Fukushima is an ongoing disaster

[FluffyMcDeath]

The people have lost faith in their government (as people around the world are doing) and realizing that government is done on behalf of special interests. Protests against nuclear power are growing in Japan:

but we hear very little about it in Canada.

 

[Robert]

Not much coverage over here either.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

And on it goes. Reports of a sudden rise in radioactivity in the ground water and ocean.

 

[redrumloa]

Animals near Chernobyl have done better than most including me would expect. Not saying it is a comfort or anything...

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

Animals near Chernobyl have done better than most including me would expect. Not saying it is a comfort or anything...

Animals prosper where humans fear to tread. It's just that we are more of a danger to them than radiation is.

If pulling fish out of the sea becomes a health hazard we might see a rebound in ocean productivity.

 

[faethor]

http://www.slate.com/articles/healt..._mutations_and_populations_of_plants_and.html

Mutations are up and lifespans are down compared to non-Chernobyl areas. Though one big problem in the analysis is we don't know what the before picture looks like. As such we really can't compare a before picture to the after picture.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

Mutations are up and lifespans are down compared to non-Chernobyl areas.

That's not necessarily entirely negative on balance. As a culture we tend to focus on individuals but evolution cares more about populations. Deleterious mutants will die quickly. So long as those left continue to breed above the attrition rate it's all good(ish).

 

[robert l. bentham]

no worries... we'll just get uncle sam to adjust the acceptable levels for inflationary times to a larger percentage to a diminished sampling... the free market at work!!

 

[faethor]

Every caught California Bluefin Tuna is contaminated

 

[Robert]

Japan acknowledges first radiation-linked death out of Fukushima
The man is the first to have his death linked directly to Fukushima's meltdown.

 

[redrumloa]

And on it goes. Reports of a sudden rise in radioactivity in the ground water and ocean.

The only energy source with no downside is geothermal. Why it is not implemented everywhere possible is beyond me.

 

[JoBBo]

@ redrumload

Any drilling can cause surface instabilities. It can also cause undesired emissions of gases that are trapped underground.

It is also not the cheapest option around although it might look a lot more favorable if you consider external costs (such as health costs and loss of productivity due to air pollition, etc.) that are more favorable compared to, say, coal power plants.

I am not saying it is a bad option at all but every form of power generation has some disadvantages.