Nuclear energy and defence
Greg Sheridan writes about defence in The Australia and usually I find his writing well worth reading and thinking about.
He didn’t impress me this week though when he told what I regard as a straight-forward misrepresentation a lie about base-load power. He began with a whole lot of ad hominem slanging at The Greens likening them to Taliban fundamentalists. Having set his scene he went on to say: “You are not serious about climate change if you oppose nuclear energy. It is the only non-greenhouse gas-emitting alternative baseload energy supply available.”
This is simply not true. Baseload power is now being provided by solar systems with salt-storage as back-up to take it through the 24 hours across day and night. There is at least one group of project engineers in Australia Beyond Zero Emissions who have a fully worked out project plan using off-the-shelf current technology to take Australia’s energy industry to zero carbon emissions in less than 10 years. This is fully costed just like any big infrastructure project that Australia is so good at putting in place. Systems like they propose are operational in Spain right now.
Greg Sheridan seems to be arguing so unscrupulously against proponents of clean energy in Australia because he wants to argue strongly for Australia to buy nuclear submarines from the US.
Submarines probably can’t run on solar power even salt-storage boosted.
Australia has an urgent need to get serious about defending itself and submarines are definitely part of the equation. He makes an almost irrefutable argument for nuclear submarines. We need to think this through. Not easy stuff but we don’t get through it by bad-mouthing the whole clean energy industry and its proponents. This industry has a brilliant future ahead of it in Australia if we give it half a chance.
Ferny Grove has a symbol of our position on nuclear power. It is a sign on Samford Rd over the road from the BP Service Station saying that Brisbane in a Nuclear Free Zone.
Transition The Grove’s energy web-forum offers a place where locals can debate about topics like nuclear power. There is already a lot of discussion points on it. You are welcome to take part and put your point of view. Nuclear power is not easy. Neither is our nation’s defence. Have a think about these things. And do have your say.