South Korea does not need nuclear submarines (very like Australia!)
The waters around the Korean peninsula are relatively shallow, which favors the employment of quiet conventional subs. South Korea now operates seven Son–Won II–class diesel-electric submarines, powered by a hybrid diesel‐electric/fuel cell with air-independent propulsion technology. These subs are extremely quiet; they can travel up to 20 knots when submerged and remain under water for seven weeks. They are perfectly suited for operations around the Korean Peninsula.
the country could acquire three state-of-the-art conventional submarines for less than the cost of one nuclear-powered sub.
The Hill BY DOV S. ZAKHEIM, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 11/24/23
South Korea is again debating whether to develop and build a nuclear-powered submarine.
During a National Assembly confirmation hearing that took place last week, Admiral Kim Myung-Soo, the nominee for chairman of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, responded positively to a question about the utility of nuclear-powered submarines, stating that “those capabilities are needed.” He noted, however, that the current U.S.-Korean nuclear agreement restricts the use of nuclear materials for military purposes.
Nevertheless, there appears to be a growing sentiment on the part of both of South Korea’s leading parties and the general public in favor of Seoul acquiring nuclear-powered boats. The government should resist the temptation to do so.
In theory, South Korea could avoid America’s restrictions by turning to France to help it develop or acquire a nuclear-powered submarine. France could help South Korea develop its own nuclear-powered sub, much as Paris has assisted Brazil with its own nuclear-powered submarine program.
However, there are many reasons why Seoul should not imitate the Brazilians and forge ahead with its own program. To begin with, it was only in April of this year that President Biden and South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol reached an agreement that not only calls for greater consultation on nuclear matters between the two countries, in the form of a newly created nuclear consultative group, but also provides for an enhanced American nuclear presence around the peninsula to deter North Korean aggression…………………………………………………..
In any event, it is not clear how Seoul could afford to undertake a nuclear-submarine program unless it were to dramatically increase its defense spending beyond current levels…………………………………
…………………… Lastly, there are good operational reasons why South Korea should continue to acquire conventionally powered submarines rather than nuclear powered boats. The waters around the Korean peninsula are relatively shallow, which favors the employment of quiet conventional subs. South Korea now operates seven Son–Won II–class diesel-electric submarines, powered by a hybrid diesel‐electric/fuel cell with air-independent propulsion technology. These subs are extremely quiet; they can travel up to 20 knots when submerged and remain under water for seven weeks. They are perfectly suited for operations around the Korean Peninsula.
The South is currently planning both to upgrade the Son-Won II for about $100 million per boat and is proceeding with a new Son-Won III class at about $900 million per submarine. In other words, the country could acquire three state-of-the-art conventional submarines for less than the cost of one nuclear-powered sub.
The costs, the technologies, and operational realities all weigh against South Korea acquiring nuclear-powered submarines. If that were not enough, America’s recent commitment to bolster the nuclear umbrella that it has long provided to South Korea and that is so critical to its deterrent should settle the argument once and for all.
Dov S. Zakheim is a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and vice chairman of the board for the Foreign Policy Research Institute. He was undersecretary of Defense (comptroller) and chief financial officer for the Department of Defense from 2001 to 2004 and a deputy undersecretary of Defense from 1985 to 1987. https://thehill.com/opinion/international/4324038-south-korea-does-not-need-nuclear-subs/
Soaring death rates raise concerns about Portsmouth nuclear plant
A low-cancer county has now become a high-cancer county.
Joseph Mangano, 26 Nov 23, https://www.cincinnati.com/story/opinion/contributors/2023/11/26/reports-raise-concerns-about-radiation-exposure-from-portsmouth-plant/71664443007/
Death rates in southern Ohio, especially in Pike County, are rising sharply and are among the highest in the U.S., according to two recent reports, which raises concerns about past, present and future exposures to toxic radiation from the Portsmouth nuclear plant in Piketon.
Beginning in 1954, the Portsmouth plant enriched uranium for fuel, first for nuclear weapons and later for nuclear power reactors. The enrichment process involves the creation of various radioactive chemicals, including americium, neptunium, plutonium, technetium, and several forms of uranium.
Each of these toxins, which are among the most dangerous on the planet, have been detected in the local environment, raising questions about exposures to workers and residents, and whether their health has been affected. And while uranium enrichment at Portsmouth ceased in 2001, various operations proposed for the site by federal officials would create additional radioactive products, and pose new health threats.
Health studies have never been a priority in Portsmouth’s long history. A federal analysis of plant workers only looked at deaths before 1991. Another federal study near U.S. nuclear plants, including Portsmouth, only used data from 1950 to 1984. Both are outdated.
Last year, the Ohio Nuclear Free Network supported a current, updated and detailed evaluation of trends in cancer and other health measures in and around Pike County. Two reports have been issued, using statistics made public by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Cancer Registry.
The first report found the Pike County cancer death rate was below the U.S. rate for decades, but has exceeded the U.S. since the early 1990s, with the greatest excess (33% higher) occurring in the most recent period. Pike County also has the highest rate of cancer incidence (newly-diagnosed cases) of all 88 Ohio counties. A low-cancer county has now become a high-cancer county.
The report also reviewed death rates for all causes combined. Until the mid-1990s, the Pike County rate was slightly higher than the U.S. rate. But ever since the gap has grown, especially for premature deaths (persons dying before age 75); the current rate is a staggering 85% above the U.S. − among the highest of all U.S. counties.
A second report addressed several questions. One question was whether the unexpectedly high disease and death rates stopped at the Pike County border. The answer was a clear “no” − as similar trends occurred in six counties bordering Pike (although none quite as dramatic as Pike). Local death rates for persons are especially high for those in their mid-20s to mid-50s − the prime of life − more than double the U.S. rate.
Another question was whether socioeconomic needs could explain the decline in health, as Pike has high poverty rates, relatively low access to medical care, and higher unemployment rates. But increases in death rates in six equally-needy Ohio counties were much lower; thus, “it’s just Appalachia” could not explain most of the increases.
Pike County and surrounding areas consist of small towns and rural areas. Few large industries which pollute the environment exist locally. The exception is the Portsmouth nuclear plant, which creates the most hazardous chemicals known on earth. Other factors can increase risk of disease and death, but decades-long environmental radioactivity exposures must be regarded as a factor, even a major factor, in the sharp increase in local disease and death rates.
Currently, the U.S. Energy Department has proposed or is considering additional nuclear-related operations at the Portsmouth site. These include reprocessing, modular reactors, molten salt reactors, uranium enrichment and uranium purification.
Knowing a large decline in local health for decades means extra caution should be taken to protect residents from any health hazards. Expanding an industry that may have already harmed many who live near Portsmouth is not the answer. Public officials entrusted with reducing harm to the public should act accordingly, and oppose these new initiatives.
Joseph Mangano is executive director of the Radiation and Public Health Project and serves as a consultant to the Ohio Nuclear Free Network.
K-219: Russia’s Worst Submarine Ever (And a Nuclear Disaster)?
This article is all about the sinking of a ballistic missile submarine, carrying 6 nuclear missiles.
But – not a word about the radioactive pollution that must still be emanating from the undersea wreck nearly 30 years later.
The K-219 was clearly faulty and the crew did not react well to the emergency. It should be considered one of the worst submarines of all time because it carried nuclear missiles and there was a fire on board.
National Interest, Brent M. Eastwood 26 Nov 23
-219: The Worst or Most Dangerous Submarine of All Time? When it comes to figuring out what is the worst submarine of all time, it is difficult to blame the sub itself or the bad actions of the crew. Such is the case with the sinking of the Soviet submarine K-219. K-219 was a Yankee-class boomer, or ballistic missile submarine, that carried nuclear weapons.
On October 3, 1986, the K-219, with 16 R-27 nuclear missiles, sunk within 700 miles off the coast of Bermuda.
One of the missile tubes sprung a leak and seawater rushed in and blended with the missile fuel. This volatile combination made for a deadly mix that created dangerous levels of heat and gas. This is where the crew reacted slowly without the sailors exhibiting teamwork and conducting damage control.
Only one crew member moved to do something by venting the tube. A short circuit cropped up in the main power line that created a spark. Then a blast in the silo occurred that sent the missile and the warheads into the water. That’s when the sailors finally sprang into action. They battled the fire on board, eventually putting it out.
They had to shut down the nuclear reactors by hand because the control mechanisms were damaged. Three sailors died.
A Soviet ship tried to rescue the sub by pulling it to safety. But that did not work because the tow cord broke. The captain of the sub, Igor Britanov, decided to abandon ship. The sub sunk to the bottom of the ocean and the missiles were lost. The whole encounter lasted three days.
The Reagan administration even offered to help the Soviets and American officials appreciated that the Soviets informed them of the tragedy the day it happened. Fortunately, no radioactivity or nuclear explosion happened. The surviving sailors made it out and Captain Britanov was the last to leave the sub alive, in accordance with naval customs………………………………………………………………………………….
The K-219 was clearly faulty and the crew did not react well to the emergency. It should be considered one of the worst submarines of all time because it carried nuclear missiles and there was a fire on board. This made it one of the most dangerous submarines to ever float. Gorbachev feared the worst and he was correct to blame the crew. They reacted slowly to the original leak and did not check the power system before engaging the water pump.
They should have known that gas was present and that employing electrical power would be dangerous. This was one of the most hazardous maritime situations in the Cold War. The Soviets and the Americans were lucky it was not worse. https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/k-219-why-russias-worst-submarine-ever-and-nuclear-disaster-207495
COP28 must stick to 1.5°C target to save ice sheets, urge scientists
A report warns that 2°C of global warming would mean losing most of the world’s ice sheets and glaciers, leading to catastrophic sea level rise
By Alec Luhn, 16 November 2023
The world must stick to its target to limit climate warming to 1.5°C to avoid catastrophic melting of ice sheets and glaciers, according to a report.
The International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI), a group of scientists who study ice-covered parts of the world, warns that a rise of 2°C would liquidate most tropical and mid-latitude glaciers and set off long-term melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, leading to 12 to 20 metres of sea level rise.
In the 2015 Paris Agreement, all countries committed to holding global average temperature to “well below 2°C” over pre-industrial levels and “pursuing efforts” to limit it to 1.5°C. Our still-rising greenhouse gas emissions have already caused almost 1.2°C of warming and put us on track to exceed 3°C.
More than 350 cryosphere scientists have signed an open letter calling on countries to commit to the 1.5°C limit at the upcoming COP28 climate summit in Dubai.
“From the cryosphere point of view, 1.5°C is not simply preferable to 2°C or higher. It is the only option,” Iceland’s prime minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir said in a statement.
Earth’s regions of snow and ice are melting faster than we expected and already approaching tipping points, says Jonathan Bamber at the University of Bristol, UK, who reviewed the ICCI report, while otherspoint to the rapid uptake of solar and wind energy as reason for continued hope. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2403404-cop28-must-stick-to-1-5c-target-to-save-ice-sheets-urge-scientists/
No Ceasefire in the Propaganda War
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2023/11/no-ceasefire-in-the-propaganda-war/
I have had BBC News on in the background for the last two hours. In that time there have been three lengthy interviews with different relatives of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. There has not been a single interview with a Palestinian relative of a Palestinian prisoner held by Israel.
Today 13 Israeli prisoners and 39 Palestinian prisoners are due to be released. 90% of the BBC mentions of prisoner releases do not include the Palestinians at all. Just finished is a ten minute interview of a Professor in Kent on the psychological effects on Israeli hostages. Earlier there was an expert from Tel Aviv on the psychological impact on Israeli hostages’ families. There has been no report whatsoever of the impact on Palestinian prisoners and their families.
The BBC simply does not treat the Palestinians as human, whereas the emphasis on Israeli personal victimhood is incessant and unrelenting.
Of the 300 Palestinian women and children prisoners on the list possibly to be released during the ceasefire, 252 have never been charged with any crime. 23 were charged with stone throwing.
Since October 8 over 200 Palestinian children have been taken prisoner, none of whom had anything to do with the October 7 attacks. That rather puts the possible release of 33 children and six women today into perspective. But it is not a perspective the BBC would ever give you.
Over 2,000 Palestinians are held by Israel in “administrative detention”, without charge or trial. Some for over twenty years.
Since 1967 Israel has made over 1 million arrests of Palestinians. This “justice” system is an essential part of the imposition of apartheid and the slow genocide, which did not just start this autumn. The BBC won’t tell you that either, and appears to have no problem with permanently showcasing its Israel based correspondents churning out the Israeli propaganda narrative, with no attempt at either perspective or balance.
Mercifully shorter nuclear news this week
This news roundup has become too long. I am going to try to limit the headlines about the Israeli and Ukraine wars, as not being actually “nuclear” news. That’s harder than you might think, as in each case we are brought closer to the brink of nuclear wars. (Those excluded items will still appear on nuclear-news.net.
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Some bits of good news. Blue whales have returned to a region of the Indian Ocean, where they were wiped out by commercial whalers. Millionaires implored the UK government to tax them.
Some Good News About Climate: Costs for renewables have plummeted and growth is exceeding expectations
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TOP STORIES. A new Palestinian state could never be free as long as its neighbor, Israel, possesses nuclear weapons.
What Would It Mean to ‘Absorb’ a Nuclear Attack?- nuclear missile silos as a “sponge”.
The Shape of Nuclear Abolition.
Soaring death rates raise concerns about Portsmouth nuclear plant .
Climate. COP28 must stick to 1.5°C target to save ice sheets, urge scientists. The great carbon divide: On the trail of the super-polluters.
Christina notes. The international political system of nuclear bullying must change, or it will kill us all. Rafael Grossi’s and the IAEA’s breath-taking hypocrisy , as the nuclear lobby revs up for COP 28.
AUSTRALIA. Independents pressure Australia on nuclear ban treaty ahead of UN meeting. Fine print bombshell – share information which “undermines trust in government”, face jail. Nuclear protesters in hazmat suits heckle Peter Dutton before they’re evicted from NSW Liberal Party conference in Sydney.
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CLIMATE. For climate summit the desperate nuclear lobby will pretend that nuclear fusion is a real solution . Energy and Climate Scenarios Paradoxically Assume Considerable Nuclear Energy Growth.
CIVIL LIBERTIES. First Tel Aviv Anti-War Demonstration Reveals the Limits on Protest in Today’s Israel.
ECONOMICS.
- Rolls Royce panicking, as UK government and investors are lukewarm about its small nuclear reactor project? Poor nuclear prospects in UK.
- Finland extends nuclear reactor outage, pushing up power price.
- The Russian nuclear industry during wartime, 2022 and early 2023.
- Etopia Report: the nuclear problem – economic realities.
- Engie demands close scrutiny of French nuclear power deal to ensure competition.
- Xcel’s Prairie Island nuclear plant will be out of commission until January.
ENVIRONMENT. Oceans. Japan’s Fukushima plant completes third water release.
INDIGENOUS ISSUES. The Members of This Reservation Learned They Live with Nuclear Weapons. Can Their Reality Ever Be the Same?
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Small Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) : Failed U.S. Nuclear Project Raises Cost Concerns for Canadian SMR Development . Small nuclear reactors are NOT emissions-free. Military revokes planned contract for small nuclear reactor plant at Eielson AFB.
OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . South Texans are publicly fighting SpaceX after second Starship launch.
POLITICS. New Brunswick Premier Higgs says Canada’s federal government should give funding for small nuclear reactor projects. Malaysian Govt urged to halt Australian company Lynas’ thorium extraction plan. Revealed: Biden’s ‘nuclear football’ contains BOOK that tells president how to launch attack by contacting ‘Looking Glass’ plane and spherical bunker where four keys ignite missiles
POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY.
- Czech Republic, France and others will use “Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy” to push for EU funding to the nuclear industry.
- UK’s Foreign Secretary urged to send observers to nuclear ban meeting in New York.
- IAEA urges Countries in Mideast, Israel to join nuclear ban treaty, open facilities for inspection.
- Second Meeting of State Parties to Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to Be Held at Headquarters, 27 November–1 December.
- In softening on China, the West may be trying to avoid a nuclear arms race.
- Japanese and Chinese top envoys eye more talks on Fukushima row.
SAFETY. Incidents. Nuclear submarine scare for 140 British crew due to ‘faulty’ gauge. Hacktivists breach U.S. nuclear research lab, steal employee data. K-219: Russia’s Worst Submarine Ever (And a Nuclear Disaster)?
SECRETS and LIES. Possibly irradiated items stolen at site 3 km from Fukushima plant.
WASTES. The Deeper Dig: A plan for what’s left of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. Decommissioning: Nuclear Power: UK’s Financial Challenge Unveiled. Tories, Labour clash over Milton Keynes nuclear waste claims. A Photographer Goes Inside the Ruins of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant.
WAR and CONFLICT. Israel expands Gaza operation amid hostage deal talks. Gaza Massacre could lead to Nuclear War.
We’re long past nuclear deterrence: Bring on mutually assured prevention. Disarmament Grows More Distant as US Plans Another “Upgrade” to Nuclear Bomb.
WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Why is the US ramping up production of plutonium ‘pits’ for nuclear weapons?
What do we know about Israel’s nuclear weapons? Nuclear tinderbox’: Kim’s threats put North Korea on wrong side of history. South Korea does not need nuclear subs. Beyond Current Chaos: The Escalating Risks of Nuclear War.
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 