America’s Biggest Nuclear Disaster Get Rebuilt
As a sign of how desperate American tech companies are to power AI data centers, Microsoft will restart Three Mile Island. The project will be a partnership with Constellation Energy,
he only nuclear power plant meltdown in US history was at Three Mile Island on March 28, 1979. Radioactive gases and radioactive iodine leaked outside the facility. The facility was shuttered, but most of it still exists. It completely changed how Americans felt about nuclear energy, which had been presented as an alternative to coal and oil. The US was not as energy independent as it is today. The work to get Three Mile Island back online is massive. It will not reopen until 2028. Constellation claims it will create 3,400 jobs and add $3 billion to the state and federal tax pools.
All parties presented it as an ideal alternative to fossil fuels. “Pennsylvania’s nuclear energy industry plays a critical role in providing safe, reliable, carbon-free electricity that helps reduce emissions and grow Pennsylvania’s economy,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said.
Resistance From Residents
The decision is a blow to the new modular nuclear reactor business. These new products are much less powerful than traditional installations. However, they can be built in different plants and then sent to a location where they are assembled. There has not been an official federal approval of the process.
It is not clear how much resistance the project will get from residents. A Pew poll shows that about a third of Americans do not want a nuclear reactor near where they live.
The level of speed at which AI data companies are seeking new energy is remarkable. So is the restarting of a reactor with Three Mile Island’s history.
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