Kenneth Bowers: Energy and the future needs a continued discussion

To The Daily Sun,

A recent letter in a local newspaper accuses President Donald Trump of creating an assault on science regarding energy. The concern is coal and its effect on the environment. We can all agree that energy is the driving force for any country in terms of financial wealth and stability.

The United States is blessed to have vast reserves of energy sources. Coal remains a viable energy source along with oil; however, the time will come when these energy sources are gone.

At the present time much has been learned and implemented to use these energy sources by scrubbing or cleaning the product. This is good for the environment and good for a better standard of living. Countries that refuse to implement energy production with no fossil fuels will continue to fall behind. Europe is an example where wind and solar have been expanded and resulted in continuous shortages of energy on demand. There is only one energy source that does not pollute while at the same time creates energy on a grand scale and it is nuclear. Half of the Earth’s nuclear material has decayed during the last 4.5 billion years but there remains enough Uranium 238 for the entire planet. Nuclear energy powers many of the worlds aircraft carriers and submarines using small reactors. In order for developed countries to continue to prosper nuclear energy must be included while at the same time using using all other viable sources. Small reactors will provide energy anywhere in the world and under the most extreme conditions. The output for nuclear is astonishing plain and simple.

This is not about President Trump, although some people like to think so. It is about being realistic while living on a planet where energy potential and production require common-sense thinking.

Kenneth L. Bowers

Wolfeboro