8th congressional district Green Party candidate Iain Abernathy has issued a press release. It concerns efforts by Illinois state legislators to lift a moratorium on expanding nuclear power plants. The press release follows:

Green Candidate Iain Abernathy Opposes Back Door Attempt To Circumvent Illinois Nuclear Power Laws

The Illinois state legislature is attempting to circumvent their own moratorium on new nuclear energy. The moratorium was intended to prevent new nuclear in Illinois until a solution is found for nuclear waste. That solution has clearly not been found, but many in the Illinois General Assembly are trying to gut the law with amendment to HB2971. The original bill was a shell that did nothing except provide a quiet way to add amendments that lawmakers know their constituents do not support.

With an existing energy bill in place from last year why the attempt to change the rules in the middle of the game? Green Party candidate for the United States House of Representatives, Iain Abernathy, states that “This is clearly a give away to the existing energy industry by cutting market share away from renewable energy.”

Abernathy suggests regional cooperation and a federal mandate to go carbon free and nuclear free by 2050. “New nuclear plants,” says Abernathy “will take twenty years and millions of dollars before they power a single light bulb. That time and money can be used to research and implement a variety of renewable energy plans, many of which can be put into place within a year or less.”

Illinois and its Midwestern neighbors are in an excellent position to lead this energy revolution. Our legislators should be ashamed of their cowardly attempt to move us backward.