SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A solar park in the UK. (Photo: RTPeat/flickr/cc)
New Report Shatters Myth of 'Nuclear Renaissance'
The report 'demonstrates beyond the shadow of a doubt that renewable energy and energy efficiency are a far sounder investment and a much safer choice,' said Kevin Kamps of Beyond Nuclear.
Jul 16, 2015
If renewable energy advocates need more evidence that solar and wind are better investments than nuclear power, a new report may offer just that.
The findings come from the newly released World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2015, which looks at global nuclear developments over the past year.
Marking a first in five decades, Japan went without nuclear power for an entire year, the report states. And three of the world's largest economies--China, Germany, Japan--as well as Brazil, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Spain, now all generate more electricity from non-hydro renewables than from nuclear.
In the UK, renewable energy, including hydropower, provided more electricity output than nuclear in 2014.
Global generation from solar was up 38 percent, and wind power increased over 10 percent. In contrast, nuclear power generation was up just 2.2 percent.
Further, global investments in renewable were far higher than those in the nuclear power sector.
Beyond Nuclear, an organization that advocates for a safe, democratic energy future, said the report belies claims of a "nuclear renaissance."
"This is a valuable study which each year separates empirical fact from nuclear industry fantasy," said Kevin Kamps, a spokesperson for the organization. "It exposes the incredible uncertainties attached to a nuclear energy economy while demonstrating beyond the shadow of a doubt that renewable energy and energy efficiency are a far sounder investment and a much safer choice."
Jonathon Porritt, co-founder and trustee of Forum for the Future and former chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, echoes that sentiment in the forward to the report: "The impressively resilient hopes that many people still have of a global nuclear renaissance are being trumped by a real-time revolution in efficiency-plus-renewables-plus-storage, delivering more and more solutions on the ground every year."
Porritt writes that the report "remorselessly lays bare the gap between the promise of innovation in the nuclear industry and its delivered results."
He concludes: "The static, top-heavy, monstrously expensive world of nuclear power has less and less to deploy against today's increasingly agile, dynamic, cost-effective alternatives. The sole remaining issue is that not everyone sees it that way--as yet."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
If renewable energy advocates need more evidence that solar and wind are better investments than nuclear power, a new report may offer just that.
The findings come from the newly released World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2015, which looks at global nuclear developments over the past year.
Marking a first in five decades, Japan went without nuclear power for an entire year, the report states. And three of the world's largest economies--China, Germany, Japan--as well as Brazil, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Spain, now all generate more electricity from non-hydro renewables than from nuclear.
In the UK, renewable energy, including hydropower, provided more electricity output than nuclear in 2014.
Global generation from solar was up 38 percent, and wind power increased over 10 percent. In contrast, nuclear power generation was up just 2.2 percent.
Further, global investments in renewable were far higher than those in the nuclear power sector.
Beyond Nuclear, an organization that advocates for a safe, democratic energy future, said the report belies claims of a "nuclear renaissance."
"This is a valuable study which each year separates empirical fact from nuclear industry fantasy," said Kevin Kamps, a spokesperson for the organization. "It exposes the incredible uncertainties attached to a nuclear energy economy while demonstrating beyond the shadow of a doubt that renewable energy and energy efficiency are a far sounder investment and a much safer choice."
Jonathon Porritt, co-founder and trustee of Forum for the Future and former chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, echoes that sentiment in the forward to the report: "The impressively resilient hopes that many people still have of a global nuclear renaissance are being trumped by a real-time revolution in efficiency-plus-renewables-plus-storage, delivering more and more solutions on the ground every year."
Porritt writes that the report "remorselessly lays bare the gap between the promise of innovation in the nuclear industry and its delivered results."
He concludes: "The static, top-heavy, monstrously expensive world of nuclear power has less and less to deploy against today's increasingly agile, dynamic, cost-effective alternatives. The sole remaining issue is that not everyone sees it that way--as yet."
If renewable energy advocates need more evidence that solar and wind are better investments than nuclear power, a new report may offer just that.
The findings come from the newly released World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2015, which looks at global nuclear developments over the past year.
Marking a first in five decades, Japan went without nuclear power for an entire year, the report states. And three of the world's largest economies--China, Germany, Japan--as well as Brazil, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Spain, now all generate more electricity from non-hydro renewables than from nuclear.
In the UK, renewable energy, including hydropower, provided more electricity output than nuclear in 2014.
Global generation from solar was up 38 percent, and wind power increased over 10 percent. In contrast, nuclear power generation was up just 2.2 percent.
Further, global investments in renewable were far higher than those in the nuclear power sector.
Beyond Nuclear, an organization that advocates for a safe, democratic energy future, said the report belies claims of a "nuclear renaissance."
"This is a valuable study which each year separates empirical fact from nuclear industry fantasy," said Kevin Kamps, a spokesperson for the organization. "It exposes the incredible uncertainties attached to a nuclear energy economy while demonstrating beyond the shadow of a doubt that renewable energy and energy efficiency are a far sounder investment and a much safer choice."
Jonathon Porritt, co-founder and trustee of Forum for the Future and former chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, echoes that sentiment in the forward to the report: "The impressively resilient hopes that many people still have of a global nuclear renaissance are being trumped by a real-time revolution in efficiency-plus-renewables-plus-storage, delivering more and more solutions on the ground every year."
Porritt writes that the report "remorselessly lays bare the gap between the promise of innovation in the nuclear industry and its delivered results."
He concludes: "The static, top-heavy, monstrously expensive world of nuclear power has less and less to deploy against today's increasingly agile, dynamic, cost-effective alternatives. The sole remaining issue is that not everyone sees it that way--as yet."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.