I really don't understand the allergy to nuclear power. Sure, Fukushima was bad, but look what it took to cause it: the biggest earthquake in Japanese history (and that's a long time) and a huge tsunami that killed tens of thousands of people and devastated much of the Japanese coast along with the plants. And I still haven't heard of anyone dying from radiation exposure from Fukushima. Just the guys they found drowned after the tsunami.
If that's what it takes to wreck a nuclear plant, then maybe they're not as brittle as some people think.
Should the meltdowns and explosions at Fukushima have been prevented? Of course. The lack of a reliable hydrogen vent was inexcusable. Should nuclear plants, at least in Japan, be modified to prevent another Fukushima even if they're hit by a huge tsunami? Sure, if at all possible. But shutting them down is just knee-jerk irrationalism because all the near-term workable alternatives are much worse. Not only are fossil fuels causing the biggest environmental catastrophe in history -- global warming -- but they emit toxic substances that contribute to local health problems. Wind and solar are great, I'd like to see them built as fast as possible, but the time to shut down the nukes is after you've built enough renewables to displace all the fossil plants. Not before.
I think the uniquely visceral fear of nuclear power comes from the fear of cancer, a particularly dreaded disease. But many widely used chemicals are also known to cause cancer, yet they don't seem to inspire the same level of dread as radiation. I just don't understand it.
If that's what it takes to wreck a nuclear plant, then maybe they're not as brittle as some people think.
Should the meltdowns and explosions at Fukushima have been prevented? Of course. The lack of a reliable hydrogen vent was inexcusable. Should nuclear plants, at least in Japan, be modified to prevent another Fukushima even if they're hit by a huge tsunami? Sure, if at all possible. But shutting them down is just knee-jerk irrationalism because all the near-term workable alternatives are much worse. Not only are fossil fuels causing the biggest environmental catastrophe in history -- global warming -- but they emit toxic substances that contribute to local health problems. Wind and solar are great, I'd like to see them built as fast as possible, but the time to shut down the nukes is after you've built enough renewables to displace all the fossil plants. Not before.
I think the uniquely visceral fear of nuclear power comes from the fear of cancer, a particularly dreaded disease. But many widely used chemicals are also known to cause cancer, yet they don't seem to inspire the same level of dread as radiation. I just don't understand it.
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