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14
activity is inevitably released during the
production of nuclear fue! for power
plants, although this is generally con–
ceded to be minor.
There is also a storage problem -
how to handle the 3.5 million gallons
of high-level waste estimated to
be
pro–
duced yeady by 1980.
Too Hot to Handle
Nuclear power plants have also come
under attack in recent years because of a
"new" type of pollution -
thermal
pollution.
The nuclear reaction produces heat to
generate steam. This steam turns giant
turbines, which in turn generate elec–
tricity. As much as 50% of the heat cre–
ated is "wasted." It must be taken away
by the cool waters of a river, Jake,
ocean - or by expensive evaporative
cooling towers.
This waste heat is detrimental to life
in the surrounding waters. It lowers the
oxygen content and drives the water
temperature up. Many desirable forros
of life are destroyed, and undesirable
forros proliferate in the process. The
delicate thread of l ife is broken, and
ecology suffers. Rivers "die." Man
suffers kickbacks, too.
Thermal and radioactive pollution
are the "last straw" in the pollution
controversy. They have caused a con–
cerned and frightened segment of soci–
ety to bring pressure against nuclear
power plants. The whole U . S. nuclear
plant p rogram, as a conseguence, has
been delayed by 2 to 5 years.
Sorne look beyond fission (which
supplies about 2% of present U. S.
energy needs) and fusion ( not even
tapped yet) to a process called MHD
- magneto hydrodynamics. But this is
still dependent on a coal supply - and
is presently only theoretical.
Environment Takes the Brunt
That perbaps is where the
mrrent
energy crisis is - the destruction of our
"good earth" as a direct result of our
increased
dema11ds
upon it. One special–
ist, Mr. Harry Perry, put it this way:
"Do you want to improve the quality of
the environment, or do you want the
electricity to come on as you need it ?"
This earth, after al!, is a "closed sys–
tem." It operates as a unit, and renews,
Tbe
PLAIN TRUTH
replenishes, and purifies itself without
any outside help other than energy
f
rom
the sun .
There
are limits
to the earth's
capabilities. Only certain quantities of
additional carbon dioxide, carbon
monoxide, sulphur dioxide, lead, etc.,
from the burning of fuels, can
be
absorbed into the system. Only a Jimited
amount of extra heat can be absorbed by
our streams before sorne life forros
begin to suffer. Only so much radio–
active waste can be absorbed. Then
deformities and abnormalities in li fe
forros occur.
We all know these basic facts!
The guestion is, does convenience
of energy for the moment justify future
ecological disaster -
the possible
destruction of life within a generation?
Most - if not all - of man's
MAJOR
exploits of his
onl;
environment
are out of step with the natural regen–
erative processes on earth.
It's time man took a long look at
fuels - and ou r spiraling increase in
energy consumption - and asked sorne
basic questions: Do we real!y
need
all
this energy? Why did we build our eco–
nomic structure on polluting, non–
renewable resources? There are, after
all, other forros of energy available.
T hinking the Unthinkable
Even as polluting as the nonrenew–
able fuels are, they are not the central
problem in themselves.
It
is man's
expioitation
of them for selfish profit
and convenience which is at the heart of
the problem.
For example, suppose roan were to
harness the sun's noo-polluting energy.
Would he use it wisely ? Or would he
turn it to profit-seeking and selfish,
destruct ive uses? The history of man's
greed is
NOT
reassuring.
lt is becoming increasiogly clear that
man must totally re-evaluate concepts
concerning the structure of society. The
concentration of population, of industry,
of power generation is increasingly
bringing us closer to a date with disaster.
We are encountering massive prob–
lems of distribution. We are faced with
wholesale destruction of the landscape.
We find it less and less practica) to uti–
lize
RENEWABLE
sources of energy. The
mammoth industrial demands of our
February 1971
highly technological society could not
be
supplied enough energy from simple
wood burning or other similar
renetv–
able
sourccs of energy. There just isn't
enough wood; and other renewable
sources - tide power, geothermal steam,
solar energy - are not developed.
In fact, to depend on these energy
forms would require us to restructure
society to a much simpler form,
red11cing
total energy consumption, perhaps elimi–
nating many of our "energy slaves."
Dr. James P. Lodge,
Jr.
of the
National Center for Atmosphere
Research in Boulder, Colorado had this
to say:
"We must limit our own population
it is true, but it is even more necessary
to impose a program of rigorous birth
control on our energy slaves. To say
that this program is an enormous pro–
gram of
RETIIINKING PRIORJTIES
is tO
state the obvious, but it is nonetheless
true."
The Greatest Change of ALL
W e need to consider a change of
app1•oach
in dealing with our environ·
ment. We have been careless - blasé
- in our use of this earth. We have
polluted, raped and destroyed the earth
God gave us.
Are we yet willing to cease the
greedy and ignorant destruction we
have caused? At the present time man–
kind
aJ a u·hoie
is not yet ready to make
this necessary change. Because the big–
gest change nceded is a chaoge in man's
bas ic nature and outlook in life. Man's
nature is one of getting for the self
instead of giving. Man has
taken from
the earth - instead of
Jaking care
of it.
Will man go too far - so far he
can't cleanse this earth of its pollution?
Will man respond in time to the moan–
ing and groaning of the earth? Sorne
authorities warn that roan may already
have gone too far - that it may al ready
be
too late to save this earth from man's
devastating exploitation.
Almost 2000 yea rs ago, a great teacher
wrote: "For we know that the whole
creation groancth and travaileth in pain
together until now" ( Romans 8:22) .
That scripture has come to pass in our
day. Our earth is wounded and we are
wielding the death weapon. lt may kili
111!
Unless we change. O