Antinuclear

The United Nations weather agency on the impact of climate change on the cryosphere

Climate change: UN agency laments northern summer’s ‘deep wound’ to Earth’s ice cover   https://www.9news.com.au/world/climate-change-news-un-agency-laments-summers-deep-wound-to-earth-ice-cover/52152578-420d-40af-932f-cab14f5af6ac, By Associated Press-Sep 1, 2020   The United Nations weather agency says this summer will go down for leaving a “deep wound” in the cryosphere — the planet’s frozen parts — amid a heat wave in the Arctic, shrinking sea ice and the collapse of a leading Canadian ice shelf.

September 7, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News | Leave a comment

Arctic melting permafrost a serious problem (and they want to put Small Modular Nuclear Reactors there!)

Destabilising of infrastructure in Arctic regions , as permafrost melts, is a compelling reason why it is madness to plan for Small Modular Nuclear Reactors in Northern Canada 

Whatever Happened To … The Melting Permafrost?   0893 KPCCC, Nadia Whitehead | NPR | September 6, 2020 “…………… It’s not just warmer temperatures that pose a problem for the permafrost. Scientists are now investigating whether rainfall could be causing serious issues in the Arctic’s permafrost – with repercussions for humans.

Since 2013, Fairbanks, Alaska, has had two of the wettest years in recorded history. A total ofo 14.6 inches of rain fell in the summer of 2014; it was the wettest summer yet. And that’s not a good thing for permafrost, says Thomas Douglas, a geochemist in the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

Permafrost — completely frozen ground composed of materials like soil, rocks and even bones and plants — makes up a nearly a quarter of the Northern Hemisphere. Much of it has been frozen for thousands of years.

Warming temperatures have begun to thaw permafrost, and now, increased rainfall seems to be intensifying the problem, according to Douglas’ latest study in Climate and Atmospheric Science, published in July.

“In general, across the arctic, the thought is that things are getting wetter,” Douglas says, but particularly in Fairbanks. “2014 and 2016 were the #1 and #3 summer precipitation years in what was then a 90-year record. Shattering records like this is just really unique.”……….

The thaw was worse in some locations more than others, depending on the terrain where measurements were taken. Forests and mossy landscapes seemed to protect the permafrost. There, for every additional inch of rain, the permafrost thawed by an additional quarter of an inch.

But in locations where human activity – such as trails and clearings — had altered the land, the thaw was worse. For every additional inch of rain, the researchers saw an additional inch of thaw. At one particular site, permafrost thaw depth grew from 47 inches in 2013 to nearly 75 inches in 2017.

Douglas explains, “When you remove vegetation, that’s like leaving the lid open on your cooler on a summer day. It allows heat and water to get down in the permafrost pretty rapidly.”

Out of all the team’s research, Douglas says their most important finding was that thinner layers of thawed permafrost seem to be vanishing — literally thawing away……….

September 7, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News | Leave a comment

Rupert Murdoch’s British papers delayed as climate protesters stop the presses

Rupert Murdoch’s British papers delayed as climate protesters stop the presses, SMH  6 Sept, 20,   London: Distribution of several British newspapers was disrupted on Saturday after climate change activists blockaded printworks used by Rupert Murdoch’s News UK, publisher of The Times and The Sun, drawing condemnation from Prime Minister Boris Johnson.Extinction Rebellion said nearly 80 people had blocked roads leading to two printworks, at Broxbourne in Hertfordshire, north east of London, and at Knowsley, near Liverpool. Hertfordshire police said they made 42 arrests and Merseyside police made 30.

The Murdoch-owned Newsprinters works also print the Daily Mail, the Daily Telegraph and the Financial Times. Campaigners said they had taken the action to highlight what they regard as the newspapers’ failure to accurately report on climate change. ……….

The blockade was part of more than a week of protests by Extinction Rebellion, which says an emergency response and mass move away from polluting industries and behaviours is needed to avert a looming climate cataclysm.

On Saturday it also protested in central London, including holding a “die-in” in front of Buckingham Palace, where demonstrators lay under white sheets to represent corpses. …….. https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/rupert-mudoch-s-british-newspapers-delayed-as-extinction-rebellion-protesters-stop-the-presses-20200905-p55sqr.html

September 7, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News | Leave a comment

The Small Modular Nuclear Reactor lobby targets Canada’s indigenous people

The nuclear lobby’s tactics world wide are uncannily similar.  South Australians in the Kimba area will recognise the tactics of bribery, disinformation, etc used in Norther Canada, where another disadvantaged community is pushed into hosting nuclear facilities, that nobody down South wants.
First Nations Targeted for Untested Small Modular Nuclear Reactors:   Libbe Halevy interviews  Candyce Paul , Nuclear  Hot Seat   Saskatchewan by Libbe HaLevy | Sep 3, 2020

Notes – (not a completely accurate transcript), by NoelWauchope

Candyce Paul:  Uranium mining in Saskatchewan.     Uranium was mined in the 50s for the cold war, essentially for nuclear weapons. Primarily on the land of indigenous people.

Little information was supplied to the people, but they did understand that it was for weapons, and they knew traditionally, the indigenous  people  knew – that the black rock should stay in the ground……….there were legends that once it comes out of the ground it would bring death and destruction.

The miners wwere not predominantly indigenous.    There are over 40 legacy mines. Very poorly cleaned up  – piles of uranium talings left for 60 years –  blowing around,  contaminating lake, entering streams.  Once these tailings are ingested – many years later comes poor health, soaring cancer rates, children with cognitive and physical disabilities.   More mines were opened in late 70s, early eighties.  Since then, miners have been flyng in flying out, for 2 week sessions.   This has been having its impact on the social structure.  Jobs in the mines are  the only jobs, the only  economy being offered in Northern Saskatchewan.  Only one mine is operating now. This is Cigar Lake, it just re-opened.   The fly-in miners were initially settlers, later the mines were hiring indigenous people – 49% were indigenous, – the indigenous people got the dirty and more dangerous work.  Young indigenous  worked in the mills, non indigenous in the offices.  Because it is the only economy around, – they paid for it later with illnesses.   There were many complaints, but people were blacklisted if they complained.

Mining slowed down since Fukushima.  Gradually all mines shut down, except Cigar Lake. In 2011 Northern Saskatchewan was targeted for nuclear waste .  Most people did not want the wastes, millions of times more radioactive than the uranium.

In the community where I live, Northern Saskatchewan , we raised 20, 000  signatures  in a petition against it, and  delivered it to the legidlature  80% of residents opposed it. The nuclear waste authority pulled out in 2014.  We based our opinions on facts, had talked to scientists, physicists from all over the world.

Question from Liby Halevy about current state of affairs  – What do you think about the creation of an inter-provincial corporate partnership to support the launch of a research centre to support the development of small nuclear reactors?

 Candyce Paul:  Canada, and the nuclear industry have been looking for a way to keep the nuclear industry alive.       The only way they can come up with this is to promote Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMNRs) for use in Northern Canada.  Most Canadians live in the Southern parts, the lower third of Canada.  In the North the people are  mainly indigenous. There are big resources there.   Diesel fuel is in use.   The Canadian Mining Association is pushing Small  Modular Nuclear Reactors – promoting this to northern communities, (who get most electricity from diesel),  as far North as beyond the Arctic circle. The University of Saskatchewan has been used to promote this idea, getting research done on it..  The Canadian Nuclear Laboratories  is a  conglomerate of companies, mostly pretty shady, for example, SNC Lavalin, which is up on charges and exposed as interfering  at the highest levels of government to prevent charges against it.  SNC Lavalin is not allowed to borrow money, or bid on construction projects funded by the World Bank, because of bribery charges in the past.  It has bribery charges in Canada, too. The Government of Canada has dozens of contracts with SNC Lavalin.

A decade ago the government, who owned Atomic Energy Canada, broke it up, sold it to this conglomerate for $12 million.-  a pittance. The top laboratory is in Northern Ottawa, was making medical isotopes, and  was closed down, still classified, and there’s  a ton. of wastes there. Then there’s Pinewa labs in Manatoba, which  had some sort of accident that is still classified.  At that time a moratorium was placed on storing wastes in Manatoba. They were researching deep underground storage of nuclear wastes. Since Atomic Energy Of Canada Limited (AECL) was sold they are now going to bury onsite the waste that is there.  At Chalk River Laboratories they are going to build a mound around the wastes. within 100 metres of the Ottawa River, upstream of Ottawa.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is to develop Small Modular Nuclear Reactors, promoting at Chalk River, and at  Pinewa and at Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station New Brunswick.   In 2019 the Provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan  and New Brunswick signed a memorandum of understanding to try and develop SMNRs – Ontario and New Brunswick have nuclear power stations.  Saskatchewan has the uranium mines.  In 2008-9 the Saskatchewan government had been promoting the full nuclear chain, reprocessing etc. Saskatchewan people didn’t want it. After that we had the nuclear waste issue, which squashed that plan.

They opened the Centre for Nuclear Innovation at University of Sasatchewan to promote nuclear development of all kinds. Just prior to that they announced a new office , a Nuclear Secretariat to promote SMNRs in Saskatchewan. I’m pretty sure that there’s public money going into this. That is the concern  Northern communities could not afford a nuclear power station, small or large. Northern communities could not use that amount of energy.  In Northern Saskatchewan  80% of electricity used is used by the mining industry-  in Saskatchewan  it’s primarily the uranium industry.  So who does it benefit? It benefits themselves.

A place on Baffin Island, when they were being pitched these SMNRs,  put out a review, thoroughly researched-   pointing out the safety problems – the inability of emergency help to reach there.in time, in the event of a nuclear  accident. Proponents of nuclear power talk about a smaller exclusion zone,  a few km radius.   – But this is all wilderness -in huge  ecosystems  These Northern areas are primarily water.  If an accident happens, pollution would be flowing in water, the exclusion zone would not apply. The radiotoxicity in the case of accident would be massive.

They are promoting themselves as green –  but they are putting out pollutants in processing, milling, and if they started reprocessing the radiotoxicity pollution would be massive.  There are leaks in the mills, that have gone through the floor of the milling stations. The molybdenum extraction plant has a leak getting into groundwater, and that hasn’t been addressed. So how do we trust them?

Libby Halevy: With the push for these cute little modular, sounds like Lego reactors, being so heavily promoted – what are you and your communities doing?

Candyce Paul: We are pushing to educate the community about these SMNRs. Working along with an education co-op,  about SMNRs and the fact that no nuclear will get in here unsubsidised. The community, the energy providers can’t afford it.  It needs public money .  There’s an election coming up. The two main parties are pretty much on the same wavelength promoting it.

They’re promoting it as the answer to greenhouse gases.   It will take about 30 years before there’s a SMNR-   during which time they’re doing nothing about greenhouse  gases. They want it to get at the tar sands in Saskatchewan, to help develop the tar sands. – Alberta is now pushing nuclear to provide the power for tar sands extraction.

We don’t have much population  The population is down South. The decisions are made down South. The voting power is down South.  It’s the only work that people up here can get  The education system here is influenced by the uranium companies, from kindergarten to the curriculum upwards. The mining companies  don’t want our people knowledgeable.    We need help  from professionals, technicians, but we have a difficult time in getting this help.  If they help us they may not get work again.  That’s a huge factor.

We’re working on some videos, short messages.  We need people to help us with reviews, reviews of environmental impact statements, during the very short public comment period.. It has to be done on science. They want only scientific facts. It doesn’t necessarily have to be logical,  but it has to be science. The nuclear lobby thinks they’re indisputable, that their technology knowledge puts them above you.

We’re supposed to have ”consultation” as indigenous communities – ”free prior informed consent ”. They come in and tell us what they’re going to do. It’s already pre approved.

They do a fishing expedition to find what the community wants and needs, (what bribes) can we provide to get you on side.They have kept our communities intentionally needy, under-resourced. Shortage of health and education services, not a lot of jobs.  People want jobs – they offer jobs.  They put through their environmental impact statements, but the community does not get properly informed, – the statement does not get a properly informed consent  .  They play people against each other  – those who need jobs today versus those who care about the land and the future generations.

We’ve been in a bust economy for  2 years, because of the low uranium price, but there are still aspirational uranium companies coming in.applying for licences to mine.They put though their EIS during Covid-19 without the community consultations being completed. We then get 30 days to put together something.  – it’s a farcical process. No time to review it in depth.We hope to get some help.

To help    people with the technology background for reviewing EISs     contact me at   Committee for Future Generations.    on Facebook – or contact Inter-Church Uranium Committee Educational Co-operative (ICUCEC) in Saskatoon, who are  working on this SMNR      Before this election- we are working on pamphlets in language clear and concise that people not highly technical can understand. No pamphlets are available in hospitals here on radiation and  health  People here need to know that these jobs being promoted to their children  have  radiation hazards -not good for health nor for future generations.

They really do not want to stop climate change. They’re using this long long way to  so-called green small modular nuclear reactors   People need to understand the process of lying that is going on about climate change.   SMNR not needed. There’s a process happening here to develop northern Saskat resources that will include a Northern corridor 3000km long several km wide to get at all the resources in Northern Canada, also for for haul routes for all hazardous materials including nuclear  wastes.

They are looking forward to Northwest Passage being opened, so that they use  it can sell more of the resources that they are going to mine from our areas .   The climate will have a huge impact on whether or not they can even run a nuclear reactor, with the increasing temperatures here.

September 5, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News | Leave a comment

Radiation -free medical imaging for some aneurysm patients

Scottsdale hospital implements radiation-free imaging for some aneurysm patients  https://www.azfamily.com/news/health/scottsdale-hospital-implements-radiation-free-imaging-for-some-aneurysm-patients/article_0f1e6346-ee03-11ea-b1f9-37334de91744.html, By Maddy Pumilia, Arizona’s Family producer Sep 3, 2020

September 5, 2020 Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News | Leave a comment