Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens

Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by 0xbadcafebee on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:25AM (#32152876)

Holy shit, 1000 reactors? Did anyone tell them the more reactors you have, the more likely one will melt down? (basic probability)

IMO they should be used strategically, i.e. concentrated large power requirements and to lower overall emissions. You want a mix of power-generating solutions, otherwise you have a monoculture which can lead to system collapse. Right now they're short on gas, but what happens when they're short on uranium, or places to put spent fuel? You can't just spin up a new power plant over a weekend (which is their problem right now). Or if we had a supervolcano and solar went out, or if winds died down, or had a shortage of parts due to a pandemic or recession, etc.

We need many solutions to cover all our bases. You spin up and down capacity in each market depending on the circumstances. This allows the lowest cost, least harmful solutions at any given time, hedges against changing market conditions, and enables emergency power relief.

edit: LOL @ all the downvotes because I said a nuclear meltdown might be bad

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by tomrod on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:43AM (#32153218)

France recovers something like 96% of their recoverable uranium for additional use, because spent doesn't mean inert.

https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/frances-efficiency-in-t...

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by thrown_22 on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:37AM (#32153104)

Chernobyl killed fewer people during the worst meltdown possible than the average coal plant kills during its lifetime of normal operation.

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by Kukumber on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:48AM (#32153328)

This, people forget what they breath when they depend on coal to produce energy.. wish is sad

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/reliance-...

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by polotics on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:43AM (#32153207)

also talking about radioactive waste, guess what comes out of burning coal? more dangerous radioactive material than you'd expect. https://www.researchgate.net/post/Why-is-coal-ash-more-radio...

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by 0xbadcafebee on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @11:44AM (#32153243)

I never said nuclear power plants were bad. But Chernobyl depopulated a 1,000 square mile region that will remain uninhabitable for hundreds to thousands of years. Do that a couple more times over a century in a densely populated area like Europe and see how easy it is to travel without a car made of lead, much less find a place to live.

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by antonymy on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @04:25PM (#32157485)

It's not uninhabitable, it's simply uninhabited. It's perfectly safe to visit Chernobyl, or even live there, and has been for years. It's been open for tourism since 2011. Dilapidated buildings pose a bigger risk to Chernobyl tourists than radiation. Animals certainly don't seem worse off and they returned to the city long before people did.

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Re:Germany to Rethink Nuclear Shutdown as Energy Crisis Deepens by redeeman on Tuesday July 19, 2022 @02:46PM (#32156168)

Yeah, so dangerous that the wildlife has found itself a great new sanctuary, and the babushkas that refused to evacuate and lives in the "zone" at 90 years old all died decades ago.. oh...

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