Are Nukes Needed to Stop Climate Change?

There is little doubt in my mind that atomic energy provides a formidable tool in the fight against global warming. As a former submarine engineer, I had the first hand experience of producing large quantities of reliable, safe power from a plant clean enough to be sealed inside a very confined space.

John Rowe has not been a particularly strong advocate of building lots of new nuclear plants - as the leader of a company that already owns 17 reactors, his interest is in protecting the profitability of those existing plants. A massive program to build new plants using modern technology might show just how obsolete some of the existing power producers are.

There is every possibility that the investment, if made properly and with cost controls in mind, could end up resulting in lowering the cost of producing electricity. After all, existing nuclear plants, even with 1960s and 70s vintage technology, are the second lowest cost producers of electricity in the market today - only hydroelectric dams have a lower operating cost.

If the government helps in getting the industry started, perhaps the taxpayers need someone at the table to negotiate their equity. Ten years down the road, that might be worth a lot of money.

Rod Adams of FL 5:35AM February 13, 2008