| The United States with less than 5% of the world's | | | | the problem with nuclear energy has been primarily |
| population consumes roughly 25% of the world's | | | | two fold. First, the "China Syndrome" problem of a |
| energy. Some might argue that this is egregious, while | | | | meltdown of a reactor which could release a large |
| others would say that it is simply a yardstick by which | | | | amount of radioactivity and second, what do we do |
| the world's largest economy is measured. But for | | | | with nuclear waste material that has a half-life of over |
| whatever the reason for our vast consumption of | | | | 25,000 years! The perception of these two significant |
| energy, the fact remains that in order to consume you | | | | obstacles might doom a new nuclear drive and stand |
| first have to produce. And as most of our energy | | | | in the way of an energy-independent United |
| comes from burning fossil fuels- which wouldn't be too | | | | States.However, there are new technologies in this |
| bad except that: | | | | field that, like the cavalry, have come to our rescue- |
| burning vast amounts of fossil fuels in this county | | | | and none too soon. First, there is a new class of |
| alone dumps millions of pounds of earth warming | | | | nuclear reactors that have their nuclear fuel so |
| greenhouse gasses into, what appears, is a fragile | | | | structured that they cannot do a melt down. Turn off |
| atmosphere, every day. Just warming up the | | | | the cooling to this new nuclear reactor and it only gets |
| atmosphere a couple of degrees on average has | | | | a bit hotter. No big deal. Turn the cooling back on and it |
| significant impact. Look no further than last year's | | | | runs more efficiently. Okay, one down. But what about |
| hurricane season. The worst on record. And...let's not | | | | all that radioactive spent reactor fuel? Let's see if we |
| forget its close cousin; smog pollution, which adds to | | | | can put some perspective on it. If you gathered all the |
| respiratory problems and other health conditions, not to | | | | spent nuclear fuel in this country under one roof it |
| mention the visual blight hanging over our cities as well. | | | | would fill a typical high school gym. Not too |
| In addition...have you filled your tank recently? Paid the | | | | unmanageable. Moreover, the spent fuel is |
| heating bill? The cost of all fossil fuels, even coal has | | | | encapsulated in super strong glass beads, which in turn |
| increased significantly. As other emerging economies | | | | are embedded into hardened concrete inside steel |
| such as China and India vie for ever more limited | | | | drums. This makes the waste product "transportable" |
| resources, all bets are that the costs will continue to | | | | and is designed to withstand the elements for 10,000 |
| climb over the long haul. Moreover...as we import most | | | | years. Nevertheless, even in it's tomb it is still relativity |
| of our oil nowadays- we are increasingly held hostage | | | | radioactive. Most of these drums are stored in water |
| to an unstable supply from a number of countries that | | | | as radiation cannot penetrate more than about 3 feet |
| we, for whatever reasons, are increasingly unpopular | | | | of water. However, no one seems anxious to have it |
| with. The end game? If our supply of oil is not first | | | | in their back yards. A political hot potato to be sure.But |
| arbitrarily cut off, as it becomes increasingly scarce the | | | | while our politicians don't have the answer, the earth |
| price will rise until our growth is strangled. In either case | | | | does. The answer lies in the bottom of the Marianas |
| we will feel impelled to engage in war with other rising | | | | Trench in the Pacific. It is the deepest place in the |
| powers to secure our supplies. | | | | ocean (over seven miles) and one of the fastest |
| | | | moving subduction plates on earth. If the drums of |
| The bottom line: Fossil fuels are not only hazardous to | | | | waste were placed in the bottom of the trench, they |
| our health (and the planet's) but may in fact be | | | | would, within a few hundred years, be swallowed up |
| hazardous to the American way of life.But if energy is | | | | into the bowels of the earth and blend into the earth's |
| the lifeblood of our economy what are we to do? | | | | core where heat and pressure (caused in part by |
| Wind? Solar? While anything we can do other than | | | | radioactive substances contained within the earth) |
| consume fossil fuels will help, these sources of energy | | | | rendered insignificant.Given the current geopolitical |
| are relatively diffuse and inconsistent. In other words, | | | | situation, which only seems to be working to our |
| their "cost to calorie" ratios are not efficient and they | | | | disadvantage, limited resources for cheap fossil fuels, |
| are not always dependable. As James Kunstler points | | | | not to mention the environmental impacts we are |
| out in his intriguing book The Long Emergency, one of | | | | starting to experience, it is time we take drastic |
| our best options out of these dilemmas is to do an | | | | measures to get us off our fossil fuel addition. Let's |
| "Apollo Project" type effort to develop additional, new | | | | hope we are not too late.John Woolf is the founder of |
| nuclear energy capability. As it turns out, it just may be | | | | several successful Internet technology companies |
| the greenest, viable alternate we have.The U.S. | | | | including the Book Price Comparison website As a |
| currently produces about 20% of its electrical power | | | | pragmatist of the world around him, he is both a critic |
| from nuclear power. The advantages are; that there | | | | and crusader on international politics and energy policy |
| are no greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere, no | | | | as it relates to our security and our impact on the |
| visual pollution, it is cost relatively cost effective, quiet | | | | global environment.Visit to read reviews, find similar |
| and we have sufficient supply of uranium here at | | | | titles, and search for the lowest possible price for The |
| home for the foreseeable future to provide for a | | | | Long Emergency and other great books. |
| major portion of our energy needs. Historically, at least, | | | | |