“The Folly of Atomic Power in the Age of Climate Change”

By M.V. Ramana, Ph.D.
Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security and Professor
School of Public Policy and Global Affairs
The University of British Columbia 
Published by VERSO
July 2024

From the publisher: NUCLEAR POWER WILL SLOW OUR RESPONSE TO CLIMATE CHANGE AND INCREASE THE RISK OF WEAPONS PROLIFERATION AND CATASTROPHE

THE CLIMATE CRISIS has propelled nuclear energy back into fashion. Its proponents argue we already have the technology of the future and that it only needs perfection and deployment. Nuclear Is Not the Solution demonstrates why this sort of thinking is not only naïve but dangerous.

Even beyond the horrific implications of meltdown and the intractable problem of waste disposal, nuclear is not practicable on such a large scale. Any appraisal of future energy technology depends on two important parameters: cost and time. Nuclear fails on both counts. It is more costly than its renewable competitors wind and solar. And, importantly given the need for rapid transformation, it is slow. A plant takes a decade to come online. If you include permits and fundraising, this adds another decade. And we should not forget the deep roots it has in the defense industry.

M. V. Ramana’s powerful book destroys any illusion that nuclear is our answer to climage change, untangling technical arguments into simple and sensible language. Importantly, Nuclear Is Not the Solution also unmasks the powerful groups with vested interests in the maintenance of the status quo, currently working hard to greenwash a spectacularly dirty industry.

Visit VERSO for more information and to purchase a copy.

Professor M.V. Ramana, Ph.D. is Professor and Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA) at The University of British Columbia. He is also Graduate Program Director of the Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs (MPPGA) program.