6 Ways Nuclear Energy Is Like The Love Of Your Life
Happy Valentine’s Day! Whether you are spending this holiday with a special someone or with the remote and the Hallmark channel, aren’t we all daydreaming about our soulmate today? When you think of your perfect match, are they trustworthy? Rich? Intelligent? Are they environmentally conscious and making smart investments? Well, the love of your life might not be the person across from you at the DMV, but rather a nuclear reactor. Here are six characteristics that a nuclear reactor and the partner of your dreams may have in common.
1. Safe
Regardless if it’s the person of your dreams or an energy source, they need to make you feel safe. Safe can mean a lot of things, but most importantly that they will cause you no harm and will also make sure nothing bad happens to you.
The safety of nuclear energy can be determined in a couple of ways- but here we will break it down between the risk of radiation exposure and death. Calculating risk is inherent in determining which choice is the best option under certain circumstances. For nuclear energy, radiation and death risk are both quantitatively very low, especially when compared to alternative energy sources.
Radiation emission occurs everywhere in our daily lives and always has. It is emitted from the buildings you stand-in, the ground you walk on, and even the food you eat. However, contrary to popular belief, the use of nuclear energy does not expose the public to significant radiation levels. This perception of nuclear energy radiation emission is based on outdated measures of radiation risk, and thus overestimates the dangers associated with nuclear energy.
It is also important to evaluate safety against other forms of energy production. Nuclear energy is responsible for less than 1 deaths per TWH of energy, which is a mere fraction of the 161 deaths per TWH of energy from coal and 36 from oil. In comparison, nuclear energy is one of the safest forms of energy.
2. Reliable
If you are someone who wants their partner to be there when they say they are going to be there and be dependable in a time of need, nuclear energy might be your soulmate. According to the United States Department of Energy, nuclear energy remains the most reliable energy source for a couple of reasons.
First, nuclear energy plants require less maintenance. While coal and gas need routine maintenance and refueling, nuclear energy only needs to refuel every 18–24 months which allows plants to produce more energy with less downtime. Second, when faced with blackouts and grid issues as a result of our changing climate, nuclear energy has the capacity to keep running and supplying power to those who need it. And third, nuclear energy has the highest energy capacity of any other energy source. Energy capacity is essentially how often a source produces energy. In 2020, nuclear energy had an energy capacity of 93%, which basically means that it produced clean energy 93% of the time. This is far more reliable than alternative sources such as natural gas at 56.8%, and coal at 47.5%.
3. Clean
Hygiene can tell us a lot about a person, especially how well they take care of themselves and their environment. Of the energy sources and where they rank in terms of cleanliness, nuclear energy is at the top.
Nuclear energy produces carbon-free energy, contributing to cleaner air. When used in place of fossil fuels, nuclear prevents hundreds of thousands of toxins and pollutants from being released into the atmosphere. Also, “nuclear energy produces more electricity on less land than any other clean-air source”. Nuclear energy’s compact design and production capacity reduce the amount of land and resources needed to produce clean energy- thus contributing to the preservation of natural resources.
Nuclear waste is one of the most common reasons people do not support nuclear energy, and these arguments are often the result of misconceptions about the reality of waste. In reality, nuclear energy produces very little waste, and it is always safely stored. If we were to gather all of the nuclear waste for the last 60 years, it would fit on a football field less than 10 meters high. How is this possible? Nuclear energy is extremely dense. In comparison to other energy sources, one uranium pellet is the equivalent of 120 gallons of natural gas and 1 ton of coal. While this small amount of waste is always safely stored in casks that restrict radiation leakage, it can also be recycled.
4. Smart
They don’t have to be Albert Einstein- but a little brain goes a long way! Intelligence isn’t just being good with fancy math (however if that was the case nuclear energy would still be a good choice), but also being curious and striving for new knowledge. This is nuclear energy in a nutshell.
Nuclear energy science is always evolving and looking for ways to improve efficiency, ensure safety, and innovate new technologies to produce clean energy with the smallest footprint. A good example of this is the development of advanced small modular reactors (SMRs). Though compact in size, advanced SMRs provide serious energy with the advantages of “lower initial capital investment, greater scalability, and siting flexibility for locations unable to accommodate more traditional larger reactors”. This design and capacity is the result of the bright and innovative minds in the nuclear energy industry that are always learning.
5. Makes Good Money
Now, money isn’t everything… but it also doesn’t hurt. While important attributes of a suitable partner have more to do with character and personality, there are certainly some benefits that come with financial stability.
According to a report published by Stanford University, nuclear energy provides significant economic benefits at the local, state, and national levels. Specifically, “ every dollar spent by the average unit results in the creation of $1.04 in the local community, $1.18 in the state economy, and $1.87 in the U.S. economy” and “the average nuclear plant pays about $16 million in state and local taxes annually”. These tax dollars benefit schools, roads, and other state and local infrastructure.
Nuclear energy is not just financially beneficial through taxation, but also through employment. Beyond employing an average of over 200 employees, oftentimes more, “nuclear worker salaries are 50 percent higher on average than those of other electricity generation sources”. These high-paying jobs are also sustainable due to the longevity of nuclear plants and continuous use.
6. Is Environmentally Responsible
In today’s climate, quite literally, it is important that people are aware of the issues that affect themselves and others, and more importantly, actively look to contribute to solutions. When it comes to climate change, arguably the biggest issue affecting our planet, nuclear energy can be the solution.
Providing carbon-free energy, as described above, nuclear energy is a critical tool in the fight against climate change. By making the switch from fossil fuels to nuclear energy alternatives, “nuclear energy currently contributes to CO2 emissions reductions from the power sector of about 1.3 to 2.6 gigatons each year, assuming it replaces either gas- or coal-fired generation”. Is there anything more attractive than a partner that cares about the environment and future generations?
People put a lot of time and thought into what they want their ideal partner to be like, and this should be no different for their ideal energy source. Just like how settling for a person who does not share your values and meet your standards comes with consequences, choosing the wrong energy does too. Exacerbating climate change, increased health risk, and unreliable energy are just a few of these residual effects. So, if you wouldn’t sacrifice any of these characteristics when choosing a partner- why should you for your energy source?
