with bush's new interest in nukuler energy to fight global warming, a few things need pointing out.
• the US is a lot bigger than france. just to catch up with france's percentage of electricity generated by nuclear plants, we'd have to build 18 reactors a year for 40 years. by then it'll be too late.
• claims that nuke energy is a lot safer than it used to be are exaggerated. the NRC staff is greatly reduced, so the govt relies heavily on self-inspection by operators. serious accidents are known to have been narrowly averted.
• the waste problem hasn't gone away. france's neighbors have complained about dumping in the english channel. a number of experts say yucca mountain is about as unsafe as a storage site can be.
• the oft cited 2¢ per kwh cost doesn't take capital expense into account. low cost won't come till after lenders get paid back and investors make a profit.
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