According the the NYT, 10% of electricity in the United States is generated from old nuclear bombs, almost half of those from the former USSR. Although this statistic is kinda creepy, anti-nuke folks might find some comfort in the fact that because the program is now running out of fuel (set to expire in 2013), more weapons disarmament is needed to maintain the supply. From FP Passport:
The old program, known as Megatons to Megawatts will end in 2013, but because nuclear plants need to buy fuel three to five years in advance, the issue is of utmost importance right now. A new supply of fuel would become available if the United States and Russia would agree to renew the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which expires in December. Currently the USA has 2,220 warheads and Russia has 2,800. With or without the added Soviet fuel, the US is investing heavily in the old-bombs-to-new-fuel strategy, as a factory is being built in South Carolina to dismantle American warheads. It will be able to recycle 34 tons of nuclear fuel that can power a million homes for 50 years.
I’m still not sure how I feel about this program – and it is certainly of little comfort for those against nuclear power altogether - but it is one way to use market incentives to encourage weapons reduction.
Below, 10,000th Warhead Delivery, as a cylinder containing warhead-derived LEU from Russia is delivered to Paducah, Kentucky:
posted by behemothing
Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
That truck should stay away from me, the creepy bastard.
This coaxed another gap in my understanding of fission/fusion bombs and nuclear energy out: How does the waste from the nuclear plant compare to the bomb itself? More or less volume? Harder to contain? Differences in half-life/safety?
I _just_ learned that all the BIG bombs are fusion bombs for Pete’s sake.