Sign-on to Oppose Nukes in McCain-Lieberman Climate Change Bill!
Dear Friend:
Not learning from their debacle last Congress, once again Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) have co-introduced a climate change bill that would include funding for new nuclear reactors. Last Congress, their bill lost four votes from the year before: even while climate change is growing as an issue, their approach lost support. This year, there will be more alternatives than ever for Congress to consider. While votes are not expected on any climate legislation in the near future, we need to act now to make sure that the strategy Congress chooses to address the critical problem of global warming does not include the counterproductive use of nuclear power.
Organizations: Below is a sign-on letter, written by NIRS and Public Citizen, that we intend to give to the Senate soon. We hope your organization will sign on. Please send your name, organization name, city and state (and please include all this, so we can cut and paste this info into the final version!) to nirsnet@nirs.org , and please distribute this letter to as many groups as possible.
Individuals: Please use this letter as a sample, and send your own letters to both of your Senators! (Senator's name, US Senate, Washington, DC 20510). And send us a copy.
Thanks for your help! And because of the increased activity on climate and energy issues expected this year in Congress, you can expect us to be in touch with you frequently as developments occur.
Best wishes,
Michael Mariotte
Executive Director
_____________________________________________________
Dear Senator:
As environmental, consumer, and public health organizations, we are strong advocates of decisive, effective U.S. action to reduce global warming pollution. Thus, we are greatly disappointed that we must oppose the Senators Lieberman and McCain's Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act (S. 230), which would provide unnecessary and counterproductive support for nuclear power.
Nuclear power continues to be plagued with economic, safety, security, radioactive waste, and proliferation problems. Moreover, according to MIT, just to achieve a significant reduction in the expected increase in carbon dioxide emissions, at least 1,000 gigawatts of electricity (about 800-1,000 large reactors) would have to be built around the world by 2050. This scale of construction would require building as many as one reactor every 18 days for 40 years. There is at present no plausible basis for believing the global nuclear industry can be scaled-up and sustained at this level, or that the resulting non-carbon environmental and global security impacts would be acceptable even if this build rate were achievable. Energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable energies are safer, cleaner, faster, and more sustainable means to meet our energy needs, while reducing global warming pollution.
The Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act of 2007 would provide loan guarantees and direct subsidies for construction of three new reactor designs. These provisions are not only duplicative of measures passed in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, but they are also an unwarranted subsidy to a mature industry that already has received the lion's share of federal energy funds over the past 50 years. Between 1947 and 1999, the nuclear industry was given more than $115 billion in direct taxpayer subsidies, compared to a mere $5.7 billion for wind and solar over the same period.
Specifically, the bill:
- Provides up to $600 million for certifying three new nuclear reactor designs. The nuclear industry has already certified two new designs with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and has several more in the pipeline, without any federal subsidies.
- Provides an unlimited amount of additional federal subsidies for licensing new reactors. As part of DOE's Nuclear Power 2010 program, DOE has already awarded a consortium of nuclear companies $260 million to assist them with licensing activities and has agreed to fund another license application in Virginia.
- Requires DOE to further speed up an already accelerated NRC licensing process, placing the right of meaningful public involvement in major environmental decisions at risk. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 made sweeping changes to the NRC's licensing process for new reactors, none of which have been fully tested yet.
- Provides secured loans and loan guarantees that would cover up to 80 percent of the cost of building the three new reactors, which could cost taxpayers approximately $3 billion. Loan guarantees for various energy sources, including new nuclear power plants, were authorized in EPACT 2005.
- Provides federal support for reprocessing and other controversial radioactive waste disposal technologies.
We urge the Senate to focus its attention on supporting and enhancing renewable and efficiency technologies to reduce global warming pollution, not wasting more taxpayer dollars on nuclear power. We look forward to supporting your efforts in these areas.
Sincerely,
-30-
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