this post was submitted on 24 May 2025
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Discussion of climate, how it is changing, activism around that, the politics, and the energy systems change we need in order to stabilize things.

As a starting point, the burning of fossil fuels, and to a lesser extent deforestation and release of methane are responsible for the warming in recent decades: Graph of temperature as observed with significant warming, and simulated without added greenhouse gases and other anthropogentic changes, which shows no significant warming

How much each change to the atmosphere has warmed the world: IPCC AR6 Figure 2 - Thee bar charts: first chart: how much each gas has warmed the world.  About 1C of total warming.  Second chart:  about 1.5C of total warming from well-mixed greenhouse gases, offset by 0.4C of cooling from aerosols and negligible influence from changes to solar output, volcanoes, and internal variability.  Third chart: about 1.25C of warming from CO2, 0.5C from methane, and a bunch more in small quantities from other gases.  About 0.5C of cooling with large error bars from SO2.

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It's worth noting that he also fired many of the staff who know how to ensure that they're actually safe, as well as the staff who would approve financing.

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[–] Aurenkin@sh.itjust.works 52 points 3 weeks ago

If there's one thing that you should compromise on when it comes to nuclear power it's definitely safety.

[–] hydrashok@sh.itjust.works 29 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Hey good news everyone, instead of 40 years to build a new reactor, it’ll only take 39 years. What a relief. Good thing we didn’t fall for all that free sunlight and wind bullshit!

Hey, maybe nuclear plants can run on clean coal!

[–] GissaMittJobb@lemmy.ml 23 points 3 weeks ago (7 children)

Beginning investments nuclear at this point when renewables so obviously to everyone in the know are beating them on all accounts is extremely on brand for someone as dumb as Trump

[–] Vytle@lemmy.world 12 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Nuclear is the single best technology humans have invented. A broken clock is right twice a day.

[–] GissaMittJobb@lemmy.ml 18 points 3 weeks ago (5 children)

Being able to harness the power of atoms is cool, but directly harnessing the power of a star is arguably far cooler.

[–] mycelium_underground@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago (6 children)

I'm confused as to what you think powers a star.

[–] Tetragrade@leminal.space 4 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

solar panels, duhh. why'd you think they were called that?

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[–] PagPag@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

They are suggesting that pursuing fusion is better…

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[–] uniquethrowagay@feddit.org 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Nuclear doesn't scale globally and it's not renewable. It's contribution to humankind's power generation negligible and it will stay that way.

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[–] endeavor@sopuli.xyz 2 points 3 weeks ago

Nuclear is great and all but only when done safely.

diaper donny is saying "donny like fire, make more fire, donny no care where make fire, fire must be more since i say fire good"

This will end up with everyone burning down everything.

[–] Mihies@programming.dev 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (5 children)

Nope, today nuclear actually makes sense. Renewables are cool and relatively cheap but only as long as they output power. Then what? Spin up that coal power plant such as during night? And produce a ton of climate warming co2 and a lot of pollution. The problem is that we don't have energy storage nor a viable solution for it. Said that, cutting corners is a big no-no.

[–] ChairmanMeow@programming.dev 11 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Nuclear doesn't make sense for that purpose because it'd have to quickly be able to spin up and down. Most reactor designs aren't really able to do it quickly in normal operations, and those that can can't do so in a way that makes any economic sense. They're financially outcompeted by their alternatives.

Storage is the solution, which we can build today in a viable way and is rapidly becoming cheaper and cheaper.

The financial case for nuclear today is shoddy at best. It's why no company wants to touch it with a ten-foot pole unless heavy government subsidies are involved. The case for nuclear in ten years is, given the continuous advancements in renewable energy costs and battery storage tech, almost certainly dead.

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[–] M1ch431@slrpnk.net 9 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (4 children)

If we got our head out of our ass and invested into battery tech - e.g. sodium-ion batteries or proton batteries, we could very quickly build sustainable energy storage instead of relying on technology that is potentially dangerous or continuing to rely on fossil fuels.

[–] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 3 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Nuclear has similar but opposite problem of renewables. Its hard to tune down and back up in power output, and its economics require near full capacity, and high market prices,to justify them.

Renewables are always better, because they don't need as high market electricity prices, they have short and modular development times, modular battery addition.

Nuclear projects require suppression of renewables to ensure limited competition in supply, when they are finally built.

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[–] endeavor@sopuli.xyz 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

What makes you think todays modern world where even cigarettes are battery powered we do not invest in battery tech?

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[–] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago (17 children)

If you start a nuclear project today, you'll get it in 20 years. And that's for conventional reactor designs with all their well known flaws. If you spend the same money on renewables and storage, you'll have it all up and running next year. We don't have 20 years. We need solutions now.

[–] Rakonat@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (4 children)

This isn't even remotely true. Japan builds nuclear reactor in average of 5 years.

Edit for the down vote brigade:

80% or all nuclear reactors go from official planning to commercial production in under 10 years.

The longest process in building a nuclear reactor is cutting through red tape and getting permits cause of all the NIMBY and idiots progating mytha and lies about nuclear that originate in fossil fuels lobby.

Nuclear is the most ecologically friendly and safe power generation source we have until industrial scale fusion gets hammered out.

[–] 100_kg_90_de_belin@feddit.it 7 points 3 weeks ago

I wouldn't trust the Trump administration with building a styrofoam model of a nuclear reactor.

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[–] punkisundead@slrpnk.net 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

but only as long as they output power.

We could say the same about nuclear power:

EDF cuts nuclear production in reaction to soaring temperatures

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[–] GissaMittJobb@lemmy.ml 4 points 3 weeks ago (12 children)

No, we have viable energy storage solutions already. We haven't built them out, but they are already feasible. And the best part about them is that they get more feasible each year, while nuclear becomes less and less feasible each year.

Assuming that you start today, by the time the first nuclear plant comes online, it will be so wildly uncompetitive that only huge amounts of subsidies will be able to keep it running.

Closing down existing nuclear was a mistake, and there's probably an argument to be made that scaling back on its construction and R&D was also a mistake. But trying to go back to nuclear at this point when renewables and storage are so obviously taking over is a larger mistake.

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[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 19 points 3 weeks ago

great idea, nothing wrong will come from pressuring the nuclear power regulators. nuh uh.

[–] AmazingWizard@lemmy.ml 11 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

It really depends on what these reactors are going to be used for. Are they going to be licensed to private corporations to power data centers, or are they going to provide power to citizens homes?

[–] skozzii@lemmy.ca 10 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Individually alot of his ideas could be good, with proper care and planning. Instead he does them all at once without any sort of considerations, its wild to witness this train wreck.

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[–] collapse_already@lemmy.ml 7 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

I am sure making consideration of climate change impacts illegal during the approval process won't have adverse consequences. When the water used to cool the reactor dries up, we'll have plenty of money and foresight to just pump it in from somewhere else, right?

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[–] Steve@communick.news 6 points 3 weeks ago

We need to work on permitting of New plants. Not new construction of Old plants.

But I get it, Don likes towers.

[–] Blackmist@feddit.uk 5 points 3 weeks ago

Quite glad that America is far away from where I am.

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

If the nuclear industry is going to be quadrupled, and gas and oil are similarly enlarged, and renewables are at least not shrinking, what are people supposed to do with all that extra power in such a short time? I mean, I get that induced demand is a thing but... a quadrupling of long-standing industries? Is there any intention for this plan to be realistic?

[–] mycatsays@aussie.zone 6 points 3 weeks ago (6 children)

Feed the hungry AI, I guess?

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[–] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago

Trump doesn't do realism.

[–] thefluffiest@feddit.nl 4 points 3 weeks ago

Soviet quality nuclear plants. Great idea. What could possibly go wrong?

[–] Ton@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Great, more power at unrealistic prices in… 2045.

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[–] belated_frog_pants@beehaw.org 3 points 3 weeks ago

I seem to remember something going wrong before when corners were cut with nuclear...

[–] lemmydividebyzero@reddthat.com 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Probably, the comapny behind the reactors (the only one who has a financial benefit) promised to build a Trump tower instead of the cooling tower, so 2 companies/families benefit now and 99.9% have to pay for that.

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