Hopes that the "fast breeder"- a plutonium-fueled
nuclear reactor designed to produce more fuel than it consumed -- might
serve as a major part of
the long-term nuclear waste disposal solution are not merited by the
dismal track record to date
of such sodium-cooled reactors in France, India, Japan, the Soviet
Union/Russia, the United
Kingdom and the United States, according to a major new study from the
International Panel on
Fissile Materials (IPFM).

Obama, a Democrat who is trying to win Republican support for a bill to overhaul U.S. energy practices, said the United States needed to increase its supply of nuclear power to meet its energy needs and fight climate change.

The NRC's (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) Neil Sheehan has confirmed leaks involving 27 of 104 licensed US reactors, and says that probably doesn't account for all of them. At Yankee, Oyster Creek and elsewhere, rotting pipes are the likeliest culprit, but no one is 100% certain.

An expansion of nuclear facilities and energy sources is
unlikely to occur over the next two decades, unless the global community
adopts major changes to improve safety and security as well as working
to prevent the risk of proliferation, said a new report released on Thursday.

Investing in emerging technologies that can eventually thrive on their own makes sense, but the nuclear industry doesn't fit the bill. After more than 50 years as one of the biggest recipients of federal subsidies, the industry should sink or swim on its own.

Most scientists in this field agree that there is danger even in small doses of radiation

Kiev — Almost a quarter-century after its explosion killed hundreds
and shocked the world, the Chernobyl nuclear reactor still sits
crumbling amid an uninhabitable wasteland in northern Ukraine, still
emits surprising amounts of radiation, and still absorbs vast amounts
of money.

The world-wide renaissance of nuclear power that has so
often been predicted will not take place in the next few
decades. Nuclear energy will be on the decline till the year
2030, and will continue to decline in importance globally.

Most scientists in this field agree that there is danger even in small doses of radiation

Critique of a book by Peter McKay: "Atomic Accomplice: How Canada Deals In Deadly Deceipt". Mr. McKay documents the official secrecy that
> has protected Canada's nuclear industry from public scrutiny for two
> generations -- and demonstrates why Canadian environmentalists have
> much more to worry about than global warming.