Victory Along the Rockies
What a nuclear win in Colorado means for fission
Readers, I arrive in your inbox with yet another state-level nuclear victory. This one may seem small, but I think its implications are massive.
Last week, Colorado passed HB25-1040, which officially slates nuclear power as clean. This was a hard won victory for dozens of advocates and politicians brave enough to break ranks with the environmental establishment. For the full breakdown of how this came about, I highly recommend
’s recent Substack detailing nuclear’s long fight for clean recognition in the Rocky Mountain state.When I reached out to Doug, this is what he had to say about the implications of this bill:
"Passage of HB25-1040 sends a message to the nation that Colorado is open for nuclear business. Construction of nuclear power plants in Colorado is not imminent,” Sandridge told me. “Nevertheless, passage of the bill by a wide margin of Senators and Representatives provides a hopeful vision that Colorado could someday reemerge as a leader in nuclear energy development.”
For Colorado, the bill’s passage brightens the state’s power outlook. Like many states, Colorado boasts an incredibly aggressive climate policy aimed at reaching 100 percent renewable energy by 2040. Nuclear’s new clean status in the state could turn that plan from a slow-moving power crisis to an achievable goal. Just take a look at how much fossil power fired up in the state in December of last year:
Colorado aside, I think this victory represents three bigger picture outlooks for nuclear:
Consensus is possible even in a heated political climate. This bodes well for nuclear, which involves longer time horizons for deployment.
Nuclear is acquiring a greater “social license to operate,” which will translate to greater political support and negative consequences for people and organizations who try to stifle the atom. The anti-nuclear approach will start to appear unfair and uninformed, giving it the stink of low-status behavior.
The states are an underappreciated though highly valuable venue for pro-nuclear actions. As I’ve written recently, Montana is making progress on waste siting, Illinois could potentially fully repeal its nuclear moratorium, and several other states (Maine, Minnesota, and CALIFORNIA) have been exploring partial moratorium repeals. There’s more work to be done, but clearing the road for more nuclear is vital to its national flourishing.
Another overall bright spot here is that democracy still works. You can persuade politicians of your view, you can form coalitions, you can turn the tide. As the meme goes, You Can Just Do Things.
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Crom’s Blessing
