Nuclear Sites
Whatever UFOs are – there have been lots of sightings over nuclear installations.
101 Uses for Nuclear Power 14th Aug 2011 more >>
Japan
Japan is preparing to receive its first import of highly radioactive waste since March, when an earthquake and tsunami caused a meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The vessel Pacific Grebe set sail Aug. 3 to Japan from Britain with more than 30 metric tons of radioactive waste on board. The cargo, Japanese spent fuel reprocessed in the U.K., is returning sealed in 76 stainless steel canisters packed into 130-ton containers. It will arrive early next month at the Mutsu-Ogawara port in northern Honshu for delivery to Japan Nuclear Fuels nearby Rokkasho storage site. About 400 kilometers south of the port, thousands of workers are struggling to contain radiation leaks from the meltdown of three reactors at the Tokyo Electric Power Co. plant, which amounts to 300 tons of waste.
Bloomberg 14th Aug 2011 more >>
Japan faces a third lost decade of economic growth as rising energy costs resulting from its shift away from nuclear power add to a fuel bill that already accounts for more than a quarter of its imports. Prime Minister Naoto Kans effort to reduce reliance on nuclear energy would require the equivalent of 470 million barrels of oil a year, swelling the 17 trillion yen ($222 billion) annual cost of fuel imports and further burdening Japans $5.5 trillion economy, former Saudi Arabian Oil Co. manager Osamu Fujisawa said.
Bloomberg 15th Aug 2011 more >>
With seemingly no end in sight to Japan’s nuclear crisis, many parents living around the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant are packing up their children and sending them away. Others are staying put, but are keeping their kids indoors and banning them from playing in parks which may have been exposed to radiation. Schools are also grappling with the crisis, removing top soil and forbidding students from playing outside.
ABC 15th Aug 2011 more >>
Iran
Iran’s first nuclear power plant, built by Russia, will be connected to the national grid in late August, atomic chief Fereydoon Abbasi Davani told the Arabic-language network Al-Alam on Sunday.
Telegraph 14th Aug 2011 more >>
Nuclear weapons are a waste of money, according to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president.
Telegraph 14th Aug 2011 more >>
Renewables
A £3 million scheme has been launched to help install eco-heaters in the homes of social housing tenants. Heating equipment including biomass boilers, solar hot water panels and heat pumps will be available under the new scheme. Registered Providers of social housing, such as local authorities and social housing associations, will be able to bid for a share of the £3 million, part of the £15 million Renewable Heat Premium Payment budget, to make home heating improvements to tenants homes.
DECC Press Release 15th Aug 2011 more >>
A £20 million plan to transform Oban into the west coast service capital for the renewable energy sector is to be lodged with the Scottish Government this week. If the ambitious move is approved, it is predicted that 500 jobs would be created – a significant number for a town with a population of just 8,500 people
Scotsman 15th Aug 2011 more >>
