On March 28, 1979, Three Mile Island (TMI), through a combination of mechanical failures and human errors a reactor meltdown released curies of radioactive isotopes known as noble gases (such as Krypton and Xenon) over Pennsylvania and the surrounding states. However, there were no releases of “hard” isotopes and none of the core material is released from the containment structures. This was the death knoll of the nuclear industry in the United States.
However, starting in 1978 no new licenses were granted to build nuclear power plants in the USA. On April 26, 1986 a poorly designed and operated Russian RBMK reactor (essentially a pile of graphite and uranium designed to produce weapons grade plutonium first and power second) in Chernobyl in the Ukraine exploded into a graphite fire that burned for 9 days contaminating thousands of square miles with Cesium, Iodine and other harmful radioisotopes. Net loss of life through 2004 is totaled at 56 fatalities due to initial radiation sickness, burns and later cancers and leukemia.
However, the chances of a Chernobyl type reactor incident in the USA are virtually nil. Americans don’t use the graphite pile design except for very small, essentially zero power, applications in research. New designs have incorporated the lessons learned with TMI and other accidents and near accidents into a standard design nuclear power plant that will stream line the licensing process and make the resulting plant safer and easier to operate.
Last year (2006) saw the first new plant licensed since 1978. Currently there are 29 pending license requests before the NRC for new reactor plants in the USA. At last count, there are 103 nuclear plants producing 20 percent of the electrical energy in the USA, however most of these plants are getting old and unless their licenses are extended or renewed they will be forced to shutdown within the next decade unless they are replaced.
Another issue with the existing plants is that as they get older it is more difficult to operate them safely as the main components age and become embrittled from radiation and thermal damage.
Given the state of green house gas emissions and global warming we cannot switch this 20 percent loss of generation capability over to even the cleanest fossil fuel plants. In addition, the need for electrical energy is conservatively projected to increase by up to 50% by the year 2025, in spite of even the most hopeful conservation measures. All of this points to the fact that we must utilize nuclear power electrical generation until we find something better.
We must continue research into fusion, hydrogen fuel cells, wind, tidal force and solar power as well as more esoteric technology such as zero point energy. We must continue efforts to conserve energy and use renewable resources.
It is unlikely that cessation of the production of greenhouse gases would have an immediate effect on global warming. We have to plan for a future where the energy consumption will far exceed what we expect, just to provide the needed cooling, irrigation and life support to allow us to survive the consequences of excessive burning of fossil fuel.
