Alternative energy vs. solar power

In spite of the known advantages of solar power, some lawmakers continue to do the bidding of oil and nuclear lobbyists whose job it is to promote the most harmful energy sources known to man. It boggles the mind that some “experts” are still promoting nuclear energy. When climate scientists take a “tough-minded” look at pollution statistics, a few still come to the conclusion that the only technology now available to replace fossil fuels is nuclear power. Eduardo Porter of the New York Times made that argument last week when he wrote:
“...nuclear power remains the cheapest and most readily scalable of the alternative energy sources.”
Such an ill-informed statement cannot go unchallenged. Has Mr. Porter heard of Chernobyl or Fukushima? Is he aware of the environmental disaster those two have created? To be specific, the nuclear power facility at Fukushima is spewing thousands of gallons of radioactive wastewater into the Pacific on a daily basis. The plant was decimated by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami on March 11, 2011, and continues to be an environmental disaster of massive proportions.

Many reasons to ignore nuclear energy

There are a plethora of reasons that nuclear power is no solution to the climate crisis. Nuclear power plants are capital-intensive, technologically extremely hard to manage, and difficult, if not to site. Building nuclear power plants is prohibitively expensive and decommissioning a nuclear power plant is EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE and that cost is not considered when determining nuclear’s cost-effectiveness. Then, when the plant is mothballed permanently, it remains a toxic waste site for thousands of years. This means that even though we have the technical knowledge of how to generate electricity with nuclear power, in the U.S. these plants will never be built in enough quantity to reduce global warming. Scientists are realizing that renewable energy is the only solution to our climate problems. There are other disturbing issues associated with current nuclear technologies that render them problematic as well. The toxicity of nuclear fuel and waste, cannot be ignored. Fortunately, catastrophic accidents may be rare, but when they occur, their impact is devastating and long-lasting. Nuclear plants are already a target of terrorist groups and the faster we eliminate this dangerous technology, the safer we will become. 

Is there any other legitimate solution other than solar?

Renewable power is changing the energy business. Although the conventional wisdom tells us that solar power, battery technology, and smart grids are far in the future, we are only a breakthrough or two away from a new age of decentralized energy technology. While none of us can predict the future, and technological breakthroughs cannot be assumed, the risk of nuclear power is not difficult to predict.

Solar technological advances are making solar a viable and immediate option!

Solar power is here to stay, and the sooner you explore how much you can save, the sooner you can enjoy the benefits of residential solar power. Go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. It tells you how much solar power you need, and how much you can save.

Please visit our solar blog to find out more about the benefits of going solar.