Has the threat of global warming and soaring fossil fuel costs changed the prospects for nuclear energy? Advocates stress its potential cost-effectiveness and the coming generation of safe, efficient plants. Critics maintain that efficiency is a mirage and that environmental uncertainties remain. While technological advances have made nuclear power plants safer than ever, the United States has not ordered a new one since the 1970s. Yet new nuclear facilities are coming on line in India, China, and eastern Europe, while the United Kingdom and other G-8 countries have cautiously endorsed a move toward nuclear energy as an alternative to expensive and greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuel plants. Whether the legacies of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl and a determined political opposition will derail new construction remains to be seen.
Would an increased commitment to nuclear generation be wise—financially and environmentally? Will the new generation of nuclear plants be safer and more efficient? What are the regulatory constraints faced by the nuclear industry? Please join us for a conference to examine whether there has been a shift in views toward nuclear energy, and if so, what the public policy consequences will be.
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