My thoughts of the World: September 2011

The most interesting bit of news this last week was about the dry casks storing spent fuel in Virginia moving 1-4 inches due to the earthquake. Wow! Here at Humboldt Bay, our casks are in a concrete vault below grade…sort of like the cup holder in your car…they won’t go anywhere. Time for some re-engineering on the east coast.

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/business/news/2011/aug/31/8/earthquake-caused-massive-nuclear-storage-casks-to-ar-1277791/

http://www.kypost.com/dpps/news/national/quake-risk-to-reactors-greater-than-thought_6698206

And here I thought we knew it all.

No new taxes!

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/energy/progress-energy-customers-are-helping-to-pay-for-a-nuclear-plant-they/1189391

In 1975, the US attempted to reprocess nuclear fuel. The facility in West Valley, NY operated for a couple of years before it was shut down. The site has been under “cleanup” for 30 years, has cost several billions of dollars so far, and no end in site. Add this to the price tag of “low-cost” nuclear energy.

http://post-journal.com/page/content.detail/id/590302/Offers-Made-To-West-Valley-Employees-By-New-Contractor.html?nav=5057

Meanwhile, in the northwest, we’re spending millions just moving dirt around…I guess it’s jobs…

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2011/08/22/1611020/140-acre-waste-site-cleaned-up.html

Things aren’t any better in Japan, in spite of what the company officials are saying.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110828p2a00m0na002000c.html

Complete PR bullshit:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/09/05/japan.nuclear.interview/index.html?eref=rss_latest&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_latest+%28RSS%3A+Most+Recent%29

Eat your vegetables….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxCeC0MZaZw&feature=share

This one hits close to home, because PG&E wants to send its B and C wastes to the Texas dump…there’s no place else that will accept it. Maybe Mongolia?

http://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-perry-sought-sideline-nuclear-waste-critic-185732477.html

Hold on to your wallet…we’re about to see the best democracy that money can buy.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44402386/ns/politics-decision_2012/#.TmZHDmqIhQh

Perry said “I’ll tell you one thing: The EPA officials we have an opportunity to put in place, they’re going to be pro-business, and there’s not going to be any apologies to anybody about it,” he said. “Those agencies won’t know what hit ‘em.”

I thought that solar was the only business that couldn’t survive in the US because of foreign competition, despite millions and millions of dollars in government subsidies.

http://news.yahoo.com/toshiba-talks-buy-westinghouse-stake-report-000351581.html

http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/09/01/310408/gop-solyndra-bankruptcy/#more-310408

http://www.solarbuzz.com/industry-news/first-solar-dedicates-250-mw-mesa-factory-site

I believe First Solar is a Chinese owned company.

We will see many ups and downs in the renewable energy sphere, but ultimately, it is the future. Too bad our “country” won’t seriously commit to it.

http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2105109/report-china-crank-2015-renewable-target

http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/09/01/310065/german-renewable-power-production-record/

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2011-08-29/solar-may-produce-most-of-world-s-power-by-2060-iea-says.html

Finally…we’re 2/3 into this year….whew! Damn those cosmic rays!

http://news.yahoo.com/disasters-us-extreme-exhausting-121226525.html

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/07/18/cern_cosmic_ray_gag/

As that great old gospel song says, “You’d better get down on your knees and pray!”