Nuclear Energy Pros And Cons

Nuclear energy is an environmentally friendly, green energy source. A small amount of fuel can produce large amounts of nuclear energy. This is quite an economically beneficial source of energy, but with all the benefits that it derives, there are also severe disadvantages that come along. The cost of nuclear power is competitive and stable. The cost of nuclear fuel is a small part of the price of a nuclear kilowatt-hour, whereas fossil fueled power, especially oil and gas, depend on the market prices which go up and down every month. “To truly transform our economy, protect our security, and save our planet from the ravages of climate change, we need to ultimately make clean, renewable energy the profitable kind of energy.” BARACK OBAMA,

The worst part that can go wrong with a nuclear power plant is its installation or maintenance. There have been only few serious accidents in the commercial use of nuclear power. In 1979 at Three Mile Island (Pennsylvania, USA) was the worst accident one can imagine. The core of the reactor melted down and much of it fell to the bottom of the reactor vessel. The small amount of radioactivity which escaped was quite harmless. Three Mile Island was a real success story for nuclear safety. The worst possible accident occurred and no one died or was even injured. In 1986 at Chernobyl (The Soviet Union, now Ukraine) the reactor’s faulty design made it unstable. An uncontrollable spill out in power occurred leading to a steam explosion. Since 1986, some 4000 cases of cancer have been diagnosed in the surrounding regions and successfully treated. Nine fatal cases have been reported. On March 11, 2011, Japan suffered a nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The crisis was caused by a tremendous earthquake that struck off the east coast of Japan. The earthquake created a massive tsunami that flooded the power plant. The plant 's cooling rods stopped fission reactions. But the tsunami crippled the plant 's cooling system. Heat from nuclear radiation caused several explosions, widely spreading radioactive material. Samuel McCracken concludes that "nuclear energy is environmentally the most benign of major energy sources expect

There are advantages and drawbacks to any type of energy, but when the danger is higher, the precautions should be increased. If there are proper checks and constant maintenance of the nuclear power plants, better safety can be ensured. We must find out ways to dispose of the nuclear waste in a better manner. Radiation leakage could cause long-term diseases among people and can even lead to death. Nuclear radiation can cause genetic defects among future generations too. The solution is not to stop the use of nuclear energy, but to find out measures to reduce its side effects on people and on the