Nuclear power plants are exempt from being fully liable for the damages that might be caused in an accident. The original argument for this law was that nuclear operators couldn't buy liability insurance the way regular power plant operators could, because the technology was too new for the underwriters to accurately assess the risks. That argument doesn't hold water any more. If the exemption were lifted and the operators could convince Lloyd's of London that their plants were safe, and if nuclear power was still economical after paying insurance premiums to Lloyd's, then hey, I'd be happy to have a plant open up right next door to me. But as long as the exemption is in place, I see no reason to trust the industry flacks who assure me that nuclear power is safe. Don't convince me, convince the underwriters. What? You don't want to convince the underwriters? Thanks, that tells me all I need to know.
(I also get the impression that the people who run nuclear plants in this country are too incompetent to run any kind of power generator larger than a Dutch windmill. Maybe we should just outsource our nuclear industry to the French.)
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Date: 2005-04-26 01:44 pm (UTC)Nuclear power plants are exempt from being fully liable for the damages that might be caused in an accident. The original argument for this law was that nuclear operators couldn't buy liability insurance the way regular power plant operators could, because the technology was too new for the underwriters to accurately assess the risks. That argument doesn't hold water any more. If the exemption were lifted and the operators could convince Lloyd's of London that their plants were safe, and if nuclear power was still economical after paying insurance premiums to Lloyd's, then hey, I'd be happy to have a plant open up right next door to me. But as long as the exemption is in place, I see no reason to trust the industry flacks who assure me that nuclear power is safe. Don't convince me, convince the underwriters. What? You don't want to convince the underwriters? Thanks, that tells me all I need to know.
(I also get the impression that the people who run nuclear plants in this country are too incompetent to run any kind of power generator larger than a Dutch windmill. Maybe we should just outsource our nuclear industry to the French.)