#radioactivewaste — Public Fediverse posts

#energycentral:
"
Failure: a short history of U.S. high-level nuclear waste mismanagement
"
"For 80 years, the U.S. gov. + its industrial + utility partners have failed to, first, understand the problem of the noxious + dangerous waste produced by the pursuit of nuclear power for war + peace and, second, to successfully respond."

https://www.energycentral.com/energy-biz/post/failure-a-short-history-of-u-s-high-level-nuclear-waste-mismanagement-RzT8VDYVB9Crrm1

26.8.2026

#Atomkraft #Atommüll #Kernenergie #NuclearPower #NuclearWaste #Pollution #RadioactiveWaste #Umweltverschmutzung #USA #YuccaMountain

#as:
"
In 1977, the U.S. buried 120,000 tons of radioactive waste in a Pacific ‘nuclear tomb’ - Almost 50 yrs later, the ocean is threatening to expose the Runit Dome
"
".. deteriorating condition has increasingly alarmed researchers."

"“Seawater is literally flowing through the radioactive waste.”"

https://en.as.com/latest_news/in-1977-the-us-buried-28-million-cubic-feet-of-radioactive-waste-in-a-pacific-nuclear-tomb-nearly-50-years-later-the-ocean-is-threatening-to-expose-the-runit-dome-f202607-n/

29.7.2026

#Atomkraft #Atommüll #CactusCrater #ColdWar #Kernenergie #NuclearWaste #Pacific #Pazifik #Pollution #RadioactiveWaste #Runit #RunitDome #USA #Umweltverschmutzung

We are cooperating with BGZ, the federal state-owned Gesellschaft für Zwischenlagerung, at our Campus Garching to conduct joint research on the safe interim #storage and #disposal of #RadioactiveWaste: http://go.tum.de/559951

#NuclearTechnology

📷BGZ

#WJARR / Omoniyi Gbohunmi Korede, Oluwaferanmi O. Akinyemi, Adeyemi Zaheed Oshilalu:

Environmental and ecological impact of radioactive waste disposal

https://wjarr.com/content/environmental-and-ecological-impact-radioactive-waste-disposal

#pdf: https://wjarr.com/sites/default/files/fulltext_pdf/WJARR-2023-0728.pdf

2023

#Atommüll #Bioaccumulation #Biodiversity #Contamination #EcologicalImpact #NuclearWaste #RadioactiveWaste #Remediation

#NIRS - The Global #NuclearWaste Crisis

"Clean air and drinking water and healthy food are the very foundation of a just and livable world. They are already more precious than ever due to the climate crisis.

#NuclearPower and #NuclearWeapons are poisoning our water, air, and lands with vast amounts of #RadioactiveWaste. Much of the harm is inflicted on #Black, #Indigenous, #PeopleOfColor and #LowIncome white communities, due to #StructuralRacism and #injustice.

Radioactive waste poses a global #EnvironmentalCrisis, in tandem with #ClimateChange. The sheer amount of nuclear waste is enough to threaten clean drinking water and healthy food for the whole world.

We are on the frontlines of this problem.

- Nearly one-third of the worldwide total of radioactive waste is in the United States.
- Some communities in the US are already losing their drinking water sources to radioactive contamination.
- Just one part of the radioactive waste in the US – irradiated nuclear fuel – contains enough radioactivity to make every drop of drinking water on Earth unsafe to consume.

We must solve the twin global crises of climate change and nuclear waste. Global warming amplifies the dangers of nuclear energy. Increasingly #SevereStorms, #flooding, #SeaLevelRise, #wildfires and other extreme events increase the risks of nuclear disasters and #RadioactiveLeaks and spills. And, in turn, the impacts of nuclear energy magnify the dangers of climate change:

- Poisoning drinking water and agricultural land on top of more frequent and severe droughts and crop failures.
- Compounding hurricane and flooding evacuations with #RadiologicalDisasters.
- And causing people to lose their homes and communities permanently due to radiation.

It’s clear: we can’t afford the dangers of climate change or nuclear waste. And we certainly can’t afford them together.

The solutions to both are at hand. We must act now.

1. To start, we must stop the problems from worsening: no more greenhouse gas emissions, and no more nuclear waste.
2. We need to protect people and the water, air, and food we rely on from the dangers that are upon us. The climate is changing, and we need to protect people for extreme weather, drought, sea-level rise, and food supply disruptions. And we must safeguard our water, air, and land by securing and storing nuclear waste and toxic materials as safely as possible.
3. And, we need to repair the damage and make our world healthy and vibrant again: restoring communities that have been dislocated or polluted, and cleaning up the air, land, and water so we can all thrive, for generations to come."

Learn more: (includes https://www.nirs.org/the-global-nuclear-waste-crisis/

#NuclearWaste #NuclearWasteDumping #RethinkNotRestart #NoNukes #NoNuclearWeapons #NuclearWeapons #WaterIsLife #FoodIsLife #EnvironmentalRacism

#RadioactiveWaste leakage would be threat to area: critic

By Doug Diaczuk The Chronicle-Journal Apr 22, 2025

"A radioactive waste specialist from the United States says #NuclearWaste disposal sites place a giant bullseye on an area, as well as all communities along the transportation route, and residents of Northern #Ontario should take notice.

"#KevinKamps, a radioactive waste specialist with #BeyondNuclear, a non-profit advocacy group in the United States, will be speaking in Thunder Bay at Environment North's annual meeting on Wednesday [April 23].

"Kamps has opposed several nuclear waste sites across North America, including a site in the #YuccaMountains in #Nevada and a site at #Kincardine in #Ontario at the #BruceNuclear Generating Station.

" 'That was a 20-year campaign all told, but we prevailed in the end,' Kamps said of the Kincardine site in an interview with The Chronicle-Journal.

"The Nuclear Waste Management Organization [#NWM] identified a site between #Ignace and #Wabigoon Lake as the location for a proposed deep geological repository [#DGR] for #SpentFuel from #Canadian #NuclearPower plants.

"Last summer, the #TownshipOfIgnace expressed a willingness to be the host community for the repository following a survey showing the majority of residents supported the site.

"But several #FirstNation communities have spoken out in opposition to the site, citing #environmental concerns and the safety of transporting spent fuel through the region.

"Kamps said if anything was to go wrong at the deep geological repository site it would be catastrophic: 'for all points #downstream, #downwind, up the #FoodChain, down the generations.'

" 'In your neck of the woods, what I find ironic is the current target in your area is just outside of the #GreatLakes basin and I think it is a raw political calculation to try to silence what has been more than a decade of U.S. congressional opposition to the #LakeHuronDump,' he said.

" 'Now magically a site has been chosen outside of the Great Lakes basin.'

"There are many safety concerns to take into consideration when it comes to nuclear waste, Kamps said, beginning with the transportation of nuclear material to the site itself.

" 'One of the most controversial aspects is the transportation component, because it makes it everyone's problem along those routes,' he said. 'So that is another part of our challenge, to educate communities that would be along the most likely transportation route, be it road, rail, or waterway.'

"Then there is the site itself, which Kamps said could be vulnerable to #ExtremeWeather, #NaturalDisasters, or even potential attacks.

" 'You had better know your geology really well because if and when this starts leaking from its containers into the geology, then it's a question of how long will it take to mix with underground waterflows and perhaps even surface waterflows,' he said. 'And then the risk flows with the water, and with the air.'

"For those opposed to such sites, Kamps said the best way to fight back is through the democratic process and engaging with government representatives at all levels.

"He cited the opposition to the #Kincardine site that was a 20-year fight and the role First Nations communities played.

" 'An important part of that was the #SaugeenOjibwayNation who asked good questions and in the end voted 86 per cent no to that dump coming into their community,' he said.

"In terms of what to do with nuclear waste from generating stations, Kamps said it should stay at the site of origin."

Source:
https://www.chroniclejournal.com/news/local/radioactive-waste-leakage-would-be-threat-to-area-critic/article_f0dd8d6f-f8db-404e-ac4c-3e91b5330af2.html

#EnvironmentalRacism #GreatLakesBasin #WaterIsLife #AirIsLife #NuclearDumping #ClimateChange #NoNukes #RethinkNotRestart #NoNukesForAI #NoDumpingWithoutConsent

Experts warn #Trump’s #nuclear blitz could trigger ‘Next #ThreeMileIsland'

by Brett Wilkins, Common Dreams
May 24, 2025

"U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a series of executive orders that will overhaul the independent federal agency that regulates the nation's nuclear power plants in order to speed the construction of new fissile reactors—a move that experts warned will increase safety risks.

"According to a White House statement, Trump's directives 'will usher in a nuclear energy renaissance,' in part by allowing Department of Energy laboratories to conduct nuclear reactor design testing, green-lighting reactor construction on federal lands, and lifting #RegulatoryBarriers 'by requiring the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (#NRC) to issue timely licensing decisions."

"The Trump administration is seeking to shorten the yearslong NRC process of approving new licenses for nuclear power plants and reactors to within 18 months.

"White House Office of Science and Technology Director Michael Kratsios said Friday that 'over the last 30 years, we stopped building nuclear reactors in America—that ends now.'

" 'We are restoring a strong American nuclear industrial base, rebuilding a secure and sovereign domestic nuclear fuel supply chain, and leading the world towards a future fueled by American nuclear energy,' he added. [And radioactive waste!!!]

"However, the Union of Concerned Scientists (#UCS) warned that the executive orders will result in 'all but nullifying' the NRC's regulatory process, 'undermining the independent federal agency's ability to develop and enforce #safety and #security requirements for commercial nuclear facilities.'

" 'This push by the Trump administration to usurp much of the agency's autonomy as they seek to fast-track the construction of nuclear plants will weaken critical, independent #oversight of the U.S. nuclear industry and poses significant safety and security risks to the public,' UCS added.

"#EdwinLyman, director of nuclear power safety at the UCS, said, 'Simply put, the U.S. nuclear industry will fail if safety is not made a priority.'

" 'By fatally compromising the independence and integrity of the NRC, and by encouraging pathways for nuclear deployment that bypass the regulator entirely, the Trump administration is virtually guaranteeing that this country will see a serious accident or other #radiological release that will affect the health, safety, and livelihoods of millions,' Lyman added. 'Such a disaster will destroy public trust in #NuclearPower and cause other nations to reject U.S. #nuclear technology for decades to come.'

"Friday's executive orders follow reporting earlier this month by NPR that revealed the Trump administration has tightened control over the NRC, in part by compelling the agency to send proposed reactor safety rules to the White House for review and possible editing.

"#AllisonMacfarlane, who was nominated to head the NRC during the Obama administration, called the move 'the end of independence of the agency.'

" 'If you aren't independent of political and industry influence, then you are at risk of an accident,' Macfarlane warned.

"On the first day of his second term, Trump also signed executive orders declaring a dubious 'national energy emergency' and directing federal agencies to find ways to reduce regulatory roadblocks to 'unleashing American energy, including by boosting #FossilFuels and nuclear power.

"The rapid advancement and adoption of artificial intelligence systems is creating a tremendous need for energy that proponents say can be met by nuclear power. The Three Mile Island nuclear plant—the site of the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history—is being revived with funding from #Microsoft, while #Google parent company #Alphabet, online retail giant #Amazon, and #Facebook owner #Meta are among the competitors also investing in nuclear energy.

" 'Do we really want to create more #RadioactiveWaste to power the often dubious and questionable uses of #AI?' #JohannaNeumann, Environment America Research & Policy Center's senior director of the Campaign for 100% #RenewableEnergy, asked in December.

" '#BigTech should recommit to solutions that not only work but pose less risk to our #environment and #health,' Neumann added."

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-nuclear-2672196220/

#RethinkNotRestart #NoNukes #NoNukesForAI #BigTech #EnvironmentalRacism #UraniumMining #NuclearWaste #TEPCOLies #TrumpLies
#HoltecLies #WaterIsLife #NuclearPowerPlants #Datacenters #AIPollution #MicrosoftSucks #TrumpSucks #NuclearIsNotCarbonFree #CancerRates #Downwinders #NuclearPowerCorruptionAndLies

Blog: Voices of #Decolonization

#FirstNations chiefs shouldn’t be duped by the ‘#nuclear-is-green' deception

by William Eric Altvater, February 6, 2025

"Some First Nation Chiefs are victims of shenanigans, not unlike the swindle behind the purchase of Manhattan. The federal government needs the support of #Indigenous peoples to expand nuclear power generation capacity in #Canada.

"For millennia, the cornerstones of the Indigenous people that inhabit Turtle Island, now known as North America, held all that is essential to life, in reverence. Every decision considered the next 7 generations. These cornerstones are crumbling.

"Newcomers, armed with the #Colonizing tool, 'The #DoctrineOfDiscovery' and their mentality of superiority, invaded the land of those they called 'Savages,' almost totally exterminating #Skicinuwok, People of The Earth.

"Determined to bestow Christianity and civility to this wild untamed population, old growth forests were cut, rivers and streams were dammed to power sawmills, roads and railroads were built, bridges erected. All to create an infrastructure for #capitalism, a system to make a #profit, that morphed into #greed, a word of foreign root. This unbridled desire for progress has ruined what was once called Paradise.

"Now most water is not fit to drink, clean air is scarce, #deforestation is rampant, #biodiversity loss out of control, plants genetically modified, food manufactured with unpronounceable chemicals, caged fish starved of oxygen while being fed chicken feathers and pig parts, cancer cases in the millions, the list goes on.

"As the population increased over this continent the available sources for power generation have not been able to satisfy the insatiable desires of the 'bigger, better, faster, more is never enough' mentality. Some have finally acknowledged the fact that #FossilFuels are not the golden egg they were once deemed to be.

"So-called '#GreenEnergy' is required to slow the blind drive to extinction of man; man, who is considered by some to be the most intelligent creature to ever roam Earth. Unfortunately, the lure of riches and the corruption of self-serving purposes have led man to stray from practices that nurture everything required to sustain life on this tiny blue marble floating through the universe.

"#NuclearPower is now being touted as being 'Green.' It is not. Big money corporations are lobbying legislators to convince them and the public that it is. They are also lobbying to convince the public that they should foot the bill in the form of taxes and rate hikes, for a process that pollutes from the day it starts. Water is life. As soon as #uranium is mined from the earth it begins to contaminate the water in surrounding aquifers.

"When the uranium is processed sufficiently, it is used as fuel for reactors where it generates heat while delivering electricity, not just for essential needs, but also for many things once considered luxuries. This fission generated heat is then dumped into nearby waters where it kills thousands, if not millions of small beings that form the basis of life itself.

"After this radioactive fuel is depleted, it is stored in various containers where it will stay radioactive for eons. Indigenous #Grandmothers have labelled it 'Forever Dangerous.'

"The power generated during the fission process benefits only those who exist today as the process occurs, not those born tomorrow or next week or next month. All the #RadioactiveWaste and the inherent danger it creates is left to future generations, kicking the can down the road.

"What better place to dump this waste than in an area with a population that has witnessed Newcomers enrich themselves for hundreds of years? Yes, what better place than a population that has been targeted for assimilation, suffered theft of lands, witnessed the taking of naturally bestowed rights? A population that has been subjected to racial Indian Act legislation essentially stripping away all that sustained this population for thousands of years.

"Yes, let us give the Indians some more shiny beads and trinkets so that they willingly agree to care for our radioactive garbage. How do we do this? Let’s talk to the Chief and Council. Let’s wine and dine them. Let’s give them some money, take them to dinner, buy some drinks and make them feel all festive and most of all make them think we are looking out for their best interests. Some Chiefs have taken the bait.

"Egregious as it may be, this is exactly what is happening in some Indigenous communities contrary to the will of the majority. Elected Chiefs are continuing the deception as they are blinded and professing the 'Nuclear is Green' mantra. They have lost connection with the Spirit of Ancestors and traditional values. They need to have a serious introspection and realize that looking forward, we need only look back at what has sustained us to this point in time. We need not do any more than that."

Eric lives in #PeskotomuhkatiNation territory in Maine and stands shoulder to shoulder with his Peskotomuhkati relations in #NewBrunswick in the struggle to achieve Canadian Government recognition.

https://www.wabanakireach.org/first_nations_chiefs_shouldn_t_be_duped_by_the_nuclear_is_green_deception_by_william_altvater
#NoNukes #NoNewNukes #WaterIsLife #AirIsLife #UraniumMining #UraniumMilling #LeaveItInTheGround #Greenwashing #NuclearIsNotCarbonFree #NuclearIsNotGreen #CanadaPol #NuclearWaste #NuclearIndustry #TEPCOLies #HoltecLies #NuclearColonialism

#Palisades power plant will restart. Here's where on the #GreatLakes #NuclearPlants operate

Story by Sarah Moore, Lansing State Journal, 2/27/2025

"Owners of Michigan's Palisades nuclear energy plant this week announced a new five-year program aimed at restarting the power station while adding two smaller, modular reactors to the existing facility.

"Holtec has launched 'Mission 2030,' a program to build America’s first small modular reactors — Holtec’s SMR-300 — at the Palisades site in Covert Township, Michigan, with a target of 2030 for first commercial operation.' Holtec International said in a release. "The new SMR-300s will be co-located with the existing 800-megawatt Palisades plant, which is on track to restart after an extended outage following shutdown in 2022.'

"The program was discussed at a ceremony Feb. 25, at which #Holtec said it has joined forces with #Hyundai Engineering & Construction to build a 10-gigawatt fleet of SMR-300s in North America, the release said.

"Nuclear energy production is seeing growing interest for power generation because it requires no fossil fuels and can help reduce greenhouse gases. The systems, however, generate tons of highly #RadioactiveWaste that has to be stored. In #Michigan, waste is stored within a short distance of the #GreatLakes in some locations."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/palisades-power-plant-will-restart-heres-where-on-the-great-lakes-nuclear-plants-operate/ar-AA1zUV7D
#RethinkNotRestart #NoNukes #Renewables #RenewablesNow #WaterIsLife #RadioactivePollution #HoltecLies

🚨 Alert: #RadioactiveUranium Trucks on the #NavajoNation Today (2/12)

"A banner on the deadly haul route today, Wednesday, as two radioactive uranium transport trucks pass by Dine' homes in #TubaCity on the Navajo Nation. #Dine' families said they had no warning and the #NavajoGovernment sold them out."

By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Feb. 12, 2025
Live and Updating

TUBA CITY, Navajo Nation -- "#EnergyFuels #radioactive #UraniumWaste trucks passed through the Navajo Nation today, following a secretive agreement between the Navajo Nation and Energy Fuels.

"Two radioactive uranium waste trucks passed through #TubaCity headed to the uranium mill in the #WhiteMesaUte community, between 11 a.m. and noon today.

"In a region still strewn with #RadioactiveWaste from the #ColdWar, and gas and oil wells choking the people -- now uranium waste being transported by Dine' homes with only a tarp [!!!] covering tons of radioactive waste. The trucks are dumping their loads in the White Mesa #Ute community at the mill in southeastern #Utah.

"The secretive agreement between Energy Fuels and the Navajo Nation government, says there will be two to twelve trucks a day with radioactive waste from Energy Fuels #PinyonPlain #UraniumMine in the #GrandCanyon, for the next three to four years.

"Navajo Utah Commission members voiced their opposition to the uranium transport during a meeting with Navajo Nation EPA Executive Director #StephenEtsitty in #WindowRock on Tuesday. This comes after Energy Fuels made a public announcement of the agreement with the tribe.

"The Navajo Utah Commission meeting revealed that Energy Fuels agreed to pay the Navajo Nation government $1.2 million during the negotiations. Dine' in Western Navajo said that Navajo President #BuuNygren showed them how much money their lives are worth: $1.2 million."

Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/02/radioactive-uranium-trucks-will-travel.html
#WhiteMesaUte #EnergyFuels #HaulNo #IndigenousAction #IndigenousResistance #NuclearColonialism #ReaderSupportedNews #Dine #RestInPowerKleeBenally #NoUraniumTransport #DefendTheSacred #ProtectTheSacred #UraniumMine #NoNukes #NuclearFreeWorld #NoNuclear #NoWar #NuclearWaste #NoMoreTransportationOfUranium
#NoNuclearWeapons #NoNuclearPowerPlants #NoUraniumMining #UteNation #NoUraniumMining #Navajo #Havasupai #GrandCanyon #NuclearWeapons #InformedConsent
#EnvironmentalRacism #WaterIsLife

Some good news! Though potential contamination from long-term storage needs to be addressed (what else is new).

#EPA to Relocate Toxic #UraniumMine Waste from #NavajoNation

By Neely Bardwell, January 08, 2025

"The Environmental Protection Agency will move #uranium mine waste from #ChurchrockNewMexico to the #RedRock regional landfill where it can be safely stored forever.

"The federal agency signed an action memo to transport radioactive waste at the Quivira Mining Co. Churchrock Mine to a disposal site at the Red Rock regional landfill about six miles east of the Village of Thoreau. The cleanup will begin in early 2025 and continue for 6-8 years.

"For the Red Water Pond Road Community Association (#RWPRCA), which has advocated for waste removal since 2006, the decision marks a significant shift in addressing #UraniumContamination on Navajo land.

"'Removing the mine waste from our community will protect our health and finally put us back on a positive track to #Hózhǫ (balance),' said Teracita Keyanna, RPWPRCA executive committee member. 'I think this decision empowers #grassroots organizations like ours and our allies to continue to advocate and educate to clean up hundreds of abandoned uranium mines that threaten our #Diné communities every day.'

"RWPRCA President Edith Hood said the community has dealt with the impact of uranium mining since the late 1960s. Commercial mining began at the site under #KerrMcGee Corporation, which later became the #QuiviraMiningCompany. The operation extracted an estimated 1.3 million tons of uranium ore before closing in 1986. The Navajo Nation currently has more than 520 documented #AbandonedMines, with no disposal facilities for uranium waste within 350 miles of #TribalLands.

"'Many of us suffer chronic health problems and a degraded homeland as a result,' Hood said. 'We advocate for a regional approach to addressing remediation of nearly 100 abandoned uranium mines in the Eastern Navajo Agency. We are committed to making sure the removal of mine waste from our community does not threaten the health and safety of our Diné neighbors.'

"Previous attempts to address the waste proved unsuccessful. In 2011 and 2013, the EPA and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved a plan to place 1 million cubic yards of waste from NECRM on top of the existing tailings pile located half a mile from RWPRC village. Effectively, neither of those wastes were removed from the communities.

"The #RedRockLandfill currently handles municipal waste from McKinley and Cibola counties and Navajo Nation communities as far away as Tuba City. The planned #UraniumDisposalCell will occupy a separate area of the 640-acre site adjacent to the shuttered #Escalante power plant.

"The Northwest New Mexico Regional Solid Waste Authority (#NNMRSWA), which owns the landfill, must show that its operations can protect #GroundWater, air and soil, while safeguarding public health for decades to come. The New Mexico Environment Department will oversee long-term monitoring of the site.

"Chris Shuey, who has documented mining and #milling impacts in the #Churchrock area for 40 years as an environmental health specialist at Southwest Research and Information Center in Albuquerque, said relocating uranium waste is essential for tribal communities.

"'Removing mine wastes from Navajo communities to engineered, regional disposal sites is a #PublicHealth imperative,' Shuey said, noting that more than half of all Navajo chapters have at least one source of unhealthy uranium exposure. 'The federal government must continue looking for suitable sites for long-term disposal of mine wastes to protect current and future Navajo populations.'

"'This decision will remove over 1 million cubic yards of waste that has haunted the #RedWaterPondRoad and #PipelineRoad communities for too long,' EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman said in a statement.

"'This solution is a compromise that will get #RadioactiveWaste in this area off of the Navajo Nation as soon as possible,' Navajo Nation President #BuuNygren said in the EPA statement. 'It’s not everything the three affected communities would wish for but it’s action in the right direction now rather than in the future. Most importantly, this will protect our people from harmful exposure.'"

Source:
https://nativenewsonline.net/environment/epa-to-relocate-toxic-mine-waste-from-navajo-nation
#NoNukes #NoWar #NoMiningWithoutConsent #NoUraniumMining #UraniumMills #NukingTheNavajo #Genocide #WaterIsLife #NativeAmericanNews #HaulNo

I am shocked and dismayed that #Amazon claims that #nuclearenergy is a #safe and #clean source of #greenenergy.
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/sustainability/amazon-nuclear-energy-smr-plans
Even the shortest-lived #radioactivewaste remains dangerous for longer than recorded human history and every strategy I've ever read about to manage it begins to fail long before the waste is inert. Since when is trading #carbon for #irradiation a valid strategy?

#climatepledge
#SMR
#nuclearpower
#sustainability
#nuclearwaste
#nuclearfission
#fission

#Ute at #Utah State Capitol Today: Stop the #UraniumMill Poisoning our People

By #Brenda Norrell, #CensoredNews, Oct. 4, 2024

SALT LAKE, Utah -- "#WhiteMesaUte rallied at the Utah State Capitol on Friday, demanding that the deadly uranium mill in their community be shut down, as the legacy of #genocide, #ToxicDumping, and widespread #cancer continues.

"The #WhiteMesaMill in southeastern #Utah, owned by #EnergyFuels of Canada, is bringing in dangerous #RadioactiveWaste from the #PinyonPlain #UraniumMine in the #GrandCanyon, and the countries of #Japan and #Estonia. #Radioactive waste too deadly to remain at the #NuclearTestSite in #Nevada was dumped at the mill.

"'Today members of the White Mesa Ute community and supporters are rallying at the Utah State Capitol against #UraniumTransport and processing on #IndigenousLands,' #UnicornRiot reports on Friday.

Read more: https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/10/ute-at-utah-state-capitol-today-stop.html

#WhiteMesa #Ute #HaulNo #NoUraniumMining #Navajo #NoNukes #NoWar #NuclearWeapons #ICANN #InformedConsent
#EnvironmentalRacism #WaterIsLife #NoMoreHiroshimas #BanTheBomb #ReaderSupportedNews

TODAY! Rally at #Utah Capitol for #WhiteMesaUte -- Say No to #Uranium Oct. 4, 2024

via #CensoredNews

"We're rallying at the Capitol to demand that decision makers keep unregulated, #toxic, #radioactive waste out of Utah.

"After decades of processing low-level #RadioactiveWaste from across North America, the #WhiteMesa #UraniumMill is expanding its operations and now accepting #HazardousMaterials from #Europe and #Asia. The mill, which operates without proper precautions or #regulations, emits #cancer-causing gases and jeopardizes the #air, #water, and health of nearby residents.

"Join us in solidarity with the White Mesa Community and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe on October 4 at noon at the Utah State Capitol."

SAY NO TO URANIUM! PROTECT WHITE MESA UTE COMMUNITY'S HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT, AND SACRED AND CULTURAL SITES FROM DESTRUCTION AND CONTAMINATION!

TWO UPCOMING EVENTS:

Friday October 4, 12 noon Rally for White Mesa in Salt Lake City, Utah

Saturday, October 12, 11 am White Mesa Ute Community Spiritual Walk and Protest Against #EnergyFuels' uranium mill

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/10/rally-at-utah-capitol-for-white-mesa.html

#HaulNo #NoUraniumMining #DefendTheSacred #PinyonPine #WhiteMesaMill #WaterIsLife #AirIsLife #UraniumMine #NoUraniumMining #NoMiningWithoutConsent #ReaderSupportedNews #SaltLakeCity #PeacefulProtest

#DiabloCanyon #NuclearPowerPlant brings #profits for PG&E, deadly risk for residents [and the #environment]

Tina Landis
August 19, 2024

"Despite opposition from residents and #environmental organizations, California legislators passed #SenateBill846 in 2022 to extend the life of the dangerous, aging Diablo Canyon #nuclear facility.

"Located on the Central Coast surrounded by several #fault lines, one has to question why a nuclear facility was placed in an #earthquake zone to begin with, much less allowing it to continue to operate well past its retirement date. The world witnessed what can happen to a coastal nuclear facility in an earthquake zone when the 2011 #Fukushima disaster triggered a meltdown that displaced nearly half a million residents, with vast amounts of #RadioactiveWater still being released into the ocean today.

"As long as Diablo Canyon remains open, Californians live with the constant risk of suffering the same type of disaster.

"From its inception, Diablo Canyon had little public support. Protests occurred regularly during its construction, and thousands were arrested for #CivilDisobedience actions in 1981.

"In the 1970s and 1980s, California’s three largest utilities spent billions of dollars building dangerous and costly nuclear plants like Diablo Canyon, which resulted in skyrocketing rates for customers. Big industry fought back against these increased energy costs, which resulted in deregulation bills consisting of multi-billion dollar #bailouts to the state’s utility companies to cover their costly investments in nuclear.

"Today, the last remaining nuclear plant operating in the state is still draining billions in funds that could be used for safe, #renewable energy development. To keep Diablo Canyon running 5 years past its retirement date is expected to cost $8 billion to $12 billion. A federal aid package of $1.1 billion will contribute to some of those costs – meaning federal #taxpayers’ money – while the remaining billions will be passed on to #California #ratepayers.

"Despite being run by PG&E and only generating power for its territory, customers of #SouthernCaliforniaEdison and #SanDiegoGasAndElectric will help cover the remaining costs of the Diablo extension. Edison bills will increase by around $1.25 a month and SDG&E by 87 cents a month, while PG&E customers are expected to chip in $2.07 a month – and that’s just for the first year. Critics warn that costs are likely to increase in coming years to keep the plant running, and that’s on top of already skyrocketing PG&E rates that have doubled over the last decade. And if PG&E collects more funds than are needed for Diablo’s operations, they get to keep it!

"In 2022, when legislators pushed this through #SB846, the excuse of energy shortages was used due to pandemic-related supply chain issues and massive #wildfires. But today, there is plenty of energy being produced with increased #solar and #battery storage capacity that has kept the lights on even during this summer’s unprecedented heat waves driving up demand. The California Public Utility Commission’s own reporting shows that an additional 18,500 megawatts of new resources were added to the grid between 2020 and 2024, which is enough to power around 14 million homes. Another 11,000 megawatts will be added by 2028.

"Nuclear has the third highest lifecycle emissions of all energy sources after scrubbed #coal fired plants and natural gas – meaning it is far from being zero-emission. It also creates the unresolved issue of the #RadioactiveWaste which remains dangerous for tens of thousands to millions of years.

"Keeping the Diablo facility running will only hold back further development of safe and truly low-carbon, low cost renewable sources like solar and #wind energy.

"So why isn’t Diablo Canyon being decommissioned? The short answer is that #capitalism must ensure continued profits for the #InvestorClass.

"SB 846 authorized Diablo’s extension through 2030, and gave PG&E a $1.4 billion loan for the for-profit utility to facilitate the plant’s extension. #GovernorNewsom facilitated another transfer of taxpayer dollars to PG&E through an additional $400 million loan from the state’s general fund, included in the recent budget deal. Critics warn that these 'loans' will never be repaid, meaning residents will be fully subsidizing the Diablo extension – from federal and state tax dollars to our utility fees.

"But there is a way out. SB 846 allows the #CPUC to retire the plant earlier than 2030 if sufficient levels of new renewable zero-carbon energy resources exist, are interconnected, and meet demand, which is the case.

"CPUC has a long track record of serving PG&E’s interests, so intervention by the commission is unlikely. One example of many that demonstrates their close relationship: CPUC is not requiring PG&E to show how much of our utility bill actually goes to the Diablo extension, but instead lumps the cost in with 'public purpose programs,' making it impossible to determine.

"While communities are demanding an early shutdown of Diablo, PG&E is currently applying for a 20-year license renewal from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission [#NRC] for the facility, which is expected to be approved. This would mean customers will foot the bill to keep this dangerous nuclear facility running through 2045, far beyond the original expiration dates of 2024 and 2025.

"CPUC has proven their unwavering support time and again for PG&E’s monopoly control over the state’s energy system at the expense of residents’ safety and affordable rates. The Diablo Canyon nuclear plant is just another mechanism to squeeze ratepayers and line the pockets of shareholders who live far away from the dangers posed by this aging facility. Only a public takeover of this #corrupt utility can win clean, safe and affordable energy for all."

Source:
https://www.liberationnews.org/diablo-canyon-nuclear-plant-brings-profits-for-pge-deadly-risk-for-residents/

#PGAndE #RethinkNotRestart #NuclearCorruption #NuclearBailouts #RenewablesNow #NoNukes
#DiabloCanyonNuclearPlant
#NuclearPowerCorruptionAndLies #California #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife

Sites with #radioactive material more vulnerable as #ClimateChange increases #wildfire, #flood risks

By TAMMY WEBBER
Updated 1:04 AM EDT, May 22, 2024

"As #Texas #wildfires burned toward the nation’s primary #NuclearWeapons facility, workers hurried to ensure nothing flammable was around buildings and storage areas.

"When the fires showed no sign of slowing, #Pantex Plant officials urgently called on local contractors, who arrived within minutes with bulldozers to dig trenches and enlarge fire breaks for the sprawling complex where nuclear weapons are assembled and disassembled and dangerous #plutonium pits — hollow spheres that trigger nuclear warheads and bombs — are stored."

[...]

"Dozens of active and idle laboratories and manufacturing and #military facilities across the nation that use, store or are contaminated with radioactive material are increasingly vulnerable to #ExtremeWeather. Many also perform critical energy and defense research and manufacturing that could be disrupted or crippled by fires, floods and other disasters.

"There’s the 40-square-mile #LosAlamos National Laboratory in #NewMexico, where a 2000 wildfire burned to within a half mile (0.8 kilometers) of a #RadioactiveWaste site. The heavily polluted #SantaSusana Field Laboratory [#SSFL] in Southern #California, where a 2018 wildfire burned 80% of the site, narrowly missing an area #contaminated by a 1959 partial #NuclearMeltdown. And the #plutonium-contaminated #Hanford nuclear site in #Washington, where the U.S. manufactured #AtomicBombs.

"'I think we’re still early in recognizing climate change and ... how to deal with these extreme weather events,' said Paul Walker, program director at the environmental organization Green Cross International and a former staff member of the House Armed Services Committee. 'I think it’s too early to assume that we’ve got all the worst-case scenarios resolved ... (because) what might have been safe 25 years ago probably is no longer safe.”

https://apnews.com/article/wildfire-flood-climate-change-nuclear-radioactive-sites-72bf711fe931a051709e44199c656267

#WaterIsLife #NoNukes #NoDumping #FutureGenerations #NoWar #NoNuclearWeapons #RethinkNotRestart #NuclearWaste

#Supai, #Ute, #Dine', #Arapaho, and #Lakota Testify on #Uranium #Exploitation before #InterAmericanCommission on #HumanRights

"The legacy of #UraniumMining in the #Southwest is death from #cancer and unreclaimed uranium mines. Now the contamination threatens the #ColoradoRiver. Tilousi urged the Commission to support the tribes efforts and pressure the #UnitedStates to change the #1872MiningLaw that allows international companies to seize #PublicLand for mining."

by Brenda Norrell, #CensoredNews
March 1, 2024

WASHINGTON -- "'There was no respect for the people living on these lands, and certainly no respect for #MotherEarth,' Edith Hood, Dine' from Red Water Pond Road community, told the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

"'The government was aware of the risks and the dangers but failed and neglected to inform our people.'

"Dine', Havasupai, Northern Arapaho, Oglala Lakota and #WhiteMesa Ute testified on uranium exploitation by the United States on Wednesday, during the session, 'Impacts of Uranium Exploitation on #IndigenousPeoples' Rights.'

"The #BIA, #EPA and #NuclearRegulatoryCommission praised themselves, and attempted to #CoverUp the legacy of death from uranium mining, strewn #RadioactiveWaste, and deadly uranium mills in Indian country.
Eric Jantz, legal director of the New Mexico Environmental Law Center, disagreed with the United States assertions.
Jantz pointed out that the U.S. appears to want Native people to sacrifice more for 'national security' -- rather than to deal with the devastation. As for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, it has not honored public comments. And as for the EPA, it's too late. There are more than 500 uranium mine sites waiting to be cleaned up on the Navajo Nation. Zero have been fully cleaned up, Jantz told the Commission.

"'Our ancestors remains were desecrated to build the mill,' Anthony Badback, Ute Mountain Ute at White Mesa, told the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights today in Washington. Badback testified that #EnergyFuels uranium mill has contaminated the #groundwater, plants, birds, #wildlife, and air in his community in southeastern #Utah.

"The young people are getting asthma, and the people can no longer use their spring water for ceremonies. Ute must buy bottled water to drink, and no longer hunt because of the contamination. Now, the mill is bringing in international waste and has become a low-level radioactive waste repository, because of the lax standards of the state of Utah. 'We want the mill to be shut down,' Badback told the Commission. 'Please help us.'

Read more: https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/02/navajo-ute-lakota-to-testify-on-uranium.html

#WaterIsLife #NuclearWaste #UraniumMills #Reprocessing #IndigenousActivism
#CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism
#NoNukes #NoNewNukes
#RenewablesNow #NoMining #UraniumMining

#WhiteMesa Ute March Against International Radioactive Waste Dumping on Homeland

by Brenda Norrell, #CensoredNews
October 14, 2023

WHITE MESA, #Utah -- "#UteMountain #Ute Yolanda Badback welcomed all to the spiritual walk and rally to halt the uranium mill now poisoning the land, water and air in southeastern Utah, in the #FourCorners region.

"The #WhiteMesaMill, operated by #EnergyFuels, is now bringing in #RadioactiveWaste from other countries, after already storing #NuclearWaste that was too dangerous to remain at the #NevadaTestSite.

"Ute Mountain Ute Chairman Manuel Heart said the uranium mill is not just a Ute problem and the resources must be protected."

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2023/10/white-mesa-ute-march-against.html

#EnvironmentalRacism #IndigenousResistance #WaterIsLife

#WhiteMesa #Ute #SpiritualWalk and #Protest of #UraniumMill: Oct. 7, 2023

Posted September 26, 2023, via Censored News

Annual White Mesa Ute Spiritual Walk Draws Attention to Threats from Nearby #UraniumMill White Mesa Concerned Community
protectwhitemesa.org

What: A rally and spiritual walk to protect the White Mesa Ute community’s health, water, air, land, culture, and sacred sites from the nearby White Mesa #uranium mill and show community opposition to the mill operating as an international dumping ground for radioactive waste from around the world. The protest and walk are sponsored by the White Mesa Concerned Community and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. All supporters are welcome.

When: Saturday, October 7, 2023, 11 a.m. MDT rally followed by spiritual and protest walk to the White Mesa uranium mill.

Where: The White Mesa Ute Community Center, located in White Mesa, #Utah, just south of #BlandingUtah off of Highway 191. The community center is located on the west side of the highway. Turn in at the gas station and continue one block south to the community center.

Why: Citizens of the Ute Mountain Ute community of White Mesa and the #UteMountain Ute Tribe are concerned about contamination from the nearby uranium mill and desecration of sacred sites and cultural resources. The mill is now taking #radioactive waste from Estonia in Europe.

Contact for White Mesa Ute Spiritual Walk and Protest:
Yolanda Badback, White Mesa Concerned Community [email protected]
Bradley Angel, Greenaction for Health & Environmental Justice [email protected]

White Mesa Concerned Community is a grassroots group of concerned citizens of the Ute Mountain Ute community of White Mesa, Utah, located south of the White Mesa uranium mill. We work to inform our fellow citizens and protect our community, health, water, air, land, culture, and sacred sites from toxic contamination.

The 2023 Rally and Spiritual Walk is sponsored by the White Mesa Concerned Community and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.

Event co-sponsors: #BearsEars Inter-Tribal Coalition, #Earthworks, Grand Canyon Trust, Great Old Broads for Wilderness, #Greenaction for Health and Environmental Justice, #HEALUtah, #IndigenousEnvironmentalNetwork, National Parks Conservation Association, #PANDOS, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, Uranium Watch, University of Utah Environmental Justice Clinic, and the Utah Chapter of the #sierraclub

Full article:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2023/09/white-mesa-ute-spiritual-walk-and.html

#Activism #NativeAmericanActivists #SpiritualWalk #EnvironmentalRacism #RadioactiveWaste #CulturalGenocide #NativeAmericanNews #EnvironmentalJustice #NuclearWaste #LandBack

.> Globally, nuclear power generation costs continue to rise. The construction cost of a new nuclear plant already exceeds a trillion yen (in the range of 10 billion U.S. dollars), and nuclear is now the most expensive source of electricity. In Japan as well, costs are ballooning for reactor restart safety measures, maintenance, and decommissioning. TEPCO has spent more than a trillion yen on safety measures just for the restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata Prefecture.
.> Nuclear power is neither green nor clean. From uranium mining to fuel processing, nuclear plant operation, nuclear waste disposal, and decommissioning, the environment continues to be polluted with radioactive materials. In addition, when operating, nuclear plants continue to generate nuclear waste, which needs to be managed for tens of thousands of years, leaving a burden for future generations.

.> Globally, nuclear power generation costs continue to rise. The construction cost of a new nuclear plant already exceeds a trillion yen (in the range of 10 billion U.S. dollars), and nuclear is now the most expensive source of electricity. In Japan as well, costs are ballooning for reactor restart safety measures, maintenance, and decommissioning. TEPCO has spent more than a trillion yen on safety measures just for the restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata Prefecture.
.> Nuclear power is neither green nor clean. From uranium mining to fuel processing, nuclear plant operation, nuclear waste disposal, and decommissioning, the environment continues to be polluted with radioactive materials. In addition, when operating, nuclear plants continue to generate nuclear waste, which needs to be managed for tens of thousands of years, leaving a burden for future generations.

My latest blog post, inspired by #C10's recent demand for the #NRC to pay more attention to the #ASR issues at the #Seabrook nuclear plant. I spent much of the day reviewing the NRC reports and also reading scientific articles about #ASR -- which causes concrete to degrade, and which has a number of causes. I did my best to try and summarize the issue -- which currently has no solution! Concrete is used in all 144 #NuclearPlants worldwide as well as long-term storage of #RadioactiveWaste!

ASR Concrete Degradation a Concern at Seabrook Nuclear Plant

December 15, 2022

ASR, or Alkali-Silica Reaction has many causes, and is a concern for aging nuclear plants worldwide -- not just in the USA

https://doomsdayscw.blogspot.com/2022/12/asr-concrete-degradation-concern-at.html
#NoNukes #WaterIsLife #RethinkNotRestart #SeabrookStation #SeabrookNuclearPlant #SeabrookNH