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"Revelations about underground pipes carrying radioactive fluids at Vermont Yankee raise serious concerns about how much stock Vermonters can place in Entergy's repeated reassurances about the safety of the plant or anything else. The sequence of events is especially bad for plant owner Entergy, which is trying to convince state lawmakers and regulators that allowing the plant to operate beyond 2012 is in Vermont's best interest. Entergy revealed last week that underground pipes could be the source of elevated levels of radioactive tritium detected in a groundwater monitoring well. Yankee officials said the tritium level detected posed no health threat, but they would continue to monitor the leak to see if it was spreading."

To-date, levels recorded at this monitor have been thousands of times below any conservative level of concern.

The World Health Organisation is seeking studies for up to 20 years to keep watch over public health in Japan following the Fukushima nuclear emergency, a senior official said on Wednesday. WHO environmental health chief Maria Neira played down a current risk to public health outside the 30-kilometre exclusion zone around the Fukushima Daiichi plant, based on tests and monitoring by Japanese authorities. "There is no need for new public health measures," Neira told journalists. She nonetheless underlined that the UN health agency could not let its guard drop while the radiation emergency at the plant was underway, as the WHO maintained permanent monitoring with the Japanese and global detection networks.

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.

President George W. Bush Tuesday signed a document allowing measures to boost international monitoring of nuclear activities to come into force in the United States, US officials said. Bush signed the "instrument of ratification of the protocol additional to the agreement between the United States of America and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)" to implement such nuclear safeguards, a White House statement said. The protocol was signed by the United States and the IAEA on June 12, 1998 and approved by the Senate on March 31, 2004.

Six of 11 groundwater-monitoring wells on FirstEnergy Corp.'s Davis-Besse nuclear complex are well below the government's threshold for radioactive tritium, according to results the utility released yesterday. Results on the other five wells are expected next week, spokesman Todd Schneider said. The six wells on which FirstEnergy has data are ones most prone to leak radioactive tritium, which the company found on Oct. 22, Mr. Schneider said. Tritium is a water-based, radioactive material that is a by-product of nuclear fission and a natural substance in the environment.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region III office in Lisle, Ill., activated its Incident Response Center today to monitor an unusual event declared at the Monticello Nuclear Power Plant. The plant, operated by Xcel Energy, is located in Monticello, Minn. The unusual event was declared at 10:30 a.m. when a contractor struck a power line, which resulted in a loss of power to non-safety equipment. The contractor was taken to an area hospital and pronounced dead, according to local authorities. The loss of power affected equipment necessary to provide cooling water to the reactor. Around 11:30 a.m. the plant restored the equipment necessary to provide cooling water support to the reactor in a shutdown condition.

American experts are monitoring nuclear facilities in China's earthquake zone, officials said Friday, after France's nuclear watchdog reported that some had suffered minor damage. The French Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety said Chinese authorities "reacted well" to the quake and immediately shut down nuclear sites for inspection.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region III office in Lisle, Illinois, has activated its Incident Response Center to monitor an Unusual Event declared at the Duane Arnold Nuclear Plan triggered by the loss of three major sources of telecommunications at the station due to rising floodwaters. The plant, operated by FPL Energy, is located in Palo, Iowa. The plant is in a stable condition at 100 percent power. There have been no unplanned radioactive releases. State and local officials have been informed.

WASHINGTON, June 28 (UPI) -- The cost to put new radiation monitors in place at U.S. borders and ports would be far more than the Department of Homeland Security (OTCBB:HSCC) said, budget papers show.

A facility that cleans the uniforms of nuclear industry employees, including those at the Limerick Generating Station, is monitoring the buildup of low-level radioactive material in the Schuylkill River. UniTech Services Group Inc. has discharged treated wastewater into the Schuylkill River since 2004, in accordance with safety standards set by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. On Friday, DEP issued a news release updating the public on its "field investigation," which began last summer in an effort to learn more about the possible cumulative effects of such discharges on both the river and its ecosystem.

A new era of US diplomacy under Barack Obama is providing fresh momentum for a global ban on nuclear tests, monitors in a UN-backed group said Tuesday. The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), drawn up in 1996, has been signed by 181 countries and ratified by 149. But it needs to be ratified by nine others, including China and the United States, before coming into force. The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO) said recent positive signals from the Obama administration will persuade other countries to ratify. A conference is being held in New York this month to speed up the process.

Chubu Electric Power Co. may burn more fossil fuels to keep lights on and machinery running in Nagoya, Japan's third-largest metropolitan area, as the utility finds more earthquake damage to its Hamaoka nuclear plant. Both functioning reactors at Hamaoka shut down after a 6.5- magnitude quake on Aug. 11 and as of today Chubu found 39 problems, including neutron monitor and auxiliary transformer malfunctions. There's no estimate when the reactors will resume operation, spokesman Toshimitsu Shibata said by phone. A monthlong closure at Hamaoka, which generated 16 percent of the Nagoya-based utility's electric power last year, would increase costs by about 10 billion yen ($105 million), according Reiji Ogino, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Co. For a company with annual sales of more than 2 trillion yen, there wouldn't be any serious affect on Chubu's share price, he said.

Chubu Electric Power Co. may burn more fossil fuels to keep lights on and machinery running in Nagoya, Japan's third-largest metropolitan area, as the utility finds more earthquake damage to its Hamaoka nuclear plant. Both functioning reactors at Hamaoka shut down after a 6.5- magnitude quake on Aug. 11 and as of today Chubu found 39 problems, including neutron monitor and auxiliary transformer malfunctions. There's no estimate when the reactors will resume operation, spokesman Toshimitsu Shibata said by phone. A monthlong closure at Hamaoka, which generated 16 percent of the Nagoya-based utility's electric power last year, would increase costs by about 10 billion yen ($105 million), according Reiji Ogino, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Co. For a company with annual sales of more than 2 trillion yen, there wouldn't be any serious affect on Chubu's share price, he said.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit called on the UN Security Council to monitor the Israeli nuclear program, and to further order Mideast countries to strip of nuclear arms, Egyptian daily al-Masri al-Youm reported. "Israel's nuclear capabilities cannto evade world attention," Gheit said in a letter sent to the 15 nation members of the Security Council.

President Yoweri Museveni has thrust himself in the combative global debate on nuclear weapons by challenging western superpowers to dismantle their own stockpiles before pressing other countries to abandon nuclear ambitions. "How can some countries seek to monopolise the wielding of weapons of mass destruction while discouraging others from doing likewise," the President said on a visit to Germany, according to a press statement from State House. Mr Museveni said the United States, now engaged in feverish hostile exchanges with North Korea and Iranian leaders over nuclear weapons development, after all used its atomic bombs to shell Japanese industrial city of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Seaport in August, 1945 to shorten end of World War II.

Indian Point and federal regulators have reached an agreement that will allow a reactor to sit dormant - under monitoring - for as long as 50 years while its parent company accrues enough money to safely tear it down. The agreement comes eight months after the Nuclear Regulatory Commission discovered a $38.6 million shortfall in the decommissioning trust fund for Indian Point's Unit 2. Federal laws require Entergy, Indian Point's parent company, to show it would have enough money to shut down and dismantle the unit by the end of its life. Entergy also wants license adjustment Entergy is also seeking a change to its license that would allow an auxiliary feedwater pump in Unit 3 to be out of commission for a longer period of time. The license currently allows the pump to be out of service for 72 hours. Entergy wants permission for it to be inactive for 106 hours so that it can evaluate and fix high vibrations that are affecting the pump. The pump is important because it provides water to a steam generator. The steam then turns the turbines and creates electricity. Because Entergy's request involves a chanage to its operating license, the public is allowed to submit requests for a hearing until mid-February. Requests should be submitted to the NRC. Adam Bosch Unit 2 is licensed until 2013, but Entergy is seeking a 20-year renewal. Entergy's investment fund for decommissioning had fallen behind because of the slumping economy, company spokesman Jerry Nappi said.

Indian Point and federal regulators have reached an agreement that will allow a reactor to sit dormant - under monitoring - for as long as 50 years while its parent company accrues enough money to safely tear it down. The agreement comes eight months after the Nuclear Regulatory Commission discovered a $38.6 million shortfall in the decommissioning trust fund for Indian Point's Unit 2. Federal laws require Entergy, Indian Point's parent company, to show it would have enough money to shut down and dismantle the unit by the end of its life. Entergy also wants license adjustment Entergy is also seeking a change to its license that would allow an auxiliary feedwater pump in Unit 3 to be out of commission for a longer period of time. The license currently allows the pump to be out of service for 72 hours. Entergy wants permission for it to be inactive for 106 hours so that it can evaluate and fix high vibrations that are affecting the pump. The pump is important because it provides water to a steam generator. The steam then turns the turbines and creates electricity. Because Entergy's request involves a chanage to its operating license, the public is allowed to submit requests for a hearing until mid-February. Requests should be submitted to the NRC. Adam Bosch Unit 2 is licensed until 2013, but Entergy is seeking a 20-year renewal. Entergy's investment fund for decommissioning had fallen behind because of the slumping economy, company spokesman Jerry Nappi said.

Washington and Moscow pledged Friday to uphold the "spirit" of the START nuclear arms treaty and to seek a new agreement as soon as possible, hours before the landmark 1991 pact was to expire. US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev said in a joint statement they would keep pushing for nuclear disarmament, despite failing to cut a last-minute deal by the treaty's December 5 expiration date. "We express our commitment, as a matter of principle, to continue to work together in the spirit of the START Treaty following its expiration, as well as our firm intention to ensure that a new treaty on strategic arms enter into force at the earliest possible date," the statement said. The Obama administration had pushed hard for a new START agreement as part of its efforts to improve strained US ties with Russia, but disputes over US monitoring of Russian missiles had bogged down talks in recent weeks.

Washington and Moscow pledged Friday to uphold the "spirit" of the START nuclear arms treaty and to seek a new agreement as soon as possible, hours before the landmark 1991 pact was to expire. US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev said in a joint statement they would keep pushing for nuclear disarmament, despite failing to cut a last-minute deal by the treaty's December 5 expiration date. "We express our commitment, as a matter of principle, to continue to work together in the spirit of the START Treaty following its expiration, as well as our firm intention to ensure that a new treaty on strategic arms enter into force at the earliest possible date," the statement said. The Obama administration had pushed hard for a new START agreement as part of its efforts to improve strained US ties with Russia, but disputes over US monitoring of Russian missiles had bogged down talks in recent weeks.

In a rebuttal to recently retired Atomic Energy Commission Chief Anil Kakodkar's claims about success of India's 1998 thermo-nuclear explosions, a former senior nuclear scientist K Santhanam said Kakodkar's was "ignoring facts" and called him a liar.In an interview to a news channel on Sunday, Kakodkar had claimed that yield of thermo-nuclear explosions was more than 45 kilo tons and India had credible thermo-nuclear bombs in its arsenal. Santhanam, a senor nuclear scientist from Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was responsible for monitoring the 1998 Pokhran nuclear explosions. "Figures don't lie, but liars will figure. He chose to ignore facts for his own reasons," Santhanam said in an interview to an Indian news agency PTI on Monday in reply to Kadodkar's claims. "There are several inaccuracies in his (Kakodkar's) statement. The DRDO was a major partner in the 1998 tests and not what Kakodkar has claimed...that we only provided logistical support. That is very far away from truth," Santhanam said.

In a rebuttal to recently retired Atomic Energy Commission Chief Anil Kakodkar's claims about success of India's 1998 thermo-nuclear explosions, a former senior nuclear scientist K Santhanam said Kakodkar's was "ignoring facts" and called him a liar.In an interview to a news channel on Sunday, Kakodkar had claimed that yield of thermo-nuclear explosions was more than 45 kilo tons and India had credible thermo-nuclear bombs in its arsenal. Santhanam, a senor nuclear scientist from Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was responsible for monitoring the 1998 Pokhran nuclear explosions. "Figures don't lie, but liars will figure. He chose to ignore facts for his own reasons," Santhanam said in an interview to an Indian news agency PTI on Monday in reply to Kadodkar's claims. "There are several inaccuracies in his (Kakodkar's) statement. The DRDO was a major partner in the 1998 tests and not what Kakodkar has claimed...that we only provided logistical support. That is very far away from truth," Santhanam said.

In a letter to President Obama, the Project On Government Oversight is asking that the NNSA's decision to withhold contractor performance data be reversed and open up that information for the public to see. Nuclear Weapons & Materials Monitor, a Washington-based newsletter, first reported the NNSA action that was described in an internal agency memo. "Given that 90 percent of DOE's work is performed by contractors, it is absolutely critical that PEPs (Performance Evaluation Plans) and PERs (Performance Evaluation Reports) be made available to public scrutiny immediately and not three years hence as recommended by Mr. Boyd's memo," POGO said in a press statement.

In a letter to President Obama, the Project On Government Oversight is asking that the NNSA's decision to withhold contractor performance data be reversed and open up that information for the public to see. Nuclear Weapons & Materials Monitor, a Washington-based newsletter, first reported the NNSA action that was described in an internal agency memo. "Given that 90 percent of DOE's work is performed by contractors, it is absolutely critical that PEPs (Performance Evaluation Plans) and PERs (Performance Evaluation Reports) be made available to public scrutiny immediately and not three years hence as recommended by Mr. Boyd's memo," POGO said in a press statement.

"Is an 'area of haze of unknown composition' that crossed into California last week the remnants of a radioactive dust storm from China? Is another on the way? :::::::: On March 17 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) noted that "an area of haze of unknown composition and origin has entered the US along the central California coast and stretched northeastward across southeast Oregon and into southwest Montana.' The next day, the NOAA tracked the progress of this alien air mass to southwest Nevada: 'Areas of blowing dust are spreading S[outh] across parts of the western US....In Nevada blowing dust can be seen moving S[outh]across the counties of Mineral, Lyon and Churchill." As you keep going east from Lyon and Churchill counties to Mineral county, and then over two more counties, you get to the city of Las Vegas where at 10:00 A.M. that day (March 18) a radiation monitoring station outside the Atomic Testing Museum began to go haywire. "