Featured image by enriquelopezgarre from Pixabay
I’ve never been a fan of nuclear power. Let me put that statement in perspective. I have no problem with things which will blow up. I take it as a given if both politicians and MBAs are involved, piss poor planning will occur.
Less than an hour way from me there was a refinery on one side of the Interstate. Directly across from it was a massive oil storage yard and directly behind the storage yard was an arsenal which made great big shells that went boom for the military. If you want the full picture, not all that far away from them was a dynamite factory.
I have ridden through the area many times both as a child and an adult. Never worried about it. If something did happen, like a careless cigarette, it was going to take out quite a few square miles and you probably wouldn’t feel a thing. I’m pretty certain the people who lived in the condos/apartments close by had the same philosophy. During my sarcastic twenties I even thought it would be a golden opportunity for Waste Management to get a landfill close to Chicago because that was going to be a massive hole already dug. Just throw a liner down and park a scale beside it.
Chernobyl
Today I came across this article about the Chernobyl wildlife. Wolves passing through the region and ranging far appear to be passing along their mutations after absorbing a significant dose of radiation. Personally, I can’t believe it is that much different for migratory birds which pass through the area.
My position against nuclear power is that nobody has come up with a realistic method of disposing the waste. Throwing the stuff into a hole and covering it up isn’t a solution. Modern construction techniques cannot build a structure which will contain the radiation for the 10,000+ years it will be deadly. Wolves, birds, deer and all other forms of wildlife are illiterate. They can’t read the sign.
While we are at it, what about the insects? According to this Terminix page, mosquitoes can live for up to two months. How far can they fly in that amount of time? We are in a world of Zika and West Nile Disease. Have these diseases gotten anywhere near Chernobyl.
Godzilla
Everybody says Japan movie makers were wrong when they created Godzilla movies. Urban lore claims these Godzilla stories were brought about due to the fear of nuclear testing in the ocean. What about nuclear power plant disasters? Maybe the correct phrasing is they haven’t been right yet?
Lower levels of radiation cause cancer and mutations. This is a fact. Eventually the genetic mutation lottery will produce a winning ticket. When that happens, we lose.
