• Process of nuclear power generation; 104 reactors in USA today
• Three main reasons cited to not use more nuclear power
• France generates 79%, Japan 30%, Russia 16%, Switzerland 42%
• Energy Policy Act 2005

Background

• Nuclear power harnesses the energy that holds together very large atoms, particularly Uranium-235 and Plutonium-239, and uses this energy to heat water, which is then used to boil a separate supply of water into steam to turn a turbine which then generates electricity in a generator. Aside from the source of the energy used to heat the water and the use of two closed loops of water, one under pressure so it does not boil and the other allowed to boil to make use of the great volume that steam takes compared to liquid water, a nuclear power plant works no differently than a coal, oil, or natural gas fired plant.
• Nuclear power plants have been operating in the United States commercially since 1958, and there are currently 104 licensed plants that collectively produce 97,400 Megawatts, or 20%, of the nation's electricity. * Although the US produces a smaller percent of electricity from nuclear power than all other countries, the US produces the most overall. The great setback to nuclear power in this country was in 1979 when Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Pennsylvania suffered a partial meltdown. It did not result in any deaths or injuries to plant workers or nearby residents.

Debate

• The debate about nuclear power comes down to three concerns.
• The first is the issue of nuclear fuel. Uranium and Plutonium are not extremely abundant resources, and current estimates believe the available Uranium will be used up in 300 years at current rates of consumption. The nations that produce the most Uranium are Canada (27.9% of world production), Australia (22.8%), Kazakhstan (10.5%), Russia (8.0%), and Namibia (7.5%).
• Second is the concern about what to do with nuclear waste. Many items in a nuclear plant will eventually become slightly radioactive, but the amount usually degrades to safe levels quickly. However, some items become very radioactive, and some by-products have long half-lives (the amount of time it takes for 50% of the radioactive atoms to decay to non-radioactive ones). The government plan to contain these wastes for thousands of years, the Yucca Mountain Project in Nevada, has been behind schedule, not large enough to meet demand, and has to deal with the issue that the ground may not be as stable as hoped for.

• Finally, there is the concern of a meltdown like what happened at Chernobyl in 1986. It must be pointed out that no accidents have resulted in deaths in the US, that Soviet nuclear reactors were of a different design with less safety precautions, and that the Chernobyl plant suffered from shoddy construction and poorly trained staff.

• Some have claimed that the use of more nuclear power, and thus the requirement for more nuclear fuel will mean that it is more likely to fall into the hands of terrorists, and could be used to construct a "dirty bomb," one that uses ordinary explosives to spread radioactive particles, but not cause them to undergo fission as in nuclear weapons.

Country Comparison

• 79% of the electricity in France is produced by nuclear power and no major accidents have occurred since its use began.
• Japan produces 30% of its electricity as a result of nuclear power, and plans to increase that amount to 60% by 2050.
• Russia generates 16% of its electricity at 31 reactors, and is building 3 more.
• 42% of Swiss power is generated at four nuclear power plants.

Recent Legislation

• The Energy Policy Act of 2005 made provisions for the approval and construction of new nuclear power plants.
• On 22 September 2005, for the first time in over twenty years, two new sites were approved to receive new nuclear reactors.
• Recently, a large number of plants have had their licenses renewed for another twenty years.