Ken wrote,
"Myself I have vowed to stop my bathroom use..."
DON'T DO THAT!
You'll be sorry.
:-)
Mike
Hakan Falk <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Ken,
I do not find it ludicrous at all. 25 to 50% saving of
energy nullifies the need to build nuclear power
stations. The potential saving of energy, without
noticeable effect on living standard is 60 to 70%,
that is the size of the energy waste.
Considering the 5 to 10 years it take to build a
nuclear power station, a program for energy saving
will always outperform the nuclear alternative in
time, return of investment and job creation. The
problem is that it would add less to GDP, in the way
we now is measuring GDP. This is one example
of the flaws with including energy in GDP.
Regarding health risks, energy efficiency will make
true improvements, compared to a shifting of problems
with nuclear.
It is a question of investment priorities and it should
be a moratorium on investment in nuclear, until the
investment opportunities in energy efficiency and
renewable are no longer available.
Hakan
At 04:35 PM 6/10/2005, you wrote:
>The argument that coal is used in the production of
>uranium therefore nuclear power contributes to green
>house gases is a bit ludicrous. If we wanted to
>eliminate the use of coal we would essentially have to
>do nothing at all. The automobile engine that you are
>running your biodiesel in was manufactured using large
>amounts of coal to produce the steel and to power all
>the assembly plants. If you are using a thermometer to
>check you biodiesel batch or turning on a light to see
>it better you are using coal. Myself I have vowed to
>stop my bathroom use since the water used to flush the
>toilet was pumped to my house using electricity that
>was generated by coal.
>Ken
>
> > Nuclear Power Isn't Clean; It's Dangerous - and
> > Uneconomic
> >
> > By Dr. Helen Caldicott
> >
> > Among the many departures from the truth by
> > opponents of the Kyoto protocol, one of the most
> > invidious is that nuclear power is "clean" and,
> > therefore, the answer to global warming.
> > However, the cleanliness of nuclear power is
> > nonsense. Not only does it contaminate the planet
> > with long-lived radioactive waste, it significantly
> > contributes to global warming.While it is claimed
> > that there is little or no fossil fuel used in
> > producing nuclear power, the reality is that
> > enormous quantities of fossil fuel are used to mine,
> > mill and enrich the uranium needed to fuel a
> > nuclear power plant, as well as to construct the
> > enormous concrete reactor itself. Indeed, a nuclear
> > power plant must operate for 18 years before
> > producing one net calorie of energy. (During the
> > 1970s the United States deployed seven
> > 1,000-megawatt coal-fired plants to enrich its
> > uranium, and it is still using coal to enrich much
> > of the world's uranium.) So, to recoup the
> > equivalent of the amount of fossil fuel used in
> > preparation and construction before the first switch
> > is thrown to initiate nuclear fission, the plant
> > must operate for almost two decades.
> > But that is not the end of fossil fuel use because
> > disassembling nuclear plants at the end of their 30-
> > to 40-year operating life will require yet more vast
> > quantities of energy. Taking apart, piece by
> > radioactive piece, a nuclear reactor and its
> > surrounding infrastructure is a massive operation:
> > Imagine, for example, the amount of petrol, diesel,
> > and electricity that would be used if the Sydney
> > Opera House were to be dismantled. That's the scale
> > we're talking about. And that is not the end of
> > fossil use because much will also be required for
> > the final transport and longterm storage of nuclear
> > waste generated by every reactor.
> > From a medical perspective, nuclear waste
> > threatens global health. The toxicity of many
> > elements in this radioactive mess is long-lived.
> > Strontium 90, for example, is tasteless, odorless,
> > and invisible and remains radioactive for 600 years.
> > Concentrating in the food chain, it emulates the
> > mineral calcium. Contaminated milk enters the body,
> > where strontium 90 concentrates in bones and
> > lactating breasts later to cause bone cancer,
> > leukemia, and breast cancer. Babies and children are
> > 10 to 20 times more susceptible to the carcinogenic
> > effects of radiation than
> > adults.
> > Plutonium, the most significant element in nuclear
> > waste, is so carcinogenic that hypothetically half a
> > kilo evenly distributed could cause cancer in
> > everyone on Earth. Lasting for half a million years,
> > it enters the body through the lungs where it is
> > known to cause cancer. It mimics iron in the body,
> > migrating to bones, where it can induce bone cancer
> > or leukemia, and to the liver, where it can
> > cause primary liver cancer. It crosses the placenta
> > into the embryo and, like the drug thalidomide,
> > causes gross birth deformities. Finally, plutonium
> > has a predilection for the testicles, where it
> > induces genetic mutations in the sperm of humans and
> > other animals that are passed on from generation to
> > generation.
> > Significantly, five kilos of plutonium is fuel for
> > a nuclear weapon. Thus far, nuclear power has
> > generated about 1,139 tons of plutonium. So, nuclear
> > power adds to global warming, increases the burden
> > of radioactive materials in the ecosphere and
> > threatens to contribute to nuclear proliferation. No
> > doubt the Australian government is keen to assist
> > the uranium industry, but the immorality of its
> > position is unforgivable.
> >
> > NOTE: Dr. Helen Caldicott is founding president of
> > Physicians for Social Responsibility.
> >
> >
> > Regards,
> > Bob.>
>_______________________________________________
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> >
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> >
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> > messages):
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> >
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> > http://infoarchive.net/sgroup/biofuels-biz/
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