That ignition spread to the radioactive rods and caused large volumes of radioactive smoke to be released into the atmosphere.
7. What is the cause of the Japan incident?
In Japan, a combination of natural disasters was responsible: a major earthquake triggered a Tsunami that interrupted the electric power supply to the plant. Because the plant's emergency backup generator was not built on high ground, the flood waters also wiped it out. Without electrical power, the plant could not maintain the water supply necessary to cool the control rods or the spent control rods stored in pools in the reactor and they all ignited when they became exposed to the air.
8. What are the potential or actual effects to humans and the environment?
The immediate consequences include radiation poisoning of anybody exposed to the radioactive material released into the air and to the radioactive environment at the plant. The longer-term effects include radioactive contamination through...
Another important argument against nuclear energy is that it leaves behind radioactive waste, as evidenced above as well. Furthermore, if this waste is not properly disposed of, it can cause irrevocable damage. According to the Discovery Curiosity project, "Nuclear waste must be sealed underground in protected chambers. [A] former salt mine in Remlingen, Germany, held nuclear waste for decades before structural concerns forced the government to relocate the deadly substances."
This can merely be helpful on local level but not at all on the global level. Radioactive materials in low quantities are present in fossil fuels, chiefly in coal and using them in heavy amounts can have more hazardous effects on the environment causing radioactive contamination globally. This is a much more pressing concern when compared to the radioactive contamination within a nuclear power station as the noxious waste in
Nuclear Power as a Promising Alternative Fuel for the Future The Nuclear Dilemma (World Nuclear Association) There are a plethora of reasons in which alternative fuels are becoming increasingly desirable as potential power source for everyday consumption in the future. One such reason is that fossil fuels are non-renewable resources that will eventually be exhausted in regards to the feasibility of extracting these resources. It is not necessarily that non-renewable resources will
Nuclear Power Plant Safety Engineering countermeasures for radioactive material release In order to prevent the release of radioactive material into the environment, nuclear power plants are designed to be resistant to a number of natural destructive forces, such as hurricanes, tornados, and earthquakes (U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission [U.S. NRC], 2011a). Within the plant, critical systems are designed to limit and control radioactive material release should they fail. These design considerations include the
Black (2005) notes that within the next decade Great Britain will be unable to meet the energy needs of its population unless nuclear power becomes part of the equation. A dependence on fossil fuel sources for electricity is no longer viable, given the limited supply of fossil fuel, the volatile market for it, and the environmental concerns associated with creating and burning fossil fuels. Nuclear power is touted as
Decreased Usage of Nuclear Energy: Qualitative-Content Analysis ADissertation Presentedusing the Qualitative Content-Analysis inPartial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor ofManagement in Environmental and Social Sustainability Komi Emmanuel Fiagbe Gbedegan Caroline WesterhofPH-D Chair Dr. Daphne DeporresPH-D Committee Member Dr. Steven Munkeby, PH-D Committee Member Date Approved Komi Emmanuel Fiagbe Gbedegan, 2016 A qualitative content analysis will be conducted to explore the phenomenon of decreased usage of nuclear energy at a time when global climate change indicates the
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