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Also let's not forget the problem of burnt fuel storage. Burned nuclear fuel will stay radioactive for tens of thousands of years. Unless we plan to offload the

Also let's not forget the problem of burnt fuel storage. Burned nuclear fuel will stay radioactive for tens of thousands of years. Unless we plan to offload the cost of storage to future generations - which we actually do now - nuclear power is horribly unprofitable.

jimmaswell 6y ago
As far as I've heard, newer designs can reuse this spent fuel but there's no political will to go forward with it for some reason.
- pfdietz 6y ago
  It's not economical.
vbezhenar 6y ago
Bury it into 1-kilometer shaft and forget about it?
titzer 6y ago
Reprocessing is a thing. https://www.heritage.org/environment/commentary/recycling-nuclear-fuel-the-french-do-it-why-cant-oui https://www.heritage.org/environment/commentary/recycling-nu...
ende 6y ago
Storage is overblown. Newer techniques have created additional uses for waste, and storage space really isn’t much of an issue.
arrosenberg 6y ago
It's far less of a problem than advertised. Nuclear fuel contains far more energy per kg of fuel than carbon-based, so the total stock of nuclear waste in the US could fit in a two-story warehouse the size of a football field. It doesn't make sense to store it unless we discover fusion, since at some point we will come to our senses and use that "waste" as fuel for newer reactors. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-nuclear-fuel https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-...
Manfredo_1 6y ago
The total amount of nuclear waste from civilian power generation in the US occupies a volume the footprint of a football field and less than 10 meters high [1]. Not yearly waste, total waste dating back all the way to the 1960s. What you do is you bury it in bedrock where there's no groundwater. The only real risk of nuclear waste is groundwater contamination. 1. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-nuclear-fuel https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-...
theshrike79 6y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onkalo_spent_nuclear_fuel_repository https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onkalo_spent_nuclear_fuel_repo... It can be stored safely, it's not even that difficult nor costly. And for a fun side-project, check out what they make the blades of wind genreators out of. The 100 meter long ones they need to replace every 5-10 years because of mechanical wear and tear. Answer: They're 100% unrecycleable carbon fiber or plastic fiber. The current "recycling process" is "dig a big-ass hole and dump them in there".

jimmaswell 6y ago

As far as I've heard, newer designs can reuse this spent fuel but there's no political will to go forward with it for some reason.

pfdietz 6y ago
It's not economical.

vbezhenar 6y ago

Bury it into 1-kilometer shaft and forget about it?

titzer 6y ago

Reprocessing is a thing. https://www.heritage.org/environment/commentary/recycling-nuclear-fuel-the-french-do-it-why-cant-oui https://www.heritage.org/environment/commentary/recycling-nu...

ende 6y ago

Storage is overblown. Newer techniques have created additional uses for waste, and storage space really isn’t much of an issue.

arrosenberg 6y ago

It's far less of a problem than advertised. Nuclear fuel contains far more energy per kg of fuel than carbon-based, so the total stock of nuclear waste in the US could fit in a two-story warehouse the size of a football field. It doesn't make sense to store it unless we discover fusion, since at some point we will come to our senses and use that "waste" as fuel for newer reactors. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-nuclear-fuel https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-...

Manfredo_1 6y ago

The total amount of nuclear waste from civilian power generation in the US occupies a volume the footprint of a football field and less than 10 meters high [1]. Not yearly waste, total waste dating back all the way to the 1960s. What you do is you bury it in bedrock where there's no groundwater. The only real risk of nuclear waste is groundwater contamination. 1. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-nuclear-fuel https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-spent-...

theshrike79 6y ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onkalo_spent_nuclear_fuel_repository https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onkalo_spent_nuclear_fuel_repo... It can be stored safely, it's not even that difficult nor costly. And for a fun side-project, check out what they make the blades of wind genreators out of. The 100 meter long ones they need to replace every 5-10 years because of mechanical wear and tear. Answer: They're 100% unrecycleable carbon fiber or plastic fiber. The current "recycling process" is "dig a big-ass hole and dump them in there".