No Nukes News: the Demise of CANDU competence

Thu May 17 18:50:07 EDT 2012

No Nukes News

May 17, 2012 – Please pass this onto a friend! 

Canada

☢  <http://www.ccnr.org/BG_2012_05_10.pdf> SNC Lavalin and the Demise of CANDU competence by Gordon Edwards of Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility. SNC-Lavalin, the company that bought the CANDU division of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) for a mere $15 million last fall, is now rocked with scandal -- and accused by its own nuclear engineers of "destroying" the CANDU industry by its unsupportive policies.

☢  <http://bit.ly/JdN8xd> Canada's two most expensive contaminated sites are radioactive waste sites from nuclear facilities – both in Port Hope, Ontario, as identified by Canada’s Environmental Commissioner

☢  <http://bit.ly/JgmxgC> Pickering nuclear units among the most expensive, least reliable in the world Not only is it the most expensive to operate, it lags at the far end of the pack in terms of reliability, with some units shut down almost 40 per cent of the time. On a key reliability measure that tracks nuclear units’ (around the world) overall capability, OPG ranks 18th out of 20. And measuring generating cost per megawatt hour, OPG ranked as the most expensive operator among its peers.

☢  <http://bit.ly/JtVDrW> Time for change at OPG A new report on Ontario’s nuclear stations says the province’s Pickering reactors are among the worst in the world for cost-effective operation and reliability. For most consumers, key considerations are price and reliability. The kind of management OPG is demonstrating with its nuclear fleet doesn’t lead to either good prices or reliability.

☢  <http://bit.ly/ISugmJ> Tories want to sell part of Hydro One, OPG The Conservatives say private investors should be on the hook for any cost overruns in the nuclear projects — which are notorious for failing to come in on time and on budget — not hydro ratepayers or Ontario taxpayers.

☢  <http://saveoursaugeenshores.org/> SOS – Save our Shores – Concerned Citizens of Saugeen Shores are building a campaign to ensure their community does not become Canada’s nuke waste site

The World

☢  <http://bit.ly/JowyZT> Fukushima Nuclear Crisis Greenpeace International Update

☢  <http://bit.ly/Jf5qyi> Brazil shelves plans to build new nuclear plants in the wake of Fukushima disaster

☢  <http://wapo.st/KBB4Ht> Engineers boasted new design would cut tube wear at nuke plant, now shuttered on Calif coast

☢  <http://reut.rs/JUNk32> UK nuclear build requires taxpayer rescue Nuclear energy policy in Britain faces major setbacks following reports that the cost of replacing ageing reactors increased dramatically in the past year, making power produced from new plants not affordable without government help

Renewables

☢  <http://bit.ly/IGahHG> Japanese Proposed Tariffs Submitted In what may be the most significant renewable energy policy development worldwide in years, Japanese authorities are circulating proposed feed-in tariffs that-if confirmed by the Minister of Trade later this month-could lead to a crash renewables program. Equivalent to putting the country on a war-time footing following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, the unusually high tariffs will lead to a massive rush of renewable energy development.

☢  <http://bit.ly/JYKSvq> Hollande Victory Signals Shift in France's Renewable Energy Policy French President-elect Hollande is an avid backer of renewable energy and he has stated publicly that he wants to reduce France’s dependence on nuclear power to 50 percent by 2025. 

Act Now!

☢  <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/node/1102> Hudak’s Nuclear Fantasy Ontario Opposition Leader Tim Hudak released his strategy to lower electricity rates, namely, cancelling the Green Energy Act’s feed-in-tariff for renewable energy and embarking on a major nuclear spending program to ensure that nuclear power will meet “half of our power needs.” Please send Mr. Hudak a message here xxx and ask him to develop a credible, fact-based strategy to cut the real waste in Ontario’s electricity system – nuclear power.

☢  <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/get_involved_order_pamphlets> Order our new leaflet calling on the ON gov’t to halt their massive nuclear expansion plans – they’re free and contain postcards <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/files/OCAA_CutSomeWaste-web.pdf>  to Energy Minister Bentley asking him to favour lower-cost, safer and greener options. Distribute them to your friends and neighbours.

☢  <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/node/1059> Send an email to ON Energy Minister Bentley and ask him to finish the coal phase-out in 2012 and invest in energy conservation rather than build or rebuild new nukes. 

☢  <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/duncan_budgethttp:/www.cleanairalliance.org/duncan_budget> Please email Ontario’s Finance Minister Dwight Duncan and tell him that the electricity sector review must include a “value for money” analysis of future supply options

☢ Toronto area Youth Wanted for Environment Project Are you interested in environmental issues? Do you want to meet other youth? Develop your research skills? Get paid an honorarium or earn community hours? We are looking for six researchers (ages 14-18) to join a project exploring the views of young people about nuclear power. Find out more by emailing  <mailto:etyngroup at gmail.com> etyngroup at gmail.com. Deadline to apply is May 26.  

☢   <http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2012/5/17/urge-canadian-government-to-cancel-proposed-radioactive-wast.html> Urge Canadian government to cancel proposed radioactive waste dumps on Great Lakes shoreline

Events

☢  <http://bit.ly/KMoSjL> Great Lakes Need Great Friends Tour The Great Lakes provide life and livelihood to more than 40 million people and are the economic centre at the heart of the continent. Yet the Great Lakes of North America are in serious trouble. Nuclear production, waste and transport, multipoint pollution, climate change, over-extraction, invasive species, and wetland loss are all taking their toll on the watershed. With Maude Barlow and more.  Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: https://mail.google.com/mail/images/cleardot.gif <x-msg://70/> May 15 – 30 – Toronto, Hamilton, Thunder Bay, Kingston, Sarnia, Township  of Tiny, Owen Sound and London.

☢  <https://meetings.vtools.ieee.org/meeting_view/list_meeting/12257> Lower Energy Bills and a Strong Economy: A Six Point Plan to Move to a 100% Renewable Electricity Grid Jack Gibbons, Chair of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, will talk about the organization's 6 point plan to Move towards a 100% Renewable Electricity Grid. Tues. May 22, 6 p.m. Sarnia, ON

☢  <http://www.aware-simcoe.ca/meetings/meetings/2858-energy.html> The “Shocking” Cost of Energy  AWARE Simcoe is hosting a public meeting in Barrie, ON on energy and the cost to society of our current system in financial, social and environmental terms. With Jack Gibbons of OCAA. Sat. May 26

Angela Bischoff

Outreach Director

Ontario Clean Air Alliance

Tel: 416 260-2080 x 1

160 John St., #300

Toronto, ON  M5V 2E5

angela at cleanairalliance.org

www.cleanairalliance.org <http://www.cleanairalliance.org/>  

www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca <http://www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca/> 

 <http://www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca/nonukesnews.php> No Nukes News

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 <http://coalmustgo.ca/> Coal Must Go

 <http://ontariosgreenfuture.ca/petition2.php> Sign our Petition

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Twitter: @nonukebailouts

  <http://cleanairalliance.org/get_involved_donate> Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: donate now

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