NUCLEAR POWER - PROS AND CONS

Scientists have attributed global warming to the burning of fossil fuels.  One energy technology that does NOT emit greenhouse gases is nuclear power.

Last week, I went on a tour of the Science and Nature Center at a Nuclear Power Plant with my dad.  Here is some information about the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear power!

ABOVE:  A TYPICAL NUCLEAR REACTOR COOLING TOWER

ADVANTAGES:

·      Does not add to the greenhouse effect (no smoke or carbon dioxide!)

·      Just a small amount of fuel can produce a very large amount of energy.  (One ton of Uranium produces more energy than is produced by several MILLION tons of coal or barrels of oil!)

·      Produces small amounts of waste.

·      Nuclear power plants don’t require as much space as other types of facilities.

DISADVANTAGES:

·      The small amount of waste that is produced is VERY, VERY dangerous.

·      Nuclear waste must be hidden away for many thousands of years so that the radioactivity can die away.

·      Nuclear waste that is buried may be affected or released by floods, earthquakes or deliberate attacks.

·      An accident at a nuclear power plant can be a MAJOR disaster!  Radioactivity can kill people and animals or cause cancer.

·      Nuclear energy comes from Uranium and Uranium is NOT renewable.  Just like coal and oil, we will run out of it someday!

Although nuclear energy is delicate and has caused problems in the past, a modern nuclear power plant can produce power without releasing toxins into the environment (if everything goes right.)  Energy produced by coal and oil cannot do the same.

Is nuclear energy the next step away from dirty energy sources before we can harness the power of sun, wind and water more efficiently?  What do you think?  Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?  What else do you know about nuclear power?

ABOVE:  THE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT I VISITED AT SEABROOK STATION IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.