I agree there is a delicate balance here but the thing is, if you let global climate change run wild, the salmon, and a lot of other critters, including us, don't stand a chance, with a dam generating electricity and a fish ladder, they stand a chance and so do we.
Hydo, Wind, Solar, and yes, Nuke, probably all are needed to overcome this challenge. Until some perfect thing comes along, fusion or whatever, we will ned to make decisions between the various imperfect options.
> Until some perfect thing comes along, fusion or whatever
Fusion won’t be perfect. It will also require resources, and generate waste.
The truth is that you cannot have something from nothing and any energy extraction system will need materials (metals, rare earths, concrete) and change land use patterns.
Hydo, Wind, Solar, and yes, Nuke, probably all are needed to overcome this challenge. Until some perfect thing comes along, fusion or whatever, we will ned to make decisions between the various imperfect options.