FORUM: General Discussion Thread (Nuclear Issues)

Published: January 5th, 2013 at 12:00 am ET
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Once every month or so a discussion thread will be posted as a place for general discussion of nuclear issues.

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Published: January 5th, 2013 at 12:00 am ET
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5,390 comments

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5,390 comments to FORUM: General Discussion Thread (Nuclear Issues)

  • arclight arclight

    Secret food sampling in Japan, findings concur with Greenpeace findings!
    MIRMC a collection of nuclear and health related professionals that have access to a spectrometer have been double checking food contamination.. Their findings concur generally with Greenpeace findings they say!
    MIRMC Report 1. Comparison with Greenpeace

    Video here..

    Published on Aug 12, 2012 by guardianofmiyagi
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXn4euEh9Xo

    and a link here to the Greenpeace information

    Greenpeace puts pressure on Japan to tighten radiation restrictions after more than half of tested seafood shows up positive for radioactive cesium
    Monday, October 31, 2011

    Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/034017_Greenpeace_radiation.html#ixzz23LPYOmOy

    Any recent links to greenpeace studies ??? I cant find any!!


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    • arclight arclight

      looks like the milk is exported.. it is used in the confectionary industry and also in japanese related restaurants in the usa..
      heres a pdf showing exports in 2009

      its a bit of an eye opener..
      i believe japanese trade in exports has not suffered to badly :(
      mainly grains and seafood exports though here.. the other term is "dairy and eggs (not seperate)

      Japan's Food Exports by Category (2008-2009)

      http://www.jetro.go.jp/en/reports/statistics/data/0809_export.pdf

      heres a link to recent import export details

      http://www.jetro.go.jp/en/reports/statistics/data/

      if you download the june excel file you will see that the usa imports from japan under the guise of NAFTA! now thats is sneaky! and interesting as canada has a net loss, meaning they dont want to import contaminated to 1000 bequerl food so they import it through NAFTA instead.. a likely supposition perhaps?
      NAFTA is the largest importer from japan over the last year..??
      still got a sweet tooth?

      south american dark choclate is the way to go.. no added milk.. :(

      Oh nafta!

      maybe african then??

      isreal are importing as usual too!

      interesting excel sheet that
      know where the contaminated milk is likely to have gone??


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  • anne anne

    Other Fast Breeder Reactor programs in Japan

    “Jōyō is a test fast breeder reactor located in Ōarai, Ibaraki. The reactor was built in the 1970s for the purpose of experimental tests and the development of FBR technologies. The reactor remains in operation today.
    “The successor to Monju is expected to be a larger demonstration plant that will be completed around 2025, built by the newly formed Mitsubishi FBR Systems company.[24]
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monju_Nuclear_Power_Plant


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  • Heart of the Rose Heart of the Rose

    Beachball for the children to play with on the beaches..of Fukushima..?
    http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/10/video-shows-fukushima-crisis-talks/

    Scroll down..
    The balloon floated over over reactor 1 to take readings….is a red and white beach ball!


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Japanese government receives over 50,000 comments from public on future of nuclear power

    The government has received more than 50,000 comments from the public on the future of nuclear power, officials said Saturday, as the Fukushima meltdowns generated high interest in the nation's new energy policy.

    The government's three options for nuclear power as a proportion of Japan's total energy generation by 2030 are zero, 15 percent, or 20 to 25 percent. Atomic energy supplied 26 percent of the nation's electricity in fiscal 2010.

    http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20120812a4.html

    I wonder what the outcome will be on this…
    Will it be like the other skewed call in polls?


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  • arclight arclight

    "…'In 2001 I, as the President of the Russian Federation and the supreme commander, deemed it advantageous to withdraw the radio-electronic center Lourdes from Cuba. In exchange for this, George Bush, the then U.S. president, has assured me that this decision would become the final confirmation that the Cold War was over and both of our states, getting rid of the relics of the Cold War, will start building a new relationship based on cooperation and transparency. In particular, Bush has convinced me that the U.S. missile defense system will never be deployed in Eastern Europe.

    The Russian Federation has fulfilled all terms of the agreement. And even more. I shut down not only the Cuban Lourdes but also Kamran in Vietnam. I shut them down because I gave my word of honor. I, like a man, has kept my word. What have the Americans done? The Americans are not responsible for their own words. It is no secret that in recent years, the U.S. created a buffer zone around Russia, involving in this process not only the countries of Central Europe, but also the Baltic states, Ukraine and the Caucasus. The only response to this could be an asymmetric expansion of the Russian military presence abroad, particularly in Cuba. In Cuba, there are convenient bays for our reconnaissance and warships, a network of the so-called 'jump airfields.'…"
    cont


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    • arclight arclight

      on May 11 of this year, our country has not only resumed work in the electronic center of Lourdes, but also placed the latest mobile strategic nuclear missiles 'Oak' on the island. They did not want to do it the amicable way, now let them deal with this,' Putin said."

      nuclear.COMment: I haven't heard of an 'Oak' missile before, but Putin's comments about asymetric approach and mobile system rings true. I've been reading a book published last November by US Army War College's Strategic Studies Institute ("Russian Nuclear Weapons: Past, Present and Future") which reports that Russia declared nucear policy can be categorized as an "Asymetric Escalation Posture", which is "geared for the rapid and asymetric first use of nuclear weapons". This posture is "the most aggressive option available to nuclear states", the book reports, adding that "To credibly threaten first use, this posture must be largely transparent about capabilities, deployment patterns, and conditions of use." [excerpts are from pp. 328-9]

      http://www.nuclear.com/archive/2012/08/03/20120803-002.html

      and the headline is

      August 3, 2012

      Putin says Russian mobile nuclear missiles have been deployed in Cuba since May 11, 2012


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  • arclight arclight

    August 11, 2012

    Iran already has electromagnetic pulse (EMP) nuclear weapons

    "..According to a former intelligence officer of the Revolutionary Guards now defected to a country in Europe, Iran also has several neutron bombs (super-electromagnetic weapons). The source, who attended a commanders' briefing by the Revolutionary Guards, said they have discussed a strategy in which "many planes will fall from the sky" – a clear indication that Iran is prepared to deliver an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack. The International Atomic Energy Agency has verified that Iran has test-launched ballistic missiles off ships in an exercise similar to an EMP attack.

    Source: Reza Kahlili (instructor, DOD's Joint Counterintelligence Training Academy), Iran's radical rulers close in on the bomb | It's not too late to stop nuclear ambitions", The Washington Times, August 10, 2012.."

    http://www.nuclear.com/default.html


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Japan said that they would still get oil from Iran…

    Japan passes law to insure Iran oil imports

    Japan's parliament approved government guarantees on insurance for crude oil cargoes from Iran on Wednesday, paving the way for it to become the first of Iran's big Asian oil buyers to get round new European Union sanctions.

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/20/us-oil-japan-iran-idUSBRE85J09Y20120620

    Does anyone think this was an accident?

    Destroyer Porter collides with Japanese tanker

    The destroyer Porter and a Japanese-owned tanker collided near the Strait of Hormuz at 1 a.m. Sunday, an impact that tore open the destroyer’s starboard side but left both crews unharmed, 5th Fleet said in a news release.

    The collision between Porter and the bulk oil tanker Otowasan, operating under a Panamanian flag, was not “combat related,” 5th Fleet said.

    The circumstances of the collision — whether the collision was in the channel, the relative speeds at impact, or which ship had right of way — remain unclear.

    http://www.militarytimes.com/news/2012/08/navy-porter-destroyer-collides-japanese-tanker-081212w/


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  • Heart of the Rose Heart of the Rose

    Eyes right
    An unusual militancy is creeping into mainstream politics

    http://www.economist.com/node/21559656

    "With Japan’s two mainstream parties in communion on the right, no credible force exists to fight for liberal causes, which in Japan include an end to an over-wieldy bureaucracy, better social welfare, and policies that favour risk-taking and innovation, rather than the stodgy titans of corporate Japan. Perhaps that is another reason, besides the fears about nuclear energy that grew after the nuclear disaster at Fukushima last year, why so many housewives and the like have suddenly taken to the streets. No one is left to represent them."


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  • arclight arclight

    ETF Center
    Is Nuclear Power Safe Yet?
    By ETF Digest 01/20/12 -

    The following commentary comes from an independent investor or market observer as part of TheStreet's guest contributor program, which is separate from the company's news coverage.

    By David Gillie

    "..But, we had another fallout after the Fukushima incident. Stocks related to the nuclear power industry lost a third of their value in a week and continued downward after that…"

    very pro nuke article, but its good to see this qoute
    :)
    http://www.thestreet.com/story/11381199/1/is-nuclear-power-safe-yet.html


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Goin down and takin Japan with 'em, thats nuclear!

    Japan’s Utilities Lose $46 Billion as End of Era Nears

    Japan’s atomic power industry lost a record $46 billion since the Fukushima tsunami and meltdown in 2011, wiping out seven years of profit. Then came the bad news.

    The government is preparing to force regional monopolies to spin off transmission assets from generation, under a July 13 announcement that helped cut 1.3 trillion yen ($17 billion) in market value in three weeks at the nine utilities from Tohoku Electric Power Co. to Kansai Electric Power Co. (9503) The overhaul, designed to spur competition, is the industry’s biggest in post- war Japan

    http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-08-12/japan-s-utilities-lose-46-billion-as-end-of-era-nears-energy


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  • KONDY KONDY

    Nuclear Event in USA on Monday, 13 August, 2012 at 02:32 (02:32 AM) UTC.

    Description
    The Palisades nuclear plant in southwestern Michigan has been removed from service to repair what officials said is a "very small, very minor" cooling water leak. No radioactive materials were released, spokesman Mark Savage said Sunday. The leak was being repaired inside a containment building at the plant in Covert Township, southwest of Grand Rapids. "Palisades is taking this conservative measure at this time because of our unrelenting commitment and focus on nuclear safety," Savage said in Sunday morning in a release. "Palisades will be returned to service when repairs are completed." Officials had been monitoring the leak for a month. Cooling water is used to cool off components of a nuclear reactor by picking up and carrying heat from the reactor. The plant's reactor was shut down June 12 to repair a leak in a refueling water storage tank and was back online by July 11. "Shortly after that we noticed slowly increasing levels of this (cooling water) leakage," Savage told The Associated Press on Sunday afternoon. Shutting down the plant drops radiation levels in the containment building and allows workers to safely repair the leak, he added. Palisades has been designated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as one of the nation's four worst-performing nuclear plants, and it's come under increasing public and federal scrutiny recently. New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. owns…


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  • lam335 lam335

    Event #: 48178
    DRY FUEL STORAGE TRANSFER TRAILER DETECTED WITH REMOVABLE CONTAMINATION

    "On Aug 7, 2012 at 1734 EDT, PPL Susquehanna personnel were in the process of releasing the Dry Fuel Storage Transfer Trailer from the Unit 1 Reactor Building 101 rail bay and detected removable contamination on the trailer.

    "PPL Susquehanna Health Physics personnel identified removable surface contamination up to 30,000 dpm/100 sq cm on the transfer trailer. Gamma spectroscopy performed on smears identified the presence of Cs-137. No other radionuclides were identified on any of the analyzed smears. Cs-137, by itself, is not a nuclide characteristic to Susquehanna due to Susquehanna's high fuel integrity performance. In addition, no loose surface alpha contamination was identified.

    "The area around the trailer, located in the 101 bay, has been posted and controlled as a contaminated area. Decontamination of the transfer trailer is in progress. Onsite surveys of areas that were occupied by the transfer trailer, indicate no removable surface contamination. In addition, no Susquehanna personnel contamination events have been attributed to the contamination found on the transfer trailer.


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  • lam335 lam335

    "Although the receipt of this transfer trailer was not identified as an incoming radioactive shipment to Susquehanna from its' supplier, this event is immediately reportable to the NRC Operations Center in accordance with 10 CFR 20.1906(d), since the Department of Transportation acceptance limits identified in 49 CFR 173.433 for this type of container are 22,000 DPM/100 sq. cm and PPL Health Physics personnel identified removable radioactive surface contamination in excess of the limits of 10 CFR 71.87(i) which refer to the DOT limits of 49 CFR 173.433.

    "The final delivery carrier and NRC Senior Resident Inspector have been notified." The licensee will be notifying the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/en.html


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  • arclight arclight

    an on topic beauty pageant .. i kid you not! :)

    CURIE and student organizations?

    "CURIE (Curie) is a student organization to contribute up to the image of "science" of all!
    Held a "science contest" Miss, we will continue to disseminate information of the college student science!"

    "..Science contest to be held mistake! !

    CURIE student organizations Organizer:
    September 12 (Wed.) Date:
    Location: Kitazawa Town Hall (Shimokitazawa Station North Exit)

    So far "there was no science of beauty contest "!

    "Science of the college student intelligence "and" beauty to see it!.."

    i am sure someone can translate it better but this version is interesting

    http://curie-science.sakura.ne.jp/index.html

    6 university cuties to face off at Miss Science beauty pageant
    By Steven Simonitch

    LIFESTYLE AUG. 14, 2012

    liked this comment

    "
    0
    SenseNotSoCommonAUG. 14, 2012 – 08:36AM JST
    If the contestants' careers are enhanced by this, it will be for all the wrong reasons.

    If the goal is increased female participation in sciences, have a contest based on academic merit and innovation, not this tired, unoriginal, superficial nonsense…"

    http://www.japantoday.com/category/lifestyle/view/6-university-cuties-to-face-off-at-miss-science-beauty-pageant?utm_campaign=jt_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=jt_newsletter_2012-08-14_AM

    of course its a PR stunt for the pro nukes??


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  • arclight arclight

    and heres a beautiful emotive voice…

    Dr. Rosalie Bertell on Fukushima

    Published on Aug 13, 2012 by pinksapphiret
    Dr. Rosalie Bertell, author, distinguished American scientist, environmental activist, international expert on radiation, and sister of the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart, died at 83 after a long illness. This reports Dr. Bertell's letter on Fukushima Nuclear Disaster…

    NOTE: The date of this article is June 16, 2012.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MQ5aalnBjU&lc=ywcIGUCOptymPq8MfvbyxERo4-iZJS2wLVz2XYGnLVY&feature=inbox

    a pr stunt for the anti nukes? lol! :)


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  • CB CB

    In the news, blogs, and tweets I follow I see this escalation of erratic, hostile human behaviors. With the increase in radioactive contamination to the body, has there been a study to the psychology of radioactive contamination and its influence on human behavior?


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  • Sickputer

    "A reactor at the Millstone nuclear plant in Waterford, Conn., has shut down because of something that its 1960s designers never anticipated: the water in Long Island Sound was too warm to cool it."

    http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/13/heat-shuts-down-a-coastal-reactor/

    SP: Probably not the only place…others are running beyond design basis.. Tempting fate:

    "Last month the twin-unit Braidwood nuclear plant in Illinois needed special permission to keep operating because its cooling water pond reached 102 degrees as a result of low rainfall and high air temperatures. When Braidwood opened 26 years ago, it was designed to run at temperatures up to 98 degrees."


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  • Sickputer

    Another one bites the dust: "Operators of the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant in Southern Maryland have shut down one of the two reactors there because a control rod unexpectedly dropped into the reactor core, causing a reduction in power generation, a plant spokesman said Monday.

    The incident happened Sunday afternoon, prompting the plant's staff to shut the reactor down to find and fix the cause of the malfunction, according to Kory Raftery, spokesman for Constellation Energy Nuclear Group. Control rods are used in a reactor to limit the fission taking place among the reactor's enriched-uranium fuel rods."

    http://www.baltimoresun.com/features/green/blog/bs-gr-calvert-nuclear-shutdown-20120813,0,4708290.story

    SP: This plant has been in trouble before. Last year during the big eastern earthquake:

    http://enenews.com/unusual-event-maryland-nuke-plant-large-piece-building-hits-main-transformer-triggers-reactor-shutdown-emergency-response-plan-video


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  • lam335 lam335

    7.3 earthquakes in Russia

    http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/site/index.php?pageid=seism_index&rid=265580
    http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php

    They don't seem too far from Japan. I hope these are not harbingers of 7's happening a bit farther south.


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  • arclight arclight

    Radiation danger in dental X rays – shown to raise risk of meningiomas

    "..Dr. Claus and her colleagues studied 1,433 Americans who had meningiomas with 1350 others who did not have this tumour, but who were of the same age profile, sex ratio and geographical area. The researchers then analyzed the dental and medical history of both groups.

    For instance, they were questioned whether their dentist had ordered standard X-rays, known as bite-wings, every year, never, or now and then. Finally they were asked if they had ever had braces which involve full mouth X-rays.

    Dr. Claus concluded that those who reported having full mouth X-rays before 10 years of age were 4.9 times more likely to develop a meningioma. Those who had full mouth X-rays later than 10 years of age were three times more prone to this tumour…"

    http://nuclear-news.net/2012/08/13/radiation-danger-in-dental-x-rays-shown-to-raise-risk-of-meningiomas/


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  • arclight arclight

    Fresh Currents: Japan’s flow from a nuclear past to a renewable future

    "..To concerned individuals everywhere:

    We now stand at a critical watershed for Japan and the world – will we choose to revert to the dangerous, costly and centrally-controlled industry of nuclear power, rely on the CO2-producing fuels of oil and coal, or embrace the exciting new possibilities of decentralized renewable energy technologies?………."

    lease download your complimentary digital copy of *Fresh Currents,*

    http://nuclear-news.net/2012/08/14/fresh-currents-japans-flow-from-a-nuclear-past-to-a-renewable-future/


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  • mungo mungo

    Water leak found at Fukushima Daiichi plant

    Tokyo Electric Power Company has reported a radioactive water leak at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's Number 4 reactor.

    The utility says a worker patrolling on Tuesday morning found water one-centimeter deep across a 350-square-meter room on the first floor of the turbine building.

    The water apparently comes from a pipe running along a corridor outside the room. The pipe carries contaminated water from the adjacent Number 3 reactor to a storage facility.

    Workers later detected radioactive cesium at about 77,000 becquerels per milliliter in the water. TEPCO says there is no evidence the water has escaped into the environment.

    Also on Tuesday morning, TEPCO workers found white smoke rising from a pump in a storeroom. The room houses equipment to filter radioactive substances from water. The workers used an extinguisher to put out the fire. The company is investigating the cause.

    Aug. 14, 2012 – Updated 09:35 UTC (18:35 JST)


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  • BreadAndButter BreadAndButter

    Signatures to seek referendum on Hamaoka plant surpass required number

    Signatures collected from eligible voters in Shizuoka Prefecture have far surpassed the required number to seek an ordinance to hold a referendum on whether to restart a nuclear power plant there, the local authority said Monday.

    This will soon compel Gov. Heita Kawakatsu to submit a draft ordinance to the prefectural assembly, after a local civic group initiated the petition campaign to hold the referendum to determine whether operations should be resumed at Chubu Electric Power Co.'s Hamaoka nuclear plant.

    The group collected 178,240 signatures during two months since May, of which 165,127 are valid, surpassing the required around 62,000, or one-fiftieth of the overall eligible voters in the central Japan prefecture, according to the local election board.

    http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2012/08/176321.html

    *SAIKADO HANTAI! :-)
    *GO JAPAN!


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  • Cataclysmic Cataclysmic

    Damn it! NUCLEAR ALERT "A reactor at the Millstone nuclear plant in Waterford, Conn., has shut down because of something that its 1960s designers never anticipated: the water in Long Island Sound was too warm to cool it." "higher water temperatures could lie ahead. The sound’s temperature usually does not peak until late August. …While some reactors in inland locations have had to reduce their power output or shut down because of warm cooling water in the past, it is unusual for coastal plants, nuclear industry officials say.

    I have been very concerned about this type of event all summer.. with our heat waves.. this is not the first time we have had issues with water temperatures being to high to cool nuclear reactors, the Great Lakes had this happen in the 90s.. and it will continue to happen.. surprised it hasn't happened sooner this year.. be aware, and be vocal and shut this shit down..

    Unbelievable every frickin day more and more leaks out about this "industry".. a billion gallons of cool water.. per day, per plant, is already impossible to sustain, we are running out of fresh water, we have allowed industry to regulate itself and it has polluted almost all of our water..Not to mention degraded our DNA on a continual basis making us sick..

    We can not live without clean water.. HELLO!!!???? is there anybody listening? just nod if you can hear me…

    http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/site/?pageid=event_desc&edis_id=NC-20120814-36167-US


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  • GeoHarvey

    I would like one and all to visit an essay at my blog, in which I answer a simple question:

    Is Nuclear Power actually based on Science?

    http://geoharvey.wordpress.com/is-nuclear-power-actually-based-on-science/

    I hope you get as much pleasure out of reading it as I did writing it.

    geo


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  • norbu norbu

    I just found this, I don't know if this has been shown before, pardon me if it has, I thought it was rather interesting that we had a nuclear reactor orbiting around earth until 1979, when it broke into pieces and fell to earth, the intended orbit was 4000 years.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNAP-10A


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  • jump-ball

    I am always interested to see Fuku articles spreading to new venues, this one in the Chris Martenson financial site, which has subscribers in Japan:

    http://www.peakprosperity.com/insider/79463/fukushima-lies-and-what-comes-next


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  • Sickputer

    SP: What a relief! (not!). JAMA says things hunky dory in Fukushima:

    "The first study of Japanese living near the Fukushima nuclear plant damaged by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami has found low levels of radiation exposure, The Washington Post reports."

    http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2012/08/little-radiation-found-in-japanese-near-fukushima-nuke-plant/1#.UCrmKYl5mc0


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  • CB CB

    Cobalt-60 Petco Food Bowl Recall http://j.mp/NrKtSA
    This makes me realize what I might have been served in cafeterias, galleys, and restaurants that use stainless steal for cooking.


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  • NoNukes NoNukes

    Despite challenges, MOX plant remains on schedule
    By Rob Pavey

    NEW ELLENTON — Acclimating workers to a strict “nuclear culture” and procuring materials that meet nuclear construction standards are among the challenges facing the company building the government’s $4.8 billion mixed-oxide fuel project at Savannah River Site…

    Since the MOX project began almost five years ago, quality control issues have emerged several times, first with faulty rebar in 2007, then studs and couplers and – most recently – substandard steel piping…

    (from comments):
    I was a pipe welder at Mox 5 years ago and I told Q.C. about the sub standard piping they were having us weld.They said I did not know what I was talking about and that it was the welders lack of ability. They even brought in so called expert welders from Washington state to prove they were right. Guess what? It was the sub standard material.

    http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/metro/2012-07-24/despite-challenges-mox-plant-remains-schedule?v=1343159670


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  • Maggie123

    YouTube link = Margaret Heffernan gives a 21 min lecture on her book "Willful Blindness." Topic of lecture is why/how large corporations manage to house behaviors that are so horribly destructive. First few minutes are specific to radiation as danger to fetuses. She continues with insights more general — but whole lecture is very very good as insight that helps explain corporate and government behaviors re Fukushima, (as well as everywhere else!) I posted a different Heffernan link elsewhere before checking this one out. This one is better, combined, both are a good overall review of her ideas. http://youtu.be/pQa1aeTJflo


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  • enoughalready45 enoughalready45

    Michigan, USA Palisades Nuclear Plant
    Along the shoreline of Lake Michigan.
    Will make 3 entries on this topic.

    1. Another problem at Palisades causes shutdown/reduction in operation.

    NRC Event Report on Palisades, Event 48182:

    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/2012/20120813en.html#en48182

    Comment by Kevin Kamp of Beyond Nuclear…

    Please note the significance of this sentence at the end of the event notification report: "The licensee discovered this condition following a shutdown the morning of 8/12/12 to investigate unidentified primary coolant leakage of about 0.3 gpm that had been recently trending upwards." This seems to indicate that the leakage rate of primary coolant, 0.3 gallons per minute, has been ongoing for some time, and only recently began "trending upwards." How long a time has the primary coolant been leaking at 0.3 gallons per minute? Why, when Entergy Nuclear assures the media and public that safety is its top priority, has it run the Palisades reactor while leaking primary coolant water? Why, when NRC claims that "Protecting People and the Environment" is its mission, has it allowed Palisades to continue operating despite this primary coolant leak?

    continued…


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    • enoughalready45 enoughalready45

      …continued

      2. Article on Michigan’s Dept. of Health reminder to public about Potassium Iodide pills in July, days before most recent incident.

      http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2012/07/michigan_health_departments_ur.html

      (more articles on internet search for michigan dept. of health potasim iodide)

      continued…


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      • enoughalready45 enoughalready45

        …continued

        3. Union of Concerned Scientist’s David Lochbaum, Director of the Nuclear Safety Project at Union of Concerned Scientists on the most recent leak at Palisades.

        Attached http://web.mail.comcast.net/service/home/~/20100716-pal-ucs-brief-leaking-crd-seals.pdf?auth=co&loc=en_US&id=371480&part=2

        is a brief we issued two years ago about chronic leaks from the control rod drive mechanism seals at Palisades. Apparently, the chronic problem continues and factored into this recent shut down.

        Other facilities don't have this problem again and again and again. When it happens, they fix it. They don't apply a Band-Aid fix that only works for a few months as they do at Palisades.

        This reminds me much about Davis-Besse where the plant owner and the NRC tolerated chronic boric acid leaks for years as that reactor came closer to disaster than any other U.S. reactor since Three Mile Island's accident.

        Move over Davis-Besse, here comes Palisades.

        The nuclear industry relies on LBB – leak before break.

        Small leaks are viewed as warning signs of impending breaks. That's why Palisades shut down recently and so many times in the past. Tolerating that cycle over and over is quite simply enabling unsafe behavior and tempting fate.

        There's something wrong in the design of the control rod drive mechanisms at Palisades that results in recurring leakage problems. Left unresolved (Band-Aids do not count), it represents a common mode failure opportunity…


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        • enoughalready45 enoughalready45

          …continued

          Consider this credible scenario – the seals for several control rod drive mechanisms are degraded but none has yet sprung a leak. The reactor continues to operate. Then something happens – like a lightning strike that causes a disturbance on the offsite electrical grid that interrupts power to the plant. The reactor automatically trips offline from full power per design. The resulting pressure transient inside the reactor vessel causes a common challenge to the weakened control rod drive mechanism seals. Several burst under the high pressure. The reactor vessel is transformed into a very large water wriggle shooting lots of water out in lots of directions.

          The accident post-mortem re-asks the questions asked after Davis-Besse and after Fukushima – why in heck did the regulator tolerate the chronic safety problem rather than require it to be fixed.

          Dave Lochbaum

          UCS

          …continued…sorry there are 4 items total on Palisades…


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          • enoughalready45 enoughalready45

            …continued

            4. From Beyond Nuclear’s Kevin Kamp

            David [Lochbaum, Union of Concerned Scientists] issued a report earlier this year, sub-titled "Living on Borrowed Time," about the 15 "near-misses" at U.S. atomic reactors in year 2011. 2 of those 15 near-misses were at Palisades itself (Palisades' owner, Entergy Nuclear, was responsible for a total of 5 of the 15 near-misses nationwide, 2 at Palisades, 2 at Pilgrim atomic reactor near Boston, and 1 at Cooper atomic reactor in Nebraska). "Living on Borrowed Time" is viewable at http://www.ucsusa.org/nuclear_power/nuclear_power_risk/safety/nrc-and-nuclear-power-safety-annual.html. The report's title is "The NRC and Nuclear Power Plant Safety in 2011." Why the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) tolerates such risky behavior at Palisades — which NRC itself acknowledges is one of the four worst run atomic reactors in the country — is a key question.

            –end Palisades–


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    • palisadesnpo

      Our Technical Specifications allow us to operate with up to 1.0 gpm unidentified primary coolant leakage, though we have an admin limit of 0.5 gpm. We enter the ONP for primary coolant leakage at 0.15 gpm unidentified leakage, which directs more frequent monitoring and trending. An ODMI was established which set specific instructions for monitoring, trending, and actions to take.

      Up until we shutdown Sunday morning, we had been sending personnel into containment to inspect all accessible areas to look for the source of our unidentified leakage for the past 2 weeks. Unfortunately when we're at power we can't access the upper level of containment to inspect the reactor head and/or pressurizer due to the excessive dose rates. Once we had the reactor shutdown and in Mode 3, personnel were able to access the previously unaccesible areas and found the source of our leak.

      When we discovered where the leak was, it put us into a different Techincal Specification action statement (specifically, we are not allowed any PCS pressure boundary leakage) which required us to be in Mode 5 in 36 hours, which is where we sit now.

      The leak was not in a CRD seal package, it was on a CRD support tube. Currently we are performing testing to determine the failure mechanism and will proceed from there.

      As far as all your other posts, I don't have time to comment on those, but everytime I've experienced a reactor trip here, primary coolant pressure intially DROPS, not rises.


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  • BreadAndButter BreadAndButter

    Hi all, has anyone seen Tacomagroove getting back to enenews with the rad test results of samples she collected from the west coast?

    Did I miss something?

    thank you!


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  • JustmeAlso

    Why i have lost ALL trust in governmental/justice systems during my life:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vIZEgFY3hg

    We pay tax for our own destruction. Is that what we vote for and trust in??

    Who is going to be punished for rusting barrels? and blown up nuke plants and nuke pollution? which judge, who is not bribed, gonna speak out justice for us all? in stead of going for cash?


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  • Heart of the Rose Heart of the Rose

    Contaminated water leak at unit 4 ..Turbine Building.
    Kakaflex Hoses and Duct Tape
    http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/08/photo-contaminated-water-leak-at.html
    To think..I only keep one roll around..
    Two rolls and I could be a nuclear engineer.


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  • Sickputer

    "…Fukushima Prefectural Government plans to test all rice produced in their province, it sums it up to about 360,000 tons that need to be tested…. the rice from last year was placed on a conveyor belt and newly developed equipments scanned them for radiation levels."

    http://japandailypress.com/fukushimas-rice-gets-tested-for-radiation-098695

    SP: Such a novel (and useless) method of testing food for radiation! Run 360,000 tons across a high speed conveyor belt and possibly manned by a couple of meth-mouth yakuza waving 1955 geiger counters over the rice!

    Wow, that should make the consumers feel safe!


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  • arclight arclight

    Greens Party in Japan getting organised for elections
    August 15, 2012 TAKEHIKO KAMBAYASAHI

    "..Greens Japan in late July said it would field candidates in the next elections on an environmental platform that includes weaning the country off nuclear energy. It hopes to become the first officially recognised national-level green political party.

    There are many obstacles before it can gain any real political power
    or become officially recognized, but recent protests give some
    indication of the backing it could enjoy…"

    http://nuclear-news.net/2012/08/15/greens-party-in-japan-getting-organised-for-elections/

    now thats interesting

    nuclear free platform..
    renewable s
    human rights reform..

    :)


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Those pesky diesel generators…

    Xcel shuts down 2 Minn. nuclear reactors

    The Monticello plant has been operating at 10-percent power since the weekend, and operators shut down Prairie Island's Unit 1 plant Tuesday.

    According to a statement from Xcel Energy, both shutdowns were accomplished safely; neither resulted in a release of radioactive materials and they did not pose a danger to the public or plant employees.

    The company says the Prairie Island shutdown is a result of the discovery during a test that the emergency diesel generators were inoperable. They are part of the plant's safety system and would be required if electricity from offsite were lost.

    Workers closed the Monticello plant after discovering leakage which was apparently caused by a failing gasket on a pipe flange.

    http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/08/14/news/xcel-shuts-down-minnesota-nuclear-plants/


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Direct Disposal? I thought we already witnessed that…

    Ministry to request funding to study burying spent nuke fuel

    The industry ministry announced that it will include research funds for "direct disposal," in which spent nuclear fuel is buried underground, in its next budget request, sources said.

    The government has come up with three proposals regarding the ratio of nuclear energy supplying the nation's electricity generation needs as of 2030. The three are “zero percent,” “15 percent” and “20-25 percent.”

    In the case of zero percent, it is not necessary to reprocess spent nuclear fuel because nuclear power generation would have been terminated. Therefore, all remaining spent fuel would be buried underground.

    In the cases of 15 percent and 20-25 percent, both reprocessing and burial are being considered.

    That means burying the spent fuel is an option in all three scenarios.

    http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201208140061


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  • Jebus Jebus

    File this under, HUH? WTF?

    Tuesday, August 14, 2012
    How the decisions are made on extending the life of nuclear reactors
    71 of 104 nuclear power plants in the U.S. have gotten license extensions

    Nothing to do with projected life-span
    The first thing to understand is that the original 40-year life of the license has nothing to do with a projected life-span for the plants.

    Page 47 of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Information Digest, reads: “Economic and antitrust considerations, not nuclear technology, determined the original term for reactor licenses.“ So finance, not fission determined the time frame.

    http://www.wksu.org/news/story/32738


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  • Jebus Jebus

    Reactors Go Offline Amid Heat, Problems
    Aug 15, 2012; 8:43 AM ET

    A number of nuclear reactors across the country have been temporarily shut down in the past few days.

    In Waterford, Conn., a reactor at the Millstone Nuclear Power Plant was shut down because the water in Long Island Sound was too warm to cool it. According to the reactor's safety rules, the cooling water can be no higher than 75 degrees Fahrenheit. On Sunday, the water's temperature hit 76.7 degrees, leading operator Dominion Power to shut down the 880-megawatt reactor.

    The plant has three reactors. The first began operation in 1970 and is now retired. The third was still running yesterday, but engineers have been monitoring the temperature in case that one also needs to be shut down.

    "Temperatures this summer are the warmest we've had since operations began here at Millstone," Dominion spokesman Ken Holt said (Matthew Wald, New York Times, Aug. 13).

    http://www.accuweather.com/en/home-garden-articles/earth-and-you/reactors-go-offline-amid-heat/70011


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