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abolition-usa-digest    Thursday, December 23 1999    Volume 01 : Number 239




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

Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 12:09:56 EST
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Countdown to the NPT

Thank you for the information.  Please change your email listing for me to
"[e-mail]".

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 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
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------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 12:11:48 EST
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) 10 DAYS TO MAYBE/MAYBE NOT THE DEADLIEST GAMBLE IN HISTOR...

Thank you for the information.  Please change your email listing for me to
"[e-mail]".

- -
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
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------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 15:13:42 -0600
From: "Boyle, Francis" <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) FW: U.S. judge opens way for plutonium shipment to Canada

it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings. fab.

- -----Original Message-----
From: Mark Graffis [mailto:[e-mail]]
Sent: Monday, December 20, 1999 10:34 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients
Subject: U.S. judge opens way for plutonium shipment to Canada


   USA: December 20, 1999

   KALAMAZOO, Mich. - A federal judge cleared the way for the shipment of
   plutonium from Los Alamos, New Mexico, to Canada by refusing to grant
   an injunction to groups who say the move would break U.S. law.

   The order from U.S. District Judge Richard Alan Enslen in the Western
   District of Michigan also vacates a temporary restraining order that
   he issued on Dec. 7. The restraining order expires on Friday at 5:30
   p.m. (2230 GMT)

   The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) plans to truck nine fuel rods
   containing 119 grams of plutonium some 3,300 miles (5,280 km) through
   several states to an experimental reactor in Chalk River, Canada.

   The plutonium is at the centre of the Parallex Project, an
   experimental programme between the United States and Russia to dispose
   of fuel from dismantled nuclear weapons. The U.S. plutonium will be
   combined with nine rods from Russia and converted into nuclear reactor
   fuel.

   In a lawsuit filed Dec. 6 in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan,
   opponents of the effort said the Energy Department's plans violated
   the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and did not fully
   consider the environmental risks.

   The programme has also met resistance in Canada, where opponents fear
   their country will be turned into a dumping ground for nuclear waste.
   In addition to environmentalists, police and firefighters'
   associations have protested the shipment and Native American groups
   have threatened nonviolent actions to block the route.

   Alice Hirt, a Holland, Michigan, resident and one of the plaintiffs in
   the Michigan lawsuit, said on Friday that the opponents' attorneys
   were reviewing their options following Enslen's ruling.

   "For (DOE) to move ahead at this point flies in the face of the
   nonproliferation policy in this country, which has been in place for
   decades," she said.

   In his ruling, Enslen said opponents are likely to win on their NEPA
   violation claims.

   But he noted that the Parallex Project came out of talks between
   President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin and that
   courts should avoid interfering with U.S. foreign policy.

   "In the absence of overwhelming evidence by the plaintiffs
   demonstrating that the executive's foreign policy assessment is not
   credible or mistaken, the court must conclude that American
   nonproliferation interests would be harmed if the court were to issue
   an injunction," Enslen said.

   DOE officials said they were pleased by the decision, which will
   "allow the Energy Department to proceed with this important
   nonproliferation initiative." A spokeswoman said in response to
   concerns expressed by lawmakers, the DOE has taken additional safety
   steps including using specially designed vehicles.

   It was unclear when the plutonium will be transported. Hirt said DOE
   officials have said their deadline is Friday for starting the trip.
   DOE officials said Friday a date has not been set.

   Officials also refused to disclose the exact route for security
   reasons. Previous documents from the DOE indicated the shipment could
   pass through Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana before
   reaching Michigan.

   Once in Michigan, the fuel would cross the Mackinac Bridge into
   Michigan's Upper Peninsula, then enter Canada at Sault Ste. Marie.

   REUTERS NEWS SERVICE

- -
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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

Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 19:21:38 -0500
From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) URGENT:Radioactive Metals "Recycling" Dec22 NRC deadline for comments on scoping

>Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 17:43:59 -0500
>Subject: LAST CALL:Radioactive"Recycling" Dec22 NRC ddln for comments on
scoping
>To: [e-mail]
>From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
>
>BY MIDNITE DEC 22
>Zip a note to NRC on what you want them to consider in making a rule on
>radioactive release into consumer products.
>How radioactive should they allow regular products, building materials,
>our homes, schools, vehicles, workplaces, etc to be?
>NIRS is demanding 1) prohibition on radioactive releases in US and
>internationally; 2) reporting and recapture of already-released wastes
>and materials.
>For more info see www.nirs.org and www.citizen.org/cmep/
>
>SEND COMMENTS ASAP to NRC
>re: scoping of NRC proposed rule for RADIOACTIVE "RELEASE" and
>"RECYCLING" into the marketplace, regular landfills, incinerators, etc.
>64 FR 35090, 6/30/99
>ATTN: NRC Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff
>
>Comment to NRC by DECEMBER 22, 1999 by one of the following methods:
>
>1) Mail to:     US NRC/ Attn: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff/
>Washington, DC 20555
>
>2) by E-MAIL to:        [e-mail]
>
>(NRC requests that email comments be followed up with either mail or
>fax, but it is not essential)
>
>3) by FAX to the Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff:    301-415-1101
>
>4) NRC website:Submit electronically through the NRC's website:
>http://ruleforum.llnl.gov/cgi-bin/uploader/SM_RSC_public
>
>In order to submit comments through the website, you must save your
>comments in your files and remember the file name. Go to the NRC
>website. Fill out all of the fields they request. Hit the BROWSE button
>on the NRC website and find your file. Attach it.
>
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
15 East 26th Street, Room 915
New York, NY 10010
tel:  [phone]
fax:  [phone]
email:  [e-mail]
http://www.gracelinks.org

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, a global network working for a treaty to
eliminate nuclear weapons.

- -
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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

Date: Wed, 22 Dec 1999 09:57:17 -0600
From: "Boyle, Francis" <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) RE: U.S. judge opens way for plutonium shipment to Canada

my apologies for the sexist comment. yesterday i had a lengthy consultation
with one of the attorneys of record on this case. serious consideration is
being given to further legal action to block this shipment. fab.

- -----Original Message-----
From: Boyle, Francis
Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 1999 3:14 PM
To: '[e-mail]'; '[e-mail]';
'[e-mail]'; 'TP2000'; 'Scottish CND';
'[e-mail]'
Subject: FW: U.S. judge opens way for plutonium shipment to Canada


it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings. fab.

- -----Original Message-----
From: Mark Graffis [mailto:[e-mail]]
Sent: Monday, December 20, 1999 10:34 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients
Subject: U.S. judge opens way for plutonium shipment to Canada


   USA: December 20, 1999

   KALAMAZOO, Mich. - A federal judge cleared the way for the shipment of
   plutonium from Los Alamos, New Mexico, to Canada by refusing to grant
   an injunction to groups who say the move would break U.S. law.

   The order from U.S. District Judge Richard Alan Enslen in the Western
   District of Michigan also vacates a temporary restraining order that
   he issued on Dec. 7. The restraining order expires on Friday at 5:30
   p.m. (2230 GMT)

   The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) plans to truck nine fuel rods
   containing 119 grams of plutonium some 3,300 miles (5,280 km) through
   several states to an experimental reactor in Chalk River, Canada.

   The plutonium is at the centre of the Parallex Project, an
   experimental programme between the United States and Russia to dispose
   of fuel from dismantled nuclear weapons. The U.S. plutonium will be
   combined with nine rods from Russia and converted into nuclear reactor
   fuel.

   In a lawsuit filed Dec. 6 in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan,
   opponents of the effort said the Energy Department's plans violated
   the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and did not fully
   consider the environmental risks.

   The programme has also met resistance in Canada, where opponents fear
   their country will be turned into a dumping ground for nuclear waste.
   In addition to environmentalists, police and firefighters'
   associations have protested the shipment and Native American groups
   have threatened nonviolent actions to block the route.

   Alice Hirt, a Holland, Michigan, resident and one of the plaintiffs in
   the Michigan lawsuit, said on Friday that the opponents' attorneys
   were reviewing their options following Enslen's ruling.

   "For (DOE) to move ahead at this point flies in the face of the
   nonproliferation policy in this country, which has been in place for
   decades," she said.

   In his ruling, Enslen said opponents are likely to win on their NEPA
   violation claims.

   But he noted that the Parallex Project came out of talks between
   President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin and that
   courts should avoid interfering with U.S. foreign policy.

   "In the absence of overwhelming evidence by the plaintiffs
   demonstrating that the executive's foreign policy assessment is not
   credible or mistaken, the court must conclude that American
   nonproliferation interests would be harmed if the court were to issue
   an injunction," Enslen said.

   DOE officials said they were pleased by the decision, which will
   "allow the Energy Department to proceed with this important
   nonproliferation initiative." A spokeswoman said in response to
   concerns expressed by lawmakers, the DOE has taken additional safety
   steps including using specially designed vehicles.

   It was unclear when the plutonium will be transported. Hirt said DOE
   officials have said their deadline is Friday for starting the trip.
   DOE officials said Friday a date has not been set.

   Officials also refused to disclose the exact route for security
   reasons. Previous documents from the DOE indicated the shipment could
   pass through Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana before
   reaching Michigan.

   Once in Michigan, the fuel would cross the Mackinac Bridge into
   Michigan's Upper Peninsula, then enter Canada at Sault Ste. Marie.

   REUTERS NEWS SERVICE

- -
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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

Date: Wed, 22 Dec 1999 11:07:11 -0500
From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: [y2k-nuclear] [Fwd: Y2K WASH ON NATIONAL NEWS! KEEP CALLING CLINTON!]

>Date: Wed, 22 Dec 1999 09:49:30 -0500
>Subject: [y2k-nuclear] [Fwd: Y2K WASH ON NATIONAL NEWS! KEEP CALLING
CLINTON!]
>Priority: non-urgent
>X-FC-MachineGenerated: true
>To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
>From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
>
>
>
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Want to send money instantly to anyone, anywhere, anytime?
>
>You can today at X.com - and we'll give you $20 to try it!  Sign=20
>
>up today at X.com.  It's quick, free, & there's no obligation!
>http://click.egroups.com/1/332/5/_/28220/_/945877841
>
>-- Create a poll/survey for your group!
>-- http://www.egroups.com/vote?listname=3Dy2k-nuclear&m=3D1
>
>Dear friends,
>        I am delighted to report that the Y2K World Atomic Safety Holiday
>press briefing, held this morning, Tues. 12/21 at the National Press Club
>in Washington, DC, appeared on C-SPAN2 and the Jim Lehrer News Hour! You
>can view the first half-hour of the briefing on the web at www.c-span.org.
>(You can get RealPlayer at www.real.com for free.) It was also carried on
>ABC radio in the Washington area. Also today, well-known physicist Dr.
>Michio Kaku called for shutting down nuclear plants and de-alerting nuclear
>weapons on his Pacifica radio show, Explorations, and repeated his concerns
>on Dennis Bernstein's Flashpoints on KPFA. Wired magazine and a number of
>print reporters were also present at the briefing and we will look for
>their stories tomorrow. Please let us know (reply to me or
>[e-mail]) if a story turns up in your local papers.
>        THIS IS A TIME TO REDOUBLE OUR EFFORTS TO GET CLINTON TO SHUT DOWN
>THE NUKES!!! The Safety Holiday is now on the national agenda-we have
>reports that it is being discussed at high levels of the Clinton
>Administration.
>        Please keep calling and faxing President Clinton and your
>Congressmembers and Senators, right up to the rollover. Call the media too,
>thank them for covering the story, if they have, or ask when they're going
>to cover it. YOUR EFFORTS ARE HAVING AN IMPACT!
>        Numbers and a fact sheet are below.
>
>        Y 2 K   W O R L D   A T O M I C   S A F E T Y   H O L I D A Y
>
>        website: www.y2kwash.org        hotline: [phone]
>
>=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
=3D=3D=3D
>
>         President Bill Clinton: (tel) 202-456-1111, (fax) 202-456-2461
>
>         John Koskinen, President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion:
>        (tel) 202-456-7171
>        (fax) 202-456-7172
>
>         Sen. Robert Bennett (R-UT) & Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT),
>        Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem:
>        (tel) 202-224-5224
>
>If you can do more, phone your own Representatives and Senators (they are
>home in their districts now - numbers are in your phone book), tell them
>how you feel and ask them to call the White House too. And by all means, be
>creative!
>
>SAMPLE LETTER
>-------------
>
>Dear President Clinton,
>
>We respectfully request that you issue an executive order to:
>
>1) Temporarily shut down all U.S. nuclear reactors in a phased procedure to
>be completed by no later than noon, December 30th; and allow a phased
>restart after January 1st only when normal functions of electrical
>transmission, communications and water systems have been restored and
>validated, and nuclear plants have been independently verified Y2K
>compliant;
>
>2) Ensure that there are reliable backup generators and sixty days' fuel
>supplies for reactor cooling systems and other nuclear facilities that rely
>on cooling, particularly for ALL spent fuel pools;
>
>3) Close all other nuclear facilities and suspend nuclear shipments for the
>New Year's weekend;
>
>4) Protect communities by practicing emergency drills;
>
>5) Provide government subsidies for the cost of backup generators and fuel
>and for nuclear workers' lost pay and utilities' lost revenues during the
>temporary shutdown;
>
>6) De-alert nuclear weapons systems and implement trust-building measures
>among nuclear nations;
>
>7) Renew these measures for February 29, 2000 and December 31, 2000-January
>1, 2001; and
>
>8) Encourage other world leaders to undertake these initiatives as a joint
>international effort so that the financial status of a nation is not an
>impediment to a WORLD ATOMIC SAFETY HOLIDAY.
>
>                                        Sincerely,
>
>=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
=3D=3D=3D
>BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Nuclear Y2K
>
>LET'S NOT RISK NUCLEAR MELTDOWNS!
>
>        The October accident at the nuclear processing plant in
>Tokaimura, Japan, is a reminder of the destructive power of radioactive
>technology. The result of simple human error and lax regulation=97both part
>of
>the Y2K mix=97it could foreshadow nuclear accidents which may occur less=
 than
>25 days from now=97unless we act now to prevent catastrophe.
>
>Computer malfunctions may confuse operators with faulty data.
>------------------------------------------------------------
>        A Y2K test in February, 1999 at the Peach Bottom reactor in
>Pennsylvania caused a day-long crash of the plant's primary and backup
>monitoring computers. With blank screens, operators could not view
>conditions inside the reactor. Could this be an ominous preview of
>conditions at nuclear reactors all over the world because of the Year 2000
>computer bug (Y2K)? Let=92s remember that it was bad data, human error and
>lax
>regulations which triggered disasters at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and
>Tokaimura.
>
>The cooling systems of nuclear power plants need constant power=97
>for FIVE YEARS, even after the plants have been shut down!
>---------------------------------------------------------------------------=
- -
>---         Without constant cooling, a reactor core can melt within two
>hours. U.S. government reports admit that Y2K-related electricity grid
>failures are a possibility, especially in rural areas. While most reactors
>have two diesel generators to provide backup power in case the electric
>grid
>fails, their reliability record is poor: 48% have reported problems since
>January 1999=97and they stock only 7 days' fuel. A reactor core can melt=
 down
>within two hours of loss of coolant.
>
>Many U.S. spent (used) fuel pools have no backup generators.
>------------------------------------------------------------
>        Spent fuel pools contain 3-5 times more radioactive fuel than
>reactors. The fuel gradually cools, but refueling scheduled by 22 reactors
>this fall will add intensely hot fuel rods to their storage pools. In the
>absence of power for pumping water, these pools could boil in 24 hours and
>the fuel rods could begin to melt.
>
>The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is not protecting the public.
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>        It's protecting short-term nuclear industry profits instead.
>Congress' General Accounting Office (GAO) says: "NRC's regulations...do not
>define, for either a licensee or the public, the conditions necessary for a
>plant's safety" in Y2K. The NRC allowed the industry to self-report
>readiness, with no independent verification=97and plans to  suspend nuclear
>safety requirements for the New Year in order to keep reactors running!
>
>Nuclear power is not needed at New Year's.
>-----------------------------------------
>        Electricity use is down nearly 50% in winter, so the energy
>provided
>by nuclear power will not be needed. Nuclear plants should shut down to
>protect the public, like other hazardous industries. Five major pipeline
>companies =97 including Arco, Explorer and Colonial =97 have said they'll=
 be
>turning off their pipelines prior to and during the rollover. And four
>chemical companies =97 Rhone-Poulenc, DuPont, Monsanto and Ashland Chemical=
 =97
>have said they will idle some North American plants prior to 1/1/2000.
>
>The bug's in the bomb, too.
>---------------------------
>        The British American Security Information Council reports the
>possibility that the nuclear weapons states "will experience faulty or
>blocked communications, erroneous early-warning readings, [and] blacked-out
>computer screens" from Y2K, resulting in explosions or accidental launch of
>nuclear missiles. (www.basicint.org)
>
>The Y2K World Atomic Safety Holiday Campaign calls for:
>
>=B7 Stand by for rollover: shut down nuclear reactors and nuclear=
 processing
>facilities
>
>=B7 Beef up the backup: have a 60-day supply of fuel available to all=
 reactor
>sites
>
>=B7 De-alert and de-couple nuclear weapons: take nuclear weapons off=
 "launch
>on warning" status
>=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
=3D=3D=3D
> =20
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
15 East 26th Street, Room 915
New York, NY 10010
tel:  [phone]
fax:  [phone]
email:  [e-mail]
http://www.gracelinks.org

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, a global network working for a treaty=
 to
eliminate nuclear weapons. =20

- -
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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

Date: Wed, 22 Dec 1999 19:28:28 -0500
From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: First Nations vow to continue fight to halt MOX fuel shipment

>Date: Wed, 22 Dec 1999 17:41:30 -0500
>Subject: First Nations vow to continue fight to halt MOX fuel shipment
>Priority: non-urgent
>X-FC-MachineGenerated: true
>To: [e-mail]
>From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
>
>PUBLICATION The Sault Star DATE Tue 21 Dec 1999 EDITION FINAL
>SECTION/CATEGORY City PAGE NUMBER B1 / Front BYLINE Elaine
>Della-Mattia The Sault Star STORY LENGTH 637
>
>
>
>First Nations vow to continue fight to halt MOX fuel shipment
>
>
>
>First Nations territories will be even more vigilant watching for
>transports carrying plutonium from dismantled nuclear weapons now
>that a Michigan judge has removed the last legal hurdle, paving the
>way for the shipment to occur.
>
>Michigan Chief Judge Richard Enslen late last week rejected a request
>by environmentalists for a preliminary injunction that would have
>blocked the transport.
>
>The judge ruled that although the plaintiffs' contentions that the
>U.S. government violates the law appeared to have merit, the
>Department of Energy's assertions that an injunction would hurt
>nuclear-disarmament talks were more important.
>
>Garden River First Nations Chief Lyle Sayers said that means
>residents and friends on both sides of the International Bridge are
>going to have to be more vigilant and watch for the shipment of the
>MOX fuel.
>
>``We have said that we are going to stop the shipment through our
>First Nation territory and if we know when the shipment is coming
>through, that's what we still intend to do,'' Sayers said.
>
>``But I have to thank our American friends for at least attempting to
>get an injunction so that an environment assessment could be
>completed. Unfortunately, the U.S. government didn't agree,'' he said.
>
>Since word of the transportation route of the shipment was released,
>environmental groups and First Nations along the shipment route have
>raised concerns about the long-term effects of the shipment.
>
>``The end result is the long-term effects to the land and the people,
>and our people have told us that they don't want nuclear waste in
>Canada,'' Sayers said.
>
>Kathy Brosemer, a spokesperson for Northwatch, a regional coalition
>of environmental groups in Northern Ontario, said that the ruling
>doesn't surprise her.
>
>``Basically it leaves us where we were before,'' Brosemer said.
>
>``People should still be writing to the government, to Lloyd
>Axworthy, to voice their concern,'' she said.
>
>Brosemer said that although both the Canadian and American
>governments have said that they're not going to tell people when the
>shipment leaves New Mexico and heads towards its final destination,
>Chalk River, Ont., ``if anybody knows when it's going, we'll know.''
>
>She said environmental groups and First Nations along the
>transportation route have banded together to keep watch on the
>shipment.
>
>Chris McCormick, spokesperson for the Association of Iroquois and
>Allied Indians, said it is now time for the Ontario government to
>make its position and plans about the shipment known to its citizens.
>
>``It's time Mike Harris takes a stand on this and tells us what his
>plans are,'' McCormick said. ``I don't think the politicians are
>living up to their responsibility to the citizens of Ontario,'' he
>said.
>
>The Association of Iroquois and Allied Indians has written letters to
>Ontario Premier Harris and several of his ministers asking them to
>make their position on the shipment known and reveal plans to ensure
>that Ontario citizens are safe.
>
>The transport is part of a joint U.S.-Russian experiment to determine
>whether commercial nuclear reactors in Canada can use material from
>decommissioned Russian nuclear weapons as fuel.
>
>As part of the experiment, the U.S. is shipping a 119-gram sample of
>mixed plutonium and uranium oxides from New Mexico to Chalk River,
>Ont.
>
>A second sample from Russia is to travel along the St. Lawrence
>Seaway to Cornwall, Ont. and then to Chalk River. The U.S. government
>says the shipment is a one-time occurrence to allow for the
>experiment but citizens in Ontario and Michigan believe that if the
>experiment is successful, more MOX will be shipped along the route
>for eventual destruction.
>
>They fear that an accident may occur, causing long-term environmental
>effects.
>
>----
>
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
15 East 26th Street, Room 915
New York, NY 10010
tel:  [phone]
fax:  [phone]
email:  [e-mail]
http://www.gracelinks.org

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, a global network working for a treaty to
eliminate nuclear weapons.

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

Date: Thu, 23 Dec 1999 19:05:59 +1000
From: FoE Sydney - Nuclear Campaign <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) THE WORLDS BEST CHRISTMAS PRESENT

It's nearly Christmas Eve here in Sydney.

Unlike the northern hemisphere, down here it is warm and sunny in spite of
recent rain.

People are likely to spend Christmas, (with the exception of strange folk
like myself who spend it in front of a computer warning of a possible
perhaps-maybe-who-knows, apocalpse, and asking people to do utterly absurd
things like fax Clinton and Yeltsin about it, ) - with their families or
friends at a back - yard barbequeue,  or at the beach.

But whether you have had a warm to hot downunder Christmas or a US or
European white Christmas, it would be much more of a pleasure if you knew
that there were not those 5,600 land- based ICBM warheads plus submarine
and bomber based warheads, on 24 hour a day immmediate, launch-on-warning
status.

That could ruin your entire new year, especially knowing that the oldest,
largest, most complex, and previously least Y2K compliant computer systems
in the world perform command, communications, control, and intelligence for
nuclear weapons systems.

Sure, the Pentagon say they have spent $3.6billion to make their nuclear
combat command, communication, and control systems Y2K compliant.

Sure, the US and Russia have established a joint Y2K 'Strategic Stability
Centre' next to the Cheyyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado.

And it is important - indeed crucial - that they have done this.

However, we hope they have by now managed to fix the hotlines set up during
the cold war, and discovered to be non Y2K compliant in September.

If nuclear weapons could not be immediately launched, then not only over
the nervous Y2K rollover period, when US and Russian officers are going to
EXPECT false alerts, blank screens, and communication blackouts, but at any
other time when also false alerts have happened, decision makers would
never be forced into the situation in which they have to decide whether to
blow up the world in five minutes, perhaps at 3am in the morning when very
much the worse for wear after new years drinkies.

The best Christmas gift Clinton or Yeltsin can give the world is to do as
two resolutions passed by the United Nations General Assembly a year ago
with massive majorities, and another two passed this year with massive
majorities, two resolutions passed by the Australian Senate and  one
resolution passed unanimously by the European Parliament have reccommended
- - to take nuclear weapons off hairtrigger alert and place them in a status
in which launch on warning is no longer possible.

A letter signed by 500 global environmental organisations, arms control
groups, religious bodies, NGOs, and Parliamentarians asking for nuclear
weapons to be taken off alert for the new year was faxed to Yeltsin and
Clinton yesterday.

Ask President Clinton, President Yeltsin, and their secretaries and
ministers for defence to do this.

If you have access to a fax machine, a single page A4 fax even to the
Kremlin should cost you round a dollar. (public fax facilities charge an
arm and a leg so don't bother with them).

The best fax is handwritten not typed.

Do it now - It's Christmas Eve tomorrow (or it is here in Sydney).

You can fax for free on: http://www.fax4free.com

You can fax Clinton on [phone]
You can fax US defence secy Cohen on 1-703-695-1149
You can fax Yeltsin on [phone].

There are sample letters below, but they you should shorten them and use
your own words. You don't need to write anything near as long as this. Use
what you want of these sample letters in your own way.

1) SAMPLE LETTER TO COHEN/CLINTON
(Please customise and shorten)

TO:
WILLIAM COHEN, US SECRETARY OF DEFENCE, [phone],

PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON,  WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, US,  [phone],
[phone].

Dear President Clinton and Secretary for Defence Cohen,

I am writing  to urge your administration to take US nuclear forces off
'hairtrigger alert' even if only during the Y2K rollover period, to ask
that any false alarms or 'near misses' over the Y2K rollover and at any
other time be reported publicly, and to ask that the Y2K strategic
stability centre's operations be extended preferably indefinitely but at
least till May.

There is little time to act, and an immediate decision to place nuclear
weapons in a status in which immediate launch is impossible is essential to
ensure global stability.

As you will be aware, the European Parliament recently voted to ask you and
President Yeltsin to do as the UK has already done, and de-alert nuclear
weapons.

De-alerting of nuclear forces was strongly recommended by the Canberra
Commission in 1996 and then by the Tokyo Forum,  as a way to develop
strategic stability and build trust between the US and Russia. It has also
been incorporated into last year's  and  this years text of the New Agenda
Resolution in the UN General Assembly. It has also been reccommended by a
resolution specifically on the subject passed by last years General
Assembly and by this years First Committee on Reduction of Nuclear Dangers.
In addition it has been the subject of two resolutions passed by the
Australian Senate on 12 August and 20 September, and finally it has been
clearly requested by the European Parliament. It is also the subject of
congressional resolution H.Con Res177 put by Edward Markey, and most
recently, the City of Berkeley has asked for it.

De-Alerting and the establishment of the Y2K strategic stability centre are
not in competition with each other.  Indeed, we urge strongly that the
strategic stability centres operations be extended indefinitely.

Reductions in the number of weapons, the establishment of shared early
warning centers and de-alerting are all  vital to the reduction of tension
and the establishment of strategic stability.

This is particularly the case in view of the uncertainties posed by the
millennium date change (Y2K).

As you are well aware, the largest and oldest computer system complexes in
the world are those that control nuclear weapons systems.

The very nature of the Y2K problem makes it impossible to be sure
everything has been fixed until well into the new year.

Russia has, until recently, made little effort to even acknowledge the Y2K
problem, let alone fix it. It is therefore quite possible that Russian
computerized control systems are not Y2K compliant and that they will
experience widespread failures during the Y2K rollover period.

Even more disquieting is the fact that that the Russians have constructed
the system known as 'Perimeter', or the 'dead hand'. This system seems to
include additional ways in which Y2K failure might lead to an accidental
launch.

The establishment of a Y2K strategic stability center in Colorado is
certainly an advantageous move and an absolutely essential one, but it does
not entirely remove the danger of an accidental launch of nuclear
weapons.

The fact that the Center is scheduled, as far as we the public are aware,
to come into operation only on December 27th, four days prior to the
rollover, is far from reassuring. A four day delay will render it useless.

Similarly, the center itself will depend on the availability of
ultra-reliable hotlines between it and Moscow. The  Y2K vulnerabilities
recently discovered in six of the seven hotlines on which US/Russian
communications depends, are also cause for deep concern.

If nuclear weapons are removed from a status in which they can be launched
within minutes, and placed in one which would require at least days to
launch, the risk of an accidental missile launch induced by Y2K or other
errors in command and control systems will be virtually eliminated.

This  has already been done by the UK, which has moved the 'notice to fire'
for its missile forces from minutes to days.

The United States is making a serious error in failing to consider
de-alerting.  Failure to take nuclear forces off hairtrigger alert over the
Y2K 'rollover' period is an error that has the potential of causing
unthinkable consequences.

The probability of this may be low, but it will never be zero as long as
nuclear forces remain on hair-trigger alert.  This will continue to be so
after the immmediate Y2K 'rollover' period.

In a previous administration, President Bush took strategic bomber forces
off alert. We urge you to do this with all US nuclear forces.

(SIGNED)
etc.

2) SAMPLE LETTER TO YELTSIN/DEFENCE MINISTER SERGEYEV
(Please customise and shorten)

PRESIDENT BORIS YELTSIN, IGOR SERGEYEV, RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTER,
[phone],

Dear Defence Minister Sergeyev and President Yeltsin,

I am writing to convey my deep concern that Y2K-related computer failures
in the command and control systems for nuclear weapons may lead to an
accidental nuclear war.

I am aware that both Russia and the US have taken this problem seriously
enough to establish a joint strategic stability center in Colorado.
However, I am very much concerned that this facility will come into
operation only by 27th December 1999, so that a delay of just four days
will make it useless.

This facility is however, essential to the security of the world, and
should continue to operate indefinitely.

I am also very much concerned that Y2K problems have been found recently in
six out of seven of the 'hotlines' that would be used if a crisis of any
sort arose over the Y2K rollover period.

I am aware that there have been a number of occasions when either the US or
Russia have mistakenly believed that the other nation was in the process of
launching a nuclear attack.

With 3,600 Russian warheads on 700 missiles and 2,000 US warheads on 500
missiles, with each side capable to launch within roughly 20 minutes, this
must never be allowed to happen, either over the Y2K 'rollover', or at any
other time.

The use of 5,600 warheads would certainly mean the end of what we call
civilization, would likely mean the end of the human race and could
possibly mean the end of all life.

I therefore urge both you and the United States, to place all your nuclear
forces in a status in which at least days not minutes, would be required to
launch. The United Kingdom has, I understand, already done this.

The European Parliament has recently called on both the US and Russia to
de-alert nuclear weapons and to place them in a state similar to that in
which the UK has placed its weapons. De-alerting of nuclear forces was
strongly recommended by the Canberra Commission in 1996 and then by the
Tokyo Forum, as a way to develop strategic stability and build trust
between the US and Russia. It has also been incorporated into last year's
and this years text of the New Agenda Resolution in the UN General
Assembly. It has also been recommended by a resolution specifically on the
subject passed by last years General Assembly and by this years First
Committee on Reduction of Nuclear Dangers. In addition it has been the
subject of two resolutions passed by the Australian Senate on 12 August and
20 September, and finally it has been clearly requested by the European
Parliament. It is also the subject of congressional resolution H.Con Res177
put by Edward Markey, and most recently, the City of Berkeley has asked for
it.

In this context I am particularly concerned that statements have been made
in which the threat of nuclear weapons has been raised, and that new
missiles have been deployed and placed on alert status.

As what is at stake is potentially the survival of the entire planet, no
considerations, even the highest considerations of national security, can
take priority.

The immediate stakes are so high and the potential for global catastrophe
is so great, that  de-alerting of nuclear forces in the face of the Y2K
computer problem and the long-term possibility of false alerts must take
precedence over all other considerations of political and national security.

(Signed)
etc.

John Hallam
Friends of the Earth Sydney,
17 Lord Street, Newtown, NSW, Australia, 2042
Fax [phone]  ph (61)(2)9517-3903
[e-mail]
http://homepages.tig.com.au/~foesyd
http://homepages.tig.com.au/~foesyd/nuclear/bbletter.html





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

End of abolition-usa-digest V1 #239
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