The tragic events unfolding in Japan demand a re-examination of U.S. nuclear policy. While stocks in nuclear plummet and nuclear industry lobbyists scramble on Capitol Hill to shore up support for massive federal subsidies to kick-start the stagnate industry, concerns regarding the existing aging fleet are surfacing and should be heeded. Click here to read more about specific concerns about some of the aging US nuclear fleet.
Amazingly, despite emerging concerns about existing and proposed reactors, the Obama administration has said it will not back off its plans to further prop up the nuclear industry through increased taxpayer-backed loan guarantees and the inclusion of nuclear power technology in the administration’s clean energy standard. The administration has included $36 billion in loan guarantees in its budget proposal for fiscal year 2012. Instead, it should immediately halt subsidies and instead focus on developing solar and wind power. Take Action on Nuclear Subsidies
The administration must take off the blinders, look hard at what is going on in Japan and realize that yes, a catastrophe can happen here.
Related Articles
- Obama Seeks to Expand Loan Guarantees for Reactors, Chu Says (businessweek.com)
- Japan crisis could slow US nuclear industry (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- How vulnerable are U.S. nuclear plants? (cnn.com)
- Nuclear energy lobbyists scramble on Capitol Hill (cnn.com)
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The world’s biggest potential to tap easily into Mother Earth’s geothermal potential is neither Japan, Iceland or New Zealand but the USA!
Rather than to provide subsidies for the nuclear industry, the Obama administration might be well-advised to provide funding to the geothermal industry to make use of its own domestic and independent, clean energy that’s available 24 hours a day.
Not surprisingly, “geothermal” has the chracteristics of the F-word. I’ve never heard Obama mentioning it and you will never hear it from a member of the nuclear industry.