In Washington...
Earthquakes, subduction zone, huge cold war nuclear Superfund site...
That Washington?
Sure, why should any of that be an issue for constructing a new nuclear power plant?
This is the problem we’ve faced with nuclear power in America: every time somebody wants to build one, an army of people show up saying “Okay fine, but you can’t build it HERE”. There is no perfect site for construction. Each has its own set of challenges that need to be covered in the design. But there are very few places on Earth you can’t safely operate a properly designed nuclear power plant. And we need them badly.
The alternative is to sit back and hope solar and wind can do enough with battery storage. It probably can’t. So we need something to handle base load. Nuclear is our best option for true energy independence.
Yes, that Washington.
Thorium molten fluoride
You’re thinking of western Washington. Eastern Washington is one of the least disaster prone areas in the country. No earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, etc.
Yes, but it is on the opposite side of the state from the earthquakes and subduction zones and pretty much in the same place as the WWII era superfund site.
And a lot of high paying engineering jobs. I look forward to it.
Ever hear of the Cascade mountain range? It is between the subduction zone and Hanford.
Eastern Washington is not known to have earthquakes.
Yep, that Washington.
The problems at Hanford were directly related to the Manhattan project. Currently the magnitude of the radioactive contamination at Hanford is staggering. Much of the waste is liquid — about 53 million gallons — as the chemical extraction process used at Hanford involved soaking the spent uranium fuel rods from the reactors in nitric acid to separate the plutonium. Liquid wastes are stored in 177 underground tanks; 70 are leaking, and a plume of radioactivity is seeping toward the Columbia River. There are 1,700 waste sites and about 500 contaminated buildings. NBC called it the most toxic place in American in 2016.
But there’s more. Years ago the river was polluted by the cooling system that diverted its water and by accidental spills, which were never fully recorded at Hanford so their scale is hard to know. Radiation reached the Pacific Ocean 200 miles away and contaminated fish and soil on its way. In 2013, Governor Inslee admitted that one tank was leaking up to 300 gallons a year; the contracted cleanup company knew–and did nothing. Still, authorities claim that none of the radiation is dangerous to public health. Local residents and workers disagree.
Around Hanford, people report unusually high rates of thyroid disorders, cancer, and handicaps, because of river pollution. In particular, Native American communities who rely on the river and salmon fishing to support their cultural way of life have been affected. On Hanford’s grounds, the Dept. of Energy “reported toxins in the air ‘far exceeding occupational limits’ and a ‘causal link’ between vapor exposure and lung and brain damage.”
Today, you can take a guided tour of the cleanup efforts at Hanford. But it won’t include these stories. And the people that take it aren’t aware they are walking into high amounts of vapor with roentgens that are raising their possibility of reaction. Had my share of them with the military....I’ll pass.
wy69