Radhealth
Would you be happy moving next door to a nuclear power plant and raising your children there? Or would you worry about the potential health risks? Post-Fukushima and Chernobyl it is hardly surprising that many would prefer not to take any chances. But a report from an independent scientific committee has concluded that there is no evidence of increased cancer risks for those living close to the 13 nuclear power plants in Britain. The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE) analysed medical records concerning leukaemia in children under five.
BBC 6th May 2011 more >>
Oldbury
Magnox confirm plans to further extend the life of the oldest nuclear power station in the world for another 18 months! Despite recent events in Japan, Magnox the operators who run Oldbury confirm their plans to extend its life for another 18 months! Oldbury is now the oldest operating nuclear power station in the world. It is long past its sell by date and should be shut down now!
Shepperdine Against Nuclear Energy 27th April 2011 more >>
A glimmer of hope for SANE? Horizon warn new nuclear plans at Shepperdine may not go ahead! Are Horizon Nuclear Power feeling less confident of their plans at Shepperdine? At a meeting of the Oldbury SSG Horizon warned that their proposal at the Shepperdine site may not go ahead.
Shepperdine Against Nuclear Energy 5th May 2011 more >>
Thornbury Gazette 29th April 2011 more >>
Hinkley
COUNCILLORS looking to make sense of the complex technicalities of the proposed new build at Hinkley Point have had to contend with an extra obstacle – a language barrier. This week the developers behind the new nuclear build, French Energy Company EDF, responded to a request from the council to provide all information on the new build in English. The district authority have also been provided with further details of how preliminary works for the construction will impact transport, the environment and the health and quality of the community’s life. As a result of the new information, consultations have been reopened and will take place until May 20.
Somerset County Gazette 6th May 2011 more >>
Dounreay
IT STILL uses a chamois leather and some elbow grease, but this window cleaner has a hi-tech job. A specially designed robot has been created to tackle a spot of housekeeping at the Dounreay nuclear plant and reach parts staff cannot reach. The plant’s staff were faced with cleaning 13 glass-fronted irradiated fuel caves in the former Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR), which is being decommissioned. Their answer was to devise a robot with arms capable of lifting the three quarters of a tonne inner window to allow it to be wiped while maintaining the safe radiologically affected atmosphere inside.
Scotland on Sunday 8th May 2011 more >>
Japan
Ministry of Education has published the first map of the surface contamination within 80 km from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, using aircraft, ground – a material made by measuring the accumulation of radioactive 2 square kilometers. In some areas outside the refuge in northwest direction from the primary focus, high levels of contamination found in the region. (Machine Translated – but you can click on the map to make it larger.The units are Red : 3 million to 30 million Bq / m2; Yellow: 1 million to 3 million Bq/m2; Green: 0.6 million to 1 million Bq/m2; Aqua Blue: 0.3 million to 0.6 million Bq/m2; Thicker Blue: Below 0.3 million Bq/m2 – after Chernobyl agricultural restrictions were applied in areas with a fall-out about 550 kBq/m2. In Fukushima area this would be the red, yellow and green areas.)
Asahi 7th May 2011 more >>
Chubu Electric Power Co.s board met to discuss a possible closure of its sole nuclear plant after Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan expressed concern the facility may not be able to withstand a powerful earthquake and tsunami. No decision was made on whether to idle the No. 4 and No. 5 reactors at Hamaoka plant during the meeting in Nagoya today, Tokyo-based spokesman Akio Miyazaki said by telephone. The board will reconvene at a future date, he said, without elaborating.
Bloomberg 7th May 2011 more >>
Thousands of people rallied in Japan Saturday to demand a shift away from nuclear power after an earthquake and tsunami sparked the world’s worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl a quarter-century ago. Braving spring drizzle, thousands of demonstrators gathered at a park in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, many holding hand-made banners reading: “Nuclear is old!” and “We want a shift in energy policy!”
Yahoo 7th May 2011 more >>
The govenrment is thinking of decommissioning the Fukushima No. 2 nuclear power plant in deference to those who have taken the brunt of the ongoing nuclear crisis, a government source said Saturday. Fukushima No. 2, which is situated on the Pacific coast about 10 km south of its crippled sister facility, Fukushima No. 1, successfully completed a cold shutdown after being hit by the March 11 quake and tsunami, which temporarily disabled its cooling systems.
Japan Today 8th May 2011 more >>
Europe
The European Union should establish a common framework for the safe management of radioactive waste and spent fuel, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has urged at its May plenary session. The public must be positively engaged in proposals to determine the long term future of these materials and urgent action must be taken to resolve issues which have been under discussion for fifty years. Following the European Commissions draft directive on radioactive waste the EESC highlighted the fact that in addition to the very extensive stockpile of radioactive waste of varying grades the EU produces 280 cubic metres of highly radioactive waste and 3,600 tonnes of Heavy Metal from spent fuel each year.
IEWY th May 2011 more >>
Renewables
Even before the recent nuclear power plant shut-downs in Japan and Germany, solar energy has been on the rise worldwide. While solar energy accounts for a relatively small piece of the global electricity production pie, its prospects in the coming years are for significant increases in investment. That is the conclusion of two recent international solar industry reports, and a third expected to be released May 9, 2011 by the United Nations.
Suite 101 7th May 2011 more >>
The Co-op has experimented with supplying gas and electricity to customers in the Midlands as precursor to entering the market as a competitor to British Gas and other giants. It is expected to market itself as a more ethical alternative to the Big Six energy firms, whose reputations have been tarnished by claims of overcharging and high-pressure doorstep selling.
Observer 8th May 2011 more >>
