RE: [CPEO-MEF] Bechtel's Nuclear Nightmares

[themissinglink@eznetinc.com]

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You know what amazes me more than CPEO posting that article?  That the
DoD does not see fit to assign one of their army of spokespeople to
address what is brought up on this forum.  We pay for the DoD to have
these people to answer questions from the public yet they hide like
scared little bunnies when a forum like this brings together activists
and stakeholders
suffering from their misdeeds, both past and ongoing.

Thats what amazes me.

Steven Pollack


-----Original Message-----
From: loc@icx.net [mailto:loc@icx.net]
Sent: Monday, May 05, 2003 1:50 PM
To: cpeo-military
Subject: Re: [CPEO-MEF] Bechtel's Nuclear Nightmares

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I'm amazed that CPEO posted a link to this obviously biased
anti-Bechtel
and anti-nuclear article.  It's full of misinformation and
unsupportable
leaps of logic, and relies heavily on quotes from anti-nuclear
activists
to make its points, while ignoring technical reality.

One of many untrue statements: "...dozens of communities living
downwind
from nuclear plants that are seeing alarming increases in cancer."
The
studies that purport to show this have been scientifically
discredited
because the author went looking for communities near nuclear plants
with
increases of cancer and discarded those with decreases in cancer
(about
half of the total, duh).

By the way, why blame Bechtel for San Ononfre's management decisions?
The plant was built to meet standards at the time and NRC licensed it
(and their standards are incredibly strict).  Unit 1 can generate
only
about a third of the energy of the two other units at the site, so
likely it wasn't cost effective to do the modifications.

As far as disposing of the reactor, a more journalistically ethical
article discusses the problems at
<http://www.ohiocitizen.org/campaigns/electric/2003/san_onofre.htm>.

The CorpWatch article also cites DOE criticisms of Bechtel.  These
are
no worse than criticisms of other DOE contractors, past and present.
At
Oak Ridge, Bechtel Jacobs Company is making good progress on cleaning
up
sites that have languished for decades.  Are they perfect?  No.  But
then neither is any other major government contractor.  There are
lots
of competent technical people doing good work for Bechtel and other
major government contractors.

What I object to is ANY major firm being handed a huge government
contract without going through an open competitive bid process.  That
is
the policy concern that should be addressed with Bechtel's (and
Halliburton's) recent contracts for work in Iraq.

My opinions only,

Susan Gawarecki

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