The Dr. Margaret Beavis misleading Australians on health risks associated with nuclear energy (The Australian – 19 Dec 2024)

According to Dr. Margaret Beavis there are increased risks of cancer, strokes and heart attacks with nuclear power compared with renewables. This claim by Dr. Beavis is ill informed on the balance of evidence in relation to nuclear energy. The nuclear industry is very carefully regulated and monitored, with safeguards in place to prevent any harmful radiation exposure. Nuclear power plants, nuclear ships and submarines have all been operating for some 70 years without any adverse health issues.

Putting this in perspective, the vast number of deaths from the energy sector occur through burning fossil fuels with resulting air borne pollutants and carbon monoxide. For example, the World Health Organization estimates that air pollution in China is responsible for about 2 million deaths per year. This is one of the reasons that a transitioning of the energy sector from coal-to-nuclear C2N is vitally important for health, not just in Australia, but globally.