In 2012 California shut down the San Onofre nuclear power plant after decades of anti-nuclear activism, leaving the state with only one remaining nuclear plant. This meant that California started producing more of its energy by burning fossil fuels. So was the closing of San Onofre a victory or a tragedy for the environment? The answer to this question hinges on another: how much danger is society willing to accept to fight climate change?

In this episode of VICE News reports, VICE News correspondent Keegan Hamilton visits San Onofre and meets one of the people helping to tear the plant down—a nuclear engineer who previously helped diffuse North America’s worst nuclear accident. Keegan also talks to an MIT professor who says that the Russian army’s weaponization of nuclear plants in Ukraine proves that nuclear power is too dangerous.

Special thanks to Sarah Svboda, Ben Bishop, Lou Baldanza, and Amanda Mccormick.

This episode was produced by Jesse Alejandro Cottrell. Editing by Sam Greenspan. Mixing and sound design by Kyle Murdock.

VICE News Reports is produced by Sophie Kazis, Jen Kinney, and Adriana Tapia. Our senior producers are Jesse Alejandro Cottrell, Julia Nutter and Sam Greenspan. Our supervising producer is Ashley Cleek. Our associate producers are Steph Brown, Sam Eagan, and Adreanna Rodriguez.

Sound design and music composition by Steve Bone, Pran Bandi, and Kyle Murdock.

Our executive producers are Adizah Eghan and Stephanie Kariuki.

Annie Aviles is our Executive Editor and Janet Lee is Senior Production Manager for VICE Audio. Fact Checking by Nicole Pasulka. Our theme music is by Steve Bone. Our host is Arielle Duhaime-Ross.

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Deaths Per Kilowatt-Hour

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