Friday, December 7, 2012

Sheltering in place - 1981 Nat'l Inst for Chemical Studies report - 54-pg PDF

Sheltering in place - 1981 Nat'l Inst for Chemical Studies report - 54-pg PDF


This report provides a look at chemical accidents where sheltering in place was used as a public protective action. It was entered into the record in the Indian Point license renewal proceeding.
Excerpt: "To maximize the protective value of sheltering in place, threatened people must know how to shelter effectively and quickly. Public education in emergency preparedness must include information on how and why to shelter in place. In addition, communities must have ways to alert the public to a chemical threat. Emergency alert systems should be able to provide the public with information about the emergency, simple protective action instructions, and information on where to find additional information about protective actions. In many communities, emergency preparedness instructions, including how to shelter in place, can be found in local phone books. LEPCs (local emergency planning committees) in various areas also have implemented strong public education programs for emergency preparedness."
nuclear.COMment: phone books are rapidly going the way of the dodo bird. New strategies are needed.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

#Chernobyl - is it true that those who live in exclusion zone are living longer than evacuees? #nuclear

#Chernobyl - is it true that those who live in exclusion zone are living longer than evacuees? #nuclear


* Ted Rockwell: A recent study showed that people who refused to evacuate Chernobyl were happier and outlived the evacuees by 20 years, while the evacuees themselves were depressed and suicidal. There is nothing else that is as central to the issue as that one fact.

* [nuclear.COMment] The link provided by Mr. Rockwell isn't actually a study, and it doesn't suggest 20 years difference. Here's the relevant excerpt from the Telegraph newspaper story: The journalist Alexander Anisimov, who spent his career studying the self-settler community, claimed that the women who returned to their ancestral homes in the zone outlived those who left by a decade. No health studies have been done, but anecdotal evidence suggests that most of the babushkas die of strokes rather than any obvious radiation-related illnesses, and they have dealt better with the psychological trauma. Toxic levels of strontium and cesium in the soil are real, but so are the tug of the ancestral home and the health benefits of determining one’s own destiny.

Read more at http://news.nuclear.com/blog7.php/chernobyl-is-it-true-that#jbCGXS3xkCCHa5fi.99 

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Radiation levels around Fukushima are lower than natural levels where people have lived healthily for countless generations

From Theodore Rockwell's letter to editor published in Sept 2012 issue of Nuclar News:

* Low-dose radiation is not harmful, and in the range of interest, is, in fact, beneficial

* There is no scientific basis for attributing radiation damage to doses less than 10 rad

More

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - any injury to endangered species could lead to criminal prosecution

The death or injury of an endangered species would trigger an investigation that could potentially result in prosecution, according to NOAA's Christine Patrick. A nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHXNr

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, endangered species, criminal, prosecution

San Onofre offshore seismic survey planned for 2013 - #nuclear

High-energy seismic surveys, similar to those scheduled for Diablo Canyon area this year, are planned for 2013 in coastal waters near San Onofre. A nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHYCE

key words
nuclear, San Onofre, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - any injury to endangered species could lead to criminal prosecution

The death or injury of an endangered species would trigger an investigation that could potentially result in prosecution, according to NOAA's Christine Patrick. A nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHXNr

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, endangered species, criminal, prosecution

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - larger boat would allow quicker completion, but shallow waters limit survey vessel size

Critics have suggested that PG&E use a larger vessel capable of towing longer echo recording lines.

See more at nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHVUf

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, vessel, boat, size, geophone recorders, shallow waters

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - initial scope has been reduced, to demonstrate safety and effectiveness


On Sept 27, 2012, PG&E scaled back the scope and duration of the project's first phase to demonstrate its safety and effectiveness. The modified proposal would survey 51 square miles, instead of 90, over 12 days, instead of 30. If all goes according to plan, the project will be expanded next year.

See more in nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHTki

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, modified proposal, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, phases, California Public Utilities Commission, PUC, Hosgi fault, Los Osos fault, Shoreline fault, fault zones, Estero Bay, Point Buchon, Department of Fish and Game, permits to harass protected fish and marine mammals

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - PG&E agrees that environmental effects will be significant


... environmental effects will
be significant and likely to include temporary displacement of most of
Morro Bay's harbor porpoise population.


See more at nuclear.com info nugget -- http://adf.ly/DHRSz

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, Central Coast rockfish, whales, Andrew Christie, Sierra Club, Point Buchon State Marine Reserve, harbor porpoises, precedent

Diablo Canyon seismic survey - examples of environmental precautions


High-intensity blasts will be preceded by low-frequency sound waves
aimed at scaring off fish and marine mammals. And much more.  See more at nuclear.com info nugget --

 http://adf.ly/DHPiK

key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom, harbor porpoises, southern sea, otters, blue whales, fin whales, humpback whales, abalone, clams, starfish

Diablo Canyon, San Onofre plan offshore seismic mapping using air cannons


High-energy seismic survey is geophysical equivalent of a CT scan. See nuclear.com info nugget at
http://adf.ly/DHJzG

Key words
nuclear, Diablo Canyon, San Onofre, seismic, map, earthquake, faults, high-energy, air cannon, sonic boom

Friday, September 28, 2012

Kudankulam - major changes since cursory Indian review in 1989 - #nuclear #India #Kudankulam

Kudankulam got a vague environmental clearance in 1989 when the site was not decided, no Environment Impact Assessment was done and no public hearing was conducted (despite being mandatory under law). 3 critical changes were made since: spent fuel will be stored at the plant instead of being sent to Russia, ultimate heat sink will be the sea instead of behind dam, and allowable water temperature rise is higher. A nuclear.com info nugget - See more at http://www.nuclear.com/archive/2012/09/28/20120928-002.html

key terms

India, nuclear plant, Kudankulam, Environment Impact Assessment, 1989, hearing, spent fuel, cooling water, ultimate heat sink, water temperature, thermal pollution, Prashant Bhushan

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Anti-nuclear activists strain to use Fukushima ties in a sort of neo-McCarthyism


Have you noticed signs of desperation in some anti-nuclear propagandizing lately? Two examples within the past week illustrate  ...

http://news.nuclear.com/blog7.php/anti-nuclear-activists-strain-to

nuclear.com editorial: it's wrong to lump nuclear plant loan guarantees into 'No More Solyndras' bill

July 30, 2012

Regulatory uncertainty is a major factor in the risk of failure of new nuclear build. If we want new nuclear plants, loan guarantees are a way to balance that risk.

See full editorial at http://www.nuclear.com/archive/2012/07/30/20120730-002.html