nuclear hazards, was solar energy

[LUDWIK KOWALSKI <KOWALSKIL@alpha.montclair.edu>]

REPOSTING. MY OOP MESSAGE APPEARED BUT THIS ONE, POSTED EARLIER, DID NOT.

> Date: Mon, 02 Feb 1998 15:26:58 -0500
> From: GARY HEMMINGER <Hemmig@d-e.pvt.k12.nj.us>
> Subject: Re: nuclear hazards
>
> I've never been able to understand those who argue in favor of nuclear 
> power. We are constantly creating more and more nuclear waste with 
> these plants,  and there is still no where to put it! And who is 
> proposing to dispose of it safely?  The government! Doesn't that make 
> one just a little bit nervous?  

Bluprints for much better power plants (than those used today, including
Candu units) exist and it is time to start promoting new nuclear technology.
It will not be cheap but it is worth the efforts.

The proposed reactors are much more reliable (subcritical chain reaction 
supported by a beam of protons from a powerful accelerator) and do not 
generate long term radioactive waste. Their waste will decay in several 
hundred years, instead of tens of thousands of years (the waste from
today's reactors). Plutonium and other actinides are "burned" as fuel in 
these reactor-accelerator power plants. The only significant waste is 
Cs137 and Sr90, both with T=30 years. End it does not take too much
imagination to figure out how to transform these, by more exotic means.

I am willing to give talks about new reactors, if you have an audience. 
Just invite me and pay my expenses; no honorarium is expected. I did make
a 30 min presentation on the subject at the recent AAPT meeting. A debate 
on nuclear energy can be organized after my presentation. Contact me in 
private, if you are interested. [As a senior citizen I travel at the cost 
of about $150 each way, anywhere within the continental US (twice as 
much to Alaska or Hawai)]. 
 
See our draft --> http://alpha.montclair.edu/~kowalskiL/waste/intro.html

                   Ludwik Kowalski   kowalskiL@alpha.montclair.edu
P.S.
For the time being reactors are the only alternative for the coal burning.
I hope the situation will change in the future. I would also prefer solar
energy if its practicality and safety could be demonstrated on a large
scale.