Quote:
Originally Posted by Jet
Gulf oil spill now bigger than Exxon Valdez
Associated Press
COVINGTON, La. – The Gulf oil spill has surpassed the Exxon Valdez as the worst in U.S. history, according to new estimates released Thursday, but the Coast Guard and BP said an untested procedure to stop it seemed to be working.
More including video....
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gulf_oil_spill
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I've been watching the top kill go on over the oil jet and what I "think" is happening is that now the oil still leaking, but its picking up particulate as it spills. They said they aren't done yet and that it will still be a couple of days till its complete. The fossil industry never anticipated that this could ever happen, that it would break at the base, or "shear."
I fully believe that if oil and coal were regulated, and design considerations were given like the nuclear industry, with its redundant and passive safety systems, this would not have happened.
Fortunately there is a new round of advanced nuclear reactors that will run even safer than they have for the past 30 years. The world has taken off without us in this particular technology where we used to lead the world. I personally believe we will never run out of oil, it will just get too expensive to get. Heck, even oil shale that was so incredibly not lucrative is being considered once again.
Solar and wind, just do not generate the kind of electricity to support the base load that is going to be required for the future because the need is going to increase, and these windmills and panels take up huge tracts of land and are not feasible for all areas of the country. Even battery technology is not where we need it to be...they are not power generators, they are a power reserves that are depleted. The materials in a lithium ion battery come from hostile countries (Russia, Columbia, etc) not to mention one rare earth metal.
We've only had one issue in the entire history of our nuclear past and even still, the safety measures WORKED. There was no breech in containment, no radiation was spilled, and no one died. In the last few months, 39 people have died from oil and coal compared to nuclear's "zero" in the past 30 years. My own great grandfather was killed in a coal mining accident working overtime to be sure his kids had a nice Christmas, only to leave them fatherless for it. As far as Chernobyl...thats comparing apples and oranges and doesn't even compare to a single reactor we have here in the US. The plant was built without regard for safety, and it was run without regard to procedure. It doesn't even have a containment building.
We need to get the Westinghouse AP-1000, the Kandu, and the ABWR's working for us. They are clean, safe, no carbon emissions, and if we get the law reversed that was set in place by the Carter administration we can reprocess spent fuel and use it again. Heck we are doing it for our military's nuclear subs, but we can't do it for a rector? Doesn't make sense! 93% of the fuel that is in dry storage can be recovered. Even better, Breeder Reactor Technology uses the spent fuel and keeps reprocessing itself. We have the technology to do it.
I've grown up with a father who has been in the nuclear industry for over 40 years and I have grown up with a love for the industry and a willingness for push it forward. In my opinion in the nuclear industry the word "Safety" and the word "quality" should always be interchangeable.