Nuclear Power Plants Are a Threat to the Whole World
Nuclear Power Plants Are a Threat to the Whole World
Produced by controlled non-explosive nuclear reactions, nuclear power accounts for 6% of the world’s energy and an approximate 13% of the world’s electricity supply (World Nuclear News 2010). Nuclear power has accumulated worldwide regards towards a positive move into the goal of sustainability. Conversely, the use of nuclear power has grown to become a major concern due to its obvious destructive effects on the environment, people and the world as a whole. Nuclear power although providing a positive approach in the production of renewable energy, it also provides the world extreme vulnerability to destruction. This essay will discuss and provide evidence of the threats and negative impacts nuclear power plants pose to the world. Nuclear power production poses major threats from the start of the production process through uranium mining. Uranium mine sites increasingly have supplied serious threats and impacts to people and the environment mainly through chemical run-offs and gases polluting land and waterways including precious rivers. Although rarely occurring (due to the amount of control in the mining process), it is evident through the massive East Finniss pollution tragedy in Australia that it takes one occurrence of chemical and gas run-offs to offset and destruct a healthy environment (Antinuclear 2010). Native vegetation was destroyed, streams and rivers were highly contaminated with high concentrations of oxide, radon, copper, sulfate and the year 1963 a vast twenty miles of rivers were polluted and declared unsafe for the people and native animals of East Finniss (Antinuclear 2010). Radon in particular, a result of the radioactive decay of uranium and the most common radioactive pollutant at uranium mining sites, can be present in the soil for 8 decades (Appleton 2007). The destructive impacts of nuclear power production become very severe and in the Navajo Nation, USA, there exist extreme clear
Produced by controlled non-explosive nuclear reactions, nuclear power accounts for 6% of the world’s energy and an approximate 13% of the world’s electricity supply (World Nuclear News 2010). Nuclear power has accumulated worldwide regards towards a positive move into the goal of sustainability. Conversely, the use of nuclear power has grown to become a major concern due to its obvious destructive effects on the environment, people and the world as a whole. Nuclear power although providing a positive approach in the production of renewable energy, it also provides the world extreme vulnerability to destruction. This essay will discuss and provide evidence of the threats and negative impacts nuclear power plants pose to the world. Nuclear power production poses major threats from the start of the production process through uranium mining. Uranium mine sites increasingly have supplied serious threats and impacts to people and the environment mainly through chemical run-offs and gases polluting land and waterways including precious rivers. Although rarely occurring (due to the amount of control in the mining process), it is evident through the massive East Finniss pollution tragedy in Australia that it takes one occurrence of chemical and gas run-offs to offset and destruct a healthy environment (Antinuclear 2010). Native vegetation was destroyed, streams and rivers were highly contaminated with high concentrations of oxide, radon, copper, sulfate and the year 1963 a vast twenty miles of rivers were polluted and declared unsafe for the people and native animals of East Finniss (Antinuclear 2010). Radon in particular, a result of the radioactive decay of uranium and the most common radioactive pollutant at uranium mining sites, can be present in the soil for 8 decades (Appleton 2007). The destructive impacts of nuclear power production become very severe and in the Navajo Nation, USA, there exist extreme clear