Dutch and European Nuclear Power

The Netherlands and other European countries are looking toward nuclear power to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and reduce concerns about meeting future quotas.

Dutch Economics Minister Maria van der Hoeven believes the Netherlands will be unable to meet its future carbon dioxide emissions targets without nuclear power. Van der Hoeven recently said, "We are very gas dependent and we have to do something about it. In my opinion, it will be very difficult to achieve a clean energy household in 2050 without nuclear energy."

With only one operational nuclear power station, the majority of the country’s energy supplies comes from natural gas. The Netherlands cannot continue this trend as their domestic natural gas reserves are dwindling.

The Netherlands is not alone in their concerns to meet future greenhouse gas targets. Many European countries are also concerned about this issue. Harnessing wind is an alternative, but nuclear plants can easily produce more energy.

Worldwide complacency is the true cause of today's energy problems. Oil, coal and natural gas have been standard sources for a long time. Nuclear power has gained acceptance over the past 40-50 years, though it still needs to overcome fears caused by accidents such as Chernobyl and Three Mile Island.

It is too late to avoid rising energy prices, but now is the time to begin new research efforts for viable alternate energy sources.

Reference

Steen, Michael. "Dutch to weigh up benefits of nuclear power." Financial Times. May 19, 2008.