Why a national cancer study near US reactors must be conducted before any new expansion of nuclear power
James Heddle James Heddle

Why a national cancer study near US reactors must be conducted before any new expansion of nuclear power

The last and only national study of the health risks posed by existing US nuclear reactors was conducted in the late 1980s. But by then, many of the 62 nuclear plants had only been operating for a relatively small number of years, not enough time for the effects of radiogenic exposure to appear in workers and the nearby population. An attempt to launch a new study in 2009 was ultimately cancelled despite many reported cases of cancer and other diseases.

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Cancer risk may increase with proximity to nuclear power plants
James Heddle James Heddle

Cancer risk may increase with proximity to nuclear power plants

The researchers estimated that about 20,600 cancer cases in the state—roughly 3.3% of all the cases included in the study—were attributable to living near an NPP, with risk declining sharply beyond roughly 30 kilometers from a facility. The risk of developing cancer attributable to living near an NPP generally increased with age.

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Worker treated, minorly hurt after falling into nuclear reactor cavity at Palisades plant
James Heddle James Heddle

Worker treated, minorly hurt after falling into nuclear reactor cavity at Palisades plant

While reloading fuel to a reactor Tuesday around 9:30 a.m. at Palisades Nuclear Power Plant, a previously decommissioned plant that moved to operations status in August, a plant worker fell into the reactor cavity and ingested some of the water inside of it, resulting in radiation protection personnel transferring them offsite for medical attention at 4:32 p.m., according to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) officials. (WWMT)

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The Next Nuclear Renaissance?
James Heddle James Heddle

The Next Nuclear Renaissance?

Over the past decade, there has been a growing interest in building new nuclear power stations, particularly among policymakers. This comes some two decades after a previously forecast “nuclear renaissance” petered out, having produced few orders, all of which went badly wrong.

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