Pros and Cons of Nuclear Power

Nuclear Power Case Analysis

Legislation on environmental issues are not always one sided. Generally it is thought that the laws that are passed only put tighter restrictions on companies and put in place harsher penalties for offenders. This is not the case of the Price-Anderson Act of 1957. This act decreased the liability of the nuclear industry by establishing a taxpayer-backed insurance plan for nuclear power in the event of a nuclear accident. The National Energy Security Act and the Energy Tax Act of 1978 were, and still are, profoundly important. They also fall into the same category of laws that help business. Due to our nation's heavy dependence on oil, the 1973 Arab Oil embargo led the U.S. into an economic recession (Cohen 547-638). In response these laws were made creating encouraging tax legislations along with research and financial support to enlarge the production of domestic fuels. Other significant acts include the U.S. Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1978, the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987, the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975. These acts are all for a similar cause. These laws provide for the proper and un-wasteful utilization of energy.

Due to the economical and environmental cost of fossil fuels, as well as to the fuels limited supply, people are striving for renewable energy resources, the most promising alternate source of energy is the use of nuclear fusion on the power plants. Nuclear technology is not a newly discovered invention, in fact, it was found by Albert Einstein in 1941 (Yager 54-378). Now, the use of nuclear as a power source have been utilized as keen as possible, In the United States, nuclear power supplies about 15 percent of the electricity overall. And there are more than 400 nuclear power plants around the world, with more than 100 in the United States.

Energy crisis is the today's hottest issue, since the new era of expensive energy could be very difficult for everyone but it will be even more difficult if it is not anticipated. Presently there is an escalating worldwide demand for electrical power and transportation, much of which depends on fossil fuels and particularly oil or oil products (Allibone 41-63). The resulting demand for oil is expected to increase year by year. Based on the year 12 Heinemann physics book the daily power usage in Victoria, one of the state of Australia is 250000 giga joules. And if we assume 1 tonne of coal can produce 8.76 giga joule of energy, we must provide 115000 tonnes of coal daily. In this rate, how is it possible to provide the coal needed?

Energy Production

Energy is produced by the multiple series of reaction, called chain reaction. The main material required to start a reaction is uranium, or also called fuel rods. Why must uranium? Because uranium is a fissile element that's very rare, means that the element can undergo series of breaking and forming bonds. When an atom breaks ...