Category Archives: industry apologists

Fascinating New Photos Inside Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant

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I can’t post these photos here because there are 67 of them and they are linked. So I will just post the text. I might add that if you skip down to photo 40 or so you will see the real damage to the power plant itself. Most of the pictures are of the temporary village that houses the workers, the drive to the power plant and and the emergency control room. This is probably because this is where the photographer spent the bulk of his time and was bored. They are real cool for the geeks like me. Thank you Denver Post.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/2011/11/14/inside-japans-fukushima-nuclear-reactor/5085/

Inside Japan’s Fukushima Nuclear Power Station

Posted Nov 14, 2011

Associated Press photographer David Guttenfelder, along with other reporters, was allowed inside the Fukushima nuclear power station to witness the devastation, for the first time, caused by Japan’s March 12th earthquake and tsunami.
Eight months later, the plant remains a shambles. Mangled trucks, flipped over by the power of the wave, still clutter its access roads. Rubble remains strewn where it fell. Pools of water cover parts of the once immaculate campus.
Tens of thousands of the plant’s former neighbors may never be able to go home. And just as Hiroshima and Nagasaki become icons of the horrors of nuclear weapons, Fukushima has become the new rallying cry of the global anti-nuclear energy movement.
Yet this picture is one of progress, Japanese officials say. It has taken this long to make the plant stable enough to allow Saturday’s tour, which included representatives of the Japanese and international media — including The Associated Press. Officials expect to complete an early but important step toward cleaning up the accident by the end of the year. (AP)

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Go there and see them. More next week.

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Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Suffers Falkland Syndrome – I got my doubts

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You know, it is really hard to have fun with a nuclear disaster. You have heard the phrase of course, digging a hole to China. It became a popular phrase in the late 1880s because China was so far away and exotic and because it is on the “opposite side of the world”. However as this vido points out that phrase is spectacularly wrong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAxGccJNw0A

So a nuclear disaster here in the US would actually amount to a St. Paul syndrome and a nuclear disaster in Japan would amount to a Falklands syndrome. Every since the discussion about what would happen if a nuclear reactor core got out of its containment and of course the wildly popular but who knows how true to real life movie “China Syndrome”, I’ve had serious doubts. The first premise is that the reactor core is “running” when it breaches the power station. The second premise is that it would tunnel down to the Earth’s magma. The third premise is that would somehow amount to an explosion that would end the world. Comon. Even in pristine imaginary terms that probably does not happen. First that is a lot of bedrock to eat through and the reactor still maintain its symmetry. No symmetry no nuclear reaction. Second if it hit the magma, it would lead to a volcanic eruption but we have those all the time. Am I saying it would be a good thing. NO. I just got doubts. These 2 authors think otherwise.

http://www.examiner.com/human-rights-in-national/fukushima-27-hiroshimas-per-day-china-syndrome-inevitable-abused-islanders

Fukushima: 27 Hiroshimas per day, China Syndrome inevitable, Abused Islanders

Deborah Dupre's photo

Human Rights Examiner

November 21, 2011 –

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Though when I read the article it seemed like her editors had merge 2 computer files to make for a very confusing piece. And this guy who quotes other sources.

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http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/fukushima-china-syndrome-inevitable-huge-steam-explosions-or-nuclear-bomb-type-explosion

Fukushima: “China Syndrome Is Inevitable” … “Huge Steam Explosions”, or “Nuclear Bomb-Type Explosions” May Occur

George Washington's picture

Submitted by George Washington on 11/21/2011 23:45 -0500

By Washington’s Blog

I’ve repeatedly noted that we may experience a “China syndrome” type of accident at Fukushima.

For example, I pointed out in September:

Mainichi Dailly News notes:

As a radiation meteorology and nuclear safety expert at Kyoto University’s Research Reactor Institute, Hiroaki Koide [says]:

The nuclear disaster is ongoing.

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At present, I believe that there is a possibility that massive amounts of radioactive materials will be released into the environment again.

At the No. 1 reactor, there’s a chance that melted fuel has burned through the bottom of the pressure vessel, the containment vessel and the floor of the reactor building, and has sunk into the ground. From there, radioactive materials may be seeping into the ocean and groundwater.

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Both pieces are really long so you will have to go there and read them. More tomorrow.

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Cement Kilns Burn Toxic Waste – But are not regulated like toxic burners

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I skipped the lead which is about people having mixed feelings about the trade off between providing employment and pollution.  Personally I do not have mixed feelings because pollution controls supply jobs not take them away. But I skipped to the main fact that these kilns burn toxic waste but are much more loosely regulated. Nuff said.

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/10/142183546/epa-regulations-give-kilns-permission-to-pollute

Kilns ‘Not Designed To Burn Hazardous Waste’

Regulators have resisted, citing Ash Grove’s compliance with pollution standards. But those standards give cement kilns permission to pollute when they burn toxic junk for fuel.

Kilns are legally allowed to pump more toxins into the air than are hazardous-waste incinerators, which burn many of the same dangerous materials, including industrial solvents, aluminum plant waste and other toxic leftovers from the production of chemicals, oil and pharmaceuticals.

The Ash Grove Cement Kiln, as seen from an aerial photograph, sits on the northern edge of Chanute, Kan. 
Enlarge David Gilkey/NPRThe Ash Grove Cement Kiln, as seen from an aerial photograph, sits on the northern edge of Chanute, Kan. 

“The problem with cement plants that burn hazardous waste is that they’re not designed to burn hazardous waste,” says Jim Pew, a lawyer for the environmental group Earth Justice. “In my view it’s a loophole for the cement industry.”

Kilns like the one in Chanute that were built or rebuilt before 2005 can emit 43 percent more lead and cadmium — close to four times the hydrogen chloride and chlorine gas, and twice the particulates — than actual hazardous waste incinerators. Thirteen cement kilns in six states operate under those standards.

Three newer or upgraded kilns can emit even more toxic pollutants under EPA standards, including 18 times the lead and cadmium and 15 times the mercury.

These elevated levels are not harmful, says the EPA’s Brooks, because federal pollution limits are “set with a margin of public healthy and safety.”

The industry considers the safety margin huge — “far lower than what is necessary to protect human health and the environment,” says Mike Benoit of the Cement Kiln Recycling Coalition. The numbers are deceiving, he adds, and the actual emissions are minuscule.

“We’re talking about nanograms,” Benoit continues. “We’re talking about micrograms. Millionths of a gram — billionths of a gram.”

Mercury Pollution

But tiny measurements can add up, especially when it comes to mercury emissions at Ash Grove.

“In the year 2004, for example, the Chanute plant was the second-largest emitter of mercury in Kansas,” says Craig Volland, an environmental consultant who advises the Kansas Sierra Club on air pollution issues.

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Go there and read. More tomorrow.

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The Gulf Is Crying And The Animals Keep Dying – Humans too

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I know I posted pretty much the same thing last week. Guess what I could pretty much post the same thing next week; and the week after that, and on and on. Still, the Gulf is in trouble and no one is offering answers.

http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/rkistner/willie_seaman_of_irvington_al.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+switchboard_rkistner+%28Switchboard%3A+Rocky+Kistner%27s+Blog%29

Rocky Kistner’s Blog

As Dolphins Die, Gulf Residents Ask What About Us?

Willie Seaman of Irvington, AL, lays carpet and floors for a living. But last summer, as the BP well gushed thousands of barrels of oil daily into the Gulf, Seaman signed up with the BP cleanup program, working on a shrimp boat several miles off shore.

It was brutally hot and the smell of oil was putrid, Seaman remembers. His job was to use a net to try to pull in the thick, reddish BP crude that he says was up to a foot thick in places. Problem was, the white protective suits didn’t do much to keep the oil off, Willie recalls. Instead, he says they acted like absorbent pads, soaking up the oil that would rub against his skin.

Seaman says before long he started breaking out in blistery red hives on his hands and feet. The itching was so bad a coworker said Seaman would scrub his feet with a wire brush until his skin sloughed off like scales of a fish. Despite shots of steroids and numerous doctor visits, Seaman endured countless bouts of painful hives; and he still gets them, he says, especially after eating seafood from the Gulf. He also says he knows others who have broken out in hives after eating seafood.

“They took advantage of everyone down here because we were all poor and broke,” he says. “They told us in hazwhoper class that we didn’t have to worry about the toxins because the oil was weathered and there were no fumes. We’ll it was so bad my eyes were on fire and I had tears running down my throat.”

Seaman reports he got $12,000 from BP last year for lost wages and then took a $5,000 quick claim buyout from BP claims administer Ken Feinberg. “I needed the money, but now I can’t sue because I took the money,” he says.

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Go there and read more. You do not have to worry about the toxins. How sad. More tomorrow.

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Fracking – This needs to be regulated hard

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This just the beginning. The drillers have no idea what they are doing down below. They have very little idea of all the formations they are drilling through. They absolutely have no control over the venting of the gas. And yes, they need to disclose, recover and retain all of the high pressure fluids that they use.

http://coloradoenergynews.com/2011/10/breaking-news-epa-to-regulate-fracking-wastewater-disposal/

Breaking News — EPA to Regulate Fracking Wastewater Disposal

October 20th, 2011

Federal environmental regulators say they will develop national standards for the disposal of polluted wastewaters generated by hydraulic fracturing for natural gas. The agency said it will draft standards for fracking wastewater that drillers would have to meet before sending it to treatment plants.

Staff-Updated

“Fracking” as it is commonly referred to is used extensively in natural gas extraction throughout the United States, including Colorado and neighboring Wyoming. It has been the main technique for freeing up large pockets of shale gas deep underground, and involves injecting sand and chemical additives mixed with millions of gallons of water. The potential impact on water quality in the areas where fracking is practiced is the main concern, although the industry points out there have not been any documented cases of water supplies being contaminated, and hydraulic fracturing operations take place far below water tables.

The EPA’s announcement said the agency will draft standards for fracking wastewater that drillers would have to meet before sending it to treatment plants

Major natural gas companies like Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc., which has a major presence in Colorado, and Chesapeake Energy recycle a large percentage of fracking wastewater, other operators inject it underground. However, a certain amount is sent to treatment plants that are not equipped to handle it.

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More tomorrow.

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Fukushima Reactors Still Not Controlled – Now the Japanese government bails out TepCo

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Really this whole situation is absurd. TepCo claims that the plants are still behaving weirdly, that it could be 10 years before they can start to tear the reactors apart and 20 years before it will be resolved. Yet the Japanese government gives them 11 billion $$$. What?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/15550270

November 2011 Last updated at 02:30 ET

Japan nuclear crisis: Xenon detected at Fukushima plant

By Roland Buerk BBC News, Tokyo

A radioactive gas has been detected at Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, the facility’s operator says.

Tepco said xenon had been found in reactor two, which was previously thought to be near a stable shutdown.

There has been no increase in temperature or pressure, but the discovery may indicate a problem with the reactor

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And Yet:

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Japan Starts Tepco Bailout as Fukushima Causes More Losses

November 04, 2011, 7:32 AM EDT

By Tsuyoshi Inajima and Yuji Okada

(Updates with comment from company in 13th paragraph.)

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) — Tokyo Electric Power Co. won approval for a 900 billion yen ($11.5 billion) bailout from the government after the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe to avert bankruptcy and start paying compensation for the crisis.

Trade and Industry Minister Yukio Edano approved the support after the company known as Tepco committed to cutting 7,400 jobs and 2.5 trillion yen in costs. The utility forecast an annual loss of 600 billion yen, its second since the March earthquake and tsunami wrecked its Fukushima nuclear plant.

The government of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is stepping in to ensure residents, farmers, fishermen and forestry businesses are properly compensated by a utility that supplies power to 29 million customers in the political and economic heart of Japan. Tepco may need more aid after March 2013, said Takashi Aoki, who helps manage 120 billion yen at Tokyo-based Mizuho Asset Management Co.

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Read both articles or until you get sick. Which ever comes first. More next week.

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Moving On To National Issues for Awhile – The Gulf of Mexico is still screwed up

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If the Exxon Valdez incident is any example the Gulf will be damaged for 20 years and most of the people who had direct contact with the oil will be dead. Generally this is a crime with nobody in jail.

http://alabamashrimpfestival.com/2011/11/01/bio-hazard-beach-littered-with-possibly-hazardous-dead-dolphin-chunks/

 

Bio Hazard : Mississippi Beach littered with possibly Bio-hazardous dead dolphin chunks

by Michele on November 1, 2011

Click the link to see more of these pictures by Laurel Lockamy  : This is Disgraceful … instead of proper disposal of dead Marine mammal’s they bury potentially Bio Hazardous pieces of them all over this Mississippi beach

I am disgusted by what I am seeing … What are these people thinking… A Government report was just released stating that 5 of 21 dolphins that they’ve tested so far died from a  a Bacteria known as Brucella…. Yes it can be transmitted to humans as well as domestic animals… While Brucella is a naturally occurring bacteria these scientists involved in the study feel that either the bacteria has mutated in to a more viralent and Lethal Strain  after being exposed to Crude Oil and Dispersants  from the BP Oil Disaster .. or possibly that the Dolphins immune systems have been so compromised from the continuing environmental stressors related to the BP Oil Disaster that they can no longer fight off what would otherwise for the most part have been a non- lethal infection.. Wake up people The Gulf is not better than before the spill and the ongoing death and destruction continue daily from La.- Fl. Please stay out of the water,and DO NOT EAT GULF SEAFOOD !!!!

Here is Stuart Smith’s latest article on the subject > Government Scientists Tie BP Spill to Dolphin Die-Off in Gulf – And Suggest Humans Also Could BeAffected

Here is the link to the CNN report Bacteria linked to deaths of bottlenosed dolphins

Going to include this link to more info on Brucella : Welcome to Brucella Bioinformatics Portal

NRDC ‘s Rocky Kistner’s latest for the Huffington Post: As Dolphins Die, Gulf Residents Ask What About Us?

 

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More national news tomorrow.

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Protest Ameren Rate Hikes – Email the ICC and tell them to cut rates

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As I said yesterday, I went to the rate hike hearing for Ameren and it was a joke. The room was packed with suits and special interests and only three of us spoke. Residential occupants are currently paying between 13 and 12 cents per kilowatt for electricity. This is outrageous. I only found one website with a clear statement about this and it was:

http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=cost+of+electricity+in+illinois

There is a place where you can go to lodge a protest.

http://www.icc.illinois.gov/

The docket numbers for the electric and gas rate hikes are 11-0279 and 11-0282 respectely. Please go there and tell them that in this economy a rate CUT is the only thing that makes sense. Thanks

Oh, you type the docket number into their e-docket finder blank at the top right of their page and when the docket comes up their is a tab for comments. Fill that form out and hit submit and you are all done. Spread the word. The more people that comment the greater the impact.

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More tomorrow.

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ICC Hearing A Joke – 15 minutes, 3 speakers and it was over

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OK so it wasn’t really the Commission or the Commission Staff’s fault. Not even AARP’s,  though I was surprised that only 2 of their people spoke. I think it was their regional Director who is in Chicago and then what I took to be one of their local members. She ended up talking to the AARP  National Gazette reporter that was there so I split. But still, I got up as the third speaker and gave my classic “times are bad for people and the rates should be cut” spiel.  I was out the door in 15 minutes and arrived late. The ultimate blame falls on the poor people who have been crushed into submission. Unless they rise up and speak nothing will happen. Turn off their power at the same time or something like that, as a protest then utility companies will continue to roll.

http://www.icc.illinois.gov/

August 22, 2011                                                                                      Contact:   Beth Bosch

217-782-5793

 

ICC Sets Public Hearing On Ameren Rate Increases

For August 30

The Illinois Commerce Commission has scheduled a public forum Tuesday, August 30 to gather comments on Ameren Illinois’ proposal to increase rates for the delivery of natural gas and electricity to its customers.

The forum will be held at 1 p.m. in the Commission’s main hearing room, 527 E. Capitol Ave., Springfield.

Ameren proposed increasing rates for gas and electric delivery service to generate an estimated $110.5 million in new annual revenue.  Ameren proposed increasing electric rates for CIPS customers by appropoximately 11 percent, CILCO customers by 16.5 percent and IP customers by about 2.5 percent.  The company proposed increasing gas rates for CIPS customers by approximately 15.5 percent, CILCO customers by 24.0 percent and IP customers by 14.5 percent.

Oral and written comments will be accepted at the meeting.

Ameren Illinois’ rate case proposals are available on the ICC e-docket system.  To access all documents filed in the cases, enter the case numbers in the box on the front page of the ICC website at  http://www.icc.illinois.gov .   The docket numbers are 11-0279 (electricity) and 11-0282 (natural gas).

Comments may also be filed anytime on the Commission’s website under public comments.

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More tomorrow.

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As often as this has been documented, you would think peeps would get it by now.

http://www.good.is/post/nine-of-out-ten-climate-denying-scientists-have-ties-to-exxon-mobil-money/?fb_ref=rightrail

Nine Out of Ten Climate Denying Scientists Have Ties to Exxon Mobil Money

Nine Out of Ten Climate Denying Scientists Have Ties to Exxon Mobil Money

2011 • 2:30 pm PDT

newsweek, global warming is a hoax, global warming, climate change, denial,

If you spend any time at all browsing comments on articles about climate change (and bless you if you’ve managed to avoid it), you’ve likely read the same handful of long-debunked arguments against the reality of anthropogenic global warming (or “man-made” global warming). Recently, you’ve also almost definitely seen links to this website—”900+ Peer-Reviewed Papers Supporting Skepticism of “Man-Made” Global Warming (AGW) Alarm”—created by the Global Warming Policy Foundation.

The problem is, of the top ten contributors of articles to that list, nine are financially linked to Exxon Mobil. Carbon Brief, which examined the list in detail, explains:

Once you crunch the numbers, however, you find a good proportion of this new list is made up of a small network of individuals who co-author papers and share funding ties to the oil industry. There are numerous other names on the list with links to oil-industry funded climate sceptic think-tanks, including more from the International Policy Network (IPN) and the Marshall Institute.

Compiling these lists is dramatically different to the process of producing IPCC reports, which reference thousands of scientific papers. The reports are thoroughly reviewed to make sure that the scientific work included is relevant and diverse.

It’s well worth reading the rest of the Carbon Brief analysis.

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More tomorrow.

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