I'm really concerned with the backlash on nuclear power that has stemmed from the disaster in Japan. Many people are clamoring for states to remove nuclear power plants out of concerns for safety.
My feeling is that this view is a bit short sighted. For one thing, this is only the third time that there has been a problem with a reactor, and it took the 4th largest quake in recorded history to cause it. Modern reactors are very safe and quakes like this aren't going to happen often.
Secondly, what is our other option? Coal? This is probably what scares me the most as I'm a firm believer that coal burning power plants are doing irreperable damage to the environment and the last thing I want is for them to up production to cover for nuclear plants that are going offline. Not to mention that coal is way deadlier than nuclear power. How many miners have died in recent years? Many more than have been killed by nuclear plants.
If there were a viable alternative available that could completely cover for the nuclear plants without further damage to the environment then I would be all for it, but there isn't. Wind, solar, and water power aren't enough to make up the difference at this point in time.
We need to all calm down before we make a bad situation worse with a knee jerk reaction to what is an unthinkable tragedy.
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