nuclear-news

More nuclear accidents are probable. Solar Power is the best solution

Nuclear Power Part III: Safety and Conclusion by Jeff Danner – Common Science Sep 30 2012 “…….Given that the world currently hosts a fleet of a little over 400 nuclear power plants, how frequently should we expect reactor core meltdowns to occur in the future?
Organizations ranging from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Max Planck Institute in Germany have estimated that we can expect a serious nuclear accident every 8 to 20 years.  As the average age of nuclear plants around the world grows, I would expect the rate of incidents to increase…….
The only practical and ethical pathway to a sustainable future that I consider to be plausible is a massive national effort to construct solar electric plants and corresponding upgrades to the power grid.
The efforts and expenses on this monumental project need to be on the equivalent scale of what we have invested in the military over the last several generations.  The growth of solar power capacity must be tied to firm targets to reduce per capita electricity use and an
enforceable schedule for decommissioning both fossil fuel and nuclear power plants.  I plan a future series of columns on how this transition to solar power can take place.

Unfortunately, as I have bemoaned before, our current social and political culture is not at all prepared to grapple with issues of with import and complexity of nuclear power.  Discussions of energy resources and long-term sustainability during the current presidential election campaign have been shallow and inconsequential at best.  So for now, we’ll just have to hope the next melt down is far away.
http://chapelboro.com/Nuclear-Power-Part-III–Safety-and-Conclusion/9686450?pid=268649

October 1, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general