Pandora’s Promise is essentially a portal into a world that environmentalists, past and present, unanimously fear due to previous incidents such as the Chernobyl disaster and most recently the Fukushima Dai-ichi disaster. The movie is produced in a way that attempts to eliminate the growing concerns that environmentalists, but more specifically, anti-nuclear activists have over the use of nuclear energy. Its central argument is that nuclear power is, in fact, a safe method of generating clean energy and that it can mitigate the global warming problem we face today. The movie’s use of several notable individuals, some of whom were once vehemently opposed to nuclear power but who now speak in favor of it, is a wonderful way to begin the documentary. It offers environmentalists, the target audience, well-known people with a scientific background who shared the same concerns they do. Though once opposed to the use of nuclear power, these people now support it and use modern evidence to dispel anti-nuclear advocate concerns.
Many environmentalists bring up the point that there is not enough safety surrounding the nuclear power plants and use major examples such as Chernobyl, 3-mile Island, and Fukushima Dai-ichi as supporting evidence for these facts. Though the advocates for nuclear power admitted to the failures in the past due human error, negligence, poor safety standards, and lack of a well-designed plant, they claim that these mistakes shall never happen again. The advancement of technology has allowed people to move away from the use of poorly designed reactors, such as Chernobyl, and proper protocol and fail safe measures have been put into place to prevent disasters such as Fukushima Dai-ichi from ever happening again.
Anti-Nuclear Advocates also bring up the point that radiation leaks have a negative effect on people and on the environment. They make strong claims that even if radioactivity is kept under control that the radioactivity surrounding nuclear plants will still be harmful. The environmentalists turned supporters explain how radioactivity is present in many areas of the world where reactors are not found. They are present in small quantities in nature itself. By visiting different locations and testing them, the documentary makes it clear that humans are surrounded by radioactivity and that in small quantities it is not harmful to the body. The documentary shows that radioactivity in U.S cities is roughly the same amount as radioactivity found in reactors. Pandora’s Promise also shows how radiation levels due to cosmic radiation at higher altitudes equal more than that found at plants.
Finally, environmental concerns are discussed in the documentary as the storage and nuclear waste is brought up. The advocates for nuclear energy state that the use of breeder reactors instead of light water reactors reduce nuclear waste due to its ability to recycle nuclear material many times over. The unrealistic views of environmentalists concerning solar and wind power are also mentioned. Due to excessive costs required to build, maintain, and use these methods, nuclear energy is still considered a better resource. Nuclear energy advocates mention that nuclear energy may, in fact, be the only way to reduce CO2 levels. The production of nuclear energy produces less CO2 than the production of solar panels and wind turbine components. Ultimately, the nuclear energy advocates bring up France’s nuclear success story and how after its switch to nuclear energy in the 70’s it has enjoyed access to cheap energy and far less carbon emissions than Germany, a leader in the use of solar energy.
Overall, Pandora’s promise makes a clear statement: through trial and error, humanity now has the resource to vastly reduce emissions through the means of nuclear energy. The notable individuals who once opposed the use of nuclear energy put aside their pride and admitted that they were wrong. If the production of safe nuclear energy is indeed the method that will reduce carbon emissions, it is important that environmentalists come to an understanding of how nuclear energy is beneficial and how their concerns have been addressed.