General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Biden Plans Wind Farms Along Entire U.S. Coastline [View all]ForgedCrank
(1,773 posts)Something absolutely HAS to be done before this place is irreversibly damaged. And as much as wind/solar etc come with so many positive variables, it is also our duty to recognize the crippling shortcomings of those and stop turning a blind eye to them, and there are more than a few. Cost and increased pollution from processing hazardous materials are among them, most especially when battery technology is involved. And that doesn't even begin to mention the huge efficiency losses in the many conversion points required during production, delivery/transport, and end use.
Few of these methods are anything more than stop-gap solutions, or at best, expensive supplements.
Nuclear sources can be done safely if things are thought through properly. For example, planting them on the coastline of an earthquake prone region like Japan might be something that needs considerable scrutiny.
That all being said, nuclear power sources CAN cover a very large segment of the demand, and do it in a safe manner at the same time. The argument regarding waste storage is valid, but we need to weigh all the costs and benefits. In the US, for example, we can easily allocate plenty of land for proper and safe storage. Yes, it is a negative, but the overall benefits of potentially killing off coal and other fossil fuel sources far outweigh those cons.
It's good to hear someone else speak out on these really important points.