Advanced reactors are safer but still too expensive.
Congressional Republicans and Democrats found something they could agree on Tuesday, passing a bill to accelerate nuclear energy development, particularly advanced reactors small enough to scatter across the country.
President Joe Biden is expected to sign the law, which passed both the House and the Senate, the latter on a vote of 88-2. Cue the environmentalist outrage machine.
Few issues trigger the public like nuclear power. People fear accidents like the explosion in Chernobyl or the meltdown in Fukushima. Some activists have made careers at blocking nuclear waste dump sites, which means spent fuel rods are stored near the reactors.
However, nuclear power plants can provide carbon-free electricity around the clock, making them critical for slowing climate change. While radiation is frightening, nuclear power is not nearly as deadly as the emissions from coal or natural gas power plants.
The biggest problem for nuclear power is the cost. Every nuclear power plant goes over budget, and generators need high electricity prices to make a profit on their multibillion-dollar investments. The latest example is the Vogtle plant in Georgia, which cost $28 billion and will add $9 to the state's consumers' bill every month for decades.
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