Obama Election Watch

No new nuclear power plants have been built in the United States for the past 20 years. But surging energy costs are causing many politicians on both sides of the political aisle to take a new look at the possibility of employing nuclear power to ease America’s dependency on foreign oil.

John McCain has called for the building of 45 new nuclear reactors in the United States by the year 2030. McCain proposes to offer substantial federal subsidies for up to three large-scale nuclear reactor projects.

Barack Obama comes from Illinois, a state where 40 percent of all electricity is generated by nuclear power plants. Obama does not touch on the politically sensitive issue of nuclear power on the energy pages of his campaign Web site. His consistent position has been that nuclear power will not solve America’s energy problems. Nevertheless, he takes a sensible view that informed scientists and economists ought to investigate whether nuclear power should be part of the solution to America’s energy needs. However, Obama remains wary that new nuclear power can be produced economically and safely. And he emphasizes that before any new construction begins there must be a surefire way of securely disposing the nuclear waste generated by these power plants.

The issue of nuclear waste is one in which the candidates’ views are diametrically opposed. And it is an issue that works in favor of Barack Obama in the state of Nevada.

The U.S. Energy Department has proposed a deep geological repository for the nation’s nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The site is only 80 miles from Las Vegas. Critics question the safety of placing the repository in this area which is prone to earthquakes.

John McCain supports the use of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste site. OEW readers may watch him state his position by viewing the video below:

On the other hand, Obama is adamantly opposed to the Yucca Mountain facility. In a May 2007 letter to the editor of the Las Vegas Review Journal, Obama left no doubt about his position on Yucca Mountain: “I want every Nevadan to know that I have always opposed using Yucca Mountain as a nuclear waste repository. I believe all spending on Yucca Mountain should be redirected to other uses, such as improving the safety and security of spent fuel at plant sites around the country and exploring other long-term disposal options.”

The storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain is a winning issue for Obama in the state of Nevada. Under McCain’s proposal to proceed full speed ahead on the construction of nuclear power plants, the prospects of huge amounts of nuclear waste being stored in Nevada may become a reality. Even if the Yucca Mountain is totally safe, there must still be consideration of the possible dangers of transportation of tons of nuclear waste through the Nevada countryside on its way to Yucca Mountain.

Nevada is traditionally GOP territory but a growing number of black, Latino, and environmentally conscious voters could put the state in play in the 2008 election. The most recent poll in Nevada calls the presidential race a dead heat. Nevada has only five electoral votes, but obviously in a close election, every electoral vote matters.