Nuclear Power in the 21st century
It’s Time to shed the Three Mile Island Mentality
In 2007 the legislature passed the Next Generation Act of 2007, which was ground breaking legislation that would lay the foundation for a new energy future. One aggressive measure in the bill would require Minnesota to reduce its man-made greenhouse gas emissions by 80% of 2005 levels by 2050. In order to meet that goal the State of Minnesota will have to incorporate a portfolio of wind, solar, renewable and geothermal energy supplies. However, to reach the aggressive goal of 80% reduction, we may need to, dare I say it…include nuclear power as an option.
This last summer Governor Pawlenty assembled the Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group (MCAG) to come up with recommendations to reduce our man-made greenhouse gas emissions. Incidentally, removing the moratorium on nuclear power plant creation was included in their report. Currently, Minnesota and several other states have laws in statute banning the creation of any new nuclear power plant facilities. I have offered initiatives to remove the moratorium two years in a row, but neither bill ever received a committee hearing.
The United States currently operates 103 nuclear power plants making up 8% of our total energy production while 50% of our electricity production comes from coal-fired power plants. Coal is still the world’s largest source of energy, but it is also the most ecologically destructive. Oil makes up 40% of our energy consumption, but as we know with the quadrupling of oil prices in the last three years, it is quickly becoming an extremely costly way to do business.
So why do we still have this Three Mile Island Mentality? Not a single radiation related death has ever been recorded in the history of the United States. Three Mile Island did have an industrial accident (not a nuclear catastrophe) which resulted in a stuck valve that exposed part of the core; however, it was completely contained and only a puff of radioactive steam equal to a single chest x-ray was emitted into the atmosphere.
When developing nuclear energy policy, one only has to look to, dare I say it…the French. France has 59 nuclear power plants in operation responsible for 79% of their electricity. In fact, the French export 18% of their excess energy to England, Germany and Italy. Not only does France have the cleanest air in the industrialized world, but they also have the cheapest energy bills in all of Europe.
The most controversial sticking point making the case for nuclear is the question of what to do with the radioactive waste. Currently U.S. federal regulations require all radioactive byproducts to be stored in protective areas. However, France uses third-generation pressurized reactors that drastically reduce waste and reprocesses most of its spent fuel rods. The remaining small percentage of radioactive waste has a half-live of 30 years and can be stored in a very small space. Remember people, the federal government promised that Yucca Mountain would be the storage facility for the country’s spent nuclear fuel that has already accumulated.
The rest of the world is swiftly moving to nuclear power and if Minnesota is serious about reducing greenhouse gasses, the first step we must take is removing the moratorium on new power plant creation. It is time to move into the 21st century and shed this Three Mile Island mentality and embrace this clean, safe energy. And yes folks, reducing our emissions by 80% are equal to living in 1905. Do you have room in your backyard for a horse and buggy?
