Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Canada + Oil Sands + Nuclear Power = Good or Bad?

Martian · 04-24-2006, 07:34 PM

BigBen, I'm not really sure where you're going with this.

Are you proposing building a dedicated CANDU reactor specifically for extracting oil from the oil sands? I suppose that could be feasible.. and you're the pro when it comes to economics, but it seems to me that any advantage gained in extracting oil more efficiently would be offset by the cost of the reactor itself. Those things aint cheap.

CANDU reactors are safe and efficient. Myself and several million other Canadians are staking their lives on the safety of those reactors daily. Hell, I live between a pair of them (Darlington to the east, Pickering to the west), I better hope they're alright.

The downside, as has been mentioned, is the NIMBY value. Safe or no, a lot of people don't like the idea of living next to one of those suckers. People hear about those things being built, they think Chernobyl.

But let's assume, for the sake of argument, that some crazy venture capitalist with a fortune to rival Bill Gates invests in this idea and that we do find a site for it. Then what? Developing an infrastructure for this reactor would likely be a nightmare in and of itself. Were we to do so, I can't imagine it would take the form you seem to be envisioning; if all we did with the plant was extract oil from sand, we'd be wasting thousands of megawatts (and potentially billions of dollars) in energy potential.

So, if what you mean to be implying in a roundabout way is that we should start examining nuclear energy as a valid alternative to fossil fuels, you'll get no argument here. I happen to trust in human greed; as it becomes less economically viable to depend on fossil fuels, other options will come to increasing prominence. But how you're relating this to the oil sands is something I'm not sure I understand.

04-24-2006, 07:34 PM	#12 (permalink)
Martian Young Crumudgeon Location: Canada	BigBen, I'm not really sure where you're going with this. Are you proposing building a dedicated CANDU reactor specifically for extracting oil from the oil sands? I suppose that could be feasible.. and you're the pro when it comes to economics, but it seems to me that any advantage gained in extracting oil more efficiently would be offset by the cost of the reactor itself. Those things aint cheap. CANDU reactors are safe and efficient. Myself and several million other Canadians are staking their lives on the safety of those reactors daily. Hell, I live between a pair of them (Darlington to the east, Pickering to the west), I better hope they're alright. The downside, as has been mentioned, is the NIMBY value. Safe or no, a lot of people don't like the idea of living next to one of those suckers. People hear about those things being built, they think Chernobyl. But let's assume, for the sake of argument, that some crazy venture capitalist with a fortune to rival Bill Gates invests in this idea and that we do find a site for it. Then what? Developing an infrastructure for this reactor would likely be a nightmare in and of itself. Were we to do so, I can't imagine it would take the form you seem to be envisioning; if all we did with the plant was extract oil from sand, we'd be wasting thousands of megawatts (and potentially billions of dollars) in energy potential. So, if what you mean to be implying in a roundabout way is that we should start examining nuclear energy as a valid alternative to fossil fuels, you'll get no argument here. I happen to trust in human greed; as it becomes less economically viable to depend on fossil fuels, other options will come to increasing prominence. But how you're relating this to the oil sands is something I'm not sure I understand. __________________ I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame