Nuclear Power: Still Dangerous

May 16, 2011

Two months after the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is far from stable. New reports show that substantial damage to the fuel cores at two additional reactors at Fukushima has taken place, further complicating the process of a safe shutdown. Workers have also found additional flooding in several of the reactor buildings, suggesting that the containment vessels are damaged and leaking highly radioactive water. This makes the process of setting up a continuous cooling system much more difficult, and will surely force a reexamination of the 9 month blueprint for bringing the plant under control.

While workers struggle to contain the Fukushima plant, and stem the release of radioactivity into the environment, hundreds of thousands of people are still unable to return home, and face very uncertain futures. Furthermore Japan faces a prolonged cleanup which could cost billions of dollars and take decades to complete. While Japan has not ruled out the continued use of nuclear power, plans to build an additional 14 plants have been canceled, and Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced Japan needs to “start from scratch” in creating a new energy policy.

Even though this crisis had begun to fade from the headlines, the sheer size and scope of the disaster should be a stark reminder of the inherent risks associated with nuclear power. While nuclear power may be touted as a clean and necessary part of future energy production, Fukushima illustrates the dangers of this thinking. It is clear that nuclear power plants are not immune to natural disasters, mechanical failure, or human error. Furthermore, issues remain over economic feasibility, re-licensing, storage, long-term disposal of highly radioactive waste and terrorist attacks.

A denial of risk, even after disasters at Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and now Fukushima, continues to lead many people to believe that nuclear power is a sustainable, safe and integral part of the energy mix. While nuclear power may satisfy the hopes and needs of carbon free energy, the safety and health risks that are involved outweigh the potential benefits. Instead the US, and the rest of the world, needs to move towards sustainable and renewable sources of energy that do not threaten citizens around the world.

Read On:

• Blog post: Rationalizing the Japanese Nuclear Crisis?

• Read a letter signed by FCNL to President Obama regarding the nuclear accident in Japan.

• Palm Beach Monthly Meeting Minute on Nuclear Energy.