Author: Martyn

EDF & Unrealistic Fiscal Dreams

If anyone thinks EDF will find the money to build a new nukiller reactor at Hinkley, then they should start to look at the companies financial situation.

In last decade the share price has fallen from around 85 Euro to that of between 9 & 10 Euro.

Meanwhile the guestimated costs of the plant continue to rise.

It is because of these costs that the nukiller industry is now starting to push for smaller and what they say are cheaper reactors.

In the meanwhile UK energy consumption has dropped, and 25% of it is produced by wind turbines and other renewables.

 

To quote the quote: –

Just Do The Maths.

Dealing with Difficult Problems.

I keep reading about just how we need to prioritise various aspects of our campaigning to stop nukiller power, but it is not as simple as that.

The nukiller industry presents us with a series of related issues, and that’s why we do need to engage in some joined-up-campaigning.

Old ones in place of new build

Much of the current anti-nukiller-power campaigning work centres round stopping new build.

All the delays in stopping EDF building a new reactor at Hinkley might be considered something of a success, but it comes at a cost.

Now they want to extend the working life of their existing plants, such as the one at Heysham, by another five years.

This is on top of the previous operating extensions.

That could be very dangerous as these plants are already in a very unsound condition.

Nukiller Waste: – A Catch 22 problem.

Nukiller waste is one of the most difficult of issues which the industry faces, and thus one of the greatest arguments in terms of closing down all reactors now, and stopping new build.

It also presents something of a catch 22 situation.

Waste can not be kept at any of the coastal plants which are going to be subject to rising tides, and that’s something which we have as an immediate problem. Neither should it go to Sellafield which is highly polluted, and also has a potential flooding problem within the next few years.

What we don’t want is for any of this waste to be stored in any area which is geologically unstable, The industry talks about what to do with the waste in the short term, or at least until all they have to deal with is long term radioactive waste.

They are now looking for an ‘engineering solution’ by which the waste is isolated from the area in which it is stored. Though that would be very costly to do. It is of note that the guestimated cost of just cleaning up Sellafield will be circa £110 Billion over the next 100 year.

All of which makes for a series of complicated issues which we also need to consider.

I don’t have any solution to offer.

Though I do know that we do have to consider all of the above in terms of any campaigning we might be doing.

 

Next Problem – No thanks !

What the nukiller industry now is considering to do is build a lot of small scale, off the shelves, and therefore cheaper nukiller reactors.

They have still be be designed, will still produce a lot of radioactive waste, and take money away from sounder ecologically sounder methods of producing energy.

Honour The Many Brave Conscientious Objectors Of WW1.

1916 – 2016

Military Service Act came in to force on March 2nd 1916. As a result many brave conscientious objectors ended up in Jail.

Next Wednesday [ March 2nd at 11.00. ] there will be an event to honour these men outside of Walton Jail in Liverpool.

That is where many of those brave men were incarcerated.

This includes people such as Fenner Brockway.

The event will involve a reading of the names of COs who were held in Walton jail, and some of the many WW1 COs from the Merseyside area.

After that there will be a brief name reading of just a few of the many COs who are currently held in prison throughout the world 

This will be a unique event.

Please lets others know about it and come to it if you can.

Currently Questioning.

The job of a political activist is to keep raising questions and alerting others to the various dangerous we all face.

After that it is on to the next question, and then the next question, until there are no more questions which need asking.

That’s fine for most issues,

but it only works when the issues are very clear,

or when it is very easy to put together all the information that’s to be found.

Yet what if information is being deliberately held back from us all?

Then much of the campaigning will revolve around finding out just what the facts might be.

This is very much so when it comes to campaigning about nukiller power, and undercover policing.

The lines which keep coming up include:-

– Commercial confidentiality.

– The Official secrets act.

&

– Neither confirm or denied.

All of which slow one down in terms of active campaigning.

That is why I am one of the 133 individuals who are calling for a list of all the political groups which were infiltrated by the police spies to be made public.

It’s a good just that the Undercover Research Group keeps working away to find out about the activities of former undercover police.

&

There is a very good network of anti-nukiller activists who share information with each other.

Mapping it out.

One of the most useful tools which I’ve discover in terms of looking at the nukiller issue are OS [ Ordinance survey ] maps, for they clearly show low lying lands near current the nukiller reactors.

After that I cross reference then with the UK flood maps

These maps clearly show what might well take place at these plants within the next 10 to 30 years.

The one for Dungeness is particularly interesting as it shows all the moorland to the north of the reactor site,

Many areas to the north and west are marked as: – Danger Area.

I’ll just keep looking at these maps, and keep asking just how new build can be justified while many of the existing reactors are going to be effected by rising tides.

There is no such thing as a fixed coast line.

I Refuse To Be Intimidated

I keep getting increasingly threatening letters from the television licensing mob, who have now ‘opened an investigation’ on my flat, and will be around to see me in the next few weeks.

Nowhere in the legislation does it state one has to contact them if [ like me] one does Not Own a television, or any equipment capable of receiving a live television signal.

Thus I will continue to ignore them.

Yet they continue to treat me and many others I know as Guilty Until Proven Innocent.

Such letters as they send are both libellous, and show no understanding of the law.

I refuse to be intimidated by them.

No Cause For Alarm – Or Lets Not Worry, As It’s Party Time

Lethargy can cause more harm to the environment than most people ever realise.

In other words, we have so little time to do anything about it, that there is just no time to stop or rest.

Let’s just sum up the situation which faces us all: –

– The Pacific is dying.

– We are at the long predicted stage of tipping over climate change.

&

– The amount of nukiller waste is going to be polluting the planet for many thousand of years,

and still they want to build many new reactors.

As I keep saying: –

We have so much to do in order to stop this mess, that there is no time to party, or take time off during the gloom day period.

If more people were on the ball, then some of the nukiller industry PR propaganda would have been challenged in the way the closure of the Wylfa reactor was reported by the media.

While the other story which would of got more coverage is the one which slipped most people by, as it was announced on December 31st.

‘The City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), has shelved plans for an inquiry into the culture, pay and behaviour of staff in banking.’

What more can I say ?

Giving ‘One 2 One’ Background Briefings To Activists.

I’ve recently put together a 200 page binder file of notes, maps, illustrations, graphics, and photos, which cover all the main aspects of the nukiller power industry.

Amongst other things there is a lot of information about nukiller waste transport, URENCO / Capenhurst, Uranium Hex / Uranium Hex transport, etc, etc.

This file also includes some historical information about flood & storms around existing reactors, and the current flood maps which go along with them.

There are also various maps which show the location of various reactors in a number of countries, together with that of Uranium mines.

To back up all this information I also use the OS maps which show Hinkley, Sizewell, & Dungeness.

These are maps show exactly why these reactors are likely to be effected by storms and high tides.

This file is used both for any talks that which I might give, and as a way of giving ‘one 2 one’ background briefings to activists.

I’m very willing to go through it all with any activist who want to know the fuller picture, and has the time to do so.

 

A little Light Reading.

 

Behind the Headlines.

To be a really effective campaigner one has to read a lot, and that means getting away from what’s printed as the headline news.

Here is just a sample of what I have been reading of late.

 

New Build.

A good example of this is what has been in the press over the last couple of weeks concerns new build at Hinkley.

Despite all the headlines about the UK and Chinese governments signing a deal to built a new reactor at Hinkley, it is far from a done deal. EDF have still to sign such a deal, and there are lots of obstacles which need to be completed before any such contract can come in to force.

As to the whizzo idea of building a new reactor at Bradwell, well that’s another none starter. Just look that the flood map for the area, and then think about rising sea levels.

Thus the headline should have been: –

Hinkley and Bradwell.

It’s all smoke and Mirrors.

 

The Atlantic Cartier.

During October the

Bundesstelle für Seeunfalluntersuchung

[ Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation ]

published the following: –

Investigation Report 99/13  Serious Marine Casualty Fire on the con-ro carrier.

ATLANTIC CARTIER on 1 May 2013 in the Port of Hamburg

At the time of the fire the ship was carrying uranium hexafluoride (UF6), and flammable ethanol as a part of the cargo.

– Uranium Hexafluoride is highly toxic.

– Uranium Hexafluoride is corrosive to most metals.

– Uranium Hexafluoride reacts violently with water.

– Uranium Hexafluoride is radioactive.

The transport of Hex is one of the most worrying concerns which we should all have.

Meanwhile there are are growing worries about the Uranium Hex which is to be found at Capenhurst, and aspect of the proposed sale of Urenco.

 

The Pitchford Inquiry.

The Pitchford Inquiry in to Undercover Policing started in July.

A first preliminary hearing took place on October 7th . 

While the Sixth Preliminary Hearing be heard during March.

The inquiry will last for circa two and a half years.

It will cover many of the questions which activists have been asking for a long time, but just how many of the answers we receive is very much an open question for now.

 

The Kings New Centre For The Enhancement Of Magic

This is a story from from the EDF book of fairy stories and nursery rhymes.

The Kings new centre for the enhancement of magic

There was once a king who was so poor, both financially and intellectually, that he decided to sell some of his kingdom to his fellow monarchs.

Of course this was not going to be easy to do, and so he announced that he would build a new centre for the enhancement of magic.

He knew that this was going to be really difficult to do, and so he offered many bags of gold to go with it.

This was a very very popular move, or at least that is what his advisers told him.

So he spent a lot more of the gold, which he had taken from his impoverished subjects, in producing many hand coloured maps to show what a wonderful place the new magic education centre might be.

One fine morning he opened the gates to his palace in order to show just what wonderful maps they were.

While his advisers stood around and praised him for his visionary ideas.

One small boy happened to pass by, and having never been allowed in the the palace before, [ as a result of all the heavy armoured guards with the shiny new weapons which surrounded the place ], he decided to take a look at what was going on.

As luck would have it the small boy had not heard about these very fine maps, and so he was able to see what they really were.

Thus he exclaimed:-    ‘ It’s wet and it’s water, and it’s water and it’s wet.’

This was because the map showed that much of the new magic education centre would soon be under the sea.

This did not go down well for the king. So he ordered that the small boy be clapped in irons and thrown in to his deepest dungeon.

Yet the small boy continued to shout:-      ‘ It’s wet and it’s water, and it’s water and it’s wet.’

Yet it took many years for the people to hear his cries.

While the king is still trying to sell his new centre for the enhancement of magic.

A Reply From The CNC On My Data File

I’ve just had the reply to my request for any data files which the Civil Nuclear Constabulary [ CNC ] might hold on me.

I also asked that this might include anything which they might have which was passed in the them by the UKAEA   [United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority] Special Constabulary.

This is what it says:-

‘ I can conform that the Civil Nuclear Constabulary do not hold any information on you. The Civil Nuclear records are constantly reviewed in line with MOPI ( Management of Police Information ). ‘

In other words – They claim to hold nothing on me right now, they might of done so in the past.

I know of no other anti nukiller power activist who has asked for their personal data records from the CNC. So there is no way in which I can compare this with the kind of reply which any other activist might of received. So that’s why it would be really useful if a few other activists did so.

Any one what to take this up ?