International Stories
Australia
- Western Australia pushes to start uranium mining
- Government cuts uranium mining deals with India and China
- Government passes law to dump n-waste on Aboriginal lands
- Bid to make Australia/New Zealand a Nuclear Free Zone
- Resources: Map of Nuclear Resources & Choose Nuclear Free
Canada
- Ontario Power Generation closes Gentilly 2
- Ontario Power Generation N-waste dump plan on Lake Huron (Great Lakes)
- Operating uranium processing facility in Toronto disclosed for first time
- Ontario to spend $27 on refurbishment at Darlington *
- HLW Repository a threat to the Great Lakes
- Feds bribe communities to take respository The Plan
- The Huron Declaration on Nuclear Waste
- Port Hope’s Radioactive Legacy
- Pickering among the worst reactors in the world
- Nishnawbe Aski Nation declares itself a nuclear waste free zone
- Push for uranium mining moratorium freaks out industry
- First new license for new reactor in 30 years granted – Westinghouse design
- Rosalie Bertell passes away
- Nuclear Experts strike against poor wages & conditions
- Researchers discover method to produce medical isotopes without reactor
- Feds not monitoring radiation impacts to fishing from Fukushima
- Resources: FARE
- Canada’s Most contaminated sites
China
- Reduces plans to build nuclear power stations – was considering over 150
- Solar industry struggling to survive downturn
- China’s Secret Radiation Dangers
- China pulls out of UK investment in nuclear development plans
- China Disinterested in Western Sanctions on Iran
- China and Canada cut deal on recycle Thorium development
- China planning a nuclear-powered mobile deep-sea mining platform
- Areva puts its nuclear hopes on China development
- Russia jails two men for giving China nuke secrets
- China wants “drastic” U.S., Russia nuclear arms cuts
- China Beats U.S. With Power From Coal Processing Trapping Carbon
- South Carolina plant makes nuclear fuel for China’s first AP1000 reactor
- China’s Nuclear Crossroads – China re-evaluation of nuclear development
- US puts tariffs on Chinese solar products
- Government investigation of nuclear finds 14 major concerns
France
- Sarkozy loses in general elections
- Greenpeace boycotts government’s national nuclear power debate
- More cost woes for Flamanville 3
- New government increases support for renewable energy
- France’s love affair with nuclear cools
- Jordan ends uranium deal with France nuclear giant
- France ‘Surprised’ by Areva’s Elimination From Temelin bidding
- France’s Total swears off artic oil drilling
- France vows to lower nuclear dependence to 50 percent by 2025
- NRC denies French company license to build reactor in Maryland
- France’s 20th century radium craze still haunts Paris
- Areva Looks to China as France Rethinks Nuclear Power
- France to build 2 GW of offshore wind power as costs of nuclear exposed
- IEER – Post-Fukushima Nuclear Safety in France
- France to Extend Life of Nuclear Plants: Besson
- Failed deal and spying claims haunt France’s Areva
Germany
- CDU continues to support nuclear phaseout – even under corporate media attacks
- Gorleben actions continue to resist Castor transportation
- Development of wind and solar continue to grow
- Busting the carbon and cost myths of Germany’s nuclear exit
Iran
Anti-nuclear bigotry of Western allies
US unleashes computer (Stuxnet) virus into Iran’s enrichment system
India
- Kudamkulam Direct Action battle in India – Thousands do land and sea blockades for months
- Continued controversy over Indemnification of accidents by foreign nuclear vendors
- Repressive tactics by Indian government against protestors, including blaming foreigners
- India, Russia finding new N plant site after Bengal’s refusal
- Liability for reactor accidents – Russia threatens price increases
Japan
- 1st Anniversary of Fukushima News Coverage
- Japan’s Diet releases independent investigation of Fukushima (regulators owned by industry)
- Concern about Unit 4 spent fuel pond collapse
- LDP wins election – reversing push to keep reactors closed nationwide
- Radiation Impacts – Media censorship worldwide
- Weekly Protests in front of PM offices
- National debate over future of nuclear power – most opposed to reopenin
- New Radiation Proof Robot for Fukushima Gets Stage Fright (freezes)
Jordan
- Drops out of plans to build nuclear reactors
- Jordan ends uranium deal with France nuclear giant
Middle East
US kills UN meeting to create a Nuclear Free Zone in Middle East
Nuclear development slows down across middle east
Russia
- Rate of U.S., Russian Nuclear Disarmament “Slowing”
- Launch of Russia’s first floating nuclear plant pushed back several years – again
- Russian state culpable in Litvinenko death: UK lawyer
- Russian nuclear agency Rosatom plans fast reactors
- Russia strangles indigenous peoples organization as war on NGOs continues
- Russia to spend over 100 billion on nuclear weapons
- Our reactors safest in world: Russian PM
- Russia-Ukraine nuclear fuel plant begins construction
- Russia ends 20 years of cooperative nuclear weapons destruction with US
- Russia eyes stake in UK nuclear plants
- Fast moves for nuclear development in Siberia
- Nuclear waste dump under the Arctic sea 2 3
- The Russian who saved the world in 1962
- Nuclear waste storage ship endangering Murmansk to be dismantled
- Russia’s Atomflot $1.5 billion deal to build world’s largest nuclear icebreaker
- Natural resource oversight body to keep mum on catastrophes
- Rosatom gears up to serve global market
- Bangladesh-Russia nuclear power plant deal finalised
- Swelling and cracks discovered at Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant reactor No 1
- Closed Siberian nuclear city to build permanent nuclear waste repository
- Report: Nuclear Energy in Russia
- One of Sosnovy Bor nuclear reactors is to be shut down
- Global promotion of nuclear by Russia (SE Asia focus)
- 9x allowable level of radiation found in blueberries near Moscow
- Russia, Belarus agree $10 bln nuclear power plant deal
- Photo of the week: Chelyabinsk – A lack of environmental responsibility
- Russia jails two men for giving China nuke secrets
- Russia’s nuclear sector in precarious state 2
- Georgia denies secret nuclear power plant construction
- Informer: 1957 explosion third-worst nuclear disaster
- The Legacy of Chernobyl 2 3 4 5
- Russian Media: US Made Bulgaria Drop N-Plant!
- Russian villages in nuclear danger zone 2
- Mothers Claim City Land Allocation Site Radioactive
- Russia to become the Queen of peaceful atom
- Privatisation of Russian state nuclear giant
- Rosatom-owned company accused of selling shoddy equipment to reactors at home and abroad
- 29 Fetuses Found at Uranium Site
- Thousands of tons of nuclear wastes to travel across Russia
Taiwan
- Anti-nuclear political party barely loses presidential elections
- Government acknowledges plan to move towards a nuclear free future
UN – global promotion of expanded use of electricity in 3rd world countries
United Kingdom
- Battle with Scotland over keeping Trident missile base
- Sellafield cleanup scandals
- Sputtering government push to site new reactors and waste dumps
- EDF threatens UK government over role in new nuclear development
- Triple blow hits nuclear industry
- Will the Government Write a Blank Cheque for Nuclear Construction?
Vietnam – Continues push with help of Japan to plan for nuclear reactor development
Worldwide
- Fukushima Impacts – Nuclear development stalls out
- US still pushing to promote nuclear power development in countries worldwide
- Uranium mining industry worldwide still feeling Fukushima affects
- Nuclear Banks? No Thanks
- 2012 World Nuclear Industry Status report
- Wikipedia – Worldwide Nuclear Phaseout
- The global boom in wind energy
US Stories
Nationwide
- Obama Blue Ribbon Commission’s N-waste solution: Same Old Same Old
- Plan to construct an interim High Level Waste (HLW) facility at Skull Valley Utah collapses
- Renewable energy becomes largest source of new energy production in the USA
- Whistleblower warns of disastrous potential of flooding at reactors
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Chair Jaczko forced to resign
- Climate Change warnings: Hurricane Sandy and Oyster Creek flooding
- Federal court rules against NRC on failure to evaluate HLW onsite storage
- Continued construction of new fuel cycle infrastructures from mining, MOX and centrifuges
- Controversial fracking of Natural Gas is pricing nuclear power out of the market
- The danger to nuclear reactors from Computer Viruses (Stuxnet), where attackers could end up taking down the grid, or cause a nuclear meltdown.
- General Electric Mark 1 nuclear reactors contain beyond life expectancy, antiquated electronic components, as disclosed by the NRC at Browns Ferry Alabama.
- Department of Energy (DOE) is attempting to dump radioactively contaminated metals into the consumer market.
- Peace Activists break through (DOE) security systems at Y-12 facility at Oak Ridge Tennessee
- Utilities nationwide could be forced to cover Crystal River containment crisis
Alabama – Local Tennessee River Valley group, BEST/MATRR, calls for radionuclide emissions from nuclear reactors to be marked by dye markers at the point of emission.
Alabama – GE defective component caused a control room fire at the Browns Ferry #1 reactor control room in January of 2012.
California – San Onofre Steam Generator failures and year long battle to keep reactors closed
California – Diablo Canyon Sonic 3d Testing push by PG&E stopped by public
California – DOE cleanup scandals and NIF development delays
Florida – Duke and FPL merger scandal
Florida – Crystal River containment repairs could cost up to $3.4 billion to fix
Idaho – Green River nuclear facility continues to push ahead gaining major water rights on Colorado tributary
Iowa – Construction Work in Progress legislation fails to pass
Georgia – Vogtle construction delays and cost over runs grow
Maryland – Dominion/EDF merger failure
New York – Battle to close Indian Point continues
Vermont – Legal battle and protests to close Vermont Yankee continue
Virginia – Push to start uranium mining
Wisconsin – Kewaunee Power Station to close due to cheap Natural Gas
The editor: The New Year is traditionally a time to reflect back on the last year, and make resolutions for the one to come. I used to put one of these annual reviews together for many years, but had stopped by 2010 due to health problems and what appeared to be a growing disinterest in the issue. I nearly didn’t do it this time for the same reason. 2012 started out with a major burst in global interest, but ended with the painful election news out of in Japan. To say the least, it has been an incredibly busy and important year.
This issue is a tough one. I can remember the days when any news was incredibly rare, especially prior to the days of information overload and the internet. Back then, it was clear that the mainstream media was all about promoting nuclear energy as its chief weapon was its refusal to cover its own failures or the scope of opposition that exists worldwide. This kind of outright censorship among other tactics of misinformation has long played a major role in attempts to demoralize opposition campaigns.
Reflections – I’m sorry that I personally didn’t stand up firmer last year in warning of the dangers of information overload and what has happened with Facebook. At its peak, I was registering over 5,000 posts a month on the largest site, with others not far behind. How could anyone in their right mind not burnout over time with such a huge bombardment of content! One of those groups, which had over 7,000 members is now down to a few people. Some of us should have known better and been calling for a shift in how online technology like Facebook could have, and should have been used. The nuclear issue is not the only problem we face as individuals and as societies around the world.
Organizing for a Nuclear Free Earth
Its not easy to motivate just anyone in such an era when the nuclear industry itself can rely on immense amounts of institutional support to promote itself. Since when have we ever seen a single historic review of the role anti-nuclear battles, either won or lost by a single media outlet, unless you consider Wikipedia.
It has long been known that its very hard to merely be against something, no matter what the reason, especially when the other side has billions of dollars at its disposal. We know that the industry believes that it is merely has to wait out this negative trend in public opinion, having spent record sums to make sure politicians worldwide know the score etc.
When the long term goal is large and global consequences beyond comprehension, sometimes it helps to set up a series of short term goals. The so-called “renaissance” is clearly dead for now, but as climate change issues grow, we can expect a messianic resurgence of greedy chatter. If only it wasn’t true that we are now facing several decades of old reactors, each with thousands of miles of aging wires and plumbing systems, corroding steal barriers and growing economic pressures to cut corners, that include tactics to hide the unsolved waste issues or cleanup problems globally caused by ever more intrusive mining techniques. We know their grand plan. The US and the global banking community have all been engaged in the agenda of creating a new era of mega nuclear companies that would be too big to fail.
Most of the largest environmental groups in the US have long been bought off on this issue. Maybe its time to focus on cleaning out the corrupt internal politics of membership based groups that are now more concerned with their bottom line than what’s happening to the planet.
For the longest time we’ve had a hard time convincing others about this issue because of the short term mindset that forces us all to prioritize. As Fukushima recedes into the past as will concerns, it will be up to those of us that know better to take the wisdom and skills forward. This isn’t just about being able to flip a switch so that you can watch your favorite TV show anymore.