Creature from another time . . .

As an illustration of the safe and cost effective use of nuclear power, John McCain goes to visit the Fermi nuclear plant outside Detroit City.

The Fermi plant? Only took them almost four years to clean up the mess from the liquid metal fast breeder of Fermi 1 and then it only ran for two years after that. The utility powers-that-be briefly considered evacuating Detroit when it partially melted down. The best selling book "We Almost Lost Detroit" by John G. Fuller (1976) highlighted the Fermi event. There's also the famous Gil Scott-Heron tune of the same name [lyrics]. Fermi 2 had better luck which isn't saying much.

"That when it comes to people's safety,
Money wins out every time.
And we almost lost Detroit,
This time, this time."

A very excellent example to highlight, Senator.

McCain Touts Nuclear Power's Safety At Plant That Had a Partial Meltdown - CBS News - 05 Aug 08

"To show his support for nuclear power, John McCain toured the Enrico Fermi Nuclear Plant here today, comparing the safety of the plant to the Navy's warships he was stationed on."

"The plant, 30 miles outside Detroit, hasn't always had the best safety record. One of the reactors had a partial meltdown in 1966, and although there were no injuries or release of radiation, the accident allegedly led to the term 'China syndrome,' after an engineer said the nuclear reaction 'could go all the way to China.'"

Creature from another time . . .

As an illustration of the safe and cost effective use of nuclear power, John McCain goes to visit the Fermi nuclear plant outside Detroit City.

The Fermi plant? Only took them almost four years to clean up the mess from the liquid metal fast breeder of Fermi 1 and then it only ran for two years after that. The utility powers-that-be briefly considered evacuating Detroit when it partially melted down. The best selling book "We Almost Lost Detroit" by John G. Fuller (1976) highlighted the Fermi event. There's also the famous Gil Scott-Heron tune of the same name [lyrics]. Fermi 2 had better luck which isn't saying much.

"That when it comes to people's safety,
Money wins out every time.
And we almost lost Detroit,
This time, this time."

A very excellent example to highlight, Senator.

McCain Touts Nuclear Power's Safety At Plant That Had a Partial Meltdown - CBS News - 05 Aug 08

"To show his support for nuclear power, John McCain toured the Enrico Fermi Nuclear Plant here today, comparing the safety of the plant to the Navy's warships he was stationed on."

"The plant, 30 miles outside Detroit, hasn't always had the best safety record. One of the reactors had a partial meltdown in 1966, and although there were no injuries or release of radiation, the accident allegedly led to the term 'China syndrome,' after an engineer said the nuclear reaction 'could go all the way to China.'"

McCain Dismisses Hundreds of Dollars in Fuel Savings

He's really turning into Annoying Man on energy issues. Of course, who would want to keep their tires inflated when you can just drill the hell out of things?

Getting Better Mileage, AAA Offers Some Tips On Saturday Early Show - CBS News - 03 Aug 08

"According to Goodyear, even tires that are only 4 to 5 psi (pounds per square inch) below recommended inflation pressure reduce gas mileage by ten percent."

Yokohama Reminds You to Check Your Tire Pressure Regularly - 22 Apr 08

"'Drivers across the U.S. can battle rising gas prices by simply maintaining proper tire inflation,' said Takao Oishi, Yokohama Tire Corporation CEO and president. 'Current statistics indicate that 82 million vehicles have under-inflated tires, which means more rubber is hitting the road and, accordingly, miles-per-gallon is lessened. In fact, tire experts speculate that 2.8 billion gallons of gas is wasted by U.S. drivers each year simply because they're driving on under-inflated tires.'

The Auto Club and its partners estimate that a Southern California motorist who drives an average of 12,000 miles annually on tires that are under-inflated by 5-8 PSI is wasting up to 50 gallons of gasoline, or $192.50 (at $3.85 a gallon). That's close to the cost of a week's worth of groceries ($226) for a family of four, according to the US Dept. of Agriculture. If there are two drivers in the family, that total comes to $380, well over a week's worth of food for the family."

McCain Dismisses Hundreds of Dollars in Fuel Savings

He's really turning into Annoying Man on energy issues. Of course, who would want to keep their tires inflated when you can just drill the hell out of things?

Getting Better Mileage, AAA Offers Some Tips On Saturday Early Show - CBS News - 03 Aug 08

"According to Goodyear, even tires that are only 4 to 5 psi (pounds per square inch) below recommended inflation pressure reduce gas mileage by ten percent."

Yokohama Reminds You to Check Your Tire Pressure Regularly - 22 Apr 08

"'Drivers across the U.S. can battle rising gas prices by simply maintaining proper tire inflation,' said Takao Oishi, Yokohama Tire Corporation CEO and president. 'Current statistics indicate that 82 million vehicles have under-inflated tires, which means more rubber is hitting the road and, accordingly, miles-per-gallon is lessened. In fact, tire experts speculate that 2.8 billion gallons of gas is wasted by U.S. drivers each year simply because they're driving on under-inflated tires.'

The Auto Club and its partners estimate that a Southern California motorist who drives an average of 12,000 miles annually on tires that are under-inflated by 5-8 PSI is wasting up to 50 gallons of gasoline, or $192.50 (at $3.85 a gallon). That's close to the cost of a week's worth of groceries ($226) for a family of four, according to the US Dept. of Agriculture. If there are two drivers in the family, that total comes to $380, well over a week's worth of food for the family."

Drilling Schmilling

It will take a long time to get more into off-shore oil production and it probably won't jiggle the meter very much.

Offshore drilling rigs are unavailable and they can only make so many of them (and at a heck of a price). How much can be produced (and at what cost) seems to be based on who is doing the guessing. Some reports are not encouraging however.

Dearth of Ships Delays Drilling of Offshore Oil - NY Times - 19 Jun 08

"...the world's existing drill-ships are booked solid for the next five years. Some oil companies have been forced to postpone exploration while waiting for a drilling rig, executives and analysts said."

Lifting Drilling Ban Wouldn't Do Much for Gas Prices, Report Says - Minnpost - 09 Jul 08

"Citing figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the center said that at full production - which would be more than 20 years off, the EIA projects - offshore reservoirs may yield 200,000 barrels of oil per day. 'This is only about two-tenths of a percent of current world production, and that's not enough to affect world prices,' said Dean Baker, the lead author of a CEPR report entitled 'Offshore Drilling and Energy Conservation: The Relative Impact on Gas Prices'."

Drilling Schmilling

It will take a long time to get more into off-shore oil production and it probably won't jiggle the meter very much.

Offshore drilling rigs are unavailable and they can only make so many of them (and at a heck of a price). How much can be produced (and at what cost) seems to be based on who is doing the guessing. Some reports are not encouraging however.

Dearth of Ships Delays Drilling of Offshore Oil - NY Times - 19 Jun 08

"...the world's existing drill-ships are booked solid for the next five years. Some oil companies have been forced to postpone exploration while waiting for a drilling rig, executives and analysts said."

Lifting Drilling Ban Wouldn't Do Much for Gas Prices, Report Says - Minnpost - 09 Jul 08

"Citing figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the center said that at full production - which would be more than 20 years off, the EIA projects - offshore reservoirs may yield 200,000 barrels of oil per day. 'This is only about two-tenths of a percent of current world production, and that's not enough to affect world prices,' said Dean Baker, the lead author of a CEPR report entitled 'Offshore Drilling and Energy Conservation: The Relative Impact on Gas Prices'."

New French Nukes Have Low Availability

This is about the availability that the Ainsworth, NE wind farm has in the winter. And the price is a lot nicer.

How the N-Deal Will Play Out - Livemint (India) - 05 Aug 08

"Much has been written in the Indian press of low availability of power from indigenous power plants. But the four newest nuclear power plants in France in their first four years have averaged only 45% in energy availability."

New French Nukes Have Low Availability

This is about the availability that the Ainsworth, NE wind farm has in the winter. And the price is a lot nicer.

How the N-Deal Will Play Out - Livemint (India) - 05 Aug 08

"Much has been written in the Indian press of low availability of power from indigenous power plants. But the four newest nuclear power plants in France in their first four years have averaged only 45% in energy availability."

New Biofuel Crops Cut Acres in Half

I've always said that corn is just a bridge crop until someone comes up with something a bit better. In the old days, they used to talk about Jerusalem artichokes as being a high gallon per acre crop. Now it's something called Miscanthus. Time will tell. We're still in the very early stages of all this.

Mix in some plugin hybrids powered by renewables and Bob's your uncle.

Miscanthus Shows Great Potential as Ethanol Feedstock - Renewable Energy World - 01 Aug 08

"Using corn or switchgrass to produce enough ethanol to offset 20 percent of gasoline use - a current White House goal - would take 25 percent of current U.S. cropland out of food production, the researchers report. Getting the same amount of ethanol from Miscanthus would require only 9.3 percent of current agricultural acreage."

New Biofuel Crops Cut Acres in Half

I've always said that corn is just a bridge crop until someone comes up with something a bit better. In the old days, they used to talk about Jerusalem artichokes as being a high gallon per acre crop. Now it's something called Miscanthus. Time will tell. We're still in the very early stages of all this.

Mix in some plugin hybrids powered by renewables and Bob's your uncle.

Miscanthus Shows Great Potential as Ethanol Feedstock - Renewable Energy World - 01 Aug 08

"Using corn or switchgrass to produce enough ethanol to offset 20 percent of gasoline use - a current White House goal - would take 25 percent of current U.S. cropland out of food production, the researchers report. Getting the same amount of ethanol from Miscanthus would require only 9.3 percent of current agricultural acreage."

28% Wind in Europe by 2030?

Of course the Wall Street Journal editorial board is regularly telling us this can't be happening. Again, time will tell.

Wind Energy Could Provide 28% of EU Electricity by 2030 - Renewable Energy World - 01 Aug 08

"According to the SRA (Strategic Research Agenda), wind energy could cover 12-14% of the EU’s electricity consumption by 2020, with a total installed capacity of 180 gigawatts (GW). This could increase to 22-28% of consumption and 300 GW by 2030."

The report PDF file is here.

28% Wind in Europe by 2030?

Of course the Wall Street Journal editorial board is regularly telling us this can't be happening. Again, time will tell.

Wind Energy Could Provide 28% of EU Electricity by 2030 - Renewable Energy World - 01 Aug 08

"According to the SRA (Strategic Research Agenda), wind energy could cover 12-14% of the EU’s electricity consumption by 2020, with a total installed capacity of 180 gigawatts (GW). This could increase to 22-28% of consumption and 300 GW by 2030."

The report PDF file is here.

If There Was Any Justice in The World

With a nod to haddayr's recent post.

Dexter Avenue North in Seattle has new bike lanes.

If There Was Any Justice in The World

With a nod to haddayr's recent post.

Dexter Avenue North in Seattle has new bike lanes.

Nukes - All About the Money - Your Money

Forbes (of all sources) really outlines the true plight of the nuclear industry. It's unaffordable by any normal means of financing.

Nukes Need Money - Forbes - 06 Aug 08

"There's a concern tempering the industry buzz, and it has nothing to do with nuclear waste, though that still remains a significant issue. The problem: money. In simplest terms, there's no such thing as a small, cheap nuclear power plant.

Speaking at a nuclear energy conference at the Center for Strategic and International Studies last week, NEI lobbyist Richard Myers said a new, two-unit nuclear power plant could cost as much as $14 billion. By comparison, the entire market capitalization of many companies in the industry is barely double this, or smaller."

"A nuclear renaissance could run upwards of $200 billion in construction costs alone. This makes financing a plant extremely difficult, and it is why investment bankers like John Gilbertson at Goldman Sachs [...] and John Matthews at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius believe that a loan guarantee program from the federal government is of crucial importance."

Nukes - All About the Money - Your Money

Forbes (of all sources) really outlines the true plight of the nuclear industry. It's unaffordable by any normal means of financing.

Nukes Need Money - Forbes - 06 Aug 08

"There's a concern tempering the industry buzz, and it has nothing to do with nuclear waste, though that still remains a significant issue. The problem: money. In simplest terms, there's no such thing as a small, cheap nuclear power plant.

Speaking at a nuclear energy conference at the Center for Strategic and International Studies last week, NEI lobbyist Richard Myers said a new, two-unit nuclear power plant could cost as much as $14 billion. By comparison, the entire market capitalization of many companies in the industry is barely double this, or smaller."

"A nuclear renaissance could run upwards of $200 billion in construction costs alone. This makes financing a plant extremely difficult, and it is why investment bankers like John Gilbertson at Goldman Sachs [...] and John Matthews at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius believe that a loan guarantee program from the federal government is of crucial importance."