From time to time, I get asked what's the best way to talk to people about nuclear power? We are not dealing here with cultural idealogues or misanthropic Malthusians. We are talking about well-adjusted, sensible human beings who have been fed the
A useful analogy might come from WW2 with the fire bombing of cities. What the British discovered is during the German blitz of London is that a well organised fire service could respond and contain the damage from large raids - IF they were spread out over the course of many hours. Yes there was much damage where the bombs landed, but overall the city remained functional.
By contrast later in the war when it was the Allies bombing German cities like Dresden, they had learned to concentrate the raid into as short a period as possible, and the resulting firestorm completely overwhelmed the fire services causing complete obliteration of the city and great loss of life.
It is a good, if somewhat chilling, example of how the rate of damage has a direct impact on the resulting harm.
Sorry, I did not make myself clear. No, this for the whole 600 years worth. The 21 m2 will slowly fill up over the 1st 600 years. After than the flow in will equal the flow out. Of course, we will pull the valuable stuff out of the waste long before 600 years.
Another analogy would be radiation therapy for cancer where a dose is given and a period of time given for the body to recover before the next dose, then repeat X times for a cumulative dose. This is such a common procedure that is understandable, relatable and acceptable to the general public. A radiation oncologist can provide more details.
A new lurker here. After graduation I joined a firm focused on the NRC-mandated remediation to all LWRs in the US and later the rest of the world for post-TMI responses. A birds-eye view of the industry and the accompanying oversight the Commission thought reasonable for this newfangled industry. An interesting job and our firm came to replace the monitoring systems in more than half of the reactors in North America and beyond. We were not a constructor but rather interlopers to the mainline manufacturers GE, Westinghouse & Combustion Engineering. Perhaps the best definition for our entry into the niche was to be a rent-seeker. My run in that business was about 12 years and I still have a legacy product in use at a handful of sites. My mind has become settled. The challenge for the industry (if its moribund current status even qualifies) are monumental. The challenges are mostly legacy, fear, and uncertainty.
I provide this only as an introduction as I plan to read some of your posts as time allows. Thanks for writing and evangelizing as all causes need a voice.
A useful analogy might come from WW2 with the fire bombing of cities. What the British discovered is during the German blitz of London is that a well organised fire service could respond and contain the damage from large raids - IF they were spread out over the course of many hours. Yes there was much damage where the bombs landed, but overall the city remained functional.
By contrast later in the war when it was the Allies bombing German cities like Dresden, they had learned to concentrate the raid into as short a period as possible, and the resulting firestorm completely overwhelmed the fire services causing complete obliteration of the city and great loss of life.
It is a good, if somewhat chilling, example of how the rate of damage has a direct impact on the resulting harm.
Great post! Is it 21 square miles every year? For waste? I didn’t understand that
Santiago,
Sorry, I did not make myself clear. No, this for the whole 600 years worth. The 21 m2 will slowly fill up over the 1st 600 years. After than the flow in will equal the flow out. Of course, we will pull the valuable stuff out of the waste long before 600 years.
Another analogy would be radiation therapy for cancer where a dose is given and a period of time given for the body to recover before the next dose, then repeat X times for a cumulative dose. This is such a common procedure that is understandable, relatable and acceptable to the general public. A radiation oncologist can provide more details.
Richard Louie
A new lurker here. After graduation I joined a firm focused on the NRC-mandated remediation to all LWRs in the US and later the rest of the world for post-TMI responses. A birds-eye view of the industry and the accompanying oversight the Commission thought reasonable for this newfangled industry. An interesting job and our firm came to replace the monitoring systems in more than half of the reactors in North America and beyond. We were not a constructor but rather interlopers to the mainline manufacturers GE, Westinghouse & Combustion Engineering. Perhaps the best definition for our entry into the niche was to be a rent-seeker. My run in that business was about 12 years and I still have a legacy product in use at a handful of sites. My mind has become settled. The challenge for the industry (if its moribund current status even qualifies) are monumental. The challenges are mostly legacy, fear, and uncertainty.
I provide this only as an introduction as I plan to read some of your posts as time allows. Thanks for writing and evangelizing as all causes need a voice.
Fantastic piece. Thank you!