After triple-digit growth rates during the 1970s and 1980s, the nuclear industry virtually died after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. But with high oil and gas prices and concerns about global warming, nuclear power seems to be making a comeback.
 | Picture Gallery (click on the image to start)With concerns over global warming nuclear power seems to make a comeback. Find out about the pros and cons (Photo: Reuters) |
Current Worldwide Importance
The power unleashed by nuclear fission has no equal on Earth, but the world’s 439 nuclear reactors only produce around 6 percent of the world’s energy and about 15 percent of its electricity.
This small number has less to do with limited resources, technological problems, or geopolitical constraints, than the low cost of alternatives like natural gas and widespread fears over the safety of nuclear power plants.
The anti-nuclear movement became a strong political force after the catastrophic meltdown of a Soviet nuclear reactor in Chernobyl, Ukraine, in 1986 and the radiation leak at the Three Mile Island facility in Pennsylvania in 1979. Industry growth halted.
The global nuclear leader is France, with nuclear producing nearly 80 percent of the country’s electricity. France also exports huge amounts of nuclear power to European neighbors, and its energy conglomerate, Areva, builds many nuclear power plants worldwide.
The United States is, however, the world's largest producer of nuclear power, its 104 reactors producing over 30 percent of global nuclear generation of electricity and 20 percent of the country's electrical output.
Other leading nuclear nations are Japan, Russia, South Korea, and Sweden. Major European economies like Germany and the UK rely partially on nuclear power, but have not built new plants for decades. Others, like Italy and the Netherlands, have avoided nuclear power because of its cost or its unpopularity.
Most developing countries, on the other hand, have not had access to nuclear power, because of the high costs of building a nuclear power plant, the complicated technology involved, or political restraints on the availability of nuclear material.
Nuclear still produces only a small fraction of electricity, less than 5 percent, in China and India where coal is still king.
Future Trends: Revival of Interest
After years of stagnation, many countries are now building new nuclear power plants, or have announced plans to do so.
There are currently 56 plants under construction worldwide, double the total five years ago. Finland is building what will be the first new nuclear reactor in Europe for 15 years.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing applications for 22 new nuclear plants, the first in over 30 years, while the Obama administration eyes tax and loan incentives for nuclear as part of its climate change policy package.
Unlike power plants that run on coal or gas, nuclear reactors emit almost none of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.
Nations that had promised never to build another nuclear plant, such as Sweden, Belgium and Italy, have reversed policy. The UK plans to fast-track 10 new nuclear plants. But while American and European plans have not left the drawing board, further east it's a different story.
China has 19 reactors under construction, with 124 more planned. India, also concerned about energy security amid booming demand, is building six reactors and has a further 23 planned. Nuclear generation in China and India is expected to grow sevenfold between 2006 and 2030. Russia is building nine reactors, South Korea six.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that nuclear power generation will grow by at least 13 percent by 2030, and perhaps as much as 40 percent if politicians decide on a price for carbon dioxide emissions.
Despite the surge, the share of nuclear power in many countries is likely to decline initially. Most power plants in rich countries, built back in the 1960s and 1970s, are nearing the end of their projected lifespan.
And while many new plants are being planned, building them can take more than a decade, and are expensive. The new Finnish plant is years overdue and billions of dollars overbudget. In an economic recession, are new plants affordable?
On the other hand, operating costs are low because the supply of uranium, the dominant nuclear fuel, is relatively cheap and reliable. According to the IEA, nuclear power is currently cheaper than gas and almost as cheap as coal.
Global Resources and Producers
Aside from climate change concerns, the main reasons for renewed interest in nuclear energy are the volatile prices and uncertain supply of rival power sources. Italy's nuclear conversion is partly due to the fact it is almost totally reliant on Russian gas.
And while most oil and gas reserves are located in volatile regions, uranium is available from politically stable countries such as Canada and Australia, which together hold 42 percent of the world’s reserves. Other major producers include Kazakhstan, Russia, Namibia, and Niger.
Is there enough uranium? Sixty percent of the 66,500 tons needed every year is mined. The remainder comes from recycled fuel or redundant nuclear warheads. Those sources could be exhausted within ten years, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the OECD's Nuclear Energy Agency.
According to these agencies there is enough unmined uranium to supply today’s nuclear power stations for at least 85 years. The Australian Uranium Association (AUA) reckons there is enough for about 70 years. These figures do not of course take account of the current nuclear expansion in China, India and elsewhere.
Environmental Drawbacks
Nuclear power has an ambiguous environmental record. The World Health Organization estimates that more than 4,000 people died in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster, which contaminated parts of Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia.
Although the World Association of Nuclear Operators claims an 80 percent drop in accidents at nuclear power plants since the 1980s, Chernobyl still haunts the industry.
Another problem is radioactive waste. Spent fuel rods stay contaminated for millions of years. There are plans to store waste in disused salt mines or stable bedrock, but as yet there are no such long-term depositories. High level nuclear waste is currently stored within nuclear plants.
Amidst growing fears of global warming, however, nuclear power has regained some environmental credentials. While environmentalists point at the energy needed for uranium mining and enrichment, proponents of nuclear energy argue that a low carbon-future is simply impossible without nuclear power.
editor: Thilo Kunzemann
publishing date: March 11, 2008
last updated: December 19, 2009
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this is the most boring website in the world you need to jazz it up abit with some energy saving games or something. you should also open the age variation to maximum of 5-100 year olds...