uce electricity by the fission of uranium, not the burning of fossil fuels. Nuclear power does not emit sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate soot, or greenhouse gases. In countries around the world nuclear energy is the largest source of emission-free electrical generation. Making one million kilowatt-hours of electricity in a natural gas power plant produces 550 tons of carbon dioxide. Producing the same amount in an oil-fired plant makes 850 tons of carbon dioxide and 1,110 in a coal plant. But generating one million kilowatt hours of electricity in a nuclear plant creates no carbon dioxide. Not only does nuclear energy not emit any pollutants, it can cause the average of pollutants in the air to decline. Since 1973, the generation of electricity by US power plants has resulted in two billion fewer tons of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. Nuclear energy has accounted for 90% of all carbon emission reductions achieved by the electric utility industry. The fact still remains that I gram plutonium has the same energy potential as 1 ton of oil. Another major concern for the environment is what to do with the waste of a nuclear plant. It is in this area that causes people feel that nuclear power is unsafe for the environment. The fact is that the waste is radioactive for thousands of years, and if not disposed of properly could destroy the environment. In some countries, such as France, the waste from the nuclear plants is recycled making a lower amount of unusable waste. This is not done in the US, but should always be an option. The waste is stored in huge drums impermeable to any type of disaster. As a result, the nuclear energy industry is the only industry established since the industrial revolution that has managed and accounted for the majority of its waste, preventing adverse impacts on the environment. Yet what worries people is that the waste is radioactive. At a close range a person would only receive 3 millarems of...
