William Gloege (“Keep Diablo open,” July 16) is using old data in his argument to keep the expensive, nuclear waste producing Diablo Canyon Power Plant open.
Here’s the current data from government sources:
Renewable energy is the fastest-growing energy source in the U.S., increasing 100 percent from 2000 to 2018. Renewables are adding more jobs and employing more people than nuclear.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s data for 2019 states that 20 percent of electricity was generated by nuclear plants and 18 percent from renewable energy sources. This does not include the additional 35 billion kilowatts of power from small-scale solar rooftop installations.
According to the California Energy Almanac, in this state, nuclear energy declined from one-fifth of the mix in 2011 to less than one-tenth—9.38 percent to be exact—in 2018. Meanwhile, we were getting a whopping 32.35 percent from renewables! It’s no wonder. Nuclear costs about three times as much to produce as either wind or solar.
The time for Diablo Canyon to shut down is now. Renewables are the only way to battle climate change.
C. Hisasue
Los Osos
This article appears in Jul 23 – Aug 2, 2020.
Nuclear energy production is only 20% because they eep shutting down the plants. France and Sweden proceed a majority other power with nuclear and have 0% accident rate.
50 kg of uranium dioxide melted inside of the A1 nuclear reactor of Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux, during a refueling operation in 1969 (Loir-et-Cher)
Radioactive fluids escaped into drains designed for ordinary wastes, seeping into the local watershed at the Saclay BL3 Reactor in 1979 (Saclay)
A malfunctioning cooling system fused fuel elements together at the Saint-Laurent A2 reactor, melting two fuel assemblys and forcing an extended shutdown (Loir-et-Cher…again!)
Electrical cables failed at the command center of the Bugey Nuclear Power Plant and forced a complete shutdown of one reactor in 1980 (Bugey)
Pipe maintenance at the fuel reprocessing plant at La Hague released a radioactive solution to which three welders and two plant workers were exposed in 1986 (Normandy)
A strong storm flooded the Blayais Nuclear Power Plant, forcing an emergency shutdown after injection pumps and containment safety systems failed from water damage in 1999 (Blayais)
Control systems and safety valves failed after improper installation of condensers, forcing a two-month shutdown in 2002 (Manche)
Sub-standard electrical cable trays at the Cattenom-2 nuclear reactor caused a fire in an electricity tunnel, damaging many safety system cables in 2004 (Cattenom-2, Lorraine)
Dozens of litres of wastewater contaminated with uranium were accidentally poured on the ground and runoff into a nearby river in 2009. (Tricastin)
Assembly system failed to properly eject spent fuel rods from the Gravelines Nuclear Power Plant, causing the fuel rods to jam and the defueling operation to be suspended in 2009 (Gravelines)
Fire on a primary pump of the second reactor, followed by a small radioactive leak into the containment in 2012 (Penly)
And in 2017, they found 20 reactors of the 1300 MW-class with seismic weaknesses on their emergency diesel generators.
This is just a partial list and only of power plants. There have been other, bigger nuclear accidents at military installations. In any case, it sure isn’t “zero.” And remember, Japan didn’t have a catastrophic accident until 2011. But it happened! Just like it could happen here, from one of many, many causes.
Funny how the same people that like to whine about govt. subsidies for renewable energy projects don’t seem to mind the billions of our tax dollars that have been spent propping up nuclear power. No private insurance company would touch these facilities with a 10 foot fuel rod so guess who’s paying that bill? Just look in a mirror.
Anyone else remember when former Atomic Energy Commissioner (and then industry lobbyist) Dixie Lee Ray became governor of Washington? She oversaw the initiation of five nuclear power plants in her state. The economic implosion of this ambitious project created which, at the time, was described as the, “The biggest economic disaster since the Great Depression.”
As for Sweden and France with ” 0% nuclear accidents,” you might want to look up the facts. France has logged at least 12.
According to the latest annual report of the European power sector, renewable electricity generation exceeded fossil fuel generation, for the first time ever. In the first half of 2020, renewables – wind, solar, hydro and bioenergy – generated 40% of the EU-27’s electricity, whereas fossil fuels generated 34%. (If one presumed all the rest came from just nuclear, it would still only be 26%)
Renewables rose by 11%. Fossil fuels fell by 18%. Even gas generation registered a fall of 6%, falling in eleven countries. As a result, EU-27 power sector CO2 emissions fell by about 23%.
First the only Gov. subsidies the nuclear industry gets is for research and oversite. I could just see you people now if the Gov turned around an d we are disbanding the NRC.. You would be screaming bloody murder. As for no private insurance company would touch these facilities with a ten foot pole. Just because a privet home owner can’t get insurance for a nuclear accident doesn’t mean that a nuclear power plant can’t . Don’t go by what someone told me look up the Price Anderson act. It makes all the nuclear power plants contribute in to a pool for a nuclear accident. Plus they have to get insurance in case of an accident. Rex at that catastrophic accident in Japan just how many died from radiation “ZERO”. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to contradict your fear mongering anti-nuke rhetoric with real facts.
Rex, You list all the problems that happened to one of France’s many nuclear plants. Are you familiar with oil trains incinerating cities, oil platforms exploding killing workers and forever polluting the Gulf of Mexico? Do you know that the World Health Organization says burning fossil fuels kills about 3 million people every year? Do you know about global warming? Scientists fear it will eventually kill ALL life on earth. The cause of global warming is emissions of green house gases when fossil fuels like natural gas, coal, oil are burned. Sadly, poor countries can only afford to burn coal to make electricity they need to live (lights, AC, refrigeration for food, machines to run society). Last I heard, France is doing fine. Electric, nonemitting trains are running smoothly, lights are all on, they export nuclear produced electricity to Germany who shut their reactors before they waiting to see UN report on Fukushima. Germans were surprised to read that not a single person was hurt or killed by reactor incidents in Japan. But it was too late. Politics pulled the plug on their reactors. Now Germans are burning coal to keep the lights on. There are folks who love to be scared of something. Radiation!! But its all around us and is as natural as water. You just can’t have too much of either or you’ll die. Why do top scientists like James Hansen and James Lovelock(UK) all recommend we use carbon free nuclear power? Answer: because they know what they’re talking about having studied all this for their whole lives.
So, save your kids and grandkids from global warming and help get the US on nuclear – like France, China, South Korea, Sweden and many more smart countries. Oil countries like UAE and Saudi Arabia are building reactors, too!. Save you kids and grand kids. Save great Diablo Canyon serving California flawlessly for 35 years. William Gloege, Santa Maria, Ca
Yikes, only an idiot would want to close the nuclear power plant, which generates safe, clean, carbon free energy. Nuclear power is the safest power source on the planet. The statistics don’t lie.