DEAD-END PATH NUCLEAR – and alternative energy futures

Poster for the Kingston Citizen Inquiry on Uranium Mining, April 5, 2008, submitted by

Stefan Seum, Environmental Professionalsteseum@comcast.net

Uranium is another finite resource!

Current uranium resources are exploited at ~$40 per kg uranium

3.3 million t uranium are estimated to be available for $130 / kg worldwide (Source: OECD)

This is enough to fuel the current nuclear power plants for only 50 years

Would nuclear energy triple as suggested, uranium would run out in 20 – 30 years (Souce: Oeko-Institut)

There are unwanted consequences from the uranium squeezeTightening resources make the exploitation

of less uranium-rich ore necessaryThe Sharbot site might be neededThe Sharbot 0.1% ore produces 40x more

tailing than today’s common 4.0% oresMining sites will become more polluted as

we move to lower grade depositsEnergy from uranium becomes even more

costly – environmentally and economically

Continuing the nuclear path is fighting evil with another evilLimited energy securityEver increasing mining pollution and health

risksIncreased risks of nuclear accidentsNo solutions for radioactive wasteContinued proliferation of nuclear weaponsHigh profits for centralized, corporate entitiesHigh prices for citizens and the environmentDumping the costs on future generations

More democratic and environmentally friendly solutions exist:

Decentralizing and democratizing the energy markets, i.e. small-scale community owned power generation

Increasing energy efficiencyExpanding renewable energy sources, and

heat and power co-generation

Germany provides an example of a legislation package that will: Implement final nuclear energy phase out until

2022 Increase share of renewable energy for

electricity production to 25-30% by 2020, through: guaranteed return on investment through fixed feed-in

tariffs aid for wind farms and solar power systems

Increase of local heat and power co-generation from 12% today to 25% by 2020

Tax cars based on their CO2 emissions Enable tenants to reduce rent in case of

excessive heating costs

… and the German program is profitable

It reduces GHG emissions by 40% in 2020 (based on 1990 levels)

It results in a profit of 5 billion Euro in 2020 because investment costs (31 billion) are below energy saving costs (36 billon)

Another path is possible, if weend market laissez-faire that profit few andenact laws for the people and the future

Resources for further reading:

The Integrated Energy and Climate Programme of the German Government http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/inhalt/40589/20049/

The German Renewable Energy Sources Act of 2004 http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/inhalt/6465/5982/

The Energy (R)evolution by European Renewable Energy Council and Greenpeace International http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/documents-and-links/publications

/energy-r-evolution-a-sustain

Research publications by the German Oeko-Institute (German and English language) http://www.oeko.de/publikationen/forschungsberichte/studien/dok/657.p

hp?IArbeitsgeb1=368&anzeige=pub