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Top CBG Stories
HOW MANY WAKE-UP CALLS
DOES IT TAKE?
Three Mile Island. Chernobyl. Fukushima.
  • Click here for CBG's Winter 2011 Newsletter (pdf)
  • Click here for CBG's Spring 2011 Newsletter (pdf)
japan
CBG's Presentation to EPA on Efforts to Weaken Radiation Standards

Bridge the Gap's presentation to the EPA Deputy Administrator and other senior EPA officials on efforts to weaken radiation standards and failures in EPA's radiation monitoring system in the U.S. during Fukushima. Meeting included NRDC, Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth, Physicians for Social Responsibility, and Bridge the Gap, among others.

  • View the presentation in powerpoint format here
  • View the presentation as a pdf here

 
Nuclear News
Report: U.S. nuclear renaissance unlikely
after Fukushima

 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

CBG in the News   Headlines   Main Stories

December 28 2011
Nuclear Russian Roulette in California
(video)

December 12 2011
CBG releases 2011 winter newsletter

November 19 2011
Health concerns form main focus of smart meter meeting

October 12 2011

Tuesday Town Hall Meeting Brings Non-Industry Nuclear Energy Speakers

Independent Nuclear Experts to Speak at Fukushima Forum Tuesday

September 4 2011
Politics of Power:
Following the Nuclear Money Trail

CBG's Dan Hirsch Interviewed on KPCC regarding AP investigation on weakened U.S. nuclear safety rules

How Safe Are America's Aging Nuclear Power Plants?

August 25 2011
EPA Halted Extra Testing for Radiation From Japan Weeks Ago

CBG's Dan Hirsch participates in "Freakonomics Quorum" on:
What Happens Next as the World Turns Away From Nuclear Power?

June 26 2011
Feds Abandon Extra Radiation Monitoring of Milk, Water

Radiation Detected in Milk, Air and Water - Is America Safe?

UC Santa Cruz nuclear expert warns of possible meltdowns

May 10 2011
Feds Abandon Extra Radiation Monitoring of Milk, Water

April 20 2011
CBG's Dan Hirsch gives talk on nuclear dangers in California

CBG's Hirsch testifies before CA Senate committee on Japan disaster and CA nuclear plants

March 31 2011
Small UCLA reactor used by students shut down in 1984 because of potential safety hazards, declining use

San Onofre nuclear plant
operators propose seismic study


March 28 2011
State Sen. Sam Blakeslee turns seismic background into platform for nuclear critique

March 26 2011
Glitches hamper radiation warning system in California

Calls heat up for reviews of
California nuclear plants

History's harsh lesson

Glitches hamper radiation warning system in California

First sign of radioactivity reaches the county

March 21 2011
Calls heat up for reviews of California nuclear plants

March 15 2011
Could Japan-style nuclear crisis happen in California?


Japan-style earthquake and tsunami unlikely to hit Southern California, experts say

Critics question safety at San Onofre

Nuclear Threat: U.S. Implications of the Japanese Nuclear Reactor Crisis

December 11 2010
Santa Susana Lab cleanup is OK'd

November 26 2010
Residents Push for Toxic Cleanup at SSFL
Click here
to listen

November 6 2010

Group seeks nuclear plant for water

September 4 2010
Feds OK tough cleanup of Santa Susana Field Lab

September 3 2010
Partial SSFL Cleanup Agreement Reached: CBG's Dan Hirsch calls the deal "a magnificent breakthrough."

July 23 2010
CBG's Dan Hirsch discusses the continued nuclear threat, on Pacifica radio.
Click here to listen

July 22 2010
Several new updates to the publications page

May 23 2010
Mapping Nuclear Contamination at Santa Susana

April 15 2010
CBG's Dan Hirsch on Boeing's "cleanup" at SSFL: "The most proven method is the oldest one: a shovel,"

April 8 2010
CBG now accepts Paypal donations. Please see the donate page for more details.

March 5 2010
Thomas Pigford, influential voice in nuclear policy, dies at 87

January 16 2010
Dump refuses to take Field Lab soil

San Joaquin Valley landfill won't accept Field Lab waste

More . . .

 

 

November 19 2011
'Nuclear power is a hell of a way to boil water'

Does Japan Really Need Nuclear?

Belgium Joins Countries Opting Out of Nuclear Power

August 25 2011
Large Zone Near Japanese Reactors to Be Off Limits

August 16 2011
Japan Disaster Plant Cold Shutdown Could Face Delay

July 15 2011
Japan Premier Wants Shift Away From Nuclear Power

LOCAL GROUP FILES Protest with CPUC over Smart Meters

July 5 2011
Revealed: British government's plan to play down Fukushima

May 15 2011
U.S. Nuclear Agency Is Criticized as Too Close to Its Industry

April 18 2011
Radioactivity rises in sea off Japan nuclear plant

April 1 2011
Vermont Utility Questions Use Of Nuclear Power

March 15 2011
Nuclear reactor crisis: Is radiation a threat to US?

Japan reactor fire releases radiation

New blast heard at Fukushima's No.2 reactor: gov't

Radiation Leaks After Third Japanese Blast

Remembering California’s Nuclear Meltdown

March 13 2011
NYTimes: Radioactive Releases in Japan Could Last Months

December 11 2010
California's Santa Susanna Field Lab Cleanup to Be Rigorous

December 7 2010
LATimes: Santa Susana nuclear facility to be cleaned up by 2017, agencies agree

AP: Deal to clean LA-area nuclear accident site signed

November 6 2010

Advocates frustrated by another field lab cleanup delay

November 1 2010
State, U.S. draft deal for Field Lab cleanup

Standards set high for site's cleanup

September 8 2010
Letter from elected officials calls on Boeing to join lab clean-up deal

September 6 2010
NYTimes - California: Deal to Clean Up Rocket Site Is Announced

September 3 2010
Deal to clean up LA-area nuclear accident site

September 2 2010
DTSC seeks public’s input

September 1 2010
Countdown set for destruction of engine pad at Santa Susana Field Laboratory, site of America's first rocket test stand

May 16 2010
Four mules for sister Santa Susana:
EPA relies on mules for high-tech Field Lab investigation

January 16 2010
Stimulus funds aiding companies fined for pollution, accused of fraud

Boeing Reaps Stimulus Millions to Clean Up Site It Was Fined for Polluting

Report: Feds gave Boeing millions to clean up its mess

January 9 2010
Nuclear Energy Prospects Dim, Experts Say

More . . .

 

 
CBG, Enviro Groups Write EPA About Efforts to Relax Radiation Standards and Problems with U.S. Fukushima Radiation Monitoring

CBG, Sierra Club, NIRS Comments on NRC Proposed Revisions to Radiation Standards

Nuclear Concern Washes Ashore Following
Japan’s Crisis


Japan crisis reminds us plutonium, CO2
not the only choices
Sacrament Bee OpEd by S. David Freeman and Dan Hirsch
CBG's Dan Hirsch presents a lecture on the
nuclear tragedy in Japan
Extraordinary AP Series on NRC
Lax Regulations of U.S. Nuclear Safety
 
Simi Valley Moms Work to
Cleanup Radioactive Neighborhood

Historic Cleanup Agreement Reached for
Former Nuclear Facility in Southern California

State and federal governments signed agreements today to clean up toxic contamination at SSFL, a former nuclear reactor and rocket testing facility in the hills overlooking the western San Fernando and Simi Valleys. The cleanup agreements were lauded by CBG and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). CBG, NRDC, and nearby communities worked together for decades to ensure a thorough cleanup.

Read CBG's press release here.

Read the State of California's press release here.

Read DOE's press release here.

Read Assemblywoman Brownley's press release here.

Read Senator Pavley's press release here.

CBG, NIRS, Sierra Club Critique "Non-Protective" NRC Radiation Standards

February 10, 2011 -- NRC radiation standards allow workers to be exposed to radiation at levels that will cause cancer in a quarter of those exposed, according to the federal government's own official estimates, CBG and two other organizations disclosed in a February 10 report. Furthermore, NRC radiation limits for the public allow cancer risks one hundred times higher than permitted for any other carcinogen, the report indicates.

Read the full report here.

Radio Frequency (RF) Radiation
from "SmartMeters"

February 11, 2011 -- A recent report from the California Council on Science and Technology, requested by state legislators to assess potential risks from RF radiation from "SmartMeters" (new electric meters being installed on homes to broadcast energy usage), largely just cut and pasted claims from a recent brochure from the electric power industry, a CBG review discloses. Furthermore, because of two errors, the report appears to underestimate relative RF cumulative whole body exposures by a factor of approximately ten thousand, the CBG analysis indicates.

Read the CBG critique here.

graph

Overwhelming Support for SSFL
Cleanup Agreements

An unprecedented 1700+ comments were received on the Agreements-in-Principle for the cleanup of the Department of Energy (DOE) and NASA portions of the Santa Susana Field Lab, the contaminated nuclear and rocket testing facility, with supporters outnumbering those with questions and criticisms by 100 to 1. In a move that has created some frustration in the community, however, DOE has requested a second comment period, this time on the detailed legalese in the Administrative Order on Consent that puts the Agreement-in-Principle into a legally binding and enforceable form. The community has so long yearned for the cleanup to commence that the delay in signing a final agreement and requiring people to go through a comment period again has caused some irritation. But DOE and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) have committed to signing a final, legally binding agreement by December 6, after the close of the second comment period. So, PLEASE get your comments in, by November 22, urging that the final agreement be promptly signed (see Urgent Action).

  • Click here to read the DOE-DTSC press release
  • Click here to read the final draft Agreement On Consent
  • Click here to read DTSC's Response Summary to Comments
  • Click here to read DTSC's Detailed Responses to Comments
  • Click here to read Assemblymember Brownley's press release
  • Click here to read Senator Pavley's press release
CBG Mourns Death of Long-time Board Member Mildred Plotkin

Millie Plotkin, who served on Bridge the Gap's Board and was one of our mainstays for more than three decades, died peacefully in her sleep on October 16. She was a remarkable person, feisty and progressive, a perfect match for her husband Shel, to whom our hearts and thoughts go out.

5

ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESSURE BOEING
TO CLEAN UP SSFL

After the historic announcement that NASA and DOE have agreed to clean up portions of SSFL, the Boeing Company is coming under intense pressure by public officials to agree to clean up the facility to the same stringent cleanup standards that both federal agencies have agreed to abide by.

Click here to view the letter presented to Boeing by elected officials.

5

Congressman Brad Sherman hands a letter signed by elected officials, and addressed to the head of Boeing, to a security guard at SSFL. The letter calls on Boeing to stop obstructing the cleanup and to join with DOE and NASA in agreeing to the same cleanup deal the federal government has agreed to.

SSFL NUCLEAR CLEANUP DEAL REACHED

After 30 years of debate, a federal lawsuit, the passage of a state law, and congressional inquiries, a breakthrough agreement has been reached to cleanup portions of the SSFL facility to heightened EPA standards. On being asked by reporters to comment on the deal struck between regulators, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and NASA, CBG's Dan Hirsch called the agreement "extraordinary." Hirsch went on to say that "It’s the biggest news since the meltdown. It’s the culmination of decades of work to get the contamination cleaned up."

The agreement with DOE will lead to the cleanup of Area 4, where the 1959 meltdown occurred. The agreement with NASA will lead to the cleanup of Area 2 and part of Area 1, where the space agency conducted a great deal of rocket testing in the 20th century.

Read more in the Ventura County Star: here
Read more in the Los Angeles Times: here
Read more in the Contra Costa Times: here
Read more in the Los Angeles Daily News: here

The DTSC press release can be read here
The DOE agreement can be read here
The NASA agreement can be read here

CBG Files Amicus Brief In Nuclear Cleanup Case

Boeing Had Sued California to Block Cleanup Law for Meltdown Site
Bridge the Gap, the S. Calif. Federation of Scientists, Physicians for Social Responsibility-LA, and the Rocketdyne Cleanup Coalition, represented by Loyola Law School Environmental Law Professor Dan Selmi, filed an amicus brief supporting California's position in a lawsuit brought by Boeing to block SB990, the state law governing cleanup of the contaminated Santa Susana Field Lab.  Click here to read the brief, here for the exhibits, and here for the motion to be admitted as an amicus.  Read the state's brief here.

  • Click here for CBG's Amicus Brief
  • Click here for the appendix to CBG's Amicus Brief
  • Click here for the State of California's opposition to Boeing's Motion for Summary Judgment
Bake Sale For Boeing!



February, 2010: Teens Against Toxins, a group of high school students alarmed by the Boeing Company’s refusal to clean up the radioactive and toxic contamination at its Santa Susana Field Lab near where they live, recently held a bake-sale to raise money to be donated to the Boeing Company, which claims a state-ordered cleanup would be a financial burden. The bake sale featured Chocolate Meltdowns and other nuclear-themed treats. The purpose was to raise funds for Boeing, which is suing to avoid complying with a state-ordered cleanup of toxic waste resulting from a 1959 nuclear meltdown at the Santa Susana Field Lab above the San Fernando, Simi and Conejo Valleys. The Boeing Company, which made more than $68.0 billion in 2009, is claiming it would be a financial hardship to have to follow the California law on cleaning up the contamination. Boeing refused to accept the $99.31 raised by the teens, so they donated it to cancer research. Click here to see their YouTube video.
50th Anniversary of LA's Partial Nuclear Meltdown

In July 1959, a reactor in the Los Angeles area suffered a partial meltdown. The Atomic Energy Commission kept the accident secret for decades, until Bridge the Gap was able to bring it to public attention. Fifty years after the extraordinary accident, radioactive and chemical contamination at the site still hasn't been cleaned up. For more information, including access to rare footage and photos of the meltdown, click here.
CBG Leads Effort to Get Obama EPA to
Block Pending Proposals to Relax Radiation Protections

A whole range of proposals left over from the Bush Administration to markedly relax standards for radiation protection remain pending before the new leadership at EPA. In August, CBG led an effort by numerous groups to get the new leadership at EPA to reverse these proposals; see our letter and supporting materials here.

In November, CBG's Dan Hirsch led a delegation to an extraordinary meeting with three Assistant Administrators at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C., to press them to block carryover efforts to allow markedly increased radiation exposures of the public. Dan's PowerPoint presentation to EPA about these very dangerous proposals can be viewed here (powerpoint or a powerpoint presentation viewer is required to view).

Also, Congressman Ed Markey, Chair of the Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment, wrote EPA on October 27, raising many of the issues CBG had put forward. His letter can be viewed here. It remains to be seen whether the Obama Administration, on these issues as on so many others, will in fact represent the change for which so many had hoped.

CBG's Hirsch testifies before U.S. Senate Environment Committee About "Nuclear Amnesia"

September 18 – At the invitation of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, CBG's Dan Hirsch testified in Washington on September 18. Using the history of nuclear accidents, radioactive spills, releases, and broken cleanup promises from the Santa Susana Field Lab as a case study, Hirsch warns that an effort to revive nuclear power risks a huge repeat of the disasters the last we tried this.

Watch pertinent excerpts of the testimony here.

Read his testimony here.
Watch the entire hearing by clicking here.

Past Alerts . . .


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"Bridging the Gap Between Nuclear Dangers & A Safe, Sustainable Future"
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