An option that isn’t worth considering

I’M afraid Patrick L O’Brien needs a reality check if he believes nuclear power is the future (Letters, April 5).

He states that “worldwide there is a revival in the nuclear industry”, yet unit closures continue to far outpace new operations. He then claims this revival is “for cost and environmental reasons”, yet, according to most international cost assessments, nuclear power generates the most expensive delivered energy — the dependence on state subsidies is never factored in by the nuclear lobby.

As for the environmental question, the nuclear system generates large amounts of waste at each step, from the uranium mine to plutonium separation, and no solution for safe storage has yet materialised.

Mr O’Brien says “Ireland had the opportunity to take the nuclear option in the 1970s, thereby reducing our dependence on oil”, yet what use is that if we become dependent on uranium imports instead?

The “cogent scientific and engineering advice” he talks about does not exist and his comments on Chernobyl show the greatest ignorance. Official reports put the number of fatal cancers to be expected at 9,000 although independent scientists estimate that 30,000-60,000 people will die.

Ireland’s spiralling energy costs are mainly due to its failure to properly liberalise the energy market.

Adam Douglas

Ballinakilla

Bartlemy

Co Cork