US House of Reps trying to block RF-US peaceful atom agt.

WASHINGTON, May 26 (Itar-Tass) - The House of Representatives of the
US Congress has prepared a resolution that is to block the
Russian-American intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the sphere
of peaceful uses of atomic power. Its co-authors are Democrat Edward
Markey (Massachusetts) and Republican Jeff Fortenberry (Nebraska), Markey'
s press secretary Daniel Reilly told Itar-Tass.
According to a related press release, Representative Edward J. Markey
(D-Mass.), the founder and co-chair of the House Bipartisan Task Force on
Nonproliferation, and Representative Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE), founder and
co-chair of the House Nuclear Security Caucus, last week introduced a
joint resolution of disapproval of the proposed civilian nuclear
cooperation agreement between the United States and Russia. The joint
resolution (H.J. Res. 85) expresses the disfavour of the Congress
regarding the agreement, which is pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of
1954, Section 123 that allows the President to negotiate and implement
civilian nuclear cooperation programs with other countries.
This 123 agreement was originally submitted to Congress by President
Bush in 2008, at which time it was opposed by Rep. Markey on the grounds
of Russia's dangerous record of nuclear and missile assistance to Iran.
The proposed agreement was withdrawn by the Bush Administration in the
wake of Russia's invasion of Georgia in 2008. On May 10th, the Obama
Administration re-submitted the Russia 123 agreement to the Congress.
"Sadly, the reasons for opposition to this agreement have not changed
in two years. Russia continues to train Iranian nuclear physicists,
supply sensitive nuclear technology to Iran, and give secret instruction
on Russian soil to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on the use of the
advanced S-300 interceptor-missile systems," said Markey.
"Not only does Russia persist with this toxic relationship, but it is
actively courting new ones. The same week that this 123 agreement was
released, Russian President Medvedev met with both Syrian President Assad
to discuss nuclear cooperation, and the exiled Hamas leader Khaled
Meshal," said Markey. "My question is this: Does Russia want cooperation
with the United States, or with Iran and Syria? Because it can't have
both."
"Russia cannot have it both ways. Russia needs to decide who it will
be; a nation that stops the spread of nuclear weapons capabilities or
accommodates it. Any nuclear agreement with Russia, particularly given its
willingness to collaborate with the nuclear activities of Iran and Syria,
deserves the closest scrutiny and examination. Congress must assert
itself," said Fortenberry.
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.Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP dam safe enough for spring flood period.

KRASNOYARSK, May 26 (Itar-Tass) - The safety margin of the
Sayano-Shushenskaya hydropower plant that was damaged in a major accident
in August 2009 is enough for passing the spring flood period, according to
a conclusion of specialists drawn based on the analysis of the state of
the HPP's hydraulic engineering installations and forecasts of the
Hydrometeorology Centre.
The press service of the RusHydro company that operates the HPP told
Itar-Tass on Tuesday that "the water inflow at the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP
in May-July is expected within the range of 4,500 to 5,000 cubic metres
per second. The hydropower plant is capable of handling up to 13,000 cubic
metres.
At present 11 spillway holes are open at the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP.
The water inflow is reaching 2,650 cubic metres per second and water flow
rate is 2,804 cubic metres per second. The 2010 spring flood waters are
passing at the station through the fifth and sixth hydraulic units and the
service spillway. The level of the headwater is at the mark 500.62 metres,
which is by almost 8 metres lower than the late May 2009 mark (508.06
metres).
"By the results of the inspection the condition of the spillway
passage of the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP, including the hydraulic jump
basin, has been found satisfactory. The base and dam of the
Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP are working seamlessly," the press service
stressed.
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.First this year switching rail track put into operation at BAM.

IRKUTSK, May 26 (Itar-Tass) - The first this year switching track
Irdykan has been put into operation at the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM). It
has been built at the one-track section Zvezdnaya-Niya and the waiting
time for opposite trains now will be cut, so far a 37-kilometre section is
released, the East Siberian Railway department told Itar-Tass.
This is already the ninth switching track built on the western section
of BAM from the Lena station in the Irkutsk region to Khani on the border
of the Trans-Baikal Territory and the Amur region under the programme of
increasing the capacity of the mainline in accordance with the Strategy of
the RF transport development for a period up to 2030. A total of 17 new
switching tracks, a double-track inserted section on the
Ikabiyekan-Mururin run, as well as additional tracks at 8 stations is
planned to be put into operation here in the coming years. The total
volume of investments at this stage will reach 13.5 billion roubles.
"If at present 15 million tonnes of cargoes are annually transported
on BAM, then with the implementation of the programme it will increase to
100 million tonnes annually. In the future BAM will serve for passing of
heavy-tonnage trains, and the Trans-Siberian railway (TransSib) will be
used as a speed railway for the transportation of passengers and delivery
of container cargoes," the department noted.
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