The New York Times (July 24)
Since Fukushima, “Americans have asked whether something just as horrible could happen here.” The odds of an earthquake/tsunami combination are low, but “the possibility that something equally unexpected and unplanned for could exceed current defenses at American plants cannot be discounted.” Regulators and operators should take stronger preventive measures. More specifically, they should follow the “thoughtful and common-sense recommendations” made by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) task force that was assembled to review America’s nuclear preparedness in light of Fukushima.
Since Fukushima, “Americans have asked whether something just as horrible could happen here.” The odds of an earthquake/tsunami combination are low, but “the possibility that something equally unexpected and unplanned for could exceed current defenses at American plants cannot be discounted.” Regulators and operators should take stronger preventive measures. More specifically, they should follow the “thoughtful and common-sense recommendations” made by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) task force that was assembled to review America’s nuclear preparedness in light of Fukushima.
Tags: Fukushima, NRC, Nuclear, Regulators, U.S.
Wall Street Journal (June 16)
More “Fukushima fallout” landed in Italy where voters “rejected government efforts to restart the domestic nuclear industry.” The Wall Street Journal thinks this is a bad decision. Nuclear technology is “advanced and safe.” Instead, Italy will be dependent on other European nations for electricity. “That’s their choice, but it doesn’t mean it’s a wise one.”
The Independent (May 9)
The closure of the Hamaoka nuclear facility will affect the future of a nuclear fuel plant at Sellafield in Cumbria. Hamaoka was scheduled to become Sellafield’s biggest customer for mixed oxide (Mox) nuclear fuel. The UK has more spent plutonium fuel than any other country and Sellafield was designed to reprocess this plutonium as nuclear fuel. Little has gone according to plan. Since 2001, the “Sellafield Mox Plant has been beset by problems. Instead of producing 120 tonnes of fuel a year, it has managed just over 13 tonnes in eight years, at a total cost to the taxpayer of £1.34bn – and a further £800m in future running costs expected this decade.”
The Economist (April 4)
“Japan gets all the bad luck.” On the verge of recovery from Lehman shock, the triple whammy earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis has again placed all in doubt. Responses to the Tankan survey illustrate the blow. Pre- and post-quake responses show a marked drop, with optimism turning to pessimism. Rotating power outages and the jishuku sense of restraint are inflicting further damage on the economy. The Economist urges that this is the “time, then, for the government to get out in front of its own people, and tell them to spend.”“Japan gets all the bad luck.” On the verge of recovery from Lehman shock, the triple whammy earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis has again placed all in doubt. Responses to the Tankan survey illustrate the blow. Pre- and post-quake responses show a marked drop, with optimism turning to pessimism. Rotating power outages and the jishuku sense of restraint are inflicting further damage on the economy. The Economist urges that this is the “time, then, for the government to get out in front of its own people, and tell them to spend.”
Financial Times (April 23)
North Korea is “a dangerously unpredictable state.” Signs of this arose again with a plot to assassinate a North Korean defector and suspicions over North Korea’s involvement in the sinking of South Korea’s Cheonan warship. The problem: “the world is clueless about how to deal with a regime that responds to neither sticks nor carrots.” The Financial Times warns, however, that we can’t ignore North Korea: otherwise we will wake up one day “to find that a desperate, volatile state can fit a ballistic missile with a nuclear warhead.”
North Korea is “a dangerously unpredictable state.” Signs of this arose again with a plot to assassinate a North Korean defector and suspicions over North Korea’s involvement in the sinking of South Korea’s Cheonan warship. The problem: “the world is clueless about how to deal with a regime that responds to neither sticks nor carrots.” The Financial Times warns, however, that we can’t ignore North Korea: otherwise we will wake up one day “to find that a desperate, volatile state can fit a ballistic missile with a nuclear warhead.”
Tags: Cheonan, North Korea, Nuclear, South Korea
