“Every dollar spent on nuclear power is one less dollar spent on clean renewable energy and one more dollar spent on making the world a comparatively dirtier and a more dangerous place, because nuclear power and nuclear weapons go hand in hand. -Mark Z. Jacobson”. All over the USA we are using toxic nuclear processes to create electricity. Nuclear power is created from energy that is released when large atoms are split in a series of controlled nuclear reactions. The resulting heat is used to boil the water which drives a steam turbine to generate electricity. The process of splitting an atom is known as nuclear fission. Nuclear power represents approximately 20 percent of the total electric generating capacity in the U.S. with 104 nuclear
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This is a good thing because plants burning coal for energy are very toxic to our environment and nuclear power plants only emit small amounts of greenhouse gasses and have the capability to produce as much energy as coal run plants with less environmental detriment. Another main advantage of using nuclear energy is that it is very powerful and more efficient than other alternative energy sources. Advancement in technologies has made it more viable option than others. This is one of the reasons that many countries are putting huge investments in nuclear power. Another positive is that nuclear power is very reliable, Unlike traditional sources hof energy like solar and wind which require sun or wind to produce electricity, nuclear energy can be produced from nuclear power plants even in the cases of dismal weather conditions. They can produce power 24/7 and need to be shut down for maintenance purposes only. another positive to using nuclear power is low fuel cost. The main reason behind the low fuel cost is that it requires little amount of uranium to produce energy. When a nuclear reaction happens, it releases million times more energy as compared to traditional sources of …show more content…
The first main negative is risk of accidents and danger of running a plant. While so many new technologies have been put in place to make sure that such disasters won’t happen again like the ones Chernobyl or more recently Fukushima but the risk associated with them are relatively high. Even small radiation leaks can cause horrible effects. Some of the negative symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fatigue. People who work at nuclear power plants and live near those areas are at high risk of facing nuclear radiations, if an accident happens. Another huge negative of nuclear plants is they are a huge target for terrorism. Nuclear energy has immense power. Today, nuclear energy is used to make weapons. If these weapons go into the wrong hands, that could be the end of our world. Nuclear power plants are a major, prime target for terrorism activities. Another negative of nuclear power is the time it takes to build a plant. Nuclear power plants are complex construction projects, their construction periods are longer than other large power plants. It is typically expected to take 5 to 7 years to build a large nuclear unit in the US Currently in countries such as South Korea and China, typical construction times range from 4 to 6 years, and in European countries construction may take between 6 and 8 years. In comparison, large coal plants can be built in about 4 years,
This is a good thing because plants burning coal for energy are very toxic to our environment and nuclear power plants only emit small amounts of greenhouse gasses and have the capability to produce as much energy as coal run plants with less environmental detriment. Another main advantage of using nuclear energy is that it is very powerful and more efficient than other alternative energy sources. Advancement in technologies has made it more viable option than others. This is one of the reasons that many countries are putting huge investments in nuclear power. Another positive is that nuclear power is very reliable, Unlike traditional sources hof energy like solar and wind which require sun or wind to produce electricity, nuclear energy can be produced from nuclear power plants even in the cases of dismal weather conditions. They can produce power 24/7 and need to be shut down for maintenance purposes only. another positive to using nuclear power is low fuel cost. The main reason behind the low fuel cost is that it requires little amount of uranium to produce energy. When a nuclear reaction happens, it releases million times more energy as compared to traditional sources of …show more content…
The first main negative is risk of accidents and danger of running a plant. While so many new technologies have been put in place to make sure that such disasters won’t happen again like the ones Chernobyl or more recently Fukushima but the risk associated with them are relatively high. Even small radiation leaks can cause horrible effects. Some of the negative symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fatigue. People who work at nuclear power plants and live near those areas are at high risk of facing nuclear radiations, if an accident happens. Another huge negative of nuclear plants is they are a huge target for terrorism. Nuclear energy has immense power. Today, nuclear energy is used to make weapons. If these weapons go into the wrong hands, that could be the end of our world. Nuclear power plants are a major, prime target for terrorism activities. Another negative of nuclear power is the time it takes to build a plant. Nuclear power plants are complex construction projects, their construction periods are longer than other large power plants. It is typically expected to take 5 to 7 years to build a large nuclear unit in the US Currently in countries such as South Korea and China, typical construction times range from 4 to 6 years, and in European countries construction may take between 6 and 8 years. In comparison, large coal plants can be built in about 4 years,