Which side of the Fence

So, someone knowledgeable in this regard, please help me out?

I have always ben under the impression nuclear energy is cheaper, cleaner and certainly greener than fossil energy. I am not a scientist but the few people I have spoken to that might seem to know something have been pro-nuclear energy. Especially with regards to the long term effects of carbon fuels...

I have however always been concerned with what we do with nuclear waste, because I don't believe we have got that part right yet.

We have Earthlife Africa and Greenpeace all protesting the future use of nuclear energy because of what happened now in Japan - which was all started by the natural disasters the earthquake and Tsunami. Not man made disasters. Read here for more http://www.thegreentimes.co.za/index.php?id=0&storyid=902&storyaction=viewstory&storytype=1

The nuclear crisis in JApan certainly sounds like a disaster to me, but I do know until now there have hardly been any negative effects/disasters from nuclear power plants except the 'big one' at Chernobyl in 1986, where counted 56 persons died, as well as say the next geberation being affected in some ways with mutilated genes. This is terrible indeed and does hold long term consequencea for mankind. There was also the 3 mile Island event in 1979 in USA but with no deaths to mankind, or damage to the environment, all was contained (apparently).

Obviously nuclear energy becomes a danger and a crisis where the cooling part can't happen, but truly the last 50 years, nuclear power plants would have seemed to have served us well????

So are we barking up the wrong tree when we say nuclear energy is safe? Or do we remember such is safe in relation to other fuels? Look at the many major oil disasters, BP last year, as well as the continued environmental disasters in the Arctic region where they continue mining for oil and degrading the environment at an incredible rate at the same time. Yet this is not seen as a disaster to mankind and the environment the same way the immediate reaction to a nuclear upset is spelled out.

So is nuclear energy safe taking into account the positives and the negatives, or is it not the way to go into the future? Should we rather rely on solar and water and wind energy (both very limited in SA) ??

Because coal and oil mining doesn't do much for me....

What do you think?



LG