fukushima
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Panasonic capitalizes on earthquake by replacing factories with ‘smart towns’
Panasonic, the largest appliance maker in Japan, has announced plans to shutter 20 percent of its 230 factories in order to cut costs. But rather than lose that land, the company is capitalizing on Japan’s post-earthquake need for housing. It’s replacing the factories with “smart towns,” featuring "solar panels, energy-efficient refrigerators and rechargeable batteries," the company tells Bloomberg.
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Tepco bulldozed hill that could have prevented Fukushima disaster
When engineers first assessed the future home of the Fukushima nuclear power plant that would eventually melt down in response to a tsunami, the site featured a striking, 82-feet-high bluff that overlooked the ocean below.
It was more than high enough to have withstood the tsunami that struck the site in March.
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Do you live near America's Fukushima?
This infographic from 1BOG.org — click for the much bigger original, which has details about all the plants — shows at-risk nuclear facilities in the United States. Most of the ones situated in high-population areas (the larger gray circles) don't coincide with the high seismic risk areas (yellow and red), so that's comforting … but […]
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Why closing NYC's only nuclear power plant would be a really bad idea
Rawwwrrr! It's a progressive cat-fight! On the one side is New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who wants to shut down the Indian Point nuclear power plant on the Hudson River, just 25 miles north of the Bronx.
On the other side is Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who thinks this would be a really crap idea, mostly because it would mean replacing fully a quarter of the power delivered to NYC with greenhouse-gas-emitting fossil fuel power plants. Also, it would probably lead to brownouts.
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Nuclear power is fine — it's corporate power that's dangerous
In the Guardian, George Monbiot argues that nuclear power was the least of Fukushima's problems. Sure, the nuclear industry is corrupt and regulation-resistant -- but name a power industry that isn't. When it comes to health threats, says Monbiot, the conscienceless scumbags in the nuclear industry are miles ahead of all the other conscienceless scumbags.
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Germany Sets the Bar for a Green Energy Future
Today is a historic day in Germany and for green energy world wide. The German Parliament has made a precedent setting move – not only have they set a plan to phase out all nuclear by 2022, but the Parliament has committed to renewable energy like wind and solar as the replacement. The decision will […]
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Critical List: New York could approve fracking; animals get stoned
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo wants to open up private land in the state to hydrofracking.
Children living near Fukushima tested positively for radiation exposure.
Want to get all riled up before the weekend? Get your fix of climate skepticism here. -
More radioactive water leaks at Fukushima
Japan's damaged Fukushima plant is now holding oceans of contaminated, radioactive water in its storage tanks, and that water keeps leaking out. Today, the country's Nuclear Industrial Safety Agency said that fifteen tons or so of water had leaked.
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Critical List: EPA delays rules on carbon emissions; Bachmann hates the EPA
The EPA is delaying until September rules that would regulate power plants' greenhouse gas emissions. Michele Bachmann has a great plan for the agency, should she become president: Rename it "the job-killing organization of America." That will solve everything! Fukushima clean-up has been a comedy of errors when it comes to safety protections. Many aren’t […]