We can’t ignore reliable, affordable energy source

This month’s bitter cold temperatures have resulted in power suppliers to the region, including the Tennessee Valley Authority, calling on customers to engage in voluntary conservation efforts. Electricity, in some form or another, is a primary source of heat in many homes in our region.It also lights our homes, powers the chargers of our many electronic gadgets and heats the water we use to shower, wash dishes and clean clothes. The idea of not having that energy, even for a brief amount of time, is disconcerting. Power companies are scrambling to keep up with demand. In recent years, TVA and some private providers have phased out coal-fired generating plants that dirty the air and pollute our environment. They have looked to “green” technology to help make up some of the difference.TVA has also considered nuclear power as a reliable alternative. It has been hard to sell the public on nuclear energy. Americans have been leery of nuclear power ever since 1979 when a malfunctioning valve at the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor in Pennsylvania led to a partial meltdown of the reactor core and a release of radioactive gases into the air. Concern over the safety of nuclear power resulted in a halt of the construction of new plants all across the country, including a number of facilities that had been planned by TVA. The federal agency had hoped to restart work on those facilities, but a threatened meltdown of the reactor’s core at the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan in March 2011 have again ignited concerns about the safety of nuclear energy around the world.While we understand these concerns, it is unconscionable for elected officials and environmentalists not to also address the benefits of nuclear energy. Can the United States afford to ignore an energy source that has been proven both reliable and affordable in most of the world (particularly in France, which has become a leading producer of nuclear power in Europe)?We don’t think so.



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