Business forum: Nuclear power plant work promises jobs bonanza
A proven solution for immediate job creation recently came from President Barack Obama and his administration — investment in nuclear energy. And immediate truly means just that. Bulldozers in Georgia are already on the move and making preparations. Long-awaited jobs in the skilled labor sector could materialize within months.
I commend the president for moving this agenda forward and was pleased to be personally invited to his recent speech on nuclear advancements. A broad jobs creation bill is no doubt needed to bring down unemployment in the economy, but let us not overlook this low hanging fruit ripe for picking.
Highly skilled workers are capable and available to begin these endeavors across the United States and similar ones in Canada. This investment offers the advantages of less dangerous air pollutants, lower costs of electricity and a greater security in national energy.
Let’s restart the nuclear power industry after a lapse of nearly three decades.
With the addition of Mr. Obama’s nuclear loan guarantee funding in his 2011 budget, we could begin development of seven to 10 new power plants. Include additional funding in future budgets and you could see the 17 nuclear license applications for 26 reactors — made in only the last three years — slide through the bottleneck of securing funds for construction.
If each new plant promises to offer about 3,500 long-term on-site construction jobs and 800 permanent operations jobs, this is something worth further consideration. The number of jobs this will provide to the economy is significant.
This has the potential for spreading more than 70,000 new jobs across the country. No fine-tooth comb will be required to see where these jobs are created.
This is not a bailout, nor direct funding, but a loan guarantee. After the term has been reached, the American public will have been paid back with interest. No accumulation to the deficit, and tens of thousands of jobs created in the process.
So while experts are predicting electricity shortages, fossil fuel price increases, global warming and heavy metal emissions from fossil fuel use, I see clean energy, cheaper electricity and national energy security.
A significant achievement of the U.S. nuclear power industry over the last 20 years has been the increase in operating efficiency with improved maintenance. Generation IV reactors are in development to increase 100 to 300 times more energy yield from the same amount of nuclear fuel. Future designs of reactors are promised to eliminate almost all waste.
There are issues that need to be addressed should this begin a nuclear renaissance.
But you would have to agree with our commander in chief when he said in his speech: “If we fail to invest in the technologies of tomorrow, then we’re going to be importing those technologies instead of exporting them. We will fall behind; jobs will be produced overseas, instead of here in the United States of America.” I, too, am not willing to accept this future. New technological advances in nuclear energy will be able to address the needs that remain in this industry.
Let’s put our neighbors and fellow workers back to work.
