Ship carrying nuclear waste arrives in Australia

Posted on December 4, 2015 by CanucksBanter

Sydney (AFP) – A ship carrying 25 tonnes of radioactive waste arrived back in Australia on Saturday, met by activists who warned against the vast nation becoming a nuclear dumping ground.

About a dozen Greenpeace protesters, some carrying signs such as “Don’t waste Australia”, stood near the entrance to Port Kembla south of Sydney as the BBC Shanghai arrived in a well-policed operation.

Environmentalists have raised concerns about the safety of the ship, which left the northern French port of Cherbourg in October, with one French lawmaker describing it as a “dustbin ship”.

“This is not the kind of ship you would want to see transporting nuclear waste,” Greenpeace campaigner Emma Gibson, who was on board a boat following the BBC Shanghai on Saturday, told AFP.

But the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), which has previously stressed that the ship’s seaworthiness had been certified by French officials, said there was no credible chance of an incident during the transport.

“This container is so well shielded that you could sit on it for five hours and receive no more of a radiation dose than you would on a flight to Singapore,” said general manager for nuclear security Paul Jones in a statement.

“It is a feat of engineering that is made from forged steel, and could withstand a drop of 9 metres, temperatures of 800 degrees Celsius or even a jet plane strike.”

ANSTO would not comment on the transport operation while it was underway but there was a strong police presence at Port Kembla as the bulk carrier arrived.

Australia sent spent nuclear fuel to France for reprocessing in the 1990s and early 2000s over four shipments, and it has now been returned for long-term storage.

Reprocessing involves the removal of uranium and plutonium, stabilising the remaining substances in glass, and placing it all in a container suitable for transport and storage.

The waste will initially be housed at the Lucas Heights reactor in southern Sydney, which is used for science and research, until a nuclear waste dump site is selected and built. It is expected to be trucked there from Port Kembla overnight.

The government has said the nuclear waste dump site would only be used to store Australia’s radioactive waste but Greenpeace has warned that creating a new waste facility is an invitation to other countries to use Australia as a dumping ground.

The group said a poll of 3,144 people last month that it had commissioned from ReachTEL suggested that most Australians opposed plans to store nuclear waste for other countries.

Asked about Australia accepting nuclear waste from overseas, 18.3 percent supported it, 72.1 percent opposed it and 9.6 percent were undecided.

“Most Australians rightly don’t want their country to become a nuclear waste dump for the rest of the world,” Gibson said in a statement.

“Nobody has yet worked out a safe way to manage long-term nuclear waste, which can remain dangerous for hundreds of thousands of years.”

Six sites, all hundreds of kilometres from major cities and including some Outback locations, have been shortlisted for Australia’s first nuclear waste dump.

All the land owners are willing to house low to intermediate waste — mostly by-products of nuclear medicine — which is currently stored at about 100 different sites around the country.

Source: Ship carrying nuclear waste arrives in Australia – Yahoo News

BYD now biggest electric vehicle maker | mb.com.ph | Philippine News

Posted on December 4, 2015 by CanucksBanter

In a just released global EV ranking, BYD Company Ltd., ranked first in accumulated sales throughout the year with a total of 43,069 EV units sold, representing a 222% surge compared with the same period last year, overcoming all American, Japanese and European manufacturers. And with a total of 6,099 EV units sold in October, BYD again topped sales rankings for the sixth consecutive month since May.

BYD’s outstanding performance is 2015—in which the company climbed from 7th position in late 2014 to the first position in just 10 months—is the result of a carefully studied and planned strategy combined with savvy market perception, the company said.

After the successful launch of its first “dynastic” electric vehicle model—the Qin sedan—that placed the company on the passenger EV vehicle map and featured increased sales month-on-month since late 2013, BYD went on to launch yet another electric vehicle model, this time the streamlined SUV Tang in June 2015, as part of a complete EV lineup. Next in line are the SUVs Song and Yuan, which will most definitely add to the company’s mushrooming numbers.

The rise of EVs comes together with the rise of the Chinese auto industry and that of BYD. The company’s EV strategy is not limited to mere passenger vehicles, in spite of its outstanding performance in this category. Its 7+4 strategy epitomizes its ambitions for the future of what is called in China “new energy vehicles”, where passenger cars would be just part of a much bigger picture.

Source: BYD now biggest electric vehicle maker | mb.com.ph | Philippine News

Bomb Squad Inspects UPS Package Shipped to San Bernardino Shooters’ Home – NBC News

Posted on December 4, 2015 by CanucksBanter

by Richie Duchon

San Bernardino police officials inspected a package at a Southern California UPS facility early Saturday morning after a driver recognized the address on the package was that of the suspected San Bernardino shooters.

The county sheriff’s department bomb squad was able to determine that the item “posed no threat,” after inspecting the package at the facility, San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan tweeted.

Burguan said the package was shipped from a “reputable vendor,” but authorities had isolated it to be safe.

A UPS driver had left the shipping facility to make deliveries, but later returned after realizing the address on a package was the Redlands, California, home of Syed Rizwan Farook and wife Tashfeed Malik, accused of killing 14 people and injuring 21 others Wednesday at a holiday party at San Bernardino’s Inland Regional Center.

UPS temporarily suspended operations at its San Bernardino facility while the investigation took place, UPS spokesman Dan Cardillo said in a statement.

Source: Bomb Squad Inspects UPS Package Shipped to San Bernardino Shooters’ Home – NBC News

The Canucks Have To Find A Way…Just Saying

Posted on December 4, 2015 by CanucksBanter

By Andrew Phillip Chernoff December 4, 2015 Just Saying….

Just-saying

The script is getting old, and tired, and is in need of a refreshing change.

In my opinion, the stench that lingers after the last two months, more than indicates that the present incarnation of the Vancouver Canucks has expired and needs to be tossed and replaced with a new and improved.

And the game on Saturday night against the Boston Bruins, is the best game to start.

I remember when growing up in the 70’s and following my favourite Canucks, and the great games Boston and Vancouver would have. Bobby Schmautz and other Canucks would rise to the occasion and have their best games of the season against them. Especially Schmautz.

Well, it is time, for the next incarnation of the 2015-16 Vancouver Canucks to take the ice.

And what will it take?

Well, Canuck coach Willie Desjardins was very direct in the post-game interview after the Dallas game on Thursday night, after the Canucks lost 4-2, about his disappointment.

To the point, the Vancouver players need to find a way.

When Desjardins was asked about his team getting 16 shots on net, in two straight games against Dallas and LA, Desjardins admitted that the Canucks have to create more opportunities if they are going to be successful:

The only thing you can do is work your way out of it. You know people aren’t gonna feel sorry for ya. We gotta work our way out of it. It’s gonna be tough…and you know, what , when you come into the rink tomorrow….you have to work to get better. And it’s just, it should be that way everyday, win or lose, that’s how you should approach the rink, but especially when things go tough, that’s when you need your leadership, that’s when you need guys stepping up and getting better.

As for whether there is enough behind the Sedins to give the Canucks that secondary scoring punch and support, Desjardins responded that he believes there is, and continued by saying:

But It has to happen on the ice…me believing it, or whatever, doesn’t….it has to come out on the ice. And we need better performances on the ice. That’s not good enough. Like I thought today, you know I thought there were times in the first period that, we looked like, we might battle through and be ok, and get a goal.We didn’t give them an awful lot; they had the couple power plays, but we have to…it’s easy to believe when things go good….it’s harder when they don’t go good…and right know they’re not going good for us…right now we’re disappointed withthe overtime losses, and with all the stuff that’s built up, we got lots of losses, and it’s disappointing ‘cause that’s not where we want to be. But at the same time, that’s how you get better. You have to find a way. It’s a tough league and that’s what you gotta do.

Desjardins was asked by a reporter, if the third periods and so many one goal losses were affecting the psyche of the players, especially the younger players. “You’re in every game but it seems you’re coming out on the wrong end..”

It’s a battle to keep believing,when things don’t happen.It’s easy to believe when things happen. When it doesn’t happen, its a lot harder. But, what are your choices? You don’t have any choice. Your choice is to believe that it’s gonna happen and you gotta make it happen. Like, if you don’t believe and you hesitate when your doing something, your lost already. So, you have to go in convinced at what you’re doing and you have to go hard. That’s the only way you’ll be successful in this league. So, mentally, we have to accept where we’re at and we have to be prepared to play hard. We know what we’re doing. The guys know the systems,they just have to have confidence that if we play hard we’ll get our opportunities.

Desjardins did not leave the post-game without sharing his expectation for Saturday night against the Boston Bruins:

Boston is a must game. We have to see a good performance against Boston. We have to see it.

After the morning skate on Friday, Desjardin met with the media, and was asked what bothered him the most about the Dallas game:

I don’t think we’ve played as well the last three games. And, that bothers me. I want to be good at home. The results bother me. But, I understand those will happen. You’re not gonna win every game but that’s something that happens. You don’t get used to it. And you don’t enjoy it. But that’ll happen. It’s how you play that matters. I thought the first period we were ok. They didn’t get a lot. But in the second , for whatever reason, we didn’t find our legs and if you don’t skate with Dallas, you’re going to be in trouble. You have to skate with them. And, they’re one of the best skating teams in the league. So, that’s abit of a push for us to do that. We did it in Dallas; we showed in Dallas, we could do it, and last night, we just couldn’t stay with it. So for me, the Anaheim game bothered me and kinda set it up for the next two, I guess.

As for his expectation of the team for Saturday night, he was asked to clarify whether “Boston is a must game.” meant a win, or a must show up. Desjardins response, after admitting he expected the question to be asked:

It’s a must game where you have to play hard. For me, and every game, is a must game where you gotta play hard. That’s what we do. So I think our guys are looking forward to that opportunity to go out and play. Will it be a hard game? For sure, it’s gonna be a hard game but I expect us to have a good effort.

I expect a similar effort with the Boston Bruins, that Canuck fans saw against the Chicago Blackhawks recently. It was a victory that night, a very emotional game, where the Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin and Jannick Hansen had an outstanding game.

I have thrown out the old script, I just hope Vancouver does not take it out of the garbage and use it tomorrow night…..Just Saying

NHL MORNING SKATE – DEC. 4, 2015

Posted on December 4, 2015 by CanucksBanter

NHL MORNING SKATE – DEC. 4, 2015

Welcome to the “NHL Morning Skate,” a daily collection of the latest news and notes from around the League.

THURSDAY’S RESULTS

Home Team in Caps
Colorado 2, NY RANGERS 1
New Jersey 5, CAROLINA 1
Washington 3, MONTREAL 2
OTTAWA 4, Chicago 3 (OT)
DETROIT 5, Arizona 1
Florida 2, NASHVILLE 1
MINNESOTA 1, Toronto 0
Dallas 4, VANCOUVER 2

HOLTBY PROPELS STREAKING CAPITALS PAST CANADIENS

Braden Holtby made 33 saves, including 16 in the second period, to backstop the Capitals to their sixth consecutive victory and also pick up his career-high eighth straight personal win (1.87 GAA, .936 SV%, 1 SO).

* At 18-5-1 (37 points), the Capitals leapfrogged the Rangers (17-7-3, 37 points) – who lost in regulation – for first place in the Metropolitan Division. Their 37 points are the most through the opening 24 games of a season in franchise history.
* Holtby, who Elias notes is the first Capitals goaltender to post an eight-game winning streak since 2009-10 (Jose Theodore: 10-0-0), leads the NHL with 16 victories and ranks third with a 1.96 goals-against average this season.
* The Capitals have recorded at least one point 16 of their last 18 meetings with the Canadiens dating to Dec. 28, 2010 (13-2-3). They also have earned at least one point in 12 consecutive regular-season visits to Bell Centre dating to Nov. 28, 2009 (10-0-2).
* Holtby improved to 7-0-2 in nine career appearances vs. MTL (1.40 GAA, .949 SV%, 2 SO). That includes a 6-0-1 record at Bell Centre (1.40 GAA, .948 SV%, 2 SO).

SHARP LIFTS STARS INTO FIRST PLACE IN NHL STANDINGS

Patrick Sharp scored the tiebreaking goal with 5:59 remaining in regulation to help the Stars improve to 8-1-1 in their last 10 outings.

* At 20-5-1 (41 points), the Stars leapfrogged the Canadiens (19-5-3, 41 points) – who lost in regulation – for first place in the NHL standings. Their 20 wins and 41 points are the most through the opening 26 games of a season in franchise history.
* The Stars, who also lead the NHL with 11 wins and 23 points as visitors (11-2-1), extended their road point streak to eight games (7-0-1).
* The Stars won their 10th consecutive game over the Canucks dating to April 18, 2013 (VAN: 0-7-3). Per Elias, that is the longest active winning streak by an NHL team against one opponent.
* Making his first appearance since Nov. 24, Kari Lehtonen turned aside 14 shots to improve to 10-1-0 this season (2.37 GAA, .918 SV%). That includes a perfect 7-0-0 record on the road (2.00 GAA, .931 SV%).

RED WINGS, PANTHERS ALSO STAY HOT

Both the Red Wings and Panthers also picked up wins on Thursday to extend their recent hot streaks:

* The Red Wings scored three times in the opening period – including a pair of goals in 18 seconds – to stretch their point streak to nine games (6-0-3), their longest such run since Dec. 27, 2008 – Jan. 15, 2009 (8-0-2). They also extended their point streak at Joe Louis Arena to seven contests (4-0-3); their 19 points at home this season share fifth in the NHL (8-5-3).
* Roberto Luongo made 32 saves, including 27 over the final two periods, to backstop the Panthers to a 3-0-0 start on their five-game road trip as well as their fourth consecutive win overall, their longest such run since Dec. 10-19, 2013 (5-0-0). The team also snapped a nine-game drought with its first victory in Nashville since Dec. 11, 1999 (0-5-4).

HOFFMAN, SENATORS EDGE BLACKHAWKS IN OVERTIME . . .

Mike Hoffman registered 2-1—3, including the winning goal 30 seconds into overtime, to help the Senators improve to 5-1-2 in their last eight outings at Canadian Tire Centre.

* Hoffman, who led all rookies with 27 goals last season, scored his second career overtime goal (other Nov. 13, 2014 at EDM: 2-0—2). He also posted his fourth career three-point game and extended his point streak to six contests (8-3—11).
* Two other players – Bobby Ryan (1-2—3) and Erik Karlsson (0-3—3) – also recorded three points. Karlsson paces all defensemen and leads the Senators with 5-24—29 this season, two more points than Stars defenseman John Klingberg (5-22—27).

. . . KANE EQUALS FRANCHISE RECORD WITH POINTS IN 21 STRAIGHT

Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane collected 1-2—3 to stretch his point streak to a career-high 21 games (13-22—35), extending his record for the longest such run by a U.S.-born player in NHL history and equaling a franchise record set by Bobby Hull from Dec. 5, 1971 – Jan. 23, 1972 (23-12—35 in 21 GP).

* Via Elias, Kane became the fourth player to register a point streak of 21 or more games since the 1992-93 season:

Point Streaks of 21+ Games, Since 1992-93
25 – Sidney Crosby, PIT: Nov. 5 – Dec. 28, 2010 (26-24—50)
22 – Dany Heatley, OTT: Oct. 5 – Nov. 29, 2005 (17-21—38)
21 – Adam Oates, BOS: March 4 – April 14, 1993 (9-30—39)
21 – Patrick Kane, CHI: Oct. 17 – Dec. 3, 2015 (13-22—35)^
^ Active

* Kane, who paces all players with 25 assists and 41 points overall this season, also leads the NHL with 12 multi-point performances.

AROUND THE RINKS

* Devan Dubnyk (28 SV) earned his League-leading fourth shutout of the season to backstop the Wild to their second straight win. Dubnyk recorded his ninth shutout since joining Minnesota in January (61 GP); that equals his total from his first 192 NHL appearances.
* Mike Cammalleri (2-1—3) posted his League-leading fifth three-point performance of the season to spark the Devils to their third consecutive road victory. Cammalleri paces the team and shares seventh in the NHL with 9-17—26 overall.
* Matt Duchene scored his 13th goal in his past 15 games to power the Avalanche to their second straight win. Duchene, who had one goal in his first 11 outings of the season, shares third overall with 14 goals in 2015-16.

MILESTONES & BENCHMARKS

* Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo played in his 885th career game to move within one of tying Tony Esposito (886) for seventh place on the NHL’s all-time games played list among goaltenders.
* Avalanche forward Jarome Iginla played in his 1,418th career game to surpass Luke Richardson (1,417) for sole possession of 28th place on the NHL’s all-time games played list.
* Capitals head coach Barry Trotz earned his 620th career victory to tie Bryan Murray for 10th place on the NHL’s all-time wins list among head coaches.
* Forward Tyler Kennedy (0-2—2), who signed a one-year contract with the Devils last week, registered his first points with the team to eclipse 200 in his NHL career (86-115—201).
* Blackhawks defenseman Michal Rozsival (900), Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall (700) and Maple Leafs forward Tyler Bozak (400) all played in milestone games.

LOOSE PUCKS

Stars forward Tyler Seguin (14-21—35) scored to move into a tie for second in the NHL in points (w/ teammate Jamie Benn: 18-17—35) . . . Blackhawks forward Artemi Panarin (1-2—3) registered his fourth three-point game of the season. He leads all rookies with 8-18—26 overall, five more points than Coyotes forward Max Domi (8-13—21) . . . Rangers forward Oscar Lindberg notched his 10th goal of the season, tied for first among rookies with Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin . . . Capitals forward T.J. Oshie (2-0—2) posted his first multi-goal performance since Jan. 3 at SJS (3-1—4 w/ STL) . . . Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau recorded his third career game-winning goal and first since Dec. 7, 2013 at DET . . . Wild defenseman Matt Dumba picked up his second game-winning goal of the season (24 GP), equaling his total from his first 71 NHL appearances . . . Maple Leafs goaltender James Reimer turned aside 27 of 28 shots, but fell to 5-2-1 in his last eight outings (1.47 GAA, .955 SV%) . . . Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith collected one assist to extend his point streak to five games (2-5—7) . . . ICYMI: Eight-year-old fan Kayleigh Petersen signed a one-day contract with the Rangers and led the team onto the ice for pregame warm-ups as part of Garden of Dreams Night at Madison Square Garden . . . Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard (26 SV) debuted a new holiday-themed mask for December.

DETROIT, MI – DECEMBER 3: Jimmy Howard #35 of the Detroit Red Wings makes a save during an NHL game against the Arizona Coyotes at Joe Louis Arena on December 3, 2015 in Detroit, Michigan. The Wings defeated the Coyotes 5-1. (Photo by Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images)

SNEAK PEEK AT FRIDAY’S ACTION

All Times Eastern
Arizona @ Buffalo, 7:00 p.m., FS-A+, MSG-B, BELL TV
Philadelphia @ New Jersey, 7:00 p.m., CSN-PH, MSG+ 2
Florida @ Columbus, 7:00 p.m., FS-F, FS-O
St. Louis @ NY Islanders, 7:30 p.m., TVAS2, FS-MW, MSG+
Boston @ Calgary, 9:00 p.m., NESN, SNF
Dallas @ Edmonton, 9:00 p.m., FS-SW+, SNW
San Jose @ Anaheim, 10:00 p.m., SN1, CSN-CA, PRIME, FS-SD
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Andrew Phillip Chernoff

The Outer Limits To The Inner Depths