Advantages of Nuclear Power - Essay Example

Nuclear power in UK Name Course Lecturer Date INTRODUCTION Nuclear power has for a long time being promoted as a low carbon means of generating electricity (Yergin, 2006). With the ever rising fuel costs, increased concerns about global warming and the high demand for energy, the development of nuclear power have been explored as an option by many regions, UK included. It is believed that nuclear power can increase the supply of UK’s electricity and also make substantial contribution to the country’s energy needs for a long time. Security of electricity supply is very vital in UK for it needs to adjust to the need to import more energy while working very hard towards reducing carbon emissions. Nuclear plays a very vital role in proving affordable energy that is not directly correlated to the volatile oil and gas prices (DTI, 2007). However, there are security risks that are associated with the production of the same. Nuclear power evolves from atomic bomb. Some other radioactive products formed in the nuclear reactors can also be used in the production of bombs. This essay will be determined to argue that there is potential to develop the use of nuclear power to serve the needs of the UK. NUCLEAR POWER AND COST The cost of setting up nuclear power plants is very high plants (Schlissel & Biewald, 2008 ). It costs about 100billion Euros worth of investment in electricity alone. This is as per the proposal to set up 8 new nuclear plants in the UK by 2025.This investment is twice as that made in the last decade on nuclear energy production. Nuclear plants should be built close to the cities where most of their outputs to be used. For safety reasons however, nuclear plants should be built away from heavily populated areas this is so as to reduce serious hazards that may be caused by accidents or the disposed waste products. The location of the plant should also be in coastal areas near a waster body which is essential in the disposal of the waste (Schlissel & Biewald, 2008 ). In the UK, the earliest nuclear plant was located inSellafied on the coast of the Irish Sea while the locations for setting up of the new reactors include Hartlepool and Essex. ADVANTAGES OF NUCLEAR POWER Nuclear power has quite a number of positive impacts. First, t results to an increase in employment. This means that it will increase chances for more people to get employed. There is always an increase in the numbers of workers through the construction and operational phases for a single pressurized water reactor. In the same case, it increases the production of electricity. In the late 1990s 25% of the total amount of electricity produced was from nuclear power.This has also reduced the amount of electricity imported from France which has gone down to 2% of the total supply of electricity (van der Zwaan, 2008). Nuclear power plants don’t require a lot of space; they have to be built on the coast and don’t need a large plot like other sources of power such as a wind farm. This therefore means that, it can be built on a very small space unlike other sources. Additionally, It does not cause global warming. This is because it does not contribute to carbon emission hence no carbon dioxide gas is given out. Nuclear power plays a role in the low carbon economy as cited in the 2006 UK Government’s Energy Review. The report projected that by 2035 the nuclear plants production of electricity would be double that of now and would therefore be able to stabilize the CO2 emitted (Vaillancourt et al, 2009). Nuclear power does not pollute the atmosphere since it does not produce dust particles as compared to other forms of energy such as fuel fossils. Moreover, it is the most concentrated form of energy since a lot of energy is produced from a small mass of fuel. This reduces the transport costs and finally, nuclear power is reliable since it does not depend on the weather.Its output can be easily controlled although the time factor for altering power output is not as small as for fossil fuel stations (WEC, 2010). DISADVANTAGES OF NUCLEAR POWER Nuclear power has a number of disadvantages. First, it causes financial strain. Setting up nuclear plants requires high capital costs. Large funds are required to set up power lines, road connection, and water-cooling structures. Funds may also be required to relocate people. A report by The Times stated that the cost of each nuclear power plant in the UK could be as high as 4.8 billion Euros and that the cost of replacing Britain’s nuclear station could get as high as 48billion Euros (WEC, 2010). There are nuclear accidents, which are associated with the same. These accidents are caused by leaks in the nuclear power pipes and cracks in the pipes. The results of such incidents are the emitting of radiation, which can cause death. There is also the risk of fires as a result of the leaks. Example of a nuclear accident in the UK is the 1957 Windscale accident where large amounts of radiation were released (WEC, 2010). Decommissioning of nuclear power stations is expensive and takes a long time, and thus it proves to be hazardous even to the environment. Decommissioning is the dismantling and decontamination of a nuclear power plant site. In UK the decommissioning of the Windscale Advanced Gas cooled reactor cost 117million Euros (WEC, 2010). Finally it has detrimental ecological and environmental effects. The spent uranium fuel is radioactive which must be cooled in tanks of water which when discharged increases the temperature of the surrounding water adversely affecting the ecology. A report by Greenpeace claims that Irish Sea is the most contaminated sea due to the discharges from the Sella field nuclear plant (SDC 2006) SOLUTIONS TO THE DISADVANTAGES These are the measures that the UK government should undertake to ensure that these negative effects are avoided; first, proper treatment of nuclear waste and disposal is very vital. The residue from the uranium fuel used should be treated to minimize the radioactive effects it may have on the ecological environment (BERR, 2006). Deccomissioning should be well conducted to prevent leaking of radioactive material during transport. Additionally, ensuring top standard safety measures are adopted can reduce incidents of nuclear accidents. Use of non-corrosive pipes and materials in the reactors to prevent leakages that may end up causing major accidents is very essential. Most importantly, the government of UK should ensure low population of people in the areas that nuclear reactors are set up. Incidents of bone cancer and leukemia have been witnessed in areas around nuclear reactors (WEC, 2010). A report by COMARE (2006) claimed that an excess of leukemiaand blood cancer has been reported near nuclear plants. Low population reduces the chances of full-scale disasters. THE FUTURE OF NUCLEAR POWER The future of UK power plant is in doubt according to analyst. This being the result of RWE npower and E.ON pulling out of the developing of the proposed 8 new nuclear plants.The decision was reached at after the Scottish government with the backing of parliament announced that no new nuclear plants would be built in Scotland (BERR, 2006). There is also mixed public opinion in Britain where majority of the people clearly prefer renewable energy over nuclear energy. This has come in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan. While public trust in the government remains relatively low, a recent poll has showed that respondents agree that nuclear power should be part of energy production in the U.K. (WEC, 2010). CONCLUSION Nuclear energy is very important for it provides an increased production of electricity with less carbon emissions. A decision to produce nuclear power will mean that, UK will increase employment for the construction and operations will require quite a large number of manpower. Additionally, it will contribute to less carbon emission policy and playing a substantial role in the low carbon economy as it is well speculated in the 2006 UK Government’s Energy Review. Nuclear power is a very reliable process for it does not depend on the weather. Its output can be easily controlled although the time factor for altering power output is not as small as for fossil fuel stations. There are also negative aspects of developing nuclear power. First, with the recent financial crises, it will be detrimental to the economy to embark in such a taxing activity which will cause financial strain. Nuclear power production requires a lot of money to set up. Radiation in case there is a leakage to ecological effects is just a few disadvantages of nuclear power production. Ensuring that that there is proper nuclear waste treatment and disposal will minimize the risk of nuclear production. Employing top standards safety measures and use of non corrosive pipes and materials in the reactors to prevent any leakage is also a very important task that needs to be undertaken before production is started. Even if many people in UK opt for renewable energy rather than nuclear power, there are high chances and support of nuclear power as an option in UK. REFERENCES BCC, van der Zwaan. "Prospects for nuclear energy in Europe.:." International Journa lfor Global Energy Issues30(1-4) (2008): 102-21 . BERR , Nuclear power generation cost benefit analysis. 2006 David Schlissel and Bruce Biewald . "Nuclear Power Plant Construction Costs." Nuclear’s Tangled Economics, Business Week, June 26, . (2008): 1-9. Industry, Department of Trade and. The future of nuclear power: The role of nuclear power in a low carbon economy. London: DTI, 2007. Seawright, Stephen “Nuclear stations may stay on line to bridge the gap” The Daily Telegraph London (2006-06-12”) Sustainable Development Commission, SDC Position Paper: The role of nuclear power in a low carbon economy (2006) Vaillancourt, K,Labriet, M,Loulou, R,Waaub, J.,P. "The role of nuclear energy in long-term climate scenarios:ananalysis with the World-TIMES model.36:." Energy Policy (2009): 2296-307. WEC, World Energy Council. 2010 Survey of energy resources.,. London: UK, 2010. Yergin, D. "’Ensuring energy security." Foreign Affairs 85(2) (2006): 69. Read More