 (Bloomberg) http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000100&sid=aCj038SzZiAI German authorities today arrested an engineer suspected of having helped Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi develop nuclear arms after he was extradited from Switzerland, the prosecutors' office in the city of Mannheim said. The 62-year-old German national, who wasn't identified, had been in Swiss custody since November and was handed over to Germany yesterday, the prosecutors in the southern city said in a statement on their Web site. ``The suspect is believed to have supported Libya by supplying equipment for the development and construction of centrifuges for the enrichment of uranium with the purpose of producing nuclear weapons,'' the office said. Qaddafi agreed to abandon the development of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons in 2003. This paved the way for Libya, Africa's biggest holder of oil reserves, to open its economy to foreign investment and trade. The U.S. has since ended 18 years of sanctions. German authorities are questioning the suspect for violation of arms control and international trade laws. The Federal Prosecutor dropped more serious charges after a court in Switzerland wouldn't allow extradition for treason, the Mannheim prosecutor said. `Illegal Network' The man was arrested Nov. 13 in Switzerland's St. Gallen canton, according to a press release from the Federal Prosecutor at the time. He was a member of an ``illegal international network'' that has been doing business in centrifuge technology since the 1990s, the Federal Prosecutor said. He received up to 5 million Swiss francs ($3.89 million) for his activities between the years 2001 and 2003, the prosecutor said. Other suspects in the ring are a Swiss national and a German living in South Africa, according to the Federal Prosecutor. The U.S. declared Libya a ``state sponsor of terrorism'' in December 1979 and closed the Libyan Embassy in Washington in May 1981, accusing it of supporting international terrorist groups and trying to subvert Arab and African governments. The U.S. imposed economic sanctions in January 1986 that prohibited most economic dealings with the country. It restored diplomatic ties in June 2004. To contact the reporter on this story: Friederike Peters in Berlin at fpeters1@bloomberg.net. Last Updated: July 1, 2005 10:12 EDT -------- china China invests $6 mln into thermonuclear reaction study www.chinaview.cn 2005-07-01 20:09:17 (Xinhuanet) http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-07/01/content_3163565.htm BEIJING, July 1 -- China's Ministry of Science and Technology announced here Friday to invest 50 million yuan (6 million US dollars) more to the country's ongoing research on thermonuclear experimental reactors. The basic study on fusion reactions, which would be coordinated by Huo Yuping, professor at Zhengzhou University in central China, obtained the largest sum of funds of the National Basic Research Program in fiscal year 2005-2006. Scientists with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Institute of Plasma Physics have already developed an Experimental Advanced Super conducting Tokamak, one prototype of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), which costs 10 billion euros and gathers researchers from the European Union, the United States, Japan, Russia, the Republic of Korea and China. The ITER is widely regarded as a testing step between today's plasma physics studies and tomorrow's electricity-producing fusion power plants. The new Chinese investment into the thermonuclear research will speed up construction of such reactors, a senior official with the ministry said. Using deuterium, which is everywhere in seawater, as fuel for reactions, a hydrogen plasma torus operating at over 100 million Celsius degrees will produce 500 megawatts of fusion power. The ITER, which means "the way" in Latin, is based on that idea. The National Basic Research Program, which was written in March 1997 and coded as the 973 Program, is designed to finance the country's most strategic basic research frontiers. The state has poured the largest sum of money, worth 1.46 billion yuan, into the 54 projects this fiscal year. Cheng Jinpei, vice minister of Science and Technology, said after the announcement, "The 973 Program is aimed at combining scientists' pioneering spirit with the nation's strategic scientific research planning." From 1998 to the end of 2004, the state sponsored a total of 188 projects within the 973 Program framework. -------- europe Suspected nuclear technology dealer indicted in Germany MANNHEIM, Germany (AFP) Jul 01, 2005 http://www.spacewar.com/2005/050701121154.x3i2z2t0.html A German man was indicted Friday on charges of helping Libya develop uranium enrichment equipment that could be used to produce nuclear weapons, prosecutors in this southern city said. The 61-year-old, who was extradited from Switzerland Thursday, is suspected of breaking German laws on international trade and defense material exports. He was arrested last November in Switzerland on an international warrant issued for his alleged role in helping Libya build centrifuges to enrich uranium as part of a nuclear weapons program between 2001 and 2003. Prosecutors suspect him of participating in an international network launched in the 1990s and based primarily in Dubai that dealt illegally in high technology. Other suspects include an expert in vacuum technology who has been extradited to Switzerland as well as a German businessman living in South Africa. Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi has said his nation has renounced weapons of mass destruction and that he aims to develop a nuclear program strictly for civilian use. ---- France Targets Greenhouse Gas, Nuclear Plan to Help REUTERS FRANCE: July 1, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/31489/newsDate/1-Jul-2005/story.htm CADARACHE - President Jacques Chirac said on Thursday the country stood by its pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions and said a new nuclear fusion project hosted by France could lead to a cleaner form of energy. France was picked on Tuesday to build the world's first nuclear fusion reactor in the southern town of Cadarache, about 70 Km (45 miles) from Marseille. Backers of the project said it could one day provide the world with endless cheap energy. But environmentalists have criticized France for hosting the reactor, calling it a waste of money and resources that could be better used to cut greenhouse gases. "Given the greenhouse effect, our battle is to stabilise emissions between now and the end of 2012 and to cut them by a quarter between now and 2050," Chirac said at a visit to the site of the future nuclear reactor. The experimental reactor has a price tag of 10 billion euros ($12.18 billion). "The aim is one day to be able to develop an abundant energy source for humanity, an energy source that doesn't damage the climate," he said. Environmental campaigners Greenpeace said it was a "ridiculous" project and the Sortir du Nucleaire grouping of 718 anti-nuclear groups, called it a "financial black hole". The ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project seeks to mimic the way the sun produces energy, potentially providing an inexhaustible source of low-cost energy using seawater as fuel. It will create 1,000 research jobs and a further 3,000 jobs indirectly related to the project, which involves fusing rather than splitting atoms to release energy. Chirac praised France's nuclear energy programme as a "major asset". France has been a big producer of nuclear energy since the oil shocks of the 1970s and has 58 nuclear reactors, more than any country in the world except the United States. France beat off a rival bid from Japan to host the reactor. The ITER project is backed by China, the European Union, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States. ---- Portuguese Tycoon Heads Bid to Build Nuclear Plant REUTERS PORTUGAL: July 1, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/31496/newsDate/1-Jul-2005/story.htm LISBON - Investors headed by tycoon Patrick Monteiro de Barros will seek to build a nuclear power plant in Portugal with an investment of 3.5 billion euros, Monteiro de Barros said on Thursday. The group will approach the Socialist government with a plan to construct the plant, which will have a capacity of 1,600 megawatts, he told a news conference. "We think this is the best energy option. It will reduce the trade deficit, allow the country to be more competitive and allow it to become an energy exporter as well," said Monteiro de Barros, whose investments centre on the oil sector. The oil price rally to record levels around $60 a barrel has put the spotlight on alternative sources of energy. Portugal's state-owned electricity generator EDP is a heavy user of fuel oil for power generation Construction would take 57 months and there are a number of potential sites, he said. Monteiro de Barros declined to name the other investors. The investors have already told the government of Prime Minister Jose Socrates of their intentions, he said. The plant would be built without public funds. -------- japan No leakage in nuclear plant fire The Japan Times: July 1, 2005 http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20050701b5.htm SHIZUOKA (Kyodo) A fire broke out Thursday night at a facility of the Hamaoka nuclear power plant in Omaezaki, Shizuoka Prefecture, but no radioactivity leaked outside of the plant, the operator said Thursday. The company said the fire caused no injuries. The 9:10 p.m. fire occurred in the second basement of a building constructed for disposal of waste materials, Chubu Electric Power Co. said. -------- korea North Korea wants U.S. to withdraw remark 7/1/2005 9:36 PM (AP) http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-07-01-nkorea-us_x.htm NEW YORK — North Korea told the United States that it must withdraw its description of the communist nation as an "outpost of tyranny" and treat Pyongyang as a friend if it wants nuclear talks to resume, a senior North Korean official said Friday. North Korea's director general of North American affairs, Li Gun, told reporters after a two-day conference on northeast Asian security that the next step is up to the Americans. Speaking in English, Li said, "We told them (the U.S.) to just withdraw the words 'outpost of tyranny.' We demand it." Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called North Korea one of the world's "outposts of tyranny" during her confirmation hearings in January. She defended the characterization last month, telling Pyongyang if it wants economic help it must give up its nuclear weapons and return to the six-party talks. The State Department confirmed that Joseph De Trani, the top U.S. official to the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program, and James Foster, who is in charge of the department's office of Korean affairs, resumed contact with the North Koreans at the conference. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said there were no negotiations between the two sides at the closed meeting. "We are still waiting to hear from North Korea a date when they will return to the six-party talks and engage in those talks in a constructive manner," he said. De Trani told reporters it was a good meeting but would not elaborate. Speaking in Korean, Li said the two sides exchanged positions and that he told the Americans "the United States has to treat us friendly, not as enemy, if they want us to take part in the six-party talks." Li said it wasn't the right time to talk about when the talks would reopen. "We have to watch the Americans, what kind of steps the Americans take," he said. Li's remarks in Korean were translated by the correspondent for South Korea's main daily newspaper, Chosun Ilbo. Later, Li told the correspondent for the Japanese daily, Tokyo Shinbun, that the conference was useful. "We are ready for resuming the six-party talks, and we told them that," he said in English. "The U.S. must create some justification to enter into the six-party talks." "We never deny or oppose to six-party talks. Our position is that once they give us justification, we can enter any time into six-party talks," Li said. "I think they heard our voices, and it's up to them. We will see it," he said. The multilateral talks — involving North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia — have been stalled since June 2004. Since then, North Korea declared it has nuclear weapons, claiming they are a deterrent against a possible attack by the United States. The State Department announced North Korea's agreement to resume talks on June 6 following a meeting in New York between De Trani, Foster and senior North Korean diplomats, but no date has been set. AP Diplomatic Writer Barry Schweid contributed to this report from Washington. -------- pakistan Nuclear power: no solution to global warming M V Ramana The Pakistan Friday Times, July 1-7, 2005, Vol. XVII, No. 19 http://www.thefridaytimes.com From: Sukla Sen There is simply no way global warming can be stopped without significant reductions in the current energy consumption levels of developed countries Whatever else one could say about nuclear power in the old days, it was certainly not considered environment-friendly. Over the past few years, however, a number of so-called environmentalists, generally Western, have come out in support of nuclear power as an essential component of any practical solution to global warming. Predictably, flailing nuclear establishments everywhere have grabbed this second opportunity to make a claim for massive state investments and resurrect an industry that has collapsed in country after country due to its inability to provide clean, safe, or cheap electricity. But just as the old mantra "too cheap to meter" proved ridiculously wrong, the claims that nuclear energy can contribute significantly to mitigating climate change do not bear scrutiny. Most prominent of these so-called environmentalists turned pro-nuclear advocates is James Lovelock, who propounded the Gaia hypothesis of the Earth as a self-regulating organism. Last year he entreated his "friends in the [Green] movement to drop their wrongheaded objection to nuclear energy." Lovelock's article had several factual errors. For example, "nuclear energy from its start in 1952 has proved to be the safest of all energy sources" One wonders which of the many renewable energy sources promoted by the Green movement - photovoltaics, wind energy, and so on - has had an accident that even remotely compares with Chernobyl. Even more inexplicable is the assertion: "We must stop fretting over the minute statistical risks of cancer from chemicals or radiation. Nearly one third of us will die of cancer anyway, mainly because we breathe air laden with that all pervasive carcinogen, oxygen." Despite such nonsense, Lovelock's article was circulated widely, both by the nuclear lobby and by other environmentalists who were either confused or felt that this sort of argument had to be refuted strongly. Lovelock's bloomers aside, the fact that some environmentalists have endorsed nuclear power as a solution to global warming deserves serious consideration and response. The enormity of the potential impact of climate change adds to this imperative. Two implicit but flawed assumptions underlie most claims about the significance of nuclear energy for the climate-change issue. The first is that climate change can be tackled without confronting and changing Western, especially American, patterns of energy consumption - the primary causes and continuing drivers for unsustainable increases in carbon emissions and global warming. This is plain impossible; there is simply no way global warming can be stopped without significant reductions in the current energy consumption levels of Western/developed countries. Efforts by various developing countries to match these consumption levels only intensify the problem. The second flawed assumption is that the adoption of nuclear power will lower aggregate carbon emissions. In a strictly technical sense, each unit of electricity produced by a nuclear plant would cause the emission of fewer grams of carbon than a unit of electricity generated by thermal plants. (A false myth often propagated by the nuclear lobby is that nuclear energy is carbon free. In reality, several steps in the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining to enrichment to reprocessing, emit copious amounts of greenhouse gases.) And so, the assumption goes, installing a large number of nuclear power stations will lower carbon emission rates. The problem is that the assumption holds true only if all else remains constant, in particular consumption levels. But that is never the case. In fact, there is no empirical evidence that increased use of nuclear power has contributed to actually reducing a country's carbon dioxide emissions. The best case study is Japan, a strongly pro-nuclear energy country. As Japanese nuclear chemist and winner of the 1997 Right Livelihood Award, Jinzaburo Takagi pointed out, from 1965 to 1995 Japan's nuclear plant capacity went from zero to over 40,000 MW. During the same period, carbon dioxide emissions went up from about 400 million tonnes to about 1200 million tonnes. There are two reasons why increased use of nuclear power does not necessarily lower carbon emissions. First, nuclear energy is best suited only to produce baseload electricity. That only constitutes a fraction of all sources of carbon emissions. Other sectors of the economy where carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are emitted, such as transportation, cannot be operated using electricity from nuclear reactors. This situation is unlikely to change anytime in the near future. A second and more fundamental reason is provided by John Byrnes of the University of Delaware's Centre for Energy and Environmental Policy, who observed that nuclear technology is an expensive source of energy service and can only be economically viable in a society that relies on increasing levels of energy use. Nuclear power tends to require and promote a supply-oriented energy policy and an energy-intensive pattern of development. The high cost of nuclear power also means that any potential decreases in carbon emissions due to its adoption are expensive, certainly higher than energy efficiency improvements as well as other means to lower emissions from thermal power plants. One other argument advanced by some of these so-called environmentalists is that nuclear power is just an interim solution while better solutions are worked out. The idea is wholly at odds with the history of nuclear establishments around the world and completely underestimates the remarkable capabilities of powerful institutions to find resources for continuing existence and growth. Once such institutions are established, they will find ways to ensure that they are not disempowered. For nuclear power to make a significant dent in global warming, nuclear capacity must grow manifold (ten-plus). The notion that nuclear power can increase manifold from current levels and then be phased out is wishful thinking, to say the least. Such a projection also completely ignores existing realities - uncompetitive costs, safety concerns, the unresolved problem of radioactive waste, and the link to the bomb - that come in the way of any significant expansion of nuclear power. Global warming is a serious issue. Providing ill-thought out answers is no way to address such a grave problem. -------- russia Chile, Russia to sign nuclear deal By UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL Published July 1, 2005 http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20050701-032659-8831r MOSCOW -- Chile and Russia Wednesday signed an agreement for the peaceful use of nuclear energy under a bilateral cooperation program. Russia's Atomic Energy Federal Agency Director Alexander Rumiantsev and Chilean Mining Minister Alfonso Dulanto signed the deal in Moscow during the first round of bilateral economic and commercial cooperation talks. "Chile has few energy resources and is considering the possibility of building a nuclear plant", said Rumiantsev, adding Chile invited Russia to participate in the project. The two sides are also considering enhancing bilateral cooperation in development and infrastructure programs such as Chilean companies investing in Russia's food industry and helping develop the copper deposits in Eastern Siberia. -------- security Senate OKs bill to fund lab projects CAROL A. CLARK, lanews@lamonitor.com, Los Alamos Monitor Staff Writer July 1, 2005 http://www.lamonitor.com/articles/2005/07/01/headline_news/news01.txt The Senate's passage of the FY2006 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill moves millions in federal dollars forward to fund critical scientific and nuclear weapons security programs, Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. said today. The bill provides $25.04 billion for DOE in FY2006, $1.12 billion more than the budget request and $778 million more than FY2005. The Senate approved the $31.2 billion total funding measure, 92-3, early this morning to fund DOE and water programs administered by the Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation. In a news release from Domenici's Washington, D.C., office he stated, "This bill has been carefully crafted to strike the right balance between maintaining our nuclear arsenal and advancing basic scientific research in this country. I believe the strong Senate support shown today reflects the careful consideration we took in making sure that America's immediate water needs are balanced without long-term need for scientific advances." As chairman of the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, Domenici will lead the conference committee negotiations to reconcile differences between the House and Senate versions of this bill. Domenici said he looks forward to a productive conference to reconcile two very different Senate and House bills. "It will be a challenge, but it is important that we reach an accord that suits our security and scientific priorities," he said. "I know that Sens. Domenici and (Jeff) Bingaman have both worked very hard to take care of Los Alamos and protect and promote the science being done here," Rep. Jeannette Wallace, R-Los Alamos, said in an interview this morning. "I know they feel confident that this bill has what it should." Domenici provides $1.7 billion for nonproliferation activities, which is $91.8 million above the request and $236 million over FY2005. The bill provides level funding, $577 million, for the Yucca Mountain project in Nevada. Domenici included a provision for Lab Directed Research and Development (LDRD) that will allow up to 8 percent - up from 6 percent-of a lab budget to be used for laboratory-initiated scientific R&D. "These funds for LDRD support a central program that contributes to the revolutionary technologies researched at the laboratories. The innovations explored here have a profound impact on our national security strategy," Domenici said. For New Mexico, Domenici added $4.6 million to complete construction of the Center for Integrated Nanotechnology (CINT), a joint Sandia and Los Alamos venture at Kirtland Air Force Base. The bill also has $30 million to establish a National Nanotechnology Enterprise Development Center at CINT to support the transfer of technology from four nanotechnology centers into the commercial market. The bill provides $25.04 billion for DOE in FY2006, $1.12 billion above the budget request and $778 million more than FY2005. The bill has $1.08 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation ($130 million more than the budget request and $63.5 million more than FY2005) and $5.3 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers ($258 million more than FY2005 and $966 million over the budget request). For DOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) nuclear weapons activities, the bill has $6.55 billion. This is $76 million less than the budget request largely due to the $222 million transfer of cleanup operations from the NNSA to the Office of Environmental Management and a reduction in construction funds for the National Ignition Facility (NIF). The bill also includes $230.6 million for WIPP, including $18 million for a variety of related projects in the Carlsbad area and $24.5 million to the state of New Mexico for transportation funding. Highlights of the New Mexico-related spending included by Domenici in the FY2006 Energy & Water Development Appropriations Bill include: # Environmental Cleanup-$142.2 million for cleanup of lab property. The bill rejects the Administration's proposal to require NNSA to perform cleanup and requires the Office of Environmental Management to maintain this responsibility. # Environmental Cleanup / Los Alamos County - $5.2 million to Los Alamos County to support the cleanup and stabilization of the LANL landfill at the Los Alamos Airport, an increase of $3.3 million more than the budget request. # Advance Simulation Computing (NNSA)-$75 million earmarked to purchase a 150 teraflop machine at Los Alamos to reduce the time it takes to perform a weapons calculations. Currently, LANL has the most responsibility under the Life Extension Program (LEP), but the slowest computer (20 teraflop). LANL has been running a calculation on the existing computer for the past 19 months. The new computer will only take three months to develop a solution for the same calculation. (LANL share of the $735 million in Advanced Simulation and Computing, including the $75 million earmark is $269.8 million.) # Science Campaigns-Additional $46 million to the Science campaign to support increased R&D efforts at LANL. Within the increases, LANL will receive: $5 million to initiate preliminary engineering and design work on upgrades to the LANSCE facility; and, $15 million from the Dynamic Materials Properties program to support experimentation on the Atlas Machine to validate thermodynamic properties. # Stockpile Systems/R&D Certification-$10 million to support additional hydrodynamics test at LANL. # Red Network Expansion-$20 million increase to complete the expansion of classified network at LANL, the same level as FY2005. # TA-18 Cat III/IV-$2 million increase to begin design effort for a new facility to accommodate Cat III/IV material that is in the process of moving out of TA-18 # Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Facility (CMR)-$65 million, a $10 million increase, to keep construction on track and reduce costs because of schedule delays. Domenici secured $39.6 million for the project in FY2005. # Advanced Fuel Cycle-$7 million earmark for Material Test Station at LANSCE to support material science research. This is the second year request for the material test station at LANL. This account is provided $85 million in FY2006. For Joint Lab Funding: # National Nanotechnology Enterprise Development Center-$30 million to establish the National Nanotechnology Enterprise Development Center at CINT, a joint Los Alamos and Sandia facility. This fund will support the transfer of technology out of the four nanotechnology centers into the commercial market. # Chemical/Biological Detection R&D-$30 million is added to the Nuclear Detection R&D effort within the Office of Nuclear Nonproliferation to support long-term R&D efforts. # ICF Stockpile Support (Inertial Confinement Fusion Campaign)-$41.1 million has been provided to support stockpile stewardship activities on Z Machine, which will be distributed in the following manner: $12.9 million to Sandia National Labs; $16.5 million to LANL; $11.6 million to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The budget request proposed to eliminate these activities in an effort to support NIF construction. # Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW)-$25 million, an increase of $15 million, to support a design competition between Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore to design replacement components on existing weapons. The goal will be to reduce overall lifecycle cost, improve safety and reliability of our nuclear deterrent. # Lab Directed Research and Development-Bill and report language have been included supporting an increase in the LDRD program to spend up to 8 percent (up from 6 percent) of the lab budget for laboratory-initiated scientific R&D. This will provide additional resources to support cutting-edge science that contribute to the mission, but may not be directly relevant to today's challenges. # WASTE ISOLATION PILOT PLANT-$230.6 million for the DOE Carlsbad Area Office and WIPP, an $18 million increase over the budget request. The bill has $24.5 million in transportation funding to be provided directly to the state of New Mexico. This overall funding level includes the following earmarks added by Domenici: # Accelerated Cleanup: $6 million added by Domenici the purchase of TRUPACT-III containers. # Community Impact: $3.5 million for infrastructure improvements, and acceleration impact funding for the Carlsbad community. # Center of Excellence: $2 million for continued development of the Center of Excellence for Hazardous Materials Management. # Neutrino Research: $1.5 million to support ongoing research at WIPP. # MIND Institute: Domenici secured $12 million, a $1.0 million increase over FY2005, to continue federal support for the Mental Illness and Neuroscience Discovery Institute (MIND Institute). The institute funds three national centers of excellence in functional brain imaging in Albuquerque, Minneapolis, and Boston. The New Mexico center of excellence involves the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories. # Global Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention - $50 million for IPP program to cost-share with industry to engage Russian Scientists in commercial and non-weapons related activities. There is strong New Mexico support for this Domenici-created initiative. # Yucca Mountain: $577 million, the same level as FY2005 and $64 million below the budget request. The bill does not address the interim storage issue. # NNSA Stockpile Stewardship Program: $6.57 billion for nuclear weapons Stockpile Stewardship activities, $224 million over FY2005. This program is carried out at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Nevada Test Site, and at plants in Texas, Missouri, Tennessee and South Carolina. This funding includes: $2.09 billion - Science-based Stockpile Stewardship ($17 million over request). $25 million - Reliable Replacement Warhead program ($15 million over request). $314 million - National Ignition Facility, but no funds to continue construction. # Defense Environmental Management: $7.2 billion, a $324 million above the request. # Directed Stockpile Stewardship-$1.45 billion, up $37 million above the request (+2.5%). This includes: # Reliable Replacement Warhead-$25 million, an increase of $15 million, to initiate a design competition between the weapons laboratories to improve the existing stockpile to reduce design tolerance to reduce maintenance cost and ensure the lab directors ability to certify the stockpile. # Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator-$4 million to complete the testing of this concept by FY2007. There are no plans or funding to develop this weapon. # Science Campaign-$307.9 million, up $46 million above the request, to support research and experiments that are critical to certification of the stockpile. # Engineering Campaign-$272.7 million, up $52 million, to support R&D efforts in weapons security to prevent terrorist from ever using U.S. weapons. # Inertial Confinement Fusion-$314 million to support critical R&D funding to support high yield experiments on Z machine, the Omega Laser and NIF. The budget virtually eliminated all experimental work in order to support NIF construction. # National Ignition Facility (NIF)-No construction funding is provided. Instead the NNSA is directed to use the existing laser, the most powerful in the world to focus on supporting the Science Campaign and stockpile stewardship activities. # Advanced Simulation Computing-$735 million, $75 million over the budget request, which will support the purchase of new computers to support the stewardship program. This will improve the Life Extension Program (LEP) at LANL, which has the smallest computer but largest LEP responsibility. # Pit Manufacturing and Certification-$248.7 million, equal to the budget request and including $7.68 to support a Modern Pit Facility. # NNSA Infrastructure-$1.66 billion, up $64 million, for construction and O&M of NNSA facilities (RTBF Account), including $65 million (up $10 million) for LANL CMR Replacement, and $65.5 million for construction and $12 million for operation of Sandia's MESA facility. # Nuclear Nonproliferation - $1.73 billion, an increase of $91.8 million above the request and $236 million above FY2005 levels. # Nonproliferation Detection R&D-$297 million, up $30 million, to support long-term research into chemical and biological detection. # International Materials Control-$343 million, a $24 million increase over FY2005, to support nuclear materials control activities in Russia. # Global Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention- $50.9 million, up $13 million, to engage Russian weapons scientist in commercial efforts. Additional funding is provided to expand the scope of cooperation to other countries that may pose a proliferation threat. # Plutonium Disposition (MOX)-$362 million for construction of a MOX fabrication facility. This program is fully funded as a result of positive U.S.-Russia negotiations. # Global Threat Reduction Initiative-$108.9 million, an increase of $11 million, to increase the collection of civilian radiation sources in the United States, and $7 million to convert up to four U.S. university research reactors from highly enriched uranium fuel to low enriched uranium fuel. # DOE Office of Science Research-$3.7 billion in basic scientific research, which is $240 million over the budget request and $97 million over FY2005. This includes: # Genomes for Life -$40 million to accelerate the deployment of four research facilities # DOE Science Facilities-$100 million to support 100 percent utilization of all DOE facilities. # Nanotechnology Transfer Fund-$30 million to establish this fund to help commercialize. nanotechnology discoveries at the four nanoscience research centers. These collaborative facilities will provide access to world-class DOE and NNSA facilities. # Spallation Neutron Source-$41.7 million to fully fund this Oakridge National Lab program. # Domestic Fusion Research-$290 million to restore funding for this work. # DOE Office of Science-$3.72 billion, $240 million above the request and $102 million above FY2005, which includes: $100 million to guarantee 100 percent runtime capacity for all DOE science facilities, some of which may only run 12 weeks this year. $40 million for the Genome to Life program, as well as language instructing DOE to use the nanotechnology centers as a model and build four proposed genome facilities. $30 million is provided to establish a technology development fund. # Fossil Energy R&D-$646.6 million, $79 million over FY2005, including: Clean Coal Power - $50 million Future Gen - $18 million Carbon Sequestration - $74 million, up $7 million Fuel Cells - $69 million Natural Gas Technologies R&D - $27 million, up $17 million Oil Technology R&D - $32 million, up $22 million # Nuclear Energy: $449.9 million for nuclear energy initiatives, a $64.3 million over FY2005 and $60 million over the request. This includes $76 million for Nuclear Power 2010 (up $20 million); $60 million for the Generation IV Nuclear Energy Initiative (up $15 million), including language requiring DOE to focus on two reactor designs; $40 million for the Next Generation Nuclear Reactor project in Idaho; and $85 million for the Advanced Fuel Cell Initiative (up $10 million, in addition to including $7 million for the LANCE program at LANL). # Renewable Energy Technologies-$1.24 billion, $53 million over the budget and $13 million over FY2005, for renewable energy R&D. All Congressional earmarks are paid for and will not undercut DOE research. This funding includes: $182 million for hydrogen, $13 million over FY2005 $92 million for biomass research, $20 million above the request $187 million for vehicle technology R&D, a $20 million over FY2005 $240 million for weatherization assistance, up $15 million # High Temperature Superconductivity R&D: $55.5 million, a $5.5 million increase over the budget request, for this research. LANL plays a big role in this superconductivity research. -------- treaties States Seek to Strengthen Nuclear Material Treaty Friday, 1 July 2005, 11:37 am Press Release: United Nations In Face of Potential Nuclear Terrorism, States Seek to Strengthen UN-Backed Treaty http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0507/S00020.htm New York, Jun 30 2005 3:00PM - Concerned by the potential for nuclear terrorism, more than 350 delegates from 80 States Parties to a United Nations-backed treaty on safeguarding nuclear material open a five-day conference in Vienna, Austria, on Monday aimed at adopting additional measures to avert smuggling or sabotage that could further such acts. The Vienna-based UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is the depositary of the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM), the only legally binding international agreement providing physical protection of nuclear material and ensuring improved security in the aftermath of the September 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States. "Following the recent adoption of the International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of International Terrorism, the CPPNM amendments will be yet another milestone in international efforts to improve the physical protection of nuclear materials and facilities," IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said earlier this month. Since 2001, a group of experts has worked to strengthen the physical protection regime under the current Convention, which was signed in Vienna and New York in 1980. It applies to the protection of nuclear material used for peaceful purposes while in international transport and also contains provisions related to offences relating to nuclear material used for peaceful purposes while in domestic use, storage a transport. Strengthening the current Convention entails a stronger and uniform physical protection regime applicable to both nuclear material and facilities used for peaceful purposes. The amendments will provide for an expanded regime that aims at the protection of nuclear material against theft, smuggling and sabotage, and nuclear facilities against sabotage. The regime also provides for expanded cooperation between States regarding rapid measures to locate and recover stolen or smuggled nuclear material, to mitigate any radiological consequences of sabotage and to prevent and combat relevant offences. -------- ukraine Ukrainian nuclear energy firm halts electricity exports to Russia KIEV (AFP) Jul 01, 2005 http://www.spacewar.com/2005/050701135734.i031u840.html Ukraine's nuclear energy company has halted electric power exports to Russia because of a steep price hike on the internal wholesale electricity market, the company said Friday. Ukraine's Energoatom stopped its exports to Russia overnight, its press office told AFP. Energoatom exports 500 million kilowatt hours of electricity to Russia each month, a spokeswoman said. The move came after Ukraine's national electricity regulation commission hiked the price at which Energoatom buys electricity for Russian exports by 77 percent, from 6.91 kopeks (1.3 US cents) per kilowatt hour to 12.2 kopeks per kilowatt hour, Interfax reported. The price increase was effective from July 1, Interfax said. The head of the regulation commission said that the price increase was based on calculations by the national wholesale electricity operator, Energorynok. Energorynok computed a price under which it was economically feasible for the wholesale market to sell Ukrainian energy for export, Interfax quoted commission head Valery Kalchenko as saying. Kalchenko said the increase was not connected to an ongoing dispute between Ukraine and Russia over gas prices and deliveries and said that if Moscow refuses to purchase the electricity under the new price, Kiev could sell it either to Belarus or on the internal market. -------- u.s. nuc weapons US Senate defeats move to stop nuclear bomb study Fri Jul 1, 2005 01:14 AM ET By Richard Cowan (Reuters) http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8948952 WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats on Friday failed to stop the Energy Department from studying the feasibility of a "bunker buster" nuclear bomb the Bush administration is considering. By a vote of 53-43, the Senate refused to delete $4 million in funds to study the experimental weapon that would penetrate the earth and explode to demolish buried enemy targets. The funds were included in a bill that would fund Energy Department activities in the fiscal year starting on Oct. 1. A House of Representatives version of the bill does not contain funds to study the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator. "We're talking about a study. What's the harm in getting the study?" asked Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner, a Virginia Republican. Democrats said it would send a dangerous signal to other countries that the United States was headed toward development of a new class of nuclear weapons, thus encouraging them to develop their own arsenal. "What moral authority do we have to ask others to give up their nukes if we're determined to develop a new generation of nuclear weapons of our own?" asked Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy, a Democrat. Besides the $4 million for the Energy Department study, the administration has asked Congress for $4.5 million to fund Pentagon research into the bunker buster. The Pentagon funding was not included in House legislation and the Senate has not yet considered it. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, cited scientists' beliefs that a bunker buster, if ever used, would spread deadly radiation. "There is no way you can drive a missile casing deep enough to prevent radioactive spewing," Feinstein said. The Pentagon has estimated that 70 countries are trying to protect key military assets, such as weapons of mass destruction or command and control facilities, from aerial bombing by hiding them in deep underground bunkers. The fate of the Energy Department's bunker-buster study will be in the hands of House and Senate negotiators on this funding bill. -------- u.s. nuc facilities -------- arizona Feds cite Palo Verde for changes in radiation monitoring July 1, 2005 Associated Press http://www.kold.com/global/story.asp?s=3539003&ClientType=Printable PHOENIX The Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station has been cited by federal regulators for changes that would have made the nuclear plant less effective in the event of a nuclear crisis. The Arizona Republic Web site reports the issue centers around the nuclear power plant's plan to measure radiation levels in an emergency. Plant workers rewrote parts in an effort to make it easier to follow. However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission says the changes were "technically inaccurate" and impossible to execute. Plant operators that are hit with such a violation could face a 65-thousand dollar penalty. The feds opted not to fine plant manager A-P-S. The N-R-C says the utility responded promptly to correct the problem and has a clean record at Palo Verde. -------- tennessee NRC backs license extension at Browns Ferry Friday, July 01, 2005 Huntsville Times http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/1120209478246861.xml&coll=1 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says that extending the operating licenses of the three nuclear reactors at the Tennessee Valley Authority's Browns Ferry plant in Athens by 20 years would not create an adverse environmental impact. The NRC released its summary of its environmental impact findings this week, including public comments and a partial transcript from two public hearings it held in Athens in January. The agency also reported that if the 40-year operating licenses for the reactors are not renewed, the likely environmental impacts "will not be smaller than those associated with continued operation of (Browns Ferry Nuclear). The impacts may, in fact, be greater in some areas." The reactors went online in the 1970s, and all three were mothballed in the mid-1980s following safety concerns and poor operating performance. Units 2 and 3 were restarted in the 1990s and have run successfully. Unit 1 has been dormant since 1985 and is currently the subject of TVA's $1.8 billion effort to restart it in 2007. If the license renewals are approved, as expected, the reactors would operate through the 2020s. -------- wisconsin PSC drastically cuts Alliant rate hike The Madison, WI, Capital Times July 1, 2005 http://www.madison.com/tct/mad/business//index.php?ntid=45520 The state Public Service Commission has cut by about two-thirds an electric rate hike for Wisconsin Power & Light Co., the state utility unit of Madison-based Alliant Energy, and reduced its rate of return to 11.5 percent from 12 percent. The PSC ruled Thursday that WP&L will receive an increase of $16.5 million, or 2 percent, on its electric bills, instead of the $48 million, or 5.6 percent, it requested. The PSC also approved about a $2 million, or 0.7 percent, increase in natural gas rates, down from the $4.9 million, or 1.6 percent, hike WP&L requested. A key factor in the PSC decisions was the return to customers of about $56 million associated with the sale of the Kewaunee nuclear plant over two years, rather than spreading the return of the funds out over many more years as WP&L wanted. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Thursday that it has granted a license amendment for Kewaunee to modify its auxiliary feedwater system and return to service from an outage that began Feb. 20. Nuclear Management Co., which operates the plant, said the company was working toward restart but declined to reveal a date. The PSC also allowed approximately $13 million to be collected in rates for WP&L to lease and operate the new natural gas-fired power plant at Sheboygan Falls. And the PSC increased the rate of return on WP&L's Shared Savings energy efficiency program to 11.5 percent from 8 percent. "Early indications are that the PSCW understands the impact rising costs, particularly coal and natural gas, are having on our ability to provide reliable service," said WP&L President Barbara J. Swan. "We also applaud them for equalizing energy efficiency incentives and recognizing the value of our Shared Savings program." Final rates will be determined by PSC staff. Meanwhile, Alliant's Minnesota utility subsidiary, Interstate Power and Light Co., received an oral decision on its request for interim rate relief from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. The MPUC granted, on an interim basis, an annual revenue increase of approximately $3.4 million, or 5 percent, matching IP&L's request. -------- MILITARY -------- asia China, Russia warn of world domination By Vladimir Isachenkov, Associated Press Writer 7/1/2005 http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-07-01-russia-china_x.htm MOSCOW — Russia and China warned other nations Friday against attempts to dominate global affairs and interfere in the domestic issues of sovereign nations in what appeared to be a veiled expression of their irritation with U.S. policy. Presidents Vladimir Putin and Hu Jintao signed a joint declaration after two days of talks calling for a stronger United Nations role in global affairs and opposing attempts "to impose models of social and political development from outside." The two leaders also urged other states to renounce "striving for monopoly and domination in international affairs and attempts to divide nations into leaders and those being led." While the declaration did not identify any specific country, it echoed similar veiled hints by Moscow and Beijing about U.S. policy in global affairs. After decades of rivalry, Moscow and Beijing have developed what they call a strategic partnership since the 1991 Soviet collapse, pledging their adherence to a "multipolar world," a term that refers to their opposition to U.S. domination. China and Russia share a concern about increased U.S. influence in Central Asia since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, which led to American troop deployments in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan for operations in neighboring Afghanistan. While Russia remains a U.S. ally in fighting terror, relations often have been strained by U.S. concerns about backtracking on democracy under Putin and Moscow's worries about what it sees as U.S. meddling in ex-Soviet republics. Russia also bristles at western calls for peace talks with rebels in Chechnya. Beijing is unhappy about U.S. ties with Taiwan. Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory and says the island has no right to conduct foreign relations. "We reinforced our mutual support on key issues like Taiwan and Chechnya which concern our vital interests," Hu said after the talks. The two leaders gave an upbeat assessment on Russian-Chinese relations, which have flourished in recent years and were cemented in a border treaty ratified this year. "We have set a solid foundation for friendship, trust and cooperation for Russia and China for a long time to come," Putin said Friday. Moscow and Beijing dominate the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional security grouping that also includes the ex-Soviet Central Asian nations of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Uzbekistan's President Islam Karimov, facing Western criticism for his government's bloody suppression of a May uprising, has found staunch support in Moscow and Beijing. After their meetings in Moscow, Putin and Hu were due to meet again Tuesday at the SCO summit in Kazakhstan. "We are increasing coordination and cooperation on important regional and international issues, such as guaranteeing stability in Central Asia, the SCO, reform of the United Nations and the nuclear problem of the Korean Peninsula," Hu said. The Russian and Chinese militaries are due to hold their first joint maneuvers later this year — which some observers have seen as Russia's response to cooling relations with the U.S. and other Western nations. China has purchased billions of dollars worth of fighters, missiles, submarines and destroyers after the Soviet collapse, becoming the main customer for struggling Russian defense industries. Now it is eager to tap into Russian oil and gas to fuel its booming economy, and has lobbied hard for priority access over Japan to an oil pipeline carrying Siberian crude to Asian markets. Russian-Chinese trade amounted to about $20 billion last year, and Hu told the ITAR-Tass news agency that it could reach between $60 billion and $80 billion by 2010. -------- europe 200-year-old military draft ends in Italy 7/1/2005 (AP) http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-07-01-italy-draft_x.htm ROME — The Defense Ministry gave clearance Friday for the last Italians serving under the military draft to be discharged, marking the end of a 200-year-old practice. The ministry said it had passed a directive allowing those drafted into the army, navy and air force to go home, even if they have not yet completed their 10-month term. The measure will become effective once a government decree on it is published in the parliamentary gazette, the ministry said. The draft was highly unpopular, and parliament passed legislation abolishing it in 2000, paving the way for an all-volunteer, professional armed forces. The draft was introduced in northwestern Italy in 1800 by the Napoleonic armies, and was extended across the Italian peninsula following the country's unification in 1861. -------- russia / chechnya Russian Defense Ministry Releases Data on 2005 Military Casualties Created: 01.07.2005 MosNews http://mosnews.com/news/2005/07/01/armysuicide.shtml 347 Russian servicemen died from January to May 2005, at least 101 of them committed suicide, the Defense Ministry said on its website. Brutal hazing, widespread in Russian army, led to the deaths of eight conscripts, 88 were killed in road accidents, 83 servicemen died in other types of accidents, 39 were killed by civilians, and 14 died due to carelessness — one soldier accidentally killed himself while handling a weapon. Since January Russian servicemen have committed at least 6,000 crimes. The Defense Ministry reported in February that 1,100 people had died in the army in 2004, while a Russian soldiers’ rights group, Mother’s Right, says that about 3,000 conscripts die each year while doing their mandatory military service in Russia. The foundation’s head, Veronika Marchenko said that about 35 percent of parents seeking guidance in her foundation said that their sons had committed suicide. About 15 percent are the result of murder and beatings, while 17 percent are the result of military action. -------- ENERGY -------- alternative energy Ethanol's Potential: Looking Beyond Corn By Danielle Murray WASHINGTON, DC, July 1, 2005 (ENS) http://ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2005/2005-07-01-02.asp At the fuel pumps in São Paulo, customers have a choice: gas or alcohol? Since the mid-1970s, Brazil has worked to replace imported gasoline with ethanol, an alcohol distilled from locally grown sugarcane. Today ethanol accounts for 40 percent of the fuel sold in Brazil. Ethanol can be produced from a wide variety of plant-based feedstocks, most commonly grain or sugar crops. It is then blended with gasoline as an oxygenate or fuel extender for use in gasoline vehicles, or it can be used alone in "flexible-fuel vehicles" that run on any blend of ethanol and gasoline. Brazil led world ethanol production in 2004, distilling four billion gallons (15 billion liters). The United States is rapidly catching up, however, producing 3.5 billion gallons last year, almost exclusively from corn. China's wheat and corn rich provinces produced nearly one billion gallons of ethanol, and India turned out 500 million gallons made from sugarcane. France, the front-runner in the European Union’s attempt to boost ethanol use, produced over 200 million gallons from sugar beets and wheat. In all, the world produced enough ethanol to displace roughly two percent of total gasoline consumption. Efforts to substitute alternative fuels for petroleum are gaining attention in a world threatened by climate change, rural economic decline, and instability in major oil-producing countries. Biofuel crops take in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while they are growing, offsetting the greenhouse gases released when the fuel is subsequently burned. Replacing petroleum with biofuel can reduce air pollution, including emissions of fine particulates and carbon monoxide. Biofuel production also can improve rural economies by creating new jobs and raising farm incomes. As a locally produced, renewable fuel, ethanol has the potential to diversify energy portfolios, lower dependence on foreign oil, and improve trade balances in oil-importing nations. Although ethanol’s popularity is growing, today’s inefficient production methods and conversion technologies mean that this fuel will only produce modest environmental and economic benefits and could impinge on international food security. The largest obstacle to biofuel production is land availability. Expanding cropland for energy production will likely worsen the already intense competition for land between agriculture, forests, and urban sprawl. With temperatures rising and water tables falling worldwide, global food supply and demand are precariously balanced. World grain reserves are near all-time lows, and there is little idle cropland to be brought back into cultivation. Shifting food crops to fuel production could further tighten food supplies and raise prices, pitting affluent automobile owners against low-income food consumers. Placing greater emphasis on land efficiency—that is, maximizing energy yield per acre—will be essential to making the best use of ethanol. Though corn has broad political support as a feedstock in the United States, it is one of the least efficient sources of ethanol. For example, ethanol yields per acre for French sugar beets and Brazilian sugarcane are roughly double those for American corn. Also important is the amount of energy used to produce ethanol. Growing, transporting, and distilling corn to make a gallon of ethanol uses almost as much energy as is contained in the ethanol itself. Sugar beets are a better source, producing nearly two units of energy for every unit used in production. Sugarcane, though, is by far the most efficient of the current feedstocks — yielding eight times as much energy as is needed to produce the ethanol. Given their positive energy balances and higher yields, it makes more sense to produce ethanol from sugar crops than from grains. Ethanol could quickly take off in sugarcane-producing tropical countries, which have the advantage of year-round growing seasons, large labor supplies, and low production costs. As fuel demand rises in these developing nations, biofuel production could check oil imports while bolstering rural economies. Brazil, for example, could produce enough ethanol to meet total domestic fuel demand by increasing the area used to grow sugarcane for alcohol from 6.6 million acres to 13.8 million acres (5.6 million hectares) or by shifting all current sugarcane acreage to ethanol production. Unfortunately, new fields may cut further into already shrinking rainforests, making them a serious environmental liability. If ethanol is to become a major part of the world fuel supply without competing with food and forests, its primary source will not be grains or even sugar crops; it will be more abundant and land efficient cellulosic feedstocks, such as agricultural and forest residues, grasses, and fast-growing trees. Promising new technologies are being developed that use enzymes to break down cellulose and release the plants’ sugars for fermentation into ethanol. A demonstration plant using this technology opened in Canada last year, and large-scale production is expected to be commercially viable by 2015. Agricultural residues, such as corn stalks, wheat straw, and rice stalks, are normally left on the field, plowed under, or burned. Collecting just a third of these for biofuel production would allow farmers to reap a sort of second harvest, increasing farm income while leaving enough organic matter to maintain soil health and prevent erosion. The agricultural residues that could be harvested sustainably in the United States today, for example, could yield 14.5 billion gallons of ethanol — four times the current output—with no additional land demands. "Energy crops," such as hardy grasses and fast growing trees, have higher ethanol yields and better energy balances than conventional starch crops. One likely candidate is switchgrass, a tall perennial grass used by farmers to protect land from erosion. It requires minimal irrigation, fertilizer, or herbicides but yields 2-3 times more ethanol per acre than corn does. Such crops could potentially be harvested on marginal land, avoiding the conversion of healthy cropland or forests to energy-crop production. Still, with world energy demands rising, biofuels will meet only a fraction of fuel needs unless there are substantial improvements in vehicle fuel economy. Fortunately, the technologies required are available and affordable. Shifting vehicle production to gas-electric hybrids, like those on the market today, and reducing weight and drag would decrease fuel use several fold. Adding an extra battery and plug-in capability to hybrid vehicles would allow short trips to be made using only electric power – preferably produced from wind – decreasing fuel demand to levels that could be met with ethanol alone. Increasing the role of ethanol in meeting fuel demand will require ongoing research and development to improve biomass-ethanol conversion technologies, along with consistent legislative support for biofuel production and greater fuel efficiency in the automotive industry. Shifting government energy subsidies, such as from oil exploration to biofuel development, is a clear choice as new oil fields prove increasingly elusive. With improved vehicle fuel economy and the use of more efficient cellulosic feedstocks, biofuel has the potential to supply a substantial share of the world’s automotive fuel. For more examples of ethanol production by country, see data at: http://earth-policy.org/Updates/2005/Update49_data.htm {Published in cooperation with the Earth Policy Institute, online at: http://earth-policy.org} -------- OTHER -------- environment White House Invests To Address Climate Change Policy balances economic growth, development, and environment 01 July 2005 US State Department http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=July&x=20050701140204cmretrop0.6970026&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html The White House issued a fact sheet June 30 that outlines President Bush’s goal to address climate change with policies that grow economies, aid development and improve the environment. The fact sheet says the Bush administration will have invested more than $20 billion in climate change programs by the end of 2005, more than any other nation. The following terms are used in the text: Greenhouse gas intensity -- The ratio of emissions to economic output FutureGen -- A U.S. Department of Energy program to design and build a large-scale prototype plant to produce electricity and hydrogen from coal with no carbon or other emissions Biomass -- Plant materials and waste used as fuel Gen IV Nuclear -- A 10-nation cooperative effort to pursue technological advancement in the use of nuclear energy The text of the fact sheet follows: (begin text) THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary June 30, 2005 President Bush Is Addressing Climate Change President Bush is dedicated to climate change policies that grow economies, aid development, and improve the environment. The President promotes technological innovation to achieve the combined goals of addressing climate change, reducing harmful air pollution and improving energy security in the U.S and throughout the world. We have an ambitious and realistic goal: In February 2002, President Bush committed to cut our nation's greenhouse gas intensity -- how much we emit per unit of economic activity -- by 18 percent through 2012. We are making real and accelerated progress: The President's goal amounts to an annual 1.95-percent cut in emissions intensity. In 2003 alone, U.S. intensity declined by 2.3 percent. Preliminary figures for 2004 suggest even greater reductions in emissions intensity during a period of robust economic growth. We are pursuing a balanced approach to overcome poverty with policies that protect the environment while promoting development and economic opportunity: The President knows that overcoming extreme poverty goes hand-in-hand with improving the environment. Stagnant economies are one of the greatest environmental threats in our world, because people who lack food, shelter, and sanitation cannot be expected to preserve the environment at the expense of their own survival - and poor societies cannot afford to invest in cleaner, more efficient technologies. The long-term answer to environmental challenges is the rapid, sustained economic progress of poor nations. And the best way to help nations develop, while limiting pollution and improving public health, is to promote technologies for generating energy that are clean, affordable, and secure. Some have suggested that the best solution to environmental challenges and climate change is to oppose development and put the world on an energy diet. But at this moment, about two billion people have no access to any form of modern energy - and blocking that access would condemn them to permanent poverty, disease, high infant mortality, polluted water, and polluted air. The President said that we are taking a better approach. We know that the surface of the Earth is warmer, and that an increase in greenhouse gases caused by humans is contributing to the problem. Though there have been past disagreements about the best way to address this issue, we are acting to help developing countries adopt new energy sources. We are taking action: The President has launched a broad portfolio of domestic and international initiatives to develop and deploy new technologies through a broad range of programs, including: We are providing record funding for climate change programs: The Bush Administration will have spent over $20 billion by the end of 2005, more than any other nation. $5.5 billion is proposed for climate change activities in 2006. The President has also proposed $3.6 billion in tax incentives over 5 years to spur use of clean, renewable, and energy-efficient technologies. These Federal programs are only part of the effort, as they are also leveraging billions of dollars in private investments. We are guided by the following principles at the G8 and beyond: We have shared goals, and our areas of agreement are numerous. Climate change is a serious long-term issue, requiring sustained action over many generations by both developed and developing countries. Developing innovative technologies that are cleaner and more efficient is the key to addressing our climate challenge. The greatest progress will be assured by a cooperative effort that combines our strategies with the best strategies of other nations to improve economic and energy security, reduce harmful air pollution, and reduce greenhouse gases. The President firmly believes that economic growth is essential to success. Only economic growth provides the resources for investment in the next generation of cleaner, more efficient technologies. We oppose any policy that would achieve reductions by putting Americans out of work, or by simply shifting emissions from one state to another, or from the U.S. to another country. Like us, developing countries are unlikely to join in approaches that foreclose their own economic growth and development. The President's approach draws upon the best scientific research, harnesses the power of markets, fosters the creativity of entrepreneurs, and works with the developing world to meet shared aspirations for our people, our economy, and our environment.