Nuclear Power Offers Clean Energy, Clean Air

Published: May 30, 2007

A year ago, former Gov. Jeb Bush designated May as Clean Air Month and encouraged Florida's citizens and businesses to do their part, a tradition that Gov. Charlie Crist has continued to uphold this year.

True to its character as an environmental leader, Florida responded by investing in renewable energy through the 2006 Florida Energy Act and by encouraging companies and residents to purchase solar panels and energy efficient appliances through tax incentives.

As a homeowner in Florida, I am pleased that Florida is just one of three states east of the Mississippi that meets all federal clean air standards. Large swaths of our country can't make that claim.

According to the American Lung Association's State of the Air 2007 report, one-third of all Americans live in areas with unhealthy levels of air pollution. Problem is, most Americans do not know the quality of the air they breathe. That's a function of inadequate access to information, busy lives and an assumption that the powers that be will get it right. But even when we have the facts in hand, reality can be clouded by a confusing haze of figures and statistics.

Here's one reality: By 2030 the demand for electricity in the United States will be 40 percent greater than it is today. When we look at how our nation plans to address the dual challenge of keeping the lights on and having clean air, we cannot afford to overlook nuclear energy.

Nuclear energy is the world's largest source of emission-free electricity. Nuclear power plants do not produce nitrous oxide or sulfur dioxide, which lead to smog and acid rain. Nuclear energy produces no carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. Facts like these are causing policymakers, environmentalists and others to rethink nuclear energy:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told a House Committee on Science and Technology hearing that in her early days in Congress, she was an opponent of nuclear energy because of questions on how to dispose of the waste.

She went on to say, "The technology has changed, and I bring a more open mind to that subject now because I think we should look at this technology, and compare it to the alternatives."

WIRED magazine reported even back in February 2005 that "Burning hydrocarbons is a luxury that a planet with 6 billion energy-hungry souls can't afford. There's only one sane, practical alternative: nuclear power."

Without emission-free nuclear energy, Florida in 2005 alone would have emitted 67,000 more tons of sulfur dioxide and 38,600 more tons of nitrous oxide (the same amount of nitrous oxide emitted by 2 million passenger cars each year). Across the United States, the use of nuclear power prevented about 680 million metric tons of CO2 in 2006 - the equivalent of taking about 98 percent of U.S. cars off the road.

Renewable energy should have an increased role, and each of us should do more to conserve energy. We can and should buy more efficient appliances, drive fuel-efficient cars and even plant carbon absorbing trees to improve our air quality. But unfortunately, these acts alone won't satisfy our energy demands. Nuclear energy alone won't get us there either, but it should be an integral part of our overall energy portfolio.

Nuclear energy can help us preserve the Earth's climate while at the same time providing for our future energy needs.

Christine Todd Whitman, former New Jersey governor and Environmental Protection Agency administrator, is co-chair of the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition, a national grassroots organization that advocates the benefits of nuclear energy.