We applaud this insightful Op-Ed article from TheDay, describing a new investigative report on energy choices for Connecticut issued by the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering:
It concludes that expansion of nuclear power could provide the best means to meet the state’s energy needs in the long term, do so without creating greenhouse gases, and supply needed energy-generation diversity.
Then the Op-Ed gives a bit more background on the organization issuing the report:
Chartered by the state legislature in 1976, the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering is a private nonprofit corporation patterned after the National Academy of Sciences. It advises state government and industry “in the application of science and engineering to the economic and social welfare.” It has a reputation for objectivity and its report, requested by the Connecticut Energy Advisory Board, deserves serious consideration.
And supports the wise strategic direction recommended for Connecticut’s energy choices:
The report recognizes fuel diversity as critical to stabilizing electricity costs in Connecticut….The answer is not to ease environmental rules and boost pollution. Renewable sources, such as wind, solar and hydro can contribute, but will not be enough to meet long-term energy needs, the report concludes. The answer may be nuclear power. Over the last 10 years nuclear plants in the U.S. have operated at 90 percent of capacity and are not subject to the cost fluctuations of fossil-fuel plants.
In conclusion, the editorial states and emphasizes:
… Currently, five new-generation nuclear plants are under construction in southern states. Their successful completion and operation could help establish public trust in the technology.
That does not mean Connecticut has the luxury of time. The groundwork for potential nuclear construction in a decade or so should begin now. The state that built the first nuclear-powered submarine should not accept as its fate that high electric rates will forever place it at a competitive disadvantage.
