Perhaps the Russian incidents are related to their fondness of Vodka as are drugs & alcohol to too many Australians.

I think it's pathetic to use the worst most unreliable country in the world to compare with.
Russia has ALWAYS been of lower standards and performance than most other countries in the world.
They bungled their way to the moon, had to be rescued from the space station and a list of other failures, most of which you don't hear about.
It comes as no surprise, and is common knowledge to me that Russian construction and especially maintenance is at about the same standard as some Asian countries.
So let's compare apples with apples, and the record for nuclear has been very good, when compared to lives lost by other technologies.
We must accept that renewables are NOT THE ANSWER!
They have been a political money making medium for the greedy and evil, selfish scum of the political society.
They have used the GW con to justify appeasing the jelly brained weak and foolish of the public.
Coal is not, nor has it ever been the evil monster these greenies claim.
Govt's are only sucking up to the stupid public so they can keep their seat in govt.
They have discovered the truth, that's what they pay their advisers for, and they know that we are NOT guilty of what those pushing GW say.
So in one hand he, (the PM) wants to show that he is wanting to do something about GW, yet in the other he knows it's all BS, and is reluctant to waste time or money, in proving nothing other than appeasing a few green idiots and a lot of stupid sheep

Yeah nuclear is entirely safe.......not!

http://whowhatwhy.org/2020/02/24/an-olympic-sized-disaster-is-brewing-in-japan/

Galen

Galen,
So, now you expect Mother Nature to comply & not send any Tsunamis ? Would it not be more sensible to remove insipid decision makers who place massive nuclear plants into tsunami-prone area ?
Had Fukushima been a FUKUSHIMA MARU I doubt the accident would have occurred in the first place. As I have said on other occasions, smaller power stations moored would prove way more safe than one built on an earthquake-tsunami prone coast !
What is the safety record of the Australian plants btw ?

individual,
Nuclear plants can be designed to withstand tsunamis. Though the Fukushima #1 reactor was not tsunami proof, the #2 reactor next to it was.

Alison Jane, apologies for not replying sooner but had already reached my daily post limit.

Thorium is placed in the blanket of n operational reactor, much as you do when creating some isotopes. And left there to absorb neutrons for around a fortnight. this changes it from fertile thorium to fissile U233.

And this is the fuel for a molten salt unpressurised reactor. Understand that a thermonuclear explosion needs kilograms of fissile material, not grams.

Something designed to operate exclusively in a molten state cannot meltdown! And given the coolant medium, fluoride salt, does not need to be pressurised, given the melt point of fluoride salt is around 400C. will operate without any drama at a sweet spot of around 700C, given the boiling point of the salt is 1400C!

The reaction is limited to the graphite core and ceases everywhere else in the system.

Beryllium is added as the reductant and also lithium. In the adjacent reprocessing plant, the xenon is allowed to escape and is passed through a water bath and activated carbon. Aditional grams of thorium could be included here so they can absorb neutrons and become new U233 fuel.

Further "enrichment" is addressed here by electrolysis and hydrogen purging. and all that is ever necessary. And very different from uranium, which can be enriched with pulsed laser light.

An equivalent 350MW uranium solid fuelled reactor will require 2551 tons of enriched, pelletised, ceramic uranium over a thirty-year operational lifetime. And produce as much as 2550 tons of nuclear waste. The reaction is controlled by fuel rod raised and lowered electromagnetically so no power outages can be allowed

An MSR thorium 350 MW, on the other hand, will need just one single ton, from which it will produce an optimal 1% waste. Waste which is eminently suitable as long life space batteries that burn up with reentry. Any power outage means an automatic shut down and the liquid self drains to a purpose created holding tank. I'd have one on my back yard and never worry!

I hope this addresses all your questions?
Cheers, Alan B.