Bedtime Facts (85/365)

in bedtime-facts •  7 years ago 

France has the highest share nuclear generated electricity of all use of all countries

Blue = Operating reactors, building new reactors
Light blue = Operating reactors, planning new build
Green = No reactorsm building new reactors
Light green = No reactors, planning new build
Yellow = Operating reactors, stable
Red = Operating reactors, decided on phase-out
Black = Civil nuclear power is illegal
Gray = No reactors

Image Credit

In France, 72.3% of all used electricity was generated by nuclear power plants in 2016. In that year, there were 31 countries with nuclear power plants. One would be tempted to say that the French consider air quality to be particularly important for a country of such varied large scale agricultural production if it weren't for the popularity of diesel engines in cars in France.

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That's probably the reason France is one of the top electricity exporters.

With few natural energy resources, maybe they decided to invest in nuclear energy because it gave them more independence, and well not have electric power plants that burn coal must contribute a little to there levels of CO2 be lower than other first world countries so that's an extra, but what happened in Japan sure had to put them to think it twice.

One factor that motivated the French to develop their nuclear industry was possibly the fact that they wanted to avoid any chance of being occupied like they were between 1940 and 1944 in the future. Perhaps the French wanted to use their uranium enrichment plants for both civilian and military purposes.

  ·  7 years ago (edited)

I had not thought about that a self-destruct button maybe? I don't know, I'm going to be realistic I don't think this project started for ecological reasons, I bet was around the oil crisis of the 70s so it was more towards the economic, but if it has deeper roots and they want to use a weapon that would be badass. Like Iran's nuclear program that was supposed to be to develop a nuclear power plant and then someone said it was to create bombs, I really do not know how that ended.

The same enrichment plants that produce weapons grade (high grade) enriched uranium can also be used to produce reactor grade enriched uranium (much lower).

  ·  7 years ago (edited)

It really seems paradoxical to want to take care of the environment using these types of energy generators, forgetting the pollution caused by diesel engines,

This image is very informative and complete. And if that were not enough, my country does not have, I think that the countries are much more complete if they have a great variety of energy sources. Of course taking the necessary care with nuclear energy as in this case.

Do you think that the use of nuclear plants in the world is a good idea?... It is inevitable that the world adapts to produce this type of energy, but with so many earthquakes in the world it does not make it more dangerous if more and more places have nuclear plants? ... I just ask myself that question.

To meet the global demand for electrical power there are two choices: fossil fuels or nuclear. Renewables do not scale to meet the growing demand for baseload power. So, basically you have fossil fuels, nuclear and no power. No power is deadly because absent of electricity, people burn solid fuels such as wood or coal to cook their food and to heat their homes. Burning solid fuels, particularly in small scale, produces a lot of small particles that are responsible for millions of deaths from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases every year.[1] Burning fossil fuels is the root cause of climate change, also deadly through more frequent extreme weather events, rising sea levels causing arable land to be inundated and lost through ground water salination. Climate change causes prolonged droughts in some areas with soil suitable for agriculture such as the Indus valley by melting glaciers in the Himalayas that act as reliable natural round-year sources of fresh water.[2] Climate change is the most serious challenge humanity has faced for a very long time. It will destabilize societies and make hundreds of millions of people refugees.[3] Nuclear fission has a very low death rate from accidents on a per produced terawatt hour basis. [4]

Deaths per terawatt hour produced

Image Credit

  1. http://indiaclimatedialogue.net/2014/07/17/millions-die-indians-still-cook-wood-dung/

  2. https://phys.org/news/2013-03-indian-drought-himalayan-glaciers-retreat.html

  3. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/nov/03/global-warming-climate-refugees

  4. https://ourworldindata.org/what-is-the-safest-form-of-energy

What a contrasting country. If they are particular about their air quality, then their ambiental pollutuion should be reduced by stopping the production or importation of diesel engine cars. The exhaust is not good for plants and consequently for man and animals.

ive been there. also the electricity there has more current than america. if i didnt know that my laptop would be fried if i charge it

Higher voltage. 230 V. What kind of transformer does your laptop charger have?

not sure. all i know is that my laptop and charger is from america and i got to watch out if I plug my chord whenever i travel to europe