Evening star., 1954-06-05
To Fulfill Its Promise

9y ACIlnS unanimously, the Atomic Energy
Commission has placed before Congress one Of
the clearest and most authoritative statements
yet made in favor of easing the laws present
restrictions In order to encourage private enter
prise to play an ever-increasing role in the de-
velopment Of nuclear power for industrial and
other non-military purposes DEVELOPMENT
that can be expedited now because of the Ma
tion's "high state of preparedness" In the field
of A-weaponS.
As submitted to the Joint Senate House
Atomic Committee, the statement emphasizes
three major points, among others The first Is
that commercially feasible nuclear power can
be attained in the relatively near future The
second is that the expanding economy and pop
ulation of the United States demand that such
power be harnessed without undue delay And
the third is that the harnessing can best be ac-
comphshed through cooperative effort be-
tween the Government and private industry
an effort that would not only hasten the day of
success, but also safeguard and strengthen our
system of free enterprise.
In making these points, the Acc has been
at pains to declare that the outlook is still spec
ulative and that overnight miracles are not to
be expected. Thus according to its own informed
guess-although progress could be speeded up
with extraordinary measures of Federal assist
advocate) probably will be only small
number of full-scale privately owned and pri-
vately operated nuclear power plants working in
this country by 1865. Even So limited as that
might be, it would constitute an important be-
ginning toward reaching the essential goal" of
making widespread governmental use of
atomic energy in our economy.
The need for enlightened action along this
line is not so great in the United States as in
Britain and other countries. But it is pressing
enough. This is so, as the Acc has explained,
for such hreaSonS as the following: d) Our pop
ulation Is growing at rate of almost Is million
every decade; (2) our economys demand for
electricity-aS now produced from conventional
fuels-is increasing by at least per cent each
year; 90 our water sites for major hydroelectric
developments are becoming fewer and fewer;
(4) our long-term oil and gas supply is unpre-
dictable and far from limitleSs; and 60 the
economical harnessing. of the atom is therefore
necessary to satisfy our prospective energy re-
quirements and tD sustain continued national
growth andlwelEbe Being j. u
Fears have been expressed in some quarters
that success in this field might have an adverse
economic impact on our existing facilities, en-
ployment and capital investment in regular
power projects. The Acc, however, has reassur-
ingly pointed to the fact that expert estimates
indicate that our total American demand for
electricity in 1875 will amount to about / 400
billion kilowatt hours, or 900 billion more than
now Clearly, given requirements of that mag
nitude, the harnessed atom will not'supplant but
will merely supplement the conventional fuels.
(The consumption of coal, for instance, despite
its present temporary decline, is expected to
triple in the next 20 years.)
It is because of these and similar factors
including the international significance of in
dustrial nuclear power-that the Acc has
strongly Endorsed the proposals that would
amend our 1916 atomic law to open the field to
much wider participation by private enterprise
The change-involving profit incentives patent
rights etc.-is obviously desirable, and the
sooner it is enacted, the sooner will we move
toward fulhllment of the atoms great non-mil-
itary promise.