Uppity Wisconsin

Let's start by accentuating the positive, this quote from a Capital Times story on the pros and cons of nuclear power:

Tia Nelson, co-chair of Gov. Jim Doyle’s Task Force on Global Warming, says that while the costs of nuclear power grow and the price tag for renewable sources shrinks, it is not fiscally smart for the state to invest in nuclear energy.

“We know that nuclear power is more expensive and more dangerous than any other alternative before us today,” says Nelson, daughter of Gaylord Nelson, the late U.S. senator who founded Earth Day.

As the state's Clean Energy Jobs Act starts working its way through the legislature, coverage of the nuclear power issue -- one of the more contentious piece of the huge bill -- is increasing. That's a positive;; public education and debate is good. But there's a big helping of misinformation and spin being served up as part of the menu.

You wouldn't know it from the news media -- they can only cover one story at a time, and there's a state budget crisis -- but there is a growing, resurgent movement in Wisconsin determined to solve the energy and climate crises without resorting to nuclear energy.

It's not the old "No Nukes" movement, although there are elements of it, and the same reasons for opposing nuclear power in the past -- safety, waste, and cost -- and all still relevant reasons to oppose building more nuclear reactors.

But it's a broader, more thoughtful and sophisticated conversation taking place, that includes a commitment to finding efficient, renewable energy sources, reducing carbon emissions, and using conservation as part of the package.

The latest evidence of the new movement was a letter released Thursday by a dozen environmental and public interest groups, warning the government and the legislature that the unsolved question of how to dispose of deadly, highly radioactive waste, coupled with the high costs of construction, operation, security and storage of waste make nuclear power a bad, risky investment.

This just in from the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters:

PROTECT A PAST PRIORITY--SEND COMMENTS BY WEDNESDAY AT 5 PM!

Dear Steve,

As you probably remember, Gov. Doyle signed the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Bill (Act 141) in March 2006.  Citizens had been contacting their legislators for well over a year about this bill, and for good reason--it set a renewable energy standard of 10% by 2015, and put Wisconsin on the path to clean, renewable energy sources and jobs of the future.  It was an important, forward-thinking step in the face of a changing economy and the looming global warming crisis.   

One year later, in April 2007, Gov. Doyle signed Executive Order 191, which created the Governor's Task Force on Global Warming.  The Task Force was charged with developing policy recommendations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  This, too, was an important step because scientists have said we must begin to address global warming immediately.