Opinion

Extracting a disaster

Saturday, December 6, 2008

The increased sourcing of raw uranium that will arise from nuclear new build is an ethical and environmental nightmare currently being ignored by the government.

The World Nuclear Association (WNA), the trade body for companies that make up 90% of the industry, admits that in "emerging uranium producing countries" there is frequently no adequate environmental health and safety legislation, let alone monitoring. It is considerately proposing a Charter of Ethics containing principles of uranium stewardship for its members to follow. But this is a self-policing voluntary arrangement. Similarly, the International Atomic Energy Agency's safety guide to the Management of Radioactive Waste from the Mining and Milling of Ores (pdf) are not legally binding on operators.

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EnergySolutions not true to its word

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Remember that "The Simpsons" episode where Homer gains so much weight he plugs the cooling tower? Hilarious stuff. Laugh out loud funny.

This joke EnergySolutions is playing on all of us - nuclear regulators, the governor and Utah residents? Not so funny.

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Nuclear isn't necessary

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

The notion that we need nuclear power to address climate change does not reflect the realities of the marketplace or rapid new developments in energy technology.

It is now generally understood that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning are at the centre of the climate crisis. In the electricity sector, that primarily means the burning of coal. China and the United States are the leading users, and Russia, Germany and India also use coal as a mainstay of power generation. Long-term assured carbon sequestration is not yet a proven technology, and it is unclear when it might become available on the required scale. In environmental terms, the world cannot afford new coal-fired power plants; indeed, even existing coal-fired power plants may have to be phased out before 2050. The nuclear-power industry, proclaiming a 'nuclear renaissance', has suggested itself as a saviour with a simple formula: if you don't like coal, build nuclear plants.

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Nuclear is the real threat to the fuel-poor, not wind energy

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Recent allegations that a dash for wind would cause a big increase in fuel poverty crumble when you do the numbers, says Oliver Tickell. Nuclear is the real worry

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The future will not be nuclear

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

The government is pinning its hopes on a nuclear renaissance to meet Britain's climate change goals. Planning procedures are being eased and hidden subsidies offered. But the policy is based on a misunderstanding of nuclear power's lousy economics, and will fail
Tom Burke

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Uranium mining, nuclear power and 'ethical' investment

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

A recent Corporate Watch Australia survey reveals that many so-called ethical investment funds invest in uranium mining.

The number has risen significantly in recent years. Some fund managers justify investment in uranium with questionable arguments about nuclear power and climate change, but the primary reason for the shift is probably BHP Billiton's entry into the uranium industry with its 2005 acquisition of WMC Resources, which owns the Olympic Dam uranium mine in South Australia.

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All aboard the nuclear power superjet. Just don't ask about the landing strip

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Climate change and the oil crisis are being used to project atomic energy as a green panacea. In fact it is a reckless gamble

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The reality of France's aggressive nuclear power push

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

* Developing countries that have expressed interest in French nuclear power technology can't implement it anytime soon.
* A French-led global nuclear power renaissance is problematic, since the country's nonproliferation record is poor.
* French nuclear reactors aren't as safe as its promoters claim.
* Nuclear power provides only a small portion of total French energy consumption.

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Italy's Nuclear Job

Friday, May 30, 2008

The Italian government, whose public debt of €1.624 trillion is already the world's third largest, seems eager to dig deeper. Last week, recently re-elected Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi made good on his campaign pledge to recommit Italy to nuclear power. This seemed just the thing to address the country's rising oil and gas prices and growing French electricity imports -- except for one thing: Mr. Berlusconi's promised nuclear power plants are unlikely to ever be built.

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French power myths

Thursday, May 22, 2008

France may export massive amounts of nuclear power, but that success doesn’t come without its difficulties

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