Arguments Against Nuclear Power Are Wrong
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I live about an hour from a nuclear power plant here in Minnesota. I may have only driven past it a couple times, but each time I do I always wonder why there aren't more of them in this country. In this hub I'll touch on a few of the points made by the anti-nuclear crowd and let you know why they are wrong.
There is no where to keep the waste
Since the late 80s Yucca Mountain has been built to be a nuclear waste repository for all spent fuel rods in the country. The site was chosen because it's far from ground water, there is little danger from seismic activity, it is far underground, there have already been hundreds of nuclear tests in the area, and it's on a military base. These all combine to make Yucca Mountain a great location for storing these casks.
For those concerned about shipping spent fuel rods around the country, extensive testing has already been done on the shipping casks, and they have been found to be completely safe.
It's unlikely that any jet-powered trains or trucks would ever run in to the cask, or it would be subjected to jet fuel-powered fire, but it still withstands those conditions with ease.
Nuclear plants would be a target for terrorists
The 104 active nuclear plants haven't been targetted. They have, however, targetted tall buildings, short buildings, underground parking and boats, among many other things. Does that mean we should stop building all of those because we know they are terror targets?
Stopping development and progress because something might be a target for terrorism is the worst argument ever. To use popular jargon, if you stop development because you're afraid of the possiblity of terrorism, the terrorists have won.
Wind and solar are better options
Intermittent power supplies are not good options. This country needs constant power. At this point in time wind and solar are really only good for single users, or small portions of the overall grid. It certainly seems that both have promise, and should continue to be developed so they are more effective. At some point they may work to take over primary duties for power generation. They just aren't there yet.
Chernobyl and Three Mile Island
Chernobyl happened in 1987, when the Russian government couldn't do anything right and had no money. Does it really come as a surprise that something like that would happen? It was horrible, no doubt. Think about the technology that Russia was employing in the 1980's compared to what we have today. Do you really think there hasn't been any improvement? Properly built nuclear plants in the 80s were perfectly safe, and would be even safer today.
Three Mile Island happened in the US, so it seems harder to argue against it. Except that all anyone has ever claimed is that some nuclear fallout was released in to the surrounding area. No one died from the incident and there were no elevated levels of cancer in the area. Again, this was a plant built in the early-to-mid 70s. Technology is leaps-and-bounds past what it was running on.
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No reason I wouldn't approve the comment, everyone is welcome to their opinions :)
I also certainly wouldn't follow someone to drive down their ratings, that would be totally uncool.
Sorry for thinking the worst. On the www it is not a nice place when a person opposses big energy. Thank you for being fair-minded when I obviously was not. :0< Thanks
I'm not a huge fan of "big energy" either. I think coal and natural gas are horrible power sources, and as great as solar and wind could be some day, they just aren't ready to mass provide power. They work very well for supplementing, just like methane at garbage dumps.
Right now, nuclear is the cleanest, safest, and cheapest source that can be used to power the entire country.
I am not Sure what to think on there are many pros as well as cons to nuclear power. I wouold like to know however where did LillyGrillzit obtained her infomation about Russellville and its cancer rates. I am not diputing it at all I have simply been trying to find more information on the town because I had considered moving to that general area
I Agree 100%. I Believe nuclear power is the answer. I have a few points to make in addition to your excellent blog. First many people argue there is no place to store the waste my answer is, Have then been to the desert?(Which is where I live) Miles and Miles of open desert. All the nuclear waste generated in the US in the last 50 years could easily be contained in only 1 square mile. Second, no one died in three-mile island but in the construction of the Hoover Dam 114 people died in the process of building the Dam. In addition to that, one nuclear power plant can do more than what that dam does. Third people argue about the pollution. But I say, look at the pollution of the manufactures of solar and wind power. My question is where is the waste from the generators and blades of the windmills from wind energy going to go? No matter what energy source theres always something hazardous about all of them and there is always going to be waste. If the government funded half as much money they give to other sources of energy we could insure nuclear power as Cleanest, Safest, and Cheapest power source. We already have without any government funds.
LillyGrillzit Level 1 Commenter 21 months ago
1). Yucca Mountain is Tribal Land adjacent to a Reservation filled with people. There is always water underground and this is a Karst system, that will be affected by tons of plutonium stored.
2).Any time hazardous materials are being shipped, there is danger of accidents, and whole trucks do come up missing product all the time.
3).Nuclear Plants have some of the tightest security in the country precisely because they are easy targets. In the early part of 2008 the intire Interstate 40 was closed off due to a bomb threat less than one mile from the Nuclear Plant at Russellville, AR
3a).On 911, Middle Eastern gentlemen entered the Russellville Private Airport, wanting to take planes, and were held by local law enforcement because they are a small town. They ended up releasing them, and they were last seen by the Nuclear Plant
4).The Chernobyl Plant (interpeted Wormwood) is the same design as many in the US today. I am sure you have a reason 3-Mile Island melted down too. Most Nuclear Plants in the U.S. were built during the late 70's and early 80's
5). Russellville Arkansas has 500 times the Cancer rate as an average in the US. The nuclear plant has a Freak Show Museum they charge money for the citizens to come and see.
6). The amount of groundwater required to cool the Nuclear Plant are enormous, with rising global temps, it may become impossible to cool them.
7). The profit made by Nuclear Plants is outrageous. They affect the environment and human health. Anything near the High Voltage wires will die or be changed into a freak show.
8).I am sure this comment will never be published, because it sounds like you work for a group that is pushing Nuclear and "Clean Coal" technology, and the truth is what you make it.
9)Solar and Wind will put big dirty energy providers like Nuclear and Coal out of business. Individuals can easily power their own homes even passively
10).If you are following me to drive down my ratings or keep an eye on what I publish, I would like you to Unfollow me please.
I have made a copy of this for my records.