It seems every day we hear about the rising cost of fuel and despite a lack of new coverage, we also see the same trend in rising energy costs for home and office use.For many young people, these issues might not be a problem, especially when living as a dependent. However, your wallets will start whelping once you start driving. At $3 a gallon and with some cars taking up to 15 gallons of fuel it can be come prohibitively expensive to get around. It costs me almost $50 just to fill up!
The Problem
What people don't realise, however, is that the rising cost of gas for your car is closely related to the generation of power or electricty for homes and businesses.
Petroleum, AKA Crude oil, is naturally found in the earth and is processed at various refineries around the globe. The products of these refineries are used in a multitude of industries such as : The airlines, automobiles, heavy industries and even in power plants.
It should be noted that the normal laws of supply and demand apply in this situation. If the power plants were to use less petroleum to produce electricity, there would be more available for automobiles and therefore lower the price of gasoline.
There are also even more indirect benefits to lower gas prices! As the prices get lower, so does the cost of transporting goods (anything from Ipods and TVs to cabbages and Twinkys). In turn, those items may cost less. That means cheaper goods almost universally.
So then you ask, "how do we reduce or eliminate the use of petroleum products in the manufacturing of electricity?". The answer is to provide power from some other means. I will now examine the possible solutions to our need for cheap and renewable energy.
Wind
Wind may be free and plentiful but it certainly not the best solution to the problem. Even the most consistent of locations, wind speeds can vary and most wind turbines produce little power. The turbines are also highly cost to install and maintain and many consider wind farms to be ugly, scenery destroying emplacements.
Solar
What makes solar energy so appealing is that the technology can be installed almost anywhere with access to direct sunlight. Again, it is a source of energy with a crucial flaw, solar panels are expensive to produce and ultimately will not produce more energy than that of which went into making them. While not as ugly wind turbines, they are never-the-less, not the answer to our energy demands
Tidal/Oceanic
Despite some safety issues with boats and wildlife and a high installation cost, oceanic or tidal generators show some promise in being an energy provider in the future. Main downside is that it can be difficult and costly to transport the electricity from a river or ocean all the way to where its needed.
The overlooked option...
If theres one thing that politicians have avoided so completely it is nuclear power. Ever since the Long Islandand Chernobyl incidents, many live with a tabboo towards nuclear energy. There are many myths or misconceptions about nuclear power plants and I hope to dispell them and prove that it should be energy provider of the future.
MYTH #1: Nuclear Power stations give off harmful radiation
Truth: Nuclear power stations do not give off any radiation into the environment. All the water used in turning the turbines and for cooling the reactor is contained in seperate water systems. Some waste is generated but it is properly stored and sheltered from the environment.
MYTH#2: Nuclear Power stations are dangerous, they could explode!
Truth: Nuclear power stations are no more dangerous than any other type of powerplant or heavy industry. In fact, due the nature of attempting to sustain a reaction, it is nigh impossible for a given plant to explode or cause damage. Long Island and Chernobyl were caused by lack of, or poor maintenance.
The Benefits of Nuclear Power
Indefinetly Renewable - The substances used to start and maintain the fission are available in large quantities around the world and only require a small amount each time
Safe- See above
Cheap - While expensive to build, the availabiltiy of nuclear fuels makes it a much cheaper option in the long term.
So why aren't politicians campaigning for nuclear power? Perhaps the country isn't ready? Isn't it time stopped trying to pursue fairy tale dreams like solar power, ethanol and wind power and start looking at the technology we have had for decades?
What are your thoughts?
