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submitted 3 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

Shuttering of New York facility raises awkward climate crisis questions as gas – not renewables – fills gap in power generation

When New York’s deteriorating and unloved Indian Point nuclear plant finally shuttered in 2021, its demise was met with delight from environmentalists who had long demanded it be scrapped.

But there has been a sting in the tail – since the closure, New York’s greenhouse gas emissions have gone up.

Castigated for its impact upon the surrounding environment and feared for its potential to unleash disaster close to the heart of New York City, Indian Point nevertheless supplied a large chunk of the state’s carbon-free electricity.

Since the plant’s closure, it has been gas, rather then clean energy such as solar and wind, that has filled the void, leaving New York City in the embarrassing situation of seeing its planet-heating emissions jump in recent years to the point its power grid is now dirtier than Texas’s, as well as the US average.

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[-] 5714@lemmy.dbzer0.com 24 points 3 months ago

I see this as a failure to build renewables. Wind and solar and batteries are and were able to solve this, but changing infrastructure costs time, money and skill. The closing of the NPP was foreseeable, so is the climate change.

[-] gregorum@lemm.ee 8 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

New York just completed the building of a 130MW wind farm off the coast of Long Island. The largest one in the country.

https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-completion-south-fork-wind-first-utility-scale-offshore-wind-farm

That doesn’t replace the 2 GW (peak) Indian point reactor, but it’s a step in the right direction.

this post was submitted on 20 Mar 2024
666 points (92.4% liked)

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