2 ms·

the price of protecting many small nuclear reactors against say aeroplanes will rise per watt. I certainly agree with death per TWh calculations being naive, b

the price of protecting many small nuclear reactors against say aeroplanes will rise per watt. I certainly agree with death per TWh calculations being naive, but for a different reason: ethics trumps metrics. If I agree to climb a roof and maintain some solar panels in exchange for money, I am risking my own life and limb. A child 100 years from now will not fall off in my place. If you agree to work in a nuclear reactor today, in theory a child in the future could get cancer from a mishap today. Put differently: even if eating 20 grams of human babies cured AIDS, and hence many lives could be saved in exchange for one, does not justify the trade. We expect informed consent of all parties involved.

nobodyandproud 6y ago
How do you quantify the life and healthcost of the mining, “recycling”, and disposal of the PV and the battery? PV and batteries are expected to last only three decades or a decade+, respectively. Unlike a centralized power source, decentralized power has all of the downsides that we have today with consumer garbage. Disposal is left to the consumer, which means it’s just going into landfills. Ethics is a strawman.
- DoctorOetker 6y ago
  As long as the mining activity was by informed consent, i.e. no slavery explicit nor implicit, any life and healthcost of mining, recycling and disposal is incurred with informed consent...
  - nobodyandproud 6y ago
    The effects of mining and disposal don’t disappear after one generation, and solar and wind is not a solution that works for all climates and regions. The multi-generational ethical problems you’ve constructed apply to oil; gas; solar; windmills; nuclear. To put it another way: There is no free lunch, but some sources like gas and oil must be reduced. Of that there is no doubt. The unethical choice is to outright disregard other proven solutions because of unfounded fear and doubt, and leave an irreversible disaster for the next generation.
    - DoctorOetker 6y ago
      sorting isotopes takes a lot more energy than sorting chemicals

nobodyandproud 6y ago

How do you quantify the life and healthcost of the mining, “recycling”, and disposal of the PV and the battery? PV and batteries are expected to last only three decades or a decade+, respectively. Unlike a centralized power source, decentralized power has all of the downsides that we have today with consumer garbage. Disposal is left to the consumer, which means it’s just going into landfills. Ethics is a strawman.

DoctorOetker 6y ago
As long as the mining activity was by informed consent, i.e. no slavery explicit nor implicit, any life and healthcost of mining, recycling and disposal is incurred with informed consent...
- nobodyandproud 6y ago
  The effects of mining and disposal don’t disappear after one generation, and solar and wind is not a solution that works for all climates and regions. The multi-generational ethical problems you’ve constructed apply to oil; gas; solar; windmills; nuclear. To put it another way: There is no free lunch, but some sources like gas and oil must be reduced. Of that there is no doubt. The unethical choice is to outright disregard other proven solutions because of unfounded fear and doubt, and leave an irreversible disaster for the next generation.
  - DoctorOetker 6y ago
    sorting isotopes takes a lot more energy than sorting chemicals