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January 22, 2023 by Nukewatch Leave a Comment

Fukushima’s Endless Crisis

By John LaForge
PhotoCredit:https://www.base.bund.de/EN/ns/accidents/fukushima/fukushima_node.html

International Objections to Japan’s Plan to
Dump Contaminated Wastewater in the Ocean

China’s Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian has again urged Japan “to respond to the legitimate concerns of all relevant parties,” Telesur English (Venezuela) news reported November 11. Speaking April 23, 2021, Zhao Lijian had outlined China’s objections:

“As a close neighbor and stakeholder, the Chinese side expresses grave concern over this. The Fukushima accident is one of the most serious in world history. The leak of large amounts of radioactive materials has had far-reaching implications on the marine environment, food safety, and human health. Despite doubts and opposition from home and abroad, Japan has unilaterally decided to release the Fukushima wastewater into the sea before exhausting all safe ways of disposal. … This is highly irresponsible and will severely affect human health and the immediate interests of people in neighboring countries.”

Meanwhile on December 9, the Pacific Alliance of Municipal Councils’ meeting on Saipan adopted a resolution condemning “the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant and the Japanese government’s 30-year

plan to release approximately 1.1 [to 1.27] million tons (527,578 gallons per year for 30 years) of treated nuclear waste water into the Pacific Ocean.”

Environment Ministry to Experiment
with Dispersing Contaminated Soil

In Japan’s experimental trial-and-error mission to recover from the March 2011 reactor meltdowns, millions of tons of radioactively contaminated soil and debris — scraped up from surrounding lands and collected in 1-ton bags — have reportedly been “decontaminated.”

Japan’s daily Asahi Shimbun on December 7, reports that “the volume of decontaminated soil in Fukushima Prefecture … is about 14 million cubic meters.” Japan’s public TV network NHK reported December 9, “Soil exposed to radioactive fallout from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has been decontaminated,” but neither report explained how or where the soil was decontaminated. Japan’s Environment Ministry has decided to experimentally use some of this waste soil — “which still contains low-level radioactive substances” — as a way “to reduce that volume before disposal.”

The plan is to use some of the waste in lawns, parking lots, and flower beds. The ministry reportedly promised that “tests will be conducted to verify changes in radiation doses in the air.” Radioactivity spread by rainfall to surface water or ground water was not mentioned in the news report. The story notes that the contaminated soil measuring less than “8,000 becquerels per kilogram … will be used in the trial runs.” The “becquerel” is a measure of radioactivity usually regarding the presence of cesium-137 which was dispersed in large amounts by the disaster.

Filed Under: Environment, Fukushima, Newsletter Archives, Nuclear Power, Quarterly Newsletter, Radioactive Waste

January 22, 2023 by Nukewatch Leave a Comment

Governor Vetoes Bill to Halt Radioactive Wastewater Dumping in Cape Cod Bay

Protesters gathered in front of Plymouth Town Hall before a public meeting Monday on Holtec Corp.’s plans for decommissioning the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant.MATTHEW J. LEE/GLOBE STAFF
By Matt Jahnke

Holtec International, the current owner tasked with decommissioning the Pilgrim nuclear reactor in Plymouth, Massachusetts, plans on dumping 1.1 million gallons of radioactive wastewater into Cape Cod Bay. The plan has met with fierce opposition from local activists, environmentalists, fishermen, and the restaurant and tourism industries. Furthermore, State Senators Susan Moran and Julian Cyr received unanimous approval from the State House and Senate for their proposed amendment — vetoed by Governor Charlie Baker on November 10 — to delay dumping for two years in order to form a commission to investigate potential economic and environmental impacts of the contaminated wastewater. Holtec appears poised to move ahead, maintaining it is legally allowed to do so, now with a clear signal from the governor that he will not stand in the way. Sen. Moran responded to the governor’s veto, saying, “At no time did anyone ever relay concerns with this important amendment. I am eager to press the administration for an explanation…. I will be refiling [the bill] at the earliest opportunity.” US Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and US Rep. Bill Keating have called on Holtec to respond to a June 17 letter from the Environmental Protection Agency reminding Holtec that any dumping in the bay would violate federal regulations and Holtec’s permits, and could result in civil, judicial, and administrative penalties.

 

— Old Colony Memorial, Nov. 17; Provincetown Independent, Nov. 9; and Markey, Warren, Keating, Letter to Holtec, Nov. 2, 2022

Filed Under: Environment, Newsletter Archives, Nuclear Power, Quarterly Newsletter, Radioactive Waste

January 22, 2023 by Nukewatch Leave a Comment

“Fallout”: Investigative Series on Cancer Connection to Nuclear Weapons Production

By Lindsay Potter

Over two years in the making, Cincinnati, Ohio’s TV station WKRC Local 12 has produced a 12-part investigative series on radioactive contamination from the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PORTS) near Piketon, Ohio. The giant complex processed uranium for nuclear weapons for decades. The hard-hitting news reports are available online and come with startling headlines including, “Was [Mr.] Farmer’s cancer death connected to PORTS?” “Kids dying and middle school closed,” “Pike county tops state with ‘alarming’ cancer rates,” “Is radiation on our doorstep?,” “Scientists concerned with radioactive fallout from America’s nuclear plants,” “The cancer connection to Cold War plants,” and “Researcher connects radioactive contamination to PORTS.”
WKRC pitches the series online noting: “Our Local 12 Investigation has revealed children dying from rare cancers, air monitors around PORTS capturing dangerous radioactive particles, and confirmation from scientists that PORTS is causing the contamination…” — To see all 12 segments in the series “Fallout,” go to: https://local12.com/news/investigates/congressman-demands-answers-to-questions-raised-in-local-12s-fallout-investigation-cincinnati-duane-pohlman-pike-county-radiation-investigate-radiactive-dangers-contamination# 

PhotoCredit:https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/06/30/lawsuit-residents-near-portsmouth-plant-have-been-sacrificial-lambs/1611619001/

Filed Under: Environment, Newsletter Archives, Nuclear Weapons, Quarterly Newsletter, Radiation Exposure, Radioactive Waste

January 22, 2023 by Nukewatch Leave a Comment

Minnesota’s Monticello Reactor is Leaking Radioactive Tritium — Like Most in US

By John LaForge

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission was notified of a “nonemergency” at the 51-year-old Monticello reactor on the Mississippi River in Minnesota — one of the oldest in the United States and a General Electric unit identical to the three meltdown-destroyed reactors at Fukushima. On Nov. 22, owner Xcel Energy informed the NRC of “an on-site monitoring well that indicated tritium activity above the [Offsite Dose Calculation Manual] … reporting levels.” Translation: Groundwater from a well on company grounds is poisoned with radioactive tritium above permitted levels. The short NRC notice then says “The source of the tritium is under investigation,” although no mention is made of the extent of groundwater contamination, or whether off-site wells have been tested. Without data from groundwater beyond the site’s boundaries, the NRC notice then reaches the unsubstantiated, upbeat conclusion that “there was no impact on the health and safety of the public or plant personnel.” Xcel’s claim recalls the great undersea explorer Jacque Cousteau who said: “A common denominator, in every single nuclear accident — a nuclear [reactor] or on a nuclear submarine — is that before the specialists even know what has happened, they rush to the media saying, ‘There’s no danger to the public.’ They do this before they themselves know what has happened because they are terrified that the public might react violently, either by panic or by revolt.”

Photo Credit: NRC.gov

— Notification of Environmental Report, NRC Region 3, Nov. 22, 2022

Filed Under: Environment, Newsletter Archives, Nuclear Power, Quarterly Newsletter, Radioactive Waste

January 22, 2023 by Nukewatch Leave a Comment

Nevada Moves to Permanently Cancel Yucca Mt

By Lindsay Potter

Nevada’s Agency for Nuclear Projects and Governor Steve Sisolak have filed a legal motion to put a final nail in the coffin of the Yucca Mountain radioactive waste dump scheme. Though Yucca Mt. was selected in 1987, decades of resistance, damning scientific studies, and vocal bi-partisan opposition have kept it unfinished. The new motion seeks to lift a stay on a court order (State of Nevada v. US NRC) with the hope of moving forward a request by the state Attorney General’s office to reject the license application “once and for all.” The motion cites several blunders by the US Department of Energy (DOE) including: “failure to obtain necessary control over the land surrounding the proposed repository; inability to obtain necessary restrictions on military aircraft over the area; and failure to address human-caused climate change in its licensing application.” DOE and NRC staff have admitted that these failures render the license application “out of compliance” with safety requirements. The AG’s office lists further failures, geographic flaws, fights against the proposal, and the site’s engineering weaknesses on a new website launched as a companion to the motion. Nevada has illustrated the site’s short-comings over the last thirty-five years and demonstrated staunch lack of consent, proving continued pursuit of the Yucca Mt. project would only waste millions of additional tax-payer dollars. If the NRC does not grant the request, Nevada can resort to evidentiary litigation.

— Press release, “Nevada Files Motion Regarding Yucca Mt. Nuclear Waste Project” from NV.gov; and KTVN 2News television report, Sept. 20, 2022

Filed Under: Environment, Newsletter Archives, Quarterly Newsletter, Radioactive Waste

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