Proponents on both sides of the fence will argue feverishly about how the benefits of their chosen energy preference are better for the environment and the economy. Fukushima put a damper on the arguments for nuclear and the solar community is coming out full force to remind everyone about it.
Case in point: this infographic by our friends at 1bog. In it, you’ll see some of key points that make their argument strong in a hypothetical format. Some may consider it unfair to look back with 20/20 hindsight and say “shouldacoulda” but one can’t help to wonder if the situation would be completely different had Japan embraced solar power earlier.
Click to enlarge.

In my opinion, there’s no real contest between nuclear and solar. Everyone would/could/should go solar if they possibly could. The fact of the matter is that there probably isn’t enough solar equipment and trained technicians in the world right now to fully equip everyone with solar even if everyone who wants it could afford it.
Also: nuclear power plants (like the one at Fukushima) were built at a time (1970s) when they needed power and solar wasn’t an option (again – it’s still not a viable worldwide, mass solution).
Now, this isn’t an excuse, and this doesn’t mean that we as a planet shouldn’t be looking for more environmentally-friendly forms of energy production. It just means that, at the time, solar wouldn’t have solved the problem. Countering the shutdown of nuclear plants by building more solar farms and putting more solar on private buildings would be a great way to do something good for the planet.