Sen. Bennett calls for more nuke plants

WASHINGTON, June 24 (UPI) -- Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, says the future of U.S. energy is in building more nuclear plants.

Bennett said Monday at a hearing he organized in Washington, attended only by Republicans, that the country must build at least 100 more nuclear plants by 2030, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. There are now 104.

"It's been my experience and my position ... that one of the driving

forces behind America's economic growth has been our access to cheap

energy," Bennett said. "If we're going to survive in the kind of economy we want, we need to have access to cheap energy."

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said that if President Obama supports Iran using nuclear energy he should support it in the United States.

Several experts invited to the hearing, all advocates of nuclear power, suggested the problem of nuclear waste will not be a major one. Ted Rockwell, a fellow at the American Nuclear Society and a member of the National Academy of Engineering, said the waste can be safely stored in ceramic jars.