Nuclear options

In Wisconsin, the two groups have clashed on such issues as banning fetal tissue research, cutting scientists from the Department of Natural Resources and reducing state funds for higher education. But the party known for anti-intellectualism and climate change denial is joining forces with scientists to lift a decades-old moratorium on the construction of new nuclear power plants in Wisconsin.

It’s a move that local energy experts say will position the state to meet the carbon emissions reduction guidelines set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan. However, some environmentalists worry about dangerous nuclear waste and say that policymakers should focus efforts on renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

Under current law, state regulators are barred from approving new nuclear power plants unless there is a federal facility to store nuclear waste and the new plant is not a financial burden for ratepayers. No such federal facility exists. A proposal from Rep. Kevin Petersen (R-Waupaca) removing those provisions made it through committee with bipartisan support last month and passed in the Assembly on Jan. 12.

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Ken Notes: We need to slow down until this is a part of a much larger environmentally sustainable program. We need to move forward not backward here... The article is a great read!!!