Advantages and

Disadvantages of Nuclear
Energy
 INEXPENSIVE

RELIABLE
Advantages
NO GREENHOUSE
GASES

DECADES OF
INCREASED SAFETY
 Nuclear energy is cost-competitive.
Generating electricity in nuclear reactors is
INEXPENSIVE
cheaper than electricity generating from oil,
gas and coal, not to speak of the renewable
energy sources

According to the Nuclear Energy Institute

(NEI), “One uranium fuel pellet creates as
much energy as one ton of coal, 149 gallons
of oil or 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas.”
 The production of electric energy is continuous. A
nuclear power plant is generating electricity for
almost 90% of annual time. Consequently, it reduces
the price and the volatility of other fuels such as
petrol or coal. RELIABLE
In addition, nuclear energy does not depends on
natural aspects. It's a solutions for the main
disadvantage of renewable energy, like solar energy
or eolic energy, because the hours of sun or wind
does not always coincide with the hours with
more energy demand.
 The generation of electricity through nuclear
energy reduces the amount of energy generated from
fossil fuels (carbon and petroleum). 

Less use of fossil fuels means lowering

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS (CO2 AND
OTHERS).

This reduction of coal and oil NO GREENHOUSE

consumption benefits the situation of global warming GASES
and global climate change. By reducing the
consumption of fossil fuels we also improve the
quality of the air affecting the disease and quality of
life.
 The 1979 Pennsylvania Three Mile Island partial
nuclear reactor meltdown resulted in major changes
within the nuclear power plant industry.

Reactor operator training, radiation protection,

and other areas of operations were overhauled to
prevent such an incident from happening again.

The World Nuclear Association explains how new

reactor technology has advanced with the latest
generation of reactors worldwide. DECADES OF
INCREASED SAFETY
 RADIOACTIVE WASTE

SPENT NUCLEAR RODS

POTENTIAL HAZARD

disAdvantages
WATER POLLUTANT

LEAKS

SHUTDOWN REACTOR
 Uranium when in the process of fission is
RADIOACTIVE WASTE
a naturally unstable element. This means that
special precautions must be taken during the
mining, transporting and storing of the
uranium, as well as the storing of any waste
product to prevent it from giving off harmful
levels of radiation
Waste
RADIOACTIVE WASTE
When the uranium has finished splitting,
the resulting radioactive byproducts need to
be removed.

The NEI highlights steps for the recycling

efforts of this waste product that have been
undertaken in recent years, and how the
storage of the by-product that could lead to
contamination through leaks or containment
failures can be avoided.
 The United States Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (US NRC) explains used nuclear
rods are immersed in water in the spent fuel SPENT NUCLEAR RODS
pool under 20 feet of water, to cool them POTENTIAL HAZARD
before they can be transported for disposal.

Radio-active water can leak out of doors in

the pool when the seals that keep the doors
airtight malfunction as was witnessed in the
2013 Japanese Fukushima nuclear plant
disaster.
 Nuclear Information and Resource Service
(NIRS) summarizes how pollutants released
by nuclear plants are heavy metals and toxic
pollutants that harm plant and animal life in
aquatic bodies.
WATER POLLUTANT
Water is released into the atmosphere after
being cooled but is still warm and damages
the ecosystem of the sinks it flows into.
 Nuclear reactors are built with several safety
systems designed to contain the radiation given off
in the fission process. When these safety systems
are properly installed and maintained, they function
adequately.

When they are not maintained, have structural

flaws or were improperly installed, a nuclear
reactor could release harmful amounts of radiation
into the environment during the process of regular
use. If a containment field were to rupture LEAKS
suddenly, the resulting leak of radiation could be
catastrophic.
 There have been several nuclear reactors
that have failed and been shutdown that are
still in existence. These abandoned reactors
are taking up valuable land space, could be
contaminating the areas surrounding them,
and yet are often too unstable to be removed.

The United States Nuclear Regulatory

Commission presents a background
discussion on the decommissioning of nuclear
power plants.
SHUTDOWN REACTOR