The "Atoms for Peace" dream turned out to be a failure. None of its promises have been realised. In spite of the massive financial and scientific investments and prioritisation above all other energy sources, nuclear power did not solve the energy problem. It did not provide the world with an abundant supply of electricity that is "too cheap to meter". Ten years after the Chernobyl accident, it has become even clearer that nuclear power is an ultimate problem, rather than the ultimate solution.

Since the very beginning of its existance, Greenpeace campaigned to unveil the "Atoms for Peace" myth. Now Greenpeace is helping to contribute to the realisation of a realistic, safe and sustainable alternative that will fulfil all the promises which the "Atoms for Peace" deal could not. This "New Energy Deal" is the only way out of the dead end street of the nuclear era.

The nuclear era was the last phase of the era of the steam engine, in which the combustion of wood, coal, oil, gas or the fission of uranium were used to produce heat ...to boil water...to create steam ...to generate power. The new energy era ahead of us will rest on new materials, new processes and new ways of thinking about producing and using energy at home, in the office and in industry.

Energy efficiency and renewable energy sources are the key concepts of the "New Energy Deal". The technologies to implement those concepts exist already - they do not have to be invented, they are ready -, they use new materials, lightweight metals, micro-computers, silicon film, arrays of semi-conductors and new electric filament; they run on wind, sunlight, ocean waves and organic gas. These energy sources are sutainable because they do not "run out" and they do not pass on a legacy of radioactive waste and climate change to future generations.

In addition, many renewable energy applications such as wind power and solar thermal are already cheaper than conventional fuels, even though nuclear power and fossil fuels have an advantage that their price never reflects their full environmental and socio-economic costs. Many of these energy options can be designed, built and exploited locally. They have great advantages for national economies because they exploit indigenous labour and materials. Nuclear and fossil fuelled mega-power stations are the past, energy efficiency and renewables have the future.

The implementation of the "New Energy Deal" is not a technical or economical problem, it is just a question of political willingness. Greenpeace is actively campaigning to convince policy makers of the technical feasability and economic viability of a "New Energy Deal" based on energy efficiency and renewables.

Wind Energy is one example of renewable energy technology.
The advantages of wind energy are:

~ Clean does not cause environmental pollution such as carbon dioxide emissions, radioactive waste.

~ Sustainable will never run out.

~ Safe It does not harm human health

~ Economic It is already competitive with coal and nuclear power, and costs are still coming down.

~ Job Creation It creates industry and employment across a whole range of skills

~ Popular Numerous opinion polls have shown many people support the expansion of wind power technology

For More Information on Wind Energy visit: British Wind Energy association