NO MORE NUKES ?

NO MORE NUKES?

With all the problems in Japan about their nuclear reactors, there is a cry in this country that we should not build any more nuclear reactors to produce power.

Now let’s take a look at all the power sources available to us. First is coal. We produce about 45% of our electrical needs by burning coal. However the environmentalist are adamant against coal. Coal does have some problems, but none that we can not solve with better technology. But to assuage the environmentalist, should we stop using coal.

We produce about 20% of our electricity with nuclear power. The plants we have are safe and we can dispose of the waste underground at Yucca Mountain. None of our nuclear plants are near sea level and thus not subject to a Tsunami. The tsunami was the cause of the problems with the plants in Japan.

Lets see, we have eliminated coal and now nuclear so we have done away with 65% of our energy source. What is left? We can power plants with natural gas. Natural gas does burn cleaner, but does have some problems. Natural gas is a good source to balance power on the grid. When demand for electricity goes up, a natural gas plant can be brought on line faster than coal or nuclear.

What is left for us to produce power? It is foolish to think that solar and wind can fill the gap. Wind is not constant and there are cloudy days when solar will not produce. It will not produce at night.

Do we want to produce our power by burning Middle Eastern oil? Oil itself has it’s own pollution problems. So what should we do? Look at France, they produce almost 90% of their electricity with nuclear. I believe we should insist on proper design and construction of new nuclear plants. We should take the road blocks out of the way and encourage nuclear plant production. We should continue to improve coal burning plants. We have the world’s supply of coal, Let’s use it.

We keep talking about electric cars. Where is the electricity going to come from to charge these vehicles? I do believe that we can develop hydrogen powered cars, but this will require electricity to produce the hydrogen.

Let’s clear the way for better and more efficient production of electricity. We can start by getting rid of all the objections to power plants. Let’s set our goal to be energy independent within 10 years. With intelligent leaders, this is possible. We went to the moon in 10 years, we can do this.

Stan Elrod