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"Guam - A group of Guam lawmakers and residents will soon be headed to Washington to push for Guam's inclusion in the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act known as RECA. alt Dim lights Embed From 1945 through 1962, the United States detonated nearly 200 atmospheric nuclear weapons, .many of the tests were conducted in the Marshells on Eniwetok Atoll. Guam is more than 1,600 miles downwind from the Marshalls. Until recently, many thought, it was too far away to suffer any radiation fallout from the atmospheric testing. But that turned out not to be true. That became apparent when President Clinton signed an Executive Order declassifying thousands of pages of documents showing Guam was exposed to fallout carried down wind from the Marshalls. And as "downwinders" Senator Ben Pangelinan says Guam should be included in RECA which would provide up to $50-thousand dollars in compensation to people who lived on Guam between 1946 and 1974. Robert Celestial is the President of the Pacific Islands Association for Radiation Survivors. He was the one who searched through the de-classified documents back in the 90's and found the evidence of Guam's exposure to fallout from the nuclear testing in the Marshalls. Both Pangelinan and Celestial believe that there are links to Guam's high cancer rates and the radiation that fell on island during the atmospheric nuclear testing in the Marshalls."

"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."

"Three years. That's the wait time for medical claim decisions from a Department of Labor program that compensates former federal nuclear workers who developed illnesses related to their work, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Monday. The report reflects concerns claimants have had for years about the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. The GAO's performance audit covered the program from November 2008 to March 2010. Signed into law in 2000, the program was designed to compensate former nuclear workers with lump sum payments and medical benefits for illnesses linked to their exposures to radiation and toxic substances."

"Photo courtesy Stock Photos. Monday, the Texas Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission heard feedback on a proposed rule that would allow the importation of radioactive waste from around the country into Texas. The commission proposed a rule that would allow the state to export waste for management and processing. After the product is prepared, it would be imported back into the state for disposal. The rule would also allow waste from "Non-Compact Generators" to be imported into the state for treatment. Texas Low level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact was signed into law in 1993 by former Gov. Ann Richards."

"Russia on Thursday angrily rejected accusations by Georgia's president linking Moscow to a case of attempted uranium smuggling and suggested he was lying, in a new flare-up of tensions between the hostile neighbors. The Kremlin's sharp retort followed comments Wednesday by President Mikhail Saakashvili, who told The Associated Press that his country had seized a shipment of highly enriched uranium and blamed Russia for creating the instability that allows nuclear smugglers to operate in the region. Saakashvili gave few details, saying only that the uranium was intercepted last month coming into his country in the Caucasus region of southeast Europe. But he suggested that Moscow shared some responsibility, saying that under Russian control, Georgia's two breakaway regions have become havens for nuclear smugglers."

"Opponents of nuclear power formed a 120-km (75-mile) human chain between reactor sites in Germany Saturday to protest against government plans to extend the power plants' operation. Around 120,000 peaceful demonstrators, according to police and organizers, linked arms in a chain running between the northern towns of Brunsbuettel and Kruemmel that passed through the city of Hamburg. "Today will spark a countrywide chain reaction of protests and resistance if the government does not reverse its atomic policy," organizers said in a statement."

"Around 120,000 Germans formed a 75-mile human chain to protest the government's plan to extend the lifeline of the country's nuclear power reactors. The peaceful demonstrators Saturday linked arms in a chain that stretched from the northern towns of Brunsbuettel through Hamburg to Kruemmel, the location of two nuclear power plants. "Today will spark a countrywide chain reaction of protests and resistance if the government does not reverse its atomic policy," organizers of the demonstration said in a statement. Berlin said this year it is mulling extending the lifetime of Germany's youngest reactors by several years, vowing to scrap the nuclear phase-out plan that foresees to shut down all 17 reactors by 2021."

Army to be sued for war crimes over its role in Fallujah attacks Parents of children with birth defects say Britain knew of US chemical weapons use Allegations that Britain was complicit in the use of chemical weapons linked to an upsurge in child deformity cases in Iraq, are being investigated by the Ministry of Defence. The case raises serious questions about the UK's role in the American-led offensive against the city of Fallujah in the autumn of 2004 where hundreds of Iraqis died. After the battle, in which it is alleged that a range of illegal weaponry was used, evidence has emerged of large numbers of children being born with severe birth defects. Iraqi families who believe their children's deformities are caused by the deployment of the weapons have now begun legal proceedings against the UK Government. They accuse the UK Government of breaching international law, war crimes and failing to intervene to prevent a war crime. "

"The Messenger reported Wednesday that Russian Foreign Ministry Andrei Nesterenko dismissed Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili's allegation as an "ungrounded accusation," further criticizing the Georgian administration for "almost every day" making statements about "all kinds of sins committed by Russia." Nesterenko added: "As for the allegations that the Russian Federation has anything to do with the nuclear materials impounded by the Georgian police in March, we want to state that these statements are ungrounded and are based only on words. "We would like to underline that officials in Tbilisi have no proof that Russia or any other state is linked with this incident. This makes us think that in this case we are dealing not with facts but a badly planned provocation."

"York County residents aren't sure local nuclear facilities can be linked to cancer. When Teri Barnes, 39, moved to Goldsboro six years ago, she didn't give much thought to the large nuclear power plant just across the river. Three Mile Island is just something that's there, she said, like the tree in the front yard. But a new study requested by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to analyze data about cancer rates of residents around nuclear facilities could cause some residents of Goldsboro and communities around the country to think twice about their neighborhoods. Barnes said it would be hard to say for sure that the two were related. "Smoke causes cancer. Second-hand smoke causes cancer. Eating this causes cancer," Barnes said, gesturing toward the large deep fryer she was cleaning. "And if they do have cancer and they're dying, how can you make that up to them?" The study will look at both TMI and Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station. Although it won't deal with the partial meltdown at TMI in March of 1979, the issue brings back unpleasant memories for some residents. Following the accident, several studies were performed on cancer rates in the area with conflicting results."

"A dire government report on cancer risks from chemicals and other hazards in the environment has drawn criticism from the American Cancer Society, which says government experts are overstating their case. The government's 240-page report, published online Thursday by the President's Cancer Panel, says the proportion of cancer cases caused by environmental exposures has been "grossly underestimated." It warns of "grievous harm" from chemicals and other hazards, and cites "a growing body of evidence linking environmental exposures to cancer." "

"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.""

"Orrin Hatch wants federal experts to take another look at the scientific information linking radioactive fallout from nuclear test explosions to illnesses suffered by downwinders. The goal is to establish whether additional Americans should be eligible for federal compensation. Sen. Hatch is right that additional study is warranted, especially now that some members of Congress from Western states are sponsoring legislation that would greatly expand eligibility under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. Sen. Hatch sponsored the original version of that law in 1990 and its expansion in 2000. He reacted with skepticism to the latest proposal to enlarge the geographical area in which Americans would be eligible, saying that it was not justified by the science and would be too expensive. He is correct that any expansion should be made in light of the latest scientific information."

The March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami off the northeast coast of Japan has led to a major, still evolving crisis at Japan's Fukushima nuclear power facility. UCS is providing information and analysis about the crisis and what is happening on the ground, as well as its broader implications for nuclear power safety and the future of nuclear power. Click the links below for timely information.

"Breaking News: Melt OUT was predicted on 3/11 Posted by Mochizuki on September 5th, 2011 · No Comments http://nanohana.me/?p=4545 On March 11, at 22:35, the Cabinet received advice predicting that the fuel would be damaged and the pressure vessels would be breached Forecast: exposure of top of active fuel (TAF): 21:40 (approx.) Forecast: damage to the reactor core(s) begins: 22:20 (approx.) Forecast: breaching of the pressure vessel(s) begins: 23:50 (approx.) [excerpt from source document: Cabinet briefing paper: source link] Japanese Prime Minister and Cabinet knew of melt through in MARCH"

" Sovacool reports that 21 deaths have so far been linked to Fukushima - 7 from first responders and plant operators, and 14 elderly people who died during the evacuation process. None of these were due to radiation exposure, but he notes that 160 people have so far been exposed to 'hazardous' levels of radiation. Hopefully the final outcome will be less than the thousands of early deaths that followed Chernobyl - Sovacool quotes the low IAEA-WHO estimate of 4000, but also points to other studies, which suggest 93,000 early cancer deaths. But away from the media spotlight, there are claimed to be continuing deaths and disease as a result of routine emissions and occasional leaks from nuclear facilities: Sovacool quotes 3,780 premature deaths and 1,253 cancers globally per annum. Of course it's not just people that have to be buried, but also nuclear waste. The back end of the nuclear cycle is probably its worst aspect- unless you are concerned about the prospects of terrorist attacks, the illegal diversion of nuclear material, or the proliferation of weapons making capacity. The latter issues relate to current geo-political conflicts, but the waste issue takes us beyond that into the far future. Sovacool quotes Alvin Weinberg's comment that, in terms of guarding and managing nuclear wastes, humanity seemed to have a ' remarkable belief that it can devise social institutions that are stable for periods equivalent to geological ages'."

WASHINGTON (April 6, 2011) - In the weeks following the Fukushima accident, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and nuclear industry officials have been asserting that U.S. nuclear plants are better prepared to withstand a catastrophic event like the March 11 earthquake and tsunami than Japanese plants because they have additional safety measures in place. However, according to internal NRC documents (links provided below) released today by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), there is no consensus within the NRC that U.S. plants are sufficiently protected. The documents indicate that technical staff members doubt the effectiveness of key safety measures adopted after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. UCS obtained the documents on March 25 from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request it made a month before the Japanese disaster.

"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."

"Traces of uranium have been found in a large number of autistic children in India's northern state of Punjab. The metal, used for generating nuclear energy and to make nuclear bombs, is thought to be the reason behind their autism. Five-and-a-half-year-old Dashamveer Singh was born premature. It was one of the reasons behind his slow mental development. He is being treated at Baba Farid Centre For Special Children. "A normal kid would be active. He would start sitting up by six months of age and start reacting. My child did no such thing. After one year, he could neither sit nor stand. So, we sought treatment for him at the centre," said Satvinder Kaur, mother of Dashamvee. There are many children at the centre with similar symptoms - most of them are from a small town in India's northern state of Punjab. "

Questionnaires will soon be sent to thousands of men who donated their baby teeth half a century ago to scientists seeking to learn whether radioactive fallout in milk the donors drank as children affected their health later in life. It's the latest step in a study that began in the 1950s and 1960s at Washington University, but then stalled for decades. Fifty years ago, concern about atmospheric tests of nuclear weapons spurred a group of local scientists and other area residents to begin the project, then called the St. Louis Baby Tooth Survey.