Energy for the Future: The Pros and Cons of Nuclear Energy Essay

Introduction

The need for a single "silver bullet" is to replace the mix of different low carbon energy sources, conventional fuels and greenhouse-gas emissions. Nuclear energy is needed to provide an alternative energy source that will sustain the global needs for energy. The increase in global population is depleting the fossil fuels, and there is also a need for considerations of climate change. There are several alternative sources such as ocean waves and tides, wind and solar that are so diverse in their production and use, but they are not sufficient enough to meet the global need for an energy solution. Through the generation of nuclear fission and production of nuclear energy, a future free of carbon emissions and greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved. Nuclear energy will provide efficient energy use and adhere to the conservation measures. However, the use of nuclear energy power is associated with safety issues and radiotoxic waste. In light of this, the Integral Fast Reactor (IRF) was introduced to curb nuclear power problems.

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The Pros and Cons of Nuclear Energy

The use of nuclear energy has both advantages and disadvantages. For instance, nuclear energy is clean energy which makes it renewable. Unlike non renewable energy sources like coal, natural gas and oil, nuclear energy produces a low amount of carbon dioxide or any of the greenhouse emissions (Brook et al. 702). This helps in decarbonization and does not lead to global warming unlike the non renewable energy sources do when burnt to produce energy. The constant burning of non renewable fossils to produce energy depletes the reserves available thus making it a risk for future energy production to cater for the increasing population (Brook et al. 703).

Some of the energy experts argue that the production of nuclear power is harmful to human safety. Nuclear power plants produce harmful radiations that can easily kill because it takes a very long time for the radiations to stay radioactive (Brook et al. 702). Radioactive fluids from the power plants may also cause illness and cancer. A case in point is the accident that happened in Chernobyl, Russia, where more than 30 people were killed, and many evacuated because of the radioactive radiations in that area. The radioactive radiations also affected the nearby countries, making their soils radioactive. Nuclear energy also had massive destruction on Fukushima. (Hasegawa et al. 480). Therefore, the waste from nuclear plants must be discarded carefully to avoid the harmful effects on both human health and the environment.

Although nuclear energy is known to be clean energy, little waste is produced when generating power. The waste should be stored or disposed of carefully to avoid the major effects it could have on both human and environment (Brook et al. 702). Natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, forest fires and war can also trigger the release of the radioactive radiations that can easily cause major disasters. Another concern of generating nuclear power is that it could lead to a lot of nuclear weapons that can destroy the world (Brook et al. 702).

When compared to other renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind and ocean waves, nuclear energy produces more power from just a small amount of element (Brook et al. 702). The availability of nuclear elements such as uranium that can produce nuclear energy or power makes the availability of nuclear energy more affordable. The technology to produce nuclear energy is not a new invention, and nuclear power can generate a lot of energy in a single plant which makes it cheaper compared to other sources of energy (Brook et al. 702). Nuclear power is used to generate electricity and to power machines such as ships and this helps the economy of transport. Since production of nuclear energy is relatively cheap, affordability of the same energy is also cheap to many of its consumers.

The United States produces the world's largest commercial nuclear power (Conti et al.). NRC has granted and renewed many licenses to the reactors that produce nuclear energy responsible for the production of electricity in the United States. The government policy in the US also makes it conducive for production of nuclear energy. According to Conti et al., in 2017, the nuclear energy produced 20% of US electrical output.

Despite the need for a single "silver bullet" as a source of energy, many energy experts believe that supply of energy must be generated from the mix of energy sources, both renewable and non-renewable (De Groot et al. 308). Use of advanced technology should be used in generating power from renewable sources such as wind, solar and ocean tides to avoid global warming. In as much as the production of nuclear energy is cheap, the question is whether it can stand alone as the only source of energy to meet global needs? The need to overcome global warming challenges through emissions of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas and meet the global need for energy is such a huge task for a single source of energy such as nuclear energy (De Groot et al. 310).

The time needed and cost of construction to replace the already existing sources of energy is too big. There is no assurance that nuclear energy will sustain the future need for both the United States and the world at large. Different countries have different energy needs, and production of nuclear power cannot sustain global needs. The lack of availability of uranium in many countries also makes it difficult for mass production of nuclear power production, and thus, it cannot be the only source of energy. The issue of health also makes the production of nuclear energy a huge risk to take as the only source of energy. Production of radioactive radiations has a lasting effect on the environment, and that is why the nuclear power plants are located in remote areas (De Groot et al. 308). Expansion of such power plants will only make many lives in danger.

With advanced technology, it is possible to produce nuclear energy that can sustain the whole world. However, to solve both the problem of global warming and energy needs, it is better to invest in renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind that will give both cheap and clean energy. Use of other renewable energy sources can be used to supplement the production of nuclear energy. With the use of advanced technology, it is possible to produce energy from other renewable sources that will meet the global need for energy (De Groot et al. 310). Over reliance on nuclear energy production will lead to depletion of uranium and plutonium reserves.

Nuclear power or energy plays a major role as a source of energy, and it supplements both renewable and non renewable sources of energy. In as much as it has health issues, the government and the energy experts should work on how to control the waste from the nuclear energy production plants (De Groot et al. 308). Workers that work on these nuclear production plants should take the safety measure in place seriously to avoid any radiation health hazard issues. The future demand for energy is caused by the rapid economic growth both in the developed and the developing countries (De Groot et al. 308). The technological maturity makes it possible to generate power from renewable sources to replace fossil fuels, but it does not completely solve the problem of global warming caused by greenhouse emissions.

Conclusion

Ultimately, we should strike a balance between the benefits and limitations of nuclear energy as a source of energy that will sustain the rapid economic growth and the global need for energy. Nuclear energy should be used as a supplement to the existing sources of energy, and strict measures should be taken both at the production plants and disposal of nuclear waste to avoid harmful exposure both to human and the environment.

Works Cited

Brook, Barry W., and Corey JA Bradshaw. "Key role for nuclear energy in global biodiversity conservation." Conservation Biology 29.3 (2015): 702-712.

Conti, John J., et al. "Annual energy outlook 2014." US Energy Information Administration (2014).

De Groot, Judith IM, Linda Steg, and Wouter Poortinga. "Values, perceived risks and benefits, and acceptability of nuclear energy." Risk Analysis: An International Journal 33.2 (2013): 307-317.

Hasegawa, Arifumi, et al. "Health effects of radiation and other health problems in the aftermath of nuclear accidents, with an emphasis on Fukushima." The Lancet 386.9992 (2015): 479-488.