Save the Climate from this Dirty Nuclear Scam

You might be hearing about hydrogen as a hopeful new energy source for fighting climate change. The lightest and most abundant element in the universe, when hydrogen burns it produces water (H2O). It can be used in hydrogen fuel cells, efficient electric generators that can power electric cars and trucks or serve as batteries to store electricity from solar panels and windmills. It can also replace fossil fuels in heavy industries, like steel mills. 

The hitch with hydrogen is that it takes more electricity to make it than it gives back in energy. And right now, hydrogen is almost exclusively made from fossil fuels, with lots of climate-warming emissions. You have to have a really good reason to make it, and do it with electricity from new wind and solar plants, dedicated to powering hydrogen production. Right now, that last part is too expensive. 

So Congress enacted incentives to kickstart “clean hydrogen”--making it affordably, using renewable energy sources. And the IRS has come up with rules that could do just that: ensure hydrogen is truly made with zero climate pollution, from renewable energy sources.

Tell the IRS: No Hydrogen Bailout for Old Nuclear Power Plants

Here’s the problem: Big Nuclear wants to steal all that money for themselves, climate survival be damned. The nuclear lobby is bullying IRS to loosen the rules so they can get billions of dollars in subsidies. If they win, it would be one of the most disastrous climate scams in history. 

Making hydrogen with nuclear energy would increase greenhouse emissions. 

1. Electricity from nuclear power plants would most likely be replaced by electricity from fossil fuel power plants. 
2. The hydrogen made at nuclear power plants would be more expensive than it is today.
3. Unused hydrogen would be vented–forming more greenhouse gases and accelerating climate disruption. 

Big Nuclear’s “best case” scenario is to make so much hydrogen that it could help prop up the fossil fuel industry. Last summer, the largest nuclear power company in the US made headlines encouraging utilities to mix hydrogen with natural gas to burn in power plants and our homes and businesses. And voila! Big nuclear would take billions of our tax dollars from real climate solutions, and prop up Big Oil and Gas with a massive greenwashing scheme.

Tell IRS: No Hydrogen Subsidies for Radioactive Pollution

 

• Background info

Federal Register Notice (Section 45V Credit for Production of Clean Hydrogen)

Report: HYDROGEN: what good is it?

Hydrogen Energy Basics - Just Solutions Collective