SCGI President's Message, November 2018

by Tom Blees

­The joys of the coming holiday season have been tempered by the recent IPCC report that paints an alarming picture of our planetary condition. The urgency of dramatically reducing global carbon emissions is real, yet few appear to believe that humans will make the seemingly hard choices necessary to meet the Paris Climate Agreement limits. Seen from the perspective of policy makers, the general public, and even think tanks, the battle seems unmanageable. SCGI, however, is uniquely positioned in the trenches at the front of this battle and we believe that game-changing victories are imminent.

Last month I was invited to attend a nuclear power conference in Mumbai, India. It was a sobering example of what we face. India currently derives less than 3% of its primary commercial energy from clean sources and its “ambitious plans” call for 25% of its electricity to be produced using nuclear power by 2050. Unfortunately, the country’s increase in electricity demand by 2050 will be far greater than this planned growth in clean energy because their current per-capita energy consumption is just a third of the world average and the population is growing. In fact, India is set to become the world’s most populous country by about 2022. In other words, India, the world’s third greatest energy consumer, does not have an energy generation plan that can even pretend to respond to climate change effectively. They are not alone. Neither do most other major nations in the world.

Click to read more

President Trump Signs Bill to Boost Advanced Nuclear in America

from www.energy.gov

President Donald Trump signed into a law new legislation that will speed up the development of advanced reactors in the United States.

The Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act (NEICA) eliminates some of the financial and technological barriers standing in the way of nuclear innovation.

It also represents a strong commitment by the government to support the commercial nuclear sector, ensuring that the U.S. maintains its leadership around the globe.

Hurricane Florence No Problem For Nuclear Power Plants

by James Conca (at Forbes)

Hurricane Florence, a potentially devastating Category 2 hurricane is on track to make landfall in the Carolinas sometime within 24 hours after this morning, Thursday, September 13. With winds up to 130 miles per hour, Florence could be the most powerful storm to hit so far north in the United States - ever.

NASA-NOAA satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean captured on September 11, 2018 at 11:45 AM EDT showing Hurricane Florence approaching the east coast with Tropical Storm Isaac and Hurricane Helene fast on her heels.NASA/NOAAUnfortunately, Tropical Storm Isaac, and Hurricane Helene are fast on her heels (see figure). Isaac is expected to upgrade to a hurricane before landfall.

Along with most everyone else, nuclear power plants in North and South Carolina, as well as Virginia, have been preparing for the natural onslaught.

Hurricane Florence will most likely hit two nuclear power plants operated by Duke Energy - their 1,870 megawatt (MW) Brunswick and 932MW Harris nuclear plants in North Carolina. If Florence turns north, it could also hit Dominion Energy's 1,676MW Surry plant in Virginia. Brunswick is expected to get a direct hit.

The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is watching carefully. But no one is really worried that much will happen, contrary to lots of antinuclear fearmongering. Power outages will occur as lines and transformers are destroyed and non-nuclear buildings get damaged, and it might takes a few days to a few weeks to bring power back up, something that includes all energy sources.