ATOMIC DREAMS

Nuclear power, hated and apparently nearing extinction, has sprung back to life.

Journalist Tuhus-Dubrow, author of Personal Stereo, opens in 2022, when the overwhelmingly Democratic California legislature dealt with the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, the last in the state and scheduled to close. Backed by the governor and activists, lawmakers voted to extend its life. Little public outrage followed. Tuhus-Dubrow focuses on Heather Hoff and Kristin Zaitz, two employees of Diablo Canyon but no extremists, who founded Mothers for Nuclear in 2016. The women joined a growing movement of climate scientists, former anti-nuclear activists, and liberals who have changed their minds about nuclear power. Now competitive with coal and gas, renewable energy—mostly solar and wind—is increasing, but fossil fuel plants are increasing faster. Ironically, the 2011 Fukushima disaster motivated pro-nuclear environmentalists. Roughly 18,500 people died during the tsunami, but much of the international horror focused on the power plant, where no one died. Meanwhile, poisonous waste from nuclear plants is buried. The waste from fossil fuel, on the other hand, enters our lungs and shortens our lives. That millions die from air pollution is not controversial, but it creates no sense of urgency, the author notes. Tuhus-Dubrow agrees that nuclear plants are safer than opponents claim and that renewables come with their own difficulties; operating intermittently, solar and wind require a steady power source to fill in when they fall silent. In the absence of a technological breakthrough, the choice is between fossil fuel and nuclear.

A convincing argument on a controversial topic.