[ RadSafe ] [Nuclear News] French radiation overdose scandal wider than thought

Fri Sep 7 16:04:13 CDT 2007

Index:

French radiation overdose scandal wider than thought
Flood of new nuclear reactors expected
Putin Gets A Nuclear Boost Down Under 
Groups pull out of nuclear debate  
Conservationists call for investigation into nuclear waste leak 
Nuclear industry does not fear competition from gas
Welch calls for safety review of aging nuclear reactors
Four nuclear plants planned in Thailand 
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French radiation overdose scandal wider than thought

NANCY, France (AFP) Sept 7 - The number of people given overdoses of 
radiation at a cancer treatment centre in northeast France is much 
higher than previously thought following the discovery of 300 new 
cases, Health Minister Roselyne Bachelot said Friday. 

A total of 721 men suffering from prostate cancer are now known to 
have received excessive amounts of radiation due to a calibration 
error at the Epinal general hospital between 1999 and 2006. Twenty-
four were seriously affected and five of these have died.

When the scandal was first revealed earlier this year, only 421 cases 
were identified.

Health authorities are trying to contact the estimated 4,500 patients 
who were treated at the centre.
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Flood of new nuclear reactors expected

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) Sept 7 - Federal regulators, girding for 
explosive growth in the nuclear power industry, say they are weeks 
away from an anticipated flood of license applications for new 
reactors not seen since the 1970s. 

"There are a lot of challenges for new construction," said Bill 
Borchardt, director of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's newly 
created Office of New Reactors. "And a lot of challenges for the 
NRC."

The independent regulatory agency expects to receive new fast-tracked 
combined construction and operating license applications for as many 
as 29 reactors at 20 sites, most in the South, over the next three 
years.

The first could come as early as Oct. 1, the start of the federal 
fiscal year.

"We have never had to do this many reviews at one time in parallel 
with an office that has only existed for less than 12 months," 
Borchardt said Thursday at the NRC's reactor training center in 
Chattanooga.

"Nobody thinks this is going to be easy."

Borchardt has hired more than 400 inspectors, engineers and examiners 
to handle the load. Ultimately, the power companies will be billed 
for their time. The office is nearly as large as the NRC unit 
overseeing the country's existing 104 commercial reactor fleet.

Growing electricity demand, energy supply security concerns and 
greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels are driving a nuclear 
revival in this country after a three-decade chill. Improvements in 
nuclear operating experience and efficiency have also played a role, 
Borchardt said.

Some of the power companies expected to file soon for new reactors 
include the Tennessee Valley Authority, as part of the NuStart group 
for its Bellefonte site in Alabama; Duke Energy, for its Lee Station 
in South Carolina; NRG Energy, for its South Texas Project; Dominion 
Energy, for the North Anna site in Virginia; Southern Co., for its 
Vogtle plant in Georgia; and South Carolina Electric & Gas, for its 
Summer station.

Most want to begin construction in five to six years and be online by 
2015 to 2020, Borchardt said.

All are looking to use advanced reactor designs, which the NRC is 
working to approve in advance in standardized form to hurry along the 
process.

Two of five most likely designs already have been certified by the 
NRC. The others are either under review or expected to be submitted 
by year's end.

The new reactors are expected to have significant safety improvements 
over current boiling-water and pressurized-water designs in today's 
U.S. reactors.

They will have multiple independent systems to cool reactor cores in 
an emergency, multiple backup power systems, digital control rooms 
and more passive systems to open and close valves automatically by 
gravity or water flow, to reduce human error.

The reactors also will have enhanced post-9/11 security features, 
including hardened concrete exteriors that can better withstand the 
shock of events such as an airplane strike.

And to keep reactors on the fast track, most will incorporate modular 
construction with large parts - the reactor vessel, for instance - 
made in other locations, such as Japan. Some large components already 
are being ordered, Borchardt said.

Using standardized design and modular construction "allows General 
Electric to (be able) to claim that they can construct from first 
concrete to reactor critical - an entire power plant - in 
approximately 36 months," NRC reactor technology instructor Richard 
DeVercelly said.

That's about how long it took to build two new reactors in Japan that 
use an advanced boiling-water design that the NRC has certified for 
U.S. power companies, he said. 

By comparison, TVA took five years alone to rebuild and restart its 
oldest reactor at the Browns Ferry station in Alabama, which returned 
to service this year. 

"It is pretty clear that the plants will be built more rapidly (and) 
are going to make extensive use of modular construction," Borchardt 
said. "One of the great lessons from the 1960s and 1970s is that you 
do a much better job if you can design them before you start building 
them. (That's true) whether you are building a house or anything 
else."
-------------------

Putin Gets A Nuclear Boost Down Under 

LONDON - Despite his government's less-than-stellar record on human 
rights Russian President Vladimir Putin has built a following among 
his country's voters. And its not just due to those photos of him 
fishing shirtless that have grabbed the electorate's imagination, but 
his very public efforts to further Russian interests internationally. 

His latest coup came Friday, after the Australian prime minister John 
Howard said his country agreed to sell uranium to Russia for nuclear 
power generation, on condition that the material was not then sold to 
Iran. 

"Any uranium that is sold to Russia will be sold under very strict 
safeguards," said Howard after a meeting with Putin in Sydney, 
according to the BBC. The meeting took place ahead of a summit of 
Pacific Rim leaders, who included President George W. Bush. 

Though the use of nuclear power is currently forbidden under 
Australian law, the country controls approximately 40.0% of the 
world's uranium reserves. 

"It's a very significant deal for Russia," said Mikhail Stiskin, an 
analyst at Russian investment bank Troika Dialog. 

Russia has been trying to rapidly expand its nuclear power industry. 
One way the nation has done this is by forming Atomenergoprom, a 
state holding company, which brought the entire nuclear sector in 
Russia under one umbrella, in July. The company is responsible for 
everything nuclear in Russia, from uranium extraction and reactor 
development to disposal and decommissioning. 

By boosting its nuclear industry, the country is hoping to free more 
of its natural gas for export and profit. 

The country has tried to rapidly expand its nuclear power industry. 
Nuclear power currently accounts for 16.0% of electricity generated 
in Russia, though the country hopes to increase to 25.0%. 

Russia's own domestic production of uranium--which is far outstripped 
by demand--could threaten its ability to reach this target, however. 

"Uranium production is the weakest link in Russia's plans to expand 
its nuclear energy industry," said Stiskin. "We have pretty abundant 
uranium resources, but they are largely under-explored." 

The country requires between 14 to 15 kilo tons of uranium a year to 
satisfy both home demand and foreign contracts, but only produces 3.2 
kilo tons domestically. 

The deal could have wider significance, in terms of Russia and 
Australia's relationship. 

"This contract signifies much wider cooperation in the field of 
nuclear energy. For example it could lead to the construction of 
Russian nuclear power plants in Australia," said Stiskin. He added 
that though the use of nuclear energy is currently prohibited in 
Australia, there were chances that the legislation could soon be 
changed. 

Coming less than a month after Putin announced that Russian bombers 
would be resuming long-range patrols, the latest development has 
fuelled concern's about the country's aggressive foreign policy. 
Speaking at the meeting with Howard, Putin stressed that the deal was 
an economic one, however.
------------------

Groups pull out of nuclear debate  

The government is in favour of more nuclear power stations 
Environmental groups have pulled out of a consultation on whether the 
UK should build nuclear power stations, saying it is not a "fair and 
full debate". Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth are among those 
unhappy with the way the government has presented the arguments.  

They had already won a High Court ruling that a previous consultation 
was "seriously flawed" and "misleading". 

Business and Enterprise Secretary John Hutton said he would be 
"extremely disappointed" if the groups pulled out. 

Public meetings are being held across the UK on Saturday, on the 
principle of including nuclear power as part of Britain's energy mix, 
but a coalition of groups has withdrawn its support. 

It is up to the government to decide, is it going to carry out a 
proper public consultation or not?  

Most existing nuclear power stations are due to close by 2023 and the 
government has said its "preliminary view" is that new stations 
should be built - to reduce carbon emissions and Britain's reliance 
on foreign oil and gas imports. 

Environmental groups say that the consultation, rather than 
presenting a "fair and full public debate", was more about promoting 
nuclear power. 

John Sauven, from Greenpeace, told BBC News: "It is up to the 
government to decide, is it going to carry out a proper public 
consultation or not? 

"Their own advisers have told them that this consultation should last 
for nine months, it should put all the information before the public, 
and they have been very critical of the way it is currently being 
carried out." 

'Stitch-up' 

The environmental organisations have formed a coalition, and branded 
the consultation process a "public relations stitch-up". 

Friends of the Earth said it would not be sending representatives to 
the meetings, and that it would make its case officially to the 
government. 

Earlier this year Greenpeace successfully challenged a previous 
consultation on the issue at the High Court arguing it had been "a 
sham". 

It is possible that the government might change its view 

The judge granted a quashing order and the government began the new 
consultation. 

Mr Hutton said the government had made a preliminary view about the 
nuclear issue but did not have a "closed mind". 

"It is possible that the government might change its view," he said, 
but told the BBC it would take a "very, very strong" argument to 
persuade them to reduce the "nuclear element in the energy mix". 

'Long-term interests' 

A spokesman for his department later said time was "pressing" as most 
power stations were due to close within decades. 

He added: "John Hutton is clear that whatever decision the government 
finally makes, it is absolutely in the national interest that we make 
a decision and urgently - our livelihoods and the future health of 
the planet depend on us getting this right. 

"That is why he thinks it is so regrettable that Greenpeace's tactics 
seem to be to do everything they possibly can do to delay and 
undermine the process of consultation that they themselves 
demanded.'' 

But Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell said he understood 
concerns about the "deeply flawed consultation". 

"The government has failed to observe the spirit of the High Court 
ruling, by making up its mind on nuclear power long before this 
latest consultation had even begun," he said. 

The government's Energy White Paper on the future of power supplies 
in the UK also backs renewable energy and efficiency measures. 
------------------

Conservationists call for investigation into nuclear waste leak 

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Sept 7 - Some conservation groups and lawmakers 
called Thursday for an investigation of South Carolina's 
environmental agency because of concerns that information about a 
nuclear waste leak at a Barnwell County facility was not properly 
disclosed.

Conservationists also are seeking the release of the state Department 
of Health and Environmental Control's pollution records about Chem-
Nuclear's low-level atomic waste landfill.

"We are tired of a DHEC which shrinks from taking on polluting 
industries," said Ann Timberlake, director of the Conservation Voters 
of South Carolina. "We are tired of our regulators appearing as 
enablers and defenders" of industries.

Tritium levels in wells beneath the site have registered as above 
federal standards for safe drinking water, but DHEC has said that the 
material hasn't tainted drinking wells. Members of a committee 
debating the site's future were told earlier this year that there had 
been a tritium leak in the past, but Chem-Nuclear officials said it 
had been "caught in time."

"This isn't a little issue," said Rep. Joan Brady, R-Columbia, a 
member of the panel that voted to allow the site to accept waste from 
only South Carolina, New Jersey and Connecticut beginning next July. 
"This is about public safety. This is about public health. This is 
about drinking water."

Chem-Nuclear has been trying to reduce the tritium leaks by closing 
landfill trenches to keep rainwater out of burial pits and is using 
synthetic liners above some trenches to repel rainwater that would 
leach through the nuclear garbage into groundwater, DHEC officials 
have said.

State Attorney General Henry McMaster has also called for tougher 
groundwater monitoring standards at the site, pressing DHEC to 
enforce federal standards. The site has operated since 1971 under 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission standards without consideration of 
benchmarks set by the Environmental Protection Agency.
------------------

Nuclear industry does not fear competition from gas

LONDON, Sept 7 (Reuters) - The nuclear power industry in the United 
States will stay cost competitive against natural gas as long as gas 
prices stay above $3 per million British thermal units, senior 
nuclear officials told a conference this week. 
"Gas in $3 to 4 per million BTU (British thermal units) is probably a 
market when we start to compete," President and CEO Steve Tritch at 
Westinghouse Electric told the World Nuclear Association's annual 
Symposium. 

Today 16 percent of global energy supply comes from nuclear power, 
but with world demand for electricity expected to double by 2030, 
energy from nuclear as well as other sources would have to increase, 
Tritch told the London audience. 

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, October natural gas traded at 
$5.54 per million BTU on Friday. 

Henry Hub natural gas futures have held above $5 all year, according 
to Reuters data. 

"If we look at some of the recent prices of gas we feel our plants 
will be extremely competitive," Tritch said.         

Westinghouse Electric, mainly owned by Japan's Toshiba Corporation , 
supplies fuel as well as building reactors. Its technology is found 
in 60 percent of U.S. nuclear power plants. 

Westinghouse has operations in 12 states and 14 countries with annual 
sales of approximately $1.8 billion. 

HIGH URANIUM COSTS 

Uranium prices hit a record of $136 in June and spot uranium was 
trading around $90 per pound this week. 

But that has only a limited impact on the competitiveness of nuclear 
energy because very little is required to produce large amounts of 
power. 

According to the Paris-based Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), the cost of 
uranium represents only 5 percent of the total cost of generating 
nuclear electricity. 

The costs related to the fuel cycle (including purchasing, 
converting, enriching uranium and disposing of spent fuel) represent 
about 15 percent of total costs, the NEA said. 

By contrast, the cost of gas represents 76 percent of the total cost 
of electricty generation. 

Gas prices for U.S. futures have averaged around $7 this year, 
hitting a low of just above $5 in August and a peak of around $8 in 
April, according to Reuters data. 

French nuclear technology group Areva's President and CEO of Nuclear 
NP Luc Oursel predicted gas prices will rise rather than fall. 

"We don't see why...the gas price will come down," he said. 

He said the cost of offsetting the carbon emissions associated with 
burning gas would ultimately push U.S. prices higher, on the 
assumption the United States would adopt a carbon trading scheme, as 
has already happened on European markets. 

Nuclear power stations do not produce the carbon emissions blamed for 
global warming.
-------------------

Welch calls for safety review of aging nuclear reactors

VERNON (AP) - Congressman Peter Welch has joined Sen. Bernie Sanders 
in calling for extensive safety reviews of older nuclear power plants 
following two incidents at Vermont Yankee that have shaken public 
faith in the Vernon reactor.

Under the bill, governors would be allowed to seek independent review 
of the plants in their state or adjacent states when the reactors 
seek power upgrades or new licenses.

Federal regulators gave Vermont Yankee a passing grade for safety in 
a recent inspection, before the two recent incidents.

On August 21st, a cooling tower collapse prompted Vermont Yankee to 
cut power in half, and nine days later, the plant automatically shut 
down, apparently because of lack of grease in a bearing that is part 
of a large motor-operated valve. It has since resumed making power.
------------------

Four nuclear plants planned in Thailand 

Thailand ´s energy minister said Friday that his country wants to 
build at least four nuclear power plants - in an attempt to offset 
dependence on imported oil and gas. 

Energy Minister Piyasvasti Amranand said he envisioned the first, 
4,000 megawatt nuclear plant becoming operational by 2020 and that as 
many as four would likely built to make them cost effective. 

"In the long-run, we have to look at something that is sustainable, 
cost-effective and something that doesn't worsen global warming," 
Piyasvasti said in a speech. "The only answer is nuclear. Without 
nuclear, you couldn't reduce greenhouse gases." 

Thailand is just the latest country in Southeast Asian to consider 
building nuclear power plants, which would help meet its power 
demand, which is rising at 5 percent a year and reduce its dependence 
on foreign oil and natural gas. 

Last month, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' annual 
Ministers on Energy meeting agreed to set up a network to explore 
nuclear safety issues after acknowledging that some of its members 
were exploring civilian nuclear energy as an alternative energy 
source. 

Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam are among ASEAN members that have 
stated their intention to build nuclear power plants in the next 
decade. 

But environmentalist have warned that nuclear power would be unsound 
in a region where earthquakes, landslides and floods are routine. 
Indonesia, for example, is prone to seismic upheaval due to its 
location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos 
and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. 

But Pyasvasti said Japan's experience with nuclear power showed it 
was a safe option for the region. 

"Certainly you have to take into account seismic zones and things 
like that," he said. "But look at Japan. What has happened to Japan 
shows how safe nuclear is. Isn't it remarkable - a nuclear power 
plant sitting on a fault yet there has been no problems with 
radiation." 

In July, a magnitude-6.8 quake caused malfunctions and leaks at 
Japan's northern Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, the world's 
largest in terms of capacity. But the International Atomic Energy 
Agency said key parts of the facility sustained little damage in the 
quake, thought it said further observation was needed to determine 
any long-term effects.

-----------------------------------------
Sander C. Perle
President
Global Dosimetry Solutions, Inc.
2652 McGaw Avenue
Irvine, CA 92614 

Tel: (949) 296-2306 / (888) 437-1714  Extension 2306
Fax:(949) 296-1144

E-Mail: sperle at dosimetry.com
E-Mail: sandyfl at cox.net 

Global Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com/ 