Ontario made massive investments in nuclear power in the 1970s � investments that saddled Ontario electricity consumers with enormous debts that we are still paying off.
These plants haven't just been financially disastrous; they also haven't worked that well.
Eight of our 20 reactors were shut down in the mid-1990s. Today, five are out of order and require very expensive repairs. The rest will soon be coming to the end of their natural life, if a nuclear plant can be said to have such a thing.
All this would seem to confirm the view that nuclear power is a phenomenon best put behind us � except, of course, for working out that pesky problem about how to get rid of the waste that's already been generated.
But the anticipated energy crunch in Ontario has given new life to the nuclear industry.
