Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2008 | 2:01 a.m.
Conspicuously absent from last week’s National Clean Energy Summit was the advancement of nuclear energy. The ambitious plan to have 20 percent of our power supplied by renewables still leaves a 10 percent deficit in our projected energy needs in that time period, which will have to be filled by nuclear or fossil energy sources.
Without nuclear power, we will be in a worse situation than we are in today, dependent on oil imports. The reserves of the North Sea, Mexico, Russia and even Saudi Arabia will be mostly exhausted, which points out the importance of additional drilling now in the United States.
Another cost not addressed is that renewable energy will also incur the cost of 100 percent backup fossil fuel or nuclear generation plants because sunlight and wind are not available 24/7. Instead of dismantling our dirty power plants, such as the one in Laughlin, we should keep them available for the days when renewable plants are unable to deliver power.
While we all recognize the need for renewable energy sources, it is important to know what this will cost so we do not adversely affect our economy. Sen. Harry Reid’s dog and pony show left a lot of questions unanswered.
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