I was talking to my dad yesterday, and he told me about a project he was involved with. I think it is interesting and also a positive thing. It is an agreement between private companies in the U.S. and Russia to convert about 20,000 tons of weapons grade uranium into a Low Enriched Uranium to be used in American Nuclear Power Plants. According to their webpage, they have converted over 16,000 tons of Uranium so far. Also, according to their webpage, an average of 1 in 10 American homes have been receiving electricity from power plants using this converted material.
I think this is a great thing. We are getting rid of dangerous weapons that shouldn't be used at all, and converting them to a peaceful and helpful use. As I understand it, this program is costing the American people basically nothing, and it is apparently profitable for the private companies both in Russia and the U.S. Essentially a win/win scenario for all involved. It would be great if this sort of solution could be used for other areas in which there are ongoing problems. I can't help but wonder how many other problems in the world might be solved by similar means. In any case that is a few less nukes to threaten the world, and a few more years of homes and businesses keeping their lights on.
If anyone is interested into looking further into this, check out... http://www.usec.com
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