Nuclear Energy Consumption and Economic Growth - Assignment Example

NUCLEAR POWER and The increasing demand of energy across the world is bound to create a long term energy crisis if appropriate measures are not taken to address the situation. “Before the Fukushima nuclear disaster, nuclear power was seen as the best alternative source of energy to support the transition from fossils fuels to low-carbon energy alternatives”. Despite the accident casting a negative aspersion regarding the safety of nuclear energy production, various bodies such as the International Energy Agency have carried out numerous studies that seem to suggest that nuclear energy is best placed to address the increase demand of energy. A growing trend across the world including in developing nations is that most countries see nuclear energy as a viable program to meet domestic energy consumption. The only challenge is that some countries lack the financial and technical resources to produce nuclear power. This report critically analyses the effectiveness of nuclear energy as an alternative sources amidst safety concerns. In addition, the paper will examine the perception that nuclear energy can make a positive contribution towards the reduction of greenhouse emissions. The report will conclude by forecasting the developments made in nuclear power production and how nuclear energy is likely to address future energy problems. Introduction One of the major focus by environmentalists is to alleviate the emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As such, global warming will be brought under control. The lack of a global approach to handle the emission of greenhouse gases has been cited as the major reason why such emissions remain unstoppable. This is despite the fact that countries across the world signed the Kyoto Protocol aimed at reducing the rate of harmful emissions into the atmosphere by the year 2050. A report filed by the Panel on Climate Change indicated that there is need to stabilise CO2 concentration in the atmosphere in order to prevent the world temperatures from rising to 2C. Nuclear energy has been cited as playing a key role in containing the emission of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases. In 2009 for example, nuclear energy accounted for over 15% of the global electricity production coming second after hydro power production. The incident that occurred in Fukushima Daiichi was caused by a combination of an earthquake and a Tsunami. The Fukushima incident led to new safety concerns that many people felt needed to be addressed. The incident put a lot of focus the safety of worker in nuclear power plants and the risk factors associated with the likelihood of such disasters. However, this has not stopped many countries from using nuclear power an alternative energy source. The incident however clouded nuclear energy prospects in countries like Germany and Belgium that felt that the safety of their citizens comes first. Italy on the other hand reiterated that it had no intentions of re-introducing nuclear energy. Currently, most of the world’s nuclear power is underutilized. This is because nuclear power is being utilized by nations that have the capability to produce the same. According to Forsberg (2009, p.97), the future of nuclear power will therefore depend on among other factors; public acceptance, investment conditions and energy regulations across the world. Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Nuclear Cycle Electricity production in nuclear reactors does not contain any greenhouse gases emission including any emission from the process itself. However, just like any other activity, nuclear energy production is often associated with tertiary activities that contribute to greenhouse gases emission despite the fact that the process itself does not pollute the environment. The tertiary activities include the mining of iron ore, construction of nuclear reactors and disposal of waste from nuclear reactors. Such activities put to question just how effective are nuclear energy production in environmental conservation. All the above activities require the use of fuel which is responsible for most of the co2 in the atmosphere today. Future Nuclear Power Outlook Current Status In the years ending 2010, there were over four hundred and forty nuclear reactors in over thirty countries. According to statistics from energy regulators, nuclear power accounts for slightly above 13% of the world’s electricity and almost double that percentage in OECD countries. At the time that this data was compiled, there were over twenty seven nuclear reactors under construction mainly in Russia and South Korea. In the U.S for example, the government has revived stalled nuclear project in order to increase the nation’s electricity generation capability. As stated by Hinds and Maslak, (2006, p.37) the Fukushima accident caused by an earthquake created an opportunity for most countries to re-evaluate their nuclear power generation policies. Some countries in Europe mainly Germany and Sweden decided to phase out their entire nuclear power programs for the next two decades. In other countries such as Italy, a decision was made not to re-introduce any nuclear power generating activity. Despite the hard-line stand taken by these countries, research has established that there is still some activities in relation to nuclear power generation particular in Germany. The Fukushima disaster prompted the IAEA to convene an urgent meeting and introduce a raft of amendments into the existing laws to ensure that nuclear safety is guaranteed. In almost all countries that operate nuclear reactors, there are improved safety measures to prevent what happened at Fukushima from happening again. Strong regulations in nuclear energy sector ensure that safety becomes a priority. In addition, most nuclear energy programs are state owned which implies that there are ready funds to assist in putting safety measures in place. Some recent safety upgrades in most nuclear reactors across the world include; resistance to floods and earthquakes. There are also frequent updates on the security measures that govern the practice of electricity production in nuclear reactors. Nuclear Energy Expansion to 2050 The potential contribution of nuclear power is immense. This is because nuclear power production to produce electricity does not release any greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. However, some of the issues highlighted before cannot be ignored. One of the most talked about issue regarding nuclear power production is safety. As stated earlier, most governments have created laws and procedures that should be adhered to in electricity generation using nuclear power. However, there are still unanswered questions about the safety of individuals working in nuclear plants. While basic safety measures have been improved, scientific evidence suggests that prolonged exposure to radioactive material is the major cause of cancer. This essentially means that the workforce in nuclear energy plants is at a higher risk of developing cancerous complications. Nuclear Power Plants Rate of Construction The rate of construction of new nuclear reactors is dependent on the lifeline of the existing nuclear facilities. Energy experts argue that the lifeline of the existing nuclear power plains is below the targeted 2050. This is because most of the said power plants commenced operations in the early 1970s. Such reactors are often given a 60 years lifeline period. In the U.S for example, there were 104 nuclear power plants as of the year ending 2011. However, the country granted license renewals to 70 nuclear reactors allowing them to operate for another 60 years lifeline period. According to Armaroli and Balzani, (2007, p.60) such renewals are not granted without an extensive feasibility study to determine whether such license renewals arte warranted for. In order to meet the increasing demand of energy across the world, the expected rate construction of nuclear reactors should be at 13GWe. Going by the fact that most countries still have underutilised capacity to build new power plants, achieving an annual nuclear capacity of 512GWe is feasible in the course of the next five years. Factors Affecting Nuclear Expansion Financing and Investment The investments required to ensure that the world transits from greenhouse gases emission in the next few years depends on the technology used to produce electricity (Schilling & Esmundo, 2009, p.1770). In most cases, nuclear power plants are very specific and require a significant amount of investments during construction and maintenance. Some of the factors that make nuclear power financing challenging include; 1. High cost of capital and technical challenges during the construction and maintenance of nuclear power plants. 2. The long period of loan repayment for funds used in nuclear power plants construction leading to uncertainties on the investment. 3. The controversial nature of nuclear programs that come along with legal and political controversies leading to stringent measures in regulation. 4. The need to have a clear waste disposal management plan before the initial construction and operation of nuclear power reactors. 5. Nuclear power plants only operate under base load conditions hence the inability to operate under low capacity factors. 6. The vulnerability of nuclear energy due to price risks and the volatility of the electricity market. Industrial Infrastructure In the early 1970’s the construction of nuclear power reactors was at its peak averaging 40 units annually. This considering the period that such developments were taking place was a huge increase. However, the nuclear units constructed at the time were smaller than the current nuclear infrastructure. In addition, the level of technology was considerably lower than the situation today. Over the years, the global industrial capacity with regards to nuclear power production has increased significantly. The future outlook in relation to this sector suggests that countries with a rapid industrialization rate are better placed to progress in terms of nuclear technology. Currently, China has already lunched ambitious nuclear power programs that will shape the country’s electricity generation in the next two decades. Skilled labour and Knowledge Management According to Armaroli and Balzani, (2011, p.67) nuclear energy production requires the skills of highly qualified workers unlike any other industry across the globe today. Going into the future, the nuclear energy sector will require a pool of well trained workers actively involved in production thereby ensuring high safety standards. However, recent studies suggest that there is a huge shortage of skilled workers in nuclear production. This shortfall has hampered any significant developments in nuclear power production. Appropriate measures should be undertaken to align the current workforce in the energy sector with future trends in nuclear production. At a time when the world is considering nuclear power as the alternative energy source to fossil fuel, human generation skills and knowledge management should be among the top priorities. Most of the scientists who pioneered nuclear power production have over the years retired. However, the skills and technical experience that such scientists had have not been passed to a new breed of scientists. Conclusion Concerns regarding the future of energy production have been raised all quarters across the world. However, there are greater concerns regarding the viability of alternative energy solutions key among them nuclear power. Any development in nuclear power production is likely to affect public perception in relation to nuclear energy. There are several factors that have continuously weakened public support regarding nuclear energy key among them, safety concerns. The Fukushima disaster caused a paradigm shift in relation to how nuclear power is perceived. Prior to the disaster, nuclear energy production had massive public support with most people seeing this form of energy production as a much safer way of producing energy and containing the escalating pollution levels. Currently, lessons have been learnt as to what entails nuclear power production and its effectiveness of being an alternative energy source. Modern nuclear power plants have improved safety standards aimed at minimizing the risk of a repeat of what happened in Fukushima. In addition, the nuclear industry is one of the most regulated industries in the world today. The regulation is not only based on safety concerns but the overall impact of nuclear energy in the world today. Nuclear power is a sensitive issue with potentially equal number of proponents and opponents of nuclear energy. However, research has established that nuclear energy is best placed to replace fuel energy over the next five decades References Apergis, N & Payne, JE 2010, ‘A panel study of nuclear energy consumption and economic growth’, Energy Economics, vol. 32, no.3, pp. 545-549. Armaroli, N & Balzani, V 2007, ‘The future of energy supply: challenges and opportunities’, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, vol. 46, no. 1‐2, pp. 52-66. Armaroli, N & Balzani, V 2011, Energy for a sustainable world. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. Forsberg, CW 2009, ‘Sustainability by combining nuclear, fossil, and renewable energy sources’, Progress in Nuclear energy, vol. 51, no.1, pp.192-200. Hinds, D & Maslak, C 2006, ‘Next-generation nuclear energy: The ESBWR’, Nuclear News, vol. 49, no.1, pp. 35-40. 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