Copy of Nuclear Power by Devin Huff

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Copy of Nuclear Power

Published on Jan 29, 2016

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THE PROS

GLOBAL WARMING

Among cooling technologies for coal, natural gas and nuclear power plants, “once-through” systems actually consume only 1 percent of the water they withdraw. Wet cooling tower systems at these facilities, on average, consume twice as much water as once-through systems.
Fracking companies used nearly 250 billion gallons of water to extract unconventional shale gas and oil from hydraulically fractured wells in the United States between 2005 and 2014.
Compared to other energy sources used for electricity production, nuclear power plants use moderate amounts of water and minimal land per amount of electricity produced.

The 99 nuclear reactors in the U.S. generate substantial domestic economic value in electricity sales — $40-$50 billion each year — with over 100,000 workers contributing to production.
The nuclear energy industry provides long-term, high-paying jobs in fields ranging from electricians and machinists to electrical and nuclear engineers, reactor operators and more. Because of pending retirements, the industry expects to hire 25,000 new workers over the next several years.

Used fuel gives rise to high-level waste (HLW) which may be either the used fuel itself in fuel rods, or the separated waste arising from reprocessing this (see next section on Recycling used fuel). In either case, the amount is modest – as noted above, a typical reactor generates about 27 tonnes of used fuel which may be reduced to 3 m3 per year of vitrified waste. Both can be effectively and economically isolated, and have been handled and stored safely since nuclear power began.
Used nuclear fuel is very hot and radioactive. Handling and storing it safely can be done as long as it is cooled and plant workers are shielded from the radiation it produces by a dense material like concrete or steel, or by a few metres of water.Water can conveniently provide both cooling and shielding, so a typical reactor will have its fuel removed underwater and transferred to a storage pool. After about five years it can be transferred into dry ventilated concrete containers, but otherwise it can safely remain in the pool indefinitely - usually for up to 50 years.

Americans get most of their yearly radiation dose from nuclear power plants. Truth: We are surrounded by naturally occurring radiation. Only 0.005% of the average American’s yearly radiation dose comes from nuclear power; 100 times less than we get from coal, 200 times less than a cross-country flight, and about the same as eating 1 banana per year.
A nuclear reactor can explode like a nuclear bomb. Truth: It is impossible for a reactor to explode like a nuclear weapon; these weapons contain very special materials in very particular configurations, neither of which are present in a nuclear reactor.
Nuclear energy is not safe. Truth: Nuclear energy is as safe or safer than any other form of energy available. No member of the public has ever been injured or killed in the entire 50-year history of commercial nuclear power in the U.S. In fact, recent studies have shown that it is safer to work in a nuclear power plant than an office [4].