G.E. is currently experimenting with a new lased-based technology that could make nuclear enrichment much easier. This would be a boon to nuclear power, but would also make nuclear-based weapons easier to make.
"'The threat is there,' says Edwin Lyman, a nuclear nonproliferation expert with the Union of Concerned Scientists, a research and advocacy group in Cambridge, Mass. 'If [GE-Hitachi] succeeds in overcoming remaining technological hurdles, the resulting laser-enrichment would be extremely vulnerable to proliferation. It's also a technology that several countries would likely pursue.'
Henry Sokolski, director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center in Washington, is worried about SILEX too. 'If it works, it has enormous industrial implications with the US perhaps bringing back all the enrichment services it has lost to Europe and Russia,' he says.
'But how long can you keep this process secret and out of the hands of proliferators? That's the real question.'
The US Department of Energy, which oversees nuclear power, is not worried.
'Any program to build additional enrichment facilities in the United States will be evaluated for its safety, environmental, and nonproliferation characteristics before it is licensed to operate,' the DOE said in a statement responding to Monitor queries."
FULL STORY: Will lasers brighten nuclear’s future?
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The first newly constructed nuclear power plant to generate electricity in the U.S. in over 30 years began operation in Waynesboro, Georgia on July 31.
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California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
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How California Transit Agencies are Addressing Rider Harassment
Safety and harassment are commonly cited reasons passengers, particularly women and girls, avoid public transit.
Significant Investments Needed to Protect LA County Residents From Climate Hazards
A new study estimates that LA County must invest billions of dollars before 2040 to protect residents from extreme heat, increasing precipitation, worsening wildfires, rising sea levels, and climate-induced public health threats.
Federal Rule Raises Cost for Oil and Gas Extraction on Public Lands
An update to federal regulations raises minimum bonding to limit orphaned wells and ensure cleanup costs are covered — but it still may not be enough to mitigate the damages caused by oil and gas drilling.
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