Radiation Protection News Room

News for November 25, 2009

Policy and Regulations

• Effort to scrap anti-nuclear law in Minn. ramps up (AP)
  A push to scrap a Minnesota law barring new nuclear power plants gained a pair of influential supporters Tuesday, adding intensity to a debate before a state Legislature that has narrowly resisted the change.

Radioactive Waste

• Iran says fuel swap must occur on its soil (WP)
  Iran would be willing to give up some of its stock of low-enriched uranium in exchange for fuel for a medical reactor, as long as the swap takes place on its own soil, Iranian officials told local media Tuesday.
• W.Pa. nuclear reactor stops after 'unusual event' (WP)
  The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says a leak was discovered at a western Pennsylvania reactor, but workers quickly resolved it and no radioactive release was reported.

Safety and Security

• Power glitch, natural radon caused TMI alarm (Philadelphia Inquirer)
  Naturally occurring radon and a power glitch caused radiation monitors to sound false alarms Monday night and yesterday morning at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant - and caused a fresh round of criticism for the plant's operators from Gov. Rendell.

Health

• Report: 31 claims filed against Philly VA hospital (Philadelphia Inquirer)
  Brachytherapy involves using implanted radioactive metal seeds to kill cancer cells. Most veterans got far less than the prescribed dose while others received too much radiation to nearby tissue and organs.
• Most radiation oncologists utilize advanced medical imaging techniques, study suggest (Eurekalert)
  In defining the target, the radiation oncologist draws upon a number of sources, including physical examination, operative and pathology reports, and knowledge of the patterns of tumor spread and failure. Imaging, however, is perhaps the single most important tool to guide target definition.

Nuclear Power

• Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant takes first formal step toward renewing licenses (San Luis Obispo Tribune)
  Pacific Gas and Electric Co. officials formally announced Tuesday that they have applied to the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission to renew the operating licenses for Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant’s two reactors.

Nuclear Weapons

• Iran's leader makes inroads in Latin America (AP)
  Both Chavez and Morales offer support for Iran's nuclear program, saying it is peaceful and not aimed at developing nuclear weapons as the U.S. and European nations fear.

Other

• Munger: Will steroids be added to Oak Ridge drug tests? (Knoxville News Sentinel)
  The National Nuclear Security Administration, in response to questions, said it's taking a serious look at the IG's recommendations. The NNSA oversees the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, including Y-12 in Oak Ridge, where some security police officers were fired earlier this year after testing positive for steroids on "for-cause" tests.

NOTE: Please note that there will be no Radiation News Clips email on Friday, November 27.

News for November 24, 2009

Radioactive Waste

• NRC: No radioactive release during leak at Beaver Valley nuke plant (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
  A leak in a valve inside the Beaver Valley Power Station's No. 2 nuclear reactor was stopped early this morning after about an hour and there was no radioactive release, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said.

Safety and Security

• NRC monitors Pa. Three Mile Island after contamination (Reuters)
  NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant went to the site over the weekend to review Exelon's response, as did two radiation safety specialists.
• Nuclear Fallout Models Too Simple, Scientists Say (Global Security Newswire)
  Current models for predicting the dispersal range of radioactive fallout following the detonation of a nuclear weapon are too simplistic, scientists said in a press release issued yesterday

Export and Import of Nuclear Materials

• Iran Says Needs Guarantees to Ship Nuclear Fuel (NYT)
  Iran could consider sending its low-enriched uranium abroad, the Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, signaling a possible softening of its opposition to a plan aimed at easing Western concern over its nuclear ambitions.

Nuclear Power

• Nuclear power regains support (WP)
  Nuclear power -- long considered environmentally hazardous -- is emerging as perhaps the world's most unlikely weapon against climate change, with the backing of even some green activists who once campaigned against it.

Nuclear Weapons

• GAO report raises red flags at Kansas City Plant (Kansas City Star)
  The Kansas City nuclear weapons plant should do more to ensure that sensitive parts made by outside suppliers don’t fall into the wrong hands, a federal watchdog agency says.
• US, Russia study ways to extend START verification (Reuters)
  U.S. negotiators working to conclude a new strategic arms treaty with Russia are discussing ways to continue nuclear weapons monitoring until the new accord can be ratified, a State Department spokesman said on Monday.
• Diplomats: big powers prepare Iran IAEA resolution (Houston Chronicle)
  The two diplomats say the draft urges Iran to stop stonewalling an IAEA probe of allegations it tried to develop nuclear weapons.

Science

• Big Bang atom smasher starts speeding proton beams (AP)
  Scientists running the world's largest atom smasher used the $10 billion machine's accelerator to speed up proton beams for the first time Tuesday, in a step toward experiments about the makeup of the universe.

Other

• Gov unhappy over TMI plant's wait to disclose leak (Philadelphia Inquirer)
  Gov. Ed Rendell is steamed over a five-hour wait before officials at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant told state officials about a radiation leak.

News for November 23, 2009

Radioactive Waste

• Three Mile Island radiation caused by pipe cutting (WP)
  Officials are trying to determine how workers cutting a pipe stirred up radioactive dust at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant.
• Cold War legacy - Water needs and nuclear waste in Nevada (SFC)
  Over 41 years, the federal government detonated 921 nuclear warheads underground at the Nevada Test Site, 75 miles northeast of Las Vegas. Each explosion deposited a toxic load of radioactivity into the ground and in some cases directly into aquifers.

Cleanup

• Cleanup fund for radioactive Shattuck Chemical site quadruples to $1 million (Denver Post)
  Buried in the $33 million cleanup of the radioactive Shattuck Chemical site in Denver, along South Bannock Street, was a $250,000 settlement for ecological restoration.
• Los Alamos demolishing old lab buildings (NewsWest9.com)
  Los Alamos National Laboratory plans to demolish a two-story, former administration building that is among a number of Manhattan Project and Cold War-era structures slated for cleanup.
  

Safety and Security

• Shortage Slows a Program to Detect Nuclear Bombs (NYT)
  The Department of Homeland Security has spent $230 million to develop better technology for detecting smuggled nuclear bombs but has had to stop deploying the new machines because the United States has run out of a crucial raw material, experts say.

Risk Assessment

• Radiation Leak Is Called No Risk
  The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says the small amount of radiation detected at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant is not significant.

Health

• 2nd LA County hospital notes radiation overdoses (AP)
  A second hospital in Los Angeles County says patients received overdoses of radiation from CT scans.

Nuclear Power

• Nuclear accord clouds Indian PM's visit to US (Sydney Morning Herald)
  India hopes to finalise the details of a controversial civil nuclear pact with the United States during a three-day state visit this week.

Nuclear Weapons

• Iran Plans Military Drills to Guard Nuclear Sites (NYT)
  As Iran has pressed forward with its nuclear program, Israel has warned that it might take military action to keep Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons. The United States also has not ruled out military action should diplomacy fail to resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear work.

News for November 20, 2009

Radioactive Waste

• Radioactive waste contaminating Canadian water supply: Report (Canada.com)
  Nuclear facilities and power plants are contaminating local Canadian food and water with radioactive waste that increases risks of cancer and birth defects, says a new report to be released on Friday. The report was produced by the Sierra Club of Canada.

Safety and Security

• Fallout over plans for Las Vegas nuclear drill (KTNV – Las Vegas)
  A simulated nuclear disaster drill is set to take place in May, 2010 but Las Vegas business and tourist leaders, as well as politicians, are urging changes.

Health

• How Much Radiation Do You Get From a Mammogram? (Slate)
  Slate addresses the question of radiation dosage from mammograms in this short article aimed at providing answers to recent news-related questions.
• EPRI: Low-dose radiation may not be as harmful as believed (Power Engineering International)
  A new report from the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) said low-dose radiation levels might not be as harmful as previously reported.

Nuclear Power

• UPDATE 1 – S Africa plans new nuclear power station by 2020 (Reuters)
  South Africa, plagued by chronic power shortages, plans to have the country's new nuclear power plant up and running by 2020, Energy Minister Dipuo Peters told a nuclear conference on Friday.
• Doubts raised on nuclear industry viability (PhysOrg.com)
  The investment in nuclear power has been growing around the world over the last few years, being viewed as a means for countries to control their energy security, avoid the price fluctuations of other energy sources, and reduce their carbon dioxide emissions, but concerns are now being raised.

Nuclear Weapons

• 6 world powers meet about Iran nuclear issue (Associated Press)
  Representatives of six world powers met in Brussels on Friday to discuss possible measures against Tehran for its refusal to halt nuclear enrichment activities.
• Panel Sees No Need for A-Bomb Upgrade (The New York Times)
  In a new report, a secretive federal panel has concluded that programs to extend the life of the nation’s aging nuclear arms are sufficient to guarantee their destructiveness for decades to come, obviating a need for a costly new generation of more reliable warheads.

News for November 19, 2009

Policy and Regulations

• Colo. lawmakers ask Congress to limit energy bill (SPI)
  Colorado state lawmakers are asking the U.S. Senate to limit funding for coal and nuclear energy as Congress moves to pass an energy bill.
• Gordon foreign waste ban to get committee vote (Murfreesboro Post)
  the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee will consider Congressman Bart Gordon’s bill concerning foreign radioactive waste. Gordon’s bipartisan legislation, the Radioactive Import Deterrence (RID) Act, H.R. 515, would prevent foreign-generated radioactive waste from being processed in Tennessee and disposed in the U.S.

Radioactive Waste

• Minister Says Iran Won’t Ship Uranium Abroad (NYT)
  Iran’s foreign minister said this week that his government would not ship its stockpile of low-enriched uranium out of the country, making him the highest ranking official so far to declare that Iran would renege on a deal aimed at defusing a confrontation with the West over its nuclear program.
• NRC cites VA clinic for radioactive-treatment violations (Philadelphia Inquirer)
  In the first outside report on its flawed prostate-cancer program, the Philadelphia VA Medical Center was cited for eight apparent violations in using radioactive materials on nearly 100 veterans, federal inspectors have concluded.

Cleanup

• Hanford Challenge of Seattle plans summit today (TCH)
  Hanford Challenge of Seattle is organizing a Hanford summit, saying that polarization between the east and west sides of the state has prevented discussion of important Hanford issues.

Safety and Security

• GAO Questions Efforts to Improve New Radiation Detectors(Global Security Newswire)
  U.S. congressional auditors have noted various technical issues with a new generation of radiation detectors intended for U.S. points of entry and urged the Homeland Security Department to investigate possible improvements to detection machines already in place, according to congressional testimony yesterday by the Government Accountability Office.
• Smoke rises from Japan nuclear plant (AFP)
  Smoke rose on Thursday from the world's largest nuclear power plant in Japan, which was shut down by an earthquake two years ago, but the operator said no-one was injured and there was no radiation leak.
• Syria suspected of concealing nuclear activity(WTOP)
  The International Atomic Energy Agency and Syria are walking a tightrope and appear to be headed toward a collision over two nuclear sites where undeclared uranium was recently found.

Nuclear Power

• Big powers to meet on Iran on Friday(SFC)
  Six world powers will meet in Brussels to discuss what measures could be applied against Tehran for its refusal to halt its nuclear enrichment program, an EU official said Thursday.

Nuclear Weapons

• Obama Ready to Help A Non - Nuclear North Korea (NYT)
  "Our message is clear. If North Korea is prepared to take concrete and irreversible steps to fulfil its obligations and eliminate its nuclear weapons programme, the United States will support economic assistance and help promote its full integration into the community of nations," Obama said.