Archive for the ‘nuclear’ Category
Nukes Need Money – Nuclear
Posted on: September 18, 2008
It’s late summer in Washington at the tail end of a lame duck presidency. And that means one thing for Beltway insiders: open season for lobbying.
The nuclear energy industry is one group in a good position to take advantage of the changing of the guard. And one of its biggest guns–former New Jersey Gov. and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Todd Whitman–is drumming up publicity for what might be a nuclear renaissance in the U.S. within the next few years.
“Right now the only base form of power that we have that doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases or other pollutants while producing power is nuclear,” she said in a recent interview with Forbes.com. She says the U.S will need 25 to 27 new reactors by 2030 if nuclear power is to continue to produce 20% of the nation’s electricity, the current level.
Whitman’s got a vested interest in seeing the U.S. nuclear industry bloom. She spoke to Forbes.com in her role as co-chair of the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition, a pro-nuclear group whose very broad membership includes nuclear power heavyweights like Exelon (nyse: EXC – news – people ), AREVA (other-otc: ARVCF.PK – news – people ) and Southern Co.. It’s funded by the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), an industry organization.
But she’s also got a point. There’s a lot of buzz about nuclear power around the country. Republican presidential candidate John McCain says he wants to see 45 new plants built by 2030. Democrat Barack Obama says it’s “unlikely” the U.S. can meet its climate goals without the help of nuclear power, though he wants the waste issue resolved. Both are pushing for a new regulatory mechanism to curb greenhouse gas pollution, a boon for operators of nuclear plants. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission expects applications for as many as 34 new reactors by 2010.
Other issues remain. The industry is concerned that Senate appropriators have reduced funding for the proposed waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The NEI is also pushing for the creation of a “clean energy bank” that could offer loans and guarantees on nuclear and other energy projects. It wants to see the government create a cost-sharing program with the private sector for spent fuel-recycling units.
Moreover, Whitman says McCain’s grand vision is a “nice idea” but it’s “not going to happen,” partly because one reactor component is only built in Japan.
Still, the industry’s staying busy. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a watchdog group, the NEI has spent $1.23 million on lobbying so far in 2008. In June, the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition released a study touting the job creation a nuclear renaissance could bring–as many as 700 jobs at each reactor, many of which pay upwards of $65,000 per year.
“Nuclear’s not a silver bullet,” concedes Whitman. Though it would certainly be cheaper if it was.
Nukes Need Money – Nuclear
Posted on: September 18, 2008
It’s late summer in Washington at the tail end of a lame duck presidency. And that means one thing for Beltway insiders: open season for lobbying.
The nuclear energy industry is one group in a good position to take advantage of the changing of the guard. And one of its biggest guns–former New Jersey Gov. and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Todd Whitman–is drumming up publicity for what might be a nuclear renaissance in the U.S. within the next few years.
“Right now the only base form of power that we have that doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases or other pollutants while producing power is nuclear,” she said in a recent interview with Forbes.com. She says the U.S will need 25 to 27 new reactors by 2030 if nuclear power is to continue to produce 20% of the nation’s electricity, the current level.
Whitman’s got a vested interest in seeing the U.S. nuclear industry bloom. She spoke to Forbes.com in her role as co-chair of the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition, a pro-nuclear group whose very broad membership includes nuclear power heavyweights like Exelon (nyse: EXC – news – people ), AREVA (other-otc: ARVCF.PK – news – people ) and Southern Co.. It’s funded by the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), an industry organization.
But she’s also got a point. There’s a lot of buzz about nuclear power around the country. Republican presidential candidate John McCain says he wants to see 45 new plants built by 2030. Democrat Barack Obama says it’s “unlikely” the U.S. can meet its climate goals without the help of nuclear power, though he wants the waste issue resolved. Both are pushing for a new regulatory mechanism to curb greenhouse gas pollution, a boon for operators of nuclear plants. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission expects applications for as many as 34 new reactors by 2010.
Other issues remain. The industry is concerned that Senate appropriators have reduced funding for the proposed waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The NEI is also pushing for the creation of a “clean energy bank” that could offer loans and guarantees on nuclear and other energy projects. It wants to see the government create a cost-sharing program with the private sector for spent fuel-recycling units.
Moreover, Whitman says McCain’s grand vision is a “nice idea” but it’s “not going to happen,” partly because one reactor component is only built in Japan.
Still, the industry’s staying busy. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a watchdog group, the NEI has spent $1.23 million on lobbying so far in 2008. In June, the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition released a study touting the job creation a nuclear renaissance could bring–as many as 700 jobs at each reactor, many of which pay upwards of $65,000 per year.
“Nuclear’s not a silver bullet,” concedes Whitman. Though it would certainly be cheaper if it was.
TEHRAN (Reuters) – Iran said on Saturday it would not back down “one iota” in its nuclear row with major powers, voicing defiance on the day of an informal deadline set by the West over Tehran’s disputed atomic ambitions.
Western officials gave Tehran two weeks from July 19 to respond to their offer to hold off from imposing more U.N. sanctions on Iran if it froze any expansion of its nuclear work.
That would suggest a deadline of Saturday but Iran, which has repeatedly ruled out curbing its nuclear activities, dismissed the idea of having two weeks to reply.
The West accuses Iran of seeking to build nuclear warheads under cover of a civilian power program. Iran, the world’s fourth-largest oil producer, denies the charge.
“In whichever negotiation we take part … it is unequivocally with the view to the realization of Iran’s nuclear right and the Iranian nation would not retreat one iota from its rights,” President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said.
He made the remark in a statement posted on the presidential website after talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad visited Tehran a few weeks after he said in Paris he would respond to French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s request and use his good relations with the Islamic Republic to help resolve the nuclear stand-off.
The statement quoted the Syrian leader as saying that based on international agreements, all countries had the right to enrich uranium and have nuclear power stations. Continued…
TEHRAN (Reuters) – Iran said on Saturday it would not back down “one iota” in its nuclear row with major powers, voicing defiance on the day of an informal deadline set by the West over Tehran’s disputed atomic ambitions.
Western officials gave Tehran two weeks from July 19 to respond to their offer to hold off from imposing more U.N. sanctions on Iran if it froze any expansion of its nuclear work.
That would suggest a deadline of Saturday but Iran, which has repeatedly ruled out curbing its nuclear activities, dismissed the idea of having two weeks to reply.
The West accuses Iran of seeking to build nuclear warheads under cover of a civilian power program. Iran, the world’s fourth-largest oil producer, denies the charge.
“In whichever negotiation we take part … it is unequivocally with the view to the realization of Iran’s nuclear right and the Iranian nation would not retreat one iota from its rights,” President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said.
He made the remark in a statement posted on the presidential website after talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad visited Tehran a few weeks after he said in Paris he would respond to French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s request and use his good relations with the Islamic Republic to help resolve the nuclear stand-off.
The statement quoted the Syrian leader as saying that based on international agreements, all countries had the right to enrich uranium and have nuclear power stations. Continued…
Iran nuclear talks under way
Posted on: July 21, 2008
Jalili, Iran’s negotiator, has spoken ofhis “positive intentions” [AFP]
Iran officials have ruled out any halt to uranium enrichment, as widely anticipated talks on its nuclear programme began in Switzerland. There had been a positive mood before the meeting on Saturday, the first time in almost thirty years that senior US and Iranian diplomats had met face-to-face, but the remarks were likely to cast doubt on the value of the talks.
“Suspension, there is no chance for that,” Keyvan Imani, a member of the Iranian delegation, told reporters gathered in the courtyard of Geneva’s city hall.
Iran’s comments dampened hopes which had been raised by upbeat statements ahead of the talks, following Washington’s decision to send William Burns, the US under-secretary of state, as an observer. ‘Positive intentions’Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran’s foreign minister, had said he hoped the meeting would be “positive and constructive”. While Saeed Jalili, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, spoke “positive intentions” when he arrived in Geneva on Friday.On the European side, Christina Gallach, spokeswoman for Javier Solana, the EU’s diplomatic chief, said “the basis for successful negotiations is very substantial”.
“We are very flexible about how to work towards our expectations … we are ready to look at creative manners that allow negotiations to start,” she said.
A Western diplomat described the atmosphere of Saturday’s talks as “fine”, but confirmed that the Iranians were unwilling to address suspending uranium enrichment, or freezing it at current levels.The US has repeatedly said that real negotiations can only begin after Tehran halts its nuclear work.”That remains the US position and it will continue to be the US position,” Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, said in Washington.De-escalation ‘vital'”We’ve seen a lot of resistance from various parties in the US to any escalation that may lead to a use of the military option against Iran,” Riad Kahwaji, who works for the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis in Dubai, told Al Jazeera. “It’s become very vital for both sides to de-escalate to try and reach a solution.”
The presence of Burns at the talks marks a policy shift for the US [EPA]
“Both sides are willing to make concessions but they’re trying to come up with a formula so that they don’t lose prestige in front of their own people or have to give up too many of their demands.”
The attendance of Burns, the number three official at the US state department, had widely trumpeted before the talks got under way, as a major policy shift by Washington, which has not had any diplomatic relations with Iran since 1980 following the Islamic Revolution.
“The key story here [in Geneva] is the presence of William Burns,” Nazanine Moshiri, Al Jazeera’s correspondent reporting from Geneva, said.
But she said Burns was keen to be seen as an observer.
“When they broke for lunch … Burns was keen not to be photographed with the rest of the delegates,” she said.
The US has said it is in Geneva just to listen to Iran’s response and not negotiate.
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For sale on eBay: Nuclear biological protection gear and other cool stuff | ZDNet Government | ZDNet.com
Posted on: April 11, 2008
- In: biological | cool | eBay: | for | gear | Government | nuclear | on | other | protection | sale | Stuff | ZDNet | ZDNet.com
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eBay auction. Item: F-14 Antenna. Winning bidder: Mahoud A.
For sale: Nuclear biological chemical gear. Contact anon1234@craigslist.org
eBay auction. Item: Small arms protective inserts. Winning bidder: Hu J.
These are just a few of the items the Government Accountability Office discovered for sale on eBay and Craigslist. There is much more, much of it stolen from the US military, sold to fences and eventually resold on the Internet. The GAO says in a report to Congress (PDF):
“Military-issue items bought on eBay and Craigslist on display at a House hearing. (Credit: Anne Broache/CNET News.com)
GAO investigators also identified examples of U.S. government property that was stolen and sold for a profit rather than being utilized by DOD. For example, GAO found two civilian store owners who acted as conduits for defense-related property that was likely stolen from the military. The store owners told GAO they purchased gear from service members—including Kevlar vests, flak jackets, and gas masks—and sold it through eBay to the general public. GAO also purchased stolen military meals, ready-to-eat (MRE) and found a robust market for stolen military MREs on eBay and Craigslist.
The GAO says Iran is a likely bidder for that F-14 antenna, as it’s the only country using F-14s. Bidders from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singpore have won those small arms inserts.
Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.), who heads the subcommittee that called a hearing on the report Thursday, expressed concern that these items could be used by terrorists. He cited an episode where Iraqi insurgents dressed as US soldiers entered a security post and killed five soldiers.
But it’s not illegal to sell many of these items, defense officials said at the hearing. It’s legal to sell body armor and night-vision goggles. And soliders are free to sell their uniforms after leaving the service.
It would be “very hard to tell (soldiers) that you can’t resell that item when they’ve purchased it with their own resources,” said the Army’s Sarah Finnecum.”
- In: Art | blast door | center | launch | nuclear | Soviet Union | usa
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Design Observer has an article about “blast door” art, painted by the people who man nuclear launch control centers in the US.
Like the garish and cheeky illustrations etched across the noses of World War II aircraft, these images in launch control centers across the United States testify to the bravado of the men (and, from the mid-1980s onward, women) of what has been called “America’s Underground Air Force.” But they also reflect the sometimes surreal pressures faced by two-person missile crews on 24-hour duty alerts, waiting for a call to turn their missile launch keys and perhaps end civilization as we know it. “You’re sitting there waiting for the message you hope never comes,” says Tony Gatlin, who painted the Domino’s homage as a young deputy flight commander at Delta One in 1989. “That’s a pretty screwed up way of looking at the world.”
Now an Air Force major and deputy director of staff with the 100th Air Refueling Wing, based at the Royal Air Force’s Mildenhall Base, in England, Gatlin was struck by the similarity of Domino’s delivery time and that of his missiles. “One went with the other kind of well,” he deadpans. Gatlin’s painting is one of only a few the public can see, following the transformation in 1999 of the Delta One control facility and the nearby Delta Nine missile silo into an historic site by the National Park Service (NPS). Under the terms of the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty between the then-Soviet Union and the United States, many Minuteman missile sites have been deactivated or destroyed.
Link (Thanks, William!)
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has ordered a complete inventory of the nation’s nuclear arsenal and all associated components after the discovery last week that four secret nuclear missile parts had been mistakenly sent to Taiwan, an error that went unnoticed for more than 18 months.
Gates had already ordered a high-level investigation into how the four nose-cone fuse assemblies for U.S. intercontinental ballistic missiles were shipped overseas in place of common helicopter batteries — the military’s second major nuclear-related incident in less than a year.
Senior Pentagon officials have called the episode “extremely embarrassing,” and it has both strained relations with China and called into question the U.S. military’s ability to maintain its arsenal of catastrophic weapons.
“This is about the trust and confidence of the American people and our stewardship of the most dangerous weapons in the world,” said Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon’s press secretary.
“Getting to the bottom of this incident and ensuring our nuclear arsenal and associated components are properly safeguarded must be a top priority of this department. Secretary Gates believes this situation is totally and completely unacceptable.”
Gates has ordered the Air Force, the Navy and the Defense Logistics Agency to take inventory of and assess control measures for all nuclear weapons and their associated parts within 60 days “to verify positive control and accountability of all such materials,” according to a memo released Thursday.
Though the United States has tight control procedures for such devices and equipment, those measures did not prevent the nose cones from being shipped overseas without anyone noticing.
The measures also failed last August, when the Air Force unknowingly flew nuclear warheads between North Dakota and Louisiana, losing track of them for 36 hours.
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