3 ms·

This analysis ignores the death potentiality which is the thing that strikes fear in people with nuclear. Even if the given numbers are true, (note that the off

This analysis ignores the death potentiality which is the thing that strikes fear in people with nuclear. Even if the given numbers are true, (note that the official deaths from Chernobyl are 31 but the upper estimates are 93,000 - according to HBO), solar has the death potentiality for a few more people to fall off a roof, a battery to explode etc. These would be single digit fatalities if at all fatal. The death potentiality of a Chernobyl/ Fukishima etc could reach the hundreds of thousands or more. The likelihood of this is probably very low, but non-zero. The likelihood of solar or wind having a catastrophic fatality event (that affected uninvolved civilians) is zero. Given this, if all other things are equal, renewables are the favourable choice.

karlalexpauls 7y ago
Remember that at Fukushima's twin plants 9 reactors were vulnerable and only 3 were lost. Then the entire world put their nuclear energy under the microscope. South Korea discovered a parts testing scam. The US demanded more tests for the AP1000 design and eventually bankrupted Toshiba (thanks Jaczko). The US industry also designed a process for responding to beyond design basis accidents: FLEX response. With renewables all things are not equal because the materials cost is dozens of times that of nuclear (IEA, Material Efficiency in Clean Energy Transitions) and the true cost to decarbonize is many times the naive capacity of wind and solar alone (Caldiera 2018, Geophysical constraints on the reliability of solar and wind power in the United States).
- hndamien 7y ago
  Of course all other things are not equal. Eg. Political capital required for deployment is not equal. Economics of scale is not equal. Cost per MW is not equal. Distribution of power is not equal. The things you have said are not equal. I think you missed the point of the "if".

karlalexpauls 7y ago

Remember that at Fukushima's twin plants 9 reactors were vulnerable and only 3 were lost. Then the entire world put their nuclear energy under the microscope. South Korea discovered a parts testing scam. The US demanded more tests for the AP1000 design and eventually bankrupted Toshiba (thanks Jaczko). The US industry also designed a process for responding to beyond design basis accidents: FLEX response. With renewables all things are not equal because the materials cost is dozens of times that of nuclear (IEA, Material Efficiency in Clean Energy Transitions) and the true cost to decarbonize is many times the naive capacity of wind and solar alone (Caldiera 2018, Geophysical constraints on the reliability of solar and wind power in the United States).

hndamien 7y ago
Of course all other things are not equal. Eg. Political capital required for deployment is not equal. Economics of scale is not equal. Cost per MW is not equal. Distribution of power is not equal. The things you have said are not equal. I think you missed the point of the "if".