Inclusion of Koongarra the first step towards a non uranium mining Kakadu National Park
Koongarra’s inclusion welcome, but Kakadu remains incomplete. 14 March, 2013. The Greens today welcomed the inclusion of the Koongarra mineral lease in Kakadu National Park, but said Kakadu would remain incomplete until the Jabiluka and Ranger mineral leases are returned.
Greens Senator Scott Ludlam praised the efforts of Traditional Owner Jeffrey Lee, who had been in the public gallery when the Bill was introduced in early February.
“When Mr Lee came to Canberra a few weeks ago to witness this Bill being introduced, he said ‘Money comes and goes but the land is always here… If we look after it, it will look after us.’ …It’s difficult to comprehend the pressure Mr Lee withstood so we could get to this point, but I want to pay tribute to this fine and courageous man, a softly spoken and gentle man, who stood up to some of the most powerful interests on earth, and won,” Senator Ludlam told the Senate. Continue reading
Japan’s government removes anti nuclear members from its Energy Board
Japan’s Energy Board Meets After Dropping Anti-Nuclear Members Bloomberg, By Tsuyoshi Inajima – Mar 14, 2013 Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party has removed most anti-nuclear researchers from a revamped post-Fukushima energy policy advisory board to the government that resumes discussions today.
After a landslide victory in a December election, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the previous administration’s policy to abandon atomic power needs to be reviewed to help revive the world’s third-biggest economy. Continue reading
USA;s new nuclear watchdog chief warns on unexpected dangers to nuclear reactors
The current generation of reactors has already outlived the theory of geology that was prevalent when their sites were chosen, she pointed out; they predate wide acceptance of the theory of plate tectonics — the view that the Earth’s crust is made up of plates that rub and slip against one another.
Head of U.S. Nuclear Watchdog Emphasizes Preparing for Unknown, NYT, By MATTHEW L. WALD
March 12, 2013 Appealing for a shift in emphasis on nuclear safety, the new head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission warned a gathering of more than 3,000 industry executives, experts and government regulators on Tuesday against relying too heavily on their ability to predict the future, and suggested that when it comes to commercial reactors, the industry and the government should be ready to deal with the unknown.
Speaking two years after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster in Japan,Allison M. Macfarlane, a geologist who became chairwoman of the five-member commission last July, cited aging nuclear reactors, terrorist attacks and natural disasters, saying, “we don’t know everything about how the Earth behaves, and we must factor this into how we approach nuclear safety.’’ Continue reading
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 