Quarterly Director Update

Dear Friends:

In March, our hearts broke as we followed the news of the earthquake and tsunami that claimed thousands of lives in Japan, and the following events at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. I couldn’t stop reading the updates as the only nation to experience the horrors of a full-scale nuclear attack, teetered again on the brink of unthinkable tragedy.

For me, the crisis in Japan confirms the importance of Toxics Action Center’s work to oppose nuclear power, including our current campaign to shut down Vermont Yankee on time in 2012.

In recent years, I think that we have lost ground in the debate over nuclear power. Though no new nuclear plant has been built in the United States in decades, memories of Three Mile Island and the accident at Chernobyl have largely faded, and the nuclear industry has rebranded itself as a clean, green solution to global warming.

At Toxics Action Center, we believe that there is no such thing as safe nuclear power. Though the odds of a nuclear accident may be low, the consequences of such an accident are potentially so high that we cannot downplay the seriousness of the possibility. We cannot afford the risk of long-term health and environmental threats that these plants unavoidably bring.

We remain committed to our vision of a world where everyone can breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live in a healthy community. Thank you for all of your support of our work – from cleaning up hazardous waste sites, to reducing industrial pollution, curbing pesticide use, and opposing dangerous waste, energy, and industrial facilities.

Sincerely,