High optimism for nuclear power on Fukushima anniversary

High optimism for nuclear power on Fukushima anniversary: http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP_Optimism_from_industry_on_Fukushima_anniversary_0903121.html "Industry leaders remain bullish on nuclear power's prospects in coming decades, in part because of the high priority that has been placed on identifying and addressing potential weaknesses such as were revealed last year at Fukushima Daiichi.
"Very little has changed... in respect of the future utilisation of nuclear in the energy mix," said the World Energy Council (WEC) in a perspective document: Nuclear Energy One Year After Fukushima. After surveying its members in 94 countries, WEC found that "The Fukushima accident has not led to any significant retraction in nuclear energy programs in countries outside Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Japan," said senior project manager Ayed Al-Qatani. Progress in some countries' programs has been delayed, but "there is no indication that their pursuit of nuclear power has declined in response to Fukushima."
This global stability in nuclear policy stems from the unchanged nature of the drivers behind nuclear power's use in the first place: The world still has an increasing need for reliable, affordable and secure energy sources that can also help achieve a lower-carbon mix. And while the accident at Fukushima Daiichi "shocked not only world opinion, but also the nuclear industry ... people can draw confidence from the absence of any health harm even from this extreme, highly unusual event," said the World Nuclear Association (WNA).
"Countries like Germany will soon demonstrate the economic and environmental irresponsibility of allowing politicians to set important national policies in the middle of a panic attack." John Ritch, World Nuclear Association
Nevertheless, the accident has had "severe social and economic consequences," said WNA, due to the prolonged evacuation of Fukushima residents. One year after the tsunami and several months after stability was restored at the power plant site, the evacuation remains the principal impact of the accident.
"Countries like Germany will soon demonstrate the economic and environmental irresponsibility of allowing politicians to set important national policies in the middle of a panic attack," said John Ritch, WNA's director general. "In contrast, many national leaders who soberly reviewed their energy strategies have reaffirmed the conclusion they reached before Fukushima: that nuclear power is a uniquely reliable and expandable source of low-carbon energy that can be safely used to meet clean-energy need.""

This is where the full report could be found: http://www.worldenergy.org/publications/3863.asp