By Peter Moore O n February 2, Energy Minister Stephen Lecce announced the early completion of the Darlington nuclear plant refurbishment. “The unit is now complete and will be returning to service four months ahead of schedule, the overall refurbishment project coming in $150 million under budget,” according to the ministry press release. “Ontario is …
Many are scared of what they can’t see (radiation), which isn’t completely indefensible but tends to be exaggerated way beyond the actual risks.
Others are afraid of what they see as “unnatural”, not realizing that nuclear fission is so natural that Mother Nature has at least once spontaneously created a fission reactor without the involvement of human hands. (Seriously—it was in Gabon. And there may be more whose remains we haven’t found.)
Anyway, the big heavy-water CANDUs like the ones at Darlington are pretty damned safe by my understanding, and should shut down spontaneously under most failure modes. I’d rather live next to one of them than next to a coal plant.
…in a press conference on May 26 with the Kebaowek First Nation to denounce the construction of the disposal facility, raising concerns about the high cost of $1.5 billion, and the risk of leaks into the drinking water of downstream communities, including Ottawa.
Many are scared of what they can’t see (radiation), which isn’t completely indefensible but tends to be exaggerated way beyond the actual risks.
Others are afraid of what they see as “unnatural”, not realizing that nuclear fission is so natural that Mother Nature has at least once spontaneously created a fission reactor without the involvement of human hands. (Seriously—it was in Gabon. And there may be more whose remains we haven’t found.)
Anyway, the big heavy-water CANDUs like the ones at Darlington are pretty damned safe by my understanding, and should shut down spontaneously under most failure modes. I’d rather live next to one of them than next to a coal plant.
This article doesn’t discuss nuclear safety. This writer’s previous work on federal nuclear investments did: