Nuclear Power: We have much better choices

Ryan Meili calls on NDP MLAs to oppose SaskParty uranium resolution.
On Thursday, the Saskatchewan Legislature will debate a motion by Meadow Lake MLA Jeremy Harrison supporting the development of nuclear generation in Saskatchewan. NDP leadership candidate Ryan Meili has issued the following statement.

The Wall government’s uranium resolution falsely frames the debate on nuclear energy and uranium development.

Nuclear power is not a viable solution to Saskatchewan’s energy needs. It is too expensive. It is too risky. It is too slow. We have much better choices.

I am calling on all 20 New Democratic Party MLAs to vote “no” on this misleading motion.

Nuclear power is being sold to us as a means to provide cheap energy, as a means of addressing immediate energy needs, even as a means of protecting our environment.
But none of these sales pitches are based on the facts.

• Nuclear power isn’t cheap. A nuclear reactor is a very expensive undertaking and the people of Saskatchewan will pay for it on their electricity bills for a long time to come, if it is allowed to be built. We pay 10 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity now. Whether its Bruce Power or SaskPower, no one will build a nuclear reactor in Saskatchewan for less than 20 cents per kilowatt hour – double the current price of electricity. That simple fact is why most private sector utilities in the United States have been avoiding nuclear power – they know there are too many hidden costs and that most nuclear power construction projects have huge cost over-runs. Add to that expensive repair bills, the high cost of disposing of radioactive nuclear fuel waste and the very high cost of decommissioning a radioactive reactor core. When compared to wind power at 11 cents per kilowatt hour and electricity conservation at less than 6 cents per kilowatt hour, nuclear power’s economics make no sense.

• Nuclear power puts our environment at risk. Yes, nuclear power can reduce the carbon footprint. But that assumed you ignore the massive carbon emissions involved in building the reactor – particularly if it is built in a remote area. A nuclear reactor will also produce intensely radioactive waste materials which no country on earth has successfully disposed of. Why should the next generation of Saskatchewan residents bear the burden of disposing of this radioactive waste material, with the worry that it must be kept out of ground water supplies for tens of thousands of years into the future.

• Nuclear power doesn’t address our immediate energy needs. Nuclear reactors are not designed and built quickly. Sites are not chosen quickly. Even if the process started today, it would be nearly 20 years before a proposed nuclear facility contributed a single watt to the energy grid.

Why I'm going to work for Ryan Meili

Ryan Meili is running for the NDP leadership in June. He is a family doctor and community organizer; for years, he has been working to build healthier communities in Saskatchewan. Currently employed as a rural relief locum, Ryan’s job as a family doctor takes him all over the province to give doctors in small communities some much-needed and well-deserved time off. When not on the road he lives in Saskatoon’s core community of Riversdale.

This is what he says about the environment:

Building a healthier society requires a long-term vision for a sustainable relationship with our environment. Saskatchewan has been blessed with an abundance of natural resources. The way that we choose to use them is a true test of our stewardship.

To ensure that we use our resource wealth responsibly, Saskatchewan must invest heavily in the future. We have an opportunity to grow a green economy in energy production, manufacturing and conservation at a time when the world needs us to use less.

- Implement floating royalty rates to ensure that the economy continues to grow while Saskatchewan people receive fair value for their resources. Invest the wealth generated wisely and sustainably in environmental stewardship and renewable energy.

- Invest boldly in obtaining our energy needs from renewable sources such as wind, solar and hydro rather than non-renewable technologies such as coal, fossil fuels and nuclear power. This will decrease our carbon and waste footprint as well as conserving scarce resources for future generations.

- Reduce our energy needs by investing in conservation. Support retrofits for existing buildings. Incentivize and regulate new construction to promote energy efficiency, including the use of geothermal heat and solar power.

- Because transportation is one of the greatest energy users and pollution producers, we must invest in rail, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and high efficiency vehicles.

These changes can be made so as to benefit us both economically and environmentally. We can put the eco back in economy and grow both our prosperity and our sustainability. Not only can this shift be made, it must be made. Climate change is happening and we are contributing to it. The cumulative impact of unsafe industrial practices threatens our environment. It is not too late to change, but the time has come to use our best energies to build a greener, cleaner, healthier society.

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