@Rogers While Gen I and II reactors have their problems, I'd argue the reason for failures have been poor engineering of auxiliaries (Fukushima) and poor management/communism (Chernobyl)
Fukushima was due to an earthquake and tsunami combination knocking out the diesel coolant pumps. That was poor engineering of the pumps, not the reactors. Three Mile Island should be a reason why nuclear power is good (no damage done to anyone, and reactor 1 is still running to this day and is planned to keep running until 2034). Heck, even the other 3 reactors at Chernobyl kept operating through the 1990s.
Even with a worst-case scenario (literally Chernobyl), the death toll for nuclear is far below fossil fuels and even below solar in terms of deaths per kilowatt-hour.
People are scared of nuclear energy because bombs. I understand that fear, given the levels of destruction they can cause (and, due to the people in charge of them... How on earth did my country elect that jackass?!?).
Speaking of, have you heard of the megatons to megawatts project? What it did was take old Soviet nukes and convert them into fuel for American reactors. Nuclear power is actually able to help reduce arms.
Unfortunately, all types of electrical energy generation will cause environmental issues or fatalities in some manner. It is up to us to choose the correct combination that minimizes the damage.
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@Rogers While Gen I and II reactors have their problems, I'd argue the reason for failures have been poor engineering of auxiliaries (Fukushima) and poor management/communism (Chernobyl)
Fukushima was due to an earthquake and tsunami combination knocking out the diesel coolant pumps. That was poor engineering of the pumps, not the reactors. Three Mile Island should be a reason why nuclear power is good (no damage done to anyone, and reactor 1 is still running to this day and is planned to keep running until 2034). Heck, even the other 3 reactors at Chernobyl kept operating through the 1990s.
Even with a worst-case scenario (literally Chernobyl), the death toll for nuclear is far below fossil fuels and even below solar in terms of deaths per kilowatt-hour.
People are scared of nuclear energy because bombs. I understand that fear, given the levels of destruction they can cause (and, due to the people in charge of them... How on earth did my country elect that jackass?!?).
Speaking of, have you heard of the megatons to megawatts project? What it did was take old Soviet nukes and convert them into fuel for American reactors. Nuclear power is actually able to help reduce arms.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megatons_to_Megawatts_Program
Unfortunately, all types of electrical energy generation will cause environmental issues or fatalities in some manner. It is up to us to choose the correct combination that minimizes the damage.