Brilliantly written. I get the sense that even on left leaning voters, the opinion regarding nuclear is slightly shifting and they are increasingly welcoming the idea.
I'm learning to trust you on, oh, I don't know, *everything,* but I still want to know how we safely and permanently store nuclear waste and all that glowing water from the cooling pools.
Jun 10, 2022·edited Jun 10, 2022Liked by Bill Heath
Street-level observations:
- In addition to the fact that electric vehicles *do* have a carbon footprint, as you note, their purchase price/cost of entry is substantially higher. The working poor -- those of them who can afford a vehicle -- drive gas-burning cars, typically older and less fuel-efficient ones. Tax credits for purchasing electric cars only benefit the already wealthy. In my view, proposals to increase taxes on both petroleum fuel and gas-driven vehicles are a redistributive policy meant to transfer wealth from the poor to the rich; champagne socialism at its finest.
- I recently succumbed to telephonic solicitation and had a solar company give me an estimate for installing panels on my house. (I live south of I-70; solar actually makes sense here.) I ran the numbers and found out that the solar system would actually cost me more per month than my average electric bill via the local utility. I don't make enough money for the federal tax credit to be an inducement. I passed.
I note that my electric usage is comparatively low because I strive to keep it that way -- e.g. I use an evaporative cooler and don't have central air conditioning -- so solar might make financial sense for a household that uses significantly more energy than mine. I'm ready to admit that my situation might be an outlier, but I doubt it's unique.
i really enjoyed https://boriquagato.substack.com/p/price-of-gasoline-too-high-buy-an?s=r as he looks at the economics. I admit not to go through the analysis in detail, but it seems a reasonable argument. At some point we will be able to develop the technology to mine hydrogen at reasonable costs and master storage. Those H2 vehicles will then be an economical solution to more expensive future fossil fuels.
If not for the insanity of the greenies we would be much closer to modular mini-reactors suited well for neighborhoods. The shift from centralized power production to modular grids enables that technology. Rooftop solar with advanced battery storage (not Li-ion) may also be viable neighborhood solutions. The mini-reactor generally fails in $/kWh but gains in long term sustainability costs.
But the notion we are going to be able to have mass use of EVs based on Li-ion is nonsense and those who promote it are simply deluded.
I looked at the Georgia power website. A lot of power in Georgia is hydro--https://www.georgiapower.com/company/energy-industry/energy-sources/hydropower.html
Brilliantly written. I get the sense that even on left leaning voters, the opinion regarding nuclear is slightly shifting and they are increasingly welcoming the idea.
I'm learning to trust you on, oh, I don't know, *everything,* but I still want to know how we safely and permanently store nuclear waste and all that glowing water from the cooling pools.
This was a tour de force.
Street-level observations:
- In addition to the fact that electric vehicles *do* have a carbon footprint, as you note, their purchase price/cost of entry is substantially higher. The working poor -- those of them who can afford a vehicle -- drive gas-burning cars, typically older and less fuel-efficient ones. Tax credits for purchasing electric cars only benefit the already wealthy. In my view, proposals to increase taxes on both petroleum fuel and gas-driven vehicles are a redistributive policy meant to transfer wealth from the poor to the rich; champagne socialism at its finest.
- I recently succumbed to telephonic solicitation and had a solar company give me an estimate for installing panels on my house. (I live south of I-70; solar actually makes sense here.) I ran the numbers and found out that the solar system would actually cost me more per month than my average electric bill via the local utility. I don't make enough money for the federal tax credit to be an inducement. I passed.
I note that my electric usage is comparatively low because I strive to keep it that way -- e.g. I use an evaporative cooler and don't have central air conditioning -- so solar might make financial sense for a household that uses significantly more energy than mine. I'm ready to admit that my situation might be an outlier, but I doubt it's unique.
i really enjoyed https://boriquagato.substack.com/p/price-of-gasoline-too-high-buy-an?s=r as he looks at the economics. I admit not to go through the analysis in detail, but it seems a reasonable argument. At some point we will be able to develop the technology to mine hydrogen at reasonable costs and master storage. Those H2 vehicles will then be an economical solution to more expensive future fossil fuels.
If not for the insanity of the greenies we would be much closer to modular mini-reactors suited well for neighborhoods. The shift from centralized power production to modular grids enables that technology. Rooftop solar with advanced battery storage (not Li-ion) may also be viable neighborhood solutions. The mini-reactor generally fails in $/kWh but gains in long term sustainability costs.
But the notion we are going to be able to have mass use of EVs based on Li-ion is nonsense and those who promote it are simply deluded.
I looked at the Georgia power website. A lot of power in Georgia is hydro--https://www.georgiapower.com/company/energy-industry/energy-sources/hydropower.html
Still thinking I see. Good!
Nuclear waste U.S. could power the U.S. for 100 years
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/02/nuclear-waste-us...