Other choices besides nuclear energy
By ELAINE NICHOLS
Published January 30, 2007
We have the capability now to generate electricity by wind, sunlight and hydrogen at a much lower price than nuclear power. By price I mean money, environment, resources, future, our health and trust. A few facts that you may not know are documented at www.nonuke.org.
1. The net electrical consumption used to mine uranium from the ground exceeds the annual output of several 1,000-megawatt nuclear generating stations operating at 100 percent capacity, not to mention the workers exposed to the uranium dust as it is being mined.
2. Billions of gallons of water daily are used to cool the generators. This water comes back out at a much warmer temperature, killing marine life and their habitat, creating dead zones in the water. Many times, towns, cities, areas are all under a drought watch or warning while these utilities are given carte blanche water extraction.
3. Humans need water to live before they need electricity. Think about this. We have lived through the days of candles, but we wouldn't be here if we didn't have water to drink.
4. No nuclear plant has yet lived out its expected and promised life.
5. When nuclear plants "die" early, counties do not collect taxes on them. Don't count on the tax money from any private utility. Many have bailed on what they owe.
6. Many debate global warming is occurring, yet the glaciers are melting and inhabited islands are being consumed by the sea. Hurricane seasons have been predicted to become more intense. Imagine a Katrina striking not just one, but two nuclear plants in northern Citrus and southern Levy counties.
7. Solar, wind and hydrogen electricity generation do not cause cancer and annihilate the environment for millions of years if they have a "meltdown." If they are hit with a storm, they can still produce electricity. Measures can be made to "retract" these power producers so their wind effect is greatly reduced.
8. Instead of increasing power, how about conservation of power? I don't know about you, but I don't see a booming economy on the rise. The more electricity we use the more money we pay to a privatized utility. We've shipped most of our manufacturing jobs across oceans. What we basically have left is services (retail, food, law, medical, insurance, finance, banking, construction, etc.), and the military/weapons/defense industry.
9. Depleted uranium (radioactive weaponry) is used in tanks, and in armor-piercing and bunker-busting weapons by U.S. troops and sold to other countries. The half-life of DU is 4.5-billion years longer than recorded history. Our soldiers are exposed to this material every day, and no tests for strontium are performed on veterans. Birth defects are reported from military families and countries with whom we have been at war.
10. Nuclear power plants are still dependent on oil. They must run oil-driven generators once a month for four hours and once a year for 24 hours. They must stock enough fuel on site for seven days of continual power generation. This is the equivalent of almost 83,000 gallons of fuel.
11. Solar, wind, hydrogen (www.windhunter.org) are all promising for power needs. Why monopolistic companies aren't considering these alternatives is because it doesn't generate the control over the power that they want. If you control the utilities, you control the people. The federal government is giving out billions of dollars in incentives and other benefits to build new nuclear reactors, which Progress Energy has already collected. The incentives for solar and wind arrays are not to be found.
Please call Progress Energy and Levy and Citrus counties and tell them you don't want nuclear power. There are better ways to generate electricity that supports life, not cancer and death for thousands of years.
Please call Gov. Charlie Crist and ask him to support green, renewable power - solar, wind, hydrogen.
This is your world; how do you want to live in it?
Elaine Nichols of Oldsmar is active in the anti-nuclear energy movement. Guest columnists write their views on subjects that they choose, which do not necessarily reflect those of this newspaper.