National leaders were eager to redeem the research and destructive power of the atom bomb. In the 1970s, public worries about air pollution, the Arab oil embargo and the limits of fossil fuel supplies boosted the inherent high-tech appeal of nuclear power. Decades of environmental and economic bruises have now thoroughly rubbed off the veneer of atomic technology as the wonder boy of energy. Public support for nuclear energy has slipped from 70 percent before Three Mile Island to 43 percent in 1997, according to Roper Starch Worldwide, the polling company. Though some still view the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission as too cozy with the industry, the agency sees itself primarily as a safety enforcer, not a booster.
Nobody wants to take that risk.
Southern California Edison is deciding whether to sell its two big 1,100-megawatt reactors still active at San Onofre south of Los Angeles. California's 30 million people draw about one-quarter of their electricity from atomic plants, more than any other state. But that could change as California regulators complete the transition to competitive energy making. I don't think nuclear has changed that much. If they weren't, I don't think they'd put it in a public place.