Saying No to Nuclear

During Mountain Justice Spring Break in Virginia, I listened to a workshop by the amazing Mary Olsen, from the Nuclear Information & Resource Service, titled Nuclear Resistance. She brought along a map of the Southeast states with existing nuclear reactors and waste sites labeled as well as proposed reactors and weapons facilities. My hometown of Anderson, SC, was smack dab in the middle of the icons, and suddenly something dawned on me. My personal connection to this movement was revealed as I thought of my grandma, great aunt and numerous other family and friends who died from cancer, wondering if the nearby coal plant in Williamston or the upwind Oconee Nuclear Station had anything to do with their deaths. Currently, Duke Energy has a proposal on the table for a new nuclear power facility near Gaffney, SC, called Williams States Lee III. This is in addition to the new boiler at the Cliffside coal fired power plant they are attempting to (illegally) build. With seemingly endless fronts to our fight for a better future, it is important to remain focused. While toppling King Coal, let us keep our eyes on the nuclear industry and apply pressure as capacity allows. Nuclear has been tauted as a "clean and safe" energy solution to the climate crisis. What these claims fail to recognize is the ENTIRE LIFECYCLE of nuclear power. From the mining and enrichment of uranium (which uses gas, diesel and coal power) to the nuclear reactor itself and the resultant waste, nuclear is destructive, polluting and risky. We have heaps of radioactive waste to deal with, and economically, it is a bad investment. Duke Energy lists the reactor price tag near Gaffney at $5 to 6 billion dollars, while an identical reactor proposed by Florida Power and Light is slated to cost between $12 and 17 billion dollars. Friends of the Earth and other Southeast environmental groups are demanding up-to-date and full disclosure from Duke to the public about the true cost of the project. It is preposterous to me to even think about spending this much money on a toxic and dangerous electricity supply, which my generation and others would be left with hundred of years from now. If six billion dollars were invested in solar research, just imagine the results! I have faith in humanity that novel and ingenious ways to produce electricity will be discovered. It excites me because I have a hunch that new sources of electricity have yet to be dreamed up! So often, the supply of electricity is the topic of conversation, while the other half of the equation, demand, is skirted. Conservation is fundamental to our transition away from dirty fossil fuels and nuclear power. Energy efficiency, passive solar, building insulation and daylighting are also important elements to integrate into our worldview when thinking about how we build and develop. Both sides of the equation must be considered to come up with a viable solution. Personally, investing in renewables while proposing creative ways to conserve electricity is our best bet in abating climate chaos. While moving on this front, targeting and taking action against the destructive and polluting industries and their financiers must remain central to the fight for a sustainable future. In short......no coal......no nukes.....no kidding.