POSITION STATEMENT ON NUCLEAR ENERGY

THE SIERRA CLUB, ROANOKE GROUP 

The Sierra Club Roanoke Group opposes new nuclear reactor projects for energy production in Virginia for the following reasons:

1. There is still no way to safely dispose of nuclear waste. While nuclear power produces no direct greenhouse gas emissions, it generates radioactive waste, which must be stored and managed for thousands of years. There are also concerns about the environmental impact of mining uranium.
2. No technology is perfect, and when things go wrong, there is potential for catastrophic consequences. Three Mile Island, Fukushima and Chernobyl are examples of the vulnerability of nuclear reactors. Reactor meltdowns could kill thousands, if not millions, and render vast areas uninhabitable for millennia.  
3. Nuclear reactors require water in reliable and significant quantities. They produce heat, not electricity. Water is used to produce steam that runs turbines. Water is also used as a coolant, and a failure of the coolant system can lead to a disastrous meltdown. This large and necessary use of constant and significant amounts of water is concerning as, globally, water is an increasingly limited resource. While not necessarily a limited resource in Virginia at this time, it could become so in the future and therefore could likely result in a coolant system failure if we implement small nuclear reactors (SMRs) in Virginia. 
4. Uranium is the fuel for fission reactors and suppling it is challenging. There are concerns about uranium supply in the long term. Supply is finite, subject to price volatility, and mining operations can be environmentally damaging. Most uranium for US reactors is imported. In 2022, 27% came from Canada, 25%, Kazakhstan, 12% Russia, 11% Uzbekistan, 9% Australia and 16% from six other countries. With a large deposit in Pittsylvania County, there would be pressure to mine it. In arid areas, mining is much less dangerous than in Virginia where rainfall is significant and the possibility of flooding makes this site unacceptable.
5. Nuclear energy is the most expensive source of power in the world. Nuclear energy has a higher LCOE (Levelized Cost of Energy - LCOE) due to significant upfront investment costs and long construction timelines, long permitting processes, and maintenance costs. Additionally, the cost of uranium and waste disposal adds to the financial burden of nuclear energy. The same amount of money can finance enough renewable energy to meet our needs safely. Solar is the cheapest electricity on Earth, with wind next. Opportunities for growth are abundant as the capital investment for building solar and wind farms is much lower than for nuclear reactors. Solar and wind projects can also be deployed more quickly, sometimes within a year or two, while nuclear plants may take a decade or more to construct, with delays and cost overruns common, making nuclear projects financially risky. Here’s Virginia with no wind farms while every neighboring state except Kentucky has wind farms.  Kentucky has a single demonstrator turbine, a start. The cost of generating electricity from solar and wind has decreased significantly over the last decade due to technological advances and economies of scale
6. Compared to nuclear plants, there are stronger economic benefits for adopting wind and solar. While nuclear power plants provide skilled jobs in construction and operation, the job creation potential is more limited compared to solar and wind. Additionally, the ongoing operating workforce for a nuclear plant is smaller compared to the workforce required for solar and wind farms. The solar and wind industries are major sources of job creation, particularly in manufacturing, installation, and maintenance. These industries tend to have more local economic benefits, as they do not require centralized facilities and can be developed in many regions.

Conclusion:

We see solar and wind energy as better alternatives to nuclear due to their lower costs, faster deployment, reduced environmental impact, and concerns about safety. As technology continues to improve, the role of solar and wind energy in the global energy mix is expected to grow. Nuclear could still play a role in a diversified energy mix if advancements occur or if fusion power become commercially viable in the future.