“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 15, 2024

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INL’s Powerful New Supercomputer, Bitterroot, arrived at INL in March 2024.

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Monday, (07/15/2024)

I often drove by the kink in the highway at the INL (Idaho National Laboratory) back in the early to mid-1980s, travelling between Salmon City and Boise, wondering what was going on at this huge facility covering thousands of acres in east-central Idaho. But I never took the time to stop and ask for a guided tour of at least their nearby buildings and facilities and learn more precisely what they did, but never took the time. But I did know they created menus for various grades of nuclear fuel, and that was about all, yet just that much was intriguing to me in a cautiously mysterious way, partly because of the remote isolation of the place coupled with the seemingly never-ending acreage of Idaho land.

The INL’s rural headquarters and their massive surrounding Idaho landscape has always remained a once-in-awhile vague curiosity to me, so today I finally learned, at least in part, what the INL is all about. It strikes me as odd that they have named their huge supercomputer suite after Idaho mountain ranges such as Bitterroot and Sawtooth, and Lemhi. I hope it is because of a local love of countryside itself and not of the divisive power of mountain ranges symbolizing ‘all things nuclear’.

The nuclear work they do, described here, is one of many fears that worry me the most about the nuclear power industry and the nuclear world’s push to radically increase new nuclear reactors in much faster timeframes in order to speed the NRC licensing and operational requirements before nuclear reactors are activated. I am sure INL’s scientific efforts, quality educational help and advice to new plant engineering and eventual operations as they are designed, engineered, constructed, and eventually fueled, tying into an expansive and very dangerous grid system, allowing new nuclear plants to function independently of most former and present day NRC control. It is the beginning of the operational stage, from startup to shutdown, that scares the hell out of me, much like my fear of nuclear war. ~llaw

A smooth ride to the future of nuclear

July 15, 2024

By Joel Hiller

If you’ve ever driven to a remote area, you may have noticed that the drive time is much longer on dirt roads. But once those roads are paved, you can get where you need to go much more quickly. The path to deploying advanced nuclear reactors isn’t a straight line, but a new supercomputer named Bitterroot being installed at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is helping to speed the journey through improved access to modeling and simulation tools.

High-performance computing allows engineers and scientists to model a wide variety of complex variables before construction begins, such as how steel or concrete degrade over time or what byproducts build up in nuclear fuel. Through advanced computer codes running on these machines, they can even model how a nuclear power plant will weather seismic events. This allows them to anticipate the reactor’s overall performance, safety and longevity.

Through the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) program provides a suite of dedicated computing resources at INL for researchers from industry, universities, national laboratories and federal agencies. Now, with the installation of Bitterroot, the NSUF High Performance Computing team at INL have another resource to help speed the journey for nuclear developers around the country. Bitterroot is the name of an Idaho mountain range and continues INL’s tradition of naming its high-performance computers after Idaho landmarks.

Bitterroot will supplement the lab’s existing supercomputers at its high-performance computing data center — the Collaborative Computing Center — by adding an additional 43,008 computer processing cores with faster chips and a new capability: high-bandwidth memory. This new memory will improve performance for memory-bandwidth-limited applications like the Multiphysics Object Oriented Simulation Environment, better known as MOOSE, framework. MOOSE is the foundation for many of the tools that aid advanced nuclear research that support the existing reactor fleet as well as the development and eventual licensing of new designs.

Supercomputing for nuclear innovation

“INL high performance computing is unique in that 80-90% of our compute cycles are dedicated to nuclear energy research,” said Matthew Anderson, manager of the High Performance Computing group. “Bitterroot brings us a new capability and additional capacity as we prepare for additional long-term investments in new computing resources.” As the lab makes ongoing investments in hardware such as Bitterroot, it increases INL’s ability to support the growing need for modeling and simulation across the nuclear industry.

In addition to access to Bitterroot and the other supercomputers at INL, NSUF provides organizations across the country access to experimental capabilities that would otherwise be unavailable or prohibitively costly, including irradiation and post-irradiation examination facilities for nuclear energy fuels and materials research and development.

“Not every company in the nuclear industry has its own gamma irradiation facility or supercomputer, but we’re all working toward the same goal of deploying more carbon-free nuclear energy,” said NSUF Director Brenden Heidrich.” “You never know who will make the next breakthrough, and partnerships like NSUF are vital to help level the playing field.”

The Collaborative Computing Center at INL

To support high performance computing capabilities and provide a dedicated home for its supercomputers, INL partnered with the state of Idaho to build the Collaborative Computing Center, known as C3, which was completed in 2019. C3 is a 67,000-square-foot facility equipped to host multiple supercomputers. In addition to Bitterroot, C3 is also home to NSUF High Performance Computing’s flagship supercomputer Sawtooth, ranked as the 37^th fastest performing supercomputer when it was installed in 2020, along with the lab’s other systems Lemhi, Hoodoo and Viz. In fiscal year 2023, INL supercomputers provided users with 939 million core hours on more than 3.7 million jobs.

Bitterroot arrived at INL in March 2024. Now, following installation and extensive testing activities, it was made available to users on June 18.

Supercomputers like Bitterroot are improving the nuclear industry’s ability to develop and qualify new reactor technologies and avoid delays on the road to commercial deployment. To learn more about how you can access Bitterroot and INL’s other supercomputers, visit the lab’s HPC website here.

About Idaho National Laboratory

Battelle Energy Alliance manages INL for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy. INL is the nation’s center for nuclear energy research and development, celebrating 75 years of scientific innovations in 2024. The laboratory performs research in each of DOE’s strategic goal areas: energy, national security, science and the environment. 

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Posted July 15, 2024Subscribe

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There are no Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Monday, (07/15/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Commentary: The essence of freedom is access to information – Orlando Sentinel

Orlando Sentinel

One concerned woman, right after the explosion, went to a library looking for information about nuclear radiation exposure and discovered that all of …

Readers Write: The military’s future, autism providers, nuclear power, Taste of Minnesota

Star Tribune

That number is close to the sum of funds both for defense spending and for nondefense discretionary spending, which includes everything except fixed …

Data centers, proliferating statewide, could soon be built on mined lands in Southwest Virginia

Virginia Mercury

“There is a coordinated strategy where we’re thinking about all the projects, how there is synergy. … nuclear source like a small modular …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Meloni seeks to bring nuclear power back to Italy – The Irish Times

The Irish Times

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government is planning to reintroduce nuclear energy 35 years after Italy shut down its last …

A Smooth Ride to the Future of Nuclear – Idaho National Laboratory

Idaho National Laboratory

Supercomputing for nuclear innovation. “INL high performance computing is unique in that 80-90% of our compute cycles are dedicated to nuclear energy …

Analysing options to finance nuclear new build

Nuclear Energy Agency

NEA event ‘Financing Nuclear New Build Today’ in Prague brought together leading experts in nuclear energy, electricity market design and …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

(No stories today)

Nuclear War

NEWS

Nuclear war never closer, CND campaigners warn as they camp outside RAF Lakenheath

Morning Star

NUCLEAR war has never been closer as Nato and Russia fight a proxy war in Ukraine and Gaza remains under siege, peace campaigners warned yesterday …

Ukraine building secret ‘robot army’; Kremlin responds to Trump assassination attempt – Sky News

Sky News

More than 45 European leaders will converge on Oxfordshire this week to discuss pressing issues, including the Ukraine-Russia war. British Prime …

North Korea threatens to boost nuke capability in reaction to US-South Korea deterrence guidelines

Jefferson City News Tribune

… nuclear war against” North Korea. The statement said its enemies’ escalating nuclear threats urgently require North Korea to further improve its …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

North Korea threatens to boost nuke capability in reaction to US-South Korea deterrence guidelines

Jefferson City News Tribune

… nuclear war against” North Korea. The statement said its enemies’ escalating nuclear threats urgently require North Korea to further improve its …

Three key misconceptions in the debate about AI and existential risk

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Arguing about the relative importance of existential threats ignores the fundamental truth that any credible existential threat is one too many and …

NATO moves to formalise anti-China “partnership” with Indo-Pacific nations

World Socialist Web Site

… war involving nuclear armed powers, which threatens catastrophe for all mankind. … threats of global war grow. 20 June 2024. Comment. Contact us.

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 14, 2024

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The presumed 2024 presidential candidates. Not good choices for nuclear politics/

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Sunday, (07/14/2024)

This well-said commentary and his concerned point of view by a knowledgeable American citizen from Santa Maria, California, has for several months been a serious, but only hinted at situation in my own comments. I have long hoped that an alternative choice of action would be selected by President Joe Biden, but the evidence of increased upgrades and modernization of nuclear weapons along with political oversights concerning more open and peace-seeking discussions and actions has gone by the wayside over the years of Biden’s presidency. These mistakes are well pointed out in the commentary, and are, indeed, contradictory to what we citizens are led to believe. America has succumbed to the same old belief that only ‘nuclear deterrence’ or, the ‘nuclear superiority’ of war-threats propagandizing ‘fear’, directed at our worldly neighbors, is the only way to prevent WWIII.

But, as the last lonely sentence in Mr. Scott Fina’s commentary points out, without Biden we are left with the likely alternative presidency of one d.j. trump who must never be allowed to be the lone American who can push the nuclear football button, because he would do so without a 2nd thought if that thought told him his own life was threatened.

So, fellow Americans, “we have a problem”. And with Putin’s position on nuclear warfare always conveyed in angry ‘deterrent’ threats plainly equivalent to just-plain lies keeping the world at bay, the Middle East atrocities, and the newly America/South Korea ‘nuclear threat’ we have issued to a rabid North Korea, there almost seems to be “no way out”.

Take your pick: Biden or trump where nuclear war is involved? It seems these days that there is no difference. Neither will flinch at the idea of “nuclear armageddon”. ~llaw

Stumbling down a path toward nuclear armageddon | Guest Commentary

• Jul 13, 2024

In recent times, have there been more troubled regions bearing conflicts with potential to instigate nuclear war, than Ukraine in Eastern Europe and Palestine in the Middle East?

As Commander in Chief, Joe Biden has overseen the U.S. arming of Ukraine and Israel in their respective conflicts with Russia and Hamas, and in effect, helped prolong them. He has also committed to modernizing U.S. nuclear weapons, over which he has singular authority to order their use in a conflict.

In this international context, Biden’s leadership has been abysmal from the perspective of peace.

Sadly, he once offered promise in seeking nuclear disarmament.

Days before the inauguration of President Trump, then Vice President Biden called for the U.S. to adopt a “no-first use” of nuclear weapons policy. He believed such weapons should only be used as a deterrence against other nuclear nations from employing them.

Biden went further, claiming:

“If we want a world without nuclear weapons — the United States must take the initiative to lead us there. Moreover … as the only nation to have used nuclear weapons, we bear a great moral responsibility to lead the charge.” 

Biden reiterated his no-first use and deterrence-only positions for nuclear weapons as a candidate in the 2020 presidential Democratic primary. These were among his many concerns for international peace that he published in an article in Foreign Affairs.

In fact, his article called for fundamental change in U.S. foreign policy, noting that our nation has “too often … relied solely on the might of our military instead of drawing on our full array of strengths,” that “the use of force should be the last resort, not the first,” and that “diplomacy should be the first instrument of American power.”

But oh where, oh where, has that Joe Biden gone?

In 2022, the U.S. Department of Defense released its Nuclear Posture Review under Biden’s leadership. The document in no uncertain terms reaffirmed a first-use of nuclear weapons policy, and disclosed that the U.S. might use such weapons to counter even a non-nuclear attack.

What a remarkable — and unfortunate — shift in Biden’s position.

During one week in May this year, Ukraine used drones to attack two long-range radar facilities hundreds of miles within Russia. The facilities are part of Russia’s early warning system for incoming, nuclear-armed ballistic missiles.

From Russia’s perspective, the drone assault was an attempt to compromise its defense against a nuclear attack: a provocative poke in the eye of the key nuclear opponent of the U.S.

The U.S. has been no less reckless with, nor insensitive to, Russia’s potential to use nuclear weapons.

Within one week this recent June, the U.S. launched two (unarmed) intercontinental, ballistic missiles from Vandenberg Space Force Base, sending them 4,200 miles to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

The U.S. Air Force Strike Command proudly referred to the missile testing as “showcasing its readiness” to employ U.S. nuclear missiles.

Was this not the U.S. flexing its nuclear muscle before its nuclear opponents? Shouldn’t our president and the military he commands, watch their step in such hazardous international tensions?

Then there’s Israel and Gaza.

Israel is the only nation in the Middle East to have nuclear weapons. While the U.S. brags about its nuclear arsenal and delivery systems, Israel refuses to admit it has them.

Nonetheless, it’s widely known that Israel has as many as 90 nuclear war heads. American leaders, including President Biden, have facetiously kept this “false secret,” even though two elected officials in Israel have openly suggested their country use its nuclear weapons on Gaza.

It’s baffling how Biden has tolerated Israel’s nuclear program and Israel’s refusal to disclose it.

How can he not have second thoughts about this exception the U.S. extends to Israel?

It’s unfair to measure Joe Biden’s competence to serve a second term on the basis of his performance in a single 90-minute debate. However, Biden’s failure, over nine months, to intervene in the slaughter of thousands of innocent Palestinians in Gaza and destruction of their homes, schools, hospitals, water and power systems — enabled by American munitions — speaks volumes to our current president’s questionable judgment and morality, especially concerning nuclear war.

And how tragic for Americans and the world, that currently, the leading alternative candidate for president seems no more rational or trustworthy.

Scott Fina is a Santa Maria resident.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There is one Yellowstone Caldera bonus story available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Sunday, (07/14/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

North Korea threatens to boost nuke capability in reaction to US-South Korea deterrence guidelines

Jefferson City News Tribune

Concerns about North Korea’s nuclear program have grown in recent years … All rights reserved. This document may not be reprinted without …

A Conversation with Daniel Maté – Yellow Scene Magazine

Yellow Scene Magazine

His brother was a political activist. Organizing peace marches in Vancouver an event called “Give Peace a Dance” every year about nuclear disarmament.

North Korea threatens to boost nuke capability in reaction to US – WFMJ.com

WFMJ.com

Concerns about North Korea’s nuclear program have grown in recent years … All rights reserved. This material may not be published …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Sen. Crapo extols ‘broad bipartisan support’ for nuclear power, ADVANCE Act signed by President

East Idaho News

The bill, the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act of 2023, is cosponsored by Crapo and Idaho Sen.

Nuclear energy gets a much-needed boost – York Dispatch

York Dispatch

President Joe Biden on Tuesday signed a bill into law that could well prove transformative for America’s energy future.

Why is nuclear power taking so long? – Daily Friend

Daily Friend

My thoughts have not turned to solar panels. Nuclear power is by far our best source of electricity if we are ever going to have a prosperous and …

Nuclear War

NEWS

North Korea threatens to boost nuke capability in reaction to US-South Korea deterrence guidelines

AP News

… nuclear war against” North Korea. The statement said its enemies’ escalating nuclear threats urgently require North Korea to further improve its …

Stumbling down a path toward nuclear armageddon | Guest Commentary – Santa Maria Times

Santa Maria Times

In recent times, have there been more troubled regions bearing conflicts with potential to instigate nuclear war, than Ukraine in Eastern Europe and …

North Korea warns of ‘unimaginably harsh’ retaliation against US nuclear plans with Seoul

South China Morning Post

… nuclear war against” North Korea. READ FULL ARTICLE App. The statement said its enemies’ escalating nuclear threats urgently require North Korea to …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

What are the big security threats coming down the track? – BBC

BBC

… war on Kyiv. Sir Keir Starmer’s new government has had a chance … Yet unwanted threats and scenarios can often have a habit of turning up …

North Korea warns of ‘unimaginably harsh’ retaliation against US nuclear plans with Seoul

South China Morning Post

… nuclear war against” North Korea. READ … North Korea has argued it was forced to pursue nuclear weapons to deal with US-led nuclear threats.

Israeli officials to hold ‘strategic dialogue’ on Iran threat in DC – JNS.org

Jewish News Syndicate

Late last month, Axios reported that Jerusalem was re-establishing working groups in various government bodies to discuss the Iran nuclear threat .

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Traveling Wyoming: Adobe Town Is Like Another Planet In The Middle Of Nowhere

Cowboy State Daily

It’s thought that the formations are made up of volcanic ash. During an ancient eruption of the Yellowstone Caldera, or super-volcano, the material …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 13, 2024

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Three Mile Island pictured on June 3, 2024 – (Jeremy Long, WITF)

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Saturday, (07/13/2024)

What can I say? Except this is just more insanity coming from an industry that simply should not exist, and never should have been allowed to exist. Why can’t we understand that instead of adding to the approaching “nuclear armageddon”, when we should be eliminating ‘all things nuclear’ of every kind on planet Earth. There was a reason the 3-Mile Island nuclear power plant was shut down, and it, among others, like Chernobyl, Fukushima, and dozens of other serious nuclear accidents, ought to be proof enough that nuclear reactors are ungodly dangerous to humanity. And the more of them we continue to operate and build the more “accidents” we will have until, unless nuclear war exterminates us first, there soon comes a time when we all die from radiation poisoning.

The Three Mile Island nuclear power plant had just two reactors. But on March 28, 1979, an accidental malfunction caused the Reactor 2 core to begin to melt, releasing radiation to the surrounding area, but fortunately the core melting was stopped before a complete meltdown occurred. However, the necessary cleanup of the nuclear damage will still not be completed until 2037 (according to the following article)

Why would we want to revive that horrible memory for so many of us again — ever? As for me, it was the ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’, and I shortly thereafter, in the spring of 1980, left the nuclear business after a long career of blindly misjudging the entire nuclear industry. ~llaw

Three Mile Island considers nuclear restart as Pa. lawmakers look to new tech to meet demand

The plant’s owner is considering reopening as the demand for power rises along with new technology.

• By
• Rachel McDevitt, StateImpact Pennsylvania
• July 12, 2024

This story originally appeared on StateImpact Pa

The company that owns one reactor at Three Mile Island near Harrisburg is floating the idea of reopening the shuttered nuclear plant.

TMI’s Unit 1 reactor closed in 2019 because owner Exelon said it wasn’t competitive against cheaper methane gas and renewable sources amid flat demand for power.

But demand is growing now with the rise of data centers and new technology, making the plant’s owner question if it could be worth it to reopen. TMI-1 is now owned by Constellation, a company formed in 2022 when Exelon split its power generation and transmission businesses into two companies.

Constellation spokesman Dave Snyder said the effort to reopen a closed plant in Michigan sparked the discussion about TMI.

He said the company is always looking for ways to add more clean energy and that extending licenses at current plants is the most immediate way to do that. Restarting closed plants is another opportunity.

“Though we have determined it would be technically feasible to restart the unit, we have not made any decision on a restart as there are many economic, commercial, operational and regulatory considerations remaining,” Snyder said.

TMI’s Unit 2 reactor partially melted down in 1979 and never came back online. The accident was the worst at a commercial nuclear site in the country, causing the evacuation of an estimated 80,000 people from central Pennsylvania. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said radioactive releases during the accident were low enough that they would not be expected to negatively impact health, though some people in the area have contested that. The incident effectively stopped nuclear power’s growth in the U.S. for decades.

In 2020 Energy Solutions took over the license for TMI-2 and began decommissioning. It plans to finish the cleanup by 2037.

Unit 1 was not affected by the accident, and had been licensed to operate until 2034.

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office did not say whether the state is involved in Constellation’s plans.

Shapiro’s spokesperson Manuel Bonder emphasized Shapiro’s “all-of-the-above” energy strategy and said the administration “recognizes the role Pennsylvania’s nuclear generation fleet plays in providing safe, reliable, carbon-free electricity that helps reduce emissions and makes Pennsylvania’s energy economy more competitive.

“The Governor supports efforts to ensure the reliability of Pennsylvania’s energy grid while protecting and creating energy jobs,” Bonder said.

There is no playbook for restarting a retired nuclear plant, said Patrick White, research director of the nonpartisan think tank Nuclear Innovation Alliance, which promotes advanced nuclear energy.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There is one Yellowstone Caldera bonus story available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Saturday, (07/13/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

US and South Korea sign joint nuclear deterrence guidelines in face of North Korean threats

ABC27

… things to know ahead of Pocono Raceway weekend. 18 hours ago. Video … The U.S. has long promised to use all its capabilities, including nuclear …

Announcing DOOMSDAY MACHINES | Restricted Data – The Nuclear Secrecy Blog

The Nuclear Secrecy Blog

The “Welcome to Doomsday Machines” post that I put up today lays out what it is going to be all about. It is a very different sort of endeavor …

Three Mile Island considers nuclear restart – WHYY

WHYY

… all clean energy sources, including nuclear, when we think about what is it going to take to hit our climate goals,” White said. Talks of TMI …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Three Mile Island considers nuclear restart – WHYY

WHYY

The company that owns one reactor at Three Mile Island near Harrisburg is floating the idea of reopening the shuttered nuclear plant. TMI’s Unit 1 …

NRC taking the next step toward a possible restart of Palisades nuclear plant – Toledo Blade

Toledo Blade

The historic effort to restart the Palisades nuclear plant in southwest Michigan took another step forward on Thursday night when the U.S. Nuclear …

Nuclear Energy Gets a Much-Needed Boost – Articles – Advisor Perspectives

Advisor Perspectives

President Joe Biden, as you’ve no doubt heard, has had a rough few weeks. Yet on Tuesday, he signed a bill into law that could well prove …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

No emergency after sirens sound at North Carolina nuclear plant, officials say – MSN

MSN

“Emergency Management is working with Duke Energy to determine the cause,” they said in their announcement.

Nuclear War

NEWS

UN demands Russia immediately return Europe’s biggest nuclear plant to Ukraine

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding that Russia urgently withdraw its military and personnel from Europe’s largest nuclear …

N. Korea threatens to boost nuke capability over US-S. Korea deterrence guidelines

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

North Korea has threatened to boost its nuclear fighting capability and make the U.S. and South Korea pay “an unimaginably harsh price” as it …

President Has Sole Ability to Launch Nuclear Weapons, Pentagon Report Says – Bloomberg News

Bloomberg News

The “nuclear football” was dangerously close to Jan. 6 rioters. The Defense Department’s watchdog was then tasked with reviewing what would happen …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Putin Ally Warns NATO Underestimates Russia’s Nuclear Threats – Newsweek

Newsweek

… nuclear threats. Amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, prominent Russian officials such as Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security …

N. Korea threatens to boost nuke capability over US-S. Korea deterrence guidelines

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

… nuclear war against” North Korea. The statement said its enemies’ escalating nuclear threats urgently require North Korea to further improve its ..

US and South Korea sign joint nuclear deterrence guidelines in face of North Korean threats

The Washington Post

The consultative body was established as North Korea has sharply accelerated its missile testing activities and openly threatened to use nuclear ..

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Heartbreaking final moments of 23-year-old whose body dissolved in hot springs – JOE

JOE

… Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. Sitting atop an active volcanic caldera, Yellowstone, America’s first National Park, is home to more …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 12, 2024

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Ukrainian emergency workers wear protective suits during training on radiation exposure in Zaporizhzhia, June 29, 2023, to prepare for a possible disaster at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.Andriy Andriyenko—SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Friday, (07/12/2024)

Will Russia accept this resolution to return the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to Ukraine? I doubt it. The plant has long been coveted by Putin and it is being operated by Russian personnel who would have to train Ukrainians, but more than all that it has become a vital nuclear weapon unto itself for Russia should this war go beyond the war-crimes savagery Russia is already using against the Ukraine and its people. They bombed a children’s hospital only a couple of days ago, and that’s about as low as a nation can get regarding savagery.

The nuclear power plant is already being used as a weapon and a threat by Russia, so the idea that this war is not yet ‘nuclear’ is a serious mistake. It is ‘nuclear’, and to a very significant degree when the size and use of the huge nuclear plant with 6 reactors is considered, making it the most dangerous and largest in Europe and one of largest in the world. Owning that plant in the name of Russia has been one of Putin’s dreams according to Donald Trump during the recent Presidential debate. How Putin gets it does not matter, so if nuclear war is the the final alternative, Putin may well resort to nuclear war. Our world leaders are not what you would call diplomatic, considerate, gracious, or even thoughtful. Power, control, and the insanity of selfish pride, meaning it’s their way or no way, has brought us to question the probability of continued viable life on planet Earth.

We could say such patronizing things as “We’ll do better next time around”, or “We are a humanitarian people”, or ‘We shall come together”. But facing reality we know that will never happen, but if it doesn’t, there will be no next time around. ~llaw

U.N. Demands Russia Immediately Return Europe’s Biggest Nuclear Plant to Ukraine

3 MINUTE READ

BY EDITH M. LEDERER / AP

JULY 12, 2024 2:30 AM EDT

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution Thursday demanding that Russia urgently withdraw its military and personnel from Europe’s largest nuclear power plant and immediately return the facility to Ukraine.

The resolution also reiterates the assembly’s demands for Russia to immediately “cease its aggression against Ukraine” and withdraw all troops, and again reaffirms the 193-member world body’s commitment to Ukraine’s “sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.”

The resolution was approved by a vote of 99-9 with 60 countries abstaining and 25 countries not voting.

Russia was joined by Belarus, Cuba, Eritrea, Mali, Nicaragua, Syria, Burundi and North Korea in opposing the resolution. China, India, South Africa and many Middle Eastern countries were among those abstaining.

The resolution expresses “grave concern over the precarious nuclear safety and security situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.” It says returning the plant to Ukraine’s full control will ensure its safety and security and enable the International Atomic Energy Agency “to conduct safe, efficient and effective safeguards.”

Fears of a nuclear catastrophe have been at the forefront since Russian troops occupied the plant shortly after invading Ukraine in February 2022. Zaporizhzhia, which has six nuclear reactors, sits in Russian-controlled territory in southeastern Ukraine near the front lines and has been continually caught in crossfire.Subscribe

ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There are no Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Friday, (07/12/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Sexual assault cases involving U.S. military personnel strain relations with Japan – WUTC

WUTC

All Things Considered. Next Up: 7:00 PM The Haley Solomon Show. 0:00. 0:00 … nuclear crisis and the Fukushima earthquake and nuclear disaster.

Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelenskyy urges Biden to ‘lift all limitations’ on weapons as US …

Sky News

He says he is “confident” that Ukraine will join NATO and he will “do everything” to make it happen. Once the pair finishing speaking, journalists are …

Palisades reopening plan gets mixed reaction in public hearing

WCMU Public Radio

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is accepting comments on what it … All Things Considered · Destination Out · Fresh Air · Here and Now · Homespu

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Biden enacts legislation to boost nuclear energy – EHN – Environmental Health News

Environmental Health News

President Biden signed the ADVANCE Act to expedite the deployment of advanced nuclear reactors, aiming to enhance nuclear technology as a …

UN demands Russia immediately return Europe’s biggest nuclear plant to Ukraine

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding that Russia urgently withdraw its military and personnel from Europe’s largest nuclear …

Joe Biden Signs Popular, Bipartisan Nuclear Power Bill – National Review

National Review

The Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act, a measure contained in the Fire Grants and Safety Act, …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

U.N. Demands Russia Immediately Return Europe’s Biggest Nuclear Plant to Ukraine – Time

Time

minute read. Ukrainian emergency workers seen wearing radiation Ukrainian emergency … nuclear power plant.” It says returning the plant to …

BJP-led NDA declares June 25 as ‘Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas,’ Emergency Day

Business Today

The government’s notification, shared by Home Minister Amit Shah, condemned the abuse of power … India To Get …

IAEA Board condemns attack on Kyiv children’s hospital, blaming Russia | The Star

The Star

… emergency meeting at the request of both Ukraine and Russia, to … Atomic Energy Agency in the field of cancer diagnostics and treatment.

Nuclear War

NEWS

US and South Korea sign joint nuclear deterrence guidelines in face of North Korean threats

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

… nuclear attack on the North. Worries about North Korea have further deepened since North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir …

NATO Charts a New Course | The Nation

The Nation

The July 2024 NATO summit in Washington threatens to set in train a Cuban Missile Crisis of truly global magnitude. Recall that in 1962, nuclear war …

US, South Korea sign integrated nuclear deterrence for Korean peninsula – Reuters

Reuters

“The Presidents reaffirmed their commitments in the U.S.-ROK Washington Declaration and highlighted that any nuclear attack by the DPRK against the …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

US and South Korea sign joint nuclear deterrence guidelines in face of North Korean threats

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

… nuclear threats. The two leaders authorized “the U.S.-ROK Guidelines for Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Operations on the Korean Peninsula” that …

Biden’s weakness prompts Putin’s increased threats — and NATO must prepare

American Enterprise Institute

In another scenario, Putin may attack a NATO member country like Estonia or Latvia and threaten a nuclear strike if the alliance attempts a …

U.S. and South Korea sign joint nuclear deterrence guidelines in face of North Korean threats

The Hindu

U.S. and South Korea strengthen nuclear deterrence guidelines amid concerns over North Korea’s growing nuclear threats … nuclear attack on the North.

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 11, 2024

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The beach near the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) is very popular with families who may not be aware of the risks of radiation exposure around the plant. Credit: Diane Edmonds

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Thursday, (07/11/2024)

I say it all the time: “Nuclear energy is the dirtiest energy on planet Earth.” But here we have, coincidentally linked together, a first hand well-documented and well-written extremely dangerous (and growing) nuclear waste situation at the abandoned San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) and the nearby utterly dangerous PG&E owned Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, California’s last, located just south of San Luis Obispo at Avila Beach, a neighbor to SONGS.

Writer, photographer, and anti-nuclear advocate Diane Edmonds points out and photographs some of the present, and very serious, concerns of the long shut-down and abandoned nuclear power plant (which happens to lie not far from, what to my mind, is the most dangerous nuclear power plant on American soil. Just the fact that PG&E owns the plant is reason enough to be concerned, but I have warned about the dangerous nature of the Diablo Canyon plant many times over in this blog and for years earlier.

Surprisingly and unfortunately, the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility, scheduled to be shut down in 2025, already waiting for a nuclear disaster to happen, has been given an even more dangerous lease on life by PG&E receiving billions of dollars from both California’s government and the United States’ Federal government (Taxpayers, of course). The Diablo Canyon plant. that I consider to be the 2nd most dangerous power plant on Earth next to Ukraine’s war-damaged Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is a serious radiation threat to Ukraine and parts of Europe while directly involved in a potential nuclear war. ~llaw

Edmonds: Nuclear Energy is Not Clean Energy

BY DIANE EDMONDS13 hours ago Why you can trust Voice of OC

In honor of several recent days that call attention to the health of our all-important oceans, Earth Day, World Oceans Day, and International Surfing Day, I wrote a letter to Governor Newsom asking him to withdraw his support of nuclear energy in California.  While we can all agree that fossil fuels must be phased out to reduce the carbon footprint they leave behind, replacing them with nuclear energy is a deadly and expensive step in the wrong direction.

Calling nuclear energy ‘clean’ energy could not be further from the truth.  The ‘front end’ of the nuclear industry requires the mining of uranium – a filthy process that creates untold human and environmental damage, often rendering the mining sites uninhabitable.  The ‘back end’ of the nuclear process cycle leaves behind hundreds of millions of pounds of highly-radioactive nuclear waste at every nuclear power plant across the US.  These materials will continue to be toxic for hundreds of thousands of years, if not longer.  We need to stop making more of this deadly waste until our Federal Government identifies a location where what has already been produced can be safely stored for millennia, far away from the ocean and population centers.

Nuclear energy has also been called ‘cheap’ energy, which is completely false, considering the massive government subsidies that are required to build nuclear power plants and, later, even larger taxpayer-funded subsidies to eventually decommission the aging plants.  These subsidies amount to many, many billions of dollars – resulting in huge profits to utilities and private contractors.  With nuclear power plants taking decades to be built, and almost always running years behind schedule and way over budget, nuclear is not a quick fix for our energy needs.  Considering the many drawbacks to its use, including the high stakes in the event of a radiologic catastrophe, nuclear is not the answer to California’s energy needs.

With the rest of the US looking on California as the leader in eco-friendly policies, it is hypocritical for us to be promoting nuclear energy when renewable energy sources are setting new records in our state.  In April 2024, Newsom announced that California exceeded its clean energy goals by running 100% on clean energy for 40 out of the previous 48 days, including 11 days in a row.  Renewable energy includes widely-distributed sources such as offshore wind, onshore wind, rooftop solar, industrial-level solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, and battery storage systems.  Unlike nuclear energy, technology to improve and expand the use of all of these renewables is moving quickly, with increasing efficiency and lower costs.

NUCLEAR WASTE AT SAN ONOFRE NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION (SONGS)

When SONGS was permanently shut down in 2013, most Southern Californians thought we were safe from the threat of a disastrous radiologic accident. However, as part of the decommissioning process, the California Coastal Commission authorized Southern California Edison to bury 3.6 million pounds of highly-radioactive ‘spent-fuel waste’ in thin-walled metal canisters a mere 108 feet from the ocean, under the premise that it was ‘temporary’ storage.  The toxic waste is close to: breaking waves on a popular surfing beach; the Interstate 5 Freeway; rail lines; Camp Pendleton Marine Base; and major population centers.  It could not have been placed in a worse location.

For over 50 years, the Federal Government has been promising to find a location to safely and permanently store toxic spent-fuel waste in a deep geologic repository – but they have failed.  The  123 metal canisters at SONGS were not intended for long-term storage of radioactive waste in a corrosive marine environment.  Many esteemed scientists, nuclear experts, military advisors, academics, and environmentalists present credible scenarios indicating that there are many dangers to leaving the waste in its current location.  There is significant evidence of land instability at San Onofre as well as sea level rise occurring now, with water intrusion that could impact pipelines, foundations, roadways, and worsen soil stability.  We cannot afford to wait until even one canister leaks.  This waste must be moved to higher ground ASAP.

The entire economy of California is at risk until San Onofre’s nuclear waste is moved from its current location.  Even a minor leak would destroy the tourism industry in Southern California, with the massive evacuations that would be required.  With Anaheim’s recent approval of Disney’s $1.9 Billion ‘DisneylandForward’ expansion, Disney should be very concerned that their investment could be worthless should there be a radiation leak at San Onofre, with dire impacts for all of Southern California.  

RADIOACTIVE OCEAN CONTAMINATION

Another significant environmental concern is the radioactive wastewater that is being released into the ocean as part of the decommissioning process at San Onofre.  SONGS continues to release hundreds of thousands of gallons of radioactive wastewater into the ocean on a regular basis – with some releases being even more toxic than others.  Hundreds and even thousands of surfers are in the ocean every day in front of and close to the San Onofre outflows, even on the days when radioactive wastewater is being released.  Other than very hard-to-find advance notifications on Southern California Edison’s website, surfers and swimmers are not being warned about these radioactive wastewater releases as they are occurring.  It is ironic that beaches are required to post signs warning that it is dangerous to swim for 72 hours after rain, and yet, there are no required warnings for something that can potentially cause DNA-altering damage, particularly to pregnant and nursing women.  The effects of ionizing radiation are cumulative and exponentially more damaging to female and children’s bodies than to an adult male.  Imagine the damaging health impacts that have already occurred in surfers who have surfed at San Onofre for decades.  The risks are just too high to allow this ocean contamination to continue.

With California poised to ban plastic straws and plastic bags because of the dangers they pose to our oceans, surely we can all see the hypocrisy of allowing nuclear energy’s radioactive legacy to continue to foul our beaches, damage sea life, and cause untold environmental damage to our oceans. 

We can do better for future generations.  California’s leaders must stop promoting nuclear energy and, instead, commit to expanding renewable energy sources.

Diane Edmonds – As a lifelong ocean-lover and longtime Orange County Surf Photographer, I have been drawn into the movement to get 3.6 million pounds of highly-radioactive nuclear waste moved away from the ocean at OC’s decommissioning San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS).  My role is to reach out to the surf community to make them aware of the dangers of radiation exposure resulting from billions of gallons of radioactive water released into the ocean at nuclear power plants.  I also am an advocate to shut down the last operating nuclear power plant in California, Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant in San Luis Obispo County.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There is one Yellowstone Caldera bonus story available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Thursday, (07/11/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Dominion plans to operate first small modular nuclear reactor in U.S. – VPM News

VPM News

All Things Considered. Next Up: 6:30 PM Marketplace. 0:00. 0:00. Available … Dominion Energy Virginia announced today it is accepting proposals for a …

Dominion hopes to develop a small modular nuclear reactor – WVTF

WVTF

Madeleine Bolton inside a building at Colonial Williamsburg. Meet Virginia. Every Virginian has a story—about their life, their heroes, their hometown …

Putin’s Greatest Weapon Remains the ‘Scare Tactic’ – The Cipher Brief

The Cipher Brief

… all the things that make America prosperous, that’s what’s at stake. … It’s all about this excessive fear that Russia might use a nuclear weapon.

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Newly Signed Bill Will Boost Nuclear Reactor Deployment in the United States

Department of Energy

ADVANCE Act is latest legislative win to revitalize domestic nuclear power sector in U.S..

Edmonds: Nuclear Energy is Not Clean Energy – Voice of OC

Voice of OC

These subsidies amount to many, many billions of dollars – resulting in huge profits to utilities and private contractors. With nuclear power plants …

Three Mile Island considers nuclear restart as Pa. lawmakers look to new tech to meet demand

StateImpact – NPR

The company that owns one reactor at Three Mile Island near Harrisburg is floating the idea of reopening the shuttered nuclear plant.

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

GAEC amps up nation’s nuclear power journey with Japan visit

The Business & Financial Times

The team visited nuclear facilities such as the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant, the JAPC Mihama Nuclear Emergency Assistance Center (M-NEACE), the …

Sirens to sound again today at Duke’s Harris nuclear plant. This time it’s a test. – MSN

MSN

Six sirens were mistakenly sounded on Monday during what was supposed to be a silent test at Duke Energy’s Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant in Wake …

Nuclear War

NEWS

Targets in 90 US cities on nuclear map! Know places under threat. What has … – The Economic Times

The Economic Times

Besides, states of Alabama, Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee, have many places marked as potential targets of nuclear attack …

NATO’s Endgame Appears To Be Nuclear War| Countercurrents

Countercurrents

It is easily imaginable that nuclear war could break out between Russia (and perhaps China) and the West, yet politicians continue to escalate …

NATO’s endgame appears nuclear war – New Age

New Age

NATO’s endgame appears nuclear war … THE world is at its most dangerous moment since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Back then, however, the fear of …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

NATO’s endgame appears nuclear war – New Age

New Age

… threats to do so and recent Russian military drills to deploy tactical nuclear weapons. Given that Russian use of nuclear warheads might well …

Targets in 90 US cities on nuclear map! Know places under threat. What has Russian … – MSN

MSN

… threatened, the specter of nuclear war has been haunting the US. It has … A nuclear blast vaporizes nearby objects and poses distant radiation threats …

The false equivalency of nuclear disarmament and nuclear abolition – Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

The mainstream nuclear disarmament movement was successful during the Cold War … nuclear threat is so important. The nuclear abolition movement .

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Gunman who was killed by Yellowstone rangers had planned a July 4 mass shooting, park reveals

AOL.com

… Yellowstone region, let alone the park itself. Rangers spent the … A general view of the Sete Cidades Volcano caldera near Ponta Delgada …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 10, 2024

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Nuclear Reactors will be the death of us, if Nuclear War doesn’t intervene.

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Wednesday, (07/10/2024)

“However, the bill, [signed by President Biden yesterday] was not without its critics, who have raised concerns about bolstering nuclear power because of potential safety issues and challenges related to nuclear waste.” (from the article)

I am one of those critics, only much moreso for so many more reasons, although nuclear safety and nuclear waste are extremely important negative issues that by themselves could create nuclear holocaust. Beyond these other issues, that those who read my nightly blog may be well aware of, the biggest issue is that more nuclear energy will not solve the fossil fuel created greenhouse gas (GHG) affect that will continue to increase mathematically unabated causing even greater global warming and climate change. Instead, this futile attempt will be just like all the previous declarations that have notoriously failed, but even worse, with this one, as we go forward we instead immensely add to the issue of staying alive by not only CO2 suffocation but the likelihood of global nuclear radiation poisoning, which can only bring our progressive march toward “doomsday” sooner rather than later. ~llaw

Biden signs bill bolstering nuclear power

BY RACHEL FRAZIN – 07/09/24 2:01 PM ET

President Biden signed a bipartisan bill Tuesday aimed at bolstering the nation’s nuclear power in what supporters describe as a historic win for the sector.

The nuclear package is expected to speed up the timeline for licensing new nuclear reactors and cut fees that companies have to pay to do so. 

It also requires the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to put together a report that considers ways to simplify and shorten the environmental review process for such reactors.

Supporters say the legislation is a big deal for the nuclear power sector, and will help bring more of the climate-friendly, albeit controversial, power source online.

It was combined with another bill that reauthorizes the U.S. Fire Administration and grant programs for firefighters, which was also signed into law.

Biden, in a social media post, announced he signed the legislation, known as the ADVANCE Act, calling saying it would help provide “clean nuclear power and good union jobs.”

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said in a joint statement that Biden signed the bill into law.

“Today is a momentous day for our climate and America’s clean energy future,” said Carper, who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, in a written statement. “This bipartisan law will strengthen our energy and national security, lower greenhouse gas emissions and create thousands of new jobs, while ensuring the continued safety of this zero-emissions energy source.”

However, the bill was not without its critics, who have raised concerns about bolstering nuclear power because of potential safety issues and challenges related to nuclear waste.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) described the legislation as containing “poison pills that undermine nuclear safety” in a statement to The Hill last month. 

Some critics have also raised concerns about a provision that would change the mission of the  Nuclear Regulatory Commission to prevent it from “unnecessarily” limiting nuclear power.

Updated 5:28 p.m. ET.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There is one Yellowstone Caldera bonus story available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Wednesday, (07/10/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Meet the Generous Gardeners that have helped Gloucester bloom | GBH – WGBH

WGBH

Kana Ruhalter is the associate producer of GBH’s All Things Considered. … State lawmakers consider ‘nuclear option’ of receivership fo

Accelerating Community Solar Opportunities for Nonprofits – YouTube

YouTube

… 325 views · 1:45 · Go to channel · 3 Things to Know about the Onkalo Repository for Spent Nuclear Fuel. U.S. Department of Energy New 781 views · 40: …

Archbishop to continue his call for disarmament at Trinity commemoration – KUNM

KUNM

… about why we should be working toward multilateral, verifiable nuclear disarmament. … She was then hired as Morning Edition host in 2015, then the All …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Biden signs a big nuclear bill. Can it remake the industry? – E&E News by POLITICO

E&E News

Biden’s Department of Energy has helped shore up existing reactors and cast a $1.5 billion lifeline to a shuttered nuclear plant in Michigan that aims …

Biden signs bill bolstering nuclear power – The Hill

The Hill

President Biden on Tuesday signed a bipartisan bill aimed at bolstering the nation’s nuclear power, lawmakers announced. The nuclear package is …

Talking About Connecticut’s Nuclear Power Future And Millstone Power Plant

CT News Junkie

The two nuclear reactors at the Millstone Power Plant in Waterford generate around half the electricity we use in Connecticut each year.

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Duke Energy to test all outdoor warning sirens around the Harris Nuclear plant – ABC11

ABC11

All testing is performed in cooperation with emergency officials in Chatham, Harnett, Lee and Wake counties. The testing comes after the sirens …

Sirens tested at Harris Nuclear Plant Wednesday morning, as scheduled, after accidental activation

WRAL.com

“Wake County reports a siren activation of the emergency alert system for the Duke Energy Harris Nuclear Plant, located southwest of Raleigh, North …

Duke nuclear siren testing set for Wednesday – YouTube

YouTube

… 362K views · 1:47 · Go to channel. Duke Energy says no emergency at Harris Nuclear Plant after sirens go off Monday morning. WRAL New 398 views · 2:43.

Nuclear War

NEWS

DAY ONE: NATO’s Endgame Appears to Be Nuclear War – Consortium News

Consortium News

DAY ONE: NATO’s Endgame Appears to Be Nuclear War. July 9, 2024. Save. A hostile military alliance, now including even Sweden and …

Nuclear situation more dangerous than it was during Cold War? | DW News – YouTube

YouTube

It’s been 75 years since the US, Canada, and Western European countries forged an alliance to deter Soviet expansionism, keep peace in Europe and …

NATO’s Biggest Test Since the Cold War Is Still Ahead

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

The allies have to find a way to end the war without sacrificing Ukraine in the process.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Erosion of Western leadership order and risks of World War III | Daily Sabah

Daily Sabah

As the Western-led order weakens, tensions rise from Ukraine to Gaza, heightening nuclear war risks. … threats increase, they could shorten the …

Ukraine in NATO is in Russia’s Interests | Royal United Services Institute – RUSI

RUSI

… threats to deter others from intervening to halt or reverse his aggression. … war crimes and nuclear threats from its larger neighbour. A post-war …

50 Years Guarding Australia From Nuclear Threats – Mirage News

Mirage News

50 Years Guarding Australia From Nuclear Threats … This month marks 50 years since the landmark establishment of the Australian Safeguards and Non- ..

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Wild West Wonders: 21 Classic Wyoming Sights Every American Should Experience – MSN

MSN

<p><span>The Yellowstone Caldera, the volcanic centerpiece of Yellowstone National. Image Credit: Shutterstock / Lynn Yeh. 1. Yellowstone National …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 09, 2024

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China’s artificial sun takes a major step forward . . .

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Tuesday, (07/09/2024)

Why do we spend so much time and energy trying to create new power production from nuclear sources when Mother Nature has provided all life, including human life, with anything and everything we need to survive?

Yet our own “natural” resources are apparently not enough to satisfy our preconceived needs when, all the while we are ignoring an abundance of natural energy sources all over the globe that are no doubt all we need for as long as we occupy planet Earth. ~llaw

China’s Artificial Sun Generated a Magnetic Field, Clearing a Real Path for Fusion

It’s a crucial step forward in the quest for clean energy.

BY CAROLINE DELBERT PUBLISHED: JUL 08, 2024 1:53 PM EDT

China joined the quest for an enormous, internationally cooperative nuclear fusion reactor in 2023. Now, they’ve reached a milestone by generating its magnetic field for the first time—a field that is entirely new in tis design. The “artificial sun” reactor, Huanliu-3 (HL-3), is a tokamak run by 17 collaborating labs and facilities around the world. But the much-ballyhooed quest to make energy using these huge reactors still has a decade or more to go, with a lot of misinformation in the mix.

While HL-3 puts China in the group of forerunners in nuclear fusion research, this reactor isn’t the largest (by far), and this milestone is only for its own timeline. This reactor is not close to operating consistently or producing energy that compares to the vast amounts of energy it and other similar reactors—known as tokamaks—require to operate. But HL-3, like many global tokamaks, is considered a proving ground for technologies that nations like China will offer to the truly world-leading ITER project in France. In that sense, each nation’s developments could make a difference going forward.

A tokamak is a donut-shaped (toroidal, in the science parlance) container that holds a stream of superheated magnetic plasma and is reinforced by massive magnets and supercooling encasement. The plasma—a cohesive “cloud” of atoms under star-like conditions—ends up hosting the same reactions that fuel the actual stars. The nuclei of atoms fuse together and release an enormous amount of energy… in theory. We know it happens in the stars, but we’ve never seen it happen in the same runaway, self-sustaining manner inside a thousand-ton piece of machinery on Earth.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There are 3 Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS,Tuesday, (07/09/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Florida regulators eye new nuclear power – WUSF

WUSF

All Things Considered · 1A · Here & Now · Fresh Air · On Point · Florida Matters … Nuclear plants generate about 13 percent of Florida’s electricity …

Europe’s Nuclear Renaissance Could Strengthen Transatlantic Ties – CEPA

CEPA

… all things that can go wrong in project finance. The war in Ukraine has … about one-third of the generating capacity of traditional nuclear power …

China’s Artificial Sun Generated a Magnetic Field, Clearing a Real Path for Fusion

Popular Mechanics

China’s HL-3 tokamak generated a magnetic field, marking a major milestone in fusion research. It places China among the leaders in nuclear fusion …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

New nuclear power plant eyed in Florida – ClickOrlando.com

ClickOrlando.com

Nuclear plants generate about 13% of Florida’s electricity, according to a state House analysis, with Florida Power & Light operating the St. Lucie …

Florida considers new nuclear power expansion, first in decades – WOKV

WOKV

… adding new nuclear power plants for the first time in decades, with state regulators set to study the feasibility of advanced nuclear technologies.

Texas Nuclear Power Plant Hit By Hurricane Beryl – Newsweek

Newsweek

The South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company (STPNOC), which is “one of the newest and largest nuclear power facilities in the nation” according …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Nuclear power plant sirens in North Carolina go off inadvertently – FOX8 WGHP

FOX8 WGHP

Wake County emergency managers, who received calls about the sirens, worked with neighboring agencies and Duke Energy to figure out what was going on …

Harris Nuclear Plant siren isn’t an emergency, county says | Raleigh News & Observer

The News & Observer

Sirens sounded by accident Monday morning near Duke Energy’s Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant in Wake County. The alerts sounded while Duke was …

Nuclear plant to test sirens this week | Port City Daily

Port City Daily

Local broadcasting stations will not be interrupted via the broadcast Emergency Alert System (EAS). However, if there were a legitimate emergency at …

Nuclear War

NEWS

NATO’s Endgame Appears to Be Nuclear War | Common Dreams

Common Dreams

The world is on the brink of nuclear war as tensions between Russia and the West escalate.

Scientists Call to Cancel New Nuclear Missiles

Union of Concerned Scientists

“These weapons – stored in silos across the Plains states – place a target on communities and increase the risk of nuclear war while offering no …

True security for NATO requires moving away from nuclear weapons – ICAN

International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

When NATO leaders gather in Washington DC on 9 July their agenda will be dominated by next steps in their support for Ukraine in its war with …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

NATO summit starts as Russia, China threats against US grow – USA Today

USA Today

How dangerous are China and Russia? Threats grow as NATO leaders meet in Washington. · In the Cold War, America had only the Soviet Union to deter, …

True security for NATO requires moving away from nuclear weapons – ICAN

International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

Russia’s threats to use nuclear weapons in the context of the war in … In light of the heightened threat of nuclear war, it would be a …

US Sentinel missile woes raise nuclear readiness concerns – Asia Times

Asia Times

The US Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) program’s skyrocketing costs threaten the crucial weapon’s future just as the US faces …

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

New Yellowstone eruption data changes understanding of volcanic hazards – Buckrail

Buckrail

JACKSON, Wyo. — Last month, the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) published its 2023 Annual Report with new insights into lava flow eruptions …

Solving the mystery of the “Pearlette volcanic ash” | U.S. Geological Survey – USGS.gov

USGS.gov

Digital elevation model of Yellowstone National Park and vicinity, showing the location of the calderas formed during each of Yellowstone’s three most …

The 15 disasters most likely to destroy the world – MSN

MSN

Supervolcano. There has never been a supervolcano in human history, but … Yellowstone Caldera hotspot in Wyoming, did erupt. Dust and sulfur …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 08, 2024

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LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Monday, (07/08/2024)

It amazes me that we aren’t seeing more financial investments news concerning the entire ‘power’ industry, and especially revelations about why the nuclear industry is, as it always has been, based upon little more than hype, propaganda, and the industry’s dreams and fictional industry hubris.

The industry won’t even discuss the availability of future fuel products and how they are mined, milled, refined and how limited the uranium market may be to provide costly U308 and who controls the refining markets. Russia controls about 83% of the entire nuclear market, by the way. A new nuclear power plant without fuel is useless, of course, but at least it is safer . . . ~llaw

Explains why investing in the nuclear power industry is profoundly stupid

Jul 8, 2024

by Aaron Larson

POWER is at the forefront of the global power market, providing in-depth news and insight on the end-to-end electricity system and the ongoing energy transition. We strive to be the “go-to” resource for power professionals, offering a wealth of information on innovative business practices, sound safety measures, useful productivity enhancements, and much more.

Analyst Says Nuclear Industry Is ‘Totally Irrelevant’ in the Market for New Power Capacity

Nuclear power has consistently provided about 19% to 20% of total annual U.S. electricity generation since 1990. It provides significant amounts of electricity in many other countries as well.

According to data from The World Nuclear Industry Status Report (WNISR), a total of 414 reactors were operating in 32 countries, as of July 1, 2024. Preliminary data says China generated the second-most electricity from nuclear power in 2023 (behind the U.S.), while France came in third and had the highest percentage share of national power generation from nuclear power at 65%.

Many power industry experts and environmental activists consider nuclear power an important component in the world’s transition to carbon-free energy. Yet, Mycle Schneider, an independent international analyst on energy and nuclear policy, and coordinator, editor, and publisher of the annual WNISR, said, “in [new] capacity terms, the nuclear industry, from what is going on, on the ground, is totally irrelevant.”

Schneider was speaking as a guest on The POWER Podcast and prefaced his statement by comparing nuclear power additions to solar power additions in recent years. “Let’s look at China, because China is the only country that has been massively building nuclear power plants over the past 20 years,” he said.

“China connected one reactor to the grid in 2023—one gigawatt. In the same year, they connected, and the numbers vary, but over 200 gigawatts of solar alone. Solar power generates more electricity in China than nuclear power since 2022. And, of course, wind power generates more than nuclear power in China for a decade already,” Schneider said. Furthermore, he noted, the disparity has gone “completely unnoticed by the general public or even within the energy professionals that are in Europe or often also in North America.”

Schneider said the media often gives the impression that the nuclear industry is booming, but the facts suggest otherwise. “Over the past 20 years—2004 to 2023—104 reactors were closed down and 102 started up,” Schneider said. “But here is important that almost half, 49 of those new reactors started, were in China [where none closed], so the balance outside China is minus 51.”

Some nuclear advocates might suggest that things are changing. They might argue that small modular reactors (SMRs) or other advanced designs are poised to reinvigorate the industry. But Schneider disagrees. He noted that since the construction start of the second unit at Hinkley Point C in the UK in 2019—almost five years ago—there have been 35 nuclear project construction starts in the world. Twenty-two of those were in China and the other 13 were all implemented by the Russian nuclear industry in a few different countries. “Nothing else. Not an SMR here or an SMR there, or a large reactor here or a large reactor there by any other player,” reported Schneider.

Meanwhile, history has shown that the nuclear industry struggles to meet timeline targets. As examples, Schneider noted that on Jan. 1, 2022, 16 reactors were scheduled to come online during the following year. Only seven actually did. In 2023, nine were planned to come online, but only five made it to the grid. This demonstrates how bad the industry is at scheduling—it can’t even predict project completion at a high rate of accuracy during the final year of construction. “How precise could it possibly be if there are predictions for 2030, 2035, 2040, for reactors that don’t even have a [design] license yet?” asked Schneider.

Notably, timelines haven’t always improved on later units. Schneider said the EPR units have demonstrated a “negative learning curve.” Specifically, the first EPR units to enter commercial operation were at the Taishan site in China, which came online in 2018 and 2019. They had a shorter construction time than Olkiluoto 3 in Finland, which started construction about four years prior to Taishan but didn’t enter commercial operation until 2023. Flamanville 3 in France began construction in 2007 and hasn’t yet entered commercial operation. It could end up having a construction period even longer than Olkiluoto 3. To cap it all off, Schneider said the Hinkley Point C EPR units could be even longer than Flamanville 3.

“By the way, you can also show that through the building history of nuclear reactors in France—it’s actually a negative learning curve,” said Schneider. Furthermore, with so few reactors being constructed, learnings are limited.

Schneider noted that the vast majority of new capacity being added to the grid is from solar and wind energy. “These guys are building tens of thousands of wind turbines, and literally hundreds of millions of solar cells, so the learning effect is just absolutely stunning,” he said. “On the nuclear side, we’re talking about a handful. That’s very difficult. Very, very difficult—very challenging—to have a learning effect with so few units.”

Schneider said the nuclear discussion in general needs a “really thorough reality check.” He suggested the possibilities and feasibilities must be investigated. “Then, choices can be made on a solid basis,” he said.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There are no Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Monday, (07/08/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Analyst Says Nuclear Industry Is ‘Totally Irrelevant’ in the Market for New Power Capacity

POWER Magazine

Some nuclear advocates might suggest that things are changing. … Twenty-two of those were in China and the other 13 were all implemented by the …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

No emergency after Duke Energy nuclear plant sirens go off, Wake County officials say

ABC11

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Wake County reported emergency sirens went off at the Duke Energy Harris Nuclear Plant in southwest Raleigh Monday morning …

No emergency after sirens sound at Harris Nuclear Plant, Wake County officials say

CBS 17

(WNCN) — Wake County officials want the public to know there is no emergency, despite sirens going off around the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant …

Monday AM siren at Harris Nuclear Plant is no emergency, Wake County says

The News & Observer

Wake County officials said there was no emergency tied to to the sounding of alert sirens Monday morning at Duke Energy’s Shearon Harris Nuclear …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

No emergency after sirens sound at Harris Nuclear Plant, Wake County officials say

CBS 17

(WNCN) — Wake County officials want the public to know there is no emergency, despite sirens going off around the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant …

No emergency after Duke Energy nuclear plant sirens go off, Wake County officials say

ABC11

(WTVD) — Wake County reported emergency sirens went off at the Duke Energy Harris Nuclear Plant in southwest Raleigh Monday morning. There is no …

No emergency after sirens sound at NC nuclear power plant – WFMY News 2

WFMY News 2

— Sirens went off at a nuclear power plant in Holly Springs, NC early Monday morning, but officials want the public to know there is no emergency.

Nuclear War

NEWS

Putin: No need for nuclear weapons in Ukraine; keeps option open – VOA News

VOA News

“Reliance on nuclear threats and signals is an enduring trend in Russia’s activities amid the war in Ukraine,” said Heather Williams, senior …

The US and Europe would be safer with Ukraine in NATO. Our war games showed why.

Atlantic Council

Both sides had strong incentives to avoid a direct NATO-Russia conflict—one that could result in nuclear war. This finding corresponds with …

Ukraine-Russia war live: Kyiv children’s hospital hit during daytime missile attack | The Independent

The Independent

The hospital was hit amid a Russian barrage that targeted five Ukrainian cities and killed at least 36 people while injuring almost 130 others.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

US Mayors for Peace Call for Dialogue in a Time of Nuclear Danger – ScheerPost

ScheerPost

The Russian war on Ukraine, with its attendant nuclear threats, and an intensifying array of antagonisms among nuclear-armed governments in …

Putin warns NATO: Don’t provide too much military support for Ukraine | Jefferson City News Tribune

Jefferson City News Tribune

“Reliance on nuclear threats and signals is an enduring trend in Russia’s activities amid the war in Ukraine,” said Heather Williams, senior …

AP: Ukraine war nears most dangerous phase, Putin makes alarming statement – ФАКТИ.БГ

ФАКТИ.БГ

Nuclear threats are one means of signaling the Kremlin’s commitment to winning the war in the hope of deterring Western intervention. Putin said 

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 07, 2024

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ChatGPT & DALL-E generated allegorical image representing the extreme costs and duration of cleaning up a nuclear generation facility when it’s closed.

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Sunday, (07/07/2024)

The following is an article from 4 years ago when I was Posting under a slightly abbreviated Facebook name that I have saved for posterity to see what has been done about this issue today. The answer is, sadly, nothing; however the problem has only grown severely worse and yet we are irrationally thinking as a global community to make the issue far worse, far more expensive and, incredibly, far more dangerous to all life on planet Earth — of course including our own . . . llaw

ChatGPT & DALL-E generated allegorical image representing the extreme costs and duration of cleaning up a nuclear generation facility when it’s closed.

US Nuclear Site Cleanup Underfunded By Up To $70 Billion

4 years ago by Michael Barnard (See author’s short bio following the articele)

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Headlines out of the UK are pointing out the horrible state of affairs for nuclear generation decommissioning after a committee of Members of Parliament that the UK’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority really doesn’t have a handle on the 17 sites, their costs, or the vendors they selected for cleanup. They are currently projecting $177 billion and 120 years for the full decommissioning, over $1 billion per site. Some of this is due to botched procurement, with two different cleanup vendors stripped of their contracts.

Some US commenters were feeling chuffed, although that’s not a term they would use, that the US was handling things so much better. But the USA isn’t far behind the UK in problems, it just isn’t as public.

Per the World Nuclear Association:

In the USA, utilities are collecting 0.1 to 0.2 cents/kWh to fund decommissioning. They must then report regularly to the NRC on the status of their decommissioning funds. About two-thirds of the total estimated cost of decommissioning all US nuclear power reactors has already been collected, leaving a liability of about $9 billion to be covered over the remaining operating lives of about 100 reactors (on the basis of an average of $320 million per unit). NRC data for the end of 2018 indicated that there was a combined total of $64.7 billion held in the decommissioning trust funds covering the 119 operational and retired US nuclear power reactors.

An OECD Nuclear Energy Agency survey published in 2016 reported US dollar (2013) costs in response to a wide survey. For US reactors the expected total decommissioning costs range from $544 to $821 million; for units over 1100 MWe the costs ranged from $0.46 to $0.73 million per MWe, for units half that size, costs ranged from $1.07 to $1.22 million per MWe. For Finland’s Loviisa (2 x 502 MWe) the estimate was €326 million. For a Swiss 1000 MWe PWR the detailed estimate amounts to CHF 663 million (€617 million). In Slovakia, a detailed case study showed a total cost of €1.14 billion to decommission Bohunice V1 (2 x 440 MWe) and dismantle it by 2025.

[Brief aside: I love the World Nuclear Association, because they are actually honest and report details that contradict their mission. I cite them on Germany’s wholesale electricity prices, which they freely admit are among the lowest in Europe as that country ramps up renewables rapidly and dumps nuclear. They aren’t just a lobbying organization, although they are an industry-funded lobbying association. Unlike the equivalent oil and gas organizations, they seem compelled to be honest and complete, perhaps because being honest and complete usually isn’t so disgustingly horrific for them, just simply bad.]

Back to the thread. The US has collected a bunch of money from operating reactors into a cleanup fund that they acknowledge is underfunded to the tune of billions already. But the industry estimates show that they are collecting under half of what it will actually take to decommission the sites.

There are about 100 reactors in the United States. Assuming they collect the $320 million per reactor (they won’t, as reactors are closing prematurely), they would have a fund of $32 billion. But they need a fund of closer to $70 billion, and they are short regardless. So the US fleet cleanup is going to cost the taxpayer probably closer to an additional $40 billion, if it all goes according to the estimates.

Note that the UK and Slovakia examples show that it usually doesn’t, just as building new nuclear never seems to come in on time or budget. The reality is going to be closer to the European and Slovakian costs, so let’s assume a billion per reactor as a reasonable number.

The US will have maybe $30 billion. They’ll need $100 billion. Yeah, $70 billion is the more reasonable number.

“A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you’re talking real money.”

– US Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen

Of course, this is on top of the $1.6 billion annual tax breaks nuclear plants in the US get, the $10 billion liability insurance cap with the taxpayer holding the bill should a Fukushima-scale disaster occur and the state-level boondoggles like the $1.1 billion Ohio subsidy that came with a side helping of $60 million in bribes.

Nuclear power is going to be the gift that keeps on returning fiscal dividends for a century.

That’s why Brookfield bought the bankrupt Toshiba Westinghouse division, for the long-term, guaranteed decommissioning revenue. SNC Lavalin bought Canada’s CANDU for the same reason, although I’m sure they are at the trough on the Canadian SMR idiocy too.

As a note, the nuclear industry’s cleanup being thrown on the taxpayers’ back is a drop in the bucket compared to the cleanup for coal, oil, and gas extraction and refinement, the majority of which will be funded by taxpayers. In the past, I reported that Alberta’s oil and gas cleanup bill will be $200 billion more than the amount they have set aside. That’s one Canadian province, albeit the worst of the Canadian ones. Doubling that for the rest of the country suggests a $400 billion shortfall for the country around oil and gas. The standard guideline is multiply the Canadian number by 10 for the US, so there’s probably in the range of $4 trillion unfunded oil and gas cleanup in the US. Certainly the nuclear set-aside doesn’t give any comfort that the fossil fuel industry is doing any better. Being $70 billion short on the nuclear cleanup starts to look like chump change when you consider potentially $4 trillion for oil and gas.

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This isn’t exactly a secret. Nuclear projects always go over budget and over schedule, and there is exactly zero reason to believe decommissioning estimates provided by the industry. So why have jurisdictions been building more nuclear plants, whether at the egregious but at least honest costs of Hinkley, or the massively underestimated but increasingly obvious costs of the Virgil C. Summer and Vogtle sites? Three reasons.

The first is the magic of net present value. That calculates the value of future dollars today given inflation. Just as a thousand bucks bought a lot more in 1990 than it does today, in 2050 it will buy a lot less than it does today. That means that liabilities that will be incurred decades in the future approach zero cost in today’s cost benefit analysis. Can you say generational inequity?

The second is ideology. When really blatantly obvious economic sense gets thrown out the window, you start looking around for irrationality or graft. A lot of conservatives really hate onshore wind because it spoils the views from their manses (UK) or ranches (US) or country estates (Oz). They also think of wind and solar as inadequate hippy shit. They think nuclear is the answer. These are opinions that they formed in the 1970s or perhaps the 1980s, but conservatives have a stronger tendency to not let empirical reality change their mind. So Hinkley, Vogtle, and Summer are a triumph of ideology over reality.

The third is graft. When we start talking about $10 billion or more to build a plant, billions in subsidies, and another billion to take the thing apart, a lot of people start rubbing their hands together and figuring out who they have to bribe now to get a big payoff later. The entire regulatory structure in the two states that had nuclear plants in construction until recently when one was finally put out of the state’s fiscal misery were both structured so that no matter how much the utility spent, it was guaranteed a set profit. If they built a $15 billion nuclear plant, they made a lot of profit off of the rate payers. If they built $2 billion worth of wind and solar instead, they made a lot less money off of the rate payers. It’s dumb as a box of hammers, but it’s part of the reason a lot of utilities love nuclear, and coal-generation carbon capture schemes to boot. They are licenses to print money.

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Outside of China, where they have trained resources who can build nuclear plants who would be mediocre at building wind and solar (which they are building a lot more of) and nuclear plants will displace coal plants, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to build new nuclear. The looming decommissioning debacle is just the icing on the cake.

Wind and solar have proven themselves to be vastly cheaper, completely reliable on grids, and easy to integrate in very large amounts. Their decommissioning costs are trivial. That’s yet another reason why nuclear is dead, but pretending it’s not.

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Michael Barnard

is a climate futurist, strategist and author. He spends his time projecting scenarios for decarbonization 40-80 years into the future. He assists multi-billion dollar investment funds and firms, executives, Boards and startups to pick wisely today. He is founder and Chief Strategist of TFIE Strategy Inc and a member of the Advisory Board of electric aviation startup FLIMAX. He hosts the Redefining Energy – Tech podcast (https://shorturl.at/tuEF5) , a part of the award-winning Redefining Energy team.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
6. Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There are no Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this evening’s Post.)

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Sunday, (07/07/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Putin warns NATO: Don’t provide too much military support for Ukraine | Jefferson City News Tribune

Jefferson City News Tribune

“Active nuclear deterrence means the possibility of using nuclear … All rights reserved. This document may not be reprinted without the express …

Ukraine vies for NATO membership ahead of the group’s meeting in Washington, D.C.

WVTF

All Things Considered · BBC World Service · Fresh Air · Full Disclosure · Here … KAKISSIS: The West had offered security assurances in the past in …

Ukraine vies for NATO membership ahead of the group’s meeting in Washington, D.C.

Nuclear Power

NEWS

‘Significant Risk Of Failure To Deliver’: Weber Raises Concern Over Micro Nuclear Reactor Projects

YouTube

During a House Science Committee hearing prior to the Congressional recess, Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) questioned Dept. of Energy Deputy Secretary, …

Gulf Energy supports nuclear power, urges public education on – Nation Thailand

Nation Thailand

Energy giant Gulf says nuclear power safe and feasible for Thailand but govt must communicate effectively. Ratthaphol Cheunsomchit, deputy chief …

Public Vote on Nuclear Power Plant Sparks Debate in Kazakhstan | OilPrice.com

Oil Price

Kazakhstan is holding a referendum on whether to build a nuclear power plant, sparking debate over energy diversification, environmental risks, …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

One dead, one still missing in Lake Erie near Perry Nuclear Power Plant – News-Herald

News-Herald

or log in to your account. Share Button Disabled. Subscribe Log in. emergency siren. (Metro Creative Connection). Author. By Chad Felton | cfelton@ …

Nuclear War

NEWS

Where Putin stands on using nuclear weapons to win Russia’s war in Ukraine | PBS News

PBS

As the war in Ukraine turned slowly in Moscow’s favor this summer, Putin declared he doesn’t need nuclear weapons to achieve his go

The Nuclear Taboo Is a Myth – Lawfare

Lawfare

Public opinion can support the use of nuclear weapons in conflicts. Governments need stronger checks against pushing the button.

Russian State TV Discusses Nuclear Attack on Ukraine – Newsweek

Newsweek

A Kremlin propagandist cited a poll that found a third of Russians do not oppose a nuclear strike on Ukraine amid the ongoing war.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Where Putin stands on using nuclear weapons to win Russia’s war in Ukraine | PBS News

PBS

“Russian leadership may be assuming it has more at stake in Ukraine than NATO, and nuclear threats are one means of signaling its commitment to …

The Nuclear Taboo Is a Myth – Lawfare

Lawfare

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has similarly warned that nuclear risks are the highest they have been in decades and that the threat is …

Nobel prize winning scientists raise alarm on nuclear war threat – The Australian

The Australian

Nobel prize winning scientists raise alarm on nuclear war threat. Thirty … Their declaration comes after repeated nuclear threats from …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 07, 2024

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LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Saturday, (07/06/2024)

This Post is for as reference for anyone who wants to understand the beginnings of enabling the prolific design, engineering, construction, legalities, safety and security, and operations of licensing of new Small Modular (nuclear) Reactors (SMRs). I have posted the material provided by the IAEA here for the edification and continuing education of public interest (including my own) in what will no doubt be a serious, if not fatal, desire to use nuclear power by individual governments and corporations with individual needs that require individual characteristics of proposed operational nuclear power facilities.

My only comment at this point is that moving forward with such an effort borders on inanity (or even insanity) that could lead us headlong toward new stumbling steps closer to helping ourselves toward self-destruction in more ways than I care to count this evening. I will study the preliminaries here (as I hope some of you will do) and I will respond with my own no doubt very negative thoughts at a future date. ~llaw

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Application of the Principle of Defence in Depth in Nuclear Safety to Small Modular Reactors

INSAG Series No. 28

English STI/PUB/2094 ¦ 978-92-0-121724-0

14 pages ¦ € 30.00 ¦ Date published: 2024

https://doi.org/10.61092/iaea.w9s3-1k5y

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Description

This publication developed by the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group (INSAG) supplements its advice provided in INSAG-10 underscoring application of the principle of defence in depth in nuclear safety for small modular reactors and related emerging technologies. It is intended to stimulate discussion and to promote practical action at all levels to enhance safety of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). INSAG provides recommendations on current and emerging nuclear safety issues to the IAEA, the nuclear community, and the public. The report is intended for use by governmental authorities and by the nuclear industry and its supporting organizations. In particular, the intended audience includes national decision makers for nuclear power programmes using small modular reactors (SMRs), researchers and designers in this field and nuclear and radiation safety experts.

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ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

There are 6 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives, as do ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links in each category about the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:

1. All Things Nuclear
2. Nuclear Power
3. Nuclear Power Emergencies
4. Nuclear War
5. Nuclear War Threats
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Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.

TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Saturday, (07/06/2024)

All Things Nuclear

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North Koreans got jobs at Fortune 500 companies to fund the nuclear weapons program

WUNC

… nuclear weapons program … All Things Considered. Next Up: 6:30 PM Marketplace. 0:00. 0:00. All Things …

North Koreans got jobs at Fortune 500 companies to fund the nuclear weapons program

KETR

… nuclear weapons program … All Things Considered. Next Up: 8:00 PM Reveal. 0:00. 0:00. All Things …

North Koreans got jobs at Fortune 500 companies to fund the nuclear weapons program

NPR

All Things Considered · Fresh Air · Up First. Featured. The NPR Politics Podcast · Throughline · Trump’s Trials · Wild Card with Rachel Martin · More …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Application of the Principle of Defence in Depth in Nuclear Safety to Small Modular Reactors

International Atomic Energy Agency

In particular, the intended audience includes national decision makers for nuclear power programmes using small modular reactors (SMRs), researchers …

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Nuclear energy stocks are gaining attention as tech giants seek reliable, carbon-free power for data centers, with Constellation Energy emerging …

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The US Nuclear Energy Institute is preparing a proposal in Washington to provide nuclear newbuild protection from project delays and cost …

Nuclear War

NEWS

Putin sees no need for nuclear weapons to win in Ukraine. But he’s also keeping his options open

ABC News – The Walt Disney Company

Since the war began, hawks have urged a revision of the doctrine, which says Moscow could use nuclear weapons in response to a nuclear strike or an …

Jeremy Shapiro, Author at War on the Rocks – War on the Rocks

Full Coverage

Putin sees no need for nuclear weapons to win in Ukraine. But he’s also keeping his options open

AP News

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s message to NATO was simple and stark: Don’t go too far in providing military support for Ukraine, …

What would happen if Russia detonated a nuclear bomb in space? – Washington Post

Washington Post

A mysterious satellite known as Cosmos 2553 has raised concerns that Russia is conducting tests that could lead to a nuclear weapon in space.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Putin doesn’t need nuclear weapons to win in Ukraine. But he is keeping his options open

AP News

“Reliance on nuclear threats and signals is an enduring trend in … nuclear war over a false launch warning. Hawks urged Putin to move …

Russia Threatens Nuclear Doctrine ‘Amendments’ amid Ukraine War – Newsweek

Newsweek

… threats, while Kremlin propagandists have suggested missile strikes … The threat of Russia resorting to nuclear weapons has hung over the war …

Ignoring the threat | Opinion | dailyitem.com

The Daily Item

Our country and the world face two existential threats, climate change and nuclear war. Climate change is already with us. We must act now along …

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Yellowstone supervolcano eruption could trigger ‘nuclear winter’ and mass deaths – MSN

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