Nuclear Is Not the Solution: The Folly of Atomic Power in the Age of Climate Change

Ramana (The Power of Promise), a global affairs professor at the University of British Columbia, argues against the expansion of nuclear power in this vehement treatise. Increased reliance on atomic energy will exacerbate the risk of serious accidents, Ramana contends, explaining that while reactors can be shut down during emergencies, the fission products can under certain circumstances melt through the fuel assembly and leak into the environment. Reactors produce harmful radioactive waste that takes millions of years to decay, he writes, suggesting that proposals to store waste in underground repositories carry a high risk of failure due to long-term natural changes in geological conditions that could break the container’s seal. Elsewhere, Ramana notes that nuclear power is less cost-effective than solar and suggests atomic energy makes “catastrophic nuclear war more likely” because of the increased availability of nuclear technology. Detailed case studies demonstrate the practical difficulties involved in commissioning nuclear plants (Ramana describes how an as-yet-unfinished Somerset, England, plant whose planning began in 2008 has taken longer to build and been more expensive than anticipated, costing at least twice as much as the £16 billion initially estimated), and Ramana builds a persuasive case that the costs of nuclear power outweigh the benefits. Environmentally-conscious readers will have their eyes opened. (July)