4 ms·

Nuclear waste is really not an issue. You can literally glass it and dump it on the abyssal plain and it'll do much less damage there than the fossil fuels leak

Nuclear waste is really not an issue. You can literally glass it and dump it on the abyssal plain and it'll do much less damage there than the fossil fuels leaked from ships does. (Yes, this is unintuitive. It's also true. The ocean is huge, the abyss not very active and water is great at blocking radiation.)

chinathrow 4y ago
Wow really? Why hasn't noone asked you to guide their waste disposal program the way you think it would work? Have you ever seen what oceans do to glass over time?
- s1artibartfast 4y ago
  There is a big erosion difference between glass dumped at beach with wave action and 10,000 feet down. Parts of the ocean floor are 200 million years old.
  - bayesian_horse 4y ago
    Ah yes, and when scientists from the nuclear power company say "this will never be a problem", the general public is totally on board, right?
    - s1artibartfast 4y ago
      You post is a non-sequitur. I don't care what your imaginary nuclear scientist says or what the general public thinks.
- concordDance 4y ago
  Because it's a complete nonstarter with the public (thanks to all the fiction like the Simpsons, Godzilla, etc) and the attack ads write themselves. Telling the public that they've been horribly mislead by their entertainment requires burning a LOT of money and political capital and isn't really worth it for any given politician. Step 1 would basically be instilling Joe Q Public with an appreciation for quantification and if you can do THAT you've also solved a huge range of problems unrelated to nuclear power at the same time. This is also an _extremely_ difficult step that I'd expect to cost tens to hundreds of billions of dollars in education and propaganda.
bayesian_horse 4y ago
It does sound a lot like a solution Homer Simpson would endorse...
- petre 4y ago
  The Russians actually dumped barrels of nuclear waste in the Kara sea. "17,000 containers and 19 vessels with radioactive waste, as well as 14 nuclear reactors, five of which contain hazardous spent fuel." https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21119774.amp https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21119774.amp

chinathrow 4y ago

Wow really? Why hasn't noone asked you to guide their waste disposal program the way you think it would work? Have you ever seen what oceans do to glass over time?

s1artibartfast 4y ago
There is a big erosion difference between glass dumped at beach with wave action and 10,000 feet down. Parts of the ocean floor are 200 million years old.
- bayesian_horse 4y ago
  Ah yes, and when scientists from the nuclear power company say "this will never be a problem", the general public is totally on board, right?
  - s1artibartfast 4y ago
    You post is a non-sequitur. I don't care what your imaginary nuclear scientist says or what the general public thinks.
concordDance 4y ago
Because it's a complete nonstarter with the public (thanks to all the fiction like the Simpsons, Godzilla, etc) and the attack ads write themselves. Telling the public that they've been horribly mislead by their entertainment requires burning a LOT of money and political capital and isn't really worth it for any given politician. Step 1 would basically be instilling Joe Q Public with an appreciation for quantification and if you can do THAT you've also solved a huge range of problems unrelated to nuclear power at the same time. This is also an _extremely_ difficult step that I'd expect to cost tens to hundreds of billions of dollars in education and propaganda.

bayesian_horse 4y ago

It does sound a lot like a solution Homer Simpson would endorse...

petre 4y ago
The Russians actually dumped barrels of nuclear waste in the Kara sea. "17,000 containers and 19 vessels with radioactive waste, as well as 14 nuclear reactors, five of which contain hazardous spent fuel." https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21119774.amp https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21119774.amp