Wall Street Journal, Nuclear Backlash Energizes Old Plants, by Rebecca Smith
Wall Street Journal, Gas Pipeline Operators Sweat Test, by Daniel Gilbert
Two articles in Thursday's WSJ about the USA's aging energy infrastructure.
The first points out that the anti-nuclear backlash caused by the Fukushima disaster in Japan is stalling construction of new nuclear reactors around the world, which will have the perverse effect of increasing our reliance on an aging stock of nuclear power plants. The U.S. produces more nuclear power than any other country in the world, with 104 power plants. Ground was broken on virtually all of these in the 1970s. They were originally licensed for use for 40 years, but according to the article, over 70 of the plants have already received 20 year extensions. Are 60-year-old nuclear reactors safe? I hope so. Meanwhile, regulators are conducting research to see if it would be feasible to operate a nuclear reactor for as much as 80 years.
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| from WSJ.com |
The article also points out that the energy industry has been finding it more attractive to construct natural gas fired plants as an alternative to nuclear plants. This sounds reasonable, except that over 60% of the U.S.'s natural gas pipelines were built before 1970--around 178,000 miles worth. A large portion of these older pipelines were never subject to pressurized water tests for leaks. The test became a requirement after 1970. Now regulators are considering making the industry go back and perform this test on all of the old pipelines. At between $125,000 and $500,000 per mile, the cost will be in the tens of billions.
I don't have the expertise to say how safe it is to continue using nuclear facilities and gas pipelines for 40, 50, 60 or more years. But it's pretty surprising to learn how truly old our country's energy infrastructure is.
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