Uranium lobbyists need to back off Star Tribune, Phillip Lovelace January 18, 2012 The National Academy of Sciences said Virginia faces steep hurdles. I say the uranium industry and the lobbyists they have hired should stop pressuring our legislators and go with the timeframe the National Academy of Sciences has contracted with the state of Virginia to do public education until May. (more…)
Archive for the ‘politics’ Category
Virginia uranium lobbyists pressurising lawmakers
January 29, 2012Nuclear fuel plant can’t get loan guarantee
January 29, 2012‘Crunch time’ at troubled nuclear fuel plant Washington Post By Steven Mufson, January 13 U.S. Enrichment Corp., which produces fuel for nuclear power plants, is having its own sort of meltdown.
Disillusioned investors have wiped out 95 percent of the company’s market value since 2007. Standard & Poor’s has saddled it with a dismal CCC-plus credit rating. (more…)
Virginian lawmaker will support ban on uranium mining
January 29, 2012Virginia delegate to vote no on lifting uranium mining moratorium WDBJ7.com, Justin Ward, January 5, 2012 DANVILLE, Va.— The first Virginia lawmaker to announce his vote on the uranium mining ban says his colleagues should consider his decision.
Delegate Don Merricks says he will vote against lifting the ban on uranium mining.
The proposal is expected to be introduced during the upcoming general assembly. Merricks says he’s read the studies but wants another year to research more site specific studies.
“I can not in good conscience vote to life the ban on this when there’s so many unknowns. We still have to narrow down and get focused and we got to get serious about what’s going to happen,” said 16th District Delegate Don Merricks.
Three studies about the socioeconomic and environmental impacts have been released but Merricks says none of them give him concrete answers to support mining in Pittsylvania County. http://www.wdbj7.com/news/blogs/wdbj7-virginia-delegate-will-vote-no-on-lifting-moratorium-on-uranium-mining-20120105,0,2566980.story
South Australian Parliament makes BHP Billiton above the law, with Roxby Downs Indenture Act
January 2, 201229/11/2011 The Roxby Downs Indenture Bill today passed the South Australian Upper House. It has now passed both houses of Parliament, enshrining in law an agreement that over-rides some 21 South Australian laws, including state legislation covering radiation protection.
“Since the negotiation of the Indenture Agreement, it has been clear that the parliamentary process would simply be a rubber stamp. For example, in the Parliamentary Select Committee hearing, the opposition had the chance to question BHP for an hour, and the nature of their investigations were along the lines of concerns for the caravans that may be inconvenienced if a road was closed, never mind the tailings dams that are designed to leak,” said Nectaria Calan from Friends of the Earth Adelaide.
“Neither Labor not Liberal have shown any inclination to critically scrutinise the implications of the project, with the government bending over backwards to accommodate the mining giant. BHP wanted to recognise a historical version of the Aboriginal Heritage Act that was repealed over 20 years ago – they got it. They wanted a mining lease that spans 70 years, despite the fact that their Environmental Impact Statement only covers 40 years – they got it. They wanted the right to be granted the expanded mining lease, covering nearly 50, 000 ha as freehold, free of charge – they got it. They wanted royalties capped for 45 years – they got it,” said Ms. Calan.
The scope of the Indenture Agreement extends far beyond the 40 years covered in the Environmental Impact Statement.
“It’s a strange state of affairs to have an Environmental Impact Statement that only covers 40 years, a mining lease granted for 70 years, and an indenture agreement that creates the right for future mining leases that will not expire until the last of the extended mining leases have expired. The intention appears to be to avoid any further Parliamentary scrutiny at all cost,” continued Ms. Calan.
Money is talking hard to push for uranium mining in Virginia, despite its threat to water supply
January 2, 2012Virginia. election, uranium’s future among the top political, government stories of 2012, Washingtn Post, 25 Dec 11 RICHMOND, Va. — The list of top stories includes whether money can speak loudly enough to open Virginia to uranium mining despite serious environmental concerns and whether the Republican right rules all of Virginia policymaking…..
A long-awaited independent study by the National Academy of Sciences in December raised serious concerns about whether a massive uranium ore deposit can be safely mined and milled in Pittsylvania County…..
It’s up to the Virginia General Assembly to weigh the appeal of an economic boom in Southside Virginia — an area hit hard by declines in the textile, furniture and tobacco industries — against the prospect of contaminating water supplies for huge areas of Virginia and North Carolina.
The deep-pockets consortium of investors and corporations eager to recover the 119-million-pound deposit has hired Capitol Square’s most expensive and influential lobbyists to shepherd legislation to end a 30-year uranium mining ban through a deeply divided House and Senate.
This is one of those issues more likely to create geographic divisions than partisan ones…..
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/va-at-elections-forefront-can-republicans-really-rule-uraniums-future-the-stories-of-2012/2011/12/25/gIQA9RjEHP_story.html
USA and North Korea had secret agreement planned regarding uranium enrichment
January 2, 2012U.S. will trade food for uranium agreement from North Korea, Negotiations yield several advances Detroit Free Press, Dec. 19, 2011 The U.S. is poised to announce a significant donation of food aid to North Korea this week, the first concrete accomplishment after months of behind-the-scenes diplomatic contacts between the two wartime enemies. An agreement by North Korea to suspend its controversial uranium enrichment program will likely follow within days.
A broad outline of the emerging agreement has been made known to the Associated Press by people close to the negotiations.
Discussions have been taking place since summer in New York, Geneva, Switzerland, and Beijing. They already have yielded agreements by North Korea to suspend nuclear and ballistic missile testing, readmit international nuclear inspectors expelled in 2009, and resume adialogue between North Korea and South Korea, according to the people,
who spoke on condition of anonymity because of sensitivity of the negotiations…..
http://www.freep.com/article/20111219/NEWS07/112190328/U-S-will-trade-food-uranium-agreement-from-North-Korea?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cs
Russia tried to stop North Korea’s uranium enrichment program
January 2, 2012Russia Urges North Korea to Halt Nuclear Activities, VOA, December 1st, 2011 Russia has urged North Korea to halt its uranium enrichment program and re-admit United Nations nuclear monitors to pave the way for international disarmament talks.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that consistent implementation of the uranium program in North Korea cannot but create serious worry. It called on Pyongyang to announce a moratorium on all of its nuclear activities including the uranium enrichment program.
Moscow is also urging its communist neighbor to invite inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency to examine its nuclear program and verify that it is purely peaceful. The call comes after North Korea Wednesday announced progress in producing enriched uranium for its light-water nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on North Korea Wednesday to take concrete steps to abandon its nuclear program and promote peace and stability….. http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/12/01/russia-urges-north-korea-to-halt-nuclear-activities/
Australia will fuel arms race by selling uranium to India, says Labor Senator
November 28, 2011Left fears uranium backflip will fuel arms race 1233 ABC Newcastle, 19 Nov 11 A Victorian Labor Senator fears Australia will be fuelling a nuclear arms race if it lifts the ban on exporting uranium to India. Prime Minister Julia Gillard wants next month’s ALP conference to agree to change the policy, under the condition India only use it for peaceful purposes.
India possesses nuclear weapons but is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and current Labor policy prohibits selling uranium to any country that is not a signatory. But Senator Gavin Marshall says there is no doubt it will be used directly in India’s nuclear weapons program or to free up domestic supplies.
“Either way, Australian uranium assists in a nuclear arms race in that part of the world,” he said. ”I don’t think that’s a responsible thing for this government to do.” He also does not buy the Prime Minister’s argument it would be good for jobs and disputes it would reduce poverty…..
Senator Marshall says those fighting the policy shift could still win the argument. The left convenor will meet with his other faction colleagues tomorrow. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-19/labor-left-fears-uranium-backflip-will-fuel-arms-race/3681338/?site=newcastle
Pakistan will be wanting Australia to sell uranium to it
November 28, 2011Like India, Pakistan is a nuclear armed state that refuses to sign the NPT. There is no doubt the Islamabad will be keeping a close eye Canberra and on Darling Harbour come Labor’s National Conference in December.
Inevitably, if Labor moves to sell uranium to India then Pakistan will make a political and diplomatic point of being the next cab in the radioactive rank.
If Australia sells uranium to India, will Pakistan be next?, November 18, 2011 Crikey , Dave Sweeney Uranium is both common and controversial in resource rich Australia. It is tricky stuff as it can be used to produce electricity or to fuel nuclear bombs. And India has both……. (more…)
Australia’s options on nuclear non proliferation and uranium sales to India
November 28, 2011Promises and U-turns of the nuclear kind, The Drum, Jim Green, 19 Nov 11“…..What steps could Australia take to extricate us from the current mess – the South Asian nuclear arms race, and the broader problem of nuclear proliferation?
Option #1 is to leave uranium in the ground. It’s not as radical an idea as it might sound. Uranium accounts for a paltry 0.3 per cent of national export revenue and 0.03 per cent of Australian jobs. Few would notice if the industry vanished and still fewer would miss it. (more…)
