#ClimateChange May Unearth #ColdWar-Era #NuclearWaste Stored by the U.S. in Other Countries

A new report finds that melting ice and #RisingSeaLevels could disturb #RadioactiveContamination left over from American #NuclearTests after World War II

by Tara Wu, March 6, 2024

Excerpt: "Rising global temperatures could unearth Cold War-era nuclear waste created by the United States and stored in other countries, posing potential issues for the environment and local inhabitants, according to a new report.

"An assessment conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released earlier this year examined nuclear waste in the #MarshallIslands, #Greenland and #Spain, three locations with radioactive contamination resulting from American nuclear activity in the decades following World War II. Climate change could cause this nuclear waste to enter the environment, as warming temperatures melt ice sheets that contain radioactive liquid and raise sea levels that could pollute food and water sources with toxic waste, per the study.

"This lingering contamination came from nuclear weapon detonations, including hydrogen bombs, and accidents at numerous sites around the world. Often, the U.S. government stored this waste near the sites of detonation, Robert Hayes, a nuclear engineer at North Carolina State University, says to Julia Jacobo of ABC News. In Greenland, officials disposed of nuclear waste in the ice sheet, and in the Marshall Islands, they placed it in a container with a concrete cap."

Read more:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/climate-change-may-unearth-cold-war-era-nuclear-waste-stored-by-the-us-in-other-countries-180983901/

#ClimateChange #GlobalWarming #NoNukes #NoNuclearWeapons #NoNuclearWar #NuclearDumping #NuclearWaste #NuclearWeapons #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife #Environment #EnvironmentalRacism

Climate Change May Unearth Cold War-Era Nuclear Waste Stored by the U.S. in Other Countries

A new report finds that melting ice and rising sea levels could disturb radioactive contamination left over from American nuclear tests after World War II

Smithsonian Magazine

SimplyInfo.org: 15th Anniversary Report #FukushimaDaiichi

March 2, 2026

Excerpt: "This TV Asahi investigative report from March 2025 [linked below] paints a sobering picture of the enormous challenges still facing the decommissioning of Fukushima Daiichi, fourteen years after the accident. While #TEPCO achieved a milestone the previous November by extracting roughly 0.7 grams of #NuclearFuel debris for the first time, experts interviewed for the piece emphasized that debris removal is just one piece of a far more complex puzzle. Around 1,000 fuel assemblies
still remain in the spent fuel pools of Units 1 and 2, untouched since the accident, and officials from the Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation Corporation (#NDF) described clearing these pools as the single most urgent priority — in part because another
#earthquake or #tsunami could strike at any time.

"Before large-scale debris removal can even begin, the area around the reactor buildings must be cleared of heavily contaminated structures and exhaust stacks to make room for the massive equipment required. Because humans cannot safely approach the highly radioactive debris, all removal work must be done remotely. Radiation levels outside the buildings remain dangerously high — a dosimeter near #Unit2 showed particularly elevated readings — and contaminated water continues to be generated at a rate of roughly 80 tons per day as #rainwater and #groundwater contact radioactive materials on site, despite TEPCO having already released about 80,000 tons of treated [but still radioactive] water into the ocean.

"Perhaps the most troubling concern raised in the article is what happens to the debris and #RadioactiveWaste after it is removed. Hiroshi Miyano, chairman of the Decommissioning Review Committee of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan, was blunt in his criticism, saying no serious thought has been given to managing this waste over the coming century or two.

"The Fukushima debris is uniquely complicated because it is a mixture of melted nuclear fuel and structural materials, and experts warned that removal may not even be possible until a concrete disposal plan is in place. General decommissioning superintendent Toyoshi Fukada warned that without proper storage facilities ready in advance, the entire decommissioning effort could eventually grind to a halt simply because there would be nowhere to put the waste."

Read more:
https://simplyinfo.org/2026/03/simplyinfo-org-15th-anniversary-report-fukushima-daiichi/

Asashi investigative report [pdf]:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ysaf6a7hj62286sv4hoql/alps_water_d250130_14-j_translated.pdf?rlkey=3u397ndoafdtiq6fgjczg4a74&st=845tdf30&dl=0

#FukushimaIsntOver #TEPCOLies #RethinkNotRestart #NoNukes #NoNukesForAI #RenewablesNow #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife #NuclearPlants #NuclearDisaster #Remember311

SimplyInfo.org: 15th Anniversary Report Fukushima Daiichi

Our annual report on the Fukushima disaster is now available as a free downloadable PDF, you can also view it below in our PDF reader. Find out what has bee

SimplyInfo.org

#ToxicWaste from screens ends up in endangered #dolphins, study finds

Gene-altering chemicals found in humpback dolphins and finless porpoises, raising alarm they may end up in human food chain

by Tara Russell
Wed 25 Feb 2026 08.00 EST

Excerpt: " 'The presence of #LCMs in their brains is a major red flag,' He said. 'If these chemicals can cross the blood-brain barrier in dolphins, we must be concerned about the potential for similar effects in humans who are exposed through contaminated seafood or even drinking water.'

"#ElectronicWaste is a growing problem around the world, with 62m tonnes of it generated each year. The main culprit is '#FastTech' – cheap and often poorly manufactured items viewed as disposable, including devices that use LCMs.

"To reduce the damage, the researchers said people should try to extend the life of their #electronics through #repairs and disposing of them using certified #EWaste recycling methods."

Read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/25/toxic-waste-from-screens-ends-up-in-endangered-dolphins-study-finds

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/cVdai

#RepairReuseRestore #EWaste #Pollution #OceansAreLife #WaterIsLife #RepairCafes #RightToRepair #PlannedObsolescence #CheapElectronics #LCDs

Toxic waste from screens ends up in endangered dolphins, study finds

Gene-altering chemicals found in humpback dolphins and finless porpoises, raising alarm they may end up in human food chain

The Guardian

‘It’s a catastrophe’: Wellington rages as millions of litres of raw sewage pour into ocean

Abandoned beaches, public health warning signs and seagulls eating human waste are now features of the popular coastline in #NewZealand

Michelle Duff in Wellington
Wed 18 Feb 2026 22.42 EST

"A tide of anger is rising in New Zealand’s capital, Wellington, as the city’s toilets continue to flush directly into the ocean more than two weeks after the catastrophic collapse of its wastewater treatment plant.

"Millions of litres of raw and partially screened sewage have been pouring into pristine #reefs and a #MarineReserve along the south coast daily since 4 February, prompting a national inquiry, as the authorities struggle to get the decimated plant operational.

"Abandoned beaches, public health warning signs and seagulls eating human waste are now features of the popular coastline, with the environmental disaster zone adjacent to the airport where thousands of international visitors alight every day.

"Fears for the safety of marine #ecosystems – including vulnerable species such as the little blue penguin, or #kororā, which nest along the shore – are mixed with concerns over the length and cost of disruption to those who depend on the coast for income, wellness, and recreation.

"As a southerly storm whipped through the lower North Island and churned up polluted seawater this week, hundreds of residents turned out to a public meeting to seek answers.

" 'They’re warning us to close our windows because a shit-laden hurricane is coming at us,' said the south coast resident and environmentalist Eugene Doyle, whose house faces the sea. 'Everyone in charge has done an appalling job, and they need to be held accountable.' "

Read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/19/wellington-raw-sewage-leak-spill-water-new-zealand

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/bjF7f

#OceansAreLife #Sewage #Aotearoa #GovernmentFail #NZ

‘It’s a catastrophe’: Wellington rages as millions of litres of raw sewage pour into ocean

Abandoned beaches, public health warning signs and seagulls eating human waste are now features of the popular coastline in New Zealand

The Guardian

'It's overwhelming': #Plastic from 1960s #Canada washes up on #Orkney beach

Evie McGowan, February 18, 2026

"Plastic bottles and debris which appears to have originated in Canada and dates back to the 1960s and 70s has washed up on an Orkney beach.

"Litter pickers say they are 'overwhelmed' by the amount of plastic they have found on the shoreline at #HowarSands in Sanday over the last few weeks.
David Warner, who organises beach cleans, said he gathered 42 plastic bottles from the shore last year - yet already this year he has found hundreds.
Experts blame 'fairly extraordinary weather', with strong south-easterly winds, for the increase in '#RetroRubbish'.

"Warner, 35, said some of the plastic bottles he has discovered on Sanday appear to have originated in #Newfoundland and #Labrador in Canada.

"He worries that even more detritus will wash up on the beach in the future.
'We haven't hit rubbish from the nineties and noughties, so that's going to be extortionate amounts,' he said."

Read more:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2k8g4p44l0o

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/D2xFR

#Scotland #PlasticPollution #Microplastics #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife

'It's overwhelming': Plastic from 1960s Canada washes up on Orkney's Sanday

One litter picker says he has seen a huge increase in the amount of plastic washing up on Sanday this year.

#DeepSeaMining causes immediate loss of #SeafloorLife

by Eric Ralls, February 5, 2026

"Far below the ocean surface, the deep seafloor is often described as one of the planet’s least disturbed ecosystems. That assumption is now being tested.

"Companies are preparing to mine mineral-rich #nodules scattered across the abyss. The shift raises urgent questions about how quickly damage could appear once #industrial machines begin operating.

"A new field experiment offers one of the clearest answers yet. Researchers found that a single trial of a deep-sea mining collector physically removed more than one-third of the animals and species living directly in its path.

"The results show that biological impacts can occur immediately, not only after years of full-scale extraction."

Read more:
https://www.earth.com/news/deep-sea-mining-machines-could-erase-seafloor-life-in-hours/

#DeepSeaLife #OceansAreLife #WorldPol #NoDeepSeaMining #RecycleMetals #DeepSeaMiningMoratorium #OxygenSource #Extinction #PlanetEarth

Deep-sea mining machines could erase seafloor life in hours

A deep-sea mining test shows ecosystem damage can begin immediately, with more than one-third of seafloor animals lost in a single pass.

Earth.com

Who needs #BioLabs when there's all sorts of #bacteria about to be exposed after thousands of years!

Researchers issue warning after making grim #Antarctic discovery: 'We are only beginning to understand'

Story by Daysia Tolentino, January 29, 2026

Excerpt: "A study published in the journal #Biocontaminant examined the effects of #GlacialMelting on our #WaterSupply.

"#Glaciers serve as reservoirs for #AntibioticResistanceGenes, or #ARGs, and other #microbes. When they are released from the ice, they enter our water systems, posing a major health risk to people downstream.

"Millions of people get their water from glacier-fed rivers and lakes. ARGs are strands of DNA that make bacteria more resistant to drugs. When ARGs in #meltwater make their way into our water supply, they become a global public health risk.

"The study emphasizes the importance of viewing glaciers, rivers, and lakes as being part of a 'glacier continuum.' This means they are an interconnected system rather than separate environments.

Why are melting glaciers concerning?

"From our gas-powered cars to #overconsumption, human activity has contributed to the production of heat-trapping gases that warm the planet. Rising global temperatures have caused glaciers to rapidly melt, causing elevated sea levels and releasing ARGs.

"ARGs from melting glaciers are worrisome because they help facilitate the spread of diseases. This threat is compounded by the fact that our growing #microplastic problem is also helping #AntibioticResistant #bacteria breed. As a result, #medicines are being rendered less effective."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/researchers-issue-warning-after-making-grim-antarctic-discovery-we-are-only-beginning-to-understand/

#WorldPol #USPol #FossilFuels #FossilFools #Degrowth #RenewablesNow #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife #HumanFolly #NewDiseases

"#Agricultural runoff provides perfect nutrients for #methanogen growth.

#Fertilizer and animal waste washing into ocean systems creates nutrient-rich zones where these methanogens thrive like never before. #Nitrogen and #phosphorus pollution from farmland creates ideal conditions for explosive #microbial growth in #coastal waters and #DeepOcean areas. These agricultural inputs essentially act as fertilizer for #methane-producing microbes, creating a connection between #IndustrialFarming and atmospheric #GreenhouseGas levels that scientists never fully appreciated.

"Coastal regions near major agricultural areas show the highest concentrations of these supercharged methanogens, with some areas recording methane production levels ten times higher than baseline measurements. The problem compounds itself because areas with intensive farming also tend to have the strongest ocean currents, meaning these fertilized methanogen populations get distributed globally. Every season’s #AgriculturalRunoff creates new opportunities for these microbes to establish thriving colonies in previously stable ocean environments."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/earth-s-dangerous-warming-traced-to-a-hidden-culprit-says-new-data/ss-AA1VuuPp?ocid=winp2fptaskbarhover#image=2

#DeepSeaLife #AgriculturalRunoff #BigAg #OceansAreLife #OceanCurrents #OceanMethane

MSN

"Marine scientists drilling into abyssal ocean floor sediments discovered thriving colonies of this new #methanogen species at depths previously thought to be biologically inactive. These extreme environments, characterized by crushing pressure and complete darkness, harbor #microbial communities that have evolved unique metabolic pathways. According to research published in #NatureGeoscience, these #DeepSea methanogens can survive in conditions that would kill most known life forms.

"The discovery challenges everything scientists thought they knew about where life can exist in Earth’s oceans. These microbes don’t just survive in the deep ocean trenches, they’re actually flourishing and producing methane at industrial scales. Their metabolic processes operate entirely differently from surface-dwelling organisms, using chemical energy sources that most life forms can’t even process."

Learn more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/earth-s-dangerous-warming-traced-to-a-hidden-culprit-says-new-data/ss-AA1VuuPp?ocid=winp2fptaskbarhover&cvid=0a3d1a553ba44c8893415037fea29306&ei=7#image=2

#DeepSeaLife #AgriculturalRunoff #BigAg #OceansAreLife #OceanCurrents #OceanMethane

MSN

It's not enough that #Fukushima #RadioactiveWaterDumping will continue for years (centuries?), now #Japan wants to mine the #DeepSea and kill even more #OceanLife? WTF!

Japan hauls rare earth-rich mud from deep sea in bold test mission

Story by BeckhamLangford
Feburary 3, 2026

"Japan’s own planners acknowledge the uncertainties. Jan briefings on the test mining plan stressed that, However, key aspects remain unknown, including the quality of the minerals and the economics of lifting and processing such vast volumes of mud. Mining the mud had previously been seen as too expensive compared with land-based deposits, and even with new technology, the cost of pumping, dewatering and refining the material at scale is still an open question. Analysts also point out that any move toward commercial production will face intense scrutiny from environmental regulators and coastal communities, who want clearer evidence on how sediment plumes, noise and habitat disruption will affect #DeepOcean #ecosystems around the site."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/japan-hauls-rare-earth-rich-mud-from-deep-sea-in-bold-test-mission/ar-AA1VBa5u

#OceansAreLife #JapanPol #NoDeepSeaMining #NoOceanDumping #FukushimaIsntOver #RecycleMetals #BuildTechnologyThatLasts #OceansAreLife #WaterIsLife #LeaveItInTheOcean #DeepSeaMining
#NoDeepSeaMining #RecycleCopper
#LifeOnEarth #Ecocide #DeepSeaLife #OceansAreLife #PlanetDestroyers #HumanGreed #NoisePollution #SedimentPlumes

MSN