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Could Safer, Cheaper Modular Nuclear Plants Reshape Coal Country?

Monday February 20, 2023. 09:34 AM , from Slashdot
'No massive cooling towers, miles of concrete, expansive evacuation zones,' writes the Washington Post, describing modular nuclear reactors instead as 'space-age plants that can be small enough to fit in a large backyard,' using 'downsized' reactors like the ones on nuclear-powered submarines.

And America's coal country 'is a ripe target for this experiment, with infrastructure that can be repurposed, capable workforces and communities eager to reclaim prominence in the energy economy.'
More than 300 retired and operating coal plants in the United States are good candidates for a nuclear conversion, according to a recent Department of Energy report that has touched off a frenzy of activity. Communities that previously rejected nuclear power as unsafe or a threat to the coal industry are now clamoring to be a part of what might be branded nuclear 2.0. 'See that hilltop over there?' said Michael Hatfield, a former coal company engineer who is now the administrator for Wise County [in Virginia]. 'If you put a nuclear plant someplace like that, it is not going to be near anybody's backyard. This would keep us in the forefront of the energy business. We see it as our future....'

It was only a year ago that nuclear power was banned in West Virginia, under a state law intended to protect the coal industry. The state is among several to either lift such a ban or pass a law encouraging development of small nuclear reactors over the last few years. Political leaders see opportunities to boost regional economies and to get a piece of the billions of dollars in subsidies for generating 'advanced nuclear' power available through the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act.... Virginia is among at least eight states pursuing a small reactor. At least another eight have launched feasibility studies, according to federal energy officials.

And back in Washington D.C. there's also high hopes for the technology:
U.S. climate envoy John F. Kerry said in a recent interview with The Post that the technology's success is vital for meeting the world's goal of avoiding the most catastrophic fallout from climate change by limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

'I don't think we get there without it,' Kerry said.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.
https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/23/02/20/0655259/could-safer-cheaper-modular-nuclear-plants-resh...
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