Changing technology could point the way toward an important role for nuclear power in the future for North Carolina and the United States. The head of UNC’s Center for Sustainable Energy, Environment, and Economic Development offered that assessment during a presentation to the John Locke Foundation’s Shaftesbury Society.

David McNelis included his remarks about the future of nuclear energy during a larger discussion about the history and challenges linked to nuclear power. In the video clip below, he discusses nuclear energy’s minimal carbon footprint and its large role in North Carolina’s existing energy picture.

4:40 p.m. update: Click play below to watch the full presentation.