Nuclear power is not an environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuels, says a new study released Thursday by a Canadian environmental group.

The Pembina Institute says the nuclear industry likes to promote itself as a solution to the problem of global warming caused by greenhouse gases, but its study suggests otherwise.

"Nuclear power, like other non-renewable energy sources, is associated with severe environmental impacts," the Pembina Institute says in a 129-page report.

The Pembina Institute compiled the report after learning Ontario is considering the expansion of nuclear power facilities, and that Alberta might use nuclear energy to process bitumen from the oilsands.

Mark Winfield, a director at the institute, told CBC News the nuclear industry claims that nuclear energy emits less greenhouse gases than fossil fuels and can be a useful response to reduce climate change.

"We're quite clear this is not a good response," Winfield said. "It involves trading off perhaps some reductions in greenhouse gas emissions but taking on a whole range of other risks and costs."

'Report unbalanced': nuclear association

Murray Elston, president of the Canadian Nuclear Association, said the report is unbalanced.

"This report has to be taken with a grain of salt," he said. "It's incomplete. Pembina has always been anti-nuclear and I'm not surprised they came to that result."

The Pembina report claims nuclear power generation still produces greenhouse gases during mining, transportation and construction, and that it relies on uranium, which is not a renewable resource.

Additionally, the report claims, nuclear power releases hazardous pollutants into ground water and produces toxic waste that will endure for hundreds of thousands of years.

Nuclear power plants, and the uranium mines associated with them, also expose the public to radiation, the report says, noting that even small amounts of radiation can be risky, especially for children.

Nuclear power plant workers and uranium miners are exposed to levels of radiation the general public would not find acceptable, it says. 

In addition to stressing environmental and health risks, the report also outlines some financial risks to nuclear power. Nuclear reactors are often plagued with maintenance problems, construction delays and high capital costs, it says, which have left significant debt.

Nuclear plants pose a risk of accidents and spills, and also have the potential for nuclear weapons proliferation.

As of September 2006, there were five commercial nuclear power plants in Canada — three in Ontario, one in Quebec and one in New Brunswick, the report says.

The Pembina Institute, a non-profit organization founded in 1985 in Alberta, specializes in research and education in the areas of sustainable energy, climate change and environmental management.