No Nukes News - AECL for sale

Mon May 10 11:21:23 EDT 2010

No Nukes News

May 7, 2010

"On top of the perennial challenges of global poverty and injustice, the two
biggest threats facing human civilization in the 21st century are climate
change and nuclear war. It would be absurd to respond to one by increasing
the risks of the other." - Dr Mark Diesendorf, author of Greenhouse
Solutions with Sustainable Energy

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Ottawa likely to unload entire stake in nuclear reactor division CANDU

Sale may mark end of reactor's technology

The federal government is now expected to sell its entire stake in the Candu
reactor division of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., a move that could have
profound implications for Canada's nuclear industry and billions of dollars
in plant refurbishments across the country.  "It's quite likely that it
would die. I can't imagine a scenario a 100 per cent private Canadian player
can compete with the big players in this game," It appears the government
has grown weary of bankrolling AECL, which has received $1.74 billion in
public funding since 2006.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/Ottawa+likely+unload+entire+stake+Cand
u/2983109/story.html#ixzz0n7Ej4zem 

Note: Good news! - a

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Canada's Deadly Deceit on Atomic Arms

With the clandestine nuclear weapons programs of North Korea and Iran
drawing deserved condemnation at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
<http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Infcircs/Others/infcirc140.pdf>
review in the United Nations, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has pledged a
leadership role for Canada in devising a diplomatic exit strategy from the
perils of proliferation.

He should start by ending Canada's exports of reactors and uranium. The
reason is physics. Every time uranium is fissioned inside a nuclear reactor,
the deadly element plutonium is created. Aptly named after the Greek god of
the underworld, only a plum-sized sphere weighing eight kilograms is needed
to make an efficient atomic bomb. Moreover, with a half-life of 24,000
years, plutonium is effectively immortal. It is also virtually
indestructible.

. But last year, Saskatchewan uranium exports totalled 7.3 million
kilograms. When fissioned in any reactor of any make, model or purpose, this
will transmute into some 19,000 kilograms of plutonium, or enough for 2,300
warheads annually. This exported uranium also contains 52,000 kilograms of
the bomb ingredient uranium-235, or enough to make 2,600 warheads annually.

No one not blinded by self-interest would knowingly court this calamity, or
prescribe nuclear reactors as the alternative to our carbon-imperilled
Earth. While reactors do not emit carbon, they produce a different, equally
ominous security threat in plutonium and uranium-235, as well as intensely
radioactive, latently lethal wastes that will remain a threat to the
biosphere for hundreds of centuries.

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/805701--canada-s-dea
dly-deceit-on-atomic-arms 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

The Triple Curse of the Corporate Climate Bill

Legend says curses come in threes. Let's pray that doesn't happen with the
unholy trinity of the Corporate Climate Bill. It demands drilling for oil,
digging for coal and big money for new nukes. How such a devil's brew could
help save the Earth conjures a corporate cynicism beyond the scope of the
human mind and soul.

Only one Climate Bill can solve our energy crisis---a Solartopian program
for converting the entire economy to renewables, conservation and
efficiency. It would fly in the face of the corporate destroyers who are
behind the current Climate Bill. But these are technologies that actually
work, that pay, that create jobs and prosperity, and that will preserve
rather than destroy our sacred Earth.

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/05/03-5

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

SACE Wins Lawsuit - proposed reactors now in jeopardy

Today, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy won its lawsuit in Fulton
County Superior Court that aimed to protect Georgians from unfair utility
costs in connection with the proposed construction of two new nuclear
reactors at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Georgia. 

"We applaud the Judge's decision and continue to find it incredible that the
Georgia Public Service Commission would put $14 billion of ratepayer money
at risk on this project without properly documenting the factual basis
behind this high risk decision. This ruling spotlights the ongoing
incestuous relationship between the Commission and Georgia Power and
highlights the regulatory breakdown and blatant lack of consumer
protection."

http://www.cleanenergy.org/index.php?/Press-Update.html?form_id=8
<http://www.cleanenergy.org/index.php?/Press-Update.html?form_id=8&item_id=1
72> &item_id=172 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Wind's latest problem: it . . . makes power too cheap

The key thing here is that we are beginning to unveil what I've labeled the
dirty secret of wind: utilities don't like wind not because it's not
competitive, but because it brings prices down for their existing assets,
thus lowering their revenues and their profits.

http://europe.theoildrum.com/node/6418

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

The bizarre dance of wind power

"Wind produces zero emissions. Wind is low-impact because it requires no
mining or drilling, and you don't need to import any fuel or get it
locally."  But unlike other clean energy sources such as solar power,
electricity from wind has now become competitive in cost with electricity
from conventional sources, due largely to advances in turbine design over
the last 30 years. According to the AWEA, today wind electricity sells for
half the price of nuclear power about the same as electricity from coal, oil
and natural gas.

"Anyone who is against clean energy should come take a look at the coal
burning power plants in our areas," Reed says. "They require coal mines that
can harm our ground water, they produce pollution, and they produce a sludge
type waste and many other negative things that are not beneficial to the
environment."

http://www.energybulletin.net/node/18290

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Where's the power plan?

Environmental Commissioner Gord Miller raised an important question this
week with his report on energy conservation: where is Ontario's 20-year plan
for meeting our electricity needs and what are the targets for renewable
power and conservation?

To be fair, circumstances have changed since 2008, including the decision to
delay the purchase of new nuclear reactors and the introduction of the Green
Energy Act, which has altered the ground rules for procurement of renewable
power.

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/804531--where-s-the-power-
plan

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Ontario's Solar Industry to Rival US Nuclear Energy Output? 

According to two recent studies
<http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2010/04/19/Solar-energy-Enormous-Ontario-po
tential/UPI-97311271712584/>  by Queen's University, solar power production
in SE Ontario could potentially yield as much energy as all US nuclear
reactors combined. 

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2010/05/ontarios-solar-ind
ustry-to-rival-us-nuclear-energy-output?cmpid=rss 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Another drop in nuclear generation

Annual generation of nuclear power has continued on a slight downward trend,
decreasing 2% last year to 2558 TWh,according to the latest estimates.

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/EE_Another_drop_in_nuclear_generation_0505
102.html

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Wind Power Realities - Myths vs. Facts

Harnessing the power of the wind has become one of the fastest growing
sources of global electricity generation. As countries strive to develop
clean and secure energy systems, more scientists, policy makers and
communities are looking to wind power as an important part of the solution. 

As new opportunities emerge to develop wind-power generation in communities
across Canada, they raise reasonable questions about the social,
environmental and economic impacts of large-scale wind power production.
This fact sheet aims to help answer those questions, and to distill the
realities of wind power from the myths and misconceptions.

http://www.pembina.org/pub/1943 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

15,000 March through New York calling for nuclear disarmament now

Speakers called on the NPT (Nuclear Proliferation Treaty) delegates to push
for talks to begin on a Nuclear Weapons Convention while others denounced
the damage caused by uranium mining, the division of the Korean Peninsula
and military spending among many other issues. The Mayor of Hiroshima called
on nuclear weapons to be phased out by the year 2020.

http://www.pressenza.com/npermalink/15x000-march-through-new-york-calling-fo
r-nuclear-disarmament-now 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Nuclear Attack a Ticking Time Bomb, Experts Warn

The major nuclear powers are making efforts to continue the streak of
nuclear deterrence. Last month, the U.S. and Russia signed a new Strategic
Arms Reduction Treaty (START)
<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/04/08/politics/main6373950.shtml>  that
will reduce their nuclear stockpiles by about 30 percent over the next
several years, and President Obama hosted a 47 nation Nuclear Security
Summit in Washington.
<http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20002404-503544.html>  This week,
representatives from 189 nations are meeting New York for Nuclear
Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference
<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/02/world/main6454357.shtml>  to deal
with the potential spread of nuclear weaponry in the Middle East and other
parts of the world.

Various experts estimate the chances of a nuclear detonation in the next 10
years at somewhere between 10 and 30 percent. Hellman, who has been focusing
on nuclear deterrence for the past 25 years, said that a baby born today,
with an expected lifetime of 80 years, faces a greater than 50-50 chance
that a nuclear weapon attack will occur unless the number of weapons and
available weapons-grade material is radically reduced.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503543_162-20003954-503543.html 

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Be a PeakBuster and win big!

Does this warm weather have you daydreaming about cycling through wine
country, eating a fabulous meal on the deck of some luxurious country inn,
or hitting the links on one of Ontario's best golf courses?  Enter the
Ontario Clean Air Alliance's
<http://ocaa.cmail2.com/t/y/l/bltjky/otjdlsly/y>  fourth-annual PeakBusters
contest and you could be doing more than dreaming.  We are giving away two
$1,000 luxurious and a dozen $200 gift cards.  Click here to enter now!
<http://ocaa.cmail2.com/t/y/l/bltjky/otjdlsly/t> 

Being a PeakBuster is easy.  If your home has central air conditioning, all
you have to do is ensure that you are enrolled in your utility
<http://ocaa.cmail2.com/t/y/l/bltjky/otjdlsly/i> 's peaksaverC program.
This will mean that you are doing your part to reduce smog and control
climate change by allowing your air conditioner to be automatically
controlled for short periods during times of peak electricity demand.

If your home does not have central air conditioning or you live in an
apartment or condo, you can still enter by telling us about other
energy-saving actions you are taking.  Click here to enter
<http://ocaa.cmail2.com/t/y/l/bltjky/otjdlsly/d> .

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Action Alert: Send a Message to Your MP!

The Harper government has tabled legislation (Bill C-15) that would, if
passed, artificially cap the liability of a nuclear operator for accidents
at $650 million - a miniscule fraction of the likely actual cost of a
nuclear disaster. 

Bill C-15 is also yet another Harper subsidy to dirty energy. Unlike green
energy, the nuclear industry needs a special law to relieve it from paying
its own insurance costs. This creates an unfair playing field for green
energy and would force Canadians to pay for the nuclear industry's
pollution.

Why is Prime Minister Harper giving the nuclear industry this special legal
protection? Because the nuclear industry, the insurance industry and private
lendors know another Chernobyl is possible. Otherwise put, the nuclear
industry doesn't have confidence in its reactors. So why should we?

Stop Bill C-15!

Join the facebook group Stop Harper's Sweetheart Deal for the Nuclear
Industry - Stop Bill C-15 at
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=102828023094311
<http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=102828023094311&v=info> &v=info 

Not on facebook? You can E-mail Stephen Cornwell at
stephen.d.g.cornwell at gmail.com or Theresa McClenaghan at theresa at cela.ca

Follow the debate at openparliament.ca <http://openparliament.ca/> :
http://openparliament.ca/bills/2224/ (the debate is expected to begin in the
next few weeks and will be updated here)

Our Members of Parliament need to know that Canadians know what they're up
to. This bill nearly made it through parliament last year before it was
killed at prorogation. Let MPs know you are paying attention. Tell them to
stop C-15 and raise the limit!

Please find below a sample letter to Members of Parliament and the email
addresses of all Members of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources
which will examine Bill C-15. Letters are far more effective when you
personalize your own! Please send your letter now. 

Dear Member of Parliament, 

I have learned that the House of Commons is considering legislation that
would limit the liability of nuclear power operators. I am deeply concerned
about what this could mean for Canadians. 

The proposed limit of $650 million is far below the standards of other major
developed countries in Europe and of our neighbours in the United States.
Other governments have seen fit to make nuclear power plant operators pay
the full costs of the risks they create. Why don't Canadians deserve the
same coverage? 

The limit is also far below the costs of any serious accident. Given the
potential cost of a nuclear incident, operators will not be held responsible
for the full impact of accidents if this limit is imposed. It is
unacceptable that victims may not be compensated and taxpayers will be asked
to foot the bill.

As a Parliamentarian, it is your job is to protect the best interests of
Canadians. That is why we, the people, elect you.

Don't support Bill C-15. Raise the limit to protect Canadians. 

Sincerely, 

[your name here]

ADDRESSES OF NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE MEMBERS 

All Members of parliament can receive mail (no postage required) at the
following physical address

MP NAME
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A6

Email addresses for members of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources
(which will consider the bill) follow:

Liberal MPs 
Geoff Regan ReganG at parl.gc.ca 
Alan Tonks TonksA at parl.gc.ca 
Navdeep Bains BainsN at parl.gc.ca 

Bloc Quebecois MPs 
Paule Brunelle BruneP at parl.gc.ca 
Claude Guimond GuimoC at parl.gc.ca 

Conservative MPs 
David Anderson AnderD at parl.gc.ca 
Mike Allen AllenM at parl.gc.ca 
Cheryl Gallant GallaC at parl.gc.ca 
Russ Hiebert HiebeR at parl.gc.ca 
Richard Harris HarriR at parlg.ca.ca
Devinder Shory ShoryD at parl.gc.ca 

New Democrat MP
Nathan Cullen Cullen at parl.gc.ca

And please cc:  stephen.d.g.cornwell at gmail.com 

-- 

For more info: Stephen Cornwell, SAGE NNPP Darlington Project Coordinator,
416 587 4948, stephen.d.g.cornwell at gmail.com

http://www.gosage.net/Site/index.html

----------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Angela Bischoff

Outreach Director

Ontario Clean Air Alliance

Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246

625 Church Street, #402

Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1

 <mailto:angela at cleanairalliance.org> angela at cleanairalliance.org

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

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

Our Facebook Group

 <http://www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca/petition.php> Sign Our Petition

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

Health Power <http://www.healthpower.ca/> 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://list.web.net/pipermail/greenspirationto-l/attachments/20100510/cc88d785/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.png
Type: image/png
Size: 7524 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://list.web.net/pipermail/greenspirationto-l/attachments/20100510/cc88d785/attachment.png>