As rising carbon emissions threaten our climate, the United States faces a turning point. The choices we make about where we get our electricity will affect our ability to protect the climate, as well as meet America’s growing energy needs.
“How do we make sure we’re meeting America’s demand for electricity while also making the right choices ... to protect our environment?” asked Maria Korsnick, NEI president and chief executive office, at the Jan. 24 U.S. Energy Association’s annual State of the Energy Industry Forum.
Solving our nation’s energy and climate challenges is more complex than replacing carbon-emitting sources with intermittent renewables, such as solar and wind. These renewable sources are dependent on the sun shining or the wind blowing, and in most cases, they are backed up with gas plants which emit carbon.
Today, we find ourselves at a crossroads, with two paths in front of us. We can take the path that will diversify our energy mix: one that makes room for wind, solar and natural gas—but also for … nuclear. Or we take the other path, one that doesn’t invest in nuclear, that leads to higher emissions. I think the choice is clear.
America’s nuclear plants are highly efficient, operating at an average 92 percent capacity across the fleet; this is up more than 20 points compared with two decades ago. In addition, the nuclear sector employs nearly a half million people, and nuclear facilities are economic engines for communities that host them.
The problem is that some U.S. nuclear plants have been forced to close and others—like several plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania—are danger of shutting down. This poses risks for states such as Pennsylvania, where nuclear not only employs 16,000 skilled workers, it produces 42 percent of the state’s electricity and 93 percent of its clean energy.
Nuclear energy’s ability to produce always-on, emission-free power is gaining it new recognition from groups, such as the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Nature Conservancy, and even Google, which have come to the conclusion that having nuclear as an option is essential for cutting carbon.
“The scale of clean energy produced by nuclear is simply unmatched,” Korsnick said.
“We need to partner together—keep the solid nuclear foundation and build more emission-free options. Instead of abandoning nuclear, we need to embrace it and recognize there is no successful climate solution without it."
