Around the nuclear/uranium traps in Australia this week
North Korea continues to be a source of anxiety for Australia, though we are not seen as a target at present, and perhaps they don’t have a nuclear missile anyway? Intrepid Dr Helen Caldicott takes off for nuclear lectures in South Korea.
USA militarism in the Pacific is now seen even by the right wing Australian Strategic Policy Institute as increasingly risky. The concept of the “Air Sea Battle” is likely to draw Australia into any war in the Asia Pacific, potentially a nuclear war.
Nuclear lobbying revs up, as Tony Shepherd (Transfield Services, -construction, resources, energy) of Business Council of Australia calls for nuclear power to be “on the table”. Barry Brook, the nuke lobby’s favourite spruiker, spruiks again. And the political party ”Australian Voters Party” calls for a string of nuclear power plants in regional Australia.
Commonwealth Bank, in a magnificent piece of jargon, refuses to answer on the question of funding nuclear weapons manufacture. http://www.abc.net.au/tv/thecheckout/futube/default.htm?WwEQu-_c3Bw The question was asked by the Medical Association for the Prevention of War, (who have now changed their bank).
Paladin Energy, Australian uranium company forced to renegotiate a deal with Malawi, which will include removing the confidentiality clause, and getting a better financial deal for Malawi.
Solar Power: 1,000,643 small solar power systems were installed in Australia as at April 5; with a collective total capacity of 2,461,696 kW. Based on an average 25c/kWh retail electricity cost (day rates); these home solar power systems could generate as much as $913,086,737 worth of electricity over the next 12 months.
Greenhouse gas emissions: National Greenhouse Accounts released on Monday show Australia’s carbon pollution from electricity generation fell by 14 million tonnes during 2012.Around the nuclear/uranium traps
Queensland ALP reaffirms their policy against uranium mining.
Victoria‘s Premier Denis Napthine gets this week’s Hypocrisy award. He enthused over the opening of Macarthur wind farm (largest in Southern Hemisphere – ““I think they are majestic, and I actually love them.” but then Napthine stated that he will not be changing Victoria’s anti wind farm laws.
No to uranium mining in Queensland: ALP reaffirms their stand
Qld State ALP reaffirms support for uranium ban http://workersbushtelegraph.com.au/2013/04/17/qld-state-alp-reaffirms-support-for-uranium-ban/ “Environmentalists welcome the State ALP’s reaffirmation of their policy of opposition to uranium mining in Queensland” said Friends of the Earth spokesperson, Ms Robin Taubenfeld.
Yesterday Jackie Trad, State ALP member for South Brisbane tabled a report, published by environmental groups and trade unions, in State Parliament.
The report, “High Risk – Low Return: The case against uranium mining in Queensland” exposes the State Government’s claims about jobs and royalties as being without substance.
Jackie Trad MP argued that the uranium industry was only likely to create 155 long-term jobs, according to a Deloitte Access Economics report from 2008. Jackie Trad MP argued that the risk to agricultural and tourism jobs far outweighed claims made by the Premier, claiming “The risks to both the reputation and sustainability of our agricultural industry and food security from uranium mining are real.”
Ms Trad has said that “Queenslanders need to ask themselves this very important question – is the small economic return on uranium mining worth the risk it poses to established industries, our precious environment and the health and safety of workers?”
Robin Taubenfeld said “State investment in renewable energy would create more jobs. The uranium industry has a terrible accident history and this poses a significant threat to the environment and our way of life in Queensland.”
The “High Risk – Low Return” report can be downloaded from http://www.qnfa.org.
Commonwealth Bank obfuscation on funding nuclear weapons manufacturers featured on F-U-Tube
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/thecheckout/futube/default.htm?WwEQu-_c3Bw
It’s simple to upload your complaints, just make a video, put it on YouTube, go to FU tube and put in the link and your contents.
Nancy Atkin | Executive Officer
Medical Association for Prevention of War,
Australia www.mapw.org.au
North Korea does not have nuclear missile – Obama
Obama says he doesn’t believe North Korea has nuclear missile By Jethro Mullen, April 17, 2013 (CNN) — President 
Barack Obama has said he doesn’t believe North Korea can fit a nuclear warhead on a missile, casting strong doubt on an alarming assessment disclosed last week by the Pentagon’s intelligence arm.And he warned the young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that weeks of threats against the United States and South Korea had only served to isolate the regime further….. http://edition.cnn.com/2013/04/17/world/asia/koreas-tensions/index.html
Solar panels a winner for millions of Australian homes
In the words of Mahatma Gandhi; “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win,” – and the ultimate winners are the 1 million solar households across the nation who are not only striking a blow in the carbon emissions battle, but also slashing their power bills while helping support the thousands of Australians employed in the local renewable energy sector and their families.
Australian Home Solar Generating $2 Million+ In Electricity Daily http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3692 17 April 13, It’s little wonder Australia’s electricity sector is becoming increasingly cagey about the home solar revolution – rooftop systems in the nation will generate many hundreds of millions of dollars worth of electricity at retail value over the next 12 months says Energy Matters.
According to figures Energy Matters sourced from the Clean Energy Regulator, 1,000,643 small solar power systems were installed in Australia as at April 5; with a collective total capacity of 2,461,696 kW.
Most of these systems would have been installed in the last few years and on average, each system works out to be around 2.4kW.
Given an average over a year of 4.5 sun hours a day, each of these systems would produce in the region of 10kWh of electricity daily.
This translates to an estimated 10,006,430 kWh a day generated by all small Australian solar power systems. Over a year, the figure would be 3,652,346,950 kWh.
Based on an average 25c/kWh retail electricity cost (day rates); these home solar power systems could generate as much as $913,086,737 worth of electricity over the next 12 months. Continue reading
Australia’s electricity carbon emissions down, due to less demand, energy efficiency, and renewables
Australian Electricity Generation Emissions Drop By 14 Million Tonnes http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3689 16 April 13, National Greenhouse Accounts released on Monday show Australia’s carbon pollution from electricity generation fell by 14 million tonnes during 2012.
The Accounts state Australia’s total greenhouse gas emissions declined by 0.2 per cent for the year to December 2012. Annual emissions for the year to December 2012 were estimated to be 551.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
The decrease in overall annual emissions for the year was largely due to a decline in emissions from electricity reflecting lower electricity demand and changes in the energy generation mix.
Over the first six months of 2012-13, electricity emissions were at their lowest level since 2001-02 states the Quarterly Update of Australia’s National Greenhouse Gas Inventory (PDF).
Over the full year, generation in the National Electricity Market from black coal reduced by 5.3% and brown coal generation emissions dropped 7.0%; with both fossil fuels seeing their lowest generation levels in more than a decade. Continue reading
Colorado fight to make uranium companies clean up radioactive pollution
A Fight in Colorado Over Uranium Mines NYT, By DAN FROSCH April 16, 2013 SLICK ROCK, Colo.”……..Despite bursts of activity from 2003 through 2008, most uranium mines scattered across Colorado have largely been out of production for decades, a testament to fluctuating mineral prices. Now the future of these mines is at the crux of a dispute that could set a precedent for how they are handled.
Environmental groups in Colorado contend that many of the state’s 33 uranium mines should be forced to clean up, given that uranium mining, which flourished here during the cold war, has gone dormant. In legal filings, they have alleged that 
companies like Cotter are skirting potential costs associated with cleanup, which is required by the state after an operation shuts down. Continue reading
Hypothyroidism in USA babies, as result of Fukushima radiation
Study: Fukushima radiation fallout has devastated health of US babies on West Coast and in other areas http://www.naturalnews.com/039923_Fukushima_radiation_hypothyroidism.html#ixzz2Qr6W6hxg April 15, 2013 by: Jonathan Benson, staff writer New peer-reviewed research published in the Open Journal of Pediatrics raises fresh concerns about the health effects of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster on American children and babies. As has long been suspected by those with an understanding of the widespread reach of radioactive fallout from Fukushima, newborns living in California, Hawaii, Washington, and other West Coast states appear to have been directly affected by Fukushima fallout in a serious way, which is reflected by the disproportionate rate of hypothyroidism observed amongst this demographic.
Conducted by a duo of scientists from the Radiation and Public Health Project, a non-profit education and scientific organization that seeks to understand the relationship between nuclear radiation exposure and public health, the research evaluated average rates of hypothyroidism both before and after the Fukushima disaster. In their findings, Joseph J. Mangano and Janette D. Sherman reported that, compared to one year earlier, babies born between one week and 16 weeks after the nuclear meltdowns in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington were 28 percent more likely to suffer from congenital hypothyroidism.
2,110 percent increase in iodine-131 on US West Coast following Fukushima linked to hypothyroidism Each of these states and the Pacific Ocean, according to the study, experiences significantly elevated levels of radioactive iodine-131 (I-131), as well as various other radioactive isotopes, in the days and weeks following the March 11, 2011, disaster. Based on the data, the 2,110 percent increase in detectable I-131 all along the U.S. West Coast following the disaster appears to be directly correlated with the higher-than-average rates of congenital hypothyroidism. Continue reading
Obama approves drastically lax rules on permissable radiation levels
WHITE HOUSE APPROVES RADICAL RADIATION CLEANUP ROLLBACK http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/2013/04/08/white-house-approves-radical-radiation-cleanup-rollback/ Civilian Cancer Deaths Expected to Skyrocket Following Radiological Incidents Apr 08, 2013
Washington, DC — The White House has given final approval for dramatically raising permissible radioactive levels in drinking water and soil following “radiological incidents,” such as nuclear power-plant accidents and dirty bombs. The final version, slated for Federal Register publication as soon as today, is a win for the nuclear industry which seeks what its proponents call a “new normal” for radiation exposure among the U.S population, according Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
Issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, the radiation guides (called Protective Action Guides or PAGs) allow cleanup many times more lax than anything EPA has ever before accepted. These guides govern evacuations, shelter-in-place orders, food restrictions and other actions following a wide range of “radiological emergencies.” Continue reading
Nuclear weapons were the real goal in Australia’s uranium industry, and Lucas Heights reactor
Australia and the Bomb http://workersbushtelegraph.com.au/2013/04/14/australia-and-the-bomb/ Ian CurrAfter WW II both Liberal and Labor parties in Australia supported the development of a nuclear bomb – that is why the nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights in Sydney was developed. They also supported uranium mining and export and nuclear power. So the major parties were not merely allowing the British to test their bomb at Maralinga they supported Australia getting a nuclear bomb. Australia did not acquire a nuclear weapon because it needed American support to get the technology to make a bomb. The US refused that support to both Australia and Canada but supported the British acquisition and testing on the bomb on Aboriginal land in South Australia.If anyone in the Labor party disagrees with my take on the history, lets hear what you have to say about it.
There was a ban the bomb movement in Australia and members of the ALP and trade unions participated in that movement, but ALP policy was to join the nuclear race. So it is little wonder that when Hawke came to power in 1983 he made sure the ALP government mined and exported Uranium.
Both Liberals & Nationals supported Australian involvement in the nuclear club throughout this period.
“Plains of Maralinga” describes the British atomic bomb tests at Maralinga and their deadly side-effects on the Pitjantjatjara people. Song performed when Alistair was on tour with David Rovics in Australia in 2008.
In doom laden economic climate for nuclear power, Australia’s pro nukes fight on
The outlook for the nuclear power industry becomes ever bleaker. Why? Well as Bill Clinton famously stated “It’s the economy, stupid”. Nuclear power just isn’t economic, as the industry itself knows better than anyone.
Still, Australia’s uranium/nuclear lobby presses on gallantly, Barry Brook keeps spruiking it. The Lowy Institute put on apathetic panel last month.
And there’s the political party “Australian Voters Party”. No idea who is behind this, And I doubt that anyone voted for them. They were started, curiously, a very short time after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. And they’re gung ho for nuclear power in Australia. Fom their website
“The Party believes that a series of nuclear power plants should be built in regional areas across Australia away from the major cities.”
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 