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"Survivors of the 1945 atomic bombings met a wall of indifference from ordinary Americans and the U.S. media after traveling to New York to lobby a major U.N. nuclear nonproliferation conference for an end to nuclear weapons. About 2,000 Japanese, including 100 hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, took part in demonstrations before the opening of the 26-day Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty review conference on May 3. But the campaigners said there was little interest in their calls for an immediate ban on nuclear weapons, from either ordinary Americans or the U.S. media. "

"The head of Japan's banking lobby said on Thursday that Tokyo Electric could become insolvent if parliament fails to pass a bailout bill by the end of September, when the operator of the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant closes books for the fiscal first half. Katsunori Nagayasu, chairman of the Japanese Bankers Association, told a regular news conference time is running out as the government panel on nuclear damages compensation is set to release guidelines around late July. "It will be known how much the compensation will be in rough figures, but if there is no (government) scheme for that then, Tokyo Electric could immediately become insolvent," he said. "And it will trigger a series of risks for the power industry and the markets and put a damper on Japan's reconstruction efforts," he said. "

Groups trying to pave the way for a second AmerenUE nuclear plant in Missouri have a new weapon in Jefferson City - a top lobbyist for environmentalists. Irl L. Scissors, who previously represented a leading Missouri environmental and conservation alliance, last week announced in an e-mail to leaders of that group he was going to work to help undo the law that prohibits utilities from charging customers for power plants under construction.

An anti-nuclear campaigner says the Northern Territory Government is becoming increasingly nervous about a proposal for a uranium mine, 25 km south of Alice Springs. A public meeting in Alice Springs has called for the Mines Minister, Kon Vatskalis to come and address the town's concerns about the Angela Pamela prospect. The NT Government granted an exploration licence over the site to Cameco-Palladin last month.

The Australian uranium industry wants the government to overturn a ban on the sale of uranium to India. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd pulled out of an agreement to supply uranium to India, citing nuclear proliferation concerns. Two thirds of India's energy comes from coal-fired power stations, which produce extremely high greenhouse gas emissions.

The nuclear power industry is seeing its fortunes rise. "Seventeen entities developing license applications for up to thirty-one new [nuclear] reactors did not just happen," boasted Frank "Skip" Bowman. "It has been carefully planned."

Attention U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission: You've got mail. And lots of it. Mailboxes at the federal agency have been stuffed with thousands of cards, letters and e-mails of late, as John and Jane Utahns sound off on a proposal by EnergySolutions Inc. to import low-level radioactive waste from Italy.

EnergySolutions has deep pockets. And thanks to the benevolence of the company and a bill pending before Congress, U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop does, too. The nuclear waste disposal firm and its executives have donated $28,200 to the Utah congressman's re-election campaign in the current election cycle, including nearly $25,000 since April. That's more than 40 percent of the money Bishop has received.

A French physicist and a US actor have joined representatives of indigenous peoples from Africa, Australia and the United States to send US lawmakers a stark warning about the dangers of uranium mining. "We want US lawmakers to understand that uranium mining is highly pollutant and that there is currently no scientific answer to the question of radioactive waste containment," Bruno Chareyron of France's CRIIRAD laboratory, which measures radioactivity in the environment, told AFP Friday. "We want them to know that the information they are given by the mining companies is not wholly reliable," he said. Representatives of the Tuareg nomads of Niger, Native Americans and Australian aborigines told of the ravages of uranium mining on their communities.

There are few forces on Capitol Hill that can compare with EnergySolutions' influence. The company has generously spread around more than $500,000 in state political contributions since 2006, contributing money to more than 80 percent of sitting lawmakers. Moreover, the company employs at least 10 of the most influential lobbyists in the state, including a former House speaker and a Senate president, their spouses and a handful of other power brokers.

About three years ago, the U.S. Enrichment Corp. in Piketon contracted with Honeywell to set up a team of skilled professionals to assist with the American Centrifuge process. There is a large worldwide market for fuel grade uranium, and the demand is expected to increase as new nuclear plants come on line. It was anticipated that the Department of Energy would give USEC a $2 billion loan guarantee, so it could secure private financing to continue the program. Our politicians indicated they were in favor the loan guarantee. Then, last month, DOE decided it would put off the loan guarantee for six months. This caused the skilled team of more than 100 people at Honeywell to lose their jobs. All this was bad enough, but then the media indicated our government had given a $2 billion loan to General Electric (this was not a guarantee, but an actual loan). Then the media announced our government has encouraged a $2 billion loan guarantee to Brazil's Petrobras oil company, so it can drill for oil off that coast.

State Sen. Randy McNally, a Republican from Oak Ridge, was among seven Tennessee senators who signed a letter asking Energy Secretary Steven Chu to intervene on behalf of USEC in granting a loan guarantee for the American Centrifuge Project. McNally is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. Others who signed the letter were Speaker Pro Tempore Jamie Woodson, R-Knoxville, and state Sens. Steve Southerland, R-Morristown; Jim Tracy, R-Shelbyville; Mike Faulk, R- Church Hill; Tim Burchett, R-Knoxville; and Ken Yager, R-Harriman. In a statement, McNally said, "The American Centrifuge Project is one of those key opportunities where we can promote innovative American technologie, while creating good-paying Tennessee jobs and reducing our dependence on foreign sources of energy."

"The Nuclear Energy Institute on Tuesday revealed the details of a new, seven-month advertising campaign aimed at federal and state policymakers. Print advertisements will appear in publications aimed at polticos - like Congressional Quarterly as well as a web-based campaign that will take place primarily in the Washington D.C market. "As our federal and state leaders develop energy and environmental policies, it is more important than ever that they recognize the full range of benefits that nuclear energy provides to consumers," said Scott Peterson, NEI's vice president of communications. No doubt these advertising dollars began flowing after President Obama voiced a need for new "safe, clean" nuclear plants during his state of the union address last week."