nuclear-news

Nuclear industry sees the writing on the wall, – and attacks renewable energy

The Canadian Nuclear Association and the Ontario Power Workers Union have recently been vocal in promoting nuclear power, labelling renewables such as wind and solar as “intermittent” and expensive, and encouraging more investment in nuclear.

Solar industry urged to push back against nuclear ‘attack’ RICHARD BLACKWELL Toronto — The Globe and Mail, Dec. 03 2012,  Canada’s solar power industry needs to market itself more aggressively to counter “misinformation” spread by the nuclear power business, the head of the country’s solar association said Monday.

Claims by the nuclear industry that it is more economical and just as clean as renewable energy sources are essentially an “attack” on solar and need to be countered, said John Gorman, president of the Canadian Solar Industries Association.

“Make no mistake about it, renewable energy, and increasingly solar energy, is under attack,” he told delegates to a solar energy conference in Toronto. Misinformation “is being spread by a small number of short-sighted politicians and by competing industries that see the writing on the wall.”

The Canadian Nuclear Association and the Ontario Power Workers Union have recently been vocal in promoting nuclear power, labelling renewables such as wind and solar as “intermittent” and expensive, and encouraging more investment in nuclear.

Mr. Gorman said the intense worldwide growth in solar power seems to
have prompted a negative response from more traditional energy
producers. “What we are seeing is that conventional energy sources –
and nuclear is leading the pack on this – are positioning themselves
in contrast to renewable energy, and in some cases against it,” he
said after his speech.
A much better approach would be to see renewables working together
with traditional energy sources, instead of competing with them, he
said. He noted that solar works very well as a complement to
gas-powered electricity generation, because a gas plant can be quickly
cranked up when the sunlight fades. Solar’s distributed nature, where
it can be generated at almost any location, is also a huge advantage,
he said, and will become more important as solar panel prices fall.

“People realize there is going to be a redistribution of the energy
mix, and no one has quite got their head around how everyone is going
to work together,” he said. Consequently, “we are seeing a lot of
reactionary messaging from some of those traditional sources.” The key
for the solar industry is to get out and “tell our story,” he
said….. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/solar-industry-urged-to-push-back-against-nuclear-attack/article5923085/

December 4, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, spinbuster