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Indian Point Nuclear Plant Shuts Down, and New York Races for Wind Power – Bloomberg

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Indian Point Nuclear Plant Shuts Down, and New York Races for Wind Power – Bloomberg

One of the pair of active nuclear reactors within blast radius of Manhattan made a federal safety watch-list back in 1993. That’s when regulators cited Unit 3 at the Indian Point Energy Center for leaky coolant pipes and faltering engineering support. Shortly thereafter a control-room operator tested positive for marijuana and cocaine. But none of that helped activists’ long quest to turn off the nuclear plant.

Up until Friday, when Indian Point’s final reactor will be shut down, dogged opposition from environmentalists and safety advocates failed for decades to shut it down permanently. The two reactors produced about 2.1 gigawatts of power for nearly 45 years—enough to meet a quarter of demand from New York City, without emitting greenhouse gas.

This should be a milestone for activists who spent more than a generation trying to remove the nuclear shadow over the biggest U.S. metropolis. It has instead brought into focus a different anxiety: global warming. In the intervening years concern over greenhouse gas has become paramount, and the deactivation of Indian Point comes with a certain—if temporary—increase in planet-warming pollution.

New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant closes after 59 years of operation – Today in Energy – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

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New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant closes after 59 years of operation – Today in Energy – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

The Indian Point Energy Center (Indian Point) permanently stopped generating electricity on April 30, 2021, when it retired its last operating nuclear reactor, Unit 3, earlier than originally planned. The Indian Point nuclear power plant began operations in 1962 and produced over 565 terawatthours (TWh) of electricity in the 59 years it was open. The Unit 3 retirement removes almost 1,040 megawatts (MW) of nuclear generating capacity from New York State, leaving about 3,200 MW of remaining nuclear capacity at three plants in upstate New York.

Indian Point is located in Buchanan, New York, about 25 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. The plant had three pressurized water reactors. Unit 1 began operations in 1962 and shut down in 1974. Units 2 and 3 began operations in 1974 and 1976, respectively; Unit 2 retired in April 2020. The Consolidated Edison grid system distributed the plant’s electricity to the five boroughs of New York City and neighboring Westchester County.

Energy Efficiency IV: Jevons’ Paradox, and Conclusion.

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Climate 201: Energy Efficiency IV: Jevons’ Paradox, and Conclusion.

4/12/21

Web player: https://podcastaddict.com/episode/121704200
Episode: http://pdcn.co/e/traffic.libsyn.com/physicalattraction/Climate_201_Energy_Efficiency_IV_Jevons_Paradox_and_Conclusion_pr2.mp3?dest-id=535856

In The Coal Question, Jevons – alongside realising that we needed a transition to renewable energy 150 years ago – posed the efficiency paradox. Using energy more efficiently motivates you to use more energy. Can energy efficiency “rebound” and backfire like this in real systems? That’s the question we explore in this episode.

A 50% Cut : NPR

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Biden Makes New Pledge For U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A 50% Cut : NPR

President Biden will begin a global summit on climate change Thursday morning by announcing that the United States will aim to cut its greenhouse gas emissions in half, based on 2005 levels, by the end of the decade.

That aggressive 2030 goal, which the White House is framing as a "50-52 percent reduction," will be formalized in a document called a "nationally determined contribution," or NDC.

The NDC is a public commitment to address climate change made by each country that signed onto the 2015 Paris agreement, which the U.S. formally left last year at the behest of former President Donald Trump and reentered this year after Biden took office.