Colorado Communities for Climate Action, Boulder County Line Up to Oppose Nuclear Energy Bills at the Capitol
In one of the strangest ironies of the modern climate debate, those who ostensibly care the most about combatting climate change are often the most vociferous opponents of nuclear energy. I’ve documented in a previous post how the community that nominally would have the most to gain from embracing the country’s single-largest source of carbon-free […]
Colorado Lawmakers Reintroduce Nuclear Feasibility Bill
The potential for introducing small-modular reactors (SMRs) to Colorado will get a second look at the state legislature thanks to a new bill currently being considered. HB23-1080, sponsored by Representative Ty Winter (R.) and Senator Byron Pelton (R.), would direct the Colorado Energy Office to conduct a feasibility study for the use of SMRs as […]
Governor Polis Again Downplays Nuclear Energy…But with a Catch
Colorado’s Governor may not be a huge proponent of nuclear energy, but he at least isn’t ruling it out either. Fresh off his resounding reelection victory earlier this month, Governor Jared Polis took to the national stage with an appearance on the popular HBO political talk show “Real Time with Bill Maher” last week. During […]
Even Legacy Environmentalists Have Come Around on Advanced Nuclear Power
It’s unmistakable that there’s been a sea-change around popular support for nuclear energy. A confluence of factors, including the ongoing need to confront climate change, turmoil in global oil and gas supplies due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and persisting electric grid instability in states like California and Texas have drawn the public’s focus […]
Western Utility Announces Consideration of Five SMRs for Coal-to-Nuclear Transition
Wyoming and Utah are looking to lead the wave of next-generation advanced nuclear energy. PacifiCorp, the parent company of the western-state regulated utilities Rocky Mountain Power and Pacific Power, announced a partnership on Wednesday with the small modular reactor firm Terrapower. The two firms will be conducting a joint study to evaluate the feasibility of […]
Federal Support for Advanced Nuclear is Bipartisan, Why Not in CO?
In a previous post I covered the partisan split that still exists in public polling over nuclear energy. “Currently, 39% of Democrats versus 60% of Republicans and 53% of independents favor nuclear energy,” according to the latest Gallup polling on the issue. But that hasn’t stopped a bipartisan consensus from forming in the federal government […]
Clean and Reliable: The Case for Small-Modular Reactors in Colorado
Electric grid reliability is on the forefront of everyone’s mind following a sobering report from the country’s grid overseer. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), a regulatory body overseeing grid operations across the United States and Canada, warned last month in its latest summer reliability assessment that vast swaths of the West and Midwest […]
