| The United States with less than 5% of
| |
| | needs. Historically, at least, the
|
| the world's population consumes roughly
| |
| | problem with nuclear energy has been
|
| 25% of the world's energy. Some might
| |
| | primarily two fold. First, the "China
|
| argue that this is egregious, while
| |
| | Syndrome" problem of a meltdown of a
|
| others would say that it is simply a
| |
| | reactor which could release a large
|
| yardstick by which the world's largest
| |
| | amount of radioactivity and second, what
|
| economy is measured. But for whatever
| |
| | do we do with nuclear waste material that
|
| the reason for our vast consumption of
| |
| | has a half-life of over 25,000 years!
|
| energy, the fact remains that in order to
| |
| | The perception of these two significant
|
| consume you first have to produce. And
| |
| | obstacles might doom a new nuclear drive
|
| as most of our energy comes from burning
| |
| | and stand in the way of an
|
| fossil fuels- which wouldn't be too bad
| |
| | energy-independent United States.However,
|
| except that:
| |
| | there are new technologies in this field
|
| burning vast amounts of fossil fuels in
| |
| | that, like the cavalry, have come to our
|
| this county alone dumps millions of
| |
| | rescue- and none too soon. First, there
|
| pounds of earth warming greenhouse gasses
| |
| | is a new class of nuclear reactors that
|
| into, what appears, is a fragile
| |
| | have their nuclear fuel so structured
|
| atmosphere, every day. Just warming up
| |
| | that they cannot do a melt down. Turn
|
| the atmosphere a couple of degrees on
| |
| | off the cooling to this new nuclear
|
| average has significant impact. Look no
| |
| | reactor and it only gets a bit hotter.
|
| further than last year's hurricane
| |
| | No big deal. Turn the cooling back on and
|
| season. The worst on record. And...let's
| |
| | it runs more efficiently. Okay, one
|
| not forget its close cousin; smog
| |
| | down. But what about all that
|
| pollution, which adds to respiratory
| |
| | radioactive spent reactor fuel? Let's
|
| problems and other health conditions, not
| |
| | see if we can put some perspective on it.
|
| to mention the visual blight hanging over
| |
| | If you gathered all the spent nuclear
|
| our cities as well. In addition...have
| |
| | fuel in this country under one roof it
|
| you filled your tank recently? Paid the
| |
| | would fill a typical high school gym. Not
|
| heating bill? The cost of all fossil
| |
| | too unmanageable. Moreover, the spent
|
| fuels, even coal has increased
| |
| | fuel is encapsulated in super strong
|
| significantly. As other emerging
| |
| | glass beads, which in turn are embedded
|
| economies such as China and India vie for
| |
| | into hardened concrete inside steel
|
| ever more limited resources, all bets are
| |
| | drums. This makes the waste product
|
| that the costs will continue to climb
| |
| | "transportable" and is designed to
|
| over the long haul. Moreover...as we
| |
| | withstand the elements for 10,000 years.
|
| import most of our oil nowadays- we are
| |
| | Nevertheless, even in it's tomb it is
|
| increasingly held hostage to an unstable
| |
| | still relativity radioactive. Most of
|
| supply from a number of countries that
| |
| | these drums are stored in water as
|
| we, for whatever reasons, are
| |
| | radiation cannot penetrate more than
|
| increasingly unpopular with. The end
| |
| | about 3 feet of water. However, no one
|
| game? If our supply of oil is not first
| |
| | seems anxious to have it in their back
|
| arbitrarily cut off, as it becomes
| |
| | yards. A political hot potato to be
|
| increasingly scarce the price will rise
| |
| | sure.But while our politicians don't have
|
| until our growth is strangled. In either
| |
| | the answer, the earth does. The answer
|
| case we will feel impelled to engage in
| |
| | lies in the bottom of the Marianas Trench
|
| war with other rising powers to secure
| |
| | in the Pacific. It is the deepest place
|
| our supplies.
| |
| | in the ocean (over seven miles) and one
|
|
| |
| | of the fastest moving subduction plates
|
| The bottom line: Fossil fuels are not
| |
| | on earth. If the drums of waste were
|
| only hazardous to our health (and the
| |
| | placed in the bottom of the trench, they
|
| planet's) but may in fact be hazardous to
| |
| | would, within a few hundred years, be
|
| the American way of life.But if energy is
| |
| | swallowed up into the bowels of the earth
|
| the lifeblood of our economy what are we
| |
| | and blend into the earth's core where
|
| to do? Wind? Solar? While anything we
| |
| | heat and pressure (caused in part by
|
| can do other than consume fossil fuels
| |
| | radioactive substances contained within
|
| will help, these sources of energy are
| |
| | the earth) rendered insignificant.Given
|
| relatively diffuse and inconsistent. In
| |
| | the current geopolitical situation, which
|
| other words, their "cost to calorie"
| |
| | only seems to be working to our
|
| ratios are not efficient and they are not
| |
| | disadvantage, limited resources for cheap
|
| always dependable. As James Kunstler
| |
| | fossil fuels, not to mention the
|
| points out in his intriguing book The
| |
| | environmental impacts we are starting to
|
| Long Emergency, one of our best options
| |
| | experience, it is time we take drastic
|
| out of these dilemmas is to do an "Apollo
| |
| | measures to get us off our fossil fuel
|
| Project" type effort to develop
| |
| | addition. Let's hope we are not too
|
| additional, new nuclear energy
| |
| | late.John Woolf is the founder of several
|
| capability. As it turns out, it just may
| |
| | successful Internet technology companies
|
| be the greenest, viable alternate we
| |
| | including the Book Price Comparison
|
| have.The U.S. currently produces about
| |
| | website As a pragmatist of the world
|
| 20% of its electrical power from nuclear
| |
| | around him, he is both a critic and
|
| power. The advantages are; that there
| |
| | crusader on international politics and
|
| are no greenhouse emissions into the
| |
| | energy policy as it relates to our
|
| atmosphere, no visual pollution, it is
| |
| | security and our impact on the global
|
| cost relatively cost effective, quiet and
| |
| | environment.Visit to read reviews, find
|
| we have sufficient supply of uranium here
| |
| | similar titles, and search for the lowest
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| at home for the foreseeable future to
| |
| | possible price for The Long Emergency and
|
| provide for a major portion of our energy
| |
| | other great books.
|
