Nuclear Power

Introduction

Nuclear power is a relatively recent energy source, beginning approximately half a century ago with both civilian and military applications. Currently, nuclear power is generated through atomic fission (a nuclear reaction that splits the nucleus of the atom into smaller, energized components), but new technologies are being developed to make nuclear power development safer and more controllable. However, accidents such as the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and the growing problems of radioactive waste management contribute to maintaining a public fear around the widespread development of nuclear power plants (Cravens, pp. 77). These civic concerns coupled with a spatially and temporally limited uranium supply do not make nuclear power a renewable nor sustainable energy source. The main theme of the paper is as follows:

“Despite the clean energy that nuclear power produces, there are numerous problems with nuclear power that render it both dangerous and impractical”.

Discussion

Safety Issues

Although cost may be of primary concern for policymakers and utilities that are actually invested in building more nuclear power plants, the primary concerns for those who do not want more power plants built relate to safety and waste. We will examine safety first. Generally speaking, most nuclear scientists and engineers believe strongly in the safety of nuclear power plants, citing their “defense-in-depth” designs and their endlessly redundant safety features. Historically, there has been only one truly catastrophic failure of a commercial nuclear power plant, which occurred in Chernobyl, Ukraine, in 1986. Given the immense production of nuclear power from plants worldwide, this could be said to be a relatively strong safety record. Advocates of nuclear power could also point to the fact that, although nuclear accidents are potentially massive and catastrophic, other forms of electricity production are equally dangerous; the risks they pose, however, are often slow and invisible, and therefore less likely to cause public fear and outrage. Finally, nuclear advocates argue that nuclear power—once plants are up and running—is virtually “carbon-free,” has a relatively clean safety record, and provides readily available, consistent forms of “base load” power using small amounts of fuel. Yet many of these points are open for interpretation, and detractors of nuclear power provide compelling counterarguments. For example, although the Chernobyl disaster is the only one of its kind worldwide, there have been multiple small accidents—some taking human lives—at research reactors in the United States and elsewhere (Caldicott, pp. 14).

Waste Issues

Debates around waste disposal are significant to nuclear power concerns ...