The tsunami and earthquake that hit Japan left the whole country rattled and in ruins. Many lost homes, businesses and loved ones. This has set the country back substantially, this is common knowledge. A large problem caused by the disasters is the affects it had on the nuclear power plants. The nuclear power plants where hit so hard that the foundations cracked, leaks began, and reactors became unstable. japan was faced with the harsh reality of shutting down their power plants, temporarily. They have been providing a third of the countries electricity. The community is nervous to get the generators back online but Yoshihiko Noda wants thems back up and running as soon as possible. They are already incurring large cost from trying to clean up and dispose of contaminated water. Measures have been taken to help aid the countries energy, alternative sources and conservative daily habits. If Japan doesn't fix their power crises, there will be a detrimental chain of events that will economic destruction.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46676913/ns/world_news-the_new_york_times/
4 comments:
Very interesting. I wonder about the impact at a global level. Since Japan is among the likes of the EU and the US, how will this potential energy crisis change the way that we deal with Japan. Will less trade harm both countries or will another country, like China, fill in the open space?
It's interesting to see just how much public opinion can affect a system. Japan is potentially losing a source of energy that provided 1/3 of the required energy to citizens. However, there is such strong public opposition to this type of energy that nuclear energy may not be able to start back up or reach its previous level. I would be interested to see if and how public opinion changes as other sources of energy become more expensive due to the lack of nuclear energy.
It the future what does this mean for investments in nuclear energy in at a global level. If the government has the ability to shutdown a power plant for the greater good of the community do investors in the plant get refunded or have to take a loss? What kind of legacy does this leave for energy investments in the future.
I agree that this may just a temporary situation. People in Japan had too much complains about the nuclear pollution after the disaster last year. Shutting down them could be a nice political move now. But totally giving up nuclear engergy is impossible for a country like Japan.
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