Posts tagged nuclear
Canary in a Coalmine
"It does not matter how slow you go so long as you do not stop"
Japan Tsunami recovery from the air
(Courtesy BBC News)
Fukushima Nuclear Crisis Update
For the first time since the March nuclear disaster, a select group of journalists was allowed to tour J-Village, the former sports complex being used by as many as 3,300 TEPCO employees involved in cleanup efforts at the Fukushima nuclear plant. The compound’s 12 soccer fields now house sleeping facilities for 1,000 workers, helipads, decontamination areas, and a medical center, as well as a cafeteria and laundry. The complex also stores nuclear waste in the form of used protective clothing and safety gear. Currently, almost half a million sets of radioactive gear is being stored there. Workers are checked daily for radiation exposure and receive a whole body counter (WBC) exam monthly. The facility provides a sharp contrast to workers’ living conditions in the months immediately following the accident, when workers slept on floors and were given only a biscuit for breakfast and a bowl of noodles for dinner. One worker said, “Conditions have gotten better but it’s still tough.”
(source Greenpeace)
Two more steps towards removing the hazard of nuclear energy from Europe
Some good news on the nuclear energy side.
As a result of an impressive public campaign, Belgian government negotiators have reached an agreement to start a nuclear phase-out that would see three of the country’s seven reactors shut down by 2015 or at the latest 2018. And, the CEO of a Dutch nuclear company has said that the Borssele 2 reactor project would not go ahead without major public subsidies, an absurd idea at a time of austerity.
Read more here
The nuclear industry is said to be one of the most tightly regulated industries in the world. The problem is, when you see what the nuclear industry gets up to under the supposedly watchful eye of its government watchdogs – leaks, accidents, cover-ups, and attempts to influence public opinion by subterfuge – one wonders what it might do under so-called self-regulation.
(source Greenpeace International)
International Atomic Regulators Continue To Spin The Fukushima Nuclear Disaster
A satellite image shows damage at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant In Fukushima Prefecture after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami (© DigitalGlobe)
This week the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continued its attempts to down play the disaster in Japan claiming that the three reactors that melted down at Fukushima are ‘essentially stable’.
For the IAEA to claim that the reactors are ‘essentially stable’ is nothing more than pro-nuclear spin. The reactors are ‘stable’ in the same way the fault line that caused March’s earthquake and tsunami - devastating the region and triggering the triple meltdown - is ‘stable’. This of the facts only serves to further undermine public confidence in nuclear power and those who purport to regulate this most unforgiving technology.
Read more
(source Greenpeace)
Fukushima City kids should not have to choose between radiation and education
The children of Fukushima City are due to return to their schools this week despite the continued contamination of school buildings by radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
The Greenpeace radiation monitoring team surveyed a high school, preschool, and childcare centre, along with several public areas in Fukushima City, and discovered high radiation rates at one school where they authorities had already carried out decontamination work.
This is the challenge for incoming Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda. He must move quickly to secure people’s health, homes and livelihoods. Then he must secure his country’s future by abandoning nuclear technology, and moving towards a future powered by renewable energy. Japan’s parliament made the first move on this on Friday, but voting in a crucial and landmark renewable energy bill. This bill gives Mr Noda the chance to move Japan away from the risky and expensive nuclear path, to protect Japan’s economy and the future for its people, and show the world what a true energy revolution looks like.
(source greenpeace)
