Group items tagged

Ratepayers will pay most of bill for nuclear plant upgrades FREDERICTON - If they weren't stuck with the bill, ratepayers might be able to sympathize with surprise costs that face NB Power's refurbishment project at Point Lepreau. The refurbishment project is currently running three to four months behind schedule, at a cost of about $20 million per month to ratepayers. Each extra day will cost an extra $1 million in replacement fuel, and CEO David Hay says NB Power is on track to pay between $70 million to $90 million in unexpected replacement fuel costs to replace power normally generated by the reactor during the period it is down.

NB Power says it can no longer predict exactly when the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant will be up and running again - and for every day it's delayed it costs the province $670,000 to replace the electricity the plant would normally produce. The $1.4-billion project was supposed to be finished by this September, a date that was first pushed back to December and is now in danger of running into next year. Gaëtan Thomas, NB Power's vice-president nuclear, said Thursday that picking a completion date is no longer possible.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. will seek a ban on the operation of its quake-damaged nuclear plant lifted, paving the way for a test run when it completes repairs of one of the reactors next month. "We will ask the local fire department to check our facility," President Masataka Shimizu told reporters today. Tepco will fix a turbine in early February, the final repair on the No. 7 reactor at its Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant, he said. Six other reactors are still being worked on. The Kashiwazaki Fire Department imposed the ban after a magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck the plant on July 16, 2007, causing a fire and radiation leaks. Shimizu said he doesn't know when he can resume output at Kashiwazaki Kariwa, the world's biggest nuclear plant.

DoD Press Briefing with the Secretary's Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management BRYAN WHITMAN (deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Public Affairs): Well, good morning. And let me just go ahead and do a brief introduction here. I think that most of you were here in September for the initial work of the task force, but I'm pleased today to have with us the members of the secretary of Defense's Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management. It was in June that Secretary Gates appointed the task force to recommend improvements and measures to enhance deterrence and international confidence in U.S. nuclear -- in the U.S. nuclear deterrent. The task force was appointed as a subcommittee of the Defense Policy Board and chaired by Dr. James Schlesinger here.

Please be informed. An outstanding book is out by novelist Gwyneth Cravens titled Power to Save the World. In this book the author traces her journey from Nuclear opponent to an understanding that it represents truly the path toward saving the world. Ms Cravens met a scientist Dr Rip Anderson who is an expert in risk assessment and analysis and nuclear energy. He patiently explained the true benefits of nuclear power apparently overcoming every objection posed by the conventional wisdom of nuclear opponents. The two of them decided that the book would detail the authors journey conducted by Dr Anderson toward nuclear understanding.

There is much to be welcomed in the new report from the Committee on Climate Change about how to cut emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases. But it is wrong to suggest that nuclear power has any role to play. When environmental and hidden costs are factored in, nuclear power is one of the most expensive ways of generating electricity (see www.mng.org.uk/gh/no_nukes.htm#subsidies ).

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission today announced the opportunity to request a hearing on an application to renew the operating license for the Cooper Nuclear Station for an additional 20 years. Cooper is a boiling water reactor located 23 miles south of Nebraska City, Neb. The plant owner, Nebraska Public Power District, submitted the renewal application Sept. 30. The current operating license for Cooper expires Jan. 18, 2014. The NRC staff has determined that the application contains sufficient information for the agency to formally "docket," or file, the application and begin its safety and environmental reviews. Docketing the application does not preclude requesting additional information as the reviews proceed, nor does it indicate whether the Commission will renew the license. A notice of opportunity to request a hearing has been published in the Federal Register, and the deadline for requesting a hearing is March 2, 2009. Petitions may be filed by anyone whose interest may be affected by the license renewal and who wishes to participate as a party in the proceeding. A request for a hearing and a petition for leave to intervene must be filed through the NRC's E-Filing system. Anyone wishing to file should contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at HEARINGDOCKET@nrc.gov at least five days before the filing deadline to request a digital ID certificate and allow for the creation of an electronic docket. More information on the hearing process is available on the NRC Web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/adjudicatory/hearing.html.

Omaha Public Power District; Fort Calhoun Station, Unit No. 1; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering issuance of an exemption from the requirements of Section III.G.1.b of Appendix R to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, for Facility Operating License No. DPR-40, issued to Omaha Public Power District (OPPD, the licensee), for operation of the Fort Calhoun Station, Unit No. 1, located in Washington County, Nebraska. Therefore, as required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing this environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact.

Larry Teahon, manager of health safety and environmental affairs for Cameco Resources' Crow Butte Operation near Crawford, touted the benefits of uranium mining during the fall's final installment of the Graves Lecture Series at Chadron State College on Tuesday, Nov. 11. Teahon, who is one of 12 employees at the mine who focus on safety, said safety and environmental safety are two of Cameco's foremost values. He also said the company works to support communities and make money for its shareholders.

Nebraska Public Power District; Notice of Receipt and Availability of Application for Renewal of Cooper Nuclear Station Facility Operating License No. DPR-46 for an Additional 20-Year Period The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) has received an application, dated September 24, 2008, from Nebraska Public Power District, filed pursuant to Section 104b of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 54 (10 CFR part 54), to renew the operating license for the Cooper Nuclear Station (CNS), Unit 1.

Opponents of the Crow Butte Resources uranium mine near Crawford used a two-day hearing in Chadron last week to try and convince a panel of Nuclear Regulatory Commission judges that the mine's operation poses a danger to area water supplies, and may be causing significant health effects on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The 13 individuals and groups seeking to have operations of the In Situ Leach (ISL) mine suspended face a significant hurdle, however, as they first must convince the panel that they have the right to take part in the license renewal proceedings.

Environmental activists from a four-state area met near Chadron last weekend to discuss their objections to the rapid expansion of uranium mining in the region, and to plan strategies to advance their cause. The meeting, hosted by the Western Nebraska Resources Council (WNRC), was held in Chadron because of its proximity to the Crow Butte Resources in-situ leach (ISL) uranium mine, which is already in the process of permitting one major expansion and has two more in planning stages. Participanting groups included the Powder River Basin Resource Council, from Wyoming, ACTion for the Environment from South Dakota's Black Hills, the Black Hills chapter of the Sierra Club, Defenders of the Black Hills, Owe Aku/Bring Back the Way, a Lakota cultural group, and Coloradoans Against Resource Destruction.

Opponents of the Crow Butte Resources uranium mine near Crawford used a two-day hearing in Chadron last week to try and convince a panel of Nuclear Regulatory Commission judges that the mine's operation poses a danger to area water supplies, and may be causing significant health effects on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The 13 individuals and groups seeking to have operations of the In Situ Leach (ISL) mine suspended face a significant hurdle, however, as they first must convince the panel that they have the right to take part in the license renewal proceedings.

Environmental activists from a four-state area met near Chadron last weekend to discuss their objections to the rapid expansion of uranium mining in the region, and to plan strategies to advance their cause. The meeting, hosted by the Western Nebraska Resources Council (WNRC), was held in Chadron because of its proximity to the Crow Butte Resources in-situ leach (ISL) uranium mine, which is already in the process of permitting one major expansion and has two more in planning stages.

A Nuclear Regulatory Commission hearing in Chadron last week, intended primarily to take public comment on a proposal for use of a generic Environmental Impact Statement in issuing permits for In-Situ Leach (ISL) mines such as the Crow Butte Resources mine near Crawford, provided a primer on the ISL process for an audience of about 35 people, and a discussion forum for several of those involved in challenges to Crow Butte's proposed expansion project. Among the details to emerge from the meeting was acknowledgment by the NRC that, although ISL mine permits call for returning groundwater to its original condition when mining is done, some of the "baseline parameters" have proved unachievable by mining companies.

An attorney for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission faced tough questioning about foreign ownership of nuclear production facilities last week during a hearing in Chadron on the proposed expansion of the Crow Butte Resources uranium mine near Crawford.

A Nuclear Regulatory Commission hearing in Chadron last week, intended primarily to take public comment on a proposal for use of a generic Environmental Impact Statement in issuing permits for In-Situ Leach (ISL) mines such as the Crow Butte Resources mine near Crawford, provided a primer on the ISL process for an audience of about 35 people, and a discussion forum for several of those involved in challenges to Crow Butte's proposed expansion project. Among the details to emerge from the meeting was acknowledgment by the NRC that, although ISL mine permits call for returning groundwater to its original condition when mining is done, some of the "baseline parameters" have proved unachievable by mining companies.

An attorney for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission faced tough questioning about foreign ownership of nuclear production facilities last week during a hearing in Chadron on the proposed expansion of the Crow Butte Resources uranium mine near Crawford. Acting as hearing officer for NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, adminstrative judge Ann Young appeared unwilling to accept the interpretation of NRC staff attorney Andrea Jones that the ownership of the Crow Butte Mine by Canadian firm Cameco, Inc. should not be considered in the decision about whether to approve the mine expansion.

A near-capacity crowd turned out to a government-led information session Thursday night to show their opposition to any uranium exploration or mining whatsoever in southeast New Brunswick. "Who here does not want a uranium exploration or mining? Please stand up now," one attendee asked the more than 700 people gathered at Moncton's Capital Theatre. Moments later, after loud cheers and applause, he added, "Thank you very much. As a unit of measure, the record would reflect that it is unanimous."

Plans for expansion of the Crow Butte uranium mine to a 2,100 acre near the cemetery north of Crawford will face additional scrutiny by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission as the result of a ruling released April 29. After considering issues raised at a January hearing in Chadron, a three member panel of NRC administrative law judges concluded that concerns about potential contamination of groundwater supplies and threats to human health raised by opponents of the mine expansion deserved further consideration and oral arguments.