"Dangerous Decision" Could Leave Californians Vulnerable After Nuclear Disaster

Source: NBC Los Angeles

Housed in a nondescript office park in Las Vegas, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has an elite team of radiation experts trained to respond to a nuclear disaster. One of their most important tools is a Mobile Environmental Radiation Lab known as the "MERL."

A set of three large vehicles, the MERL can be in Southern California in a matter of hours after a terrorist attack or nuclear accident. And it allows the radiation response team to quickly identify and track dangerous radiation spreading across the region.

"The laboratory would be used to make emergency response decisions as to where people are okay to go, and where they can't go," explains Richard Flotard, a retired EPA radiation chemist.

But the NBC4 I-Team has obtained an EPA internal memo explaining that the agency is moving the mobile lab from Las Vegas to Alabama, leaving the state far removed from what California's Office of Emergency Services calls a "first response" tool in the case of nuclear attack or accident.

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Read more: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Dangerous-Decision-Could-Leave-Californians-Vulnerable-After-Nuclear-Disaster-307086911.html

Fukushima nuclear plant cleanup plan approved by Japan

Source: Associated Press

Japan's government approved Friday a revised 30- to 40-year roadmap to clean up the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant, but many questions remain.

The plan, endorsed by Cabinet members and officials, delays the start of a key initial step — the removal of spent fuel in storage pools at each of the three melted reactors — by up to three years due to earlier mishaps and safety problems at the plant.

Three of the plant's six reactors melted following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The fourth, which was offline and had no fuel in the core at the time of the accident, suffered damage to its building, and its fuel storage pool was emptied late last year.

Despite the delay, experts need to locate and study melted fuel inside the reactors and develop robots to start debris removal within six years as planned.

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Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/fukushima-nuclear-plant-cleanup-plan-approved-by-japan-1.3110559

NASA Fuming After SpaceX, Boeing Rocket Launches Delayed For 2 Years Due To Proposed Budget Cuts

Kerry to leave hospital for his Boston home, U.S. official says

Source: Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday will leave the hospital where he was treated for a broken leg suffered while cycling in France to return to his Boston home, the State Department said.

The top U.S. diplomat plans to make a brief statement and to take a few questions when he leaves Massachusetts General Hospital, where he has been treated, on Friday afternoon.

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The State Department did not say exactly when Kerry would make his statement on leaving the hospital, but reporters were asked to be there by 3:30 p.m. EDT (1930 GMT).

Kerry has not returned to Washington since his injury, and U.S. officials have declined to say when he may do so. One of the central questions after Kerry's fall was whether it would affect negotiations between Iran and six major powers seeking to strike an agreement to curb Iran's nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.

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Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/06/12/usa-kerry-idINKBN0OS1ZO20150612

Iran nuclear talks 'virtually stalled', deadline may be missed: TASS

Source: Reuters

Nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers have virtually stalled and a deadline for a final deal may have to be postponed again, Russian news agency TASS quoted a diplomatic source as saying on Friday.

Iran and the powers -- the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany -- are trying to reach a settlement by June 30 under which Iran would curb its nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.

The United States has said it stands by the end-June deadline for the deal, meant to assuage Western fears that Iran is working to develop a nuclear bomb.

But other officials have indicated the date might be missed as negotiations about technical details drag on.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/12/us-iran-nuclear-russia-idUSKBN0OS1VQ20150612

Devonport nuclear base warned over safety

Source: BBC

Devonport naval base has been warned of legal action after a worker received a dose of radiation amid a series of safety breaches.

Radioactive cooling water was also mistakenly discharged into a submarine reactor compartment, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) reported.

Reporting of safety incidents at the base, which refits Britain's nuclear submarines, was "below standard".

Contractor Babcock International said safety was its "highest priority".

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Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-devon-33051905

DSCOVR space weather sentinel reaches finish line

UN, Iran head for showdown over nuclear inspections

Source: Associated Press

The chief U.N. nuclear inspector said Monday that Iran has already committed to letting his experts see Iranian military sites and Iranian atomic scientists despite an alleged ban by Tehran, deepening a confrontation over how much openness Iran must accept under any nuclear deal.

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Amano confirmed Monday his agency will not be able to deliver a ruling on the allegations of past weapons work in time for a deal. That means any nuclear agreement will likely keep some sanctions in place until the IAEA submits its findings.

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Specifically, Iran agreed to implement what is known as the IAEA's "Additional Protocol" when it agreed in April to the outlines of the deal now being worked on. More than 100 countries have an Additional Protocol agreement that gives the IAEA greater purview of their nuclear activities.

Among other tools, the protocol gives IAEA experts the right to "ask for short-notice inspections or access to undeclared locations," Amano said.

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Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/eu-no-iran-nuclear-deal-without-un-probe-064812484.html

Witnessing nuclear diplomacy fail while documenting the life of a hibakusha.

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/06/when-discussing-nuclear-disarmament-progress-remains-elusive-at-un/

When discussing nuclear disarmament, progress remains elusive at UN

Witnessing nuclear diplomacy fail while documenting the life of a hibakusha.

by Jennifer Hahn - Jun 8, 2015 6:35am PDT

NEW YORK CITY—For four weeks, I attended a world conference which went virtually unnoticed in the press. Since its inception in 1975, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Review Conference (RevCON) has been held every five years at the United Nations in New York for UN delegates, NGOs, and activists to discuss nuclear disarmament progress.

In my free time, I’m a documentary filmmaker covering the life of a nuclear disarmament activist who is also one of the hibakusha (Japanese for "atomic bomb survivor&quot from Hiroshima. This year, my documentary subject was invited to speak to the UN delegates at RevCON about her experience 70 years ago.

All of which meant my camera and I had a front row seat as a major international conference failed to make any significant progress.

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Nuclear is not a cheap energy: Think tank

Source: The Jakarta Post/ANN

Nuclear energy remains costly and dangerous and its use should be carefully considered, according to Institute for Essential Service Reform (IESR) Executive Director Fabby Tumiwa.

"Nuclear is expensive and very risky. A nuclear power plant can operate for 40 to 50 years, but the waste can remain for thousands of years," Fabby said during a talk show in Jakarta on Sunday.

Citing IESR data, Fabby said that nuclear power plants in other countries had observed a steep incline in the cost of investment after the construction phase, mentioning as an example the US Vogtle nuclear power plant units 3 and 4, which began construction by Southern Company in March 2012 and November 2013.

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In Japan, he said, nuclear energy cost around 16 US cents per kilowatt hour before subsidies, higher than steam and hydro power plants at 3 cents per kWh.


Read more: http://news.asiaone.com/news/asia/nuclear-not-cheap-energy-think-tank