$54 Billiion for Nukes?!? What about Efficiency, Solar, and Wind?
President Obama wants to triple the loan program for construction of new nuclear reactors, to $54 billion. $8.3 has already been given to Georgia Power for their 2 proposed reactors near Augusta, Ga.
As Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) pointed out last week, these are not loan “guarantees”–they are direct taxpayer loans to wealthy nuclear utilities from the government’s Federal Financing Bank. And this is just a proposal–it’s not a done deal.
WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?
- It’s YOUR money!
- Radioactive waste lasts for thousands of years and there is no where to put the millions of pounds that are already stacking up all over the country.
- 27 of the 104 operating reactors are leaking radioactive tritium into the water supply. Google Vermont Yankee + Tritium for more info.
- WE NEED WATER TO LIVE: Nuclear is the most water intensive energy source there is, requiring up to 50 million gallons of water per day per reactor.
- We need energy that will create JOBS! For every $1 million invested, nuclear creates only 4 jobs, compared to 13 for solar and 13 for wind.
A coalition of organizations is coming together to tell Congress that we want solutions, not more problems! It’s our money they are promising to these nuclear projects, it’s high time we take a stand and say NO. NIRS and other groups won this battle twice last year. And together, we can do it again!
On Thursday, February 25, join National Call-Congress Day and call your Representatives and your Senators. Tell them to stop the tripling of the nuclear loan program. You can reach all of your Congressmembers at 202-224-3121. Rather write than call? Click here for the original action alert from NIRS:
For more detailed information on the loan guarantees, please visit here.
For more on why nukes are just another Problem when we need Solutions, see this.
To learn how much of a financial failure nukes were the last go around, check this out:
Here are some talking points from NIRS:
- The American people are tired of corporate bailouts. In this case, taxpayers would provide the loans and take all the risk. The large utilities would take any profits, and taxpayers would pay for all losses. That is fundamentally unfair to the American people.
- Congress should wait and see how the current loans (to the Vogtle reactors in Georgia and likely one or two more reactors) fare before risking even more taxpayer money on nuclear loans.
- Nuclear power remains dirty and dangerous, as demonstrated by the recent toxic tritium leaks at the Vermont Yankee reactor and elsewhere.
- It would be folly to repeat the mistakes of the past and encourage new reactor construction when we still don’t know how to handle the radioactive waste from existing reactors.
- We need to address the climate crisis with the fastest, cheapest, cleanest and safest means possible of reducing carbon emissions. Nuclear power is the slowest, most expensive, dirtiest and most dangerous technology available. And nuclear power is not carbon-free: its carbon footprint is about six times that of wind, 2-3 times greater than solar, and many times greater than energy efficiency.
- Our goal should be to attain a nuclear-free, carbon-free energy future. Anyone who believes this isn’t possible just isn’t paying attention.
{jcomments on}So, make sure to call on Thursday! Here is the number again:
202-224-3121
Carolina Peace Resource Center 