bokey wrote: 
I almost mentioned that. It definitely scored points with me.

 miamizsun wrote: 
What's with the '70's porn music background? I keep waiting for the plumber to show up so the housewife with the huge, unshaved bush on her crotch can open the door with her negligee all askew.

 miamizsun wrote: 
Thorium looks like a less problematic solution, though I don't doubt it will have it's own problems. Inevitably there's only one way to find out

In answer to the question : Saviour - with reservations.

 miamizsun wrote: 
ok, i stayed up late and got up early reading and watching some info on what may be is a very viable alternative to this situation.

In a word, Thorium. (It's cheap, plentiful, way more efficient and you can't make bombs/weapons with it, which is why I believe the powers that be have worked to squelch it.)

Here's some easy to understand vids from howstuffworks.com






the political angle



please feel free to comment.

If it wasn't for all the money involved I'm pretty sure it would be illegal to threaten the public health like nuclear power has potential, not to mention what kinds of disasters it can cause. But when it comes to comfort, convenience, and money, everything else seems expendable.

I say it's a scourge. 

"The nuclear bomb, does that bother you? I just want you to think big, Henry, for chrissakes. The only place where you and I disagree is with regard to the bombing. You’re so goddamned concerned about civilians, and I don’t give a damn. I don’t care." ~ Nixon to Kissinger April 25, 1972

 NoEnzLefttoSplit wrote: 
There are some pretty decent reviews on Blees book on Amazon as well.

I don't know enough about this subject and I'd like to read his book, however my reading list is six books on my desk right now.

Regards

 NoEnzLefttoSplit wrote: 

Yes, I read the article in the Guardian today.

My only comment is about the title of the thread- why does it have to be "saviour or scourge?"- this isn't the X factor.  It's a useful tool but not without some significant drawbacks.

Georges Monbiot has really put the cat among the pigeons today with his article favoring nuclear power.

Before everyone starts ditching the idea of nuclear power, take a look at this design and I'd appreciate if anyone could tell me what the drawbacks are..

(I know there must be some but the concept looks damn good to me. The danger in this is that I am neither an engineer nor a physicist so I'm not really qualified to judge)

 

 ScottFromWyoming wrote: 

snerk.

 islander wrote: 
huge manatees all over the place?

 NoEnzLefttoSplit wrote: 
one word: Balloons.

The other thing that excites me about some of these GenIV designs is that they can be used to produce hydrogen thermochemically in addition to the electricity they produce.

I know hydrogen has major problems all of its own (transport, storage, etc.) but at least it's clean.

 cptbuz wrote: 

I'm glad you joined the discussion cptbuz! What is your opinion on fast breeders? Are their claims realistic?
They seem to have pretty good fail-safes built into them and the waste has a half-life of 200 years (or low level for hundreds of thousands but so low it's not a major issue).  I don't know why we are wringing our hands looking for alternative energy sources to replace fossil fuels when this technology is just sitting there unused.

 Beaker wrote: 
I'm a nuclear inspector Jim, not a proofreader!

 cptbuz wrote: 
Nice to hear from someone who is intimately involved with existing facilities. Thank you.

 Beaker wrote: 

damn decaf!

I hate getting involved in these discussions but...

I have been inspecting nuke plants for over 20 years, to me they are a safe and viable energy option. One of the big concerns that people bring up is what to do about the radiological waste. By far the majority (volume-wise) of radioactive waste produced at a nuke plant is very low level contaminated trash. The good news is that over the past 20 years the amount of contaminated trash created at nuke plants has dropped significantly through better planning, the reuse of materials/tools etc. in contaminated areas. The source of high level waste is spent fuel. Sites have spent fuel storage pools, but they are fast filling up (due to operating license extentions). Dry cask storage, an above ground shielded storage 'pod', allows for safe on-site storage of spent fuel and is a system used at many sites already. Dry cask storage has created a public uproar at some sites that could potentially cause a plant to shutdown prior to the end of its licensing.

Many people argue that wind and solar are "green" energy sources while nuke power, because of the waste and potential of contamination, should not be considered 'green'.  What these arguements don't consider is the climate damage created in the manufacture of items such as fiberglass for fan blades of a wind farm, or manufacture of the panels for solar collectors. Yes, the concrete and steel used in the manufacture of a nuke plant adds a size or two to the ol' carbon foot print too, but unlike wind and solar farms, the concrete structures of a nuke plant do not need to be routinely replaced.

Finally, ground has been broken in the U.S. for a new nuke plant @ the Vogtle site in Georgia. The hope is for the new unit (one of 7 planned in the US) to be on the grid by 2017...and one last thing, nuclear power plants are not run by baffoons as depicted in movies like 'China System', or  (UGH!) the made for TV abomination 'Atomic Twister'.

The discussion so far seems pretty reasonable.  Is this RP??? I read Beaker's link and the Wikipedia article on the IFR. Looks like the IFR wins on points. Nice to see both PEAK OIL and Global Warming taken seriously, even tacitly.

Thanks for the topic, Beaker.