Heat Meets Nuclear Power Plants

We’ve known for years that nuclear power plants are detrimental to the energy transition. This type of power generation is inflexible and cannot adapt to fluctuations in wind and solar power. Now it’s becoming clear that climate change alone is making it impossible to operate many nuclear power plants. Last summer, several nuclear power plants in France had to be shut down because the rivers on which they were built no longer carried enough water for cooling. Ausgestrahlt.de writes in its latest newsletter:

Numerous European countries have already had to reduce output or shut down nuclear power plants. Due to the extremely low water level of the Danube, only one of the four reactors at the Paks nuclear power plant in Hungary was operating last week; at times, there was even a threat of a complete shutdown of the plant.

In Switzerland, at the end of July, both reactors at the Beznau nuclear power plant were taken offline for the third time in just a few weeks because the Aare River had become too warm. In Romania, one reactor at the Cernavodă nuclear power plant was shut down due to the extremely low water level of the Danube. To keep the second reactor running a few days longer, the navy blasted a rock and, through additional emergency measures, diverted more water to the power plant. In France, three reactors are offline because the Meuse and Moselle rivers are not carrying enough water due to the heat. Other reactors have had to reduce their output. And in the United Kingdom, at the end of July, an area larger than 200 soccer fields burned just a few kilometers from the Sizewell nuclear power plant.

Nuclear power is not climate-resilient

On the contrary: Climate change is exacerbating the problems of nuclear power — especially in Europe. Nevertheless, numerous countries in Europe want to tackle the climate crisis with, of all things, new reactors and reactor life extensions — and with support from Brussels! The German government must now prevent the EU from continuing to pour billions into backward-looking nuclear projects. It is high time for an energy system that is safe and affordable and that functions reliably even in an increasingly hot world! ...

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

Read more https://www.ausgestrahlt.de/

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