(I wasn't sure if I was going to write a post today because of the pain from the tendonitis in my right elbow. But it is tolerable tonight, so I guess I can't back out. I rested it a lot and took my anti-inflammatory meds.)
When I think of an alternative energy source, the first thought that comes to my mind is when I was in college beaucoup years ago, we talked a lot about nuclear energy. It was going to be safe, clean, and cheap. Then we had the Three Mile Island meltdown. Coincidentally, the movie China Syndrome had been released just 12 days before. According to one source, no nuclear power plant in the US received approval to be built from1979 to 1990.
Now with new designs, smaller plants, and closer regulation, nuclear power plants are being built or consolidated. There are 32 companies licensed to operate power plants in the US. The Nuclear Energy Institute offers the following statistic:
Amount of electricity generated by a 1,000-MWe reactor at 90% capacity factor in one year:
7.9 billion KWh—enough to supply electricity for 690,000 households.
If generated by other fuel sources, it would require:
- Oil: 13.7 million barrels – 1 barrel yields 576 KWh
- Coal: 3.4 million short tons – 1 ton yields 2,297 KWh
- Natural Gas: 65.8 billion cubic feet – 100 cubic feet yields 12 KWh
(based on average conversion rates from the Energy Information Administration)
