Does Nuclear Power Carry An Acceptable Risk?

[shane]

Within my lifetime (just!) the great smog of London in 1952 killed 12,000 people and injured a further 200,000 over a five day period, and was largely caused by coal. That’s just one event in one city. We’ve been burning coal in enormous quantities for 200 years world wide and have probably killed millions of people doing so, but because it’s not weird or sc-fi sounding we take it for granted and ignore it. In the West, we’ve cleaned coal up but now we’re doing the same thing all over again with diesel. Overall, nuclear is far less dangerous to us and to the environment, but when it does go wrong it’s far more scary and makes juicier headlines.

And I haven’t even mentioned global warming yet...

[Haselsh1]

As has already been said, the nuclear power program was set in motion mainly to build fast breeder reactors to generate plutonium for bombs but British reactors have dual containment buildings around them to protect from a runaway whereas the Russian ones had no containment other than the building itself. The outcome of such negligence has already been shown to the World.

[Haselsh1]

Always looking on the bright side Geoff. :-)

[jandl100]

Coal miner deaths in the USA 1900 - 2016. Astonishing.
https://arlweb.msha.gov/stats/centur.../coalstats.asp

Bring on nuclear power!

[Haselsh1]

Yeah dont build one near me but its how easily the radiation spreads

Radiation spreads according to the weather at the time in the same way a toxic gas would spread. We have a country with many chemical plants in it and a lot of those plants will emit toxic gases into the air. I don't hear too many complaints about that. I have worked so far for around forty one years in the chemical industry and have seen lots of toxic gas emissions by some very large chemical companies. These emissions were only cut down on fairly recently by the use of chemical scrubbers in accordance with EU regs that we probably won't have much longer. All you have to do as a member of the public is choose your poison.

[struth]

I can see the BP plant on a clear day. one of the biggest... if it goes then so will I.

[farflungstar]

In my opinion the power of social media should be used to demand free energy. It exists and is disgusting that many people liver in fuel poverty.

Here in Spain where the sun shines almost every day it is illegal to use solar power.

[Yomanze]

No we don't. When you factor in the power required to run the world's vehicles when the oil runs out, renewables can only provide a fraction of what is required. Check the figures.

Yes this is a big problem requiring a change of mindset of cars as a convenience and a status symbol. Leave the roads for essential transport of goods, people who live in places that really need them and we are onto something sustainable.

[Haselsh1]

Transport of goods in the UK used to be done by rail until a certain person massacred the rail system and forced us all to drive.

[struth]

In my opinion the power of social media should be used to demand free energy. It exists and is disgusting that many people liver in fuel poverty.

Here in Spain where the sun shines almost every day it is illegal to use solar power.

well illegal if you dont pay the solar tax. totally ridiculous national theft