March 28, 2012 - Napierville Patch -
Thorium Cleanup Will Close Portion of McDowell Grove Forest Preserve - In order to remove radioactive contaminated waste located on the banks of the West Branch of the DuPage river, a portion of McDowell Grove Forest Preserve will close on April 1. The process is part of the Remediation Action River Cleanup and will remove thorium-contaminated materials, which were deposited from the Rare Earths Facility in West Chicago between 1932 and 1973. During the cleanup process, McDowell Grove's main entrance, parking lot, bridge as well as a number of trails near the river will be closed. However, visitors will still be able to access the West Branch Regional Trail by entering McDowell Grove's south entrance. "People will still be able to get in there, but they'll have to enter through the on-street trail connection," said Forest Preserve District of DuPage County Public Affairs Specialist Bonnie Olszewski. She added that paddlers can use the river at a put-in site at Fawell Dam, which can be reached off Raymond Drive.
March 28, 2012 - Uranium Investing News - United States Still Favors Nuclear Power - According to the results of Gallup’s annual Environment survey, conducted earlier this month, the majority of Americans continue to favor nuclear energy as a source of electricity for the United States. The survey indicated that 57 percent of participants were in favor of nuclear power this year, the same amount as in 1994, the first year for the survey. This year’s results also demonstrate an equal level of support among participants as last year, just prior to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Support for the nuclear industry as measured by the survey has ranged from a low of 46 percent in 2001 to a high of 62 percent in 2010. These results are of significance to investors as the US is the largest consumer of uranium in the world, with 104 operational nuclear reactors. Continued public support and confidence from the country should guide future political decisions and foster economic interest in domestic and international uranium resources as well as in nuclear industry stakeholders.
March 28, 2012 - Windsor Star - Ukraine to build new case over Chernobyl - The construction of a new sarcophagus above the defunct Chernobyl Atomic Power Station will begin on April 26, the 26th anniversary of the world's worst nuclear disaster, Ukraine said Tuesday. Preliminary work on the 20,000-ton structure designed to contain threats from radioactivity began earlier this year. The disaster contaminated large parts of Europe, especially the then-Soviet republics of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia. Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko said the new enclosure should "be completed and installed above the damaged reactor in mid-2015 as expected." After the disaster, the Soviet authorities put up a supposedly temporary concrete shelter to protect the destroyed reactor, but there were persistent doubts as to its durability. The new structure is estimated to cost $2 billion.