We have many reactors in the US that sit on the great lakes and the ocean, both of which don’t suffer this problem.
No, you just don’t have environmental regulations in the US.
The reason those plants have been shut down wasn’t because they can’t technically operate in the summer heat (as any thermal power plant, they do operate on a temperature difference, so warmer cooling water will lower their efficiency, though), but because the temperature of the cooling water released would be high enough to endanger the ecosystem in the body of water they draw their cooling water from.
The nuclear industry is arguably the most regulated energy industry here in the US. The fact of the matter is that energy consumption isn’t going to go down any time soon, and while solar and wind are great supplements, they are very diffuse and the capacity factor is quite low, requiring more just to overcome the uncertainty in the weather.
The discharge from Turkey point in Florida creates one of the largest protected sanctuaries for crocodiles in the state. So also not something we can’t handle with proper engineering.
No, you just don’t have environmental regulations in the US.
The reason those plants have been shut down wasn’t because they can’t technically operate in the summer heat (as any thermal power plant, they do operate on a temperature difference, so warmer cooling water will lower their efficiency, though), but because the temperature of the cooling water released would be high enough to endanger the ecosystem in the body of water they draw their cooling water from.
The nuclear industry is arguably the most regulated energy industry here in the US. The fact of the matter is that energy consumption isn’t going to go down any time soon, and while solar and wind are great supplements, they are very diffuse and the capacity factor is quite low, requiring more just to overcome the uncertainty in the weather.
The discharge from Turkey point in Florida creates one of the largest protected sanctuaries for crocodiles in the state. So also not something we can’t handle with proper engineering.