With the recent events surrounding the lives lost in the West Virginia coal mines, it brings to the forefront the urgency of having a frank discussion about the role of clean nuclear energy.

From 1960 to 2007, there have been 564 deaths from coal mining accidents. This does not include any deaths due to Black Lung disease or other respiratory problems. There have been NO DEATHS due to nuclear energy production in the U.S. during this same time period.

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, in an average year, a typical coal plant generates:

• 3,700,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary human cause of global warming--as much carbon dioxide as cutting down 161 million trees.
• 10,000 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2), which causes acid rain that damages forests, lakes, and buildings
• 10,200 tons of nitrogen oxide (NOx), as much as would be emitted by half a million late-model cars. NOx leads to formation of ozone (smog) which inflames the lungs, burning through lung tissue making people more susceptible to respiratory illness.
• 720 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), which causes headaches and place additional stress on people with heart disease.
• 220 tons of hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds (VOC), which form ozone.
• 170 pounds of mercury, where just 1/70th of a teaspoon deposited on a 25-acre lake can make the fish unsafe to eat.
• 225 pounds of arsenic, which will cause cancer in one out of 100 people who drink water containing 50 parts per billion.
• 114 pounds of lead, 4 pounds of cadmium, other toxic heavy metals, and trace amounts of uranium.

Nuclear energy generates none of the above pollutants and contaminants. It is safer, more environmentally friendly, and the only 24/7 clean energy generator of the clean energy producers.

Bill McEwen ended his Fresno Bee column about nuclear power and Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of global nuclear power AREVA, with a pointed statement: Is the rest of the world crazy or is it us? There are 55 nuclear plants under construction in 14 countries across the globe. There is not a single new plant yet begun in the United States. California can no longer accept that the rest of the world, including other U.S. states, is passing us by. This we can ill afford. It is much costlier to play catch-up than to lead.

James Lovelock, the founding historical and cultural leader of environmentalism for environmentalists around the world, stated that nuclear energy is the one safe, available, energy source, and hopes that it is not too late for the world to emulate France and make nuclear power our principal source of energy. He also added that there is at present no other safe, practical and economic substitute for the dangerous practice of burning carbon fuels.

If we want to reach our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by producing cleaner energy, we must start with the only technology that can achieve that can help us meet baseload demand. Solar and wind can do it alone. Coal cannot do it at all. Nuclear can.

Both parties shout it to the country when running for national office; “We must reduce our dependency on foreign oil!” Well, there is no better way to do that than to embrace safe nuclear energy technology. Politicians must stop counting campaign dollars and start counting the cost of doing business.

There are areas of the country that are dependent on coal mining jobs to support their livelihoods, but you can replace the coalmines with nuclear energy facilities where pay is well above the region’s averages, land values increase where nuclear facilities operate, and new business is attracted due to less costly power costs. All of this provides a higher quality of life for the impacted communities.

At the end of the day, it is far better and safer to produce clean nuclear energy than to gauge out sections of the earth for coal.