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Michael Shellenberger believes The Green New Deal’s focus on wind and solar is a waste of time and money.
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Calling climate change an existential threat to humanity, congressional Democrats introduced a policy proposal in February called the Green New Deal, which would mandate that 100 percent of U.S. energy production come from "clean, renewable and zero-emission energy sources" like wind and solar by the year 2050.
But some environmentalists say Green New Dealers are neglecting one obvious source of abundant clean energy already available: Nuclear power, which an accompanying Green New Deal FAQ explicitly states should be phased out alongside fossil fuels like oil, gas, and coal.
"If you want to save the natural environment, you just use nuclear. You grow more food on less land, and people live in cities. It's not rocket science," says Shellenberger. "The idea that people need to stay poor… that's just a reactionary social philosophy that they then dress up as a kind of environmentalism."
Watch the above video to learn more about the history of nuclear energy and to hear more from Shellenberger about his case for nuclear, as well as his response to concerns about radiation, nuclear weapons, and the economic viability of nuclear energy. The video also features solar energy advocate Ed Smeloff, who served on the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District board during the shutdown of California's Rancho Seco nuclear plant and who makes the argument that nuclear power simply can't compete in the marketplace.
Produced by Zach Weissmueller. Camera by Alexis Garcia and Weissmueller.
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German environmentalists photo credit: Stefan Boness/Ipon/SIPA/Newscom
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez photo credit: Alex Edelman/Zuma Press/Newscom
Elon Musk photo credit: Yang Lei Xinhua News Agency/Newscom
Michael Shellenberger photo credit: James Arthur Photography/James Arthur/Newscom ID 113779354 © Vaclav Volrab | Dreamstime.com
Smokestacks photo credit: Shaun Van Steyn Stock Connection Worldwide/Newscom
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