WASHINGTON DC (08/07/2023) – Last week, the Biden administration’s Department of Energy (DOE) released its latest Critical Minerals Assessment, which included uranium as a near-critical supply risk for the United States both in the short term and the medium term.
And yet, this week The Washington Post is reporting that President Biden is planning a trip to Arizona to reportedly designate a vast area near the Grand Canyon as a national monument to safeguard it from uranium mining…” There is no uranium mining proposed in the Grand Canyon, although opponents of nuclear power and its attendant uranium mining try their best to confuse casual observers of the news by mentioning the Grand Canyon.
If true, this is simply a land grab using the Grand Canyon as an icon to disguise an anti-nuclear power agenda. In 2022, nuclear continued to be the largest single source of carbon-free electricity generation in the United States, producing more than wind and solar combined and providing 19% of all electricity.
AEA President Thomas Pyle issued the following statement:
The next time the Biden administration talks about climate change or net zero, remember they have zero interest in doing things like increasing uranium mining in the United States that would make us more energy secure and help reduce carbon dioxide emissions. They also seem not to care about the Russian predominance in the nuclear fuel process. The Biden administration is only interested in taking actions that increase the federal government’s power while giving money to the right special interest groups—not actually reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Additional Resources:
- President Biden is Not Serious About Increasing Carbon-Dioxide Free Electricity
- What’s New in Nuclear: Nuclear Energy Around the World
For media inquiries please contact:
THOMAS.PYLE@ENERGYDC.ORG