Nuclear, NO CLEAR?

Nuclear, NO CLEAR?

Post-apocalyptic future is one of the most popular themes in pop culture right now. With movies, games and novels such as Mad Max and Fallout, one can't help  but wonder what intriguing stories the artists can create within a wild world with no civilization to speak of. Despite all the effort people put in these setting to make a post-apocalyptic world looks and feels unique and beautiful, one can still remember there was an era when the threat of nuclear winter was absolutely real, and the end of the world could happen in any second.

The Cold War strikes the fear of nuclear power into generations of people. We all have seen the destructive power of a handful of Uranium bars, in the documentaries, in the movies. So it wouldn't come to a surprise whenever a nuclear power plant is built, people will immediately start to question the necessity and safety of its exiestence. In Germany, Merkel's government made the promise in 2011 to close all nuclear power plant before 2022. After the tragic events happened in Fukushima, 8 of the 17 existing nuclear power plants were shut down permanently. 

Nuclear power provided 1/3 of the total power generation in German. The phasing out of nuclear power, some consider, will cause damage to German industry. And the price of electricity rises as nuclear plants getting shut down.

Now, the phasing out of nuclear power is not necessarily a bad thing since German plans to replace them with renewable energies, which can be fantastic in terms of sustainability. However, what worries me is the notion of  replacing a totally viable energy source based on the fear of the masses, almost an expression of anti-intellectualism. Nuclear power is a better option for power generation than fussell foil, and as in right now it is more viable in many regions than many sustainable energy solutions. A large porprotion of the population is supportive toward shutting down the plants due to the lack of knowledge about nuclear power. And one can't help but think that the decision making of Merkel is partially to please German voters.

German can afford to tear down these nuclear power plants, but some other countries can not. Phasing out nuclear power is not a bad concept in itself, but it should be a long-term process, not a sudden decision made to desperately trying to please the ignorant massess.

Reference:

http://bos.sagepub.com/content/67/4/14.abstract

http://www.uic.com.au/nip46.htm