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JANUARY
30th , 2009 |
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In
this issue: 1)
NO NEW NUKES IN ONTARIO - RENEWABLES NOW! FEE: $25
- but no one will be turned away for lack of funds 2)
SCIENTIST CALLS FOR NEW METHOD OF MAKING MEDICAL ISOTOPES The Globe
and Mail, January 29, 2009 OTTAWA - There is more than one way to produce medical isotopes and the Canadian government should be exploring options that are safer and more reliable than nuclear reactors, one of Canada's top nuclear chemists argues today in an essay in the journal Nature. "Shockingly, there are no clear plans in place" for dealing with repeated closings of the aging reactors, including one in Canada, that create the essential radioactive material, writes Tom Ruth, who heads the positron emission tomography program at TRIUMF, Canada's national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics. Full story
at: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090129. 3) NUCLEAR ACCIDENT AT CHALK RIVER APPALLING OTTAWA -- After firing the chair of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, Linda Keen, in 2007, after she refused to allow the Chalk River reactor to operate until key safety upgrades were completed, Stephen Harper assured Canadians, "There will be no nuclear accidents." Turns out he was wrong. As reported by Sun Media, the antiquated reactor spilled radioactive tritium into the atmosphere on December 5th and for the past six weeks has been spilling an estimated 7000 litres of water a day into the Ottawa River from a cracked pipe. "Officials say, don't worry, the water is only slightly radioactive. Somehow, that doesn't make me feel better," said Green Party Leader, Elizabeth May. "This reactor was put back into action after serious safety concerns were brought to light and unfortunately those safety concerns are now a reality." To make matters worse, the problems at the plant are veiled in secrecy. According to reports, Atomic Energy Ltd. waited four days to report the spill to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and then underreported the amount of the spillage. The public was told the plant was having technical challenges. "Of course it is important to produce medical isotopes, but putting cancer causing chemicals into our river systems and into our air is not a rational response to needing isotopes to treat cancer," said Ms. May. The Green Party has continuously called for a full inquiry into the nuclear industry, its safety record and value for money. "Billions of taxpayer dollars are given to the nuclear industry and yet they have not been required to meet internationally accepted safety standards. This lack of accountability is appalling," concluded Ms. May. 4) BAD REACTORS: RETHINKING YOUR OPPOSITION TO NUCLEAR POWER? RETHINK AGAIN, By Mariah Blake Quotes from article: Seven years ago, Finland was faced with a daunting energy dilemma. To keep its domestic industries up and running, it needed to double its electricity supply by 2025. At the same time, it had to cut carbon emissions by fourteen million tons a year to comply with its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. The question was how to fill the gap without stifling its flourishing economy or increasing dependence on costly imports. .To date, more than 2,200 "quality deficiencies" have been detected, according to the Finnish nuclear authority, STUK. Largely as a result, the project, which was supposed to be completed in 2009, is three years behind schedule and is expected to cost $6.2 billion, 50 percent more than the original estimate. And the numbers could keep climbing. "There are still some very challenging phases ahead," says Petteri Tiippana, STUK's assistant director for projects and operational safety. "Things will have to go extremely well if those responsible for building the project are to hit the new targets." "We concentrated so much on nuclear that we lost sight of everything else," says Oras Tynkynnen, a climate policy adviser in the Finnish prime minister's office. "And nuclear has failed to deliver. It has turned out to be a costly gamble for Finland, and for the planet." Full article at: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2009/0901.blake.html 5)
ACTION: African Charter Article# 21: All peoples shall freely dispose of their wealth and natural resources for their exclusive interest, eliminating all forms of foreign economic exploitation. Summary & Comment: The Dominion Reefs uranium mine in South Africa, owned and operated by the Canadian company Uranium One, has continuously been exposed for systematic violations of workers' rights and basic environmental regulations. The International Women and Mining Network requests that you express your solidarity with the workers, their families and other local residents of Klerksdorp by contacting Uranium One and that you urge this company to negotiate with workers and the affected communities, and provide compensation that offers them dignity and justice.
The Saami Council representative on the board of the Arctic Council Indigenous People's Secretariat is calling for a ban on uranium exploration in Saami reindeer herding areas. Stefan Mikaelson says the environmental and health risks of uranium development are too great. He says that Saami parliaments and municipalities should have the right to veto any uranium development activities. http://www.wwf-species.org/news_facts/education/search_publications/?153281
7)
AURORA COOLS HEELS on uranium plans in Labrador A company hoping to develop a uranium mine in Labrador is slashing its exploration budget for the coming year. Aurora Energy last year spent more than $30 million on exploration and development plans for a new uranium mine. For 2009, the budget is less than $6 million. Apart from the crisis that has crippled mining and energy companies' plans around the world, Aurora is cooling its heels because of a three-year moratorium on uranium mining Instituted by Nunatsiavut, the Inuit government in Labrador. Article at: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/north/story/2009/01/14/aurora-uranium.html 8)
URANIUM MINE IS A BAD IDEA The decision to allow the Australian company PacMag Metals to begin prospecting for uranium ('Prospecting ready to go' on Nov. 27, and 'Snow puts cold front on uranium survey' on Jan. 6) is a troubling sign that North Dakota may be on the way to mining uranium a process wrought with environmental and public safety hazards.
9) LEGISLATION INTRODUCED TO PROTECT GRAND CANYON from Uranium Threat and Override Bush Midnight Regulation Press Release,
January 22, 2009 Complete
press release at: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/ a) Figures for typical water use Fuel Fabrication
Facility - 380 Thousand litres per day (100 Thousand Gallons / Day) b) It takes about 10 metric tons of natural uranium to make 1 ton of low-enriched uranium (LEU), leaving 9 tons of radioactive toxic waste to be dumped somewhere
11)
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN: In-Depth Reports: The Future of Nuclear
Power
12)
DELAYS IN REACTOR REFURBISHMENT COSTING NB $20 million
per month FREDERICTON - New Brunswickers could be on the hook for $90 million in cost overruns as a result of delays in the refurbishment of the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant. The $1.4-billion project began last March but has been slipping behind schedule. Much of the extra cost is for the estimated $1 million NB Power is spending each day on replacement power while Lepreau is shut down for refurbishment. Article
at: http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article 13) FROM THE SUSTAINABILITY NETWORK I'd like
to invite you to view our latest 'organizational report', a 20 page overview
of our efforts over the last couple of years. It's online at: Paul Bubelis,
Executive Director * Sign up for our Nexus e-newsletter at www.sustainabilitynetwork.ca 14)
ALBERTA'S GREEN ENERGY FUTURE January 14, 2009 - Alberta's growing demand for electricity can be entirely met by tapping into the province's vast renewable energy resources, thus painting Alberta's brown electricity supply system green and creating new jobs and opportunities in the clean energy industries of the future. The Pembina Institute report, Greening the Grid: Powering Alberta's Future with Renewable Energy, presents a comprehensive analysis of Alberta's power production and energy efficiency opportunities that demonstrates the dominant role that renewable energy and improved efficiency can play in seriously reducing pollution and meeting future power demand. "This is quite exciting. Our research confirms Alberta could dramatically diversify its electricity supply system, cut pollution and diversify the economy at the same time," says Marlo Raynolds, the Pembina Institute's Executive Director. Today Alberta has the most polluting electricity system in Canada, with coal-fired power plants accounting for 23 per cent of Alberta's greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution. With the demand for electricity set to double in the next 20 years the most polluting electricity system in Canada could get twice as bad. The Pembina analysis of green electricity scenarios released today clearly demonstrates Alberta has incredible potential to become a leader in green power production and energy efficiency and doesn't have to rely on dirty fuels. The report's conservative analysis assesses how today's proven renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and Alberta's vast renewable energy resource can meet increasing power demand. The report outlines two green scenarios. One is a "pale green" scenario that relies on renewable energy and energy efficiency to meet all new growth in Alberta's electricity supply with clean technologies. The other, a more aggressive "green" scenario, shows that Alberta could go from 70 per cent coal to 70 per cent renewable energy and energy efficiency in just 20 years. "The Government of Alberta has placed huge emphasis on carbon capture and storage and plans to spend $2 billion to subsidize coal-fired power and oil sands companies to reduce their pollution," notes Tim Weis, Director of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency. "To responsibly meet future power demand in Alberta it would be very prudent to invest an equal or greater amount in renewable energy and efficiency technologies that don't produce this pollution in the first place," says Weis. The scenarios include a portfolio of proven clean energy and energy efficiency technologies that operate from the micro scale to large scale. Download the full report - www.pembina.org Greening the Grid. 15)
NEW SITE FOR NUCLEAR PLANT CONSIDERED: Residents' concerns
heard An Ontario company with plans to build a $6.2 billion nuclear power plant close to Peace River is considering an alternative location after hearing concerns from residents about its first choice. Bruce Power, headquartered in Tiverton, Ont., withdrew its application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission this week. The company will wait until it decides where to locate before it seeks the commission's permission to prepare a site for construction. Article
at: http://www.calgaryherald.com/Technology/site+nuclear+plant+ 16)
CRITICS SAY CANADA ENABLING INDIA'S MILITARY NUCLEAR PROGRAM OTTAWA - The Conservative government has tarnished Canada's long-standing stature as a non-proliferation advocate in its pursuit of the rich commercial possibilities of nuclear trade, say critics. Now it must ensure it doesn't compound the problem. Having lost
the main battle over allowing India back into the global nuclear fraternity,
peace activists hope Canada drives a hard bargain on sales to the nuclear-armed
state. Article
at: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090123.
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