Thorium versus Uranium

As far as nuclear technologies are concerned, Thorium nuclear power plants may offer a better alternative. They hold significant advantages over their Uranium238 equivalents.

Thorium ores are available in large quantities, much greater than Uranium reserves soon to run out. Secondly, Thorium232 reactors cannot go critical (unlike so-called pebble bed reactors, a compromise technology part-Thorium and mostly Uranium); they would be a lot cheaper to build and run than those requiring costly safeguards against runaway nuclear reactions. Third, Thorium power plants do not produce weapons-grade material (Uranium235 and Plutonium239) as end products. Finally, the tailings of Thorium reactions have a radioactive half-life of hundreds instead of thousands and millions of years, and are thus easier to store until they are safe.

Uranium238 reactors were favored over Thorium ones BECAUSE they produced weapon-grade materials required for the tens of thousands of nuclear weapons humanity saw fit to build. Thorium reactor research reached the point of building working models. However, they were sidelined in favor of Uranium reactors; just like solar, water and wind power were sidelined in favor of nuclear, coal and petroleum equivalents. Time to abandon insane technologies in favor of reasonable ones.