Posted By Thomas E. Ricks Share

Would it be possible to use the nuclear generators aboard an American aircraft carrier or submarine to provide electricity to Port-au-Prince? Cdr. Herb Carmen, Best Defense's pirates columnist, points out an interesting precedent -- in 1929, when the city of Tacoma, Washington, couldn't generate enough hydroelectricity because of a severe drought, the USS Lexington hooked up and powered the city for a month.

US Navy

 

RUBBER DUCKY

1:35 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Sure

http://ocw.mit.edu/NR/rdonlyres/Electrical-Engineering-and-Computer-Science/6-691Spring-2006/44EF75F1-9D84-4580-94CD-7BDCD3B3068C/0/ship_to_shore.pdf

 

BRET

10:43 AM ET

January 20, 2010

We could so why not?

I posed this question to my physics teacher. He said that not only have we done it in the past, but if the right person was coordinating it, then it would be a success. I questioned if there would be difficulties with transferring the power, and he said they would be minimal. He did make a joke saying that right now, you could power all of Haiti with one normal car battery.

I think we should. I'm sure that the government headquarters, UN Headquarters (or what's left of it) and other important places are running off fuel powered generators, if they even have power. I think that the Navy could pull it off.

 

TYRTAIOS

2:17 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Another Idea - Switching the Load

Interesting concept, but would also require reinstalling the electical grid.

Since much will have to be rebuilt from scratch, here is another interesting idea: solar rooftop panels to provide electricity for cooking, to stop the cutting down of trees for cooking fuel.

Solar panels could be donated and installed by governments and private industry worldwide who produce solar panel technology as part of their earthquake relief. T

There are only 9 million people in Haiti (roughly the size of the Chicago metro area) so the costs of a worldwide effort to do this would not be too prohibitive.

 

WALKING WOUNDED

2:44 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Turn a few old boomers into relief desalination plants?

Boiling water is what reactors are built to do, and the engineering has been done for self-contained feedwater manufacture. Recondition multiple feedwater units from the mothball fleet, and combine in one hull? The condensed output could be lightered ashore (inflatables?). A flex pipeline rigged with greater safety and security than a dockside power feed to the damaged grid.

A nukey boat doesn't have to consume scarce fuel, and in fact the hull has a lot of room for fuel tankage. Buggers are also fast, able to speed to the emergency.

Lots of practical and political problems with this idea, but a reactor that is too old for submerged war service still might have a lot of industrial life left in it.

Think of how lack of potable water, let alone sterile wound-wash and laundry supplies reduces disaster survival rates. Children and the pregnant are in trouble within hours, and any GI infection from bad water means that what precious nutrition and electrolite is available is vomited away.

 

TYRTAIOS

3:40 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Question?

Haiti suffers from years of extreme deforestation which has caused Haiti 's topsoil to run-off into their rivers and out into the sea which has killed almost all fish and wildlife in Haiti 's rivers and coastal areas. I'm wondering if it would become problematic in clogging-up the filters for the water, the reactors need to stay cool - maybe Rubber Ducky knows?

Incidentally, is it just me, because I always get catch a wiff of diesal in the air when reading one of the Duck's comments? : )

 

WALKING WOUNDED

4:15 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Solar water pasteurizers are a great option for families.

170º F for ten minutes will kill 99.999% of everything in grey water, until new life forms are introduced. I have a coupla family sized 5 liter solar pasteurizer demonstrators in my closet, and met the chem process engineer who spec'd a 20-station manufacturing facility that can produce a million/year for less than $1/unit. Gates Foundation turned them down, on the grounds that $100K for a third world production plant wasn't a big enough project for busy people to mess with.

Chemical (or radiological) pollution is more of a problem, even for a distillation plant. Most desal is reverse osmosis, which is still energy intensive.

Because even $0.10 a gallon for cooking fuel is beyond most Haitian's means today, people going back to the village today will be burning the brush again, once salvage earthquake lumber has been used up. Make no mistake, this is an environmental, as well as a humanitarian and social disaster.

Incidentally, the way to beat Malthus' depression is to take care of the children. Research shows that in one generation of reasonable child survival and care being achieved, the birth rate drops.

 

RUBBER DUCKY

11:08 AM ET

January 20, 2010

Clogged intakes

Nuclear ships tie up in some pretty cruddy places and should have no problem with the condition you describe, especially since tide does a pretty good job of flushing harbors. Only time I've seen this a problem was in a new cruiser being depermed at the deperming berth in San Diego. Had to steam continuously and intakes got clogged with kelp. Serious problem but got through it.

And yes, DBF.

 

JPWREL

4:00 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Not the USS Vinson

Look the USS Carl Vinson just completed a hyper-expensive four years Refueling and Complex Overhaul 'RCOH' and I can't imagine that the Navy will permit the ship to be used as an auxiliary power plant for Haiti. The ship is supposed to be on its way to its new homeport of San Diego. Also, its air group VMW17, which was to join the vessel, is now grounded until the ship is released from this emergency.

A better Idea would be to trade the USS Vinson (which after the RCOH’ is in most details essentially a new ship) for the USS Enterprise, which is now at Norfolk undergoing a maintenance work and has ‘Extended Drydock Selected Restricted Availability’ prior to its FY 2013 decommissioning. What you want is a reactor you don’t care if it can conduct air operations other than the use of its deck and hangers for rotary.

It is going to take forever for the electrical grid of Haiti to be brought back online and using what amounts to the most modern carrier in the Navy for that purpose seems foolish when other options are available.

 

WALKING WOUNDED

4:17 PM ET

January 19, 2010

 

JPWREL

4:25 PM ET

January 19, 2010

Nope, its the Lexington which

Nope, its the Lexington which sits in about 15,000 feet of water in the Coral Sea.

 

JSKSANY

3:59 AM ET

January 20, 2010

When i heard this sad news..

When i heard this sad news than i think that our science reach moon and other plant.but till we not find any solution for stop earth quake.in Haiti many peoples die and many injured and we can only see then to die.after heard this news i contact to a social well fair society who work for Haiti Earthquake Victim,and i donate my two month salary and some clothes and food for Haiti Victims and i pray to god that they bless all the people who live in Haiti.

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BILL KELLER

7:40 AM ET

January 20, 2010

Pipes...it is all about distribution...

Infrastructure for distribution...if it is not there, nothing gets in or out, be it aid for relief or relief to clear the bowel. And nations that can't pick up the trash, maintain hygiene, set a rule for order and protect their children first among all...inherit the wind, with all its adjoining chronic parasites.

But they still require our empathy and help.

 

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military for the Washington Post from 2000 through 2008.

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