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"OAK RIDGE, Tenn. Calling for an end to nuclear weapons and power, about 30 activists began a three-month peace walk on Saturday from the Y-12 National Security Complex to the United Nations in New York City. The long journey kicked off Saturday morning with an "opening circle" that included about 40 people in front of the Y-12 entrance on Scarboro Road. The walkers, including participants from Australia and France, have a message to deliver at the United Nations -- where they will meet up with other groups from Massachusetts, New York and Washington, D.C., at the opening of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty review conference in early May."

""Cannot wait for an act of nuclear terrorism" * Biden presses for test-ban treaty ratification * Sounds optimistic about new START treaty By Steve Holland and Caren Bohan WASHINGTON, Feb 18 (Reuters) - The United States will seek commitments from its allies on securing vulnerable nuclear material within four years at a summit to be held in Washington in April, Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday. "It's a very high priority," Biden said in a speech about America's nuclear posture. President Barack Obama will host the April 12-13 summit bringing together representatives from as many as 43 countries to help secure the world's loose nuclear material."

"CPS Energy has a potentially difficult week ahead of it as it prepares to tackle rate hikes and the future of its controversial nuclear project. The utility has proposed a 7.5 percent rate increase for electricity and 8.5 percent for gas. The hikes, which would raise consumers' total power bills a little more than 4 percent, would bring in $99 million for the remainder of fiscal 2010 and $110 million next year. The money would help pay for the new Spruce 2 coal plant, two natural gas units and other programs. Residents will have a chance to weigh in at a public forum Monday evening. The utility's board is expected to vote on the rate increases Wednesday, and the City Council will vote Feb. 18. The increases would take effect March 1."

REGARDING A PETITION FOR CONGRESS TO END THE NEGLIGENT DELAY OF THE PROMISED COMPENSATION AWARDS AND MEDICAL BENEFITS TO THE NUCLEAR FACILITY WORKERS WHO WERE MADE ILL FROM THEIR SERVICE TO THEIR COUNTRY. THE U.S. PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS DEEMED THE ESTIMATED 600,000 NUCLEAR FACILITY WORKFORCE, COURAGEOUS COLD WAR VETERANS. The implementation of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended, (EEOICPA) has been fraught with mismanagement, violations of due process, misrepresentation, and misplacement of workers medical and dosimetry records. The responsible federal agencies -- U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Department of Labor (DOL) -- have, for seven years, followed policies that have resulted in delaying compensation for thousands of workers who served in The Cold War at the U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex.

REGARDING A PETITION FOR CONGRESS TO END THE NEGLIGENT DELAY OF THE PROMISED COMPENSATION AWARDS AND MEDICAL BENEFITS TO THE NUCLEAR FACILITY WORKERS WHO WERE MADE ILL FROM THEIR SERVICE TO THEIR COUNTRY. THE U.S. PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS DEEMED THE ESTIMATED 600,000 NUCLEAR FACILITY WORKFORCE, COURAGEOUS COLD WAR VETERANS. The implementation of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended, (EEOICPA) has been fraught with mismanagement, violations of due process, misrepresentation, and misplacement of workers medical and dosimetry records. The responsible federal agencies -- U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Department of Labor (DOL) -- have, for seven years, followed policies that have resulted in delaying compensation for thousands of workers who served in The Cold War at the U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex.

A proposed uranium mine north of Edgemont could add 200 construction jobs before mining ever begins, residents were told Wednesday. Representatives of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research and development organization, met with business, community and government representatives to gauge the effects of granting a license to PowerTech USA to mine uranium in the Dewey-Burdock area north of Edgemont and to discuss the status of the application. The NRC is reviewing PowerTech's licensing application and is gathering data that will go into a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

A proposed uranium mine north of Edgemont could add 200 construction jobs before mining ever begins, residents were told Wednesday. Representatives of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research and development organization, met with business, community and government representatives to gauge the effects of granting a license to PowerTech USA to mine uranium in the Dewey-Burdock area north of Edgemont and to discuss the status of the application. The NRC is reviewing PowerTech's licensing application and is gathering data that will go into a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

Prairie Island tribal leaders pledged Monday to keep their focus on nuclear waste management. Newly elected Tribal Council members said after being sworn-in that the fight over dry cask storage at the nearby Prairie Island nuclear plant would continue over the next two years. "Our community faces significant challenges in the coming years and we need to band together to make sure the tribe's interests are well represented," said Tribal Council President Victoria Winfrey. "Our continued battle to get nuclear waste removed from Prairie Island and to preserve our community's culture and heritage will be our top priority."

Prairie Island tribal leaders pledged Monday to keep their focus on nuclear waste management. Newly elected Tribal Council members said after being sworn-in that the fight over dry cask storage at the nearby Prairie Island nuclear plant would continue over the next two years. "Our community faces significant challenges in the coming years and we need to band together to make sure the tribe's interests are well represented," said Tribal Council President Victoria Winfrey. "Our continued battle to get nuclear waste removed from Prairie Island and to preserve our community's culture and heritage will be our top priority."

"The Department of Energy will hear public comments at a Jan. 26 meeting in Richland on a wide-ranging draft study that lays the groundwork for cleanup of the Hanford nuclear reservation for decades to come. It's one of eight meetings planned in the Northwest. The Richland meeting at the Red Lion Hanford House will start with an open house at 6 p.m. followed by presentations by DOE and the Washington State Department of Ecology at 7 p.m. Public comment then will be heard until 10 p.m. Other meetings will be Feb. 2 in Boise; Feb. 9 in Hood River, Ore., and Feb. 10 in Portland. A Seattle meeting is being rescheduled and three more meetings will be added to the list."

"On Tuesday the Utah Division of Water Rights will hold public hearings on applications by both the Kane County and the San Juan County water conservancy districts to change the diversion points of 53,600 acre-feet of water from the Colorado and San Juan rivers upstream to the Green River. The applications also seek to change the designated use of the water to facilitate operation of a nuclear reactor along the Green River proposed by Blue Castle Holdings, Inc. The nuclear facility and its water consumption would deplete and alter Green River flows already threatened by climate disruption-flows that the survival and recovery of four endangered fish species depend (Colorado pikeminnow, razorback sucker, bonytail and humpback chub). The reactor further threatens to kill endangered fish caught in water intake structures and to exacerbate regional water contamination by associated uranium mining that is already contributing to the fish's decline in the upper Colorado River basin. Other imperiled species will also potentially be harmed, including the roundtail chub, bluehead sucker and flannelmouth sucker, all of which are subject to conservation agreements between the state and federal governments in order to preclude the need to list them under the Endangered Species Act. "Imposing this massive water withdrawal atop climate change and regional drying would force unacceptable risks on to endangered fish and the Colorado River system," said Taylor McKinnon of the Center for Biological Diversity, "It's time for the era of pollution- and water-intensive energy development to end. Those old technologies need to be replaced with clean renewables and energy conservation.""

"Energy thinker Amory Lovins will speak at Salisbury's Catawba College on Feb. 23. Lovins is co-founder of Rocky Mountain Institute, a "think-and-do tank" that applies market-based solutions to efficient use of resources. Time magazine last year named him one of the world's 100 most influential people. He talked with energy and environment writer Bruce Henderson; comments are edited for clarity and brevity."

"Voters in at least 15 Vermont town will be asked whether they support calling on the Legislature to block the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant from operating past 2012. A resolution circulated by critics of the Vernon reactor and its owner, Louisiana-based Entergy Corp., also asks the Legislature to hold Vermont Yankee to its pledge to clean up nuclear waste on its site. Activists had to gather signatures within towns to include the Vermont Yankee resolution on warnings for Town Meeting, which is held the first Tuesday in March."

"Colorado mining regulators have finalized a hearing schedule for proposed state rules that will determine how Powertech USA can proceed with its plans to construct a uranium mine in Weld County less than 15 miles northeast of Fort Collins. Powertech is in the process of obtaining state and federal approval for its Centennial Project in situ, or "in place," uranium mine between Nunn and Wellington near the Larimer County line. If built, the mine would use a baking soda solution to leach the uranium from an underground rock formation, possibly affecting underlying aquifers. Since Gov. Bill Ritter signed a 2008 law, House Bill 1161, requiring companies doing in situ leach mining to safeguard groundwater, state mining regulators have been working with Powertech and others in the uranium mining industry to write rules governing how the law is implemented."

"Three meetings have been scheduled in Kennewick to explain changes in a compensation program for ill Hanford nuclear reservation workers or their survivors. A recent change to the program should make more Hanford workers, retirees or their survivors eligible for $150,000 compensation and coverage of some medical expenses related to cancer or certain lung diseases. The meetings also will give an overview of the entire program, which provides compensation for illnesses caused by radiation or hazardous chemicals. Staff from the Hanford Resource Center will be available to help people file claims. The Department of Labor meetings are planned at 7 p.m. March 16 and at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. March 17 at the Red Lion Hotel, N. 2201 Columbia Center Blvd., Kennewick. "

"Experts say uranium mining and milling in Pittsylvania County will lower property values, make it more difficult for farmers to sell their products and greatly increase residents' risks of illnesses and disease caused by living near a uranium mine. Also, the uranium deposit at Coles Hill northeast of Chatham is not 119-million pounds as mining proponents claim but just 5.5 million pounds, said Paul Robinson, research director at the Southwest Information & Research Center in Albuquerque, N.M. But another expert, Marita Noon, executive director of the Citizens Alliance for Responsible Energy in New Mexico, says Canada has been mining and milling uranium for years with no ill effects. "

"WHAT: News briefing to release 1st Year Radioactive Report Card on President Obama and his Administration to grade their performance on policies on nuclear weapons production, waste cleanup and reactor funding. WHEN: Monday, March 15, 2010 - - 10:00am WHERE: Room 2322 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC WHO: Leaders of the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability (ANA) a national network of organizations representing the concerns of people living downwind and downstream from U.S. nuclear research, testing, production and waste disposal facilities - Michele Boyd, Director, Safe Energy Program, Physicians for Social Responsibility -- taxpayer subsidies for new reactors, radioactive waste disposal, and nuclear contamination cleanup - Ralph Hutchison, Coordinator, Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance -- new Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear production plants, the next generation of weapons they may help support, and the implications for U.S. treaty obligations - Nick Roth, Program Director, Alliance for Nuclear Accountability -- performance of President Obama and his Administration during its first year in office and changes that must be made to improve its grades. WHY: Scores of activists from across the nation will present their concerns about U.S. nuclear weapons, cleanup and reactor spending policies in dozens of meetings with leaders of Congress and the Obama Administration from March 15 - 17 as part of ANA's 22nd Annual DC Days. "

"Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS); Meeting of the ACRS Subcommittee on Radiation Protection and Nuclear Materials; Notice of Meeting The ACRS Subcommittee on Radiation Protection and Nuclear Materials will hold a meeting on April 21, 2010, Room T2-B3, at 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland. The meeting will be open to public attendance. The agenda for the subject meeting shall be as follows: Wednesday, April 21, 2010-8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The Subcommittee will review changes to NUREG-1536, ``Standard Review Plan for Spent Fuel Storage Systems at a General License Facility.'' The Subcommittee will hear presentations by and hold discussions with NRC staff and other interested persons regarding this matter. The Subcommittee will gather information, analyze relevant issues and facts, and formulate proposed positions and actions, as appropriate, for deliberation by the Full Committee. "

Where are all the Indian workers suffering from radioactive radiation? How is occupational exposure recorded, how are victims diagnosed, provided legal remedy and compensated. A metal scrap dealer and four workers are being treated in Delhi for exposure to radioactive material, identified as Cobalt-60. They are in a serious condition. The radiation exposure happened in the Mayapuri locality of West Delhi in the last fortnight. A 1-kilometre radius around the shop was cordoned off as a precautionary measure. Experts from the Atomic Centre as well as National Security Guards have told police that the radiation is only in a limited area. This needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. A team was requisitioned from Mumbai-based Atomic Energy Regulatory Board which found during screening that radio-active emissions were coming from the scrap. The workers were exposed to a radioactive isotope under mysterious circumstances at a scrap market in West Delhi. The police suspect that the scrap consignment containing the metal piece was brought from neighboring Faridabad and that it originated from abroad. "

"The Atomic Safety and Licensing Board handling the Diablo Canyon nuclear reactor license renewal proceeding will hear oral argument May 26 on the request by the San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace (SLOMFP) for an evidentiary hearing. The Board is an independent quasi-judicial arm of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that decides legal challenges to applications and proposed licensing actions by the NRC. The oral argument will be presented by the lawyers representing SLOMFP, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), and NRC staff. The session will begin at 8:30 a.m. PDT and may extend into the evening, if necessary, on Wednesday, May 26, in the San Luis Obispo County Board Chambers of the County Government Center, 1055 Monterey St. in San Luis Obispo. Although the oral argument will be limited to the lawyers for the litigants, the session is open to the public for observation. Early arrival is suggested to allow for security screening for all members of the public interested in attending. NRC policy prohibits signs, banners, posters or displays in the hearing room. PG&E submitted a license renewal application on Nov. 24, 2009, seeking a 20-year renewal of the operating licenses for Diablo Canyon Power Plant Units 1 and 2. The units are located approximately 12 miles southwest of San Luis Obispo. The Atomic Safety & Licensing Board is considering whether SLOMFP should be granted intervenor status in the proceeding. SLOMFP has submitted contentions challenging five aspects of PG&E's application, along with a request to waive two NRC regulations so as to allow the admission of two of the contentions. All parties have filed extensive legal briefs on these issues. On May 26th the Board will listen to the lawyers' arguments and ask them questions concerning the proposed contentions and waiver requests. Documents related to the Diablo Canyon license renewal application are available on the NRC Web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/diabl

"Residents can voice their opinion on a socioeconomic study of uranium mining and milling during a public-comment meeting scheduled next month. The Virginia Coal and Energy Commission's Uranium Mining Subcommittee will meet at 6 p.m. June 22 at Chatham High School to hear public input on the scope of the socioeconomic study. The study, the second portion of state's two-part examination of the impacts of uranium mining and milling, will focus on Pittsylvania County and the surrounding region. "The socioeconomic study … will be primarily site-specific to the Pittsylvania (County area) and adjoining counties," said David Bovenizer, spokesman for Uranium Subcommittee Chairman Delegate Lee Ware. The National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council is conducting the other part of the study focusing on the scientific and technical aspects of uranium mining and milling. That study, indirectly paid for by Virginia Uranium Inc., is expected to be complete in the fall of 2011. "

"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is holding the public meeting to get comments regarding any environmental issues the agency should consider as the addition to Duke Energy's site plan is reviewed. The public will have a chance on June 17 to express concerns over plans to build a pond and dam to provide a back-up water source in case of prolonged drought at the proposed Lee nuclear facility near Gaffney. Duke applied in late 2007 to build and operate two AP1000 reactors at the site and updated the application last September with plans to create an additional water source called Make-Up Pond C, to support the proposed reactors. The NRC is seeking comments specifically regarding the environmental issues associated with creating the pond, said Roger Hannah, an NRC spokesman."

"Prairie Island Nuclear plant operators knew of the potential for flooding in the plant's Unit 1 and Unit 2 turbine buildings, but failed to understand the implications on important safety-related equipment, according to a preliminary finding submitted to the plant Thursday by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The failure to identify and correct the potential safety issues in a timely manner is a significant human performance issue and cause for further review by the agency, according to NRC inspectors. Plant officials have 10 days to respond to the findings before the NRC decides whether to take enforcement action. "We're waiting now for their response," said NRC spokesperson Viktoria Mitlyng."