Delays Threaten Russia Waste Cleanup

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

Delays Threaten Russia Waste Cleanup

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) - Delays in funding may jeopardize 
efforts to remove nuclear waste from a deteriorating ship being used 
as a dump in Russia's far north, a top nuclear official said 
Wednesday. 

Norway and other nations earlier pledged to fund the cleanup, but 
have since put off signing agreements to move the project forward. 
According to the Interfax news agency, Russia's Deputy Minister of 
Atomic Energy Valery Lebedev said the donor nations are holding up 
efforts to remove the nuclear waste stored aboard a small ship called 
the Lepse, which is anchored in Murmansk harbor. 

Murmansk is a major Russian seaport located just east of Norway, the 
nation that has pledged the largest share of funding. 

Lebedev said Russia would not take responsibility for the project's 
failure if donors were reluctant to sign agreements and held up 
funding, Interfax reported. 

Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide has denied the 
project is in danger. He said France and the Nordic Financing 
Cooperative are finalizing legal requirements with Russia before 
signing on, and that their agreements will complete the funding 
package. 

``We think that will go quickly,'' he said, adding that his nation 
could not release its share until all the details are settled. 

Environmentalists have called the small, run-down ship a floating 
Chernobyl because of the radioactive waste stored haphazardly in its 
hold. The waste is not in immediate danger of leaking but cannot be 
safely removed using ordinary cranes. Meanwhile, the vessel is slowly 
decaying in the harbor. 

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Sandy Perle					Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100   				    	
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