QUICK NEWS, April 3: TO BE SAFER, NUCLEAR HAS TO BE EVEN MORE UNAFFORDABLE; VIRGINIA APPROVES OFFSHORE WIND DEMO; MORE SUN FOR THE ARMY

TO BE SAFER, NUCLEAR HAS TO BE EVEN MORE UNAFFORDABLE
Analysis of 251 Reactors Built or Cancelled in the U.S. Finds that Intractable Safety Issues Have Steadily Escalated Nuclear Costs and Fukushima Makes It Likely That Future Reactors Will Suffer the Same Fate, Driving Final Nail in Coffin of ‘Nuclear Renaissance’
March 29, 2012 (Institute for Energy and the Environment/Vermont Law School)

"…The high cost of addressing nuclear power safety concerns that are steadily multiplying in number is now the Number 1 factor guiding new nuclear reactor construction decisions, as well as the plans for retiring old reactors in the U.S., according to a new paper…by leading analyst Mark Cooper…senior fellow for economic analysis at the Institute for Energy and the Environment of the Vermont Law School…

"…[Cooper] analyzed a full set of data on 251 U.S. nuclear reactors planned or docketed at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Two dozen variables influencing the three key junctures in the development of nuclear reactors -- the build/cancel decision, construction costs and repair/retire decisions – were examined by Cooper…[who] also compared the historical evidence on the state of U.S. nuclear safety from the early years of the industry (up to and including the accident at Three Mile Island) to the ongoing reviews of the catastrophe at Fukushima conducted by the U.S., Japan, and major European nuclear nations."

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"Cooper’s conclusion: The cost of new nuclear reactors in the United States has risen steadily and will continue to do so since the industry cannot escape steadily growing safety concerns that seem to be inseparable from the technology itself…"

[Cooper:] “Acquisition of new nuclear reactors embodies long-term commitments in exactly the wrong way for the current decision making environment. It commits to assets that have high risk or create large exposure to uncertainty with technologies that have vague long-term prospects (unstable resource availability and poorly understood environmental impacts). Unfortunately, admitting what you do not know is not something that the builders and operators of nuclear reactors are inclined to do. Their reaction is to insist their reactors are safe and commit to making them safer, but then complain bitterly about and fight additional safety measures that inevitably increase their already high costs.”


VIRGINIA APPROVES OFFSHORE WIND DEMO
Towering wind turbine prototype off Va. Approved
Steve Szokotak, March 27, 2012 (Washington Post)

"Spanish wind giant Gamesa Energy Inc. has Virginia’s approval to construct a 479-foot wind turbine prototype off the Eastern Shore.

"…[T]he Virginia Marine Resources Commission unanimously approved the 5-megawatt wind turbine…It will be located in the lower Chesapeake Bay about three miles off the town of Cape Charles. Completion is scheduled for late next year."

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"…[Governor Bob] McDonnell hailed the development and construction of the prototype as an important step and said it puts Virginia at the forefront of clean energy technology development.

"Gamesa is partnering with Huntington Ingalls Newport News Shipbuilding to develop and test new offshore wind technologies…One of their goals is to reduce the cost of wind power."


MORE SUN FOR THE ARMY
Fort Hood Activates 684 kW PV Installation
28 March 2012 (Solar Industry)

"The U.S. Army's base at Fort Hood, Texas, has activated a 684 kW photovoltaic system at the base's Liberty Village Military Housing facility. Axium Solar and SCHOTT Solar PV partnered with the base's leadership on the project.

"The four-acre ground-mount solar energy system will generate an estimated 1 GWh of energy annually, which is roughly 20% of the energy consumed in the 300 homes at Liberty Village…"

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"…Universal Services Fort Hood, the operator of the housing village, financed the $3 million project and will own, operate and maintain the system.

"Axium, a solar engineering, procurement and construction firm, executed the four-month project to install the solar energy system. SCHOTT provided the modules…[This contributes to the] Department of Defense…25% renewable energy by 2025 [goal]…"