Takeaway
· When we look at energy risks through the prism of the most recent accident, we turn a blind eye to the (sometimes greater) risks associated with the alternatives.
· We should learn from the ongoing studies of hydraulic fracturing and from the Fukushima nuclear accident in order to improve our regulation of these forms of energy production.
· However, in so doing we are focusing on health and environmental risks that pale in comparison to the enormous risks we tolerate from coal-fired power production every day.
David Spence recently published an opinion piece in the Houston Chronicle on energy risk.
Lately we have heard a lot about the risks associated with the way we produce and use energy. We worry that producing natural gas by fracturing underground shale formations will contaminate our groundwater, or that American nuclear power plants might be susceptible to a Fukushima-type disaster.We should worry about these risks. They are an important part of the cost of producing and delivering energy, a cost that is sometimes shifted to society rather than borne by the energy producer. Unfortunately, however, we rarely look at these risks in comprehensive and clear-headed ways. Instead, we look at them through the prism of the most recent accident. In so doing, we turn a blind eye to the (sometimes greater) risks associated with the alternatives.
