[originaltext] No nuclear or new nuclear? It is a big question for energy po

No nuclear or new nuclear? It is a big question for energy policy these days. In Britain, where managerial incompetence and negligence over safety have fuelled a crisis of confidence in two big nuclear operators, an anti-nuclear lobby is calling for all nuclear plants to be shut. In Japan, similar problems have led to a contemporary shutdown of most nuclear plants that could trigger a wave of blackouts this summer. But in China and South Africa, governments have given their blessing to new nuclear plants; and the Bush administration’s energy plan also sup ports the idea.
    The case for nuclear today has two main components: energy security and climate change. The first argues against shutting nuclear plants, and for opening new ones, on the ground that getting rid of nuclear would make the rich world even more dependent on imported fossil fuels. The second argues that, unless nuclear plants are replaced with new ones when they go out of service, more fossil fuels, notably coal, will be burnt, making it impossible for governments to tackle global warming.