Quote:
Originally Posted by John Mercier
It isn't that humans are doing all of it... just we are speeding it up.
The politics are simply we tax the things we don't want, and subsidize the things we do want.
The mini-splits and electric vehicles allow us to use grid capacity that we have to pay for but goes unused. The support for high efficiency wood and pellet stoves allow us to short-cycle the carbon. Our push for better windows and building envelopes allow us to actually conserve energy.
I once saw someone suggest that NH use more nuclear. Only one problem. Most of NH's electric generation is nuclear... a second reactor at Seabrook would require a transmission upgrade - something unlikely to happen after the reaction to the Northern Pass... and the only other location with the existing transmission infrastructure is the only coal plant currently in NH.
Arguing to shut the coal plant permanently would create a political storm not worth the effort.
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Seabrook's reactor is approx 1200 MW/h so it can support close to a million homes. Transmission lines would be needed if they had built Seabrook Unit 2 as originally planned.
Nuclear is a solid, carbon free power source so we need to have it as part of our US energy strategy at least for the short-term. It is very difficult to bring new units online in the US. Vogtle brought their first Westinghouse AP1000 on line in GA a year or so ago. It can be done but it is pricy!
https://www.georgiapower.com/company/plant-vogtle.html