Tag Archives: nuclear power

Small Modular Reactors And Iowa

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Paul Deaton

A joke is circulating on the internet that SMR stands for Spending Money Recklessly. It isn’t funny because it is true, even if big money investors have a plan to recoup their investment in Small Modular Reactors with interest. Regular … Continue reading →

Posted in Sustainability | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nuclear Power In A Wind State

Posted on March 29, 2026 by Paul Deaton

If Iowa is a net exporter of electricity, why the push for new nuclear reactors? I get it. Duane Arnold Energy Center has infrastructure to add/renew generating capacity: connections to the electrical grid, access to water for cooling, and transportation … Continue reading →

Posted in Sustainability | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Nuclear Power In A Wind State

Nuclear Energy Revisited

Posted on July 19, 2025 by Paul Deaton

On July 1, Interstate Power and Light Company, the parent company of Alliant Energy, filed an application to add 1,000 megawatts of wind energy “to help boost Iowa’s electric grid and further diversify its energy portfolio,” Olivia Cohen wrote in … Continue reading →

Posted in Sustainability | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Nuclear Energy Revisited

Can You Restart A Closed Nuclear Reactor?

Posted on July 7, 2025 by Trish Nelson

From the July 2025 edition of The Prairie Progressive, Iowa’s oldest progressive newsletter. The PP is  funded entirely by reader subscription, available in hard copy for $15/yr.  Send check to PP, Box 1945, Iowa City 52244. Click here for archived … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog for Iowa | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Can You Restart A Closed Nuclear Reactor?

Duane Arnold Back In The News

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Paul Deaton

There’s a lot of chatter about the energy demands of artificial intelligence. As Iowa looks at inviting new data centers into the state, the usual suspects are dragging out the same old sawhorses to devise worn out solutions to meet … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Duane Arnold Back In The News

Nuclear Power Isn’t It

Posted on April 28, 2024 by Paul Deaton

Little has changed to make nuclear power a safe and affordable option to produce electricity. That didn’t stop Iowa Republican members of congress, all four of them, from voting for H.R. 6544, the Atomic Advancement Act of 2023. They were … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rise Of Nuclear Power Was A Bad Idea

Posted on July 30, 2018 by Paul Deaton

In a broader perspective, the rise of nuclear power was a bad idea. It always required substantial government subsidies, and there is no solution for handling spent fuel rods and radioactive equipment. If there is a disaster like Fukushima Daiichi … Continue reading →

Posted in Nuclear Abolition | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

August Recess

Posted on August 1, 2016 by Paul Deaton

SOLON, Iowa — While Trish Nelson takes a well-deserved break, I will attempt to fill her shoes at Blog for Iowa. Delegates from the national party conventions dispersed last week and there is a lot to write about. Party and … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016 Election Campaign, Progressive Community | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on August Recess

Gasoline and the Shale Boom

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Paul Deaton

People don’t connect the dots between lower gasoline prices and the shale oil boom. Yesterday I filled my gas tank for $23.70, with the per gallon price in the mid-$2.40 range. That’s not low compared to when I commuted to … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Gasoline and the Shale Boom

Iowa's Nuclear Challenge

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Paul Deaton

Carolyn Heising doesn’t get it about nuclear power. Iowans don’t want more of it, and there is a nascent movement to shut down the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Palo for good when the ten-year extension of its license from … Continue reading →

Posted in Nuclear Abolition | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment