The world is looking to new and safe energy sources but nuclear power should be blacklisted. Following major incidents in Chernobyl, Fukushima and the Three Mile Island, many European countries including Germany are abandoning its use and others are contemplating following suit, although supporters' stress that abolishing nuclear power would create problems as Europe is committed to carbon dioxide reductions which would be more difficult without its use. Fans of nuclear power remind us it is clean and gives off significantly less carbon dioxide emissions than coal or gas. Yet we cannot overlook the facts: it is extremely dangerous, extremely expensive and the supply of uranium is neither renewable nor sustainable. The nuclear industry has a shameful safety record. Gordon Edwards, president of The Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, states "No reactor in the world is inherently safe." In the major disasters, fires and exposure to radioactive material were the main causes of fatalities. Adverse incidents can result from problems in the way the radioactive fuel cools down. Radioactivity can be very dangerous, as is patently obvious when it was used as a weapon of war in Hiroshima in 1945. Other risks include the effect on health, particularly the initiation of cancer or genetic diseases. Even the slightest risk of a nuclear disaster is unacceptable. Admittedly, these highly dangerous risks are few and far between, minimal even compared to the dangers faced in harvesting other fuels such as coal. Admittedly the design and operation of the nuclear plants does aim to minimise the risk of accident and the nuclear plants have built in safety features. Admittedly they have better training for staff and the reactors have been redesigned to minimise the risk of accidents. This is not enough, however, if you look at specific disasters which have occurred where the consequences are terrible. In addition, nuclear waste must be sealed up