“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.

---

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
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, (07/06/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

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 …

1 Nuclear Energy Stock to Buy Now for Data Center Upside | Nasdaq

Nasdaq

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

Newbuilds: US NEI Lobbies for Cost Overrun Protection for New Nuclear

Energy Intelligence

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

MSN

Two large reservoirs full of magma exist beneath the Yellowstone Caldera: one that’s about three to ten miles beneath the surface, and another that’s …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 06, 2024

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LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Friday, (07/05/2024)

The following “Countercurrents” article is a well-stated example of the ‘interim’ between ‘now’ and ‘then’, full of human confusion, uncertainty, dread, and fear we have of the future so long as there is the constant threat of Nuclear War that may only be prevented temporarily by what is called “deterrence”, which, in my opinion, cannot prohibit nuclear war forever because there are financial and technical limits to the constant expansion of nuclear arsenals to keep other nuclear nations at bay. Although the word ‘deterrence’ is not mentioned in the article, the well-described associated problems and weaknesses of ‘deterrence’ are very well covered by the author.

But the only possible way to achieve his valiant point of view and hope for world peace and thereby avoid nuclear war will never happen unless we are trusting enough as independent nations to come together long enough to destroy forever and/or make absolutely inaccessible ‘all things nuclear’ including not only weapons of mass destruction, but also nuclear reactor power generation, which in a war environment, will become themselves weapons of nuclear mass destruction even if we manage to environmentally safely control them, which, in reality, will not be the case.

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And, contrary to the propaganda of industry opinion, uranium is mined, extracted from the earth, no differently than any other non-renewable CO2-belching (coal, oil, gas, etc.) except that the more extensively refined uranium fuel product burns with much less waste of CO2 and other greenhouse gasses, but that is certainly no trade-off for nuclear radiation from nuclear reactors as well as nuclear waste, that is far more poisonous and universally dangerous to human and other life than all the other non-renewable fueled power plants combined. ~llaw

Can we rest assured that just because of the unacceptably high costs of nuclear war and World War III, these will never happen?

in World

by Bharat Dogra

05/07/2024

In the middle of several very serious questions haunting humanity today the one which looms over all others is this terrible one—how high is the possibility of World War 3/ nuclear war and how destructive this will be?

Even those who take an optimistic view of the existing situation do not deny the obvious fact that weapons of mass destruction that exist with just the two biggest nuclear weapon powers (over 10,000 nuclear weapons plus other weapons) have the capacity to destroy most life on earth several times over. They base their optimism mainly on their view that just because the risks of a large-scale nuclear war are so unacceptably high, this will never be allowed to actually happen by the world leadership and no matter how serious the hostilities become, some solution will always be found to avoid a war that has the capacity to destroy all sides.

Can this optimism be accepted? Is this optimism justified? Is this optimism good for reducing worries and tensions of people, or is it likely to prove extremely harmful by creating a false assurance of safety and thereby avoiding much-needed safety steps? Do the actual risks remain unacceptably high?

What is at stake here is so huge—the very survival of life on planet—that even a low probability of an all-out nuclear war should be seen as extremely dangerous. If for example a 5% probability of this existed till about a few years ago, then this was a very serious matter and if this has now increased to about 10% then this is a much more serious matter. If this probability now appears to show a further increasing trend then this makes the situation even more alarming.

On the whole we can say definitely that the probability of a life-destroying nuclear war today is unacceptably high and it shows all the signs of worsening further.

There are two aspects that need to be considered here, firstly the state of world leadership and governance and secondly certain technological factors.

It is extremely unfortunate that when international peace and cooperation are needed more than ever before to avoid the most catastrophic situations, the world leadership has been increasingly exposed in recent times for its glaring failures to achieve such peace and cooperation. In fact it is no exaggeration to say that at a time when the need for moving fast on the path of peace, disarmament and cooperation is the highest, world leadership has been instead moving in the reverse direction, as evident from increasing superpower rivalries and tensions as well as breakdown and non-renewal of important disarmament treaties or agreements.

In addition there are several serious environmental problems which together threaten to disrupt life-nurturing conditions of earth if not checked in time. To resolve these in time, apart from strong community actions, close international cooperation is also needed but this too is denied by increasing big power disputes and rivalries, as well as inability of the most of the rich countries to adopt a caring attitude towards the needs of poorer and most vulnerable countries. This is mentioned here as another example of the failure of world leadership to get its priorities right and resolve the most urgent problems before it is too late.

The most dangerous aspect of increasing irresponsibility shown by the leadership of big powers is their apparent willingness to pursue their rivalries and hostilities in ways that bring them closer to the possibilities of direct war ( in addition to the several proxy wars they have fought and are fighting). Despite warnings by some of their most senior statesmen and diplomats, the USA and its close allies persisted with the relentless eastward expansion of NATO, thereby increasing tensions with Russia. This worsened with a coup in Ukraine assisted by them, followed by pushing Ukraine relentlessly towards increasing hostility with Russia. In the course of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, USA and close allies have increasingly taken decisions that can lead to direct confrontation of Russia with USA and its close allies/ NATO. New red lines have been drawn and crossed several times in the recent past.

The spread of dangerous ideas among elites and the absence of adequate training in commitment to peace makes them more susceptible to pursue irrational hostility rather than peace, and it is from these elites that the most decisive posts are filled and it is these elites that comprise the deep establishment.

Secondly, regarding the technological aspects, the extremely high speed at which nuclear weapons can be made to reach their targets makes it difficult to correct serious mistakes. It is possible in times of high tensions to mistake normal weapon delivery as nuclear weapon delivery and take retaliatory actions. There are possibilities of accidents and misunderstandings that can start a nuclear war.

There is huge irrationality and recklessness involved in perpetually living in a state of being just minutes away from doomsday.

The fact that world leadership sees nothing wrong in living this way year after year, endangering the life of billions of people and other life forms, is further evidence of its glaring failure to protect the most crucial interests of the planet and its life.

The previous two world wars were fought over several years and involved prolonged battles in many countries. World War 3 can take a very different shape as so much harm is caused within just a few days that it cannot continue beyond this. However it will be worse than the previous two world wars taken together as within a few days of nuclear warfare and the resulting nuclear winter most people and other life-forms will die or will be left to die. The actual use of just 10% of the existing stock of nuclear weapons will be enough to achieve such a hugely destructive result. 

It is not just a question of whether the probability of this ever happening is 5% or 10%, more or less. The fact is that by any rational reckoning any probability of this happening even at minimum levels is unacceptable. This is a betrayal by world leadership of their most essential responsibility towards people, towards this generation and the next, towards completely innocent children, towards all forms of life.

Hence it is time for the people of the world to rise, led by women and youth, to create an entirely different world where the probability of such huge destruction by weapons and wars is zero, and where all people can live in peace and cooperate to resolve the most important environmental problems in time and ensure that all people can have creative, satisfactory livelihoods to meet their basic needs on a sustainable basis. In short, the world should be firmly on a path based on peace, safety, environmental protection and justice.

Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Planet in Peril, Protecting Earth for Children, Earth without Borders, Man over Machine and A Day in 2071.

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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, Friday, (07/05/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Believing in Nuclear Deterrence and Angels – World BEYOND War

World BEYOND War

… all when you’re talking about nuclear bombs getting through. Interestingly, Barash includes in his book a survey of the data on how people who .

Iran’s nuclear ‘restraint’ is policy rather than technology – JNS.org

Jewish News Syndicate

The inside of an uranium conversion facility just outside the city of Isfahan, about 254 miles south of Tehran, Iran, in 2005. Photo by Getty Images.

1 Nuclear Energy Stock to Buy Now for Data Center Upside – The Globe and Mail

The Globe and Mail

Real-time index price for Nasdaq Health Care Index (IXHC), along with buy or sell indicators, analysis, charts, historical performance, …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

List of Norwegian towns considering nuclear continues to grow

World Nuclear News

In April last year, the municipality of Vardø in Finnmark proposed nearby Svartnes as a possible site for a nuclear power plant to Norsk Kjernekraft, …

Top Nuclear Power Countries: India Beats Pakistan, But Where Do US, Russia, China Rank?

Times of India

Top Nuclear Power Countries: Did you know that China is building its nuclear stockpile faster than any other country in the world including the US ..

Nuclear power has an advantage not reflected in its average price. It’s price stability, and for …

Tech Xplore

Much of the debate about nuclear power in the month since the Coalition announced its plan to install reactors in seven states has been about …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Framatome awarded further contract at Swiss plant : Corporate – World Nuclear News

World Nuclear News

Framatome has been awarded a contract by Kernkraftwerk Gösgen-Däniken AG to modernise the reactor protection system in the emergency control …

There will be fewer outage schedules until 3 p.m., significant imports and emergency …

unn.ua

… electricity from the Polish power system on an emergency basis. This will … zaporizhzhya-nuclear–power-plant Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Nuclear War

NEWS

Can We Rest Assured That Just Because Of The Unacceptably High Costs Of Nuclear War …

Countercurrents

What is at stake here is so huge—the very survival of life on planet—that even a low probability of an all-out nuclear war should be seen as extremely …

Nuclear arms race intensified during Trump’s presidency – The Hill

The Hill

… nuclear arms race, and a threat of nuclear war against North Korea, all of which have contributed to the increasing likelihood of nuclear war.

Putin believes Trump is sincere about ending war as Moscow conducts nuclear drills

The Independent

Russian attacks kill two and wound 26 in Ukraine. Russian strikes killed two people and wounded 26 in Ukrainian regions stretching from the south to …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

US Mayors for Peace Call for Dialogue in a Time of Nuclear Danger | The Nation

The Nation

The Russian war on Ukraine, with its attendant nuclear threats, and an … Nuclear Dangers.” This is the 19th consecutive year that the USCM …

Europe Has Avoided the Nuke Question For Decades. No Longer. – POLITICO

Politico

During the Cold War, Europe was terrified by the possibility of nuclear war. … And Putin’s nuclear threats have only grown in recent months; in June …

Nuclear arms race intensified during Trump’s presidency – The Hill

The Hill

… nuclear weapons, and Trump’s return to public threats of nuclear war ― this time against Iran. Given this record, as well as Trump’s all-too .

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Etna in eruzione, fontane di lava ed emissione di cenere dal vulcano – YouTube

YouTube

24:53 · Go to channel. Henrys Fork Caldera: Yellowstone’s Last Caldera Eruption Completely in Idaho. Shawn Willsey•183K views · 18:31 · Go to channel …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 04, 2024

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Ironically, this is the historical meaning of flying the American flag upside down

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Thursday, (07/04/2024)

. . . an aside Post today to recognize America’s Independence Day, although one could say there is a common thread to this distress flag and the dangerous use of ‘all things nuclear’ . . .

This is what flying the American flag upside down meant until the Supreme Court guy and his wife hung it up out of context!

But, because of that very same Supreme Court and Justice Alito, this original meaning still holds true; perhaps more than ever . . . ~llaw

Ironically, this is the historical meaning of flying the American flag upside down

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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, (07/04/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

The game theory that led to nuclear standoffs – NPR

NPR

Last week, Vladimir Putin vowed to make new nuclear weapons and consider placing them close to NATO countries … All Things Considered · Fresh Air · Up …

Solar Power is about to Leave Nuclear and all other Energy Sources in the Dust – Informed Comment

Informed Comment

By Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University | –. (The Conversation) – Opposition leader Peter Dutton might …

Ukraine war latest: Anti-Putin Russian group involved in setting fire to Russian warship … – Sky News

Sky News

The attack has killed at least five people and injured dozens more. “Inside, everything is damaged, outside everything is also damaged. I’ve got …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Drone attacks continue near Zaporizhzhia plant : Regulation & Safety – World Nuclear News

World Nuclear News

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has called for an immediate stop to drone attacks in the vicinity of the …

LR report predicts new era of zero-emission nuclear–powered ships – Seatrade Maritime

Seatrade Maritime

Nuclear power could transform shipping by preventing emissions, extending ships’ operating lives, and removing the uncertainties surrounding …

Podcast: How are the USA’s historic new Vogtle nuclear units doing?

World Nuclear News

Southern Nuclear’s Senior Vice President at Vogtle 3 and 4, John Williams, on the achievement of completing the first new US nuclear power units …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Sirens Wail At New Jersey Nuclear Plants, It Was Just a Test, Officials Confirm

Shore News Network

… Emergency Alert System messages if an actual emergency occurs. Residents seeking additional information or the yearly siren testing schedule can …

Amid electricity shortages, emergency aid was received from the EU, today there are …

unn.ua

… emergency assistance from the power systems of Poland and Slovakia. “Today … zaporizhzhya-nuclear–power-plant Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Flight Forced To Make Emergency Landing After Passengers Served Spoiled Food – Channel 10

Channel 10

Flight Forced To Make Emergency Landing After Passengers Served Spoiled Food … Statement From AEMO And CSIRO Regarding Nuclear Power. Statement From …

Nuclear War

NEWS

The game theory that led to nuclear standoffs – NPR

NPR

Meanwhile, here in the US, the government boosted its nuclear weapon spending by 18% between 2022 and 2023. The world is closer to nuclear war than …

N Korea MIRV missile test raises nuclear war stakes – Asia Times

Asia Times

North Korea’s recent test launch of ballistic missiles, with at least one capable of carrying a “super-large warhead”, has raised new alarm in …

Nuclear Weapons and Trilateral Superpower Competition – Global Security Review

Global Security Review

Following the Cold War, there was much intellectual confusion concerning nuclear weapons, nuclear strategy, and why nuclear weapons exist.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Risks in the nuclear order in the wake of Ukraine war – Firstpost

Firstpost

Risks in the nuclear order in the wake of Ukraine war. During the Cold … They harbour the potential to subscribe to existential threats, real or …

California’s controversial AI bill worries about nuclear war, catastrophic harm

The Indian Express

By safeguarding against the existential threat of AI, critics say that the proposed legislation doesn’t see the wood for the trees.

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

20+ Volcanoes in the USA with Potential for Eruptive Activity – Open Sky News

Open Sky News

A new study reveals that the magma chamber beneath Yellowstone’s supervolcano contains significantly more melted rock than previously estimated.

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 03, 2024

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Solar power is growing so quickly it is set to become the biggest source of electricity on the planet by the mid-2030s, The Economist reports.(ABC News: Clint Jasper)

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Wednesday, (07/03/2024)

Following up from yesterday’s post concerning contradictory media news, this one is even more convincing because they are from the same category, Nuclear Power, and one follows the other. My point of these Blog Posts (yesterday and today) is to demonstrate how a casual or infrequent reader about the nuclear industry can easily be led down the primrose path by the media, and will totally believe only the one article they happened to casually see and read. So this example is about which platform of energy will save the world, Solar or Nuclear? Both of these articles are in today’s TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS below, but I elevated them to the commentary section to add to my point from yesterday. You will need to click on the links to read the stories and their contrasting contradictions.

To understand the nuclear world of business, you cannot believe everything you read; in fact you should be carefully critical about ‘everything’ you read. Your own and other human and animal life, yes, and plant’s too, may depend on it. Nuclear energy, as with nuclear weapons, is not the answer to our common future. In fact ‘all things nuclear’ may well mean we have no future at all.

NEWS

Article 1: When it comes to power, solar could leave nuclear and everything else in the shade – ABC

ABC

Energy experts – and even Greenpeace – underestimated solar power’s rapid global growth. Now many believe solar is set to become the world’s …

Article 2: 5 Ways Nuclear Can Power The Future – Visual Capitalist

Visual Capitalist

Follow this nightly blog! Educate yourself about “All Things Nuclear”! ~llaw

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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, (07/03/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

4 questions about the uranium needed for next-generation nuclear reactors – Science News

Science News

Headlines and summaries of the latest Science News articles, delivered to your email inbox every Thursday. But some scientists are raising concerns …

Putin is using Belarus to escalate his nuclear threats – Atlantic Council

Atlantic Council

… Things · Space. Regions. Africa. Sub-regions; All Africa · Angola … all means at our disposal” to defend Russia. “This is not a bluff,” h

Opinion | Despite record of sickness and disease, nuke testing is back – The Cap Times

The Cap Times

Nuclear countries are gearing up to again test bombs with actual … all things, fallout from atomic bombs. I discovered that 1,250 …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

When it comes to power, solar could leave nuclear and everything else in the shade – ABC

ABC

Energy experts – and even Greenpeace – underestimated solar power’s rapid global growth. Now many believe solar is set to become the world’s …

5 Ways Nuclear Can Power The Future – Visual Capitalist

Visual Capitalist

As global electricity demand rises, nuclear power stands out as a leading solution to help ensure a stable and low-carbon energy future.

U.S. Government Helps Nuclear Energy Allies Catch Up to Russia, China – Forbes

Forbes

While two of America’s pernicious rivals—Russia and China—have already deployed one advanced nuclear reactor each, U.S. companies and the …

Nuclear Newswire — ANS – American Nuclear Society

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Duke Energy, county officials to test sirens around Harris Nuclear Plant next week

WRAL.com

Testing is performed in cooperation with emergency officials in Chatham, Harnett, Lee and Wake counties. Since this is a test, local broadcasting …

Nigeria Declares Oil Sector Emergency Amid Efforts to Boost Production | OilPrice.com

Oil Price

Breaking News: · A Nuclear Stock to Consider Even After Rallying 200% · Energy investors are raving about this new resource · Share · Related News.

Amid the shortage, significant electricity imports are planned, outage schedules are planned …

unn.ua

… emergency assistance from the power systems of Poland and Slovakia, the … zaporizhzhya-nuclear–power-plant Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Nuclear War

NEWS

Putin is using Belarus to escalate his nuclear threats – Atlantic Council

Atlantic Council

This followed on from Vladimir Putin’s spring 2023 announcement of plans to store Russian tactical nukes on Belarusian territory. By the end of the …

The start of a new nuclear race: International security and humanitarian priorities

Open Access Government

Do we now have more reasons to fear war? The increased rise of spending in 2023. After the end of the Cold War, the spending on nuclear weapons was …

Russia Ukraine war live: Kyiv launches attack on Putin’s Black Sea naval base as 1 killed in …

The Independent

Ukraine reject’s compromise with Putin after Trump claimed to end war in a day – Ukraine Russia war update.

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Putin is using Belarus to escalate his nuclear threats – Atlantic Council

Atlantic Council

If Belarusian officials are now issuing nuclear threats of their own, they are doing so on behalf of Putin. This is very much in line with the …

Amid Iranian threats, Israel must prepare for ‘escalation dominance’ – opinion

The Jerusalem Post

… war – could enlarge the risks of an inadvertent nuclear war. This … nuclear threats directed against its not-yet-nuclear Iranian adversary.

NATO in 2024—Can Its European Members Deter Further Russian Aggression?

The Heritage Foundation

… threat to Europe, and, most concertedly, the Russian nuclear threat. Given Russian actions in Ukraine and its conventional and nuclear threats to .

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

North America’s Most Incredible Volcanoes, Revealed – MSN

MSN

Yellowstone Caldera, Wyoming … Rather than being a towering mountain which can be seen for miles, Yellowstone Caldera is a 30-by-45-mile supervolcano …

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

JUL 02, 2024

1

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Russian Nuclear Power Plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine, turned from Provider to Killer

LLAW’s NUCLEAR ISSUES & COMMENTS, Tuesday, (07/02/2024)

How is it possible to rely on media opinion, news, reporting, and advice when virtually every day you witness totally conflicting information and data from all kinds of sources that are written by the seat of an editor’s and his correspondent’s pants? There is no ability amongst all the confusion to sort the ‘wheat from the chaff’.

The following examples are headlines and leadlines from TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS . . . (You see these kinds of opposing stories, even between or among categories virtually every day if you follow this Blogs’ daily posts.) It is living proof that we have no understanding nor knowledge of what ‘all thins nuclear’ are all about at every level of human intelligence. “All Thing Nuclear” is apparently our unrealized and unknown collective ‘death-wish’.

[ Headline #1: Tested and proven: The role of nuclear power in the future energy mix | Marsh

Marsh

[Leadline 1: Nuclear energy is experiencing a resurgence of interest and investment as a resilient, proven, and zero-carbon electricity source. ] Note: Misleading and inaccurate.]

[ Headline 2: You Don’t Want to Live in America’s ‘Nuclear Sponge’ | Opinion – Newsweek

Newsweek

[Leadline 2: The fear that China might increase its nuclear arsenal from some 500 to 1,000 weapons has fueled calls for America to abandon all arms control limits.]

. . . and even though they are , in this case, from different categories of the nuclear world, they are made of the same deadly products. But over and over we see media support for nuclear products on one hand, yet on the other hand we see the doubt, the concern, and the fear of them. How could we love one nuclear product and hate the other? They both share the identical danger to humanity’s future. ~llaw

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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 two 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, (07/02/2024)

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

You Don’t Want to Live in America’s ‘Nuclear Sponge’ | Opinion – Newsweek

Newsweek

The fear that China might increase its nuclear arsenal from some 500 to 1,000 weapons has fueled calls for America to abandon all arms control limits …

The Coalition’s nuclear fantasy serves short-term political objectives – and its fossil fuel backers

The Guardian

And it sends a message to every regional community that they might not need to host the new renewable energy grid that is being rolled out. Because if …

Australia’s Nuclear Debate – Bloomberg

Bloomberg

If things go wrong, they can go very wrong, which is why modern nuclear facilities are built … Help©2024 Bloomberg L.P. All Rights Reserved.

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Italy ‘could get 22% of electricity from nuclear by 2050′

World Nuclear News

Italy’s Minister for Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, has set out the possible scale of capacity if the country decides …

Another Norwegian town looks to host nuclear plant

World Nuclear News

Norsk Kjernekraft has signed a cooperation agreement with the municipality of Lund on establishing a nuclear power plant in the town in the …

Tested and proven: The role of nuclear power in the future energy mix | Marsh

Marsh

Nuclear energy is experiencing a resurgence of interest and investment as a resilient, proven, and zero-carbon electricity source.

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Nuclear Power and the Climate Emergency – KPFA

KPFA

Nuclear power boosters argue that new technologies have made nuclear reactors cheaper and safer. Scholar and scientist M.V. Ramana calls this a …

Hartsville nuclear plant gears up for hurricane season – WPDE

WPDE

Officials with Duke Energy are preparing the Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartsville in case of emergencies as hurricane season approaches.

Our Research Shows Russia Wants to Restart This Warzone Nuclear Power Plant

The Moscow Times

… emergency of a nuclear power plant held hostage by military force. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), while permitted to station …

Nuclear War

NEWS

Ukraine-Russia war latest: British charity founder killed ‘in combat against Putin’s troops’

The Independent

Peter Fouche died after getting badly injured ‘in the battlefield’ against Russian forces last week.

Trump has a strategic plan for the country: Gearing up for nuclear war

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

A re-elected President Donald Trump’s would be much worse. Biden has authorized the largest nuclear weapons budgets since the Cold War, delayed then …

Nuclear Waste, Byproducts From World War II-Era Found In US Lake’s Groundwater – NDTV

NDTV

… War II-era nuclear weapons program. After the war, radioactive waste from downtown uranium plants was transported to the St. Louis airport. Along …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Trump has a strategic plan for the country: Gearing up for nuclear war

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

… risks of nuclear confrontation as a result. Nuclear proposals. The nuclear proposals are a key part of the Project 2025 coalition’s …

Ukraine war latest: US raises threat level at European military bases – Sky News

Sky News

Ukraine war latest: US raises threat level at European military bases; British volunteer medic dies in Ukraine … The Intermediate Range Nuclear …

US State Department responds to Putin’s nuclear weapon threats – MSN

MSN

The United States has already warned Russia about the consequences of using nuclear weapons. Threats from Russian dictator Vladimir Putin are …

 Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Morning Glory Pool Was Blue? (Yellowstone Monthly Update – July 2024) – YouTube

YouTube

… Caldera Chronicles — https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/yellowstone/caldera-chronicles?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=usgs&utm_campaign=nh-volcanoes …

MIL-OSI USA: The hot and cold journey of silica begins in Yellowstone’s rhyolite and ends in …

ForeignAffairs.co.nz

Source: US Geological Survey. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano …