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Some NEI Goodness for Your Reading Pleasure


We here at Nuclear Notes don't link a lot to the massive resources created by NEI because our purpose is to explore the world of nuclear energy (and other renewable energy sources) both within and without the purview of NEI central. And most of our visitors are, or should be, familiar with NEI and its work. However, that doesn't mean NEI isn't an extremely important advocate for the cause of nuclear energy or that we shouldn't let you in on some of its offerings.

First, we noticed that Market Watch has posted one of NEI's Fact Sheets. Here is how they describe it:

The Nuclear Energy Institute has developed a two-page fact sheet to assist reporters covering energy issues at the Democrat National Convention in Denver. It provides information explaining why commercial nuclear power is a vital part of the American energy portfolio needed to meet rapidly growing electricity demand in clean and reliable fashion. NEI is the nuclear energy industry's policy organization.


And so it is. The data there is all good and a boon for those looking for a stack of factoids to throw around at parties without becoming a bore. Here's a couple to get you started:

Nuclear power provides 19 percent of America's total electricity but 74 percent of America's carbon-free generation.

The United States has the world's largest commercial nuclear program, with 104 nuclear reactors in 31 states.


No one will throw a drink in your face if you tell them that! Look at the site to see the rest (and show Market Watch this is interesting to you.)

NEI can also be found at the Democratic National Convention (and next week, it'll be hanging out at various St. Paul haunts, too - we'll get around to that then) and has produced some ads to go into the conventioneers copies of the National Journal. These were done as big jpegs to make them readable and printable, so go over here to pick them up - they're the first entry on the page. Print a bunch and hand them out to your friends.

Well, that's enough logrolling. Well, almost enough. That last link takes you into NEI's site. Lots of linky goodness, loads and loads of information for you nuclear beginners right up to you engineer types. Excellent resources for school papers, reporters needing to do research - oh, anyone, really. Okay, that's enough.

Comments

Anonymous said…
NEI's overt support of a NON-PROBLEM (carbon) severely damages their credibility. They have become an echo chamber for the greens and their anti-human agenda of reducing economic growth. Their ignorance on the disconnect between man-made CO2 and temperature change is amazing.

Using the straw man of climate change to advance nukes is intellectually dishonest, unethical and morally wrong. Smart people could do much better by advocating the INHERENT advantages of nukes: defense in depth, no deaths to public in 50 years, low land use, extremely low volume of waste for energy produced, energy concentration over fossil, etc.

Temp vs CO2 graphs
http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/recent_cooling_and_the_serious_data_integrity_issue/

Latest news on cooling trends and non-climate emergency
http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/
David Bradish said…
Mike, not everyone believes what you believe. Last I looked, the jury is still out on CO2's effect on our atmosphere. Even if CO2 is found to have no effect on climate change, I believe it is totally appropriate to state that nuclear plants are emission-free. NEI's line is this: nuclear plants provide baseload power without producing emissions.
Anonymous said…
I agree with Mike. Most of the CO2 talk out there is completely unscientific or hypotheses. Connecting it with nuclear, a PROVEN technology, discredits nuclear. Why not promote nuclear based on it's provent benefits (low emissions contributing to smog, freeing up of petroleum products for other non-energy uses, safety)?
Mark Flanagan said…
To Mike and Pam -

At root, nuclear energy is what it is - a safe, clean energy source with some back end issues. Its benefits and promises can be advocated across the ideological, political and environmental spectrum. Some of it may chafe your knuckles depending on where you situate yourselves within those spectra, but that doesn't make illegitimate the advocacy.

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