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Technology Stocks : Discuss Year 2000 Issues -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Mansfield who wrote (6478)	7/11/1999 5:50:00 PM
From: Ken	Respond to of 9818

NUK REACTORS:NIRS:<<..WORST CAN HAPPEN...NRC program unacceptable... nirs.org NUCLEAR INFORMATION AND RESOURCE SERVICE 1424 16th Street NW, #404, Washington, DC 20036 202.328.0002; fax: 202.462.2183; nirsnet@nirs.org; www.nirs.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Mary Olson or Paul Gunter, 202.328.0002 July 8, 1999 SORRY, BUT NOVEMBER 1999 IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR Y2K FIXES, SAYS NIRS The Nuclear Information and Resource Service gave the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Y2K program failing grades today, based on the agency's admission that 35 nuclear reactors still haven't resolved their problems with the well-known computer bug. NIRS noted that several of these reactors aren't even scheduled to complete their fixes until November 1999--or even later--which leaves virtually no time for testing and further adjustment to their repairs. "The NRC's program is unacceptable," said NIRS' executive director Michael Mariotte. "It's what we feared all along--this agency is waiting until the last minute and then just hoping that everything will work out ok. But with nuclear reactors, there is no margin for error. Simply hoping for the best is a sure indication that the worst can happen." According to the NRC, which released preliminary information about the status of nuclear reactors and the Y2K issue yesterday, 35 reactors are not yet "Y2K ready," although all were supposed to be ready by July 1, 1999. Moreover, as noted yesterday by Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), the concept of Y2K ready does not mean "Y2K compliant." In fact, for the nuclear industry, "Y2K ready" can mean simply turning back the clock to 1972 and hoping everything works properly. "Obviously, the nuclear utilities still have an enormous amount of work to do to repair their computer systems for the next century," said Mary Olson, NIRS' Y2K specialist. "The NRC is trying to put the best spin possible on this problem, but the fact is some utilities just aren't going to be ready in time. Experts agree that no nuclear power will be needed in the U .S. on January 1, 2000--there will be plenty of electrical generation available. For that reason, we join with our colleagues across the globe in calling for a nuclear moratorium on January 1--a shutdown of all nuclear facilities across the world. Who knows, we may find we can live without them permanently?" Among the U.S. reactors that do not even intend to meet minimal Y2K issues until after November 1, 1999 are: Brunswick-1 (NC, 11/30/99); Comanche Peak-1 & 2 (TX, 11/30/99); Cook-1 & 2 (12/15/99); Farley-2 (Al, 12/16/99); Salem-1 (NJ, 11/6/99). Many others have a Y2K-ready date of the end of October 1999. In December 1998, NIRS submitted three petitions for rulemaking to the NRC. One would require any utility not fully Y2K-compliant by December 1, 1999 to be closed until it can prove it is Y2K-compliant. Thus far, the NRC has not indicated that any reactor will be Y2K-compliant by December 1, 1999. NIRS is also actively working to provide assistance to Eastern-bloc utilities that suffer from Y2K problems with their reactors and electrical grids. "More U.S. assistance is necessary for many Eastern countries to ensure that January 1, 2000 is not a time of meltdown, but of celebration," said Olson. "The U.S. Congress needs to recognize that several Eastern countries need help in basic Y2K work and in enabling the implementation of meaningful contingency plans. Such assistance is of little cost to the U.S., but will be of great benefit if meltdowns and electrical grid disruptions can be avoided."

To: John Mansfield who wrote (6478)	7/11/1999 6:36:00 PM
From: Ken	Respond to of 9818

<<THE 'NIGHTMARE SCENARIO' WHAT WILL HAPPEN BECAUSE THE WORLD'S Y2K NUCLEAR PROBLEMS WILL NOT/CANNOT BE FIXED IN TIME?? Re-read article again, very carefully.

To: John Mansfield who wrote (6478)	7/11/1999 7:41:00 PM
From: Brennan Wilkie	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9818

Remember the accidental bombing of the chinese embassy in yugoslavia? Well, knowing that the chinese are ill prepared for y2k, the chinese could launch a nuke at the us and claim it was an 'accident', imagine that scenario.

To: John Mansfield who wrote (6478)	7/11/1999 10:19:00 PM
From: C.K. Houston	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 9818

<The greatest danger comes from Russian and Chinese missiles. Currently, at least thirteen Chinese nuclear missiles are thought to be capable of reaching the West Coast of the United States.> Made me think about where I'm taking my sister and the kids tomorrow ... Brookings-Harbor, Oregon - the only spot in the continental U.S. that was bombed by a foreign power (Japan) in World War II. [I never realized that was anywhere in the continental U.S. that was bombed by Japan, until I started to read up on this little place on the coast that I'm taking them to.] The pilot of the plane returned to Brookings twenty years after the bombing and presented the town with his personal samuri sword. The sword, now on display at Brookings City Hall, had been carried in his plane for good luck. Cheryl