Regulate, Baby, Regulate.
By Daniel Stone - 2 April 2010 		             
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PA chief Lisa Jackson is taking on the president's next big challenge: climate change....

...Obama's openness to drilling and new nuclear plants, two things he at first opposed during his campaign, signals he's willing to make broad concessions to avoid such a showdown. "The president understands that EPA must follow the science and its legal obligations," says a White House official who spoke under the usual rules of anonymity....

 		           
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Comments by Tommaso Fronte.

                       
                                   
      "O
bama's openness to drilling and new nuclear plants... signals he's willing to make broad concessions".
Energy compares to finance since both are vital to advanced societies ; regulating the energy industry will be as hard as preventing banking disasters.
Tommaso Fronte (www.fronte.org)
           
        For instance, legislation and regulations are already quite stringent for nuclear power, but a country like France where 80% of electricity is generated with nuclear plants has hammered out practices which promote profit and supply security beyond allowed risk limitations; when actual operations trespass the stated rules, complacent or forced silence covers the gap. As a senior design engineer I refrained from supporting damning practices and, as part of my professional obligations, I reported the safety lapses; investigations by nuclear regulators confirmed my reports and very dissuading punishments were inflicted ... on me; the only way left was filing legal challenges and this triggered more harassment actions against me ; four rulings, all of them against me, were issued by the French Supreme Court ; it's illegal but France is to nuclear energy what tax heavens are to finance, and despite legislation and regulations, equipment as per nuclear safety standards such as ASME III class 1 can be marketed and operated internationally without conforming regulatory requirements. Openness to new nuclear plants means worldwide openness .
Regulate, baby, regulate !

Tommaso Fronte		              
                         
     
             
                                                                   
                         
                         
                                   
                                             
 
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