U.S. eyes nuclear reactor tax credit to meet climate goals -sources

[Passenger]

U.S. eyes nuclear reactor tax credit to meet climate goals -sources (Reuters)

The White House has signaled privately to lawmakers and stakeholders in recent weeks that it supports taxpayer subsidies to keep nuclear facilities from closing and making it harder to meet U.S. climate goals, three sources familiar with the discussions told Reuters.

New subsidies, in the form of "production tax credits," would likely be swept into President Joe Biden's multi-trillion-dollar legislative effort to invest in infrastructure and jobs, the sources said.

Wind and solar power producers already get these tax rebates based on levels of energy they generate.
(more)

Seriously?

[progree]

1. "The credits also have the support of Democratic Senator Joe Manchin"

The credits also have the support of Democratic Senator Joe Manchin from the energy-rich state of West Virginia, two of the sources said.

[hunter]

2. We ought to be shutting down fossil fuel power plants as fast as we can.

Last edited Wed May 5, 2021, 11:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Nuclear fission is the only low/no carbon energy source capable of supporting the lifestyles many affluent people, including myself, now enjoy.

Hybrid Wind/Solar/Gas power systems are not acceptable alternatives. Any amount of gas we extract from the ground and burn is bad.

Modern nuclear power plants are safe. The technology is established.

Some innovative nuclear reactor designs might be fueled with depleted uranium, used light water reactor fuel, nuclear weapon cores, and uranium or thorium extracted from mine tailings... all things that are now considered nuclear waste. The used fuel from these innovative reactors would decay rapidly and wouldn't be especially dangerous after a few hundred years.

Personally, I loathe wind turbines. For every kilowatt-hour these turbines generate another kilowatt-hour or more is generated by natural gas. There's enough natural gas in the ground to destroy this world as we know it and that will happen whether or not we use wind turbines as supplemental energy sources. Watching those beasts doesn't give me the warm fuzzies. I would slay them all.

w

Most wind and solar enthusiasts ignore the dangers of natural gas because they know natural gas is the only thing keeping their anti-nuclear renewable energy fantasies afloat.

I am, at heart a Luddite. I've lived in unheated garden sheds and found nutritious food in dumpsters. My environmental footprint was very small when I was a crazy street person hanging out in public libraries and community gardens. But I wasn't happy...

As much as I try, I've never convinced my wife we could live without a refrigerator, washing machine and dryer, unlimited hot water, etc..

[Finishline42]

3. You forget batteries

I think coming up with a way to keep existing nuclear plants working and to operate safely is in all our interest.

At the same time it's clear that we are not going to be building a bunch more.

Battery storage and transmission lines change the dynamic. Build transmission lines from our wind alley (Dakotas to Texas) east will allow their excess capacity to be used instead of gas. Battery storage not only shifts the ability of wind and solar to generate power it also functions quicker to deal with changing grid loads. Something a coal or gas plant is typically used for.

Every minute a wind or solar farm is being used is a minute a gas plant sits idle. That drives up the cost of using those plants. As those costs go up, the cost of wind and solar continues to drop. It's an easy decision by most utilities to continue to expand wind and solar resources.