NEI Nuclear Notes

Michael R. Fox Ph.D. for Hawaii Reporter debates the topic but finds solar doesn't have the answers: In response to a recent article I wrote about nuclear energy - " Why Not Nuclear Energy in Hawaii ?" - an advocate with a United Kingdom (UK) email address pushed his preference for a solar facility as an energy source for Hawaii. One of the areas he questioned was: “If there is space and flat land in Hawaii sufficient to build nuclear power stations, (given that you probably wouldn't want to put them too close to human habitation) isn't there probably enough space and flat land to build a CSP plant (Concentrating Solar Power) to harvest the rays of the sun and turn them into carbon free electricity?” Sound familiar? Looks like Mr. Fox was spammed by Gerry Wolff whom we and many other bloggers have been spammed by as well. Needless to say Mr. Fox wasn't impressed and had these thoughts on the technology . This author spent many years of professional experienc...

Hawaii-based Dan Seto says it's time for the Aloha State to take a look at a nuclear reactor. Technorati tags: Nuclear Energy , Nuclear Power , Energy , Technology , Environment , Electricity , Hawaii

The Hawaii Reporter looks at the possibilities. For more from our archives, click here .

Details from the Hawaii Reporter .

Last week, the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) issued a myopic press release dismissing the recent successes of the nuclear industry based only on how many states overturned their ban on building new nuclear plants. From Rod : According to NIRS, there have been six attempts in 2009 by the nuclear industry to overturn existing state laws that effectively ban projects to build new nuclear power plants or the collection of construction work in progress payments (CWIP) before beginning to operate plants in rate regulated states. NIRS has claimed that each of these attempts has failed. The six states listed on the NIRS score card are Kentucky, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, and Hawaii. Funny enough, Rod found this fact about one of the states that NIRS counted: I learned something by listening to the conference call and the question and answer session on streaming audio that people who read the press release will not learn - Wisconsin has not even had their...

From NEI's Japan Earthquake launch page : UPDATE AS OF 7 P.M. EDT, MONDAY, MARCH 28: The International Atomic Energy Agency said that Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency is planning a meeting with Tokyo Electric Power Co. to determine the origin of contaminated water in the turbine buildings at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Contaminated water from the basement floor of the reactor 1 turbine building is being pumped into its main condenser. At reactor 2 that process has not begun because the steam condenser is full, IAEA said. Pumping contaminated water is being considered at reactors 3 and 4. Three workers who received radiation exposure from standing in contaminated water were released today from the National Institute of Radiological Sciences , where they had been under observation. The level of localized exposure received by two of the workers is between 200 to 300 rem, lower than the previous estimate of 200 to 600 rem, IAEA said. Radiat...

President Obama has just finished his statement regarding the Japan earthquake. Here’s some of what he said: We are bringing all available resources to bear to monitor the situation and to protect American citizens.  We know the plant poses substantial risk to people who are nearby.  That’s why we recommended the evacuation of Americans with 50 miles of the Fukushima Daiichi plant.  This decision was based upon a careful scientific evaluation. Beyond this 50-mile radius, the risks do not currently call for an evacuation.   Many American also are worried about the potential risks to the US. I want to be very clear--We do not expect harmful levels of radiation to reach the United States, the west coast, Hawaii, Alaska or the U.S. territories in the Pacific.  That is the evaluation of our experts at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and other experts. The Center for Disease Control does not recommend that people in the U.S. take any precautions ot...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency needs your help in spreading the message that it will be conducting a first-of-a-kind nationwide test of its Emergency Alert System next Wednesday, November 9, at 2 P.M. EST. The alert and warning system serves as a tool the President could use, if ever needed, to provide information and communicate to Americans during an emergency. FEMA’s website provides the skinny on what to expect during the test: The test will be approximately 30 seconds long and will look and sound very similar to the frequent local tests of the Emergency Alert System; It will be transmitted via television and radio stations within the U.S., including Alaska, Hawaii, the territories of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa; An audio message will interrupt television and radio programming indicating: “This is only a test,” though text may not indicate this same message on the screen on every television channel; Organizations that serve people wit...

Nuclear energy is now and has long been well supported by the American people. A recent poll conducted by Bisconti Research and Quest Global Research showed that a full 82 percent of respondents agreed that “We should take advantage of all low-carbon energy sources, including nuclear, hydro and renewable energy, to produce the electricity we need while limiting greenhouse gas emissions.” But an interesting finding may have something to do with muting that support and it’s something that you – and you and you – can do something about. Here’s the relevant bit : The survey also highlights various perception gaps where the public holds an opinion contrary to the facts, consistently finding, for example, that people greatly underestimate support for nuclear energy among their neighbors. While 65 percent personally favor nuclear energy, only 31 percent of the public believes that the majority of people in their community hold the same view. Forty percent believe that a majority...

Last night, the Senate voted 86-13 to approve the U.S.-India Nuclear Agreement ( H.R.7081 ). The deal, agreed to in principle in July 2005, passed in the House last week , 298 - 117. Here's a breakout of the Senate vote. Alabama : Sessions (R-AL), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Yea Alaska : Murkowski (R-AK), Yea Stevens (R-AK), Yea Arizona : Kyl (R-AZ), Yea McCain (R-AZ), Yea Arkansas : Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Yea California : Boxer (D-CA), Nay Feinstein (D-CA), Yea Colorado : Allard (R-CO), Yea Salazar (D-CO), Yea Connecticut : Dodd (D-CT), Yea Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea Delaware : Biden (D-DE), Yea Carper (D-DE), Yea Florida : Martinez (R-FL), Yea Nelson (D-FL), Yea Georgia : Chambliss (R-GA), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Yea Hawaii : Akaka (D-HI), Nay Inouye (D-HI), Yea Idaho : Craig (R-ID), Yea Crapo (R-ID), Yea Illinois : Durbin (D-IL), Yea Obama (D-IL), Yea Indiana : Bayh (D-IN), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Yea Iowa : Grassley (R-IA), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Nay Kansas : Brownback (R-KS), Yea Roberts (R...

Matt Wald NEI's Matt Wald sat down for an enlightening Q&A with the EPRI Journal  on how we ought to be managing the nation's electric grid. Here's an excerpt: EJ : Wind and solar are growing by leaps and bounds because of tax subsidies, state mandates, and improving technology. Where is this leading the grid? Wald : There is a limit to how much is desirable. Consider this analogy. In February in Washington, the National Symphony Orchestra performed the Eroica Symphony. Just as Beethoven specified, there were two oboes, two flutes, two bassoons, three horns, and timpani. If the price of oboes dropped, would the symphony use more of them? Of course not, because the conductor isn’t hiring on price. And as it turns out, the price of oboes is pretty stable, at least in relationship to flutes, bassoons, horns, and timpani. Unlike the Eroica Symphony, the power grid has an oboe problem. Generation works largely on price in most of the country, and the grid is going ...

Meet Michael R. Fox . Technorati tags: Nuclear Energy , Nuclear Power , Electricity , Environment , Energy , Politics , Technology , Economics , Hawaii

Over the past few weeks, the media has been bombarding us with all sorts of facts and figures regarding oil and gasoline prices. Out in public, many pundits are charging the oil industry with price gouging. Unfortunately, many of these same pundits are taking advantage of some basic economic illiteracy when it comes to the market for petroleum products. But when we walk through the section on petroleum in the EIA Annual Energy Review, those basic facts and figures are clear and easy to understand. Petroleum: Who did we get it from? What did we do with it? Where did it go? And why are gasoline prices high? Let's begin by clicking on this Petroleum Flow diagram . U.S. crude oil supply in 2004 was more than 15 million barrels per day. Of that 15 million, we imported about 65% from other countries. Who did we get it from? According to EIA's Petroleum Overview table , 17% of the crude oil produced in the U.S. came from Alaska. The other 83% came from the 48 states excluding Alaska a...