5 ms·
> Nuclear waste is in general mostly a solved problem. A bunch of barrels less or more over the lifecycle of the plant in the storage site does not move a needl
by nerdponx 4y ago
> Nuclear waste is in general mostly a solved problem. A bunch of barrels less or more over the lifecycle of the plant in the storage site does not move a needle much, economically or otherwise.
Storage of nuclear waste was one of several issues that led residents around the Indian Point nuclear plant to push hard for its shutdown, at which they eventually succeeded.
Other issues included ecological harm to the adjacent Hudson River due to discharge of unnaturally warm water, and (probably the biggest one) the risk of widespread death and injury in the event of an accident or terrorist attack.
Indian Point is in relatively densely populated area with relatively low-capacity highways, and there was a pervasive sense that the official evacuation plans would be insufficient in case of a disaster.
If the plan here is to make more, smaller, cheaper nuclear plants in or near more cities and towns, this means you are going to have even more towns putting up the same local resistance on those same issues. Advocates of nuclear will need to have answers.
- marmetio 4y ago> Advocates of nuclear will need to have answers. Not really. Nobody ever wants power generation in their backyard. Doesn't matter if it's dangerous nuclear or polluting fossil fuel or eye-sore wind. The answer is always one of the same two options: do it anyway, or put it in someone else's backyard.
- nerdponx 4y agoThis is nihilistic and disrespectful of the actual humans involved. Resistance is a matter of proportion and intensity. A few assholes will complain about wind. A lot of people remember Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, and wouldn't care about an eyesore wind farm but would worry about the effects of an accident at a nuclear plant. You are basically saying that NIMBYs exist and therefore nobody's complaints about nuclear power are valid. Good luck with that attitude.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- marmetio 4y agoThat's not what I said. I even called nuclear dangerous, so how did you conclude that I invalidated concerns besides NIMBYism? Every option has downsides. Every proposal faces opposition. Every project is decided individually. The nuclear advocates don't need a special extra requirement to convince everyone in the world to choose nuclear. They're going to go through the same process as everyone else every time. I said something neutral about nuclear and you invented a personal attack on yourself and reprimanded me for it. Good luck with that attitude, I guess?
- nerdponx 4y ago> Not really. Nobody ever wants power generation in their backyard. Doesn't matter if it's dangerous nuclear or polluting fossil fuel or eye-sore wind. The answer is always one of the same two options: do it anyway, or put it in someone else's backyard. This is what I responded to. It sounds pretty absolute to me.
- marmetio 4y ago> dangerous nuclear That's the same part where I validated other concerns. Wtf is wrong with you
- fragmede 4y agoI'd love a small reactor in my backyard. A nice little 10 kilowatt system would be lovely. As it stands, solar on the roof and a backup battery is the dream, but if it were a self-maintaining nuclear system with a battery to smooth things out, that would be super cool!
- marmetio 4y agoIf you upgrade to 20 and sell me the excess 10 for slightly less than utility rates, I'll support it
- throw0101c 4y ago> Storage of nuclear waste was one of several issues that led residents around the Indian Point nuclear plant to push hard for its shutdown, at which they eventually succeeded. Solar power plants produce zero waste, and those are opposed: * https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/30/its-got-nasty-the-battle-to-build-the-uss-biggest-solar-power-farm https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/30/its-got-... * https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-solar-expansion-stalled-by-rural-land-use-protests-2022-04-07/ https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-solar-expansion-stalled-... Wind farms create no waste, and are also opposed: * https://www.npr.org/2022/03/28/1086790531/renewable-energy-projects-wind-energy-solar-energy-climate-change-misinformation https://www.npr.org/2022/03/28/1086790531/renewable-energy-p... Seems like people are just opposed to building anything around them, waste or not.
- nerdponx 4y agoWhen is the last time a wind farm was the a target of a 30-year shutdown campaign, that succeeded?