Alternative Energy

Today nuclear energy is declining in popularity.  Even though new technology is being developed to make this source of energy better, Chernobyl and Three Mile Island (TMI) have had a lasting negative effect on nuclear energy.  70% of the public in the United States favored nuclear energy before TMI, but only 45% have favored nuclear energy after the accident. (Issues & Controversies).  However, other countries, such as France, are becoming more dependent on nuclear energy.  The United States currently has 104 nuclear reactors that are operating, but this number is expected to decline since no new reactors are being built.  “…nuclear power plants rely on the process of nuclear fission. In this process, the nucleus of a heavy element, such as uranium, splits when bombarded by a free neutron in a nuclear reactor.”  (Energy Information Administration)  The types of energy released from fission are heat and radiation.  The water that is used to cool the nuclear reactor is heated and evaporates.  The high-pressure steam spins a steam turbine which generates electricity.

Is nuclear energy safe?  This is a key issue that is currently debated throughout the United States.  Nuclear energy is said to be environmentally friendly since the process of extracting the energy doesn’t release harmful substances into the environment.  However, critics say the amount of radiation that escapes nuclear power plants is dangerous.  Moreover, nuclear reactors are believed to be dangerous because of the radioactive materials that are used inside of them.  Advocates of nuclear energy say that the chances of a full meltdown are slim since there are many safety precautions.  Critics of nuclear energy state that nuclear power plants are expensive and complicated to build.  It takes about 10 years to build a nuclear power plant.  Conversely, nuclear power plants are becoming more efficient in producing energy from fuel.  A major drawback of nuclear power plants is its waste.  The waste produced by a nuclear power plant is still dangerous for up to 100,000 years.  Spent fuel must be stored in the spent-fuel pool at the reactor (Rahn) even though the United States government is trying to pass a law that allows waste to be stored under Yucca Mt.  A solution to this drawback is to recycle the waste and create more fuel for the nuclear power plant.  This not only increases efficiency, but it decreases the lifespan of the waste down to only a couple hundred years.