Safety of 'alternative' energy

Madam, - The assertion in your Editorial of April 13th that renewable energy is "completely safe" overlooks mundane deaths and…

Madam, - The assertion in your Editorial of April 13th that renewable energy is "completely safe" overlooks mundane deaths and injuries. I am no fan of nuclear power but such unbalanced comment does not help the debate.

You seem to forget that accidents must be common in the construction and installation of wind, wave and solar power devices and also in the growth, harvest and transport of biofuels. The best indicators of the risks here are the farming, forestry and building industries, which we know to be among the most dangerous of occupations. Wave power adds the hazards of the sea, for good measure.

The tiny possibility that a nuclear accident might cause many deaths, on a largely random basis, must be balanced against the certainty of death for a few working-class males every year. Don't they matter? - Yours, etc,

DUNCAN J MARTIN, Chartered Engineer, Shannon Banks, Corbally, Limerick.