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NSTS Radiography One Stop Workshop for the Southwest Region The NRC and the State of TX are hosting an NSTS Radiography One Stop Workshop for the Southwest Region (TX, OK, LA). The one day workshop is scheduled for September 9th! If you plan on attending, and have not done so already, please RSVP to Chris Myers by August 14th. See our flyer PDF Icon exit icon and the workshop agenda PDF Icon for details. Also, we will have many resources available to help you in any phase of the credentialing process for obtaining online access to NSTS. Reporting to NSTS online is fast and easy, and it all starts with your enrollment online at http://pki.nrc.gov/. Select the link for the Digital Certificate Center. Select the links for New Request and select Continue to access the online enrollment form. When completing the online enrollment form, make sure you enter your name EXACTLY as it appears on your driver's license. Also, when entering company name, make sure you enter the full legal name of your company. If you have questions about the online enrollment, please contact the NSTS Help Desk! They are here to help: Toll Free 1-877-671-6787 or via email at NSTS.Help@nrc.gov

"The Danville Regional Foundation (DRF) announced Friday it has received proposals from two nationally-known groups, Resources for the Future and RTI International, to conduct an independent socioeconomic study on the regional impact of uranium mining. Abstracts of these proposals can be found online (http://danvilleregionalfoundation.org/Uranium/uranium-proposal-abstracts) and available for public comments for 30 days through DRF's Uranium Blog (http://danvilleregionalfoundation.org/Uranium/). Registered public comments submitted online will be reviewed and used in selecting the organization to conduct the study. Selection is expected to be announced in August with the final study due by year-end 2011, according to a DRF news release. The proposed study will examine the potential effects of uranium mining and milling, and long-term waste management on people, institutions and economies within 50 miles of the proposed site. Specific means of determining the socio-economic benefits and risks, such as impact on property values, taxes and institutions, are outlined in the abstracts, the release stated. In the state of Virginia, there are currently four uranium mining, milling and tailings storage studies currently under way or planned. Each has different purposes, it continued. A brief summary is online (http://danvilleregionalfoundation.org/news/documents/Uranium-Studies-FINAL.pdf) "

The online Encyclopedia of Peace Education provides a comprehensive overview of scholarly developments in the field to date as well as new insights from across the globe from various actors involved in advancing peace education. This online resource serves as a living reference guide that traces the history and emergence of the field, highlights foundational concepts, contextualizes peace education practice across international and disciplinary borders, and suggests new directions for peace educators. From core conceptual perspectives to the moral and spiritual foundations of the field to the role of the United Nations, the Encyclopedia grounds peace education in a solid theoretical and practical framework through the writings of some of the field's most renowned scholars and its emerging voices. This online resource targets undergraduate and graduate students as well as scholars and practitioners working in international and non-governmental organizations in the field of peace education.

There are only seven Web sites that more people use than Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that lets anyone edit most of its articles. None of the sites that are more popular than Wikipedia have as their main purpose producing information about the world. The top sites, Google and Yahoo, mainly function as links to other sites. Facebook and Myspace, which people use to keep in touch with their friends, are third and fifth most popular, respectively. The other sites that are more visited than Wikipedia are YouTube (a kind of online TV), eBay (a virtual flea market), and Microsoft's version of Google.

This online supplement is produced and published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta (Russia), which takes sole responsibility for the content. Published: 12:54PM BST 05 Oct 2009 It seems the crisis has had little impact on Russia's nuclear plans. "The government's support for the atomic industry allows us to maintain our current nuclear power plant construction projects as planned," Kirill Komarov, executive director of Atomenergoprom, said at the 34th meeting of the World Nuclear Association "We continue to work to create a new technology basis for our atomic industry, relying on fast neutron reactors, which will raise the industry to a new level," Komorov added.

This online supplement is produced and published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta (Russia), which takes sole responsibility for the content. Published: 12:54PM BST 05 Oct 2009 It seems the crisis has had little impact on Russia's nuclear plans. "The government's support for the atomic industry allows us to maintain our current nuclear power plant construction projects as planned," Kirill Komarov, executive director of Atomenergoprom, said at the 34th meeting of the World Nuclear Association "We continue to work to create a new technology basis for our atomic industry, relying on fast neutron reactors, which will raise the industry to a new level," Komorov added.

This online supplement is produced and published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta (Russia), which takes sole responsibility for the content. Published: 12:54PM BST 05 Oct 2009 It seems the crisis has had little impact on Russia's nuclear plans. "The government's support for the atomic industry allows us to maintain our current nuclear power plant construction projects as planned," Kirill Komarov, executive director of Atomenergoprom, said at the 34th meeting of the World Nuclear Association "We continue to work to create a new technology basis for our atomic industry, relying on fast neutron reactors, which will raise the industry to a new level," Komorov added.

Web site gives info on plant design Looking for some new reading material? The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced yesterday it has put DTE Energy's application for a Fermi 3 reactor online. That's, um, nearly 17,000 pages of engineering studies, minus proprietary or security-related details. While that may not fall under the layman's definition of light reading, the agency has been putting applications online as it receives them. This one can be accessed at www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/col/fermi.html.

"Resource will help workers more accurately determine chemical exposure level, get compensation faster Thursday, July 15,2010 WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Patty Murray (D-WA) announced that a new online database is available for former Hanford workers whose health has been adversely affected on the jobsite to help them determine the extent of their exposure to toxic chemicals and get more information about related illnesses. Compiled by the U.S. Department of Energy, the online database, called the Site Exposure Matrix (SEM), is available to former nuclear weapons facilities employees covered by Part E of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program (EEOICP). After its May 10 announcement of the database's planned launch, DOE released the SEMs for 48 nuclear sites quickly but did not immediately release others, including one for the Hanford site. On June 25, 2010, Senators Cantwell and Murray sent a letter to DOE and the Department of Labor requesting the speedy release of a Site Exposure Matrix for Hanford. Within days, DOE responded that it has approved the release of the Hanford SEM along with matrices for 20 other sites."

You would think that after spending tens of millions of dollars on Environmental Impact Statements and Supplement Analyses that the DOE would be proud of its work. Yet so many documents relating to the Nevada Test Site (NTS) are missing online. This includes the 1996 NTS Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and the most recent Draft Supplement Analysis, or Draft SA, a document that is drawn up, and reviewed by the public, every five years per the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to see if the most recent EIS is still applicable, or adjustments need to be made. They appear to no longer exist online at the website of the DOE/NNSA/NSO (www.nv.doe.gov).*

Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt is defending her government's decision to shelve the two Maple reactors, arguing that they wouldn't have prevented the global isotope crisis because they simply couldn't be brought online. "The reality is that the Maples would not have solved this problem today," she said in an interview with The Globe and Mail Thursday. But she said an expert panel on isotope alternatives will take a second look at the mothballed reactors because restarting the Maples is part of at least one of the 22 proposals submitted to the panel - that of medical technology company MDS Nordion, which is suing AECL over the decision not to bring the two reactors online. Medical isotopes are used in diagnostic tests.

"The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that it soon will release to the public a large portion of a greatly enhanced version of its Site Exposure Matrices website. The new version will contain more data and provide additional ways to look for information regarding toxic substances at U.S. Department of Energy nuclear weapons facilities covered under Part E of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. This more robust version of the SEM can be made public as a result of an Energy Department decision to release the more detailed information on 48 of the 116 Energy Department weapons facilities, as well as for all uranium mines, mills and ore buying stations. The enhanced system is expected to be available online at http://www.sem.dol.gov within the next month. The Departments of Labor and Energy are working together to release the remaining 68 Part E sites within the coming year. "I am proud to announce the new and expanded version of the SEM website," said Shelby Hallmark, director of the Labor Department's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs. "We have been working with the Department of Energy to make as much of it available to the public as that department felt could be done without risking national security. For this first group of sites, the public now will be able to access online the same type of data our claims examiners use to evaluate possible exposures and causal links to specific illnesses.""

To an estate agent it was a charming fisherman's cottage on the Kent coast. To anyone else, it was the two nuclear power stations next door that were the main feature. The cottage in Dungeness was highlighted recently after agents found no space in the "for sale" advert to mention the power plants, which were nowhere to be seen in accompanying photographs either. Though the agents have not been accused of any offence, some viewers were appalled to discover the perimeter fence 100 yards from the front door when they arrived. "It was unbelievable. I had seen the property online and thought it looked just right for me and my family," said Alex Robertson, 32."The photos make out it is an isolated cottage with nothing surrounding it - but that could not be further from the truth.

To an estate agent it was a charming fisherman's cottage on the Kent coast. To anyone else, it was the two nuclear power stations next door that were the main feature. The cottage in Dungeness was highlighted recently after agents found no space in the "for sale" advert to mention the power plants, which were nowhere to be seen in accompanying photographs either. Though the agents have not been accused of any offence, some viewers were appalled to discover the perimeter fence 100 yards from the front door when they arrived. "It was unbelievable. I had seen the property online and thought it looked just right for me and my family," said Alex Robertson, 32."The photos make out it is an isolated cottage with nothing surrounding it - but that could not be further from the truth.

"What if Deepwater Horizon was a nuclear plant? Extracting fossil fuels from ever-more-difficult environments is a dangerous business, a truth underlined spectacularly by the explosion at the Massey mine in April that killed 29 miners or the Deepwater Horizon spill that has left the Louisiana coast a blackened brackish mess. Not in decades has the nuclear option looked more attractive. Earlier this year, the government extended funding to build two new reactors at the Vogtle plant * in Georgia, likely the first reactors to go online since 1996, and a lot more may be in the works. Oil and coal disasters like Massey and Deepwater Horizon may be some of the best arguments for nuclear power."

Terrie Barrie of the Alliance of Nuclear Worker Advocacy Groups circulated a Dec. 30 letter she received from Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada regarding the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program. As for the earlier request he and other senators made for a comprehensive investigation of the federal program, Reid wrote, "I am pleased to let you know that GAO is giving priority status to our request. In fact, I was recently informed that the investigation is already under way, and I plan to closely monitor its progress." Reid said the findings of that GAO investigation would used for develop reforms of the program in the 111th Congress. He said he and Sen. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico had recently asked NIOSH to establish a new online system to make it easier for claimants to check the status of their applications. "As a result of our persistence, NIOSH set up a special form at the following Web site: http://www2a.cdc.gov/ocas/status.html.

MOGADISHU, Somalia June 21 (Garowe Online) - The United Nations' Special Representative to Somalia, Mr. Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, has raised growing concern about years of environment destruction in the East African country of Somalia. Speaking with the BBC last week, Mr. Ould-Abdallah indicated that the UN has "reliable information" that chemical, toxic and possibly nuclear waste has been dumped along Somalia's shores for years by unnamed companies and individuals.

Areva, a French nuclear construction company, said this week that its project to build the world's most powerful reactor remained mired in delays and was over-budget by 2.3 billion euros, or about $3.3 billion. The price tag of the plant in Olkiluoto, Finland - the first of a fleet of so-called evolutionary power reactors that Areva foresees building in coming years - was about $4.3 billion in 2003 and costs have steadily increased. The reactor was meant to have gone online early this summer but Areva no longer is committing to any dates for its completion. Patrice Lambert de Diesbach, an energy analyst with CM-CIC Securities in Paris, said the latest developments were "bad news" for Areva and "should be sanctioned by the market."

Areva, a French nuclear construction company, said this week that its project to build the world's most powerful reactor remained mired in delays and was over-budget by 2.3 billion euros, or about $3.3 billion. The price tag of the plant in Olkiluoto, Finland - the first of a fleet of so-called evolutionary power reactors that Areva foresees building in coming years - was about $4.3 billion in 2003 and costs have steadily increased. The reactor was meant to have gone online early this summer but Areva no longer is committing to any dates for its completion. Patrice Lambert de Diesbach, an energy analyst with CM-CIC Securities in Paris, said the latest developments were "bad news" for Areva and "should be sanctioned by the market."

The U.S. NRC has informed Westinghouse that the proposed design of the shield building for its AP1000(TM) nuclear power plant will require either additional analysis, testing or actual design modifications to ensure compliance with NRC requirements. As a result of our understanding of the requirements, Westinghouse fully expected that the NRC would require additional analysis, testing or actual design modifications to the shield building. In fact, we had already begun to address certain portions of the design. We have fully committed the resources necessary to both quickly and definitively address the NRC's concerns, and we are confident that we will meet all applicable requirements. Westinghouse continues to work toward our goal of receiving Design Amendment Certification from the NRC in 2011, and we continue to work to bring the first AP1000s online in the United States in the 2016 timeframe.

The U.S. NRC has informed Westinghouse that the proposed design of the shield building for its AP1000(TM) nuclear power plant will require either additional analysis, testing or actual design modifications to ensure compliance with NRC requirements. As a result of our understanding of the requirements, Westinghouse fully expected that the NRC would require additional analysis, testing or actual design modifications to the shield building. In fact, we had already begun to address certain portions of the design. We have fully committed the resources necessary to both quickly and definitively address the NRC's concerns, and we are confident that we will meet all applicable requirements. Westinghouse continues to work toward our goal of receiving Design Amendment Certification from the NRC in 2011, and we continue to work to bring the first AP1000s online in the United States in the 2016 timeframe.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is raising safety concerns a proposed new reactor designed by Westinghouse, two of which South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. and Santee Cooper plan to install at their existing plant north of Columbia. A key part of the reactor may not withstand a tornado, earthquake or even high winds, NRC said. The commission staff has directed Westinghouse to make changes in the reactor design so its outer shell, which protects the reactor's containment structure, is strengthened. The staff concluded the steel and concrete structure of the AAP-1000 reactor does not meet safety design requirements. SCE&G spokesman Robert Yanity said Thursday the redesign is not expected to affect the schedule of the South Carolina reactors, which are set to come online by 2016 and 2019, respectively. The project at the V.C. Summer nuclear station near Jenkinsville is projected to cost $10 billion. Utility officials hope to have a combined operating and construction license in hand by 2011.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is raising safety concerns a proposed new reactor designed by Westinghouse, two of which South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. and Santee Cooper plan to install at their existing plant north of Columbia. A key part of the reactor may not withstand a tornado, earthquake or even high winds, NRC said. The commission staff has directed Westinghouse to make changes in the reactor design so its outer shell, which protects the reactor's containment structure, is strengthened. The staff concluded the steel and concrete structure of the AAP-1000 reactor does not meet safety design requirements. SCE&G spokesman Robert Yanity said Thursday the redesign is not expected to affect the schedule of the South Carolina reactors, which are set to come online by 2016 and 2019, respectively. The project at the V.C. Summer nuclear station near Jenkinsville is projected to cost $10 billion. Utility officials hope to have a combined operating and construction license in hand by 2011.

The Florida Public Service Commission on Friday agreed to let the state's two largest utilities collect more than $270 million from ratepayers next year as a down payment to develop new nuclear plants expected to come online in the next decade. The commission will allow FPL Group's (FPL.N) Florida Power & Light Co to recover nearly $62.7 million in costs related to construction of two proposed nuclear reactors, Turkey Point Units 6 and 7, and work to increase output at its existing nuclear units, Turkey Point Units 3 and 4 and St. Lucie Units 1 and 2, the commission said in a release. FPL is the state's largest utility with 4.5 million customers.

The Florida Public Service Commission on Friday agreed to let the state's two largest utilities collect more than $270 million from ratepayers next year as a down payment to develop new nuclear plants expected to come online in the next decade. The commission will allow FPL Group's (FPL.N) Florida Power & Light Co to recover nearly $62.7 million in costs related to construction of two proposed nuclear reactors, Turkey Point Units 6 and 7, and work to increase output at its existing nuclear units, Turkey Point Units 3 and 4 and St. Lucie Units 1 and 2, the commission said in a release. FPL is the state's largest utility with 4.5 million customers.

Higher Costs, Pollution and Proliferation Dangers if Congress Opens Door to Reprocessing MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Minnesota's Congressional delegation is hearing today from a diverse group of 16 Minnesota organizations -- including Clean Water Action, Environment Minnesota, Sierra Club North Star Chapter and the Minnesota Peace Project -- that strongly oppose any effort to open the door to the reprocessing of radioactive waste from Prairie Island and other nuclear reactors when Capitol Hill considers climate and energy legislation. In the case of Xcel Energy's Prairie Island site, where the entire island, including the dry cask storage, sits in a flood plain of the Mississippi River, the waste needs to be moved to a more secure site as close to the reactor as possible as a necessary interim step. The joint letter states that the controversial and dangerous practice of reprocessing is "not a solution to Minnesota's or any state's nuclear waste problem." The letter explains in detail how reprocessing actually increases the volume of radioactive waste, is enormously costly, worsens proliferation concerns (including terrorist threats), increases pollution going into lakes, streams and rivers, and poses a range of safety risks. The full text of the 16-group letter is available online at http://www.carbonfreenuclearfree.org/state-groups/minnesota.

Higher Costs, Pollution and Proliferation Dangers if Congress Opens Door to Reprocessing MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Minnesota's Congressional delegation is hearing today from a diverse group of 16 Minnesota organizations -- including Clean Water Action, Environment Minnesota, Sierra Club North Star Chapter and the Minnesota Peace Project -- that strongly oppose any effort to open the door to the reprocessing of radioactive waste from Prairie Island and other nuclear reactors when Capitol Hill considers climate and energy legislation. In the case of Xcel Energy's Prairie Island site, where the entire island, including the dry cask storage, sits in a flood plain of the Mississippi River, the waste needs to be moved to a more secure site as close to the reactor as possible as a necessary interim step. The joint letter states that the controversial and dangerous practice of reprocessing is "not a solution to Minnesota's or any state's nuclear waste problem." The letter explains in detail how reprocessing actually increases the volume of radioactive waste, is enormously costly, worsens proliferation concerns (including terrorist threats), increases pollution going into lakes, streams and rivers, and poses a range of safety risks. The full text of the 16-group letter is available online at http://www.carbonfreenuclearfree.org/state-groups/minnesota.