NucNews - November 22, 2005 -------- NUCLEAR -------- britain We need less nuclear power plants not more - Mary Lou McDonald Published: 22 November, 2005 Sinn Fein, Ireland http://www.sinnfein.ie/news/detail/12058 Sinn Féin National Chairperson and MEP for Dublin Mary Lou McDonald has this morning welcomed a party delegation to the European Parliament in Brussels to discuss the issue of the Sellafield Nuclear reprocessing plant and the wider issue of nuclear power. They will meet MEPs from five different EU countries representing three groupings in the European Parliament. The Sinn Féin delegation consists of Arthur Morgan TD, Caitríona Ruane MLA and Dundalk Councillor Tomás Sharkey. The meetings come against the backdrop of the most recent debate in Britain around the issue of nuclear power. Speaking today Ms McDonald said: "The current debate on nuclear power which is re-emerging in Britain and the EU is quite alarming. Sinn Féin believes in a nuclear free EU and a nuclear free world. We should be seeking to decommission existing nuclear facilities, not build more of them. We favour a shift towards efficient and cost-effective renewable energy with a particular emphasis on solar and wind power. "There is a concern that there is currently an attempt to re-package nuclear energy and present it as green energy. "Communities up and down the eastern Irish seaboard will undoubtedly be concerned about the re-opening of this debate, considering that the majority of Britain's current nuclear facilities are sited a few short miles from the Irish coast. Speaking today Arthur Morgan TD said: "Today's series of meetings represents a proactive initiative to garner European support for action against the Sellafield nuclear facility in North-Western England. This facility remains the most unsafe nuclear site in Western Europe and is characterised by a catalogue of errors, safety lapses and failure to comply with EU inspection rules. We will continue to build alliances to force the closure of this facility and to promote a clean green alternative to nuclear power." ---- UK's Blair Should Expand Nuclear Power, Adviser Says November 22, 2005 — By Katherine Baldwin, Reuters http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=9301 LONDON — Britain's Tony Blair should give the go-ahead for an expansion of nuclear power generation to help stem climate change, the prime minister's chief scientific adviser said on Sunday. Adviser David King also rejected suggestions Blair was abandoning the idea of targets on greenhouse gas emissions, which will be discussed next week at a United Nations conference in Montreal, Canada. Blair has signalled a willingness to consider sanctioning new nuclear reactors to cut carbon dioxide emissions but he faces opposition from environmentalists and parts of his Labour Party. "We have to make decisions very quickly and I think the important thing here is to give the green light to the private sector utilities to give them nuclear as an option," King told BBC Television. All but one of the UK's nuclear power stations are due to close by 2023. The government is due to publish new plans on how to curb the country's use of electricity and fuel in 2006. But Environment Minister Margaret Beckett said nuclear power raised problems of cost and waste disposal, although she rejected suggestions she was "anti-nuclear". "I've always accepted ... that particularly because of climate change, we could come to a position where we and other governments were driven back towards nuclear ... We can't afford to close the door on nuclear," she told the BBC. The decline in nuclear power was jeopardising efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, King said. Nuclear power will contribute four percent of Britain's energy needs by 2010 without new reactors, from 21 percent now, he added. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS TARGETS But Beckett said any move on nuclear power would not help Britain meet short-term emissions targets. Projections show Britain will miss its domestic target of cutting CO2 emissions by 20 percent compared to 1990 levels by 2010, although it is on track to meet obligations under the international Kyoto protocol. Blair has put climate change at the heart of Britain's presidency of the Group of Eight rich nations this year but environmentalists have accused him of rowing back on emissions targets after he recently called for a "more sensitive" set of mechanisms going forward. The U.N. meeting in Montreal from Nov. 28-Dec 9 will look at ways to widen Kyoto to non-participants including the United States and developing nations like China and India after 2012. King said Blair still believed developed countries should follow mandatory Kyoto targets but said Britain would press developing countries outside Kyoto to adopt voluntary targets. "We believe absolutely that the targets set and fixed in Kyoto are targets the developed world ought to be following, he said. "India, China, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico, what we are saying to those countries is come and join the discussions and we are not telling you in advance that you are facing targets." Environmentalists say voluntary targets are not worth the paper they are written on. But Beckett said it was not possible to impose mandatory targets on developing countries and that a more flexible approach was needed. -------- iran Summary of nuclear stand-off with Iran 22 Nov 2005 Reuters http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L22779044.htm The U.N. nuclear watchdog's board of governors meets on Thursday to debate possible action over Iran's nuclear programme, which has raised Western concern that Tehran may be seeking atomic weapons. Following is a summary of developments in the Western stand-off with Iran over its nuclear activities. ORIGINS In August 2002, an Iranian exile group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), accused Iran of hiding a uranium enrichment facility at Natanz and a heavy-water plant at Arak. The allegations were later confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which launched an inquiry into allegations that Iran was secretly developing weapons. THE PARTIES INVOLVED - Iran says its nuclear programme is peaceful and that it has a right to pursue it. But it failed to declare many potentially arms-related nuclear activities to the IAEA over the course of 18 years until 2003. - The IAEA said last week Iran had given it a document containing partial instructions for making part of a nuclear bomb. Iran said it received the paper unsolicited from black marketeers. - The United States says Iran is using its nuclear energy programme as a front to develop weapons. It wants the IAEA to refer Iran to the Security Council for sanctions. The IAEA board has so far refused. - The EU3 powers -- Britain, Germany and France -- have tried to persuade Iran to end its nuclear fuel programmes in exchange for political and economic incentives. In November 2004, Tehran agreed to freeze such work temporarily while talking with the EU3. Iran resumed uranium conversion in August, prompting the IAEA board to demand it reinstate the suspension and angering the EU3, which broke off dialogue with Tehran. - Diplomats said on Monday the EU3 and United States would not seek an IAEA board referral vote on Thursday in favour of exploring a Russian idea allowing Iran to convert uranium ore but to ship it to Russia for enrichment. Russia would return the uranium to Iran where it could be used as reactor fuel, and would take back the spent fuel. This in theory would prevent Iran making arms-grade uranium. - Israel, which Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad said last month should be "wiped off the map", has hinted it might use air strikes against Iran's nuclear capability. But analysts and diplomats see this as unlikely. - Washington has also left open an option of military force, although analysts see such a move as impractical. WHERE COULD THE STAND-OFF GO? - Russia, with a $1 billion stake in Iran's Bushehr nuclear reactor, and China, which needs Iranian oil and gas, oppose a Security Council referral. So do Brazil and South Africa which balk at a precedent that could curb their atomic energy options. - If Iran is ever referred to the Security Council, it could take months or years for sanctions to be considered. Council action can range from a verbal reprimand to travel restrictions for government officials or even a total trade embargo. (Compiled by Mark Heinrich, Francois Murphy and Louis Charbonneau in Vienna) -------- israel Israel: German Subs and Nuclear Reach November 22, 2005 21 32 GMT STRATFOR 22Nov2005 http://www.stratfor.com/products/premium/read_article.php?selected=Analyses&id=258861 Summary Two Dolphin-class submarines will be built in Germany and sold to Israel for $1.17 billion, with the government of German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder -- who is leaving office Nov. 22 -- picking up one-third of the cost. By finalizing the sale on his government's last day in office, Schroeder is able to reap the benefits of the deal without dealing with the political fallout. Germany has long been hesitant about selling subs to Israel, concerned that the Jewish state might arm them with nuclear weapons. In reality, arming the subs with nukes may not be as technically feasible as people think. Either way, the Israelis probably do not mind other countries believing the subs are nuclear-capable. Analysis The outgoing government of German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has agreed to supply two Dolphin-class diesel-electric submarines to Israel. The new sub deal will allow the Israelis to upgrade their fleet without taking any of their active boats offline. There is speculation that the Dolphins could be modified to launch nuclear weapons and thereby give Israel a second-strike capability. Although technically possible, it is unlikely the Israelis will transform the boats into an effective nuclear delivery system -- using currently available hardware, that is. Germany, which is a staunch supporter of Israel, donated two Dolphins to Israel in the early 1990s. The Israelis later bought a third at a greatly reduced price. Israel's existing fleet of three Dolphins, known as the Type 800 in Israeli service, were built at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel and fitted out with equipment according to Israeli specifications. Observers have speculated that Israel's submarine fleet gives the Jewish state a nuclear second-strike capability, the premise being that if a nuclear attack from another country takes out Israel's nuclear arsenal, the Dolphins would survive and be able to launch a counterstrike from another location. There also has been speculation that the subs could be used to launch a pre-emptive strike against Iran's nuclear facilities in order to prevent Tehran from fielding a nuclear weapon of its own. Although it would be possible to arm the Dolphins with nuclear weapons -- and Israel's defense industry is certainly capable of doing this -- such weapons would not likely be effective against Iran's nuclear assets or political targets. The Harpoon is an anti-ship missile, designed to seek out ship-sized targets on the water, and the missile's guidance system would have to be changed to attack targets over land (making it, essentially, a cruise missile). Though that conversion would be possible, some analysts contend that a nuclear warhead would be significantly heavier than the Harpoon's normal conventional warhead. A heavier warhead means that the range of the missile would be shortened, and its now nose-heavy airframe could degrade its accuracy. The range of a non-nuclear-armed Harpoon is approximately 175 miles, which is too short for a Dolphin in the Persian Gulf to be able to hit Tehran, or Iran's nuclear facilities at Arak or Natanz. Only the reactor at Bushehr would be vulnerable. With its shallow water, the Persian Gulf is an environment in which submarines can be spotted relatively easily by aircraft and ships, reducing the likelihood that the Israelis would risk their Dolphins by operating there. Therefore, the Israelis would be compelled to restrict their submarine operations to the deeper Gulf of Oman, or even better, the Arabian Sea. The Dolphins operated by Israel are similar to the Germans' Type 212/214 design and were originally designed for interdiction, surveillance and special-forces operations. They can accommodate a crew of 35 for up to two months of operations away from their base. The submarines are capable of launching the U.S.-made RGM-84F Harpoon anti-ship missile from its torpedo tubes. Any nuclear capability the Dolphins would have would be in the form of Harpoons armed with Israeli-made nuclear warheads. Even getting to their launch point would be problematic for the Dolphins, with their range of 4,500 nautical miles. The only way they could get to the Gulf of Oman without needing to stop for refueling would be to go though the Suez Canal -- Going around Africa would mean that they would have to stop in friendly ports at least twice on the way. If a Dolphin from Haifa refuels in Gibraltar, it lacks the range to make it to South Africa. It would have to stop or be replenished along the way. It would also have to refuel on the second leg of its trip, or be replenished at sea. Given the advanced state of Israel's aeronautical and defense industry, developing a system that can reach targets deep inside Iran from the Gulf of Oman or the Arabian Sea is certainly within Israel's technical means. If Israel does have a nuclear second-strike capability, it is unlikely to come from Dolphins firing nuclear-tipped Harpoons from the Gulf of Oman or Arabian Sea. However, with an eventual fleet of five subs lurking in the waters around the Middle East, the Jewish state's potential enemies cannot completely ignore the possibility that Israel might be capable of responding to an attack, and must keep that in mind when considering any major action against it. ---- An underwater response By Reuven Pedatzur Ha'Aretz 22Nov2005 http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/648294.html Angela Merkel's new government will be sworn in today in Berlin; and today will also see the signing of the agreement for the supply of two German-built Dolphin submarines to the Israel Navy. In her meetings with the outgoing chancellor ahead of taking over the reins of power, the chancellor-elect added her stamp of approval to the Germany-Israel submarine sale deal ironed out by Gerhard Schroeder. In an interview with the Haaretz weekend supplement prior to the German elections, Merkel alluded to the fact that if voted in, she would support the deal; undoubtedly nevertheless, in approving the sale, she is conveying a clear message as to the strength of the defense ties between the two countries. There is a large degree of symbolism that the report on the completion of the submarine deal comes at a time when the international community's efforts to undermine Iranian endeavors to develop nuclear arms are reaching the moment of truth - this, due to the direct link between the Israel Navy's procurement of Dolphin-model submarines and the Iranian nuclear program. On the eve of the first Gulf War, in 1990, the Israel Defense Forces' General Staff decided to scrap the navy's submarine project. The decision, promoted by then- deputy chief of staff Ehud Barak, determined that future missions and expected threats do not warrant submarines. The decision was a rather perplexing one, because it was already clear then that it was highly probable that one, or more, of the hostile states in the region was likely to build up a nuclear arsenal. As it emerged during the Cold War period, the development of a second-strike capability is the most effective deterrent in the face of a nuclear threat - in other words, the development of weapons systems that the enemy cannot destroy even if it launches a surprise nuclear strike. Submarines, as the two superpowers learned, offer the most reliability when its comes to second-strike capability. They are difficult to locate, and even more difficult to hit. Fortunately, the German government, whose high-ranking members were agonized by their consciences after learning that German companies had helped Iraq to develop chemical weapons, decided to give Israel two submarines, of the same model whose development was scrapped by the General Staff. The Israel Navy received the first Dolphin submarine in 1999, and it was decided then to purchase a third submarine, with part of the cost borne by the German government. Foreign sources say that Israeli officials have decided to use the submarines to develop a second-strike capability, and as a result, the vessels have been equipped with nuclear missiles. The problem is that in keeping with standard naval practice around the world, only one submarine out of three can remain at sea on a continuous basis. The remaining two, meanwhile, will be undergoing maintenance work. The acquisition of the additional submarines will allow the Israel Navy to have two submarines out at sea on a permanent basis, and thereby significantly boost Israel's deterrent reliability in the face of a nuclear enemy. As developments in our region indicate, this nuclear enemy could be Iran. On Thursday, the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will hold a highly important discussion on whether to entrust the Iranian issue to the UN Security Council. The meeting will be a critical test for the IAEA - known as "the UN's nuclear watchdog" - which until now has not demonstrated any special determination in dealing with countries that violate the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), to which Iran is also a signatory. IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei was indeed awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this year, but he appears to join a long line of laureates whose work, after having received the award, falls short of warranting it. ElBaradei is perpetuating the unglamorous tradition of his predecessor, Hans Blix, who, on the eve of the first Gulf War, published a report about Iraq in which he lauded Saddam Hussein's regime for diligently adhering to the terms of the NPT. It emerged shortly after the end of the war, however, that Iraq was a mere six months away from completing the development of a nuclear bomb. ElBaradei, too, in a report published ahead of the meeting of the Board of Governors, praises Iran for its cooperation with the IAEA, and only halfheartedly notes that it must continue to hand over information and documents pertaining to its nuclear activities. And all this at a time when the Iranians are denying IAEA inspectors access to nuclear sites, and after the uncovering of many instances in which Iran has concealed information on activities prohibited under the terms of the treaty. A decision by the IAEA not to hand over the matter to the Security Council would constitute a negative signal on the part of the international community, and will give Iran even more time to make fun of the IAEA inspectors. Western intelligence agencies are indeed divided when it comes to the question of when Iran will cross the point of no return, and will no longer be dependent on outside elements to complete the development of the bomb, but all concur that it won't be long. Indeed, a nuclear Iran is not a heartwarming vision; but the right kind of preparations on the part of Israel in the face of the expected threat could neutralize it. The acquisition of the two additional German submarines is an important step in the right direction. -------- russia European Russia to raise nuclear power share of electricity 17:12 | 22/ 11/ 2005 (RIA Novosti) http://en.rian.ru/russia/20051122/42178349.html MOSCOW, November 22 - Nuclear power will account for 40%-50% of the electricity produced in European Russia compared to the current level of 30%, a senior official of the Federal Agency for Nuclear Power said Tuesday. "Today, nuclear power plants meet 30% of overall electricity demands in European Russia," Alexander Shmygin, head of the agency's nuclear power engineering, told reporters. "There is simply no alternative to the development of the nuclear energy industry in Russia. We plan to increase nuclear power production to 40%-50% of overall output in the future." Shmygin said that to cover the energy deficit predicted for 2010, the agency planned to commission unit two of the nuclear power plant in Volgodonsk, south of European Russia, in 2008, the second unit at the Kalinin nuclear power plant in the southeast, and energy unit five at the Balakovo facility. He said Russia was working to create a new type of reactor, the BBEP-1500. "We expect the design of the BBEP-1500 reactor, an evolution of the BBEP-1000 rather than a completely new model, to be completed in the middle of 2006," Shmygin said. The new reactor will be put into operation at the Leningradskaya nuclear power plant in 2012-2013. However, some countries are still interested in the BBEP-1000 reactors, Shmygin added. He said that on December 15 Russia was expected to present the feasibility study for the project to build a nuclear power plant in Bulgaria whose construction was launched in 1984 with Russian help. The tender was held in May 2005. -------- u.s. nuc facilities -------- vermont Nuclear advisory panel turns thumbs down on uprate By Mary Fratini | Special to the Vermont Guardian posted November 22, 2005 http://www.vermontguardian.com/local/112005/VSNAPMeeting.shtml MONTPELIER ­ In a half-day meeting punctuated by sharp and sometimes personal disagreements, the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel passed a resolution Tuesday recommending that the Public Service Board and Legislature deny Entergy’s request for a power uprate at Vermont Yankee altogether, or approve it only under certain financial protections. “In simple words, Vermont gets a disproportionate share of the risks of uprate,” said Tim Nulty, of Burlington, the VSNAP member who introduced the resolution. “This is not anti-nuclear in any way, but about protecting Vermont’s vital interest in the continuing reliable operation of this nuclear plant.” Under the current contract with Vermont Yankee through 2012, the state anticipates an economic benefit of $492 million, primarily through energy cost savings, according to David Lamont of the state Department of Public Service (DPS). “In 2006, every kilowatt hour that Vermont Yankee generates is worth 6.78 cents and we pay only 3.9 cents for it,” he said. “The net present value of the contract is $311 million and that’s a major benefit to ratepayers.” Under questioning from Rep. Steve Darrow, D-Putney, however, Lamont agreed that if Vermont Yankee were to go offline after the expiration of the ratepayer protection plan in 2007, “these numbers go from positive to negative and we have to pay full price of the market alternative.” VY spokesman Rob Williams said the reliability question has been adequately addressed in two years of public hearings before the Public Service Board. “The Public Service Board took the time to address the question of reliability, and the decision that the PSB came to was in the best interest of the state of Vermont.” While VSNAP members agreed that the threat of that economic reversal should Vermont Yankee go offline was important to consider, they disagreed over the potential impact of uprate on reliability and the merits of the independent engineering assessment. Both Darrow and Russell Kulas cited the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s 2004 inspection of the plant as insufficient to support claims of safety or reliability. “The most important risk is that uprate equals relicensing, which equals the production of more high-level nuclear waste,” Darrow said. “What I got from the assessment is that we really need what we asked for, which is a complete top to bottom physical before they soup it up an additional 20 percent.” Williams said the uprate is getting a full review before the NRC, which is expected to make a decision in February. Public Service Commissioner David O’Brien, who chairs VSNAP, voted against the resolution, saying, “This to me dismisses the assessment as if it had not value and did not contribute to reliability. All the testimony today is for worst-case scenarios and yet we have a record of operational integrity [at Vermont Yankee] with no indication that it won’t operate for the next six years.” If the PSB approves the uprate, the resolution recommends that it do so only with a contract protecting Vermont ratepayers against “any loss of power production beyond what would have been the case in the absence of the extended power uprate” and any safety risks that occur from the uprate, even if they fall within the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s “safe” ruling. “I was surprised to hear today from an investor-owned utility that if Vermont Yankee breaks down they will essentially pass through the extra energy costs,” said Sen. Mark MacDonald, D-Orange, before voting for the resolution. “I would be satisfied with saying the numbers don’t add up and they should deny the uprate, but if this board found an option to mitigate the risks by getting this company to bond or indemnify ratepayers, then we will have solved the problem of financial consequences to Vermonters.” Razelle Hoffman-Contois voted against the resolution, representing Larry Crist from the Vermont Department of Health, as did John Sayles, representing Secretary Tom Torti of the Agency of Natural Resources. -------- MILITARY -------- chemical weapons Pentagon Docs: White Phosphorous Is A Chemical Weapon Tuesday, November 22nd, 2005 Headlines http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/22/1515228 New evidence has emerged that the U.S. military used chemical weapons during the assault on Fallujah a year ago. Last week the Pentagon confirmed for the first time that it used white phosphorous as a weapon to attack Iraqi fighters. But the Pentagon rejected claims that white phosphorous is a chemical weapon. White Phosphorous is often compared to napalm because it combusts spontaneously when exposed to oxygen and can burn right through skin to the bone. While the Pentagon is denying white phosphorous is a chemical weapon, a newly uncovered Defense Department document, reveals that is just how the military described it when Saddam Hussein allegedly used it a decade ago. A declassified 1995 Pentagon intelligence document reads QUOTE "Iraqi forces loyal to president Saddam may have possibly used white phosphorous chemical weapons against Kurdish rebels." Meanwhile a British commander has admitted that he trained his troops in using white phosphorus as a weapon. Until now the British government has maintained it used white phosphorous but only for tactical purposes. -------- iraq Iraqi Leaders Call for Troop Withdrawal Timetable Tuesday, November 22nd, 2005 Headlines http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/22/1515228 In Iraq, Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni leaders have issued a joint communiqué calling for a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S troops. The New York Times reports this marks the first time Iraq's political factions collectively called for a withdrawal timetable. The communiqué was released during a reconciliation conference held under the auspices of the Arab League. Attendees included Iraqi president Jalal Talabani. The leaders also condemned attacks on Iraqi civilians, government institutions and oil installations, and called for the release of all detainees held without trial. They said Iraq's opposition had a "legitimate right" of resistance but condemned terrorism and acts of violence, murder and kidnapping. Dick Cheney Warns Against Troop Withdrawal Meanwhile in Washington Vice President Dick Cheney spoke Monday at the American Enterprise Institute and warned against the withdrawal of U.S. troops. "Would the United States and other free nations be better off or worse off with Zarqawi, bin Laden and Zawahiri in control of Iraq?," Cheney said. "A precipitous withdrawal from Iraq would be a victory for the terrorists, an invitation to further violence against free nations and a terrible blow to the future security of the United States of America." Cheney also accused war critics of "corrupt and shameless" revisionism for suggesting the White House mislead the nation into the Iraq war. He claimed it was utterly false that President Bush distorted, hyped or fabricated pre-war information. U.S. Military Criticized For Killing of Five Iraqi Civilians Back in Iraq - the U.S. military is coming under criticism after troops opened fire on a car in Baquba killing five members of an Iraqi family. Iraqi police said the dead included three children under the age of four. Witnesses said the family was traveling to a funeral at the time. Military officials claimed the car was shot at after the driver ignored orders to stop. A military spokesperson said "This is a tragedy. But these tragedies only happen because Zarqawi and his thugs are out there driving around with car bombs." A relative of the family broke down in tears on Monday as he spoke to reporters. He was standing over the body of one of the men killed. -------- pacific US Resumes Ties with Indonesian Military Tuesday, November 22nd, 2005 Headlines http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/22/1515228 The Bush administration has announced it will lift a six-year arms embargo and resume full relations with the Indonesian military. The State Department said it will provide aid to "help modernise the Indonesian military, provide further incentives for reform of the Indonesian military, and support US and Indonesian security objectives, including counterterrorism, maritime security and disaster relief." Military ties with Indonesia were scaled back following a massacre of civilians in East Timor in 1991. Indonesia occupied East Timor for over 25 years, where it was accused of killing over 200,000 people. It has also killed thousands in the embattled Aceh province over the last decade. In a statement, the East Timor Action Network said : "US support for an unreformed military which remains above the law is not in the interest of the United States or Indonesia. This is a profoundly disappointing and sad day for human rights protections everywhere but especially in Indonesia, East Timor, and the US." -------- spies Council of Europe Investigates CIA Use of Airports Tuesday, November 22nd, 2005 Headlines http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/22/1515228 The Council of Europe has begun investigating whether the CIA illegally used European airports in order to transfer detainees to secret prisons. Iceland, Sweden, Portugal, Italy, Spain and Germany are carrying out independent investigations to determine if the CIA used air bases located in those countries for extraordinary renditions. The Washington Post recently reported the CIA had two secret prisons located inside Eastern Europe. The Post declined to identify the location of the countries at the request of the Pentagon but Human Rights Watch has stated the prisons are likely in Poland and Romania. -------- ENERGY -------- alternative energy Ontario Awards C$2 Billion in Renewable Power Deals REUTERS CANADA: November 22, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33584/newsDate/22-Nov-2005/story.htm TORONTO - Ontario's government awarded C$2 billion (US$1.7 billion) in contracts to build wind and hydro power projects Monday in an effort to have 10 percent of electricity in Canada's biggest market generated by renewable sources. Ontario Energy Minister Donna Cansfield said she had granted awards for eight wind facilities and one hydroelectric development, which will supply a total of 975 megawatts, enough to power more than 250,000 homes. The awards come in response to a request for proposals for 1,000 MW, issued in April 2004. "We have made an important commitment to clean, green, renewable energy and we're on track not only to meet, but to exceed our target," Cansfield said in a speech in Toronto. Combined with a previous request for proposals completed last year, Ontario, home to more than 12 million people, will be adding 1,370 megawatts of renewable energy, accounting for about 5 percent of the province's capacity, Cansfield said. The government of Premier Dalton McGuinty hopes to double that by 2010, she said. Over the past 10 years, the province has grappled with severely tight power supplies due to a combination of surging demand, failed deregulation attempts, idle nuclear facilities and plans to shut down older and dirtier coal-fired plants. "By replacing coal, Ontario will eliminate up to 30 megatonnes of greehouse gas emissions annually, or more than 10 percent of Canada's overall target," Cansfield said. The winning bidders include Canadian Hydro Developers Inc. , which will build two wind farms near Shelburne and Kingston, Ontario, for C$675 million, and a hydroelectric project near Timmins for C$64 million. Enbridge Inc., Canada's No. 2 pipeline company, will build two wind farms on the eastern shore of Lake Huron -- in the shadow of Bruce Power, Ontario's biggest nuclear facility -- for C$400 million. Epcor Utilities Inc., owned by the city of Edmonton, Alberta, will spend C$300 million building the Kingsbridge II wind farm, also near breezy Lake Huron. Brascan Corp.'s power unit was awarded the 90 MW Prince Phase II wind farm near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Other projects include the 76 MW Ripley, Ontario, wind project, a C$165 million development to be built by Suncor Energy Inc. and Spain's Acciona Energia, and another 101 MW wind project near Port Alma, Ontario. The projects are slated to begin operations between 2006 and 2008. Ontario's renewable projects follow a C$1.9 billion award for eight wind farm developments in neighboring Quebec last year. There has also been brisk wind farm development in southern Alberta over the past five years. ($US1=$1.18 Canadian) -------- energy French Retailer to Directly Mix Ethanol in Fuels REUTERS FRANCE: November 22, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33592/newsDate/22-Nov-2005/story.htm PARIS - A leading French retailer running a major petrol distribution system said it would start a large-scale operation to mix ethanol made from sugar beet with conventional fuel from next March to supply its petrol pumps. Leclerc said its petrol distribution business, SIPLEC, was the first and only petrol distribution system in France to directly incorporated ethanol to fuel. Ethanol is usually used to produce a type of ether known as ETBE (ethyl tertiary butyl ether) which is then mixed into fuels. But many industry players are calling for direct incorporation of ethanol into fuel to take place as only the majors hold agreements to produce ETBE. "This large-scale operation will allow the direct blending of 20,000 cubic meters of sugar beet ethanol in 400,000 cubic meters of fuel," Leclerc said in a press release seen by Reuters on Monday. "The mixing and distribution already takes place in equipment based in Strasbourg and will develop at a larger scale from March 2006 in Rouen," the retailer added. SIMPLEC supplies 1,100 petrol pumps at its supermarkets. "Ethanol made from agricultural products can directly be incorporated in unleaded super," Michel Edouard Leclerc, head of the privately-owned retailer Centres Leclerc, said on his personal blog. "The offer is abundant. It doesn't require heavy investments and can be elaborated by a higher number of operators. But it's necessary that majors deliver the low volatility fuel needed for such a mix," he added. France plans to raise the incorporation of biofuels in fuels to 5.75 percent by end-2008, seven percent by end-2010, and 10 percent by end-2015. The country currently produces 620,000 tonnes of biofuel including 420,000 tonnes of biodiesel and 200,000 tonnes of ethanol. -------- OTHER -------- environment Forests Flushed Down the Toilet November 22, 2005 — By WWF International http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=9298 GLAND, Switzerland — The major tissue manufacturers are not offering enough recycled toilet paper, towels and napkins to European consumers and must be more responsible when sourcing their wood, according to a new WWF report. The global conservation organization says this clearly contributes to the wasteful use of forests, at a time when they are threatened worldwide. The new report analyzed the practices of the five largest European tissue manufacturers – Procter and Gamble, SCA, Kimberly Clark, Metsa Tissue, and Georgia Pacific – which together supply about 70 per cent of the European market. It found that the vast majority of tissue products these companies are selling to European households contain alarmingly low levels of recycled fibres. As a result high-quality virgin fibres are taken directly from natural forests and plantations around the world, including Latin America, Canada, the US, South Africa, Russia, Asia and Europe, and end up as waste without the consumer’s knowledge, WWF says. The European tissue business is worth around €8.5 billion annually and accounts for 26 per cent of global tissue consumption, with each European using 13kg – the equivalent of approximately 22 billion rolls of toilet paper. “Everyday about 270,000 trees are effectively flushed down the toilet or end up as garbage around the world, such a use of the forests is both wasteful and unnecessary,” said Duncan Pollard, Head of WWF's European Forest Programme. “Manufacturers must use more recycled fibres in their tissue products, as this means fewer trees will be cut down.” Toilet paper and towels in offices, schools and hotels are mostly made out of recycled fibres, and there is no reason why it should be any different for the same products that are sold in supermarkets, WWF says. Manufacturers argue that retailers mainly want non-recycled products because this is what consumers are asking for. “Consumers have no idea that they may be threatening the world’s forests when they go to the bathroom,” said Pollard. “It’s a myth that recycled tissue products are not of a high quality. After all, people use recycled tissue products most of the day when they are out of their homes anyway.” According to WWF, the companies also need to better inform consumers about the recycled content of their products. Consumers should not be misled by recycling symbols on tissue packaging which often only refer to the wrapping paper, and not to the product itself. WWF recommends that consumers look and ask for the few recycled tissue brands currently produced by the five major manufacturers as well as brands from smaller companies for which recycled products are a niche market. Consumers should also ask shops and supermarkets to stock recycled tissues. The report also warns that unsustainable timber harvesting, illegal logging and land right conflicts still exist in many of the countries from where the virgin fibres are sourced. WWF says that the companies are showing promising intentions to effectively track the timber from the forest to the product, but so far, only SCA Tissue has taken effective measures to exclude illegal or controversial timber from their tissue products. NOTE: WWF has been in discussions with the five companies for over a year to find out information which is currently not publicly available. These companies were compared and scored across a range of criteria, including their wood sourcing practices, levels of recycled content, public reporting and their transparency about their emissions to water, air, waste disposal and use of resources such as water and energy. Although WWF sees some progress over recent months in the companies’ willingness to address the issues which WWF raised in face to face negotiations with them, there is still a lot of room for improvements towards a responsible use of the world’s forests. The comparative leader in the evaluation is SCA Tissue with 46 per cent of total achievable points, followed by Metsa Tissue with 35 per cent, Georgia Pacific 32 per cent, Procter and Gamble with 26 per cent, and Kimberly Clark with 24 per cent. ---- NRDC: Noise of Military, Industry, Shipping Harms Marine Life LOS ANGELES, California, November 22, 2005 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/nov2005/2005-11-22-01.asp Rising levels of intense underwater sound produced by oil and gas exploration, military sonar and other human sources are threatening the survival of whales, dolphins, fish and other marine species, concludes a report released Monday by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). In the underwater darkness, marine mammals use their own sounds and sounds made by other marine animals to navigate while migrating, to locate each other over great distances for mating, to find food, avoid predators, and care for their young. High decibel noise can interfere with all of these activities, testing the ability of marine animals to survive. Examinations of whales that have beached themselves after they were exposed to sonar used in military battle exercises show the whales were bleeding internally around their brains and ears. "Ocean noise is an insidious form of pollution. The tremendous damage it is doing to life in the sea is becoming more evident with each passing year," said Michael Jasny, the report's principal author. The report "Sounding the Depths II: The Rising Toll of Sonar, Shipping and Industrial Ocean Noise on Marine Life," is accompanied by a five-minute movie narrated by actor and environmentalist Pierce Brosnan and produced by the firm Imaginary Forces. The film, "Lethal Sound," is about harm to marine mammals from high-intensity military sonar and seismic air guns. Ocean noise is growing from a host of military, commercial and industrial sources including dredgers that clear the seabed for ship traffic, high explosives for removing oil platforms and testing naval vessels, construction pile drivers, harassment devices for fisheries, tunnel borers, drilling platforms, oil and gas surveys, ships, and commercial and military sonar. Intense underwater noise can harm marine life in many ways. Military sonar has been linked to dozens of mass strandings of whales around the world, and oil and gas surveys have been shown to damage fish and reduce catch rates. "Nations of the world need to work together now to reduce the impacts of ocean noise before the problem becomes unmanageable and the harm to marine life irreversible," Jasny said. There is no longer serious scientific debate about whether marine mammals are dying from intense ocean noise that originates from human activities, the NRDC says. The Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission released a report in July saying, there is "compelling evidence" that entire populations of whales and other marine mammals are potentially threatened by increasingly intense underwater noise from human activities, both regionally and oceanwide. The Scientific Committee expressed "great concern" over the impacts of oil and gas exploration on large whales, noting "several cases of impacts" on large whales from these activities. The report cited an incident in 2002 in which humpback whales stranded off the coast of Brazil in unusual numbers during an underwater oil and gas survey of the area that generated intense sound pulses. Mass stranding and mortality events associated with mid-frequency sonar exercises have occurred, among other places, in North Carolina (2005), Alaska (2004), Hawaii (2004), the Canary Islands (2004, 2002, 1991, 1989, 1986, 1985); Madeira (2000), the Bahamas (2000), the U.S. Virgin Islands (1999), and Greece (1997, 1996). According to a report in the scientific journal "Nature," cited by the NRDC, animals that came ashore during one mass stranding had developed large emboli, or bubbles, in their organ tissue. The report suggested that the animals had suffered from something akin to a severe case of the bends - the illness that can kill scuba divers who surface too quickly from deep water. "The study supports what many scientists have long suspected: that the whales stranded on shore are only the most visible symptom of a problem affecting much larger numbers of marine life," says the NRDC report. But despite evidence of the harm caused by human sources of ocean noise, the NRDC says there are virtually no safeguards in place to protect marine life. NRDC began campaigning to expose the dangers of active sonar in 1994. The group accuses the U.S. government of blocking international efforts to control the problem. In August 2003, the NRDC won a major victory, when a federal court ruled illegal the Navy's plan to deploy Low Frequency Active (LFA) sonar through 75 percent of the world's oceans. After this ruling, the Navy agreed to limit use of the system to a fraction of the area originally proposed, and that use of LFA sonar will be guided by negotiated geographical limits and seasonal exclusions. Conservationists believe this will protect critical habitat and whale migrations, and the Navy also retains the flexibility it needs for training exercises. None of the limits apply during war or heightened threat conditions. The pact demonstrates that current law can safeguard both the environment and national security, the NRDC says. But shortly after the settlement, the Bush administration pushed legislation through Congress that exempts the U.S. military from core provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, leaving the armed forces freer to harm whales, dolphins and other marine mammals in the course of using high-intensity sonar and underwater explosives. Now that the exemptions have been granted, the administration is appealing the court ruling limiting deployment of LFA sonar. The NRDC says it stands ready to defend this "hard-won" court victory. The NRDC report comes as the U.S. Navy is moving ahead with plans to site an Undersea Warfare Training Range off Florida, Virginia, or North Carolina, where a mass stranding of whales occurred earlier this year after a U.S. Navy sonar exercise. The training range would be the location for over 160 sonar exercises per year, and the NRDC says it would "transform the acoustic landscape" of the region. An undersea sonar training range already exists off the coast of Hawaii. But the Navy says another is needed to train its Atlantic fleet because of the growing threat posed by ultra-quiet diesel submarines. Conrad Erkelens, an environmental specialist for the Navy's U.S. Pacific Fleet, says the Navy has a history of "working to protect marine mammals in the vicinity of naval activity." Some analyses of the effect of Navy sonar on marine mammals conclude that the sonar did not cause stranding. For instance, on May 5, 2003, several civilian whale watchers vessels and local environmentalists observed orca along the shore of San Juan Island in Washington state. At this time, the USS Shoup was conducting routine training using its mid-range tactical sonar system. Although some statements in the media reported that the sonar had resulted in injury to the orca and was linked to subsequent harbor porpoise strandings, NOAA’s assessment does not support these claims. But overall, marine mammal conservationists are not convinced that sonar is benign. On October 19, five conservation organizations filed a lawsuit in federal court against the U.S. Navy. Whales, dolphins and other marine animals could be spared injury and death with common sense precautions, but the Navy refuses to implement them, according to the lawsuit, brought by the NRDC, the Cetacean Society International, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), the League for Coastal Protection, and Ocean Futures Society and its founder and president Jean Michel Cousteau. The Navy has until December 18 to respond to the legal action. Sounding the Depths II is the second edition of a report originally published by NRDC in 1999. Sounding the Depths II sets forth a comprehensive strategy for reducing ocean noise pollution. The new edition includes: * The most comprehensive accounting of mass whale strandings related to both military sonar and high energy seismic surveys conducted by the oil and gas industry * A global map of "hotspots," showing where industry explores for oil and gas by blasting air guns at the ocean floor * A roster of active sonar systems used by U.S. and other navies * The latest scientific findings on noise and whale strandings * A chart of mitigation measures and recommendations for reducing the impacts of ocean noise The report calls for geographic and seasonal restrictions on intense noise from military sonar and seismic air guns, technological improvements to reduce sonic damage, better monitoring and population research, stronger enforcement by the National Marine Fisheries Service, and a commitment to international solutions. ---- Three Dead in Acid Vapor Leak at Mexico Pemex Plant REUTERS MEXICO: November 22, 2005 http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33588/newsDate/22-Nov-2005/story.htm MEXICO CITY - Three workers died on Sunday when condensed sulphydric vapor escaped at a natural gas processing plant in northern Mexico owned by state energy monopoly Pemex, the civil protection agency said. Two others were hospitalized after the accident at the plant in Ciudad Madero in Tamaulipas state, across the border from Texas, said Salvador Trevino, director of the state civil protection arm. "A leak of sulphydric acid began in the battery area. There were three Pemex maintenance workers in the area who lost their lives," he said. Pemex said in a statement that a hose from a collection tank disconnected and caused the accident, emphasizing that "at no time was there a risk to the civil population or the environment." Trevino said there was no explosion and Pemex did not ask for help from civil protection emergency workers.