These massive nuclear blasts happened decades ago. We’re just seeing the videos now via USA Today

Posted on 2017/07/08 by yukimiyamotodepaul

The United States government declassified hundreds of Cold War-era nuclear testing films, allowing the public release of dozens of previously secret videos of exploding nuclear weapons.

Most of the 64 videos released by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California are in black and white and range from just a few seconds to several minutes. Under the names “Operation Teapot,” Operation Hardtack” and “Operation Upshot-Knothole” among others, the explosions often start with bright flashes of light followed by massive, billowing smoke clouds.

The collection, released on YouTube in March, are part of an estimated 10,000 videos of the 210 atmospheric nuclear tests conducted by the U.S. government from 1945 to 1962. A team of film experts at Lawrence Livermore tracked down about 6,500 of the tapes, of which about 750 have been declassified. The rest are somewhere in the crowded and sometimes poorly cataloged archives of the United States government.

[…]

Altogether, Spriggs estimates about 3,000 films will be released in the coming years. It could take about two years to scan the rest of the films. Then the films will need to analyzed and declassified.

Spriggs hopes the team’s work is useful to future generations of weapon physicists.

“It’s just unbelievable how much energy’s released,” Spriggs said. “We hope that we would never have to use a nuclear weapon ever again. I think that if we capture the history of this and show what the force of these weapons are and how much devastation they can wreak, then maybe people will be reluctant to use them.”

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福島県産品の輸入規制緩和を＝政府、ブラジルに要請 via Jiji.com

Posted on 2017/07/08 by yukimiyamotodepaul

　【サンパウロ時事】ブラジル訪問中の細田健一農水政務官は７日、サンパウロでマッジ農牧・食料供給相と会談し、福島県産食品の輸入規制緩和を求めた。
細田氏は「ブラジル側がある種の規制をかけており、緩和をお願いした。

続きは福島県産品の輸入規制緩和を＝政府、ブラジルに要請

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復興相、福島第二原発の廃炉「早く判断を」via 日テレNEWS24

Posted on 2017/07/08 by yukimiyamotodepaul

　吉野復興相は７日、新しい経営陣となった東京電力ホールディングスの川村会長らと初めて会談し、福島第二原発の廃炉について、「一日でも早く判断していただきたい」と要請した。

東京電力の新経営陣が吉野復興相と会談するのは今回が初めて。吉野復興相は、福島第一原発の廃炉や汚染水対策、賠償問題などの課題を挙げ、「重い責任を持っていることを肝に銘じて、会社運営に取り組んでもらいたい」と要請した。その上で、福島第二原発の廃炉について、次のように述べた。

吉野復興相「政府としては一義的に事業者の判断だ。でも、福島県民の思いを十分考えて、ご理解いただいて、１日でも早く判断をしていただきたい」

続きは復興相、福島第二原発の廃炉「早く判断を」

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原発事故の被害予測地図　公表取りやめの是非 via 日本経済新聞

Posted on 2017/07/07 by nfield

　関西電力高浜原子力発電所（福井県高浜町）が再稼働した。大飯原発（同県おおい町）も国の安全審査に合格し今秋にも動き始める。2011年の東日本大震災以降、値上がりした関電の電気料金が下がると期待されるが、万が一事故が起きれば関西地域に大きな被害をもたらす。震災後、関西の府県は独自の被害予測図を作製し公表するなど事故に備えた対策を進めてきたが、最近は予測図の公表をやめる動きも出ており、原発事故の「リスク」に対する関心は薄れつつある。

兵庫県が作製した予測図（高浜原発事故で放射性ヨウ素が拡散した場合）

　兵庫県は今年１月、独自に作製した高浜原発などの事故による放射性物質の拡散予測図の公表をホームページから取りやめた。予測図は米環境保護庁などの気象シミュレーションを活用して原発事故時に兵庫県内に放射性物質が広がる様子を色分けして試算。13年４月に公表していた。同県防災計画課は公表をやめた理由について「目的を果たしたため」と説明。その上で「独り歩きすると困るため」と付け加えた。

[…]

京都府が12年に公表した予測図はＳＰＥＥＤＩを活用した。高浜原発に近い京都府舞鶴市の気象データを入力。最悪の場合、京都市内まで放射性物質が広がる予測図を公表した。今も同府のホームページ上には残るものの、更新はもうできない。理由はＳＰＥＥＤＩ自体の運用が終わったからだ。

　ＳＰＥＥＤＩは文科省所管の原子力安全技術センターが開発して運営してきた。原発が立地する都道府県にもシステムにつながる中継器が設置され、各都府県が独自に予測を試算できる仕組みだった。ところが研究費を計上してきた原子力規制庁が15年度に予算を打ち切った。同庁は「予測は不可能で（公表は）避難行動を混乱させて被ばくの危険性を増大させる」と判断したからだ。

 

 

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Please Hitachi, no reactor in Wales via The Japan Times

Posted on 2017/07/07 by nfield

(Reader letter)

 I hope Hitachi Ltd. will give up on its attempts to build a nuclear power station at Wylfa in Wales (“Hitachi looks to build nuke plant in Britain” in the April 7 edition).

I live on the island of Ynys Mon where the station would be located. I am deeply concerned about the possible disastrous effects which any incident releasing radioactivity would have. Anything from a human error, terrorist attack, plant malfunction to a Fukushima-type disaster doesn’t bear thinking about.

The site is on a particularly beautiful stretch of coastline — this is a precious landscape which would be destroyed if the station was built.

I note that Hitachi has put its wholly owned company Horizon Nuclear Power Ltd. up for sale, either in total or in part, and have stated that the nuclear power station will not be built unless adequate funding is in place.

If it does get funding, the people of Wales will be left with a nuclear power station run by a company with no experience of doing so. There would also be a dump holding spent toxic radioactive waste on the site for over 100 years. Hitachi could potentially walk away once the station was built. I don’t call that corporate responsibility.

It would be far preferable if it were to use its cutting-edge technology in renewable energy to provide much needed work where I live. Surely Hitachi can see that the future energy needs of the planet will be met in the main from renewables, at a much lower price than nuclear, and without the risks.

Contrary to what Hitachi may have been led to believe, there is considerable opposition to a nuclear power station here.

[…]

 

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PRELIMINARY NOTIFICATION OF EVENT OR UNUSUAL OCCURRENCE – PNO-III-2017-001 via the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

Posted on 2017/07/07 by nfield

[…]

SUBJECT: RELEASE OF CIRCULATING WATER CONTAINING TRITIUM USING AN UNAUTHORIZED RELEASE PATH DESCRIPTION: On June 12, 2017, Braidwood reported to the NRC in Event Notification (EN) 52802, “Offsite Notification for Discharge of Circulating Water,” that they had notified the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) of a release that contained tritium to the ground outside of the Circulating Water Blowdown building. Specifically, a portion of a normal permitted release was pumped to the ground, which was not an approved release pathway. After being notified of the release, the NRC resident inspectors responded to the Circulating Water Blowdown building and verified that the unauthorized leakage path was isolated and that an approved path was now being utilized. The NRC determined that this event posed no immediate safety or public health concern. However, the use of an unauthorized path to discharge radioactive material to the environment raises questions and concerns. The NRC resident inspectors and radiation protection specialists will continue to closely monitor this event and conduct a thorough, independent inspection. The NRC will evaluate the licensee’s assessment of the dose impact to the public, how the event occurred, and the licensee’s corrective actions. The results of all of these inspections will be documented in a future inspection report.

[…]

 

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DTE’s Fermi 2 nuclear plant released higher-than-normal chlorine load into Lake Erie via Michigan Live

Posted on 2017/07/07 by yukimiyamotodepaul

DTE Energy had to notify state and federal officials after its Fermi 2 nuclear power plant in southeast Michigan recently sent higher-than-normal chlorine amounts into Lake Erie, according to The Associated Press and the Monroe News.

During a 24-hour period that started around noon on June 30, the plant released 77 pounds of the chemical into the water – much higher than the 10-pound daily limit.

Both the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission were notified by the utility, the AP said.

The high chlorine release had “no discernible impact on Lake Erie’s water quality,” DTE spokesman John Austerberry said. Fermi 2 uses the chemical to treat water.

Continue reading at DTE’s Fermi 2 nuclear plant released higher-than-normal chlorine load into Lake Erie 

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Northlanders protest nuclear weapons overseas via Superior Telegram

Posted on 2017/07/07 by yukimiyamotodepaul

Two northern Wisconsin residents are heading overseas next week to join in a protest against nuclear weapons on an American air base in Germany.

Bonnie Urfer and John LaForge of Luck, Wis., are joining a delegation from around the country to participate in a long-standing campaign July 12-18 at Büchel Air Base, in west-central Germany.

Others participating in the campaign include Steve Baggarly of Norfolk, Va., Kathy Boylan of Washington, D.C; Zara Brown of Minneapolis, Susan Crane of Redwood City, Calif., Carmella Cole and Ralph Hutchison of Knoxville, Tenn., Sr. Carol Gilbert, O.P., and Sr. Ardeth Platte, O.P., of Baltimore, Md., and Leona Morgan of Albuquerque, N.M. Seven of the participants have served a combined total of 36 years in U.S. jails and prisons for nonviolent protest actions taken against nuclear weapons.

LaForge said the delegation’s goal is the removal of 20 B61 nuclear-armed gravity bombs at the U.S. air base.

[…]

Since March 26, activists in Germany have been participating in a 20-week series of nonviolent protests — “Twenty Weeks for Twenty Bombs” — to rid Büchel of the U.S. Air Force’s B61 bombs. The actions continue through Aug. 9, the anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945.

The week the U.S. delegation is heading to Germany has been dubbed “International Week” by organizers, and joins peace activists from Belgium, the Netherlands and France, as well as Germany.

The U.S. delegation and the German public are concerned the U.S. is planning to produce 480 new hydrogen bombs — the B61-12 — to replace the 180 B61s now deployed in five European NATO countries, including the 20 at Büchel. Production is not expected to start before 2022. Overall cost of the new bomb is estimated to be at least $12 billion.

[…]

Under a scheme known as “nuclear sharing,” Germany, Italy, Belgium, Turkey and the Netherlands still deploy a total of about 180 U.S. H-bombs and conduct NATO nuclear war maneuvers using the U.S. bombs, although all six states are parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Articles I and II of the treaty explicitly prohibit nuclear weapons from being either transferred to or accepted from other countries.

The U.S. is the only country in the world that arms other countries with its nuclear weapons. (China may lease a nuclear-powered submarine but not nuclear weapons from Russia.)

Although the planned B61-12 has been called a new weapon, the Pentagon states the program is “modernization” to skirt the treaty’s prohibitions, LaForge said.

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Japan nuclear boss sorry for ‘better if North Korea hits Tokyo’ remark via SKY News

Posted on 2017/07/07 by yukimiyamotodepaul

The regulator says he was only joking when he said he would prefer Pyongyang aimed its missiles Tokyo rather than a reactor.

A top Japanese official has admitted it was “inappropriate” to say he would prefer North Korea to attack Tokyo rather than a nuclear power plant.

Shunichi Tanaka, the boss of Japan’s nuclear energy regulator, claimed it would be better for Pyongyang to launch a missile strike on the Japanese capital instead of targeting one of the country’s five working reactors.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority head made the controversial comment while speaking to people living 215 miles outside Tokyo near a recently restarted reactor on Thursday.

He said: “If it were me, I think it would be much better to drop (a missile) on central Tokyo.”

[…]

A spokesman tried to play down Mr Tanaka’s remarks, insisting the nuclear chief was only joking and had later told reporters his comment was “inappropriate”.

Japan scaled back its reliance on atomic energy in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, when a nuclear power plant suffered three meltdowns after being struck by a tsunami.

The country shut down all of its nuclear reactors following the 2011 disaster, the world’s worst nuclear accident since the catastrophic Chernobyl event in 1986.

But it has begun restarting its nuclear reactors in the last few years, despite the concerns of locals living near power plants.

Read more at Japan nuclear boss sorry for ‘better if North Korea hits Tokyo’ remark 

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A Treaty Is Reached to Ban Nuclear Arms. Now Comes the Hard Part via The New York Times

Posted on 2017/07/07 by yukimiyamotodepaul

For the first time in the seven-decade effort to avert a nuclear war, a global treaty has been negotiated that proponents say would, if successful, lead to the destruction of all nuclear weapons and forever prohibit their use.

Negotiators representing more than 130 counties of the 192-member United Nations finalized the 10-page treaty this week after months of talks.

The document, called the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, was formally adopted on Friday at United Nations headquarters in New York during the final session of the negotiation conference. It will be open for signature by any member state on Sept. 20 during the annual General Assembly.

Elayne G. Whyte Gómez, Costa Rica’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva and the chairwoman of the conference, said in a telephone interview before the adoption that she had been “pleasantly surprised” at how quickly participants agreed on a final draft. She commended “the level of commitment and determination of delegations to accomplish the task.”

[…]

Disarmament groups and other proponents of the treaty said they had never expected that any nuclear-armed country would sign it — at least not at first. Rather, supporters hope, the treaty’s widespread acceptance elsewhere will eventually increase the public pressure and stigma of harboring and threatening to use such weapons of unspeakable destruction, and make holdouts reconsider their positions.

“This treaty is a strong categorical prohibition of nuclear weapons and is really rooted in humanitarian law,” said Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, a Geneva-based coalition of groups that advocated the treaty.

“It provides a path for nuclear-armed states to join,” Ms. Fihn said in an interview on Thursday. “We don’t expect them to sign the treaty right now, but it’s a good starting point for changing perceptions.”

[…]

Treaties that banned biological and chemical arms, land mines and cluster bombs have shown how weapons once regarded as acceptable are now widely, if not universally, reviled. That is the kind of outcome sought by proponents of the nuclear ban pact.

Read more at A Treaty Is Reached to Ban Nuclear Arms. Now Comes the Hard Part 

Related article: 

  • European Nuclear Weapons Program Would Be Legal, German Review Finds via The New York Times
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