Shooting oneself in the foot

It is interesting to note that the CNMI’s original request to the DoI for geothermal exploration was for $500,000, and included drilling a test hole on the island of Saipan—based on reports of high temperature in previously drilled holes for water resources—which the DoI apparently has chosen not to fund, at least at this time.

However, as Dr. Thomas Arkle of the Tinian mayor’s office related in his series of letters to the editor earlier this year, geothermal is an extremely expensive undertaking. According to the Geothermal Energy Association web site, www.geo-energy.org, “Geothermal power plants are characterized by high capital investment for exploration, drilling wells, and plant installation, but low cost for operation and maintenance.” It has been estimated that capital reimbursement and associated interest account for 65 percent of the total cost of geothermal power. They also take years to develop—once it is determined that there is enough water hot enough, of the right type, sufficiently accessible to make further development worthwhile. And of course, transporting that energy from Pagan to Saipan would also be a challenge. It might have made more sense for the DoI to fund the other half of the request, and consider Saipan’s viability first.

In the meantime, opportunities to solve the problem are sitting on the CNMI’s doorstep—investors willing to build generators of one sort or another—and are being totally ignored. The “mantra” seems to be, “We don’t accept unsolicited proposals.” But given CUC’s history of proposal problems, it would seem time to change positions, and say, “Let’s look at these offerings. Maybe we can work out a solution.”

For example, one investor is said to have offered to build a nuclear generator on Tinian—AT NO COST—to serve as a model for the new, and far safer, generation of nuclear generators. Military support was, supposedly, also in the offing. But given the lack of interest by the administration, by the legislators, by anyone of influence and voice, that opportunity too may be lost.

Is nuclear really safe now? According to Dr. Arkle, the answer is yes. Not only are the new generators self-enclosed, requiring NO maintenance and NO upkeep, but the nuclear fuel used “in these new plants is quite different from what we knew before. It is no longer a “rod” or “mass” of highly radioactive material giving off radiation. It is, rather, composed of tiny ceramic-coated particles about the size of a BB—about 1 mm in diameter. The “core” of each particle IS a piece of uranium enriched to only about 15percent, compared to over 50 percent in standard reactors. The “core” or “seed” is microscopic and covered by at least two layers of graphite material (absorbent) separated by layers of zirconium (shield) and finally a ceramic outer coat (for hardness). It is nearly indestructible.

“No radiation can escape from the unit…. What does get out is HEAT. The size of the particle and its covering layers determines how much heat. The laws of physics, not man-made controls, determines the level of heat produced. Thus the design of the particle sets the level and it CANNOT exceed this pre-determined limit. That limit is 600 degrees—far below the melting point of any surrounding material such as the holding vessel itself.

“So far, science has tried to destroy the particles—explosions, jet airplane crashing into it, physical battering, etc. The lead scientist for nuclear research at M.I.T. recently stated he could find no way to create a hazard situation with these new particles. That also had the benefit of making them useless to terrorists—even in large quantities. All they [terrorist] could get is heat—useless heat—no dirty bomb, no explosion, not even extortion and no way to re-package it either. The “heat” from these particles lasts about 10 years, depending on overall design, thus the power plants “power module” also lasts about that long before replacement is needed.

“The power module is built as a single, sealed, prefabricated unit—sometimes referred to as a ‘battery.’ Current designs call for anywhere from 10 to 300 megawatts of power. The average size will fit easily on a flatbed truck for transport and weighs about half as much as one army Abrams tank. It is transported to the site over existing transport routes and “plugged” into the plant—just like a battery. No external or extraordinary shielding or handling is required. When replacement time arrives, the unit is “unplugged” and taken back to the original fabricator where the spent particles are removed. …The particles would then be stored at a low level underground site pending reclamation. Such “reclaiming” processes are now being developed, with a great deal of success, primarily in France, but also in the U.S. An additional benefit to this type of particle is that, again due to size and level of enrichment, the “half-life” of the nuclear core has been reduced exponentially, thus negating the need for extremely long term isolation.”

Unfortunately, it seems much more likely that the powers that be—the governor, the administration, the Legislature—will respond to this opportunity as they are responding to the proposed Marianas monument: shooting themselves in the foot with an irresponsibly childish “not invented here” attitude.
[B] Ruth L. Tighe[/B] [I]Tanapag Village[/I]