As a physicist i respect the body of science and engineering that has gone into making our nuclear power plants as safe as they are.

this has been hampered by the need to change rods every 6 months to maximise the plutonium yield, they should stay in there for 3 years or possibly forever.

the reprocessing is the dirty end, and where most/all of the spillages come from. There is no need for it, period.

unfortunately BNF are trying to wean the industry onto its MOX product - i.e. Pu and U oxides, no need as yellowcake is cheap, and all the documentation and financials are rigged (and the Japs found out)

and it puts plutonium into fuel rods, so ships need a full-on naval escort.

and its a factor of about 500,000 more toxic.

if the engineering effort to bring nuclear to where it is now had been spent on wind and wave we'd be there by now. Right now there are loads of options (many tidal ventures, undersea watermills, offshore windmills etc) - - and now the running costs start to look stable and known, its the banks who are putting in the money.

more solutions will come as it becomes worthwhile, engineers and financiers hate no-hope projects.

no bank will ever back nuclear, they're not so nuts as new labour.