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safety
The Nuclear Safety Paradox
Over the past several months, a thought has been at the back of my mind about nuclear safety. I feel is important to enter this issue into the ongoing discussion about Nuclear Power in our country. [read more]
Why 60 MPG Can Be as Standard as Catalytic Converters, Airbags, and Seatbelts
One of the first cars I drove was my dad’s Buick Regal. I was only 14, but my older brothers let me sit behind the wheel. After college, I moved to DC and was happy to have an old VW Rabbit to wedge into tight parking spaces. I have fond memories of both those cars—they brought me a taste of freedom—but they can’t hold a candle to today’... [read more]
Talk to the (invisible) hand (of the free market)
You can find the whole comic here, permission from Tom Morrow. [read more]
Elementary Particles, Complex Challenges
This is a guest post from the Breakthrough Generation blog. To read more writings from this year's 2010 Breakthrough Fellows, head to http://breakthroughgen.org. By Mark Caine, Breakthrough Fellow Environmentalists have long couched their opposition to nuclear power in the argument that tinkering with elementary particles to produce... [read more]
Nuclear Energy Safety Is Different From the Deepwater Horizon Oil Drilling Safety
There is a depressing meme circulating around the Internet and in the commercial media that attempts to use BP's incredibly costly accident on the Deepwater Horizon as a reason why we should avoid using nuclear energy. (See, for example, BP spill an argument against nuclear power.) The very idea of trying to use what is happening in the... [read more]
Nuclear Energy Practitioners Spend Their Careers Thinking "Something Could Go Wrong" AND Planning How to Respond
There is an interesting discussion taking place on ScienceBlogs.com on a post titled The myopia of energy production: "Nothing will go wrong". The post is quite short, consisting mainly of a cartoon that plays on the world's intense concern about the continuing uncontrolled gusher deep in the Gulf of Mexico to raise safety questions... [read more]
Was the Advent of the Power Reactor Premature?
The Light Water Reactor has never been an unqualified success. It is perceived as dangerous by many people, the disposition of its spent fuel remains a matter of political controversy, and it is often alleged, quite wrongly, to be a useful nuclear proliferation tool. In addition the light water reactor has taken much criticism... [read more]
Friday Factoids: Fatalities from Energy Production Accidents
Update: Thanks to Karen Street for bringing it to our attention that there have, in fact, been at least 11 fatalities from wind power accidents in the U.S. According to the Caithness Windfarms Information Forum, there have been 47 fatalities directly as a result of wind power worldwide. Here are some Friday Factoids to stew on over... [read more]
Oil Industry Can Learn from Nuclear’s Good Safety Record
The oil spill currently threatening the Gulf Coast – not to mention the future of offshore drilling – is a reminder that no technology is without risk or cost when it comes to producing energy. In the past few months we’ve had a serious explosion at a natural gas plant and a coal mining tragedy that both cost lives. Just last... [read more]
Motives for Molding Public Opinion On Climate Change - Al Gore Contrasted With Fossil Fuel Interests
I have recently been visiting a blog published by the American Gas Association. It is both a learning experience and a bit of Sun Tzu motivated research. It is obvious from the blog posts that the utility segment of the natural gas industry wants to take advantage of concern about climate change and CO2 emissions as a selling point for... [read more]
Redoubling the Commitment to Safety
Editor's note: The following is a guest post from API's President and CEO Jack Gerard. In a USA Today op-ed, Gerard announced the oil and natural gas industry is forming two task forces "to review technologies and procedures to improve safety." Jack's comments on the tragic Deepwater Horizon accident are below: This was a tragic... [read more]
Explosions and Slicks - More Reasons for Considering the Benefits of Nuclear Energy
I am not a fear monger. I enjoy the fruits of human civilization and celebrate the accomplishments of engineers, designers, architects, manufacturers and builders. I recognize that consuming energy at a high rate is the very definition of "power" and that power is the ability to do work. However, I also love the natural world and want... [read more]
The Future of Offshore Drilling
In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon accident, one of the most often asked questions is: What does this mean for the future of offshore drilling? While many people are understandably concerned about the safety and environmental risks associated with offshore drilling, we are encouraging all Americans not to rush to judgment on this... [read more]
Overreaction to Outside Pressure Puts Vermont Yankee Safety Culture Into Question
In an long delayed effort to prove to Vermont legislators that they are taking action to correct leakage of mildly radioactive water into the ground under the buildings that house Vermont Yankee, Energy as announced that they have disciplined 11 senior employees, five of whom have been removed from their positions and placed on... [read more]
Privacy and the emerging smart grid: lessons from the Internet
My good friend Ann Cavoukian, Ontario’s privacy commissioner, has co-authored a new report that highlights the potential privacy breaches that could result as we move toward a smart grid infrastructure, one that will certainly have dozens of applications layered on top with the capability of capturing information about how and when we... [read more]
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Baby You Can Drive My (Electric) Car
Posted May 11, 2012 by Scott Edward Anderson
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Siemens develops ABS plastic alternative
Posted May 9, 2012 by Doris de Guzman
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Reduce CO2 and Slow Global Warming?
Posted April 30, 2012 by Willem Post
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Hidroenergia 2012
May 25, 2012, Wroclaw, Poland
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WGC 2012 - 25th World Gas Conference
June 4, 2012, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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Ecwatech 2012
June 4, 2012, Moscow, Russia
The moderated community for energy, policy, and environment professionals
What's New on
Scott Edward Anderson is a consultant, blogger, and media commentator who blogs at The Green Skeptic. More »
Marc Gunther is a writer, speaker and consultant, who focuses on business and the environment. More »
Christine Hertzog is a consultant, author, and a professional explainer focused on Smart Grid. More »
Jesse Jenkins is the director of energy and climate policy at the Breakthrough Institute. More »
Robert Rapier works in the energy industry and writes and speaks about energy and the environment. More »
Geoffrey Styles is Managing Director of GSW Strategy Group, LLC and an award-winning blogger. More »
Dan Yurman is a nuclear energy blogger and writes regularly for Fuel Cycle Week. More »
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Global JOJOBAWORLD 2012
When: Fri, 2012-05-25 09:00
Hidroenergia 2012
When: Fri, 2012-05-25 09:00
NESCO Town Hall: Security Risk Management Practices for Electric Utilities
When: Wed, 2012-05-30 13:00
Ecwatech 2012
When: Mon, 2012-06-04 09:00
WGC 2012 - 25th World Gas Conference
When: Mon, 2012-06-04 09:00
2nd CSP Optimisation Summit
When: Tue, 2012-06-05 08:00
“Cities will need to be retrofitted, as a whole. There's much work to be done. Vertical farming and other forms of energy/space/agriculture integration will be necessary to further sustain how humans live on this planet.”
“David,Reserves, potential resources and production are not interchangeable, and apocalyptic statements that depend on conflating them are thus fundamentally flawed. Your cogent analysis makes this crucial distinction well. It just needs a bigger audience.”