Not just
EDF and Calvert Cliffs
that would be enabled by
the current NRC rule-changing comment period.
In April
NRC denied a license to NRG and Toshiba Corp. (aka Nuclear Innovation North America, or NINA)
for two new reactors at the South Texas Project nuclear facility outside Bay City;
the same facility where STNP 2
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/2013/01/fire-in-texas-nuclear-reactor.html
had a fire in January.
The reason for denial was the same as for EDF and Calvert Cliffs: Continue reading
Author Archives: John S. Quarterman
NRC to change nuke foreign ownership so EDF can fire up Calvert Cliffs?
The NRC “upheld” license denial for the Calvert Cliffs nuke
with its fingers crossed, the very same day
directing staff to look into changing the requirement
by which it just ruled.
A requirement against majority ownership by a foreign firm,
in this case
Électricité de France (EDF),
whose flagship Cattenom reactor
caught on fire a week ago with smoke seen from miles away;
two people died at Cattenom in February.
You can comment on NRC’s proposed changes to let EDF
fire up Calvert Cliffs
online or in person June 19th in Maryland.
The same day
the NRC upheld denial of a license, 11 March 2013,
the same Commission
“directed the staff to provide a fresh assessment on issues relating to FOCD including recommendations on any proposed modifications to guidance or practice on FOCD that may be warranted.”
And the issue with Calvert Cliffs was that very same “foreign ownership, control, or domination (FOCD) of commercial nuclear power plants.”
This explains why Continue reading
Solar power in Japan to equal 7 nukes by end of this year
A Japanese feed-in tariff apparently provoked an explosion of solar power, making Japan head up towards China and Germany in installed solar power. Where is the U.S.? Where is Georgia, with much more sun than Japan? Maybe there is something more to learn from Fukushima after all, SO CEO Tom Fanning.
Michael Fitzpatrick wrote for Fortune 13 June 2013, Japan: The world’s new star in solar power; China and Germany have new competition at the top,
According to a report by energy analyst IHS on Japan’s energy mix, Japan’s solar installations jumped by “a stunning 270% (in gigawatts) in the first quarter of 2013.” That means by the end of 2013 there will be enough new solar panels equal to the capacity of seven nuclear reactors. Such massive growth will allow Japan to surpass Germany and become the world’s largest photovoltaics (PV) market in terms of revenue this year.
PV cell production and shipment (GWp) in Japan: Total (orange), Export (green), and Domestic (blue)
しばとも
How did this happen? Continue reading
More new nukes to stop: Vogtle, Summer, and 15 more
Although TVA’s Bellefonte nuke will never come up, others are still being built, including TVA’s own Watts Bar, plus 19 more.
Document-forging Doosan-supplied Vogtle 2 and 3 in Georgia and Summer 2 and 3 in South Carolina are the only four actually already issued combined licences (COL) to build and operate.
But 15 other proposed new reactors are “Under Review”, and all the ones in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina are within 500 miles of here: Continue reading
TVA Bellefonte nuke won’t be built
Economics stopped another reactor, this time in Alabama, less than a week after San Onofre. But more are still in the works.
Brian Wingfield wrote for Bloomberg Businessweek yesterday,
TVA Shelves Work at Alabama Nuclear Plant Amid Industry Struggle,
“Over the past few months, TVA has been looking across the company, including at our nuclear construction projects, to determine the work that is most important to perform,” Mike Skaggs, the TVA senior vice president for nuclear construction, said in the statement. “Hard decisions are necessary.”
The U.S. nuclear industry is wrestling with competition from a glut of natural gas, which has lowered its price and made the fuel more attractive for electric utilities. At the same time, U.S. regulators are writing safety rules following a triple meltdown at Japan’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant in 2011.
The fracking backlash is building against natural gas. And guess what’s even cheaper? Continue reading
Lowndes County vs. Deep South Sanitation this morning
The county government’s attempt to put a local business out of business
is this 9:30 AM at the county palace this morning 14 June 2013.
Physical Address:
Courtroom 5D, Fifth Floor
Lowndes County Judicial Complex
327 N. Ashley Street
Valdosta, GA 31601
WALB’s earlier story said June 4th, but now it’s June 14th (today), because Lowndes County Attorney Walter Elliott is also an attorney for Turner County in the LOST case before the GA Supreme Court, and he was going to be in Atlanta arguing before the Supreme Court on June 4th. Funny how everything is done for the convenience of the county government, and not for its citizens. Maybe we should change that.
-jsq
Video of oral arguments in LOST GA Supreme Court case
Here’s the Georgia Supreme Court’s own video of
S13A0992 Turner County v. City of Ashburn et al.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013.
It starts with the attorney for Turner County, Walter Elliott
(who is also Lowndes County Attorney)
apparently arguing that the courts shouldn’t intervene because
only legislative bodies should decide on taxes.
The judges didn’t seem to understand his argument.
One judge wondered how disputes would be settled then. Elliott said the local elected bodies would decide or the tax wouldn’t be levied. Another judge pointed out that legislative bodies could delegate administrative functions. Later the same judge asked how to distinguish this case from a child custody case as far as criteria and a court being able to decide. Elliott claimed that was a judicial function, but allocating tax dollars was not. The judges didn’t seem to be buying the city attorney’s argument later, either.
Funny how the Supreme Court of Georgia videos its sessions, but the Lowndes County Commission does not.
A metropolitan area needs better than trash government –John S. Quarterman
My LTE in the VDT Thursday. I’ve added links to some of my inspirations. -jsq
Local leaders worked hard to get the Valdosta Metropolitan Statistical Area declared. Why now are they acting like a Ludowici speed trap for local businesses?
The Lowndes County Commission shouldn’t act like a private business trying to exclude anybody it doesn’t like. State law says local governments are supposed to have open bids and public hearings. A promise (in the VDT) in March 2013 of a non-exclusive contract for trash collection turned into exclusive in October; at least two of the five bidders are now the same company; and the county is suing
a local business to the profit of a company owned by investors in New York City. Meanwhile, no public accounting has ever been seen of the former waste collection sites and no public hearing was held before they closed, despite state law.
Business exists to make a profit. Government exists to provide public services like law enforcement, water, sewers, roads, and yes, trash collection. Sure, balanced books are good. But money isn’t the main point of government: providing what the people need is, and the people didn’t ask the county to exchange the waste collection centers for lower prices that won’t last.
Businesses (except monopolies) have to Continue reading
You’re losing the democratic process –Gary Wright @ LCC 2013-06-11
“I hope you’ll consider a democratic process working into your rules,”
remarked a military veteran at
Tuesday night’s
Lowndes County Commission Regular Session.
After saying he was also concerned about how Deep South Sanitation is being treated, Gary Wright said:
There is a little bit of a lack of democratic process in your meeting groundrules. On your website I don’t know anything in there that said you have only thirty minute meetings for the entire thing. I don’t know if this happens whenever you have a meeting that’s only thirty minutes long; I’ve never been to one.
Their rules don’t say that, but it’s not surprising there is confusion, given Continue reading
Do the right thing –Steve Parker @ LCC 2013-06-11
The right thing is not letting one company take all the money to New York
while putting another out of business, said a local resident
at Tuesday night’s
Lowndes County Commission Regular Session.
When you get a company like Veolia or Advanced that’s taking all the money to New York, and then they come to my house and they leave, I put garbage bags beside my can and they won’t pick it up.
And then my guy, Cary Scarborough, comes and picks up everything, and you know what else he does guys? Continue reading