Unlike Hamas and Hezbollah, the young want peace and progress in our region The Middle East has to make a historic choice: to join the new global age of democratic peace and liberal economy, or to stay clinging to its history of closed societies and autocracy. A great revolt has been initiated by young people and women , to gain freedom, bread and hope. Israel is watching with great expectation. These events are both unprecedented and unplanned. The internet, Facebook and Twitter have created mass communications and social spaces that regimes cannot control. These developments allowed young people to compare notes with their contemporaries in other countries, and to see clearly how their own governments wasted wealth and time to enhance their own power while ignoring the needs of their people. It opened their eyes. The upheaval we see today in our region is driven by a clash of generations rather than a clash of civilisations. The older generation had greater respect for land than science. But we live in an age when science, more than soil, has become the provider of growth and abundance. Living just on the land creates loneliness in an age of globality. Israel is an example of that today: technology and not territory are the drivers of wealth. We have shown that with a small piece of land, little water and no oil, it is possible to create a thriving economy and a sustainable democracy. Israel welcomes the wind of change, and sees a window of opportunity. Democratic and science-based economies by nature desire peace. Israel does not want to be an island of affluence in an ocean of poverty. Improvements in our neighbours’ lives mean improvements to the neighbourhood in which we live. Israelis understand that this is no less true of the Palestinians . That is why successive Israeli governments have given their full support to the efforts of Palestinians in the West Bank to build their own economy, their own institutions, and their own security forces. Economic growth in the West Bank is now close to 10% annually. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians see the tangible fruit of this co-operation. Knowledge, freedom and peace are inseparable. Peace is needed and can be achieved by direct negotiations. This was the case with Egypt and Jordan, and can happen with the Palestinians. The gap between ourselves and the Palestinians is more psychological than material. Bringing an end to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians may help the young Arab generation to realise their aspirations. Israel is more than willing to offer our experience in building a modern economy in spite of limited resources to the whole region. We seek only the acceptance from our neighbours and the opportunity to play a full role in the life of the region. Israel was born under the British mandate. We learned from the British what democracy means, and how it behaves in a time of danger, war and terror. We thank Britain for introducing freedom and respect of human rights both in normal and demanding circumstances. It was a great lesson and a necessary one for a country such as Israel, which has been attacked seven times in the 63 years of its existence without compromising democracy and without giving up our quest for peace. However, there are other forces in our region that want to resist the spread of these values. They are ready to abuse democratic institutions to gain power, but without the commitment to maintain the integrity of those institutions once they are in power. Hamas and Hezbollah, backed by Iran, are representatives of these forces. Those reactionary forces, that would hijack their countries back down the path of radicalism, are also the enemies of peace with Israel. That is why we hope our neighbours will choose to join the family of democratic nations. Shimon Peres is president of Israel Palestinian territories Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Israel Social media Digital media Shimon Peres guardian.co.uk
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Tremor of 2.2 magnitude topples traffic lights, cracks railway bridge and prompts fears of burglary A small earthquake has shaken Blackpool and the Fylde coast – toppling traffic lights, cracking a railway bridge and making some residents think they were being burgled as they woke in the early hours to loud noises. Several householders called police at around 3.30am to report they had felt the ground shaking. Some thought it was an April Fools’ Day prank. The British Geological Survey recorded a tremor with a magnitude of 2.2 – rated as a minor earthquake. The epicentre was located between Carelton and Poulton industrial estate. Residents reported wardrobe doors being flung open while staff at Blackpool’s Bonny Street police station felt the building shake. Officers were sent to Lytham Road in South Shore after reports that cracks had started to appear in the railway bridge. A spokesman for Blackpool police said: “We started to get calls at around 3.35am. Some may have thought it was an April fool prank, but staff here felt the building move. “We had a number of calls from residents. A woman in Grange Park rang up as she had been woken and thought her house was being broken into. Temporary traffic lights in Thornton Gate fell over while a man reported his motorbike had been knocked down. “CCTV cameras on Lytham Road picked up superficial cracks on the road surface of the railway bridge near to the zebra crossing. “We sent out officers to check it out. It’s known as a weak bridge anyway. It was deemed to be safe. A surveyor will be looking at it today.” The bridge was closed to buses in February because its condition had begun to deteriorate. In 2008 Blackpool was one of several centres to feel the strongest tremors in the UK in 25 years . Natural disasters and extreme weather Helen Carter guardian.co.uk
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Forces loyal to elected leader Alassane Ouattara hold 80% of country as incumbent president braces for fight to bitter end Rebel forces in Ivory Coast have laid siege to the presidential residence in Abidjan as the incumbent leader, Laurent Gbagbo, makes a desperate last stand to cling to power. There was also fierce fighting around the state TV building which, after showing senior military officers pledge allegiance to the government, went off air on Thursday night. Forces backing presidential claimant Alassane Ouattara have overrun nearly 80% of the country as soldiers fled and towns fell in quick succession. They look set for a final push but are encountering strong resistance at the fortified presidential residence. Ouattara’s spokesman, Patrick Achi, told Reuters: “His house is under attack. That’s for sure. There is a resistance, but it’s under attack. “[Gbagbo] hasn’t shown any signs of giving up. I don’t think he will see the game is up, because he really believes God will save him … Gbagbo is in his house. I’m certain. He hasn’t gone anywhere.” The regular army put up almost no opposition during a four-day offensive, including in the ruler’s hometown, where rebels said they broke into Gbagbo’s compound and slept in his bed. Some 50,000 soldiers, police and gendarmes have abandoned Gbagbo, according to the head of the UN mission, Choi Young-jin. “Only the Republican Guard and his special forces have remained loyal, guarding the palace and residence,” he told France-Info. Gunfire could be heard throughout Abidjan on Thursday, along with the concussive boom of heavy artillery. Reporters saw soldiers in camouflage race across the waterside highway in pickup trucks mounted with machine guns. UN and French peacekeepers moved to secure Abidjan airport by sending armed elements and additional personnel there, a UN official in New York said. Sources said Gbagbo’s forces requested the UN support to allow their withdrawal. An internal UN report, seen by Reuters, also said pro-Gbagbo forces had abandoned a blockade of a hotel where Ouattara and his supporters have been camped for months. It said peacekeepers had exchanged fire with Gbagbo loyalists in several parts of the city. As his forces amassed on the outskirts of Abidjan, Ouattara made a final appeal to Gbagbo to step down, and called on the rest of the army to defect. “[My fighters[ have come to restore democracy and ensure respect of the vote by the people,” Ouattara said in an address broadcast on his private TV station. “Today they are at the doorstep of Abidjan. “To all those who are still hesitating, whether you are generals, superior officers, officers, sub officers, rank and file … there is still time to join your brothers in arms.” As the columns of pro-Ouattara forces advanced, the head of the army, general Phillippe Mangou, sought refuge at the home of the South African ambassador in Abidjan with his wife and five children, according to South Africa’s foreign ministry. Ouattara was declared the winner of last November’s presidential election by the country’s election commission in results verified by international observers. But after a decade in power, Gbagbo, a Sorbonne-educated history professor, refused to accept his loss. He has used the military to attack pro-Ouattara areas with heavy artillery and is accused of arming citizen militias and recruiting foreign mercenaries to cling to power. Up to a million people have fled the fighting and at least 490 people have been killed since the election, most of them supporters of Ouattara. The true figure is believed to be far higher, with the Red Cross warning that casualties run into thousands. Gbagbo has not been seen in public since this week’s military offensive began, even though state TV announced on Wednesday that he was preparing to address the nation. Those who know him well say even an armed onslaught will not make Gbagbo cede power. “He has no intention of resigning,” said one of his advisers in Europe, Toussaint Alain. “He will not resign in the wake of this attack. He is not going to abdicate. He is not going to lay down his arms. He will stay in power to lead the resistance to this attack against Ivory Coast.” However, a senior diplomat who has been in contact with members of Gbagbo’s inner circle told the Associated Press that a standoff appeared to be building between hardliners who want Gbagbo to fight to the end and others who are urging him to step down. It is not clear what the pro-Ouattara fighters will do if they manage to reach the presidential palace. Ouattara’s spokesman refused to speculate, but said the use of force was necessary because Gbagbo has frustrated all attempts to find a diplomatic solution. “The end is almost here,” Achi said. “It’s a matter of hours. We issued our ultimatum yesterday … If Gbagbo does not want the fighting to happen in Abidjan, he should surrender. If he doesn’t, we have no choice.” Ouattara’s “government” announced a three-day overnight curfew and ordered the closure of land, air and sea borders. There were widespread reports of looting. On Thursday, the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, reiterated his demand that Gbagbo immediately cede power to Ouattara “to enable the full transition of state institutions to the legitimate authorities,” said spokesman Farhan Haq. In Washington, the leading US diplomat for Africa, Johnnie Carson, said Gbagbo needed to seize this last opportunity to step aside. “There is a clear indication that the military forces of Gbagbo have started to disintegrate,” he said. “The rapid pace at which Alassane Ouattara’s forces have been able to move across the country from east to west and up to Abidjan suggests that there have been widespread desertions in the Gbagbo forces.” Ouattara’s fighters are drawn largely from a rebel group based in the north of the country that launched a 2002 rebellion against Gbagbo. For more than three months, Ouattara refused to allow them to march on Abidjan. The advance was a last resort after all other diplomatic means had failed, Ouattara’s supporters claim. Ivory Coast David Smith guardian.co.uk
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Businesses are gearing up for compliance as facilitation payments and hospitality are set to come under closer scrutiny After widespread criticism of the lack of clarity in the original draft guidance to the Bribery Act 2010, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has rewritten it and the act will come into force on 1 July. The UK is under immense pressure to bring the act into force to ensure we comply with our international obligations, but businesses are justifiably concerned about the new law . It includes an extremely broadly drawn corporate criminal offence of “failing to prevent a bribe by an associated person”. This wide form of vicarious liability is subject only to a defence that the company had “adequate procedures” in place to prevent the commission of an offence. The company’s senior executives can also be liable if the offence is committed with their consent or connivance. The government was wary of making the guidance a detailed checklist, for fear that this could straitjacket the law’s flexibility or fetter charging decisions. Instead, the guidance sets out six key principles for businesses to consider and now includes some practical guidance for them to follow. So, for example, Principle 1 – Proportionate Procedures includes an accompanying case study about a medium-sized company which has acquired a new customer in a foreign country in which “facilitation payments” are the norm. The guidance suggests enlisting UK diplomatic channels in order to apply pressure on the foreign authorities to take action to stop demands for such payments. Pretty campaigning stuff for a medium-sized company involved in a new and possibly small contract, you might think. In the meantime, many businesses are devoting considerable energy to gearing up for compliance. One multinational, for example, is interrogating all its advisers on their corruption policies and extending that to law firms who advise third parties involved in joint ventures. Other global corporates are aggressively recruiting experienced regulatory lawyers to beef up their compliance departments. Many sectors are especially concerned about facilitation payments. They are already prohibited, but the act extends the territoriality of bribery to persons who have a “close connection” with the UK. Controversially, the guidance states that the mere fact that a company has a listing on a UK stock market does not of itself establish a sufficient link. And a subsidiary in the UK will not necessarily mean that the parent company has a sufficient nexus with the UK to be caught by the act either. Some contend that the guidance, produced under the current coalition government, has unlawfully watered down the territoriality of the act (which was passed by the previous Labour government). More generally, businesses will be closely scrutinising the guidance for the factors the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), in particular, will take into account when assessing whether to prosecute, such as self-reporting, post-investigation improvement and monitoring measures. In tandem with the MoJ guidance, the director of public prosecutions and the SFO director have issued joint prosecution guidance on the Bribery Act which spells out, for example, that facilitation payments are more likely to attract prosecution if premeditated. The act applies to commercial bribery but it also applies to individuals who attempt to influence the application of rules, regulations and normal procedures – hence the possibility of both CPS and SFO prosecutions. Other sectors are currently exercised about hospitality issues, although the SFO is likely to take a commonsense view of these – especially when it is reportedly only receiving an extra £2m to enforce the new law. And “reasonable hospitality to meet, network and improve relationships with customers” is excluded from the act. Nevertheless, some professional advisers have felt the need to clarify whether the provision for marketing purposes of company-branded mouse mats, calendars and golf umbrellas would be likely to attract criminal prosecution. The justice secretary, Ken Clarke, has now made it clear that “no-one is going to try to stop businesses getting to know their clients by taking them to events like Wimbledon, Twickenham or the Grand Prix”. The guidance goes further and considers whether providing free baseball tickets in New York is the wrong side of line. Unless the Big Apple has been chosen as a deliberately seductive location and is not at all incidental to the business being transacted, going to see the Yankees is unlikely to give rise to a prosecution at Southwark crown court. Another major issue is the scope of the public procurement rules, which prohibit companies convicted of corruption from tendering for EU public contracts. The government is proposing to amend those rules so that the new corporate bribery offence does not trigger debarment. At present, the only way to avoid this is for a company to self-report and to reach a purely civil settlement with the SFO, or to negotiate a plea bargain for non-corruption (eg “books and records”) offences. When Mahatma Gandhi was asked what he thought about western civilisation, he replied that he thought it would be a good idea in principle. I imagine that most people would take the same stance concerning broader criminal liability for bribery and corruption. All the more reason that the law should be crystal clear: it will not be a level playing field otherwise. The revamped guidance is surely a welcome attempt at that goal. Alex Bailin QC is a barrister at Matrix chambers and previously was a derivatives trader in the City of London Bribery Act corruption index Serious Fraud Office Alex Bailin guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …The rise of child-men like David Cameron and Jeremy Clarkson suggests an alarming shift in modern masculinity Call it “preadulthood”: the period between late adolescence and one’s late 30s, when there are far more questions than answers. Jobs and relationships may only be fleeting. Life, particularly for those passing through higher education or in the midst of it, will appear to brim with choice and freedom – but eventually feel weighted with angst, exhaustion, and the realisation that any halfway livable existence should be altogether more settled. I should know: it’s not that long since I left. Another thought: could women be better at navigating this phase than men? Bring in a few modern archetypes, and see why this might hold true. While no end of cultural noise is devoted to twenty- and thirtysomething career women, making haste in case motherhood brings things to a halt, how is it that the most common image of their male contemporaries tends to be silliness, ineptitude and too much booze? Higher female attainment at school is traditionally put down to girls maturing more quickly than boys, with the gap closing by university. Not so: in higher education there have long been concerns about a growing gender difference reflected in participation rates and finals results (men are more likely to get 2:2s and thirds). At the last count, 11% of young women graduates had failed to find a job, and 17% of men . The chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters credits women with being “more mature and focused”; by contrast, to quote a US writer, might it be that millions of young men have yet to be more than “giant frat boys, maladroit geeks, or unwashed slackers”? Those words, along with the term “preadulthood”, come from a new book called Manning Up , subtitled “How the rise of women has turned men into boys”, by the conservative polemicist Kay S Hymowitz. US publishing seems to produce these breathlessly written, often maddening texts by the score. But this one picks apart something that has been bugging me for years: a suspicion that my generation blazed a trail for a newly puerile kind of masculinity that has been locked into millions of lives. I hit my 20s as preadulthood’s basics were being identified, and so-called laddism was at its peak. I recognise Hymowitz’s picture of the Anglo-American culture it spawned: “child-man” icons such as Adam Sandler and Owen Wilson, and male-fronted TV shows – Top Gear, obviously – that “wink at contemporary man’s shallowness and puerility, as if the dudes know full well just how ridiculous they are”. Reading her book, I even started to wonder if the failure of modern male politicians to exude the authority of their predecessors might be down to the malaise she describes: witness the noticeable decline in the tone of PMQs once David Cameron got involved – usually put down to his Etonian “Flashman” tendencies , though perhaps just as traceable to a male generation for whom crass mockery is much more ingrained than elegant repartee. That said, I’m not sure about her implication that inside every man is a semi-feral ubermensch who needs an outlet; better, surely, to encourage an updated version of the New Man wiped out in the backlash against the right-on 1980s. Though she cites evidence that female graduates are out-earning male contemporaries in some US cities (but not, it has to be said, in the UK), her picture of an insurgent postfeminist sisterhood bumps up against the gender pay gap, and the inability of most industrial economies to know what to do about motherhood. But there is something in her conviction that, among the vociferous middle class at least, one result of the embrace of female empowerment has been a dangerous downgrading of men, particularly when it comes to the importance of fatherhood. From that, a lot follows. If you’re writing dads out of the script via blithe claims that their role is overrated and the celebration of reproductive independence (for the rich, at least), don’t be surprised if educated male thirtysomethings remain stubbornly dissolute and commitment-phobic, and at the more difficult edges of society you sow chaos. It’s also right to wonder about the pernicious effects of TV, movies and more, and what our public-service broadcaster is doing funding the rise and rise of Clarkson and co; right too, perhaps, to fear the consequences of “child-men” not just on our screens, but in power. This is something Hymowitz doesn’t consider: gender inequalities staying much the same, and made more toxic by the arrival of a new male elite emerging from extended adolescence even less qualified to lord it around than its predecessors. In fact, on current evidence, might we be there already? Gender Women David Cameron Jeremy Clarkson John Harris guardian.co.uk
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Thames Valley police say 72 fixed camera sites and 89 mobile sites switched off after spending cuts will begin operating again Speed cameras in Oxfordshire which were switched off due to spending cuts last year are being switched on again. Thames Valley police said 72 fixed camera sites and 89 mobile sites in the county would start operating from Friday. They were switched off on 1 August 2010 after Oxfordshire County council cut the authority’s road safety grant. Superintendent Rob Povey, the head of roads policing for Thames Valley police, said: “We think this is important, because we know that speed kills and speed is dangerous. “We have shown in Oxfordshire that speed has increased through monitoring limits, and we have noticed an increase in fatalities and the number of people seriously injured in 2010. We know that speed enforcement does work as a deterrent to motorists.” Data released by Thames Valley police showed that, in the six months after the cameras were switched off, 83 people were injured in 62 accidents at the sites of fixed cameras. The figure for the same period the year before – August 2009 to January 2010 – was 68 injuries in 60 accidents. Across Oxford, 18 people were killed in road traffic accidents in the period, compared with 12 people the year before. The number of people seriously injured rose by 19 to 179. Povey said the money for switching the cameras back on came from cutting back office costs and funding diverted from speed awareness courses. Professor Stephen Glaister, the director of the RAC Foundation, said speed cameras were “controversial”, but research suggested they prevent 800 fatalities and serious injuries each year. Transport guardian.co.uk
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Long-running feud between country and internet company flares up again as Beijing alleges tax violations by subsidiaries Chinese authorities have found three companies linked to Google Inc broke tax rules and are investigating possible tax avoidance, a state-run newspaper said on Thursday, raising the risk of renewed pressure on the internet search giant. Google said two of the companies named were its units, and a third was a separate firm that works closely with Google. But Google denied the tax violations alleged in the Chinese-language Economic Daily. “We believe we are, and always have been, in full compliance with Chinese tax law,” Google said in a statement. Even if the report is unfounded or embellished, it could bring fresh headaches in China for Google, which has gone through difficult times there since early last year when it clashed with the government over internet censorship and hacking attacks . China generates a small percentage of Google’s revenues, but is the world’s largest internet market with more than 450 million users. The country’s search market, dominated by homegrown Baidu Inc, was worth 11bn yuan (£1.05bn) in 2010 and is likely to grow by about 50% each year for the next four years, according to iResearch. The Economic Daily said that the three companies investigated and punished were “Google enterprises in China”. “The taxation authorities have already investigated and punished the three companies according to the law,” said the report on its front page. The companies were accused of presenting false and unjustified claims to the total value of 40m yuan, said the report. It did not say when the claimed violations are alleged to have happened. “It is understood by this reporter that the taxation authorities are further investigating Google businesses in China on suspicion of tax avoidance,” said the brief story, which was also later reported by China’s official Xinhua news agency. A Google spokesperson said the two of the accused companies – Google Information Technology (China) Co Ltd and and Google Information Technology (Shanghai) Co Ltd – were its sub-units. It said the third company named, Google Advertising (Shanghai) Co Ltd, was a separate firm which works “closely with Google as Google’s sole first-tier reseller in China” of advertising on the search engine’s web pages. “Most foreign companies in China, especially high-profile companies with a global reputation at stake, are pretty careful to make sure they are in full compliance with the relevant tax laws,” said Mark Natkin, managing director of Marbridge Consulting, a Beijing-based company that advises investors about China’s Internet and telecommunications sectors. China’s foreign ministry would not comment directly about the report. “Generally speaking, any companies operating abroad should obey the laws and regulations of the host country,” said the ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu. The report appeared after Google again clashed with the Chinese government over internet censorship. Earlier this month, Google said any difficulty that users in China may have faced opening its email service were likely the result of government blocks. China’s ruling Communist party has intensified censorship in recent months, fearing that calls for protests inspired by anti-authoritarian uprisings across the Middle East and north Africa could gather momentum. Google’s serious run-ins with the Chinese government began in January 2010, when the company said it was no longer willing to censor search results in the country. Previously, the company included a disclaimer on its China service that searches may not be complete because of local laws. Google China Internet guardian.co.uk
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Ten years after its exit from Europe sparked street protests, the retailer is taking over a 15,000 square foot site in Paris Marks & Spencer is returning to France, opening a store on the Champs Elysées a decade after its retreat across the Channel sparked street protests in Paris. The company replanted a British flag in the heart of the Gallic retail industry this morning by disclosing that it would open a shop on the central-Paris boulevard. As well as opening other general stores around Paris, M&S is in talks to open a number of Simply Food outlets in the city. In a first for the company, it will accompany the expansion with a new French-language website, which will trade in euros. The main M&S store will extend to 15,000 sq ft over three floors and sell womenswear and food, taking over a site currently occupied by the Espirit clothing chain. M&S executives are hoping that the group’s return to France will receive a more positive response than its exit. In 2001, trade unions demonstrated against the closure or sale of 38 stores across France, Germany, Spain, Portugal and the Benelux countries. The reaction in France was particularly vociferous, with government ministers backing protests . However, M&S already appears to have learned from the past: it has pledged to retain and retrain the 30 Esprit staff. Unveiling the “bricks and clicks” strategy in Paris this morning, M&S chief executive Marc Bolland said the new shops would launch before Christmas. “Marks & Spencer has great brand awareness here in France and a place in customers’ hearts,” he added. “We’re very excited to be returning with an e-commerce and retail offer to delight customers with our full range of clothing and home products, and the exceptional food from our Paris store.” M&S said it would open Simply Food sites in collaboration with SSP, a UK franchise partner. Despite the street protests, M&S remains well-regarded in France. The group said seven out of ten people questioned for a survey were aware of the brand. However, M&S is not expected to restrict its ambitions to France. It was recently reported to be in talks to buy back some of the nine stores it sold to Spanish department chain El Corte Ingles as part of its European exit. The mainland Europe move has been expected for some time after Sir Stuart Rose, who chaired M&S until January this year, made clear his desire to reverse the 2001 exit. M&S, which has more than 600 shops in the UK, has been expanding abroad aggressively in recent years, with new outlets in India, Dubai and China. It plans to generate up to a fifth of sales overseas. Retail industry Marks & Spencer Marc Bolland Supermarkets France Europe Europe Dan Milmo guardian.co.uk
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Leakage below Fukushima Daiichi power plant exceeds safety limits but experts say drinking supplies should be safe Radiation exceeding Japanese government safety limits has seeped into groundwater under the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, according to the operator, but experts say it is unlikely to contaminate drinking supplies. The leak is, however, a concern and an indicator of how far the Tokyo Electric Power Company is from stabilising dangerously overheating reactors after cooling systems were knocked out in the 11 March earthquake and tsunami. Tepco has increasingly asked for international help, most recently ordering giant pumps from the US that were to arrive later this month to spray water on the reactors. The groundwater contamination was found in concentrations 10,000 times higher than the government standard for the plant. The iodine-131, a radioactive substance that decays quickly, was nearly 15 metres (50ft) below one of the reactors, according to Tepco spokesman Naoyuki Matsumo. Seiki Kawagoe, an environmental science professor at Tohoku University, said the radioactive substances were unlikely to affect drinking water, noting that radiation tends to dissipate quickly in the ground, as it does in the ocean. But there are two ways the iodine could eventually affect drinking water if concentrations are high enough. One is if it seeped into wells in the area. For now, a 20km (12 mile) radius around the plant has been cleared, though residents are growing increasingly frustrated with evacuation orders and have been sneaking back to check on their homes. The other concern is that contaminated water could seep into underground waterways and eventually into rivers used for drinking water. Tomohiro Mogamiya, an official with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s water supply division, said that was “extremely unlikely” since groundwater would flow toward the ocean, and the plant is right on the coast. There are two nearby filtration plants for drinking water, and both have been shut down because they are just inside the exclusion zone. One takes water from the Kido river, to the south, and another takes it from groundwater below Odaka, to the north. Both are several kilometres from the coast, and therefore on higher ground. “When people return to the area we will test the water to make sure it is safe,” said Masato Ishikawa, an official with the Fukushima prefecture’s food and sanitation division. Radiation concerns have rattled the Japanese public, already struggling to return to normal life after the tsunami devastated hundreds of kilometres of the north-eastern coast. Three weeks after the disaster 260,000 households still do not have running water and 170,000 have no electricity. In the latest report of food becoming tainted, the government said on Friday that a cow slaughtered for beef had slightly elevated levels of cesium, another radioactive particle. Officials stressed that the meat was not put on the market. Radioactive cesium can build up in the body and high levels are thought to be a risk for various cancers. It is still found in wild boar in Germany 25 years after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, making the pigs off-limits for eating in many cases. Contamination has affected work at the plant itself, where radioactive water has been pooling, often thwarting the vital work of powering up the complex’s cooling systems. Despite the leaks, Tepco hasn’t had enough dosimeters to provide one for each employee since many were destroyed in the earthquake. Under normal circumstances, the gauges, which measure radiation, would be worn at all times. Officials said on Friday that more meters had arrived and there were now enough for everyone. “We must ensure safety and health of the workers, but we also face a pressing need to get the work done as quickly as possible,” said nuclear safety agency spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama. Until now, sharing meters “has been an unavoidable choice”. Tepco has repeatedly relaxed safety standards during the crisis in order to prevent frequent violations. That is not uncommon during emergencies. The company has acknowledged it was initially slow to ask for help in dealing with the crisis, but experts from around the world are now flooding in. The French nuclear giant Areva, which supplied fuel to the plant, is helping figure out how to dispose of contaminated water, and American nuclear experts are joining Japanese counterparts on a panel to address the disaster. Japan has ordered two giant pumps, typically used for spraying concrete, from the US. They are being retrofitted to spray water first, according to Kelly Blickle, a spokeswoman at Putzmeister America in Wisconsin. At least one similar pump is already in operation at the plant. Japan disaster Nuclear power Japan Energy guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Lessons in political decorum, Florida-style: During floor debate in the state House, Democrat Scott Randolph joked that his wife should “incorporate her uterus” if she wanted to avoid abortion restrictions, reports the St. Petersburg Times . His point was that Republicans are so reluctant to regulate businesses, they would steer clear….
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