Options

End of May, 2012, and I need almost no electricity to stay put (or stay sane). I can unplug my electric toilet seat heater, and except for the old fridge and the new Sony laptop, I guess I'm no real threat to the power grid.

Japan does, however, still have major industries like steel and aluminum factories, and all kinds of high tech companies that are worried about competition from China and elsewhere.

Seems to me that with the larger problem looming, such as what to do with spent nuclear fuel, what Japan needs to do is to figure out a way to get us out of this mess. Some 10,000 years later, people are still going to ask, "What the heck were these people thinking...?"

In other words, how much steel and plastics and other high-energy-consuming products do we really need?

I suppose that includes fertilizers and all kinds of stuff needed for "modern" farming like vinyl for the houses for winter tomatoes...

Thus, it is good to read that the venerable government of Japan is now considering 4 options:




The options presented Monday call for the government to seek a society in which nuclear power represents either zero percent, 15 percent, or 20 to 25 percent of the nation's electricity provision by 2030, compared with 26 percent in fiscal 2010.

The Japan Times: Four energy mix plans offered

So there you have it. Japan could go the way of Denmark or Norway, just to mention two countries that have done very well without nuclear reactors. Or, it could go the way of France, or the US. 

The current panel includes antinuclear experts, including Tetsunari Iida, head of the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies.

ISEP is a third party organization independent from government and industry, aiming at realization of sustainable energy policy. ISEP was founded by environmentalists and professionals who are the experts in the area of global warming and energy issues. Our activities include advocacy and advice to government and municipalities on how to develop renewable energy and energy saving policies, and organization of symposiums and international conferences with regard to renewable energy. Our activities mainly cover the following five projects.

Links related to 省エネ (shou-ene) "renewable energy" or "saving energy" in Japan:

JREPP
ISEP Global Status Report
MEEC
Climate-LG.jp (Green Local Government Portal)
Sustainable Zone
Iwai100.jp


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