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Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has announced he will work with Ontario and New Brunswick to bring small nuclear reactors into the energy mix “to mitigate the effects of climate change.” This is not only wishful thinking but flawed and hypocritical.

There is no demand or market for these “small” reactors; it is the industry and those who directly benefit that are promoting them. To become a viable industry these “modular” reactors would have to be mass produced and then transported elsewhere — and there would have to be some agreement on design. At present, there are more than 100 designs circulating.

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Meanwhile, the role of nuclear power is shrinking globally and there is no secure capital for such a high-risk industry. So, once again, the industry is trying to get government financial and ideological backing. There will always be naïve politicians who want to appear forward thinking, and opportunistic academics who will gladly take from the public purse.