Home

Aftermath of the Fukushima Disaster

Nuclear Power is a False Climate Solution

It is Dirty, Dangerous, Expensive and Too Slow to Deploy

Renewables are the Answer

The Nuclear Free Team (NFT) of the Grassroots Network consists of Sierra Club volunteers working together supporting Club policy to oppose nuclear power and advocate for maximum radiation safety from the many dangers inherent in the nuclear fuel chain.  

We work to:

  • Stop new reactors
  • Close old reactors 
  • Make known and eliminate or minimize nuclear fuel chain radiation hazards from mining, milling, conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication, reactor operations, reactor decommissioning, and waste disposition

We provide technical support to volunteers, Chapters, Groups, and Staff confronted with the growing challenges presented by the current false nuclear renaissance.  We provide opportunities for networking within the Club to leverage our effectiveness.

Our work is based on many years of engagement with the downsides of nuclear power.  We have studied the science and seen first-hand nuclear industry efforts to hide the dirty truth about nuclear power from the public.    Nuclear power creates astonishing amounts of harmful radiation.  The environmental and biological downsides of nuclear power are profound and far-reaching.  It is an environmental justice nightmare. It facilitates nuclear weapons production and proliferation.  Its massive cost slows the growth of renewables.

The Sierra Club has opposed nuclear power since the 1970’s.  In 2017 the Board of Directors commissioned an internal study by volunteers, including members of the NFT, which resulted in the “Guidance on Implementing Sierra Club Policy on the Management of High-Level Nuclear Waste”.  This document was approved by the Board in September of 2020.  Below are the first sentences from the introduction:

"Sierra Club opposes the continued reliance on nuclear power because its entire life cycle, including the production of high-level radioactive waste, poses grave threats to public health and the environment. Additionally, reliance on nuclear power impedes the transition to safe, clean, renewable energy sources."

In 2023 the NFT worked with the Iowa Chapter to present a resolution to “Ramp up Club Opposition to Nuclear Power (Fission)” to the Council of Club Leaders (CCL).  That resolution was adopted by the CCL and later supported by the National Board of Directors and the Conservation Committee.  Below is the Resolution:

"The Council of Club Leaders requests the Board of Directors to direct staff and volunteers to integrate existing Sierra Club Policy opposing nuclear power into the Club’s efforts to address the climate emergency, to develop our energy transition vision without new nuclear reactors including small modular reactors while urgently replacing existing reactors with renewables and energy efficiency.  Nuclear power is a false climate solution: it is too costly, dirty, and dangerous, it violates many tenets of environmental justice.  It facilitates nuclear weapons production and proliferation.  It creates a nearly permanent pernicious toxic waste legacy.  We can decarbonize and electrify with safe and affordable wind, solar, environmentally sustainable hydroelectric, and storage." 

In 2024 the Nuclear Free Team, with a grant from the Sierra Club Grassroots Network, was proud to present a film series with the following powerful, independent documentary films exposing these dangers. We thank the filmmakers for making their films available.  These three films debunk the nuclear industry’s false claims that nuclear power is clean, safe, zero-carbon and a climate solution. If you missed any of these award-winning documentaries or want to watch them again, go to the film websites to see where they are available for streaming:

After each film, we hosted a webinar with the filmmaker and expert panelists on Zoom; recordings are available on the Nuclear Free Team YouTube channel.

These Nuclear Free Team webpages are intended as a resource to help you learn more about why nuclear power is not a climate solution and is in fact a dead-end energy source for mankind that should be stopped.

To contact the Nuclear Free Team:  nuclearfreeteam@gmail.com