The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is keeping an eye on Hurricane Harvey and its effect on the South Texas Project nuclear power plant in Bay City, Texas.
Energy Voice 28th Aug 2017 read more »
During his speech last week about Afghanistan, President Donald Trump slipped in a line that had little to do with fighting the Taliban: “Vast amounts” are being spent on “our nuclear arsenal and missile defense,” he said, as the administration builds up the military. The president is doing exactly that. Last week, the Air Force announced major new contracts for an overhaul of the U.S. nuclear force: $1.8 billion for initial development of a highly stealthy nuclear cruise missile, and nearly $700 million to begin replacing the 40-year-old Minuteman missiles in silos across the United States. While both programs were developed during the Obama years, the Trump administration has seized on them, with only passing nods to the debate about whether either is necessary or wise. They are the first steps in a broader remaking of the nuclear arsenal — and the bombers, submarines and missiles that deliver the weapons — that the government estimated during President Barack Obama’s tenure would ultimately cost $1 trillion or more.
Star Tribune 27th Aug 2017 read more »
New York Times 28th Aug 2017 read more »
The US Energy Information Administration last week published its latest ‘Electric Power Monthly’ which reveals US renewable energy is locked in a virtual dead-heat with US nuclear energy, each providing roughly 20% of the country’s electrical generation. However, according to experts looking at recent figures, it’s predicted that nuclear will soon see its percentage share decrease, while renewables are only expected to continue to increase their percentage share of electrical generation.
Clean Technica 28th Aug 2017 read more »
Bill McKibben: The call for the rapid conversion of energy systems around the country to 100 percent renewable power—a call for running the United States (and the world) on sun, wind and water. What Medicare for All is to the healthcare debate, or Fight for $15 is to the battle against inequality, 100% Renewable is to the struggle for the planet’s future. It’s how progressives will think about energy going forward—and though it started in northern Europe and Northern California, it’s a call that’s gaining traction outside the obvious green enclaves. In the last few months, cities as diverse as Atlanta and Salt Lake have taken the pledge. No more half-measures. Barack Obama drove environmentalists crazy with his “all-of-the-above” energy policy, which treated sun and wind as two items on a menu that included coal, gas and oil. That is not good enough. Many scientists tell us that within a decade, at current rates, we’ll likely have put enough carbon in the atmosphere to warm the Earth past the Paris climate targets. Renewables—even the most rapid transition—won’t stop climate change, but getting off fossil fuel now might (there are no longer any guarantees) keep us from the level of damage that would shake civilization.
In These Times (accessed) 28th Aug 2017 read more »
