Essay Sample on Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

Nuclear energy, like other energy sources that people utilise, may have advantages and disadvantages. Nuclear energy is still a controversial and contentious topic. Scientists and international forums continue to debate the trade-offs between nuclear energy's problems and benefits. Many individuals feel that nuclear energy has only minor drawbacks that are easily outweighed by the numerous benefits. However, the drawbacks of the technology are far more concerning than people think. 

Nuclear power facilities are extremely expensive to develop, despite the fact that they are quite affordable to operate. The anticipated cost of building a nuclear power station increased from $2-$4 billion to $9 billion between 2002 and 2008, and power facilities frequently exceed their cost projections during construction. Aside from the cost of constructing a power plant, nuclear power plants must also budget for the protection of the waste they generate and the storage of that material in cooled buildings with security measures in place. All of these expenses add up to a high price tag for nuclear electricity.

Nuclear energy often falls under fire because of the many disadvantages that Nuclear energy brings. It is believed that Nuclear energy is better for the environment because it does not produce as much greenhouse gas emissions but there are other factors of nuclear energy that all add up to being just as bad, if not worse for the environment. The mining and enrichment of uranium, the production, transportation, and reprocessing of nuclear fuel rods and waste, and the construction and decommissioning of reactors are all contributing factors. The generation of radioactive wastes such as uranium mill tailings, spent (used) reactor fuel, and other radioactive wastes is a serious environmental hazard associated with nuclear power. For thousands of years, these elements can stay radioactive and harmful to human health. Although nuclear energy does not emit any pollutants, it does produce radioactive waste, which must be safely kept to avoid polluting the environment. While radioactivity from cosmic rays in the air we breathe may seem frightening, we are continually exposed to modest amounts of it. Radiation isn't hazardous in tiny doses, but radioactive waste from nuclear power plants is extremely deadly. Nuclear power facilities have a huge difficulty in storing radioactive waste. 

Nuclear power facilities have a bigger environmental effect than the trash they generate. Uranium mining and enrichment are not ecologically friendly methods. Open-pit uranium mining is safe for miners, but it produces radioactive particles, causes erosion, and pollutes local water supplies. Underground mining isn't much better, exposing miners to high levels of radiation while extracting and treating radioactive waste rock. Nuclear kilowatt per hour consumes far more water than wind or solar kilowatt per hour. Droughts and heat waves are becoming increasingly common. Furthermore, such climatic phenomena have the potential to impair nuclear power plant operations. During the scorching summer of 2003, one-quarter of France's nuclear reactors had to be shut down or operated at reduced capacity. Drought-caused fires can endanger nuclear power plants, as happened at Mayak in Russia (2010) and Los Alamos in the United States (2011). During the hurricane of 1999 in France, the Blayais nuclear power station near Bordeaux was flooded and came dangerously close to a meltdown. Even when the reactors are turned down, they require a continual source of power to keep them cold enough to avoid a core melt. 

 A nuclear meltdown happens when the quantity of heat generated by a nuclear reactor surpasses the amount of heat transported out by the cooling systems, causing the system to melt. If this happens, heated radioactive vapours can escape, causing nuclear power plants to entirely melt and burn, as well as releasing dangerous radioactive elements into the environment. When most people hear the word nuclear power plant, they immediately think of the Chernobyl tragedy. Although we don't know how many people died as a consequence of the Chernobyl disaster, it's believed that up to 10,000 people died as a result of the region's long-term radioactive impacts.  The Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster in 2011 demonstrated that accidents can and do happen, no matter how safe nuclear power facilities are built to be. An uncontrolled nuclear reaction in a nuclear reactor could result in widespread contamination of air and water, endangering human health. 

One of the most crucial things to remember is that nuclear energy relies on uranium and thorium to generate electricity. Reactors that use radioactive materials other than uranium, such as plutonium or thorium, are significantly more prone to accidents. We won't be able to generate electricity using the nuclear power plants we've constructed for the future unless we can find a means to manufacture nuclear fusion or develop breeder reactors before our supply runs out. Fuel for current nuclear technology is uranium ore, which is found in limited quantities in the earth's crust. The more we rely on nuclear power (and, in particular, uranium ore), the more depleted the earth's uranium resources become, raising the expense of extraction as well as the negative environmental implications of mining and processing uranium. 

Although nuclear power has certain substantial benefits over coal and natural gas, these advantages vanish when compared to renewable energy alternatives, and the risk of environmental disaster is enormous and long-term. It is a firm view that there is no need to continue building new nuclear power plants, and that investments should be put in renewable and green energy resources that will not harm the world, such as wind, solar, hydro, wave, and other renewable and green energy resources. The disadvantages that nuclear energy brings to the environment include those of: Nuclear power facilities generate radioactive waste, such as spent fuel rods, which must be stored in a secure environment for hundreds of thousands of years. Nuclear power is, in the end, simply a short-term option with a large price tag. Nuclear energy should be a project of the past with so many renewable energy alternatives available and technology development. The high construction costs, devastating impact on the environment, limited quantities of fuel and safety risks are all contributing factors of why the benefits of nuclear energy do not outweigh the risk factors on the environment.