For more than thirty years, there hasn't been a new nuclear plant built in the United States. This is due to a number of reasons, including cost overruns, environmental lawsuits, political palatability and an unjustified fear of nuclear technology. That may all change with President Obama recently announcing support for nuclear power by giving his blessing and taxpayer dollars for two new nuclear plants in Georgia.
Last week President Obama announced $8.33 billion in loan guarantees for nuclear construction projects in Georgia, after three decades of an ad hoc nuclear moratorium across the country. For all of the coverage last week, the media frenzy missed an important part of the story--the destructive processes at the front end of nuclear power.
