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State Representative Joyce Peppin
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-7806
For more information contact: House GOP Communications 651-296-5520
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Looking at Nuclear Energy
To the Editor,
Last Tuesday I had the opportunity to tour the Monticello nuclear power facility and learn first-hand about the many ways this plant benefits our community. Located 40 miles northwest of Minneapolis, the plant generates enough power to provide electricity to over 500,000 homes. Planned capacity expansions over the next two years will increase its output and channel safe, clean energy to even more Minnesotans. Unfortunately, however, the moratorium on nuclear power plant construction in Minnesota places a serious constraint on the further utilization of nuclear energy.
Rising energy costs are a growing burden on our families. Weatherization and conservation are beneficial, but they only go so far. Now is the time to look more seriously at energy alternatives, and nuclear power should be a central part of that discussion. I have long been a supporter of lifting the moratorium on nuclear power plant construction and introduced legislation in prior sessions to repeal the ban. With electricity demand expected to rise twenty percent over the next two decades, there is no question our state and our nation will need more power sources.
Nuclear plants provide a safe, environmentally friendly, and cost-competitive solution. They currently supply roughly 20% of U.S. electricity, and almost three-quarters of our carbon-free electricity. Their efficient use of resources means they provide an affordable source of energy that only improves with technological advancements. Nuclear power plants will also promote economic recovery and job growth by providing construction, engineering, and high-quality technology jobs wherever they are built.
The residents in and around Monticello, myself included, live next to nuclear power facilities every day. We see that these plants are safe and that they are a benefit to our community by bringing affordable, environmentally-friendly energy into our homes-and we are not alone. A March 2009 national public opinion survey found 70 percent of Americans would approve the building of a new reactor at the nuclear plant nearest to where they live. Political support for nuclear energy is also growing, and it runs across party and ideological lines. Just this week, Senator Amy Klobuchar called for more nuclear energy funding while discussing the Senate’s climate-change bill.
I encourage those legislators who are currently against or undecided on proposals for expanding nuclear energy to tour the Monticello plant as I have done. They can then see the tremendous potential nuclear energy offers for a clean, affordable, independent energy future.
By Joyce Peppin
State Representative
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