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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (July 4, 1963)
- JUf-.Z J T". MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, OREGON THURSDAY. JULY 4. 1963 J ady Promise Mud By GEORGE C. HARLAN United Presi International New York - (t'PU - The peaceful atom experienced a notoriety as short lived as a Miss America. Al though eclipsed by space ex ploration, it is a good bet that nuclear energy will have fulfilled much of its early promise by the time man first touches down on the moon. After years of frustrations' and disenchantment, recent technological b r e akthroughs in harnessing the power of the atom have triggered re newed activity in the field. In some quarters a "go for broke" effort is being made to challenge coal by 1970 as the nation's main source of power for home and industry. But it shapes up as tough battle against competing fuels and a large segment of the public which views with alarm crackling atoms as a close neighbor. Proponents of atomic power concede that this new energy source will not in the foresee able future replace conven tional fuel sources - coal, water, oil and gas - but argue that it will be needed to sup plement present fuels to meet the expected rapid expansion of power needs. em : iraeirgy To An official of the Atomic Energy commission (AEC) has estimated that conventional fuel resources would be ex hausted within 75 to 100 years unless supplements are found. Until very recently, pro ducing electricity from an atomic reaction was too costly to compete with conventional means except in certain re gions where coal or water are not readily available. Over the past decade most atomic power plants were built as experiments with big injections of federal funds. The government is still under writing a sizable portion of atomic research and develop ment, but private industry, after years of cautious skepti cism, today is gambling mil lions in the hope of someday reaping big profits from the venture. Scientists at the sprawling Vallecitos, Calif., atomic lab oratory of General Electric, which is one of several large industrial firms with a heavy stake in the future of the atom, already are looking be yond power generation from uranium to plutonium-burning machines. Dr. Lamar P. Bupp, manager of the laboratory, says plutonium promises "sig nificantly cheaper," fuel with in a decade. But even in the present state of technology atomic energy could compete with new conventional installations in about 50 per cent of the nation's power markets. Prog ress in this area has outstrip ped some of the more optimis tic timetables in the past six months. The significance of all this has not been lost on the coal industry - the backbone of modern industrial society. One of the largest markets for coal is power production. This market accounts for nearly 50 per cent of all coal consump tion. The battle line between these two antagonists has been drawn. The price of coal had been rising roughly 2 per cent a year, but in the past year or so this trend has been halted and in some instances reversed. The potential threat from the atom is thought to have contributed to the down ward pressure on coal prices. It is understood that negotia tions or even rumors of a new atomic power plant contract has triggered a reaction in the price of coal in the area. Moving Target As a Westinghouse official put it: "We are shooting at a moving target" in the cost bat tle with coal. rf j- WAIL BOMBED Spectators look at the rubble of a wall around the U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group compound at Saigon after Viet Cong guerrillas placed three bombs around the wall. Ten Vietna mese, living in adjacent buildings, were killed by the blasts and 43 were injured, including five Americans. (UP1) Now In Progress . . . Our Gigantic SUMAftl txXJi ' tt it WOMEN'S SHOES! Naturalizer Paradise Kittens Selby Cobbler Smartaires Risque Golo CASUALS Cr FLATS $88 $g88 DRESS SHOES $88 Si 188 to I I CLOSE OUT! cCQ Goodrich Washable 4 W SUNSTEPS Z!za The Corner Shoe Store CENTRAL AT MAIN MEDFORD The coal industry, which is slowly recuperating from years of financial ills, com plains that atomic power is receiving preferential treat ment from the government. Coal officials note that since its inception in 1946 the peaceful atom has been nour ished by upwards of $4.5 bil lion in government subsidies. The industry lobby has bombarded Congress with de mands that coal be given an equal shake with atomic pow er in future appropriations for research and development. To date there are 25 atomic power plants either in oper ation or in varying stages of planning, develop m e n t and construction in this country. Many are in the so-called high fuel cost areas of the Pacific Coast and New England. But three are in the heart of the Pennsylvania coal region. Ten of these are now oper ating and eight are scheduled to be functioning by the end of 1963. All are expected to be working by 1970. The total investment will be about $1.2 billion. Powerful Ally The coal industry has found in the railroads a powerful ally in its fight to retain its long dominant role as a fuel supplier. The fortunes, of the two industries are bound up closely, particularly in the east and midwest where coal is a major freight commodity. As a result, they have joined forces to protect coal markets. A sobering fact for railmen is that a single freight car can transport one atomic fuel core to operate a nuclear power plant for about a year. Several eastern-based roads have succeeded in cutting the cost of hauling coal from the mine head to the power gen erating station by means of a shuttle service. Later this year, three railroads are scheduled to start shuttling coal to a big Cleveland utility at cut-rate prices. If success ful, the scheme will mothball the nation's only coal pipeline. Atomic enthusiasts reckon that even if coal transporta tion costs were slashed in half, nuclear power could still com pete today in 30 per cent of the nation's energy markets. But should atomic power make deep inroads on the market for coal, few responsi ble persons are writing off the future of the coal industry. Much of the ground coal forced to give up to competing fuels, is expected to be re gained through expanding power needs and growing out lets in the chemical and petro chemical industries. Fear A Challenge Perhaps the most formid- a b 1 e challenge to atomic power is posed by an enemy that is both invisible and un predictable - fear. As the offspring of the world's most awesomely de structive force atomic energy has inherited a legacy of dread. Radiation is the only hazard associated with an atomic power station. The nature of the atomic reaction makes any bomb like explosion impossible. Under the present "guide lines" Imposed by the AEC centers of dense population are off limits for any sizable atomic plant. However, the AEC Insists that these guide lines are flexible and that each atomic plant permit will be judged on its own merits. Power from the atom must be tapped in the area served to be competitive with power stations using other fuels. It is generally felt that on the issue of location hangs the fu ture of nuclear power as a source of electricity in large metropolitan areas. During the 20-year life of the atomic energy program the safety record has been re markable by any industrial standard. AEC figures show that over this span only six deaths have resulted from overdoses of radiation and these facilities occurred at experimental installations. Never Penetrates Of even more significance is the fact that there has never been a case where radi ation leakage above pcrmiss- able limits has penetrated out side the housing of a reactor, A showdown on the issue is shaping up In New York City where the Consolidated Edi son Co. has proposed construc tion of an atomic power plant in the heart of the most densely populated area in the nation. The plant would rise on a site along the East river op posite Manhattan island. It would generate enough elec tricity to furnish one-fifth of the city's present needs. Although scientists are di vided on the hazards attached to nuclear projects in heavily populated areas, atomic ad herents say the record speaks for itself. A notable dissenting voice is that of David E. Lilicnthal, first chairman of the AEC. Long an outspoken critic of atomic energy development, Lilienthal recently said he would not want to live in the Borough of Queens If the pro posed reactor is built. The dispute over atomic plant sites has cropped up in other parts of the country. A court suit to enjoin the operation of the completed Lagoona Beach reactor 30 miles from Detroit was up held by a U.S. appeals court but overturned by the Su preme Court. Operation of the installation still awaits a new Al'.C review. The location of the Bodega Bay reactor, 50 miles north of San Francisco, is embroiled in the courts, but over a conservation issue. The outcome of the strug gle of atomic power to win ac ceptance is still unclear. But the stakes are said to be large. The AEC has forecast that if the way is opened half of the nation's electric power will be generated by the atom by . the end of this century at an nual savings of $4 to $5 bil lion over conventional meth ods. , NEED EXPERIENCED LADIES' READY-TO-WEAR SALESWOMEN V $400 a month guarantee 2 weeks vacation the first year $!f"toust be between ages of 30 and 50 - if 45 minutes to Portland, 1V4 hours to coastal beaches Address inquiries to: THE STYLE SHOP 1 425 Commerce Ave. longview, Washington 1 CARAT i 14 CAHAT . . 3 12 CARAT S GLORIFIED lOO OBRALDIN Toiol w.ish, II' 'rwnlSri ' '1 .'AKISir. I DIAMOND . 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