NucNews July 26, 2006 -------- NUCLEAR -------- depleted uranium Nuns and Priests File Depleted Uranium Bunker Buster Resolution at Three Weapons Companies by Bill Baue July 26, 2006 Social Funds http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/2067.html The resolution goes to vote next week at Alliant Techsystems, and already received more than double the support needed to re-file next year at Lockheed Martin and Textron. SocialFunds.com -- Depleted uranium (DU), the radioactive byproduct of uranium enrichment, is in the headlines as the US recently agreed to send 100 Guided Bomb Unit-28 bunker buster bombs containing DU warheads to Israel for use against targets in Lebanon, as reported by Reuters and others. Shareowner activists are also placing DU on the corporate agenda by filing a new resolution expressing health and environmental concerns and asking for a report from three companies on their involvement with DU. Concern centers on the pyrophoric properties of DU, which burns and loses much of its mass upon impact, dispersing a fine radioactive dust that can be carried long distances by winds or absorbed by soil and groundwater--not to mention human bodies. Free SRI Mutual Funds KitThe resolution received 6.4 percent support at Lockheed Martin (ticker: LMT) and 9 percent support at Textron (TXT), according to the EthVest database maintained by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responibility (ICCR)--both well over the 3 percent threshold required by the SEC for re-filing next year. The proposal goes to vote next week at Alliant Techsystems (ATK), which manufactures 120 mm rounds containing DU for penetrating tanks and light armor vehicles. "It's one thing to make a weapon that 'does the job' on the battlefield; it's another to manufacture and use one that destroys not only tanks, armored personnel carriers and underground bunkers but may also leave a potentially poisonous legacy in the bodies of the people who return to those areas after hostilities have ceased," said John Celichowski, head of the corporate responsibility program for the Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order, which filed the resolution at Alliant along with other ICCR members. "We believe that the choice to use particular weapons in areas that are bound to be inhabited or re-inhabited by civilians raises serious moral questions which need to be addressed by our policy-makers, our armed services, the society they claim to be defending, and the companies that make such weapons." "The pyrophoric qualities of these weapons also creates potential risks for our own soldiers," he told SocialFunds.com. The resolutions make not only a moral and ethical case, but also a business case against DU. "The business case against DU centers around the potential liability for human and environmental impacts and damage to the companies' reputations," said Valerie Heinonen, a corporate social responsibility consultant to the Sisters of Mercy Regional Community of Detroit Charitable Trust, which filed the resolution at Lockheed. "Rather than seeking a market for radioactive waste, the federal government and corporations should work with NGOs to find solutions for long-term storage." PROXY Governance, one of the three major proxy advisory firms, recommends voting for the resolution at Alliant "PROXY Governance acknowledges that there are serious concerns regarding the health effects of using munitions containing depleted uranium (DU)," states PROXY Governance. "While we are not aware of significant litigation involving the health and safety of workers at DU munitions production facilities at this time, the potential for future such litigation exists." In fact, Richard David of the UK filed suit against Honeywell (HON) in 2004 claiming adverse health effects from working at a munitions factory during the first Gulf War where DU was used in manufacturing, according to an article in The Observer. "And while the World Health Organization and others have stated that there is no conclusive medical evidence linking DU to health problems, reports by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights have suggested that the weapons may well be illegal under The Geneva Conventions, The Hague Conventions and other international law," continues the PROXY Governance report. "Such a finding could complicate efforts by DU weapons manufacturers to defend themselves against potential future litigation involving health effects or environmental clean-up efforts." The Alliant board argues in its proxy statement that the company discloses information regarding its military- and defense-related contracting in its SEC filings, but PROXY Governance notes that these filings do not discuss the specific matters brought up in the resolution. PROXY Governance also recommended voting for the resolution at Lockheed, but against it at Textron, as the company's board points out in its proxy statement that the company is not involved in DU production and has no plans to be. Both ISS and Glass Lewis recommend voting against the resolution at all three companies. "We were in conversation with Textron management following the filing of the resolution, but we did not get satisfactory answers and therefore the lead filer, the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary decided to leave the resolution on the ballot," Sister Valerie told SocialFunds.com. "The vote at Textron may lead to further, more satisfactory conversation." Related Articles * Nuclear Power: Still an Environmental Scourge or Now a Climate Change Mitigator? http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/article1729.html * The Black and White and Gray Areas of Military and Weapons Screening http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/article1050.html * GE Shareholder Asks Company to Renounce Landmines http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/article175.html ---- Glasgow airport used in US 'bunker buster' bombs shipment to Israel Re-Sista! | 26.07.2006 05:44 UK Indymedia http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/07/346090.html Glasgows Prestwick Airport is a staging post for US supplies of bunker buster bombs to Israel. The aiport has just received two chartered Airbus A310 cargo planes filled with GBU 28 laser-guided bombs over the weekend. The bombs are being flown from the US to Israel for use in the war in Lebannon and possibly for a wider war. The GBU 28 is the massive 'bunker busting bomb' a weapon the Israeli war machine desperately needs in its bloody attempt to smash Hizbollah. These bombs that are now being rushed to Israel via the UK are the large 5000 lb high explosive GBU 28 (Guided Bomb Unit 28) ‘bunker buster bombs’ made by Raytheon. They are intended to penetrate underground bunkers. Israel is using them in its attempt to smash Hizbollah and dominate the region. These horrific weapons can kill literally hundreds of people with one strike into an urban area. Israel has already been using these in densely populated areas of the Lebanon. The supply of these bombs to Israel may also help with a future act of war against Iran, the GBU 28 being the ideal tool for this job. Most ‘bunker busters’ have a devastatingly high explosive power making them the most deadly of ‘conventional weapons’. Some use depleted uranium, leaving toxic pollutants, which cause illness and death for years. The US government has been talking about supplying Israel with these controversial weapons for a while, as part of its manoeuvres against Iran, but this week it suddenly rushed forward the shipment. Campaigners around the world had been denouncing this arms shipment, but do not appear to have been expecting it to have touched down in Glasgow. Strangely, the Daily Torygraph has been the first UK media outlet to break the story that these weapons have stopped off in Glasgow: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/07/26/wmid26.xml Please forward this info and post news of any protests! ---- Neocons Ready to Send U.S. Troops to Lebanon Kurt Nimmo July 26, 2006 URUKNET http://www.uruknet.info/?p=m25089&l=i&size=1&hd=0 According to Ken Silverstein of Harper’s Magazine, "a well-connected former CIA officer has told me that the Bush Administration is … considering" sending U.S troops to Lebanon as "peacekeepers," that is to say shock troops for the Israeli invasion. The officer, who had broad experience in the Middle East while at the CIA, noted that NATO and European countries, including England, have made clear that they are either unwilling or extremely reluctant to participate in an international force. Given other nations’ lack of commitment, any "robust" force—between 10,000 and 30,000 troops, according to estimates being discussed in the media—would by definition require major U.S. participation. According to the former official, Israel and the United States are currently discussing a large American role in exactly such a "multinational" deployment, and some top administration officials, along with senior civilians at the Pentagon, are receptive to the idea. I bet they are, especially considering these "top administration officials" (think Cheney) and "senior civilians at the Pentagon" are neocons. Predictably, the "uniformed military … is ardently opposed to sending American soldiers to the region, according to my source. 'They are saying "What the f—?"' he told me. "Most of our combat-ready divisions are in Iraq or Afghanistan, or on their way, or coming back. The generals don’t like it because we’re already way overstretched,’" not that this matters to the neocons, who are well-accustomed to committing U.S. troops to do Israel’s bidding. "Why would Iraq attack America or use nuclear weapons against us? I’ll tell you what I think the real threat [is] and actually has been since 1990—it’s the threat against Israel," declared Philip Zelikow, the executive director of Bush’s nine eleven whitewash commission. Zelikow made this admission before a crowd at the University of Virginia on September 10, 2002. Sending U.S. troops to Lebanon "would be viewed in the Arab world as the United States picking up a combat role on behalf of Israel," Silverstein’s CIA source added. "Once you start fighting in a place like that you’re basically at war with the Shiite population. That means that our soldiers are going to be getting shot at by Hezbollah. This would be a sheer disaster for us." Indeed, it would also be a disaster for U.S. troops in Iraq, surrounded by 15 million Shi’ites. If Ayatollah Sistani issues a fatwa in response to the neocons attacking fellow Shi’ites in Lebanon, the U.S. military is doomed. It would make the Tet Offensive in Vietnam look like a tea party. It would be a replay of Dunkirk. Silverstein concludes: The scenario of an American deployment appears to come straight out of the neoconservative playbook: send U.S. forces into the Middle East, regardless of what our own military leaders suggest, in order to "stabilize" the region. The chances of success, as we have seen in Iraq, are remote. So what should be done? My source said the situation is so volatile at the moment that the only smart policy is to get an immediate ceasefire and worry about the terms of a lasting truce afterwards. But then the idea is not to "stabilize" the region or gain a "ceasefire and worry about the terms of a lasting truce afterwards," but rather pitch it into chaos. "The neo-Jacobins are rushing to get America involved in a general Middle Eastern war before Americans have time to think," warns Paul Craig Roberts. "Once we have attacked other sovereign Islamic countries, we will have to bring back the draft in order to raise the necessary armies or resort to nuclear weapons…. The root of the Middle Eastern problem is Israel’s uncanny ability to manipulate American public opinion and US foreign policy. This unique power means Israel doesn’t have to compromise. Instead, the Israelis escalate and involve us ever more deeply and one-sidedly in their disputes with Arabs…. Bush’s neo-Jacobins will not be content until they have 600 million enraged Muslims at our throats." Indeed, this is precisely what the neocons desire—millions of enraged Muslims taking up arms against the United States, as this will force a reluctant and usually peaceful population—always opposed to war because they pay the ultimate price—to donate their sons and daughters to a horrific war. The Straussian strain of neocon consider the American people little more than sheep to be culled and manipulated for their gain—and the gain of Israel. According to the aged neocon Norman Podhoretz, the only impediment standing in the way of neocon glory is the American people, who have yet to demonstrate they have "the stomach to do what will be required," that is to say sacrifice ourselves to neocon-neoliberal and Zionist hegemony and the eradication (or at minimum submission) of the Muslim hordes. According to Roberts, the "vision" of the neocons "is to knock off Iraq, Iran and Syria, the countries that could get in the way of Israel expelling the Palestinians to Jordan and grabbing Lebanon, as well. This is what World War IV is all about." For the neocons, there is "no room for diplomacy, compromise and agreements. These are the tools of wimps and will cause 'a relapse into appeasement and diplomatic evasion.’ There is only room for war…. To pursue the insane agenda of conquering and occupying the Middle East not only requires the stomach for inhumane acts, but also demands millions of Americans taking up arms. Here come the draft and a generation of casualties." Or the end of the planet as we know it, as Hezbollah—and soon millions of enraged Shi’ites not only in Lebanon but also in Iraq and Iran—have no intention of throwing down their Kalashnikovs and RPGs and surrendering to the Zionists, determined to wipe them out or at minimum enslave them, as they attempt to enslave the Palestinians. It will be a bitter fight to the end—and in order to "win," the United States and Israel will resort to dragging out the "mini-nukes" and irradiating all those who dare resist. Bush’s neocons have already indicated they fully intend to use nuclear weapons. In fact, if you count depleted uranium, they are already nuking the Arabs of Iraq and now Lebanon (see Dr. Doug Rokke, PhD., former Director, U.S. Army Depleted Uranium project, Depleted Uranium Situation Worsens Requiring Immediate Action By President Bush, Prime Minister Blair, and Prime Minister Olmert, i.e., at least 100 GBU 28 bunker busters containing depleted uranium warheads are on their way to Israel to be used in Lebanon). I am old enough to remember nuclear drills in grade school, as we were continually propagandized as children to believe the evil commies would nuke us at any minute. Of course, the Soviet Union had no intention of nuking us, nor us them, and this was called MAD, or Mutually Assured Destruction—a good deal for the death merchants, but a scary deal for everybody else, culminating in the Cuban Missile Crisis, an event I am old enough to remember as well. Later, when I was a bit older and more cynical, I made light of my grade school nuke drills, declaring the reason we crawled down beneath our desks on hands and knees was to kiss our posteriors good-bye, as any nuclear confrontation between nations bristling with thermonuclear weapons would be certain suicide. I am now beginning to believe such a suicide is actually possible. ---- Depleted Uranium Situation Worsens Requiring Immediate Action By President Bush, Prime Minister Blair, and Prime Minister Olmert states Dr. Doug Rokke, PhD. former Director, U.S. Army Depleted Uranium project July 26, 2006 http://www.unobserver.com/index.php?pagina=layout4.php&id=2507&blz=1 The delivery of at least 100 GBU 28 bunker busters bombs containing depleted uranium warheads by the United States to Israel for use against targets in Lebanon will result in additional radioactive and chemical toxic contamination with consequent adverse health and environmental effects throughout the Middle East. Israeli tank gunners are also using depleted uranium tank rounds as photographs verify. Today, U.S., British, and now Israeli military personnel are using illegal uranium munitions - America's and England's own "dirty bombs" while U.S. Army, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Defense, and British Ministry of Defence officials deny that there are any adverse health and environmental effects as a consequence of the manufacture, testing, and/or use of uranium munitions, to avoid liability for the willful and illegal dispersal of a radioactive toxic material - depleted uranium. The use of uranium weapons is absolutely unacceptable, and a crime against humanity. Consequently, the citizens of the world and all governments must force cessation of uranium weapons use. I must demand that Israel now provide medical care to all DU casualties in Lebanon and clean up all DU contamination. U.S. and British officials have arrogantly refused to comply with their own regulations, orders and directives that require United States Department of Defense officials to provide prompt and effective medical care to "all" exposed individuals. Reference: Medical Management of Unusual Depleted Uranium Casualties, DOD, Pentagon, 10/14/93, Medical Management of Army personnel Exposed to Depleted Uranium (DU) Headquarters, U.S. Army Medical Command 29 April 2004, and section 2-5 of U.S. Army Regulation 700-48. Israeli officials must not do so now. They also refuse to clean up dispersed radioactive Contamination as required by Army Regulation - AR 700-48: "Management of Equipment Contaminated With Depleted Uranium or Radioactive Commodities" (Headquarters, Department Of The Army, Washington, D.C., September 2002) and U.S. Army Technical Bulletin- TB 9-1300-278: "Guidelines For Safe Response To Handling, Storage, And Transportation Accidents Involving Army Tank Munitions Or Armor Which Contain Depleted Uranium" (Headquarters, Department Of The Army, Washington, D.C., JULY 1996). Specifically, section 2-4 of United States Army Regulation-AR 700-48 dated September 16, 2002 requires that: (1) "Military personnel "identify, segregate, isolate, secure, and label all RCE" (radiologically contaminated equipment). (2) "Procedures to minimize the spread of radioactivity will be implemented as soon as possible." (3) "Radioactive material and waste will not be locally disposed of through burial, submersion, incineration, destruction in place, or abandonment" and (4) "All equipment, to include captured or combat RCE, will be surveyed, packaged, retrograded, decontaminated and released IAW Technical Bulletin 9-1300-278, DA PAM 700-48" (Note: Maximum exposure limits are specified in Appendix F). The previous and current use of uranium weapons, the release of radioactive components in destroyed U.S. and foreign military equipment and releases of industrial, medical, research facility radioactive materials have resulted in unacceptable exposures. Therefore, decontamination must be completed, as required by U.S. Army Regulation 700-48 and should include releases of all radioactive materials resulting from military operations. The extent of adverse health and environmental effects of uranium weapons contamination is not limited to combat zones but includes facilities and sites where uranium weapons were manufactured or tested including Vieques, Puerto Rico; Colonie, New York; Concord, MA; Jefferson Proving Grounds, Indiana; and Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. Therefore medical care must be provided by the United States Department of Defense officials to all individuals affected by the manufacturing, testing, and/or use of uranium munitions. Thorough environmental remediation also must be completed without further delay. I am amazed that fifteen years after I was asked to clean up the initial DU mess from Gulf War 1 and over ten years since I finished the depleted uranium project, that United States Department of Defense officials and others still attempt to justify uranium munitions use while ignoring mandatory requirements. I am dismayed that Department of Defense and Department of Energy officials and representatives continue personal attacks aimed to silence or discredit those of us who are demanding that medical care be provided to all DU casualties and that environmental remediation is completed in compliance with U.S. Army Regulation 700-48. But beyond the ignored mandatory actions, the willful dispersal of tons of solid radioactive and chemically toxic waste in the form of uranium munitions is illegal ( http://www.traprockpeace.org/karen_parker_du_illegality.pdf ) and just does not even pass the common sense test and according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, DHS, is a dirty bomb. DHS issued "dirty bomb" response guidelines, http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/fr-cont.html , on January 3, 2006 for incidents within the United States but ignore DOD use of uranium weapons and existing DOD regulations. These guidelines specifically state that: "Characteristics of RDD and IND Incidents: A radiological incident is defined as an event or series of events, deliberate or accidental, leading to the release, or potential release, into the environment of radioactive material in sufficient quantity to warrant consideration of protective actions. Use of an RDD or IND is an act of terror that produces a radiological incident." Thus the use of uranium munitions is "an act or terror" as defined by DHS. Finally, continued compliance with the infamous March 1991 Los Alamos Memorandum that was issued to ensure continued use of uranium munitions can not be justified. In conclusion: the President of the United States - George W. Bush, the Prime Minister of Great Britain - Tony Blair, and the Prime Minister of Israel - Ehud Olmert must acknowledge and accept responsibility for willful use of illegal uranium munitions - their own "dirty bombs" - resulting in adverse health and environmental effects. President Bush, Prime Minister Blair, and Prime Minister Olmert should order: 1. medical care for all casualties, 2. thorough environmental remediation, 3. immediate cessation of retaliation against all of us who demand compliance with medical care and environmental remediation requirements, 4. and stop the already illegal the use (UN finding) of depleted uranium munitions. References- these references are copies of the actual regulations and orders and other pertinent official documents: http://www.traprockpeace.org/twomemos.html http://www.traprockpeace.org/rokke_du_3_ques.html http://www.traprockpeace.org/du_dtic_wakayama_Aug2002.html http://www.traprockpeace.org/karen_parker_du_illegality.pdf http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/fr-cont.html http://cryptome.org/dhs010306.txt Photo by David Silverman (Getty Images ) Image 71440735 http://editorial.gettyimages.com Dr. Doug Rokke, PhD. former Director, U.S. Army Depleted Uranium project -------- india House to debate US-India nuclear energy bill Wed Jul 26, 2006 (AFP) http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060726/pl_afp/usindianuclear_060726180257 WASHINGTON - The US Congress opens debate on a controversial US-India civilian nuclear energy deal, which supporters see as the cornerstone of a new strategic alliance between the two countries. A vote on the measure is likely in the House of Representatives late Wednesday. The bill emerged from a deal forged last year between US President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Democratic and Republican leaders in both houses of Congress have expressed strong support for the bill. If it becomes law, the measure would reverse some three decades of US policy to restrict access to nuclear technology. The United States has withheld its civilian nuclear know-how from India since 1974, when it conducted its first nuclear test. India tested nuclear weapons in 1974 and 1998 and, as a result, is currently banned by the United States and other major powers from buying fuel for atomic reactors and other related equipment. But some lawmakers have expressed doubts about extending civil nuclear technology to India, which is not a member of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Under the deal, the United States will aid the development of civil nuclear power in India in return for New Delhi placing its civil nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency inspections. Supporters greet the deal as a sign of a geopolitical re-alliance following the Cold War, one which allows India to jump-start its quest for alternative energy, as its economy booms. Detractors say, however, they are not convinced that India can be trusted to safeguard critical atomic secrets, or to refrain from using atomic material to gain an edge over neighboring rival power, Pakistan. "We are deeply concerned that this proposal, in its current form, will blow a hole in the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, allow India to greatly increase the size of its nuclear arsenal, and potentially spark a nuclear arms race in Asia," House Democrat Ed Markey told a press conference Tuesday. Markey said the bill would allow India to dramatically increase its production of nuclear weapons. "The agreement would create a huge exemption for India from US non-proliferation laws and international norms," he said. "By shipping India fuel for its civilian reactors, this legislation potentially frees up their entire supply of domestic uranium for use in weapons." He added: "This will result in a bonanza of newly available nuclear material for weapons, which experts estimate could allow them to increase their nuclear weapons production from seven warheads a year to 40-50 warheads a year." Critics also fear the bill could ratchet up the arms race in Asia. "Just yesterday the world learned that Pakistan is building a huge new plutonium-production reactor, which will allow them to increase their weapons production from two to three weapons a year to 40-50," Markey said. "If you think that Pakistans new reactor and this nuclear deal with India arent related, youre fooling yourself." -------- korea N. Korea says it will bolster nuclear weapons as Malaysian meeting nears Updated 7/26/2006 (AP) http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-07-26-korea-security_x.htm?csp=34 SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea's defense minister said his country will strengthen its nuclear weapons program in response to U.N. sanctions and American hostility, the North's official news agency reported Wednesday. North Korea will upgrade its arsenal "in every way by employing all possible means and methods'' and will greet any aggressors with "all-out do-or-die resistance and unprecedented devastating strikes,'' Kim Il Chol said, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Meanwhile, a top American diplomat said the United States would try to hold a regional security meeting in Malaysia if North Korea continues to boycott six-nation nuclear disarmament talks. If North Korea is willing, "we could have a six-party informal" meeting on the communist state's disputed nuclear weapons program, said Christopher Hill, chief U.S. negotiator on the issue. "If they don't want (to) ... we will have some kind of multilateral meeting to discuss security issues in Northeast Asia. But it won't be discussing six-party talks. It will be discussing broader and more future-type issues." The United States and others have been urging North Korea to end its nine-month-old boycott of negotiations intended to offer Pyongyang security assurances and aid in exchange for giving up its nuclear program. They hoped that the talks between the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia could be held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum meeting Thursday and Friday. But Kim, speaking at a gathering to mark the 53rd anniversary of the armistice agreement that ended the Korean War, said strengthening North Korea's nuclear weapons program is necessary to counter the United States' "extremely hostile act and the irresponsibility of the U.N. Security Council.'' North Korea fired seven missiles in early July, including at least one believed capable of reaching the U.S. mainland. International condemnation prompted the Security Council to adopt a resolution sanctioning North Korea and banning member states from missile-related dealings with the communist country. Kim warned that the U.N. resolution will not force Pyongyang to give up its nuclear program. North Korea ``can survive without sweets, but not without bullets,'' he said. The communist state has boycotted the talks since November to protest a U.S. crackdown on its alleged financial wrongdoing. Washington has imposed sanctions on Macau-based Banco Delta Asia and several North Korean companies it said were involved in counterfeiting, money laundering and funding weapons proliferation. The Bank of China since has frozen North Korean assets, earning praise from the White House. Presidential spokesman Tony Snow said Wednesday the United States was encouraged that China "really has now accepted some responsibility for the situation, as has South Korea." "And you've seen both countries starting to assert pressure on the government in Pyongyang because they want them to return (to six-nation nuclear disarmament talks)," Snow said. Pyongyang is demanding that the United States lift the financial restrictions against it before rejoining the six-party talks. The meeting in Malaysia, being hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, marks the first time the six countries have gathered at the same venue since North Korea test-fired seven missiles on July 5. The tests prompted fresh calls for resuming the six-party talks in hopes of persuading the communist regime to disarm in exchange for economic aid and security assurances. "Everybody would like a six-party informal, all five of us want a six-party informal," Hill said. "North Korea is now at a crossroad," said South Korea's top nuclear negotiator Chun Yung-woo, after a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei. Chun indicated that further punitive measures could be taken against Pyongyang if it still refused to return to talks, following a U.N. Security Council resolution that condemned the missile tests and ban missile-related dealings with North Korea. North Korea's delegation, led by its Foreign Minister Paek Nam Sun, is scheduled to arrive in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday and likely will meet with Chinese and South Korean officials. ---- China 'seriously concerned' over NKorea stalemate KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) Jul 26, 2006 http://www.spacewar.com/2006/060726100355.r1idqmim.html China said Wednesday it was "seriously concerned" about the situation on the Korean peninsula as it campaigned for North Korea to rejoin stalled talks on its nuclear programme. The chief US negotiator on North Korea, Christopher Hill, said Pyongyang had given no sign it would agree to attend six-nation discussions on the sidelines of a regional security forum in Malaysia. However, frantic diplomatic efforts led by China and South Korea were under way here to bring all six countries together and restart the talks that the North left in November in protest over US sanctions. "As North Korea's neighbour, China is seriously concerned about the emergence of new, complex elements in the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula situation," said Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing. "This is caused by many reasons. Among them, there has been long-term enmity between some major parties and it has led to serious mistrust," he said in comments relayed to the media by foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu. However Li later said there was still hope reclusive North Korea would rejoin the talks. "We are hoping, we are keeping our fingers crossed, that with good conditions, we can have the six-party talks resume," he told reporters after meeting Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers and his counterparts from Japan and South Korea. Hill held out gloomier prospects, saying that he would "hate to use optimism and North Korea in the same sentence." "As yet we do not have any signals from the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) that they intend to participate in any six-party discussions here in Kuala Lumpur," he said after talks with Chinese deputy foreign minister Wu Dawei. Dawei said Tuesday that a session of the six-way discussions grouping the two Koreas, China, Japan, the United States and Russia, had been provisionally scheduled for Friday. North Korean Foreign Minister Paek Nam-Sun and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are due to arrive in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday for the 26-nation ASEAN Regional Forum security meeting the following day. The latest negotiations have showed up differences over what to do if North Korea shuns the talks, with Hill saying they should go ahead with the remaining five and China and South Korea insisting they should not. Chinese diplomats said the six-way format could collapse if the talks proceed without Pyongyang. One South Korean official suggested there could be a multilateral meeting which also groups Malaysia, Australia and Canada. China is seen as the biggest influence on North Korea, although the hermit state snubbed Beijing's appeals earlier this month and launched a volley of ballistic missile tests that inflamed tensions in the region. Li is due to meet his North Korean counterpart on Friday, Wu Dawei indicated. South Korea is also pushing for bilateral talks with its neighbour, diplomats said. Japan's negiotator on the talks meanwhile called for all six parties to use the opportunity to meet. Tokyo led efforts to have UN sanctions imposed on North Korea after the missile tests. Reclusive North Korea raised the stakes ahead of Friday's forum when it described Rice as a "political imbecile" for criticising the July 5 missile launches. "This is an example of the totally unacceptable and unprofessional types of comments we see from DPRK state-run media," Hill retorted Wednesday, adding that it made it more difficult for the world to take North Korea seriously. Separately Syed Hamid Albar, the foreign minister of current ASEAN chair Malaysia, repeated an offer to host the talks and said the six countries should "take the opportunity to have a meeting among themselves." -------- latinamerica Venezuela may develop peaceful nuclear program - Chavez July 26, 2006 (Interfax) http://www.interfax.com/3/178680/news.aspx MOSCOW. - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has not ruled out the possibility that Venezuela will develop its own nuclear program. "Maybe some day we will start using nuclear energy," he told the press upon his arrival in Moscow for a working visit on Wednesday. -------- mideast More nuclear fuel removed from Libya, US says Reuters July 26, 2006 http://www.topix.net/content/reuters/2606252424015633315113317337040650772889 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three more kg (6.6 pounds) of weapons-capable highly enriched uranium have been removed from Libya, bringing to 20 kg (44 pounds) the total put under international control since the country abandoned its nuclear arms program in 2003, U.S. officials said on Wednesday. The recent two-day operation was carried out by Russia, the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration and the U.N. watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency. "Libya's cooperation and commitment was key to this joint nonproliferation effort. It is a clear indication of Libya's continued commitment to rid itself of weapons of mass destruction and proliferation-sensitive materials," Linton Brooks, the U.S. agency's administrator, said in a written statement. A U.S. spokesman said an initial 17 kg (37 pounds) of highly enriched uranium, or HEU, was removed from Libya in 2004 but was not previously announced. The latest shipment was part of a process to remove all Russian-origin HEU material from Libya. The U.S. agency did not say how much was left. A report on Monday by the Libyan news agency quoted leader Muammar Gaddafi as saying Libya at one stage came close to building a nuclear bomb, the first time any Libyan official had confirmed the North African country had been trying to build a nuclear bomb. One U.S. official who deals with nonproliferation issues told Reuters the claim was "not credible. Libya possessed nuclear material but not enough expertise to complete the job. "I don't think Gaddafi was close," the official said. At Libya's Tajoura Research Center, the HEU was loaded into three specialized transportation containers provided by Russia, while U.S. and IAEA experts monitored the process. The containers were airlifted under guard from an airport near Tripoli, Libya, to a secure facility in Russia where the HEU will be blended into low enriched uranium, or LEU, which is less suitable for weapons production. The operation was part of the U.S. global threat reduction initiative to secure vulnerable nuclear and radiological materials around the world as quickly as possible. In all, some 189 kg (416 pounds) of HEU have been returned in 13 shipments to Russia from Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Uzbekistan, Latvia, and the Czech Republic, as well as Libya. In December 2003, Libya said it would abandon its weapons of mass destruction programs and allow international inspections. The move helped the OPEC oil producer repair relations with the West after decades of estrangement. The United States said in May it would restore formal ties and take Libya off the list of countries deemed state sponsors of terrorism. -------- russia Russia, Kazakhstan Sign 3 Nuclear JV Deals Worth $10Bln Created: 26.07.2006 MosNews http://www.mosnews.com/money/2006/07/26/kazakhnuclear.shtml On Tuesday, July 25, Russia and Kazakhstan signed documents for establishment of three nuclear power joint ventures that will be occupied in design of new reactors, uranium production and enrichment. The documents were signed during a session of a working group on the development of Kazakhstan’s nuclear energy chaired by Kazakh Prime Minister Danial Akhmetov and Russian nuclear chief Sergei Kiriyenko. Kiriyenko, the head of the Federal Nuclear Power Agency (Rosatom), said the signing of these documents was an important stage of cooperation in the nuclear sphere and a “real step toward the joint development of uranium production and enrichment in Russia.” He also added that the total cost of three Russian-Kazakh nuclear JVs will be $10 billion. Akhmetov said the first venture on designing new reactors was the most important and Kazakhstan was planning to export products of joint ventures. Techsnabexport, Russia’s state-controlled uranium supplier and provider of uranium enrichment services, already holds a 49.33 percent stake in a joint venture set up in 2004 in the south of mineral-rich Kazakhstan. It is exploring a uranium ore deposit with estimated reserves of 19,000 metric tons of uranium in Zarechnoye near the border with Central-Asian neighbors Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Kiriyenko said July 15 that the first international uranium enrichment center would be established in Angarsk in southeast Siberia’s Irkutsk Region. “One of the elements of convergence [in the initiatives] is the idea to create international centers. We will begin with an international center for uranium enrichment,” he said, quoted by RIA Novosti. “Together with the program on the nuclear development, which we [Russia] worked out, the establishment of the joint ventures with Kazakhstan will solve the issue of uranium provision for nuclear energy,” Kiriyenko said. Kiriyenko added that the new project would produce 5,000-6,000 metric tons of uranium a year while Russia’s annual output at the moment totaled slightly over 3,000 tons. He said the ventures should be registered by September 30, and working groups should present their feasibility studies by November 30. ---- Russian Nuclear Submarine Has Water Leak; No Danger Wednesday, July 26, 2006 (AP) http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,205690,00.html MOSCOW — A technical problem caused radioactive water that feeds a power generator on a Russian nuclear submarine to leak Tuesday, Russian news agencies reported, quoting navy officials who said the accident caused no environmental danger and did not raise radiation levels. Crew members quickly discovered the leak on the Northern Fleet submarine at a base in the Arctic port of Vidyayevo, and authorities were trying to determine what caused it, Interfax quoted the head of the Russian navy, Adm. Vladimir Masorin, as saying. "There is no radioactive pollution at the base," Masorin he said, warning against "dramatizing the situation." "Such have occurred before, but they had no tragic consequences," he said, according to Interfax. News agencies also quoted navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo as saying that radiation levels inside and outside the vessel were normal. "There is no threat of pollution to the environment," ITAR-Tass quoted Dygalo as saying. Interfax quoted an upper parliament house member and former Northern Fleet commander, Adm. Vyacheslav Popov, as saying the leak involved radioactive water used to cool the reactor. Navy officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Dygalo said the leak occurred while the generator was being powered up or switched off, according to ITAR-Tass and other Russian news agencies, but it was not clear which. -------- u.s. nuc facilities Nuclear Regulatory Commission to Create Office of New Reactors WASHINGTON, DC, July 26, 2006 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2006/2006-07-26-09.asp#anchor1 To prepare for the nuclear industry’s interest in licensing and building new nuclear power plants in the near term, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is reorganizing its Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation to create an Office of New Reactors. The NRC is expecting several applications for new nuclear power plants in late 2007 and early 2008, with initial construction activities soon thereafter. NRG Energy, Inc. has plans to build two new nuclear plants at the site of its South Texas Project nuclear facility. The facility is located on the Gulf Coast near Wadsworth, Texas, about 90 miles southwest of Houston. NRG is the first company to announce that it will build a new nuclear plant, although several utilities are considering nuclear generating stations in other states - including Florida Power & Light Company, Duke Power, Santee Cooper and the South Carolina Electric & Gas Company. The nuclear regulatory agency is also adding a new organizational unit, headed by a Deputy Regional Administrator for Construction in its Atlanta office, to oversee inspections related to expected new construction of nuclear facilities. “This change will ensure we maintain our focus on the safe and secure operation of existing nuclear power plants, while enhancing our effectiveness in processing the anticipated new plant licensing workload,” said Executive Director for Operations Luis Reyes. The new Deputy Regional Administrator position and organizational unit in Atlanta will focus on the agency’s Construction Inspection Program, which was announced earlier this year. This program will be responsible for the agency’s oversight of any new nuclear power plant construction for the entire country. The reorganized Region II office will be better equipped to carry out construction inspection activities while maintaining its focus on ensuring safe operation of nuclear power plants in Region II. The Office of New Reactors should be established by January 2007. The Office of New Reactors will have full responsibility for licensing and program oversight of new reactor activities. The Nuclear Reactor Regulation Office will retain full responsibility for licensing and program oversight for activities related to the current operating reactors. -------- vermont Hearing Set for Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant License Renewal WASHINGTON, DC, July 26, 2006 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2006/2006-07-26-09.asp#anchor2 An Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) panel will hear oral argument on requests for a hearing on the Vermont Yankee license renewal application on Tuesday, August 1, and, if needed, on Wednesday, August 2, in Brattleboro, Vermont. The ASLB is a quasi-judicial arm of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that deals with licensing matters. Entergy, the owner and operator of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, submitted an application for a 20-year license extension on January. 25. The current NRC operating license for the plant, which is located in Vernon, Vermont, is set to expire on March 21, 2012. Requests for an evidentiary hearing on the application were submitted by the states of Vermont and Massachusetts; the New England Coalition, a nuclear watchdog organization; and the Town of Marlboro, Vermont. The ASLB panel will hear oral argument on the admissibility of some of the issues raised in these filings and determine, at a later date, whether a hearing should be granted. The August 1st session is scheduled to begin at 9 am in the multi-purpose room at Brattleboro Union High School, 131 Fairground Road in Brattleboro. If needed, the oral argument will continue starting at 9 am on August 2 at the same location. The sessions are open for public observation, but participation will be limited to the parties involved in the proceeding. Early arrival is suggested to allow for security screening for all members of the public interested in attending. Attendees are requested to refrain from bringing any unnecessary hand-carried items, such as packages, briefcases, backpacks and other items, that might need to be examined for security purposes. Documents related to the Vermont Yankee license renewal application are available on the NRC website here. http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/vermont-yankee.html Documents pertaining to the ASLB proceeding are available in the agency’s electronic document library here. http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html More information about the ASLB can be found here. http://www.nrc.gov/who-we-are/organization/aslbpfuncdesc.html -------- ENERGY -------- alternative energy Xethanol to Produce 90 Million Gallons of Cellulosic Ethanol Annually NEW YORK, New York, July 26, 2006 (ENS) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2006/2006-07-26-09.asp#anchor7 Xethanol Corporation, a biotechnology driven ethanol company, plans to construct a 50 million gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant on the site of a former Pfizer pharmaceutical manufacturing complex in Augusta, Georgia, the company announced Thursday. The Augusta plant is expected to begin producing ethanol by mid-2007, using non-edible plant materials such as waste wood from the forest industry. Ethanol blended transportation fuel is seen as a substitute for the dwindling global supply of fossil fuels. Especially valuable is cellulosic ethanol made from feedstocks that do not divert food products, such as corn, from the marketplace. PRAJ Technology, an India based bio-ethanol technology company will provide detailed engineering services, process design and licensing as well as the supply of vital sections of the process plant. PRAJ was also selected to provide the same services for Xethanol's new 41 million gallon per year facility at its Blairstown, Iowa site. Christopher d'Arnaud-Taylor, chairman and CEO of Xethanol, said, "Having completed our due diligence on the site, we decided to raise the capacity of this plant to 50 million gallons per year. It is being designed to run on a variety of feedstocks and we are already securing the necessary feedstock streams from the forest products industry to run at capacity when we begin production by mid-2007." Lucas Rice, Xethanol's vice president of operations, said, "This site is a prime example of Xethanol's strategy of exploiting shuttered industrial capacity and converting facilities that already have existing infrastructure to produce ethanol. In doing so, the company is able to save significant time and money in bringing facilities on line. This site, in particular, has millions of dollars in equipment and infrastructure in place and ready to use for ethanol production." Xethanol executives say the company's goal is to be the leader in the emerging biomass-to-ethanol and biofuels industry. "Xethanol's mission is to optimize the use of biomass in the renewable energy field and convert biomass that is currently being abandoned or land filled into ethanol and other valuable co-products. The company is especially interested in co-producing xylitol, a sugar alcohol that is used as a sugar substitute in gums, candies and dental products. -------- -------- energy -------- -------- OTHER -------- environment -------- -------- genetics -------- -------- health -------- -------- imf / world bank / wto (economics) -------- poverty -------- ACTIVISTS -------- --------