You Need to Know This - Germany is Dropping Nuclear Power
By louisehartmann
You need to know this. Germany is dropping nuclear power. Chancellor Angela Merkel announced plans yesterday to close down every single nuclear plant in the country by 2022 – that’s 17 reactors in all. Germany has the fourth largest economy in the world – and the largest economy in Europe and generates about 25% of its electricity from nuclear power – just like we do in the United States.
But already, Germany has shut down 7 reactors in the wake of the Fukushima disaster and is now committed to doubling its renewable energy output by 2022 also. Germany will join Italy as the only two nations in the G8 that have ditched nuclear power. Currently – the renewable energy sector in Germany employs nearly 400,000 people.
Since the United States still has no plans to drop nuclear power and switch to renewables – and hasn’t had a long-term energy plan since Reagan - let Germany serve as an example of how a nation can transform itself when its government isn’t completely captured by special interests.
Comments
#2
Muslims serve with valor!!!!!
In the United States, Islam is the fastest growing religion, a trend fueled mostly by immigration. There are 5 million to 7 million Muslims in the United States. They make up between 10,000 and 20,000 members of the American military.
Army Chaplain (Capt.) Abdul-Rasheed Muhammad is a Muslim Imam stationed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. In his chaplaincy, he ministers to all faiths.
Imam Muhammad said Muslims all believe in the Five Pillars of the Faith. “The foundation of the faith, or Shahada, is the testimony in the belief in one God and that Muhammad is the messenger of God,” he said.
Another of the pillars is prayer. Muslims pray to Allah five times a day, at dawn, midday, afternoon, evening and night. Wherever they are, they bow in the direction of Mecca, the Saudi Arabian city where Muhammad was born, for their prayers.
Charity is another pillar, Imam Muhammad said. “One gives a minimum of 2.5 percent of their wealth to the Islamic community yearly,” he said.
Another requirement is fasting during the month of Ramadan each year. Ramadan begins Nov. 18 this year.
Finally, Muslims are expected, if possible, to make a pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime. This is the Hajj to the Grand Mosque.
#4
The Supreme Court Mafia reigns supreme!!!!!
#5
Too big to jail!!!!!
#6
Chancellor Angela Merkel
Chancellor Angela Merkel needs to get letters of thanks from all of us......... It can and will happen here, too.
Gerald -- you need to get a new profile picture --- PLEASE?
#7
Ms. Merkel gets it, Martin doesn't.
#8
The elimination of nuclear power by Germany is far and away the most significant, sane, and noteworthy development in nuclear energy news in generations. And there is no question that the US could do the same and should. Enough of this BS and nonsense about safe nuclear. Fukushima is still melting down, radiologically poisoning an are with over 500,000 inhabitants and creating a critical dead zone, and (according to various research reports) also bound to kill many thousands of Japanese and impose a death sentence on untold others through an as yet uncontrolled release of radioactive materials into the land and sea. You would think this would get the attention of everyone in this country and put a stop to this nonsense, but government here is even more morbidly asleep at the wheel than in Japan, and we may have to suffer huge losses domestically through Nuclear before something changes.
It is already a series of miracles that no nuclear power plant in the US has had an uncontainable accident, though there are hundreds of recorded breaches of safety and toxicity that have gone un-announced, and the structural and procedural problems with our nuclear plants are immense. We can listen all we wish to even well-thought individuals (like Stewart Brand) who feel we must have nukes in the energy production mix. Fine. Have those who want this move their families in next door to the nukes. Put all the K street lobbyists and governement tools of industry right next to the 5 most likely plants to fail and force them to live there if they continue to support this insanity. Take away all health care and insurance covering radiological events as well. Then see how "foolproof" they all think this is. Every single person who does not understand the problem here has a poor grasp of the human toll this is taking and lacks critical insight into the immense negativity this forces on generations upon generations. To say that the country that converted its industrial base from peace to war in less than a year in WWII can't find enough green energy to replace that 25% nuclear is the most inane thing I have ever heard.
We have more to fear from our own complacency and lack of self-interest than we do from any terrorist organization outside the country, and those who continue to impose this myth of safe nuclear can, and perhaps should be, labeled as terrorists sooner rather than later.
#9
novasystems: "and those who continue to impose this myth of safe nuclear can, and perhaps should be, labeled as terrorists sooner rather than later."
Well, then you better start calling George Monbiot a terrorist:
.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/21/pro-nuclear-japan-fukushima
"You will not be surprised to hear that the events in Japan have changed my view of nuclear power. You will be surprised to hear how they have changed it. As a result of the disaster at Fukushima, I am no longer nuclear-neutral. I now support the technology.
A crappy old plant with inadequate safety features was hit by a monster earthquake and a vast tsunami. The electricity supply failed, knocking out the cooling system. The reactors began to explode and melt down. The disaster exposed a familiar legacy of poor design and corner-cutting. Yet, as far as we know, no one has yet received a lethal dose of radiation.
Some greens have wildly exaggerated the dangers of radioactive pollution. For a clearer view, look at the graphic published by xkcd.com. It shows that the average total dose from the Three Mile Island disaster for someone living within 10 miles of the plant was one 625th of the maximum yearly amount permitted for US radiation workers. This, in turn, is half of the lowest one-year dose clearly linked to an increased cancer risk, which, in its turn, is one 80th of an invariably fatal exposure. I'm not proposing complacency here. I am proposing perspective."
And Dr. Jerry Pournelle checks in:
http://www.jerrypournelle.com/view/2011/Q1/view665.html#Saturday
“If the consequences of the tsunami include ending nuclear power world wide, the cost in blood and treasure of the earthquake and tsunami may literally be very high indeed. Energy is the main ingredient of out modern economy, and without plentiful supplies economic progress comes to an end or even reverses. Oil becomes more vital. So does coal. If AGW has any truth to it, there’s that, too.”
In other words, if this is allowed to stop nuclear power, we will become even more dependent on oil and there will be more wars over energy than you can imagine.
Think long and hard before going down that road. If you want to see what happens if that road is taken, contemplate my sig:
Atlas Shrugged was supposed to be a warning, NOT a news paper!
#10
I was at a local cheese maker yesterday (VerdeFarms.net - site will be there soon!) and the amount of electricity required is truly amazing. From the pump for the well to water the grass the sheep graze on, to the milking machinery, to the curd making tank and then the pasteurization for the cooked milk cheeses. Finally, the large aging rooms have to be carefully conditioned. If our power costs go up, even operations like this will have to close. Now, imagine what happens to the chip-making fabs, factories of all types and even hospitals.
The actual result of them doing so is summed up quit succinctly here: http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/05/germanys_impending_energy_su...
"There is simply not enough (nor will there ever be) wind, solar, or other so-called renewable sources to substitute for nuclear and coal. Therefore as Germany is hell-bent on destroying its economy and manufacturing base, which make it the foremost economy in Europe, China and the United States, if it gets its economy on track by removing a myriad of taxes and regulations, will benefit enormously as a major competitor decides to commit suicide."
If they really do this, we'll get to see Wyatt's torch ever more clearly. Hence my sig:
Atlas Shrugged was supposed to be a warning, NOT a newspaper!
#11
Yes, especially states like "Misery." They don't respect the dying or the dead. My grandmother lived the last two years of her life and died of cancer in Marionville on May 19 (three days before the tornado) and the funeral home people stood there and gawked at her body like it was a commodity while we were trying to have a peaceful family moment with her. They didn't allow a family viewing of her cremation as it was in a "factory" somewhere near Joplin. There are no laws protecting respect for the deceased or their families. The tornado was not deserved by its victims but was certainly deserved by the MO state government and should be a wake-up call to the country about that horrible, Confederate state which is still trying to decide what side of the civil war they're on! Thank God I don't live there, and I will never return to MO again.
#12
Gerald....... OY! I come here sometimes to see how how very much of a thread he has monoploized. I seldom read his stuff 'cause I don't particularily like quackers. And yes, that photo isn't cute anymore, if it ever was. Maybe it tells us something about Gerald level of maturity
As for the nuclear, I see my country going more insane with every passing day.
I just saw a NYT article telling us the Mr Obama has appointed some dude :
Obama Nominates Bryson for Commerce Secretary
To get the "business opinion" in his cabinet
As if he hasn't completely surrounded himself already with banksters and corporate types after 2010
(Thsi thing neds a spel chacker!)
#13
@j.sea & Kassandra Troy, that is the only profile I have to share. As far as monopoly of a blog I have and read several sources to share information. If you have more information to share, please share it. I do not claim to be more or less mature than any of the people who comment on Thom's blog. I do know that the killing of God's children is wrong. As my mentor said to me about 35+ years ago, "War creates more problems than it resolves problems but we as a people are too immature to know and understand that war creates more problems and not less problems." I DO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THAT WAR RESOLVES NOTHING IN TERMS OF A POSITIVE NATURE. War is a breakdown in diplomacy. We have too many diplomats who believe in Bush's words, "my way or the highway." I love John Perkins book, "Economics of a Hit Man." It probably does a good job of summarizing our foreign policy.
#14
READ and LEARN!!!!!
A militarized economy cannot balance the budget!!!!!
#15
Yes ban nukes-the Chalk River reactor in Ontario has leaked many times and the Darlington reactor has had tens of billions in cost overruns.There are 200 types of nuclear isotopes with their own deletirious effects on the body in nuclear fuel.Mind you there are a lot of NIMBYs in Ontario who don't want wind turbines, yet Toronto has one of the world's worst air qualities from 2.5 million cars, and all the coal and gas fired power plants.This big province that is shaped like a fish with 250,000 lakes 1/3 of which have been severely acidified.The smog in Toronto is very visible and yet these NIMBYs are deeply concerned with wind turbines ruining their views?Carbon monoxide knows no bounds and is taking years off our lives.
#16
Here are words from John Perkins' above article. They are the last three paragraphs of his article.
We must all ask ourselves:
How can a nation that prides itself on government “of, for, and by the people,” justify hiding these black budget allocations from taxpayer scrutiny? How can a nation continue to prosper by ignoring its own long-term demise at the hands of a militarized economy?
If we truly want a real democracy to survive for generations to come, then we must demand extensive military reductions. We must demand a peaceful and sustainable path for our country and for the world at large. We must bring our soldiers home. We must protect ourselves from the tsunami that is building on Wall Street and in the halls of Washington DC.
#17
CRAZY ALERT !
WASHINGTON — Government and airline officials say a United Airlines plane with 144 people aboard returned to Washington-Dulles International Airport for an emergency landing escorted by two F-16 fighter jets after a fight broke out between passengers.
Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown says Flight 990 bound for Accra, Ghana, returned to Dulles in Chantilly, Va., just after midnight Sunday after a fistfight in the cabin.
Government officials confirmed that fighter jets were scrambled from Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland.
United spokesman Mike Trevino said Tuesday that the Boeing 767 dumped fuel as a safety precaution to lighten its weight on landing.
The Washington Post, which first reported the incident, reported that the fight began not long after takeoff when a passenger lowered his seat and a passenger behind him objected.
#18
@yankeerebel64,
The Washington Post, which first reported the incident, reported that the fight began not long after takeoff when a passenger lowered his seat and a passenger behind him objected.
Many passengers are rude and selfish. That is the American way!!!
#19
It's the military stupid!!!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/It-s-the-Military-Stupid-by-Dave-Lindorff-110529-609.html
#20
Americans must GET READY for more wars. In the American psyche wars are glorious experiences.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Get-Ready-for-Digital-Fals-by-Rob-Kall-110531-128.html
#21
American governance is a total disaster.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Seven-defects-of-American-by-Harold-Hellickson-110529-774.html
Nothing separates Conservatives from Liberals more than their values related to social justice, a term coined in 1840 by a Jesuit Priest who related it to the teachings of Saint Thomas Aquinas. Economics cannot be separated from politics. Neither can economics be separated from social justice, unless you happen to be an economist. There is a way to move from power and greed to compassion and the common good but you will never hear a politician or an economist speak of it.
#22
One of Michigan's gems is dying. Sad, very sad!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110527/ap_on_re_us/us_struggling_peninsulaIs
Is one of Michigan's gems revealing to you and me America's future???
#23
Nuclear power is no longer economical. The Rocky Mountain Institute has shown that solar and wind are cheaper and less dangerous. The liquid fluoride reactor may be more practical, but the US doesn't seem to be interested in developing it, even though it was invented at Oak Ridge.
#24
The political economist Henry George spoke of social justice. In fact, besides his great work "Progress and Poverty", George published Justice the Object, Taxation the Means. United Committee for the Taxation of Land Values.
If you want to see how an economist can care about Justice, read Henrgy George. ... and, then, maybe weep because very few people today even know about Henry George since the American Economic Association removed him from our schools (see, The Corruption of Economics by Mason Gaffney.)
Here is what one bright person had to say about Henry George:
“Men like Henry George are rare unfortunately. One cannot imagine a more beautiful combination of intellectual keenness, artistic form, and fervent love of justice.”
~Albert Einstein
#25
Louise, If America does reduce nuclear energy, it won't because Germany is reducing nuclear energy. We must find a way to reveal to the bottom liners that nuclear energy is not economical and profitable. Special interest groups will always win out in our country. America is embedded with a killing mentality. Our country is in hot pursuit to bring our planet's population to a sustainable level of 500 million people. We must exterminate 6.5 billion human beings!!! That is why health care, Medicare, and social security will become history. That is also why food and energy costs will only be affordable for the wealthy people.
I want to say that America is more of a caste system similarly to India. Once you are rich, you will always be rich. Our politicans and the rich will make it so!!!
#26
Thom- We are The New Old World.
#27
The Anti-Christ is FOR SALE!!!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/For-Sale-The-Desperate-St-by-Rania-Khalek-110530-675.html
Once this money is pissed away through incompetence, where will Chicago find the money for the parking meters that generate revenue for the city. It is over for our evil, vile, and wicked country. In 2008, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley auctioned off the city's 36,000 parking meters to a Morgan-Stanley lead partnership, for a lump sum of $1.15 billion.
We are now a third world country. Dr. Roberts prediction comes true.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/A-Nobel-Economist-Says-Glo-by-paul-craig-roberts-110531-621.html
As the knife goes deeper into the belly of the beast, our country is damned more each day.
#28
Thom, THE UNITED STATES OF MORTAL SIN DOES NOT HAVE A FUTURE!!!!! Her only future is to wallow in the abyss of a natural hell that has come to fruition through American corporations, the American rich, greed and selfishness, and our caste system where the poor and working Americans are excluded from God's gifts. These are the gifts for only the evil and sinful American politicians and the American rich.
#29
The Rocky Mountain Institute is far from a credible source. I assisted Professor Kersting of NMSU some time ago in preparing testimony against them to the Public Utility Commission in New Mexico. After the professor's presentation, the commission dismissed all claims by the Rocky Mountain Institute due to the fraud they presented and approved the powerline that PNM had requested permission to build. As for the cost of nuclear power:
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/04/energy_reality_comes_to_german.html
However, the leftist theoreticians will have difficulty explaining this recent development in the real world, where the rest of us live and work:
Germany’s plan to accelerate its exit from nuclear power generation may raise electricity prices by as much as 30 percent.
If nuclear power isn’t economically viable, shouldn’t energy costs fall when it is eliminated? If government subsidies cover the true cost of nuclear power, why won’t the German taxpayers enjoy a windfall of cost savings when that spending is discontinued? Despite all the leftist magical thinking, reality shows that nuclear power actually costs much less than its “green” alternatives.
#30
WE NEED TO CHANGE OUR HEARTS!!!!!
#31
Three cheers for Italy and Germany.... their governments, while FAR from perfect, actually react to public pressure, we, on the other hand, live under a dictatorship that maintains a fiction of democracy. The people of the USA are gutless, interested only in gaining another fifty pounds of gut burger, following the tweets of some silly show business moron, and being told what to do by the Reverend Billy Bob who has NO education, who in fact has no understanding of what Christ called the New Covenant, and supports Israel right or wrong 'cause GAWD says to.
It's over boys and girls, get ready for being "disappeared" in the middle of the night for being a TERRORIST because you believe in free elections, and never forget that what you write here is being added to your dossier every day, not because of Tom, but because Big Brother IS listening.
Walter Price III
#32
Gerald, you are a MORON.
#33
Isn't Germany's recent politically correct declaration of their intention to adandon all of their domestic nuclear power generation capacity by 2022 (based on a response to the recent nuclear disaster in Japan) somewhat like a 1970's era car being envolved in a accident where serious injuries occured solely because the somewhat antiquated vehicle lacked advanced safety features (like air bags and/or ABS braking)? In justifying her declaration of intent, Chancellor Merkel explained that if technically advanced Japan can't safely operate nuclear power plants, then what chance do the rest of us have. However, The Wall Street Journal reported that in those facilities in Japan (constructed in the 1970's) were so poorly designed that a lead engineer at GE resigned in protest. And since then, with all of Japan's investments in infrastructure to offset economic stagnation, was it argueably negligent of them to overlook making obvious safety upgrades at those vulnerable facilities?
FOOTNOTE: ...Fukushima-Daiichi plant is equipped with a GE boiling water reactor with a so-called Mark 1 containment system. There have been concerns about that particular design for years, with critics saying it isn't as robust as later models. -WSJ (remixed)
#34
YES Ditch nuclear power over time Invest in clean energy Vote the untra greedy power mad GOP out ASAP They have lost all reason- all common sense and decency & morals.
#35
No Ending nuclear power just makes sense.
#36
Re: Dumping nuclear power. Even if nuclear power was made 100% safe, it is still not a viable option for creating efficient power. The predictions of how the clean water supply is a limited resource called the oil of the future, is running out. You have to look at the amount of water that is needed to make power using nuclear methods. As a business proposition it is a losing one as well. And fiscally responsible people know that the gov't help costs too much. If it's not obvious to you or anyone else that renewable is the future then your not really paying attention.
#37
Dear Thom, I listen to your show daily and while you are very knowledgeable I often wonder why you are unaware of the Baha'i Faith. Check it out and see what it's founder says (1865) about nuclear power, war, and equality of people, etc.
#38
Lets see how much energy Germany eventually purchases from France. Reneables in Germany is only 16.1% of total.
#39
Outlaw nuclear & coal immediately, with large tax incentives for renewable energy sources. From the above responses, I see that Americans are still being fooled by the "nukular" and coal industrial complex. There is no "safe" nukular plant, it's an oxymoron. I remember an old computer game called "SCRAM" where the purpose was to generate power, then execute a controlled shutdown. Almost always the game ended in a "china syndrome" meltdown. But nothing will be done until we face an unprecedented nuclear disaster with tens of thousands of casualties - and hope we don't have Republicans in power then to protect their accomplices in mass murder.
#40
Consider this:
Note the source:
Robert Steinhaus - Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (Retired)
http://timeforchange.org/advantages-cost-electricity-new-nuclear-power-s...
Note the message:
"We should Change the Nuclear Fuel Cycle to Thorium"
Note the reasons:
"Mature existing nuclear technology exists that can produce clean nuclear power without generating any long term toxic nuclear waste requiring sequestration in the Yucca Mountain long term geological repository.
Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors (LFTR) produce electrical power more cheaply than coal or conventional Light Water Reactors. Coal fired power plants, for all of their green house gas climate control problems, currently produce electricity at the lowest cost per watt. A careful cost study of the costs of electricity from the major contending power generating technologies has been made by one of the finest nuclear engineers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Dr. Ralph Moir. Dr. Moir’s analysis was published as a journal article “Cost of electricity from Molten Salt Reactors "
(MSR)”in Nuclear Technology which can be downloaded online through the following link:
http://www.geocities.com/rmoir2003/coe_10_2_2001.pdf
In this study Dr. Moir shows that the cost of electricity from LFTR reactors versus LWR and Coal is
Molten Salt Reactor - 3.8 ¢/kWh
Light Water Reactor - 4.1¢/kWh
Coal Fired Power Plant - 4.2 ¢/kWh
By Dr. Moir’s analysis LFTR Molten Salt Reactors produce electricity at 90.5% the cost of Coal Fired Power Plants which are the current reigning champion of low cost power generation. All other commercial costs of power generation including wind power and solar thermal power generation are significantly more costly (estimates for the cost of electricity from solar thermal technology from an independant source, Earth Power Institute, sugest a 2008 figure of 13-17 ¢/kWh) .
A very nice Google Tech-Talk presentation on LFTR Thorium Reactor Technology delivered by Dr. Joe Bonometti can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHs2Ugxo7-8
LFTR Thorium reactors can produce 1 part in 10,000 the amount of toxic nuclear waste as conventional current one pass through LWRs. This small amount of toxic waste can be reduced to truely NO long term nuclear waste when the LFTR reactor is teamed with a Liquid Chloride Thorium Fast Reactor (LCFR). One LCFR can process its own waste and the waste of 50 LFTR worker power generation reactors thereby producing NO long term toxic nuclear waste requiring storage in Yucca Mountain. This combination of reactors would produce only fission products 83% of which would decay to the level of natural radioactive background within 10 years. All of the remaining 17% of fission products would decay to natural background in 300 years. A reference describing theLiquid Chloride Thorium Fast Reactor follows:"
Taube, M., “A Molten Salt Fast Thermal Reactor System with no Waste” Eidg . Institut fur Reaktorforschung Wurenlingen Schweiz
http://moltensalt.org/references/static/downloads/www.energyfromthorium....
Need more?
"Official reports suggest that around 10,000 people may have died from cancer as a consequence of the world’s gravest nuclear disaster in Chernobyl in 1986. But that’s a relatively small number compared with the thousands of deaths caused by coal-mining and its associated pollution. Although contaminants released by both technologies have caused death, coal-mining rarely provokes the kind of hysteria that nuclear energy does."
Frank Furedi, Spiked-Online.com, "Nuclear vs climate change: the clash of the alarmists"
And...
"George Monbiot, a Green fundamentalist if ever there was one, has been persuaded to drop his opposition to nuclear power by the facts of the case. This is his logic: if an ageing nuclear plant, incompetently managed and with obsolete safeguards, is hit by one of the worst earthquakes in recent history, yet hardly anybody is killed, then we must conclude that nuclear power has a lot to be said for it."
(Daniel Johnson: Why Germany said no to nuclear power - The Daily Telegraph, 31 May 2011)
Now try to clear your head with a few down-to-earth facts from comments in the Economist by Hubert J. Farnsworth: http://www.economist.com/node/18441163/comments?page=2
Starting with:
"The iodine-131 that has gotten so much press has a half life of 8 days and is only produced during normal operation of the reactor, not in its SCRAM'd shutdown state. All of the reactors at Fukushima correctly SCRAM'd when the earthquake struck. That was two weeks ago, and in another 2-3 weeks there will be nearly zero iodine-131 remaining of what little was released when steam was vented from the reactor. The levels reported in food and water are far too low to have any health effect unless you consumed them for a year, but since no new iodine-131 is being produced at the reactor or introduced into the environment, that is impossible.
So this presents zero risk to anyone, anywhere." (What was that? Zero?)
And concluding with:
"Such newly minted objective readers might also be surprised if they look at how many radioactive particulates are shoved into the atmosphere every year by fossil fuel plants."
Fear is easy- (Fox news). Reality is often hard to sell.
But we may be forced to reconsider Thorium in the next two years, or sooner:
In 1993, the United States and Russia launched a program known as "HEU-LEU." This Russian program accounts for 10% of our total electricity -- more than current solar, wind and hydro COMBINED. This fuel powers one out of every 10 homes, businesses, schools and hospitals in America. 31 million people rely on electricity generated by defunct Russian missiles. Combine a looming shortage of Uranium with the fact that producing power from Thorium CONSUMES those troublesome waste stockpiles everybody's worried about and you have brand new reasons for moving from Uranium to Thorium. It could take 2 years to construct Thorium power plants in contrast to the 10 required for a "standard" Uranium-based power plant. Combine that with the fact that Thorium nuclear plants do not need massive amounts of water, can't melt down because liquid already is "melted" (reducing insurance costs or the need for subsidies) and is many times more efficient.
Facts, not fear. Reality, not dreams.
Nice try with the caller on Friday, but both of you were working with half the facts. Try talking to someone who does have the facts: Call John Kutsch, Executive Director, Thorium Energy Alliance - Phone: 312-303-5019
Just don't put him on 45 seconds before the end of a segment.
#41
The joke about Germany is that by shutting down their own power plants they will be forced to import electricity from the countries surrounding Germany... which is mostly generated by nuclear power.
#42
DailyMail.UK Article: The world's first solar power station that generates electricity at NIGHT
June 3rd, 2011
This is awesome. Here's another step to getting off of nuclear, coal and petroleum. This solar power center in Spain is expected to produce 110GWh/year, or enough to power 25,000 homes in the Andalucia region at a cost of 260 million pounds, (a little over $400 million US dollars).
According to the Daily Mail,
"The Gemasolar Power Plant near Seville in southern Spain consists of an incredible 2,650 panels spread across 185 hectares of rural land. The mirrors - known as heliostats - focus 95% of the sun's radiation onto a giant receiver at the centre of the plant.
Currently, SENER is the only in the world that has developed and built a commercial plant with central tower molten salt receiver technology that has already started operation.
Enrique Sendagorta, the chairman of Torresol Energy, added: 'The standardization of this new technology will mean a real reduction in the investment costs for solar plants. The commercial operation of this plant will lead the way for other central tower plants with molten salt receiver technology, an efficient system that improves the dispatchability of electric power from renewable sources.'"
Wait until you get a look at the plant. It looks like it's arranged into a Fibonacci spiral pattern or the golden ratio, which can also be seen in nature, like in sunflowers, pinecones and other natural forms. Let's see where this technology goes. I'm sure the nuclear, coal and petroleum industries in the U.S. will lobby against technology of this kind as they have already done with solar and wind.
#43
BLOOMBERG NEWS: Germany’s shift to renewable energy from nuclear power may focus on offshore wind parks over land- based turbines as the government seeks to limit the cost of aid on consumers and get utilities to build larger facilities. Offshore wind park owners will see their guaranteed above- market rates decrease starting in 2018, three years later than the government had planned, the Environment Ministry said in a draft law published today on its website. Onshore turbine operators will see the aid they receive slide by an additional 1.5 percent in 2012, according to the document. Germany plans to exit nuclear over the course of the next decade after the disaster at reactors in Japan stoked safety concerns and helped lose Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party votes. The government is balancing aid for energy from solar panels and wind turbines with the cost for citizens and industrial users, who will finance the roll-out through power bills. Subsidies for onshore and solar power fed into the grid are currently adjusted at yearly or bi-yearly intervals to reflect the cost of generating electricity with the technology. Germany has 27.2 gigawatts of onshore turbines, according to the BWE German Wind Energy Association. EnBW Energie Baden- Wuerttemberg AG’s 48.3-megawatt Baltic 1, the first commercial offshore wind park, started in May, according to the company. “The changes in the degression are nothing but window dressing and cosmetic to pacify the opposition and state governments,” the BWE said today on its website. “If the law goes through the upper and lower houses of parliament in this form, it will slow onshore wind energy development.” The German government has said utilities could build 20 gigawatts to 25 gigawatts of offshore wind turbines by 2030. In comparison, the country’s 17 nuclear reactors have a combined capacity of 20.7 gigawatts. An Environment Ministry plan to keep a 2 euro cent per kilowatt-hour “sprinter” bonus for utilities with offshore wind parks up and running by 2015 “strengthens” investment security, said Windenergie-Agentur Bremerhaven/Bremen. The group, which represents northern German companies in the wind energy industry, said it also supports the option for turbine operators to receive more aid up front, according to an e-mailed statement today. The Environment Ministry’s draft reiterates a call it made last month for aid to the renewable energy sector not to exceed 3.5 euro-cents a kilowatt-hour in consumer power bills. The government wants to boost renewable energy output to 35 percent in 2020 from 17 percent last year. The draft, and nine other energy bills approved by Cabinet today, will go to the lower house of parliament for a first reading on June 9. The upper house, or Bundesrat, will vote on the energy plans on July 8, the last day it meets before the summer recess. June 6, 2011
#44
Nuclear power has no rational future! Why?
Let me count the ways...
1. Check your home owners insurance policy and READ the "Nuclear Exclusion Clause". Let's hear it for Government crutches...and lack of responsibility by the "ultra-safe" nuclear industry.
2. Uranium is not a limitless resource. It is very disperse in the Earth's crust. Concentration of this resource into fuel pellets for fuel rods is extremely costly. Recycling spent fuel is usually put forward as the solution for this problem. This means another very costly and dangerous industry. The old formulation of the "Fast Breeder Reactor" system seems to have lost credibility.
3. Nuclear waste remains an unsoloved problem despite claims for safe storage in spent fuel pools, and other unproven alternatives.
4. Why aren't the financial institutions unwilling to back this industry? Too much risk, too little projected return, too expensive to build and operate.
5. Do we really want to add to energy use?
I'm sure others can add to this beginners list.
#45
THE WASHINGTON POST : Facing widespread criticism for its handling of the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, the Japanese government on Tuesday announced its intention to create an independent nuclear agency, breaking up the ministry that both promotes and regulates atomic energy.
The decision to separate the regulator (the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, or NISA) from the promoter (the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, or METI) came as part of a government report that calls for several major overhauls in the way Japan operates its nuclear plants and provides information about the ongoing crisis. Previously, NISA was a subdivision of METI , an arrangement that critics say contributed to lax oversight of nuclear safety in Japan.
The report, to be submitted this month to the International Atomic Energy Agency, also serves as a reminder of the persisting challenges at the disaster-stricken facility. In it, Japan cites the “possibility” that melted fuel has penetrated the reactor pressure vessels in units 1, 2 and 3 and dropped onto the floors of the primary containment vessel. That acknowledgment came a day after the government doubled its estimate of the radiation released so far during the crisis.
The report is at once a pointed self-critique and a pledge to learn from mistakes. Many of its admissions are familiar, echoing assessments by international agencies and outside experts. They include acknowledgments that Fukushima Daiichi was unprepared for a tsunami and that the government was too slow to provide information on radiation to people in the disaster zone.
#46
PBS News Hour (6/7/11) Transcript (Edited for brevity)
JUDY WOODRUFF: We learn more now on the latest discoveries at Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant from James Acton. He's a physicist in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
...what about what the government of Japan, what the Tokyo Electric Power facility should be doing now to make sure that safety is at its maximum around these plants?
JAMES ACTON: This accident was a failure of regulation, rather than a failure of operation. This plant was simply not designed to withstand the size of the earthquake, and particularly the size of the tsunami that hit it.
So, I think the key question this asks about, you know, the future safety of this particular plant, of nuclear plants in Japan, indeed, around the world, is whether the size of hazards that might befall them has been correctly predicted.
JUDY WOODRUFF: So, for you, again, what are the main questions that you have that are -- remain unanswered?
JAMES ACTON: I think the first question relates to, you know, this issue of regulation.
Were the -- was the Japanese government systemically failing to predict the size of hazards at reactors correctly? I think there's questions about emergency preparedness. Was -- emergency management is incredibly difficult at the best of times, but did the Japanese government do basically a good job under extraordinarily difficult circumstances, or were there serious errors that can and should have been avoided?
Was information deliberately withheld, or was knowingly incorrect information put forward? I think those are the key questions for me at this stage.
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