Friday, March 31, 2006
Nuclear Power
Prime time special
30 March 2006
Is nuclear power set to undergo a renaissance?
Interesting note one of the guys is the son of Ernst Walton the only Irish man to win the noble prise for Physics. Personally apart from the safety issues which are debatable. Nuclear is a no go. On issues of cost and the fact that all though uranium is in safe countries like Australia and the US it is finite, the waste is a major issue and it is only a temporary solution.
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4 comments:
People (and by that I mean the domestic/household sector) use electricity very inefficiently. Part of the problem is historical, in that industry and commerce subsidised the domestic sector very heavily. Over the last few years the situation has been returning to more cost reflective signals, although home users continue to see subsidies. The solution is more efficient domestic use, through higher prices, not nuclear. But then who’s going to grab that thorn!
Thing is potato Nuclear isn't going to last much longer either. It comes from Uranium which there isn't that much left. I think I saw somewhere that we have 50 years left on current useage. It is not the solution only at best a stop gap measure.
The argument against nuclear in Ireland is a little technical; one needs to understand Kirchoff’s laws, have an understanding of our electricity system and an appreciation for our low population density and some other factors such as the fact that we are a closed island system etc.
Quite simply to make nuclear practical you need to go big, one plant supplying about half our current demand, give or take a few MW. The electricity system could not accommodate that at present. A lay person may never understand or appreciate that though potato.
Simon, look at this page:
http://www.world-nuclear.org/factsheets/uranium.htm
They mention the 50-year figure but if demand increases for uranium (as it surely will) they say that more exploration and recycling could provide enough uranium for hundreds of years.
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