Webb’s Senate bill would double nuclear power in the U.S.
A groundbreaking and bipartisan piece of legislation sponsored by Virginia Senator Jim Webb (D) and Tennassee Senator Lamar Alexander (R) would double carbon-free nuclear power generation in the United States over the next twenty years. On Monday, Senator Webb joined Senator Alexander in sponsoring the bill that would provide $100 billion in loan guarantees to carbon-free energy projects.
While the lions share of the loan guarantees would be directed to the construction of new nuclear plants, some of the guarantees would be allocated to the production of solar and wind power, biofuels, and research into the capture and sequestration of carbon dioxide emitted from coal-burning power plants.
Webb and Alexander believe that nuclear energy is the most economically viable and practically feasible solution to America’s energy challenges – rising cost and demand, scarce supply and global climate change. Like wind and solar power, nuclear energy produces virtually no carbon emissions. However, unlike wind and solar, nuclear power is proven on a large-scale and is the only carbon-free energy source capable of displacing coal and natural gas as a reliable base-load electricity source. Nuclear energy is less expensive and far more efficient than wind and solar power, and nuclear leaves a fraction of the land-use footprint left behind by wind and solar.
‘This expansion of nuclear power is do-able, it is reasonable in scope and cost, and it will go a very long way toward our eventual goal of dramatically reducing carbon dioxide emissions,’ Webb said.”
While the bill provides for $100 billion in loan guarantees, taxpayers would only be responsible for anywhere from 1% to 10% of that figure ($1 billion to $10 billion), depending on the success of the projects.
