If Diablo Canyon Power Plant is required to suspend operation of the largest supplier of clean energy in California, where will the equivalent power from five Hoover Dams come from?
Even though the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) claims the loss of substantial, reliable, emission-free power from Diablo Canyon Power Plant would be replaced by clean energy as stated in SB 1090, this apparently is not the case. The CPUC also signed off on SB 100, which promised the same commitment along with then Gov. Jerry Brown that replaceable power would come from clean energy.
The signs are not showing this pointing in the direction of totally clean energy. Apparently, the CPUC has announced this new energy mix will come from “unspecified imports.” The movement to rid nuclear power from the energy mix is just inviting more fossil fuel to fill the void. Intermittent wind and solar cannot meet the power needs and demands of modern society. Adding more gas and coal-fired energy will not reduce harmful human health or atmospheric conditions.
What about the ongoing climate change concerns? The fossil fuel industry has been trying to get rid of nuclear power for years. They don’t just want a piece of the pie, they want the whole pie.
Ellie Ripley
Arroyo Grande
This article appears in Mar 3-10, 2022.