Blog Andre Dutra

Yesterday, I read a note on Blog Noblat talking about Brazil by going counter to the world when it comes to nuclear energy. Look:

Brazil goes against the grain and expands nuclear program

The Globe

At a time when many countries to reconsider their nuclear programs - Monday, Germany announced that it will turn off its power plants by 2022 - Brazil takes the opposite direction and decides to use tax incentives to stimulate the expansion of its nuclear program.

After the accident in Fukushima, Japan, in March, countries like Switzerland, Belgium and China canceled or suspended licenses to build new plants.

Meanwhile, Brazil is building Angra 3 and the House of Representatives approved last week interim measure granting tax incentives for purchase of equipment to be used in nuclear generation.

The MP 517 will still be voted in the Senate. In addition, the government must maintain Rousseff strategy of four plants by 2030 as set out in National Energy Plan (NEP) 2030, currently under review.

Along with Angra 1, 2 and 3, the new units would double the share of nuclear power in electricity generation to 5%, the report said Danielle Nogueira, Eliane Oliveira and Monica Tavares.

Worryingly, after the tragedy in Japan (Fukushima), caused by a major earthquake, still think of increasing the use of such energy. At first glance, the production has little impact and is reasonably cost-effective. However, any defect, failure, disaster or any kinds of unforeseen damage can cause immeasurable and irreparable. Just see what happened in 1986 in the Ukrainian city of Chernobyl, a town that became deserted after the accident at the nuclear plant.

Now our country has a vast territory, rich for research and production of various modes ecologically sustainable and renewable energy such as sunlight and wind, and biodiesel and ethanol. Even the pre-salt, about which I have reservations, it is less dangerous than a new source of nuclear energy production, which can change the lives of much of the country. With this concern, a few months ago I wrote a small article about Senator Cristovam and concern that was being shown about nuclear energy. Hope you enjoy:

Senator Cristovam Buarque and nuclear power (03/21/2011)

The terrible earthquake (and tsunami) that struck Japan and its people, one of the strongest earthquakes in history, it is considered the most expensive natural disaster in the world financially, and can cost up to $ 250 billion for the Japanese economy. There is also the looming threat of a nuclear disaster in that country. The structures of some nuclear power plants were severely damaged and there are already reports of significant increases in radiation levels in the city of Fukushima and even sources of contamination of food and water.

Cristovam Chernobyl

The Senator Cristovam Buarque Twitter started a great discussion about the use of nuclear energy, given these serious problems in Japan, and other sad episodes occurred, as the disaster at Chernobyl (Ukraine) in 1986 and Cesium-137 poisoning in 1987 in Goiânia, reaching thousands of people directly and indirectly.

Cristovam even suggested a global referendum on the net about the use of nuclear energy. Even on his Twitter, he said, "Apart from Edgar Morin, also proposed to Daniel Cohn-Bendit to lead the world referendum on nuclear power." Edgar Morin is considered one of the leading contemporary thinkers, anthropologist, French philosopher and sociologist. Daniel Cohn-Bendit is a French politician of German descent, MEP and co-chair of the parliamentary Group of the Greens / European Free Alliance.

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Who runs might be mulling over (like me) with fuel prices. Here in Brasilia, the situation seems worse than in Brazil.

I use gasoline and the price goes around R $ 2.74 to $ 2.79. Alcohol is around R $ 2.24. TWO REAL AND TWENTY-FOUR CENTS. In Brazil, a major producer of cane sugar and ethanol in the world!

Facts about the bio-fuels (biodiesel) in Brazil

* Brazil is the second largest ethanol producer in the world after the United States, and the largest exporter. It is also the largest producer of bio-fuel (biodiesel) made from soybeans.

* Brazil uses ethanol produced from sugar cane that is more efficient than corn ethanol produced in the United States. The production of ethanol made from cane sugar costs $ 0.28 per gallon and corn $ 0.45 per liter, and a hectare of cane sugar can produce almost twice as much ethanol (7,080 liters) than an acre of corn (3,750 liters).

* While in 2004 U.S. sales of ethanol blended into gasoline formed only 2% of the fuel market, the Brazilian market is dependent on alcohol fuels. More than two million cars in Brazil are powered by alcohol derived from sugar cane, cleaner fuel that emits no benzene or sulfur, and less carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. Today, ethanol comprises 20% of transport fuel market in Brazil, and represents a more economical alternative for motorists in the country since the production cost of $ 1 per gallon and half the price of conventional oil production. Nearly eight of every ten new cars sold in Brazil are flex-fuel cars, which can be filled with a mixture of ethanol and gasoline, or biodiesel. In Brazil, sugar cane is grown in 5% of the total planting area of ​​the country, and alcohol effectively replaced 26% of gasoline.

* As a measure of economic protectionism, the United States currently imposes a tariff of 54 cents per gallon for most of the imported ethanol, making Brazilian exports to the country.

Source: Mongobay.com

It's old distrust of the consumer to the gas stations (mainly in Mexico City.) Complaints where the owners of gas stations are accused of forming a giant cartel that controls the fuel prices in Mexico City are very old !

As the range of the vehicle with alcohol is 30% lower, to be advantageous to use, the price of a gallon must also be 30% cheaper than gasoline. Owners of hybrid cars should do the calculation to see if it is more worthwhile to put alcohol (usually would be economically advantageous, besides being ecologically correct) rather than using gasoline. The calculation is as follows:

Price of alcohol: Price of gasoline x 100 = (?), Where the final (?) Must be less than 70, showing compensation for the use of alcohol.

Today, the account would be more or less as follows: (2.24: 2.75) x 100 = 81.45. That is not only not worth it to use alcohol as the price is absurd. Also I wonder why this abysmal price, and we are producing. Can anyone answer? Can anyone answer why, regardless of natural disasters or if all goes well, the price change follows only one line (up)?

And as we walk the road of sustainability if all the country's efforts, the simplest ant to ant more powerful, are out of the paradoxes and inconsistency. The pre-salt, for example, is a national wealth and should be explored, and divided and treated as national strategic issue, but it is a project that will require years. Why, out of nowhere, stopped talking about the development of ethanol and the wide margin of Brazil (technologically and productively) in this market that is perhaps even more strategically important than the pre-salt? What development do we want for the future?

And this is just a brick all the discussion that must be made when talking about sustainability, justice and environmental education. Sustainability and environmental justice will not be achieved by means of hollow speeches. Actions or non-actions will lead to a bland future of reductionism of our propensity to be preached as the country's future.

The future is today and have not advanced much. As Brazil will move towards sustainability as preached in modern discourse, if the actions taken by the power elite who occupy unsustainable social cause reactions? How long shall we stand in prose sustainable living a life unsustainable economic, social and environmentally unsustainable?

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, desta vez no período entre março de 2007 e março de 2009, sendo que a edição passada aconteceu entre os anos de 1957-58. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the International Council of Scientific Communities (ICSU) created a joint project called the IPY (International Polar Year - IPY), which grossed more than $ 1.2 billion of funding for international research circles polar Arctic and Antarctic. It is the fourth edition of the IPY , this time in the period between March 2007 and March 2009, with the last edition took place between the years of 1957-58. This period ends, in fact, now in March 2009 and will be completed in June 2010, in Oslo occur when a scientific conference about the IPY magna.

The research, among other findings, revealed what appeared to be clear: the United Nations weather agency said yesterday (02.25.2009) that large ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica are losing mass .

And where Brazil can be inserted in this, beyond the obvious of having one of the largest forest / biological reserves in the world? Brazil should move to take advantage of the situation, because this is an economic opportunity and a moral duty to the nation.
The United States Barack Obama presented the country's budget for the year 2010 . Of this budget, besides the advantage presented in the report, that the Brazilians can take to reduce the subsidy to U.S. farmers, Brazil must move strategically to position itself as a cornerstone of the new global energy scenario. After all, energy is a matter of national security and in modern days is a very lucrative business. Combines power, security, money and environmental ethics and what we do wrong?! I believe nothing.

How many laws we see our noble deputies and Honourable senators vote to support scientific research in Brazil? In time to increase his salary is easy to be proactive. Our forests are thrown to moths, being criminally exploited. According to the latest Global Monitoring Report of the World Bank , in the year 2008, Brazil was the country most deforested forests, between 2000 and 2005.
Last week, the BBC reported that by 2006, 26 species have become extinct due to deforestation. Other 644 are in danger .

With the support of FAPESP, the São Carlos Federal University created a method to use almost any type of plastic waste in the manufacture of paper . The "plastic wrap" is stronger and is cheap (because its raw material is waste) and above all environmentally friendly, because it uses cellulose.
Brazil also came the first plane to use as fuel ethanol (alcohol) used in rural production. It's called Ipanema.

But the lack of state investment to research (which is the result of investment in education) is an open wound. It is necessary that the country invests in education, from base to tip. With scientific-intellectual, we can move forward in the new context that in front of us. For these investments are made, we need to reinvent the way our economy is driven. Our taxes need to be better managed to bring back to society. Do not be giving money to organizations that do not provide decent services to society (pardon the link to this commentator), fight corruption from the inside out, listen to the popular appeal and work with the demand of the people in the construction of the laws. We need ethics and ethical. We need to shame in the face of leaders, not colonels. We need to move.

Now the question remains: why invest in "pre-salt"? Why not an investment in green technology, clean, renewable, environmentally friendly, inexpensive, recyclable ... intelligent technology and the future. The Brazilian oil reserves are important, but it would be nice to have them as a strategic focal point of our future? What we will return in the medium term? While everyone thinks, including the United States (for Christ's sake), to rethink its energy mix and invest in renewable energy, we continue to walk against the tide, with a smile on his face and thought "is, I tell you all right?"! ?