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there is a potential for recovery of about 1300 MW of energy from solid and liquid wastes generated by various industry sectors such as, sugar, pulp and paper, fruit and food processing, sago / starch, distilleries, dairies, tanneries, slaughterhouses, poultries, etc. dclxxxviii Of this potential, 65 MW of grid connected projects and 47 MWeq of off-grid projects have been implemented as on March 31, 2010. dclxxxix Biogas The country also has a huge potential of setting up biogas plants in the rural areas to produce biogas from organic materials like cattle dung. Biogas can be used for providing cooking fuel, for lighting gas lamps, and for operating duel fuel engines. According to the MNRE, a potential of setting up 12 million biogas plants exists in the country, which can generate an estimated 17,340 million cubic meter of biogas, apart from providing high quality organic manure. So far, 4.12 million family type biogas plants have been set up. dcxc (v) Ocean Energy The ocean can produce two types of energy: mechanical energy from the tides and waves (known as tidal energy and wave energy respectively), and thermal energy from the sun's heat. Tidal power converts the energy of tides into electricity or other useful forms of power. Tidal power is very site specific; for India, the most attractive locations are the Gulf of Cambay and the Gulf of Kachchh on the west coast, and the Sunderbans in West Bengal. Wave power uses the energy of the ocean surface waves to do useful work — like electricity generation, water desalination, or the pumping of water into reservoirs. Ocean thermal energy refers to the solar energy trapped by the ocean. Because of this, ocean’s layers of water have different temperatures, and this can be transformed into usable energy. The theoretical potential of ocean energy is huge, several times greater than the global electricity demand. The identified economic tidal power potential in India is of the order of 8000- 9000 MW; while India’s 6000km long coastline has a wave energy potential of 40,000 MW. The potential of ocean thermal energy is even more. However, most of the technologies to extract usable energy from the ocean remain in the investigation or demonstration phase. The most advanced is tidal energy, wherein a few plants are in commercial operation around the world. dcxci C. Adopting Decentralised Energy Systems The current energy paradigm in India is to build large centralised power generation systems, mainly thermal plants (coal, gas), large dams, and now nuclear power plants as well. Inherent within such a generation system are very long transmission lines, a hugely complex distribution system, and a network of transformers to step up and step down the voltage of electricity being transmitted. Each of these adds to the complexity, reduces the efficiency, increases the electricity losses, and results in increased capital and operational costs. These factors make centralised generation systems based on large power plants an economical option only for concentrated loads. 166
Indian villages are spread over wide distances, most do not have large populations, and development levels are low. So they cannot provide the substantial loads that towns and cities can. Therefore, while supplying them electricity from a centralised electricity generation system requires long transmission lines and so is expensive, on the other hand for the same reason it also involves huge transmission losses. A very simple, efficient and cost-effective solution to this problem is making use of decentralized power generation systems (meaning electricity generated at or near the point of use), based on renewable sources of energy. These can be a mix of wind, micro hydel, solar and biomass, depending on the location and availability of local resources. (We discuss renewable energy sources in the next section.) Since a decentralized generation system is connected to a local distribution network, instead of a high voltage transmission system, the losses are very low. Even if the cost of electricity from this decentralized system is more than generation cost of conventional grid electricity, because of the huge costs and losses involved in transmitting the latter to remote villages, the real end cost of conventional electricity to the consumer would in most cases be more than decentralized electricity. And, as we see below, costs of decentralized electricity are rapidly falling, making it an even more attractive solution. Further, such a system is cheaper, produces less carbon emissions, has none of the environmental, health and social costs associated with large conventional power plants, and finally, also has the benefit that it empowers local people as they can easily control and manage the electricity supply system. Part IV: The Potential of the Alternate Energy Paradigm The above analysis shows that it is possible to solve India’s energy crisis with an Alternate Energy Paradigm, whose basic elements are: Maximising energy efficiency, including efficiency of the energy delivery system and end-use efficiency, and eliminating wasteful use of energy. Making the maximum possible use of renewable energy sources. Reducing load on the grid by promoting decentralized renewable energy supply systems. Given the huge scope of improving energy efficiency in the country, if the government indeed implements the energy efficiency measures outlined above, and promotes the use of decentralised energy systems to meet the energy needs of India's far-flung villages over half of which have still to be electrified sixty years after independence, then the additional grid electricity generation required for meeting our future growth needs is substantially reduced – a major portion of this can then be easily met from renewable energy sources. As discussed above, even the government admits the potential of grid connected renewable electricity generation in the country to be: 48,500 MW of Wind Energy, 15,000 MW of Small Hydro Power, and 21,000 of Biomass Energy, apart from at least 50,000 MW of Solar Energy (the government itself has set a target of 20,000 MW solar energy by 2022). dcxcii According to the World 167
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NUCLEAR ENERGY Technology From Hell
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Introduction Part I: Government Pla
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yet to find solution to the problem
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Mithivirdi: A powerful movement of
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eing proposed to be set up in the c
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nuclear power plant accident, in ou
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was subsequently endorsed by the he
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Atoms are so small that they can’
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called enriched uranium. [Note that
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of a nuclear power reactor. A typic
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Coolant: A liquid or gas circulatin
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Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor Hea
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Is Nuclear Energy Safe? Chapter 3 A
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iii. Gamma radiation: This is akin
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haematopoietic system). Radiation c
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Part III: Radiation Emission in Nuc
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The radioactivity from the tailing
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power plant contains an amount of l
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Tritium is a particularly scary mat
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Plutonium cxi Named after Pluto, th
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Firstly, reprocessing does not redu
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sports and fishing were also banned
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detail the impact of these 'once th
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We today know for a fact that the n
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Till 2005, there were at least 10,0
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The report mentions 16 “events”
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In an article published in The Nati
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Even asssuming that there will not
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fossil fuels. It has now come up wi
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Opinion of Credit Ratings Agencies
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it acknowledged that the expected c
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plant owners to use much more of th
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was the Vice-President of the USA):
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6. Blithely Ignoring Health Costs S
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Is Nuclear Power Green? Chapter 5 S
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Energy Balance attempts to make an
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nuclear energy as compared to elect
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Table 1: Estimates of Total and Nuc
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� At the end of 2009, there were
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Therefore, despite all the optimism
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1. Reviewing the Nuclear Renaissanc
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certification also runs out in 2012
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nuclear phase-out plans which are n
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lower house (Bundestag) to pass a b
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UK and French nuclear safety author
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The second and more important reaso
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eactor or two, but considering that
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Pre-Independence Period India’s N
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Secretary to the DAE. The 1958 Reso
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The reality has been quite differen
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Narora Uttar Pradesh PHWR 220 x 2 4
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Background Part III: US-India Agree
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2. New Reactors Even before the Ind
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clearance, indicative of the fact t
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producing electricity from these re
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matters of negotiations”. cdxliii
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arm of Indian big industry, had ext
Page 115 and 116: India’s Nuclear Installations: Sa
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Page 119 and 120: area due to uranium mining. cdlxxxi
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Page 127 and 128: The biggest deficiency in the Rajas
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Page 131 and 132: Fires have also occurred repeatedly
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Page 135 and 136: can't catch anything else, and ther
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Page 147 and 148: The Sustainable Alternative to Nucl
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Page 151 and 152: of the human body. In particular, t
Page 153 and 154: While the costs of large dams are h
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Page 157 and 158: such absolutely non-essential uses?
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Page 161 and 162: Solar water heaters are a very simp
Page 163 and 164: Renewable Energies: Poised for a Le
Page 165: (iii) Small Hydro Power The governm
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Page 179 and 180: analyse. We must develop our politi
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Page 185 and 186: cliii The IAEA maintains an interna
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Page 193 and 194: cdi “Uranium imports boost Indian
Page 195 and 196: cdlxix Dhirendra Sharma, India’s
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Page 199 and 200: dxciii M. V. Ramana, ibid. dxciv Mu
Page 201 and 202: dclix Union of Concerned Scientists
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