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Ecologists
call on Minister Khristenko to abolish imports of nuclear waste
into Russia
IA MiK, April 23, 2004
On April 22, 2004, the "Ecozaschita" (Ecoprotection)
group conducted an anti-nuclear action timed to coincide with the 18th
anniversary of the largest technogenic disaster in the history of mankind
- the disaster at Chernobyl nuclear power station. One person was detained.
Nuclear
Power Ministry and Green Cross in the Same Team.
By Sergei Leskov, Izvestia, December 19, 2003
The President discussed with the representatives of the nuclear department
and the ecologists the problems of burying spent nuclear fuel, where opinions
were divided irreconcilably.
Vladimir
Putin Held Working Meeting Devoted to Nuclear Security Issues
RIA "OREANDA", November 29, 2003
According to the RF President's press-service, Vladimir Putin touched
upon the multilateral nuclear ecological programme ratified by the State
Duma. The programme foresees mutual work with foreign partners to liquidate
Russian nuclear submarines.
President
Putin Conducts a Nuclear Safety Meeting
RIA "Novosti", November 28, 2003
Russian President
Vladimir Putin held a working meeting on matters of nuclear safety.
Kurchatov
Institute nuclear waste disposed - Putin.
Itar-TASS, November 28, 2003
The ratification of
the multilateral nuclear environmental programme at the State Duma is "a
serious step forward in the resolution of the problem of nuclear waste
disposal in Russia," President Vladimir Putin said at a Friday conference
on nuclear security.
Putin
chairs meeting over nuclear safety
Itar-TASS, November 28, 2003
Yavlinsky noted that the local population there was suffering greatly.
A decision to resettle them had been made 50 years ago. "We reached
common ground with the Nuclear Power Ministry on the financing of the
project," he said, "but safety remains the key issue."
Ministry
of Nuclear Power Ready to Finance Environmental Programmes in Chelyabinsk
Region
RIA "OREANDA", November 3, 2003
The deputy minister's letter is
the Ministry's official response to Mitrokhin's appeal to the Ministry
to allot money to move people away from nuclear-contaminated areas in Chelyabinsk
region.
Nuclear
Watchdog Chief's Vow
By Sarah Karush, Associated Press, August 11, 2003
New Gosatomnadzor chief Andrei Malyshev said Friday that he was committed
to preserving the independence of the nuclear safety watchdog, amid fears
that the appointment of an industry insider would spell the end of regulation
in the nuclear power sector.
A
Master-Tinker's Nuclear Dreams
By Yevgenia Borisova, The Moscow Times, July 3, 2003
But nothing stirs up passions more than his nuclear devices, two of
which -- a new kind of reactor and a new way to process spent fuel --
could eliminate most of the dangers associated with atomic energy and
turn the industry on its head if widely adopted, he says.
An
Inventor Tries to Save the World
By Yevgenia Borisova, The Moscow Times, July 3, 2003
Although not everyone takes his work seriously, many do, some so much
that they've stolen his designs, his institute and nearly his life.
Russia's
nuclear-waste gambit
By Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor, 3 July 2001 (Archive)
The thicket of nettles is chest high as Vladimir Katzenbogen and
Nikolai Popov force their way through, searching with Geiger counters
and a gamma-ray detector for radioactive hotspots.
Russia needs $2 bln to clean up radiation-contaminated areas
Interfax, June 4, 2003
In Russia, "radio-nuclear contamination has spread over 581 square kilometers. Just 0.5 square kilometers have been cleaned up over five years due to the costliness of the operation"...
Minister
for Nuclear Power Warns About Collapse of Shield over
Chernobyl
Rosbalt, April 28, 2003
Minister for Nuclear Power Alexander
Rumyantsev has warned about a possible collapse in the shield over
the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. "The consequences would
be devastating. The sarcophagus was built to last five years, but
has been there for 17 years. Nobody has inspected these walls in
detail. We do not know what is happening under the shield,"
Rumyantsev told the Izvestia newspaper in an interview published
on April 26.
Russia
Will Have Enough Nuclear Power Until 2030
Rosbalt, April 18, 2003
Deputy Minister
for Nuclear Power Mikhail Solonin told Rosbalt at a special round
table session in the Russian parliament on Friday that Russia currently
ranked 7th in the world in terms of nuclear power reserves estimated
at 160,000 tonnes.
...At the same time, he said that the Russian nuclear
power industry faced a number of serious environmental
problems.
850
million roubles are required to evacuate the population
from Tatarskaya Karabolka and Muslyumovo
Ural-Press-Inform (Chelyabinsk), April 2, 2003
YABLOKO proposes that the President of Russia adopt
urgent measures to evacuate the residents of these
territories that were subject to radioactive contamination
due to the Mayak disaster and the flow of radioactive
waste into the Techa river.
Lack
of international aid hampers destruction of Russia's
weapons-grade plutonium
RIA Novosti, March 14, 2003
Moscow, March 14, 2003 (RIA Novosti correspondent
Eduard Puziryiv). Instead of the required USD2 billion required
to build a plant to destroy weapons-grade plutonium in Russia, the
international community has gathered only USD800 million, a RIA
Novosti correspondent quoted minister Alexander Rumyantsev, the
Ministry for Nuclear Power, as reporting on Friday.
U.S.,
Russia Sign Reactor Shutdown Deal
By Charles J. Hanley , Associated Press, March 12, 2003
VIENNA, Austria (AP) - The United States and Russia
signed agreements on
Wednesday reviving an on-again, off-again deal to shut down the
last three
Russian reactors producing nuclear weapons-grade plutonium.
Not
Enough Money to Protect the Nuclear Sector
By Dmitri Chernov, Vremya MN, March 6, 2003
There is at present no danger of another disaster like Chernobyl at the functioning reactors of nuclear power stations in Russia.
See Murmansk and die!
By Paul Keysers, MAXIM magazine, Belgium, no. 20, December 2002
Russia dumped tons of nuclear waste in the region around Murmansk for 50 years. At present about 100 nuclear submarines are laid up there awaiting decommissioning. At a rate of between six and, at best, eight vessels per year, progress is hardly overwhelming. Engineers can only
observe that the level of radioactivity above ground is 5,000 times that of France's underground nuclear test on Mururoa atoll.
YABLOKO learns to be an environmental party
Aliance Media, December 10, 2002
The meeting between the representatives of environmental organisations
from Tomsk and Chelyabinsk regions, Krasnoyarsk Territory and the
leaders of the YABLOKO party took place in the State Duma on December 3,
2002. YABLOKO was represented by chairman of the party Grigory
Yavlinsky, as well as deputy chairmen, deputies of the State Duma Sergei
Mitrokhin and Igor Artemyev.
Chelyabinsk Region. Representatives from the YABLOKO faction visit the "Mayak" plant
VolgaInform, December 16, 2002
A public inspection at the Zheleznogorsk mining-and-chemical complex in
Krasnoyarsk Territory had positive changes. Let us remind you here that
a commission headed by deputy from the YABLOKO faction Sergei Mitrokhin
visited the complex in February, 2002. Now measures have been
implemented to strengthen the security systems. The uncompleted shell
of the RT-2 plant has been dismantled and a new concrete fence is being
built.
Activists
address Russia's radioactive legacy before disaster's
anniversary
Associated Press, By Vladimir Isachenkov, September
27, 2002
MOSCOW - The fallout from a catastrophic nuclear dumpsite
explosion in Russia's Ural Mountains 45 years ago
and decades of radioactive pollution have gravely
affected the local population's health, but authorities
have done little to assess or limit the damage, environmentalists
said Thursday.
FEATURE-Russian
'atomic city' builds future on nuclear dreams
Reuters, By Larisa Sayenko, October 2, 2002
ZHELEZNOGORSK, Russia, Oct 2 (Reuters) - The streets
of this Siberian city are eerily clean and uniform,
free of the buzz of commerce and jumble of billboards
found even in the smallest and poorest of Russian
provincial cities.
Yavlinsky
Conceives Split of the Ministry of Nuclear Power
Vedomosti, by Zoya Kaika and Elena Evstigneeva, July
31, 2002
The YABLOKO faction, conducting a campaign against
the import of spent nuclear fuel into Russia, found
a radical way to resolve this problem. YABLOKO proposed
that President Vladimir Putin virtually disband the
Ministry of Nuclear Power, distributing its proxies
between the Energy Ministry, Defence Ministry and
the Ministry of Industry. However, this idea has no
backers in the Presidential Administration or Government.
Yavlinsky
opposes spent nuclear fuel imports
Bellona Group, April 4, 2002
He criticised heavily the officials who had authorised
the import of foreign spent nuclear fuels. "People
who want to obtain $20m over 40 years are just swindlers"
noted Yavlinsky. He emphasized the danger created
by the Russian government by agreeing to store and
reprocess foreign spent nuclear fuel. The trains,
which bring the fuel, are so heavy that Russia’s
worn-out railways may not cope and then serious environmental
disasters can happen. Yavlinsky does not trust the
companies engaged in nuclear waste shipment and storage:
"It is madness to store nuclear waste in the
country with our bureaucrats. This represents a gift
to all terrorists."
Special
commission to control imports of spent nuclear fuel
The Russian State Duma, Lower House of Parliament,
established a special commission to control the Russian
nuclear ministry's deals with the foreign owners of
the spent nuclear fuel.
Bellona Group, March 22, 2002
Russian
liberal Yabloko party to hold referendum
Bellona Group, December 10,
2001
Russia’s
International Nuclear Business and the Future of the
Russian
Speech of the Russian State Duma Deputy Sergey Mitrokhin
RANSAC Congressional Seminar
Ministry of Nuclear Power
July 19, 2002
A
Briefing on the Dangers and Benefits of Russia’s
International Nuclear Cooperation
Russian American Nuclear Security Advisory Council
Congressional Strategic Stability and Security Seminar
Series
July 19, 2002
Atomic
Energy Ministry Has Been Cheating Interview by Natalya
Fridman
Moscow News #27, July 17, 2002
Atomic Energy Ministry Has Been Cheating Interview
by Natalya Fridman Sergei Mitrokhin (Yabloko faction),
deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Local
Government, comments on the situation.
The
Risky Business of Waste Diposal. Russia's Nuclear
Sewer.
Le Monde diplomatique, February
2002 (Archive)
Since Vladimir Putin became President
of Russia, the Kremlin has clashed frequently with
a media company that exposed, among other things,
the government`s handling of the war in A journalist
was sent to prison for four years last year after
filming the Russian navy dumping radioactive waste
into the Sea of Japan. He, like many other Russians
and environmental organisations, opposed the new laws
that allow the privately profitable import of foreign
nuclear waste. by our special correspondent Nathalie
Melis.
Waste
Storage Case
The Moscow Times, May 22, 2002.
MOSCOW (AP) -- The appeals board of
the Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld an earlier decision
blocking the import of nuclear waste from Hungary
for storage in Russia.
While
the Radiation Indicator Has Not Gone Too High YABLOKO
against life at the nuclear waste dump
Obschaya Gazeta, May 2, 2002
On the 16th anniversary of the Chernobyl
disaster a protest action against importing nuclear
waste into Russia was held in 82 cities of 53 Russian
regions. The action was organised by the Russian Democratic
Party YABLOKO, different environmental and human rights
organizations. According to preliminary estimates,
about 30,000 activists participated in the action.
Five
out of ten prefectures of Moscow administrative districts
ban the YABLOKO party from organising pickets by the
metro stations on the occasion of the 16th anniversary
of the disaster at Chernobyl nuclear power station
Rosbalt, April 25, 2002
Five out of ten prefectures of Moscow
administrative districts banned the YABLOKO party
from organising pickets near metro stations on the
occasion of the 16th anniversary of the disaster Chernobyl
nuclear power station. However, according to the YABLOKO
press service, on April 25 and April 26 the party
will distribute leaflets to about 100 metro stations,
and on April 26 a meeting will be held at Kaluzhskaya
square, Moscow. The leader of YABLOKO Grigory Yavlinsky
and well-known environmentalists and human rights
activists will speak at the meeting.
The
YABLOKO Party, Environmenalists and Human Rights Campaigners
Hold Meetings against the import of nuclear waste
into Russia
RIA "OREANDA", April
27, 2002
Moscow. About 300 people took part
in the meeting against the import of spent fuel into
Russia. The meeting was held in the centre of Moscow
on Kaluga square on the evening of April 26, on the
16th anniversary of the accident at the Chernobyl
NPP. The meeting was organized by the Russian Democratic
Party Yabloko with the support of environmental and
human rights organizations as part of an All-Russian
action that was held in over 50 regions.
Concern
over nuclear waste rises in Russia
By Sergei Blagov, Asia Times,
March 23, 2002
MOSCOW - Russia's dangerous radioactive
legacy of the Soviet-era nuclear sector has become
a matter of domestic and international concern. While
the Russian authorities, notably the Nuclear Power
Ministry - or Minatom - argue that the country's nuclear
facilities sector is safe, some international environmental
organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
and parliament deputies are far from convinced.
Police
Cart Away Nuclear Protesters
By Robin Munro Staff Writer, The
Moscow Times, April 26, 2002.
Police, Kremlin security officers and
plainclothes officers forcefully broke up a peaceful
demonstration against nuclear waste imports on Red
Square on Thursday, cuffing young protesters in the
face before hauling them by their collars to waiting
police cars and roughly slamming them in.
Moscow
Authorities Prohibit Action by the Yabloko Party and
Environmentalists
RIA "OREANDA", April 22,
2002
Moscow. April 26 is the 16th anniversary
of the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
The Russian Democratic Party Yabloko plans to conduct
a nationwide action with the support of public organisations.
Minatom
lobby for spent fuel intensifies
By Igor Kudrik, Bellona Foundation,
April 23, 1999
Despite U.S. resistance and Russian laws against radioactive
waste imports, Russia's Nuclear Energy Minister shows
maniacal persistence soliciting support for the idea
Proposal
for foreign spent fuel storage in Russia
By Thomas Nilsen, Bellona Foundation,
May 30, 1999
A U.S. and German industry group has developed a proposal
for shipping foreign spent fuel to Russia for long-term
storage. The proceeds of the venture would be a minimum
of $4 billion, coming from nations trying to rid themselves
of spent nuclear fuel problems. Part of this money
will go to help pay Russian pensioners and orphans.
Russia:
Actions against imported spent fuel
WISE News Communique, November 2,
2001 (Archive)
Bellona Foundation - On 18 October 2001, the Russian
State Duma passed an amendment to the Law on Environmental
Protection, thereby removing the last roadblocks for
massive import of nuclear waste. At the same time
the environmental group Ecodefense! reported that
railroad wagons, destined for Russia, were being loaded
with Bulgarian spent nuclear fuel. By the end of 2002
a steady flow of special trains is supposed to arrive
in Siberia.
Greenpeace Takes Nuclear Waste Debate to Cour
By Nabi Abdullaev Staff Writer,
the Moscow Times, February 21, 2002
State Duma Deputy Sergei Mitrokhin posing at the Krasnoyarsk
plant, where a consignment of spent nuclear fuel is
being stored.
Break-in Highlights Nuclear Security Problems
By Nabi Abdullaev
Staff Writer The Moscow Times Monday, February 18,
2002.
Greenpeace activists
protesting against the importing of spent nuclear
fuel outside the Nuclear Power Ministry in November.
Greens outraged as Putin signs nuclear imports law
By Amelia Gentleman,http://www.nci.org,
July 12, 2001
Russian environmentalists responded with fury yesterday
to President Vladimir Putin's decision to sign legislation
allowing spent nuclear fuel to be imported, protesting
that it would turn Russia into a dumping ground for
the world's nuclear waste.
The Yabloko and the Union of Right-Wing Forces faction
express their indignation at the decision of the State
Duma to create a commission on the problem of imports
of nuclear waste exclusively from the deputies supporting
this draft
Moscow, October 24, 2001,
MK-Novosti
Spent nuclear fuel comes to Russia
By Natalya Galimova, Moskovskiy Komsomoletz, October
18, 2001
“The deputies have a chance to prevent Russia
from being transformed into an international nuclear
dump.” This was the slogan of the press conference
organised by representatives of Yabloko, “Russia’s
Regions” and representatives of the green movement.
Russia moves closer to spent nuclear fuel imports
Reuters, June 29, 2001
Plans to open Russia to imports of spent nuclear fuel
got the go-ahead from the upper house of parliament
on Friday, paving the way for President Vladimir Putin
to enact the bill criticised by environmentalists.
Arbat traffic stops for waste debate
By Ana Uzelac,The Moscow Times,
June 4, 2001
Nuclear Power Minister Alexander Rumyantsev showed
up at a downtown restaurant Sunday for a cup of tea,
a slice of cake and a debate with Yabloko head Grigory
Yavlinsky on a controversial plan to import spent
nuclear fuel. Yavlinsky and Rumyantsev were guests
of the "Bender Show" on Ekho Moskvy radio,
which is broadcast live from a restaurant on Arbat
and named after Ostap Bender, the charming con-man
hero of the classic 1920s novel "Twelve Chairs."
Cracking jokes and assisting in the writing of a silly
poem about nuclear waste, an unrelenting Rumyantsev
maintained that earning billions of dollars by importing
spent nuclear fuel was the only way for Russia to
clean up areas contaminated by nuclear tests and storage
leaks.
Russia to import nuclear waste
BBC, June 6, 2001
Russia will import, store and reprocess other countries'
nuclear waste, following the approval of the third
and final reading of a controversial bill by the Russian
lower house of parliament. Once passed by the upper
house and signed by the president, the bill will earn
Russia's Atomic Energy Ministry up to $20bn over a
10-year period...
Nuclear commission in land of waste
By Denis Shevchenko,
Rossiya, July 12, 2001, p. 2
How can we explain Putin's initiative in the matter
of spent nuclear fuel? It may be Putin's way of shifting
responsibility to Alferov (Ed.Nobel prize winner,
member of the CPRF faction and head of the Duma committee
on the import of nuclear waste), an ardent advocate
of Russia's participation in spent nuclear fuel reprocessing.
The scientist is quite sure that the new law will
"help Russia retain and develop its nuclear energy
sector and other high-tech industries." From
now on, Alferov himself will be responsible forevery
deadly container of spent nuclear fuel that enters
Russia. And if anything should happen - which God
forbid - it will be Alferov's head that rolls. The
president will not be involved.
Welcoming Nuclear Waste
By Sophia Kornienko,
www.tol.cz, June 11, 2001
ST.PETERSBURG, Russia—Russia’s most recent money-making
scheme could bring 20,000 tons of nuclear waste into
the country over the next two decades. The plan, enabled
by a bill recently passed by the state Duma, the lower
house of parliament, has been vigorously criticized
by economists, ecologists, and doctors. Meanwhile,
even western exporters are questioning their counterpart’s
venture, saying that the spent fuels may never reach
Russia.
Wasting Away
By Anna Badkhen, www.tol.cz, June 5, 2001
The Soviets kept a dirty secret about deadly radiation
from the villagers of Muslyumovo, and now the Russians
want to cover up old waste with new
Yabloko and the Union of Right-Wing Forces Unite against
Spent Nuclear Fuel
Rossiya, July 9, 2001, p. 3
Collection of signatures for referendum against the
import of spent nuclear fuel to Russia to begin in
autumn
Finmarket agency, July 07, 2001
Interview with Grigory Yavlinsky
Marianna Maximovskaya, “Segodnya” programme, TV-6,
June 26, 2001
Address to the members of the Federation Council on
the adoption of the package of laws on the imports
of spent nuclear fuel into the Russian Federation
The Yabloko faction
June 14, 2001
Address of the Yabloko faction to the top officials
and deputies of legislative assemblies of the subjects
of the Russian Federation on the adoption of the package
of laws to import spent nuclear fuel into the Russian
Federation
The Yabloko faction
June 14, 2001
Duma approves nuclear fuel imports
The Moscow Times, June 7, 2001, p. 1
The State Duma gave final approval in 20 minutes Wednesday
to legislation opening Russia to imports of spent
nuclear fuel, a project environmentalists say will
turn the country into a nuclear dump.
Nuclear Energy Ministry Gets the Green Light
By Ivan Rodin, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, June 7, 2001,
p. 3
In yesterday's vote, the Duma approved the Nuclear
Energy Ministry's plans to import spent nuclear fuel
for reprocessing and temporary storage in return for
some money, although no one can say exactly how much.
Advocates of the project say that reprocessing the
heat rods from nuclear reactors could earn Russia
about $20 billion. The money will be made available
to Russia over 20 years, but not all of this amount
will be spent on environmental programmes. Some money
will have to be spent on building the required infrastructure.
Again, no one can say exactly how much money will
be spent on building reprocessing and storage facilities.
Yabloko to initiate referendum on expended nuclear
fuel imports
RosBusinessConsulting, June 6, 2001
The Yabloko movement is going to initiate a referendum
on the import of expended nuclear fuel to Russia,
Yabloko leader Gregory Yavlinsky announced in an interview
today after the State Duma approved bills on expended
nuclear fuel imports on the third reading...
Russian lower house of parliament passes bills to
import nuclear waste
Associated Press,
June 6, 2001
Russia's lower house of parliament on Wednesday quickly
approved a controversial proposal that would permit
the import of other countries' nuclear waste for reprocessing.
Nuclear Waste: Update
Vremya MN, June 4, 2001, p. 3
The ongoing war over the amendments to the current
nuclear energy legislation that would permit the import
of spent nuclear fuel into Russia entered another
phase yesterday. Yabloko leader Grigory Yavlinsky
and Nuclear Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev answered
questions posed by pedestrians on Novy Arbat Street.
Russians said to oppose waste bill
Associated Press,
May 26, 2001
A leading Russian environmentalist said Saturday that
legislation to allow the import of nuclear waste could
face an uphill battle if lawmakers listen to their
constituents.
Against Nuclear Waste Imports
The Press-Centr.Ru Information
Agency
According to a Press-Centr correspondent,
the Sverdlovsk regional branch of Yabloko supported
the nation-wide action to collect signatures against
the law on the import of nuclear waste to Russia.
Yabloko objects to the import of spent nuclear fuel
strana.ru , 20.03.01.
18:42
The Yabloko faction in the State Duma thinks that,
if approved, amendments to existing legislation regulating
the import, storage and recycling of spent nuclear
fuel (SNF) will cause tremendous losses to Russia.
The legislature will consider the amendments at the
second reading on March 22.
Yabloko movement protests import of expended nuclear
fuel to Russia
RosBusinessConsulting,
January 16, 2001
Regional branches of the Yabloko political movement
conducted protest actions against a decision of the
State Duma, the lower house of parliament, on uncontrolled
imports of expende
Russian Lawmakers Likely to Approve Nuclear-Fuel Bill
Jeanne Whalen, Staff
Reporter
The Wall Street Journal
via Dow Jones
Russia reprocesses its own spent nuclear
fuel and has a special agreement that allows the import
of some spent fuel from the former Soviet republic
of Ukraine, scene of the world's worst nuclear accident
in 1986 at the Chernobyl power plant. The new bill
would allow about 20,000 metric tons to be imported
over the next decade, which would give Russia about
10% of the world market, according to the ministry.
Russia Debates Proposals to Profit From Nuclear Waste
Jeanne Whalen and
Neil King Jr., Staff Reporters of The Wall Street
Journal
The Wall Street Journal
via Dow Jones
A law to allow nuclear-waste imports
would be good news for two competing plans to bring
spent fuel into Russia. One plan is backed by the
Non-Proliferation Trust, a U.S. organization looking
to send as much as 10,000 tons of nuclear waste to
Russia for storage. NPT is run by a number of former
U.S. intelligence and military officials, including
former Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau
of Investigation director William Webster.
The other competitor is Russia's own Ministry of
Atomic Energy, known as Minatom, which has aggressively
lobbied legislators to pass the measure with promises
of big budget revenues and stringent safety controls.
Unlike the NPT plan, Minatom wants the right to reprocess
the fuel so it can be used again in nuclear reactors.
Activists Win Reprieve in Nuclear Fight
Yevgenia Borisova,
Staff Writer
Moscow Times, Friday,
Mar. 23, 2001. Page 1
Opponents who have been fiercely protesting
a plan to import 20,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel
to Russia won a reprieve Thursday when the State Duma
decided to delay a vote on the bill until at least
early April.
Nuclear Bill Debate Heats Up
The Moscow Times,
Yevgenia Borisova, Mar. 21, 2001, 1:07 AM Moscow Time
"Some cash will be paid as taxes,
some to build new transportation systems, some to
build new [reprocessing] facilities and some to maintain
them and pay the staff. There will be no cash to spent
on ecological programs," he told the "Itogi" program
on NTV. But the Nuclear Power Ministry will never
be held accountable if it gets its way in opening
a special fund in which to place cash from the nuclear
program, said Kuznetsov and Deputy Mitrokhin.
Protests Greet Latest Spent Nuclear Fuel Deal
By Charles Digges, Staff writer
St Petersburg Times, No 646, Tuesday, February 20,
2001
Svyatoslav Zabelin, who co-chairs
the Moscow-based environmental group Social Ecological
Union, agreed. "Both governments - Russia and America
- seem intent on turning Russia into the world's radioactive
toilet."
Protesters Slam Nuclear Waste Bill
The Associated Press
The Moscow Times, Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2001. Page 3
The bill received tentative approval
in December and is scheduled to come up for a second
reading this week. The 100 or so environmental activists
lined up outside the Duma came from about 20 regions,
the rally organizers said. "People's health is more
valuable than profit," read one poster. Another read:
"Mr. President, show will and courage - stop the insanity
of the State Duma, don't allow Russia to be turned
into a nuclear waste dump." |
Press
release, 06.06.2001
The
Yabloko faction thinks that if the Duma adopts the
amendments to the regulations on importing, preserving
and recycling nuclear waste, Russia will suffer catastrophic
losses. These amendments to the legislation will be
considered by the Duma at its second reading on March
22, 2001. Sergei Mitrokhin, deputy of the Duma from
the Yabloko faction, said at a press conference on
March 20 in Moscow, “We shall do all we can to ban
this package of laws...”