On Quality of Life: Nuclear Power; Michael Hanson

Segment I Nuclear Power In the Valley? - The State of California has a long love-hate relationship with nuclear power. It's now been 26 years since Diablo Canyon, the state's newest nuclear power plant, came online on the Central Coast. In the intervening years, reactors at Rancho Seco, near Sacramento, and San Onofre near San Diego have been decommissioned, and the state's moratorium on the construction of new plants still remains in effect. But now, with rising concerns over global warming, and a state law that requires dramatic cuts in CO2 emissions, nuclear power is gaining renewed interest in the Golden State.

One Fresno based group wants to build a so-called Clean Energy Park, including two reactors here in the Valley. All of this comes in the wake of the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima power plant in Japan, and the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident. Does nuclear power have a place in the future of the Valley? Is it a clean energy solution to solving our environmental and economic problems? Or is it a dangerous idea that could endanger Valley residents and agriculture? John Hutson, President and CEO of the Fresno Nuclear Energy Group is our guest.

Segment II Fresno Unified Superintendent Michael Hanson - Several weeks ago, local journalist Mark Arax was a guest on our program, and called the Fresno Unified School District "arguably the most broken district in the state." He also made several serious claims about the district’s operations and the driving record of Superintendent Michael Hanson. This week Hanson is our guest and responds to his critics and addresses the $71 million budget crunch currently facing the district.