By Kennedy Maize Wildfires, always a threat, particularly in the arid western U.S. have been particularly prominent of late. The region has been locked in a drought and the threat of the coming El Niño could make things worse. In Texas, the Austin American Statesman this week reported, “Dry weather and extreme heat over the … More Electric companies and wildfires: who pays?
By Kennedy Maize For 80 years, the U.S. government and its industrial and utility partners have failed to, first, understand the problem of the noxious and dangerous waste produced by the pursuit of nuclear power for war and peace and, second, to successfully respond. HANFORD It begins, as does much of the story of nuclear … More Failure: a short history of U.S. high-level nuclear waste mismanagement
By Kennedy Maize Washington’s latest attempt to deal with the nation’s high-level nuclear waste– mostly used nuclear fuel–kicking the canisters down multiple roads, is already generating political backlash. It’s likely to get worse for the grandiose, hasty, and convoluted Trump administration plan. DOE has indicated implementing may require Congress to pass new legislation and appropriate … More DOE unveils a new, controversial spent nuclear fuel disposal plan
By Kennedy Maize After more than a decade of wrangling, a $340 million plan to resolve water quality issues at Constellation Energy’s century-old Conowingo hydroelectric dam may be headed to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for a new license. But it’s not a sure thing. At an Aug. 13 Ocean City meeting of the Maryland … More Long running Maryland dam dispute resolution near?
By Kennedy Maize What’s the key to fusion energy making a significant contribution to powering the world? According to a new paper from a Massachusetts Institute of Technology team, the answer is “Q.” Writing in the Journal of Fusion Energy, the MIT researchers stress that the dominant thrust for fusion power in the past 75 … More MIT on fusion: It’s about the “Q” conundrum
By Kennedy Maize The Trump administration’s vendetta against wind energy has suffered another blow in federal court. A federal judge in Oregon has overturned Defense Department delays and then a complete halt on reviewing onshore wind projects to assure they don’t harm “military operations and readiness.” Judge Karin Immergut of the U.S. District Court for … More Federal court overturns Defense Department wind stall
By Henry Sokolski Once Washington greenlights nuclear fuel-making for Saudi Arabia, the spread won’t stop there. Iran will want to follow suit, which could lead to the UAE and Abu Dhabi wanting in on it, too. In an odd twist, Washington is now offering Saudi Arabia a pathway to the very nuclear activity – uranium … More Guest Commentary: The U.S. Saudi nuclear deal: Don’t settle, renegotiate
By Kennedy Maize From Michigan on the north to Louisiana on the south, New York on the east to Texas on the west, the U.S. push for enormous data centers to power the emerging artificial intelligence industry is producing growing opposition. The opponents don’t fit any ideological niche. There are MAGA and McCain Republicans, moderate … More Nationwide, spontaneous, grass roots data center backlash spreads
By Kennedy Maize President Trump’s push to revive U.S. coal is moving against market forces here and in the rest of the world. Coal’s accelerating decline is not the result of screaming greenies who want us all to freeze to death in caves but a result of economic fundamentals, with a sound environmental component. The … More Donald Trump’s “beautiful clean coal” faces an ugly worldwide future
By Kennedy Maize Congress and the courts are weighing in on the Trump administration’s actions dating to early in his arrival in D.C. for a second go-round, cancelling legal energy and environmental grants for purely partisan reasons. In a matter of two days early this month, prominent Congressional Democrats called on the Justice Department to … More Trump political energy and environmental grant cancellations draw fire