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hattie
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 01:01pm - Edited by: hattie
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A friend just brought this to my attention. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanford_Site
I had never even heard of it before! They have predicted that the last of the radioactive waste won't be removed until 2040! This is a frightening planet we live on. *sigh*
A more recent article about this site is here: http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,752944,00.html
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turkeyhunter
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 01:19pm
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not GOOD at all.............scary world we live in......... :-(
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cabingal3
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 05:29pm
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i hear that today the tv news is telling us that the west coast is getting radiation in the rain from japans fallout...meaning where we live.i know there is radiation in everything but are they trying to scare us to get us to buy bottled water or are they telling us it is more radiation than normal??
if it is in the rain...the city needs to be doing something cause we do not want to take a bath or shower in radiated waters.i would imagen it is not too bad yet.that is what they are saying.
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naturelover66
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 08:12pm
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Honestly........... i wouldnt live within fifty miles of a nuclear site if i could at all help it. If they build one near my cabin.......... i will sell it. I think we need to all reconsider our energy needs versus wants.......... take a step back to a more simple time and give our planet a break.
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fpw
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 10:22pm
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Actually, the folks in Japan are doing a great job of dealing with the events and protecting the workers and the public. This was a beyond design basis event. Meaning, the plant wasn't designed to withstand that earthquake. And, the plant is still standing, the containment is intact, emergency response plans were executed, and the operators figured out how to get cooling to the core. You can't say the same about the Benzene plants, the Chlorine plants, and the Refineries that were destroyed and released the associated chemicals (Chlorine and Benzene clouds have a pretty horrible affect on anything living within their path).
The news service has done us no favors in this area. There is a huge disaster in Japan affecting the entire country; yet, the news focused on the terror factor and it seems about 70% of the news stories were based on the nuclear reactor. Something is amiss.
We have found, and will continue to find, some low levels of radiation in rainwater in the US. In order to keep the containment intact, the operators in Japan periodically vented the containment which releases pressure along with some low levels of radiation. The radioactivity we see is well below any health hazard level and the levels are similar to the background radiation you would see living at higher levels in the country.
There are many actions in place, right now in the US, to learn from the Japan event and apply those lessons learned to the US Nuclear programs.
P.S.
I do have some opinions on this topic. I like to timber frame, build log cabins, run a sawmill, and cut down trees. However, for the past 30 years, I have worked (and still do) in Nuclear Power (both navy and commercial nuclear power). I have a nuclear engineering degree, I am certified as a National Registry of Radiation Protection Technologist, and I have spent most of my career in charge of programs that protect plant workers and the public.
Alright, I am done now. Don't think I will ever watch Fox News again.
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Just
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 10:53pm
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gess us cabiner's need to show the world how to live on less!!!
my new attempt to be green
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Gary O
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 11:06pm
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Born to be mild, aey Just?
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Gary O
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2011 11:30pm
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Quoting: fpw I have spent most of my career in charge of programs that protect plant workers and the public.
fpw
Any personal thoughts or misgivings about where we've gone, and how we've done it as far as our 'programs'?
I'm goin' ta bed, but reading your remarks in the near future would be quite interesting
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Erins#1Mom
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2011 07:38pm
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fpw,
Thank you for your insight on this subject. I, like many, depend too much on the news channels to give us our info. So much for "fair and balanced".
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bobrok
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2011 08:47pm
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Quoting: fpw I do have some opinions on this topic.
I have been following a very spirited discussion about alternative energy on a different forum. One of the posters there works in R&D in power generation and renewables. This person has made some compelling arguments in favor of nuclear power. Another poster has brought up nuclear fission as safer than fusion. Another, hydrogen, and yet another, hydrofracking, etc, etc, etc.
And there are the opponents of 'green' alternative methods of power generation because they are not predictable in output or not as cost-efficient as traditional fossil fuel methods.
Almost everyone admits that we are depleting our non-renewable resources.
Some argue in favor of the theory of global warming; others against.
There are some who believe to exist vast undiscovered fossil fuel resources.
The politicos, of course, blame government and corporate greed for delaying progress towards any new technology.
Despite what has happened in Japan I still like nuclear power.
Is there interest on this forum to start an 'energy' discussion on a larger scale than powering our small-cabins?
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Gary O
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2011 09:13pm
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Quoting: bobrok Is there interest on this forum to start an 'energy' discussion on a larger scale than powering our small-cabins?
Why not foster a bit of education and maybe glean some unfiltered information?
I, for one, am intrigued at hearing those like fpw, you bob, and hopefully others that have direct, or close to the ground floor experience with this maybe maligned, abused, and possibly one day harnessed source of energy.
Somebody wise in this knowledge, please enlighten.
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