Everyone is investing in green — here’s what they are missing

Mitigating the effects of a changing climate has taken center stage in the financial community. Whether under the label of impact investing, environmental social governance (ESG) investing or a handful of other phrases, the urgency of addressing carbon emissions is becoming clear.

The chorus of action by Wall Street, banks around the globe and investors signals a fundamental shift in how investment decisions will be made. It is encouraging to see the most prominent players in the investing community recognize the importance of this existential threat.

Reimagining how the financial sector can help shape an environmentally sustainable economy requires thinking differently about what investors should value and avoid. A focus on climate change provides clarity on the challenges we are facing and the opportunities to overcome them. With this renewed purpose, we must reconsider the role of nuclear energy.

Demand for carbon-free energy technologies is set to rise as we move to a more decarbonized economy, requiring substantial investments in new energy technologies. We will need growth in wind and solar, and progress on battery storage. But these technologies only provide part of a solution.

As a complement to these sources, nuclear power, our nation’s largest producer of carbon-free energy, can enable a transition to a low-carbon future as quickly and as affordably as possible. That means we will need investments to maintain today’s nuclear plants and to commercialize advanced nuclear energy technologies already under development.

We have a lot to build on. Today’s nuclear plants are demonstrating unprecedented efficiency, while helping our nation avoid more carbon emissions annually than the equivalent of 100 million passenger vehicles. Four nuclear reactors have received license renewals to operate for 80 years, with many more expected to follow. The timeline for advanced nuclear deployment is on our side to make a dent in carbon emissions.

 
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Πηγή: thehill.com