Nuclear energy will have to play a major part in meeting our future energy needs

Ran across a good guest column in the Seattle Times, discussing the energy future of our country and the role nuclear power will have to play.

Visit The Seattle Times website to read the whole column, but the following excerpt has several highlighted portions that stood out:


"Those who haven't been monitoring the industry's progress since a partial meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1979 might think all of the attention is unwarranted. But a lot has changed since then. Importantly, there hasn't been a single serious safety lapse, thanks to improved safety measures and regulations.

"Meanwhile, our nation's energy demand has soared, and it's projected to surge another 23 percent by 2030. Nuclear energy is in a prime position to deliver that payload — and in an environmentally responsible way.

"As Obama is fully aware, nuclear energy quietly powers one out of every five U.S. homes and businesses. But because nuclear plants produce virtually no carbon emissions, they contribute a disproportionate amount of our emissions-free electricity — nearly 75 percent. No other electricity source comes even close.

"Some of the industry's critics maintain that every dollar spent on nuclear energy is a dollar taken away from truly renewable sources such as solar or wind. The problem with these "either-or" comparisons is that even under the rosiest of scenarios for our future electricity supplies, our country is going to need "all of the above" when it comes to meeting our surging energy demand.

"In fact, a recent Energy Information Administration analysis concluded that the nation will need to double its reliance on nuclear energy by 2030 to keep consumer costs down and meet the emissions goals established in the House's Waxman-Markey climate bill."