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"THOUSANDS of jobs created by new nuclear power stations across Cumbria could be put at risk in the event of a hung Parliament. It follows revelations from the Liberal Democrats, who said it would push the Tories to halt the programme started by the Labour government. Lib Democrat energy spokesman Simon Hughes is demanding the government hold a public inquiry into plans for new power stations across the UK - which would assess whether the benefits of new nuclear build outweigh the "potential detriments.""

"New Mexico's House delegation has identified a potential way to free up funds for cleaning up abandoned uranium mine sites in New Mexico. Congressmen Harry Teague, Ben Ray Luján, and Martin Heinrich introduced legislation Friday that would make available Surface Mine and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) funds that currently can't be used for uranium mine remediation until the state has certified that all coal remediation has been completed. The measure could bring $14.5 million to help clean up 137 uranium sites across the site. In a statement, the three explained why freeing up the funds is important. "Cleaning up the legacy of the uranium mines and mills is something we owe to our land, our people, and our water," said Harry Teague, who represents all of Cibola county and part of McKinley County where many of the sites in need of remediation are located. "Making these funds available for uranium site remediation would create jobs in areas where people need to be put back to work, and we would be able to do it using existing funds.""

"Owners of the nation's oldest nuclear power plant are threatening to shut it down rather than build cooling towers mandated by New Jersey environmental regulators. Exelon Corp. says the $800 million it would cost to build the towers is more than the 40-year-old Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station is worth. But environmentalists say the job could be done for about $200 million. Earlier this year, the state Environmental Protection Department required the plant to build one or more cooling towers instead of relying on water drawn from the Oyster Creek in Lacey Township to cool the reactor."

"US nuclear firms looked poised to benefit from a 2008 deal that threw open India's promise-filled atomic market, but instead are watching from the sidelines as French and Russian rivals cash in. The 2008 deal, pushed through by former president George W Bush, eased a three-decade international embargo on the sale of nuclear technology to India imposed after the country's first nuclear test in 1974. Bush's secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, predicted that New Delhi would buy at least eight nuclear reactors by 2012, providing up to 20,000 direct and indirect jobs in the US. "

"Traditional land owners from the Northern Territory have visited Australia's only nuclear reactor to see what they are in for if a radioactive waste dump is built on their land. The owners come from Muckaty Station, 120 kilometres north of Tennant Creek. They say they want the waste site because it will provide jobs now and for generations to come - but they are insisting on a thorough environmental assessment."

"After reading Sen. Mike Crapo's glowing endorsement of nuclear energy, I feel inspired to remind your readers why no U.S. nuclear power plants have been built in the past 25 years. To begin with, the enormous financial cost to build a reactor is exceeded only by the cost of decommissioning it once it has depleted its 40- to 60-year life span. Regardless of whatever laws Congress may pass to: (1) subsidize nuclear power plant construction (2) remove standard liability requirements from nuclear construction contractors or (3) force long-lived toxic and radioactive wastes onto less populated states, the fact still remains that nuclear energy is not cheap, clean or safe. The primary reason nuclear power is being considered at this time is that it carries with it a "scale of economy" that translates into jobs, tax money and economic boon for specific, well-lobbied industries. This all seems so needless in light of life-friendly, alternative energy production technologies that do not place toxic-waste storage burdens, large-scale contamination issues and a mess of other problems and risks onto the environment and future generations. "

"One suspects the loneliest jobs in Ottawa these days involve being either technical experts or program overseers responsible for advising the government on adopting best practices. Over the past four years, the Harper government has mocked, ignored or fired almost everyone it has in place to provide guidance on the most complex issues that Canada needs to address. From the firing of the head of the Nuclear Safety Commission and the watchdogs of the RCMP and military, the national science adviser and Canada's chief electoral officer, to mocking the parliamentary budget officer and members of the diplomatic corps, to attacking the judiciary, charities and human rights groups, there is barely an expert in Ottawa who hasn't been marginalized or disrespected by this government."

"The Alliance of Nuclear Worker Advocacy Groups applauded the Government Accountability Office's recommendation of an indepdendent advisory board to oversee the Dept. of Labor work in carrying out the goverment's sick nuclear work compensation program. But spokespeople within the network of advoacy groups said more needs to be done. Here is a link to the GAO report, "Energy Employees Compensation: Additional Independent Oversight and Transparency Would Improve Program's Credibility." The Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program has the subject of contention and controversy from its creation a decade ago. In a statement, Scott Yundt of Tri-Valley CARES, said: "The GAO's call for scientific oversight of Part E is no small matter. It challenges the current program leadership's understanding of the complexity of the issues and highlights their unwillingness to assure the scientific integrity of the decision. GAO's recommendations support ANWAG's contention that program decisions are often arbitrary and capricious, and without scientific basis. Moreover, it supports the advocates' concerns and those of the program's last medical director, who was forced out of his job when he raised these very issues."

"It hasn't been the best of times for Anne Lauvergeon, advocate of the nuclear option. Areva, the international energy company she heads, is behind schedule and over budget on a nuclear reactor in Finland. A South Korean group beat out Areva for a $20 billion contract in the United Arab Emirates. And, just this month, the French prime minister had to step in and save Lauvergeon's job at the firm, which is 90% owned by France's government. But these troubles didn't stop Lauvergeon from keeping a Fresno appointment to tout nuclear energy last week. "Atomic Anne" became one of the world's most powerful women by making tough sales, and now she wants the Holy Grail of nuclear ambition -- California."

"It's an easy short-term political decision for the Obama administration and its Energy Department - as long as taxpayers can be shown it's being made on a sound technological and financial basis. Here's the deal. You've got two companies, one French-owned and one American-owned, each applying for a $2billion federal loan guarantee to help finance a uranium-enrichment plant that produces fuel for nuclear power plants. Each project means hundreds of jobs and tax revenues."

By Steven Chu America is on the cusp of reviving its nuclear power industry. Last month President Obama pledged more than $8 billion in conditional loan guarantees for what will be the first U.S. nuclear power plant to break ground in nearly three decades. And with the new authority granted by the president's 2011 budget request, the Department of Energy will be able to support between six and nine new reactors. What does all of this mean for the country? This investment will provide enough clean energy to power more than six million American homes. It will also create tens of thousands of jobs in the years ahead. Perhaps most importantly, investing in nuclear energy will position America to lead in a growing industry. World-wide electricity generation is projected to rise 77% by 2030. If we are serious about cutting carbon pollution then nuclear power must be part of the solution. Countries such as China, South Korea and India have recognized this and are making investments in nuclear power that are driving demand for nuclear technologies. Our choice is clear: Develop these technologies today or import them tomorrow. "

"A bill that would prohibit 'blending' of nuclear waste in Tennessee, a process that is being tested at an Oak Ridge facility, failed on a 3-3 tie vote Tuesday in a House subcommittee after a Roane County legislator said it would jeopardize East Tennessee jobs. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Ty Cobb, D-Columbia, who said the blended waste could pose a health risk and wind up being permanently stored in Tennessee. That could include 20,000 tons of nuclear waste from Italy, he said. But Rep. Dennis Ferguson, D-Harriman, said EnergySolutions Inc., which is testing the process, and other companies involved have a 'great safety record,' much expertise and employ about 600 people in Roane and neighboring counties at a time when the 'economy is critical.'"

"After almost two years of investigation, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report on the problems reported by claimants and advocates with the implementation of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended (EEOICPA). While it will take some time to comprehend the report in its entirety, the Alliance of Nuclear Worker Advocacy Groups (ANWAG) fully supports GAO's recommendation for the creation of an independent advisory board to oversee the Department of Labor's (DOL) responsibilities under EEOICPA. ANWAG also supports GAO's recommendation for transparent public access to the Site Exposure Matrices (SEM) utilized by the DOL claims examiners to adjudicate claims. "The GAO's call for scientific oversight of Part E is no small matter. It challenges the current program leadership's understanding of the complexity of the issues and highlights their unwillingness to assure the scientific integrity of the decision. GAO's recommendations support ANWAG's contention that program decisions are often arbitrary and capricious, and without scientific basis. Moreover, it supports the advocates' concerns and those of the program's last medical director, who was forced out of his job when he raised these very issues. The current DOL leadership could administratively implement independent oversight without a Congressional mandate. However, their unwillingness to do this on their own suggests that it is time for a change in DOL leadership," stated Scott Yundt of Tri-Valley CAREs."

"The trackless tundra reaches a fork in the road this weekend as scrutiny begins of a massive uranium mine proposed for a pristine patch of the central Arctic. Sunday night will see the first of two weeks of community meetings in seven Arctic hamlets to set terms for an environmental review of the $1.5-billion Kiggavik project. The mine is proposed for just west of Baker Lake, Nunavut, by French uranium giant Areva. Everyone from federal scientists to Inuit hunters agrees the project could have major impacts on the land and wildlife. And with at least a dozen other major uranium projects in the pipeline for the area, there's agreement that how the Nunavut Impact Review Board balances Kiggavik's effects with the need for jobs will define the so-called barren lands for a generation. "Where do we draw the line?" asked Joan Scottie, a hunter from Baker Lake who has fought uranium development for 20 years."

"It's a possible good news/bad news story for the planned $3.5 billion uranium-enrichment-plant project in Piketon, which could bring hundreds of jobs to economically struggling southern Ohio. The Department of Energy is moving ahead with plans to double the amount of federal loan guarantees available for enrichment projects to $4 billion. But the move could double the competition the Piketon project faces for a loan guarantee it must obtain to survive. The Obama administration's intent apparently is to be able to grant separate $2 billion loan guarantees to the USEC project in Piketon and a competing enrichment plant being built in Idaho by French-based Areva. USEC is a former federal corporation turned private company, based in suburban Washington, D.C., which ran the old enrichment plant that was shuttered in 2001 in Piketon. Uranium-enrichment plants produce nuclear power plant fuel."

"Nuclear power plant construction in Wisconsin likely will be just as difficult to accomplish after the legislative session as it was before. "It's definitely disappointing," said state Rep. Jim Soletski, D-Green Bay. "I'm not saying we should ring Lake Michigan with 20 new plants, but we need to have the option on the table." Soletski and three other lawmakers drafted that option as part of the Clean Energy Jobs Act. But the Assembly did not debate the act during its session Tuesday, and, even if it were to pass the Assembly, the Senate does not have the votes to pass the act as drafted, said Carrie Lynch, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker, D-Wausau."

"The $2 billion in federal stimulus money came as blessedly as rain to the desert of southeastern Washington state, where the government has spent decades trying to clean up the most productive A-bomb factory of the Cold War era. Phones at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation rang off the hook with calls from people in the nearby metropolitan area of Kennewick, Pasco and Richland who hoped to land one of 4,000 new stimulus jobs -- on top of 11,000 already working at Hanford. Robert Valdez, 33, a father of two young children who was among the early hires, said the starting pay of $17 an hour plus benefits was "life changing." So were the nine weeks of intensive training he underwent to prepare for the hazards of working around a stew of poisonous chemicals and menacing pockets of radiation. "

"For the third consecutive legislative session, myopic legislators have introduced illogical, almost surreal rationalizations for why they should repeal one state law that has successfully protected Illinois for 23 years, and sabotage a second that promotes zero-carbon, sustainable and less-polluting energy. I refer here to attempts to repeal what has become known as the "nuclear construction moratorium." This 1987 law simply says: Illinois will not permit the construction of new nuclear plants until there exists an environmentally responsible way of permanently disposing of the dangerous radioactive wastes they create. The Sears Tower, John Hancock Center and Illinois' currently operating nuclear reactors were being constructed around the same time. Imagine if legislators of the day - touting reasons like jobs, federal money and proud legacies - allowed these and future skyscrapers to be built without bathrooms. This is precisely the (il)logic of today's legislators calling for moratorium repeal."

"A former nuclear insider now working for a nuclear watchdog group said Thursday he wasn't sure Entergy Nuclear had found all the sources of the radioactive tritium leak at the Vermont Yankee plant. Paul Blanch of West Hartford, Conn., who recently joined the litigation team at the New England Coalition, said a review of recent filings by Entergy Nuclear about the radioactive tritium leak at Vermont Yankee showed obvious mistakes and miscalculations. Blanch said Entergy had not done a thorough enough job in its investigation into the radioactive leaks to rule out the condensate storage tank, which holds about 500,000 gallons of radioactive reactor water, at levels close to those found in nearby wells. He said Entergy Nuclear continues to submit inaccurate and incomplete documents to the Vermont Public Service Board. Entergy Nuclear is already under investigation for making inaccurate statements under oath before the board about the existence of potentially leaky underground pipes containing radioactivity."

"Iowa Gov. Chet Culver signed a measure Wednesday that calls for a study that would look at where a nuclear power plant could be built in the state, saying nuclear power will be a part of the state's energy portfolio. Culver signed the measure at the Des Moines offices of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. He said expanding the nuclear energy industry in Iowa could create jobs, both in the construction and operation of a plant. The measure calls for the study to be funded by public utility companies, but Culver says the cost to consumers would be small. It excludes rural electric cooperatives. Iowa is currently home to just one nuclear power plant, the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Palo in eastern Iowa."