An American Fukushima coming to Washington State next ??

Happyflowerlady

Happyflowerlady

Vagabond Flowerchild
Location
Northern Alabama
You may remember, a short while back, we were discussing the leaking reactor at the Hanford Nuclear power plant in southeastern Washington State ??
The problem is still to be resolved, and some are even suggesting that more of the reactors could be having problems.

Well, the situation just got a new element to factor in; and this could be serious, if they don''t get it taken care of. A new report in the news mentions that the Wanapum Dam in Eastern Washington has a crack in it. The crack is about 65' long, and 2" wide. They don't know what caused the crack, but Washington is certainly known for smaller earthquakes, so that might be one possibility.

Anyway, a quick check of the map shows that the dam is located not far upstream from Hanford, which is near the Tri-cities area (Pasco, Richland, Kennewick) , so if the dam should get additional stress and collapse, not only will it be wiping out towns in the area, but would also probably do some serious damage to the Hanford facility.
Then, the Columbia would carry that downriver past Portland, and into the Pacific Ocean, adding to the radiation issues we already have that are coming from Japan.

Here is an article on the Hanford Plant that explains what is happening there, and a screenshot of the part of Washington State where the Dam and the Nuclear Plant are located.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/03/01/concerns-raised-about-nuclear-waste-tanks-at-hanford/
 

I've heard stories about potential problems in the US too, and unfortunately the people in charge are reactive, instead of proactive. :(
 
It's probably not that it's a waste of time...the issue is always ...MONEY.
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But with repairs to these tanks running $100 million EACH, I think that would buy a heck of a lot of alternative research and development.

Not to mention (but I will anyway!) that when a solar panel breaks or a wind tower stops working, you don't mutate thousands of people for the next few generations.
 
SifuPhil said:
But with repairs to these tanks running $100 million EACH, I think that would buy a heck of a lot of alternative research and development.

Not to mention (but I will anyway!) that when a solar panel breaks or a wind tower stops working, you don't mutate thousands of people for the next few generations.
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Just to stick my oar in; I feel wind and solar power are seen by most; especially our leaders; as small scale, and they want a large and impressive solution...in one or two places.

The arguements over siting wind turbines in UK are unbelievely long, convoluted and entrenched.....never the twain..
 
Vivjen said:
Just to stick my oar in; I feel wind and solar power are seen by most; especially our leaders; as small scale, and they want a large and impressive solution...in one or two places.
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Totally agree. I just think that that kind of thinking has to change, for the good of mankind, otherwise we're going to be facing a lot more Fukushimas.

I think they want they control and the profit more than anything else.

The arguements over siting wind turbines in UK are unbelievely long, convoluted and entrenched.....never the twain..
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We have a few arguments like that here as well - people stating they can't take the noise (?), or that the endangered Blue-Chested Booby is flying into the blades. :rolleyes:

Thing is, if they think THAT'S bad, try giving birth to a three-headed baby ...
 
I think that solar is well worth the cost of setting it up, as well. People who have used solar and/or wind power to live off-grid, have been able to make it work fine on an individual scale; and I believe that it can also be adapted to use on large scale energy needs.
When we had the bad tornadoes here a few years back, I used the little solar lights in the house. Every day, we sat them out in the sun, and brought them inside at nite for lite. They were just the little ones that I had along the edge of the lawn, so not really bright, but certainly better than no light at all.
I have been gradually adding small solar powered items, and chargers, just in case of another power outage like that.

The article that I posted addresses the cost of updating all of the holding tanks, and that is ONLY for the tanks used for the spent radioactive materials, not the cost of making NEW plants and holding tanks.
Plus, there are earthquakes in that area, so what is to say that we can't get a large enough one to affect the power plant, just like happened in Japan.
The storage tanks are actually right along the river, between the cracked dam, and the Tri-Cities. I am posting a picture showing how close recent quakes have been to both the nuclear facility and the dam.

Here is a great you tube video from a lady who is familiar with the area, and the maps showing just where everything is located.
http://youtu.be/5YlbOY78Nfc
 

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