Nuclear Plant Safety - Research Paper Example

There are different reasons for the use of nuclear power as energy sources but there are more reasons to stop their operation, if not, reduce their use. This paper will provide a background on the history of the use of nuclear power in the United States. Some incidents that display the disadvantages of nuclear power plants will also be presented. In the end, a conclusion will be provided. The History of Nuclear Power in the United States Oil, natural gas and coal were traditionally used as sources of electricity but the scarcity of these resources has led people to search for other sources.

One of the main concerns of the government then was that these scarce resources have become expensive. Furthermore, the use of coal, fossil fuel and oil were reported to emit significant amounts of carbon dioxide, which is a substantial greenhouse gas. Nuclear power was primarily used for weapon production. The atomic bomb was the prime weapon, which makes use of nuclear power. The atomic bomb is integrated in a hydrogen bomb. The hydrogen bomb functions in three distinct stages: first, the atomic bomb explodes through a fission reaction; a second bomb, which is composed of lithium and deuterium undergoes a fusion reaction; then, a third explosion occurs when the uranium component undergoes a fission reaction (Caldicott, 2006).

The first casualties of hydrogen bombs were the Japanese. In the Second World War, the United Stated deployed two atomic bombs – one in Hiroshima and the other in Nagasaki. The bombs were reported to have caused the death of more than 200,000 Japanese people (Caldicott, 2006). After the Second World War, other countries were able to produce nuclear bombs. In the end however, countries signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in the hope of disarming all nuclear weapons; whereas nations without nuclear weapons would not be able to develop such weapons (Caldicott, 2006).

The treaty is an important agreement to hinder the detrimental and destructive effects of nuclear bombs. Due to the treaty, the use of nuclear power went into a limbo until it was used as a source of electricity. This energy source was believed to be cheaper than other sources such as coal and fossil fuel as it produces higher wattages of electricity. From then on, constructions of reactors continued until 1978. To this day, there are about 112 nuclear plants built within the United States (Greenwald, 1991).

Some of these plants have already encountered certain malfunctions. Disadvantages of Nuclear Power Plants In March 28, 1979, the Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear plant in Pennsylvania experienced a near meltdown. This was the worst nuclear accident experienced by the United States. “Scientists determined that a jammed valve had caused cooling water to drain from the reactor core” (Presutti, 2011). As a result, the fuel core became uncovered and then it overheated, causing a partial meltdown.

About 120,000 people were evacuated. Fortunately, only a small amount of radiation was able to escape from the facility. The Reactor that almost resulted to a meltdown was permanently shutdown though a part of TMI nuclear plant is still operating. This incident allowed for a more serious review of the nuclear policies in the United States and also halted the approval of establishments of more nuclear plants (Presutti, 2011). The TMI incident was attributed to lack of training of staff,