22 January 2011

Climate experts call for moratorium on UK shale gas extraction (Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences - The University of Manchester)

Climate experts call for moratorium on UK shale gas extraction (Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences - The University of Manchester)

20 Jan 2011

The Government should impose an immediate moratorium on the extraction of natural gas from the UK’s shale formations until all the ecological implications are fully understood, University of Manchester scientists have warned.

Blackpool has been mentioned as a possible shale gas extraction site
Blackpool has been mentioned as a possible shale gas extraction site

The report, commissioned by The Co-operative and written by the internationally-respected Tyndall Centre, part of The University of Manchester, the paper highlights evidence from the US, which suggests shale gas extraction brings a significant risk of groundwater contamination.

Moreover, the exploitation of gas shales is bringing new greenhouse gas sources into play and even a mid-range extraction scenario could see carbon dioxide levels rise globally by some 5 parts per million by 2050. This will further reduce any slim possibility of maintaining global temperature changes at or below 2oC and thereby increase the risk of entering a period of ‘dangerous climate change’.

The report concludes that until a sufficient evidence base is developed a precautionary approach to development in the UK is the only responsible action.

With conventional natural gas reserves declining globally, shale gas has emerged as a potential significant new source of “unconventional gas”. In the United States, production of shale gas expanded five fold between 1990 and 2008 and it is predicted that production will expand further to meet a significant proportion of US gas demand in the next 20 years.

The rapid growth of shale gas production in the US has raised interest in the UK, with a number of businesses beginning activities particularly on the Fylde coast of North West England.

In large measure this expansion is possible because of the new technologies of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, which make shale gas extraction more cost effective.

The Report raises serious questions about environmental and human health risks, which include:
• The release, globally, of significant quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere;
• Potential groundwater contamination associated with chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing process and the mobilisation of heavy metals and hydrocarbons.
• Resource issues including abstraction of significant quantities of water for hydraulic fracturing processes and land use.

The report also looks at the explicit implications of exploiting shale gas within the UK which is likely to give rise to a range of additional challenges, including:

• The UK is densely populated and consequently any wells associated with shale gas extraction are likely to be relatively close to population centres.
• The proximity of such extraction will give rise to a range of local concerns including noise pollution, high levels of truck movements and considerable land use demands.

Neville Richardson, Chief Executive of The Co-operative Financial Services, said: “On the face of it new natural gas finds appear to be good news, but this important report highlights the significant gaps in our knowledge when it comes to understanding the impacts of shale gas extraction.

“That is why we are calling for a moratorium on any further exploitation of shale gas which will allow the wider environmental concerns to be fully exposed and addressed.”

“Our members have been fully supportive of our on-going Toxic Fuels campaign in which we have highlighted the issues associated with tar sands, and as a responsible institutional investor we will continue to engage with energy companies in order to ensure they act responsibly and work to support the development of sustainable energy sources.”

Kevin Anderson, Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the Tyndall Centre, University of Manchester, said: “In an energy hungry world any new fossil fuel resource will only lead to additional carbon emissions. In the case of shale gas there is also a significant risk its use will delay the introduction of renewable energy alternatives. Consequently, if we are serious about avoiding dangerous climate change, the only safe place for shale gas remains in the ground.”

Notes for editors

In looking at global emissions from shale gas consumption, three scenarios were prepared that utilised varying degrees of reserve exploitation. The resulting increase in atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide ranged from 3 to 11 parts per million by 2050.

The full report is available from the Press Office

For media enquiries contact:

Daniel Cochlin
Media Relations Officer
The University of Manchester
0161 275 8387

Secretive plans for nuclear reprocessing at Savannah Rivers Site

Clements will be first on a panel at 10:55 a.m. on Friday, January 7 and will speak to problems with the secretive push by special interest to pursue reprocessing at SRS, which is unsuited to receive more of the nation’s nuclear waste burden.

National Nuclear Waste Commission to Hear from Public, Environmental Groups on Friday in Augusta | WJBF–TV, 5 Jan 2011, Augusta, GA --A national panel established by President Obama to decide the way forward with high-level nuclear waste will meet in Augusta, Georgia on Friday, January 7. The Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC), which is deciding the fate of commercial spent fuel and Department of Energy high-level waste, will meet at the Augusta Marriott (Two Tenth Street in downtown) all day Friday and hear public comment at the end of the day.

Given the problems with proceeding with the Yucca Mountain waste dump, the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina is at risk of becoming an “interim” home for radioactive spent fuel or reprocessing of that dangerous material. “We will watch out for the public interest and strongly oppose efforts to dump high-level nuclear waste in South Carolina,” said Tom Clements, Southeastern Nuclear Campaign Coordinator with the environmental organization Friends of the Earth. “Environmental groups will confront efforts by special interests to reprocess nuclear spent fuel as it leaves behind a huge volume of nuclear waste and would make SRS the nation’s de facto nuclear dump, which is totally unacceptable.”

Reprocessing is a dirty and dangerous chemical process that extracts plutonium and magnifies problems with spent fuel storage. Reprocessing of military materials for plutonium production for nuclear weapons is what has resulted in the 36 million gallons of high-level waste at SRS and with which DOE is struggling to manage.

“While some are pushing on the one hand for a way out of South Carolina of high-level nuclear waste, these same people are lobbying for reprocessing at SRS, which means bringing the nation’s spent fuel to SRS.

This effort to bring radioactive spent fuel to SRS for reprocessing will be confronted for what it is – a dangerous deception that could result in a huge nuclear waste problem in South Carolina. Some label reprocessing as ‘recycling’ but most of the resultant waste streams have no practical use, are dangerous to handle and are costly to manage.”

Read more:
http://nuclear-news.net/2011/01/06/secretive-plans-for-nuclear-reprocessing-at-savannah-rivers-site/
 Read whole Article:

And then there is THIS:  

National Nuclear Waste Commission to Hear from Public, Environmental Groups on Friday in Augusta

Friends of the Earth to Challenge those who Aim to Dump Spent Fuel at SRS

 

A national panel established by President Obama to decide the way forward with high-level nuclear waste will meet in Augusta, Georgia on Friday, January 7. The Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC), which is deciding the fate of commercial spent fuel and Department of Energy high-level waste, will meet at the Augusta Marriott (Two Tenth Street in downtown) all day Friday and hear public comment at the end of the day.Given the problems with proceeding with the Yucca Mountain waste dump, the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina is at risk of becoming an “interim” home for radioactive spent fuel or reprocessing of that dangerous material. “We will watch out for the public interest and strongly oppose efforts to dump high-level nuclear waste in South Carolina,” said Tom Clements, Southeastern Nuclear Campaign Coordinator with the environmental organization Friends of the Earth.

“Environmental groups will confront efforts by special interests to reprocess nuclear spent fuel as it leaves behind a huge volume of nuclear waste and would make SRS the nation’s de facto nuclear dump, which is totally unacceptable.”

Included on the formal agenda amongst a long list of politicians with little technical or policy expertise in management of nuclear waste or record of closely tracking issues at the Savannah River Site, several SC and GA environmental groups will present testimony to the BRC. Clements will be first on a panel at 10:55 a.m. on Friday, January 7 and will speak to problems with the secretive push by special interest to pursue reprocessing at SRS, which is unsuited to receive more of the nation’s nuclear waste burden. Reprocessing is a dirty and dangerous chemical process that extracts plutonium and magnifies problems with spent fuel storage. Reprocessing of military materials for plutonium production for nuclear weapons is what has resulted in the 36 million gallons of high-level waste at SRS and with which DOE is struggling to manage.

“While some are pushing on the one hand for a way out of South Carolina of high-level nuclear waste, these same people are lobbying for reprocessing at SRS, which means bringing the nation’s spent fuel to SRS. This effort to bring radioactive spent fuel to SRS for reprocessing will be confronted for what it is – a dangerous deception that could result in a huge nuclear waste problem in South Carolina. Some label reprocessing as ‘recycling’ but most of the resultant waste streams have no practical use, are dangerous to handle and are costly to manage.”

DOE itself has raised the possibility of spent fuel storage and reprocessing at SRS, but it is primarily contractors that profit off SRS and nuclear waste management that have been pushing the idea. “As clean-up of SRS continues, we must look for new employment at SRS but those jobs must not be associated with bringing more radioactive waste to SRS,” said Clements. We believe that the public in South Carolina and Georgia will support clean jobs at SRS but not projects that bring yet more deadly nuclear waste to the site.” The charter of the BRC does not directly include consideration of jobs or future use of SRS or any other DOE site.

Friends of the Earth and the South Carolina Chapter of the Sierra Club are running ads in local weekly papers and on radio stations in the Aiken/Augusta area, urging members of the public to attend the BRC meeting and speak out against the nuclear waste threat faced by South Carolina.

On Thursday, January 6, members of the public will tour SRS, on a parallel track with members of the BRC, who will have a tour of their own. Staff of the BRC may well be on the bus with the public and available for interaction about the work of the Commission.


 (See BRC website for more information: http://www.brc.gov/)


20 January 2011



JTMPAdmin | January 12, 2011 | likes, 0 dislikes
www.jtmp.org and www.op-critical.com present "Freakin Frackin" by Op-Critical, a protest song against "hydraulic fracturing". Hydraulic fracturing, or "Fracking", is using over 500 toxic chemicals to shatter rock to extract more natural gas from wells, driving profit up. It pollutes our groundwater and the air and is killing us. It is putting profit over the planet. It is time we ban this toxic practice that is harming our planet.

Please order and watch the DVD "Gasland", a great documentary about "Fracking". by filmmaker Josh Fox. Get informed about "Fracking", and we urge you to contact your representatives and say, "No Fracking Way!", and join the call for a moratorium and eventual ban of hydraulic fracturing.

www.gaslandthemovie.com

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Tell President Obama: Keep nukes out of the State of the Union!


January 20, 2011

We have learned that President Obama's State of the Union Address on Tuesday, January 25, may include a call for Congress to enact a "Clean Energy Standard" that would support new nuclear reactors and "clean" coal plants.

However, we're told a final decision has not been made by the White House and the issue is still the subject of debate within the Administration.

Your actions now can make a huge difference. Please send a message to President Obama below and tell him that we know nuclear power and coal will never be clean and have no place in a "Clean Energy Standard."

Then please ask your friends and colleagues to send in letters too. You can also easily share this page on Facebook, Twitter and other networking sites (just look for the logos on the upper right).

Every nuclear facility releases toxic radiation on a daily basis, creates lethal radioactive waste and presents constant threat of meltdown--how is that clean? And even if carbon from coal plants could be captured (which is by no means clear), coal still brings us poisonous mercury, toxic ash and mountain top removal.

The Obama Administration--and Congress--must understand that while carbon emissions must be slashed, replacing them with other pollutants is no answer. And, of course, if we're really serious about slashing carbon emissions, then we need to move more quickly to renewables anyway, which release two to six times less carbon per kilowatt of electricity than nuclear power.
 
To our international friends: Our President may listen to you as well, so we encourage you to send a letter too!

Note: You may edit the sample letter to reflect your own concerns and priorities if you'd like.