Nuclear Energy

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Nuclear Energy

Today, in most people’s minds, when the word nuclear energy is mentioned, they think about nuclear bombs, which are a threat to the world (Tulloch, James). However, nuclear energy has many uses, such as electricity production and propulsion of big ships and space rockets. America is the biggest nuclear energy producers, though it is costly, and in Japan, it is being used in industries for energy production, and can be deemed as a sustainable future source of energy. It involves high reactants that are believed to be a risk to the environment, and has been criticized by many environmentalists. However, while most Americans think nuclear energy is high risk, one of the most criticized forms of energy by the environmentalists to produce, and costly, a country like Japan sees the way that energy is produced is a great impact to humanity, as it results in how industry, technology and the economy are impacted.

In America, nuclear energy face some challenges that contribute to its critiques, some being the risk of terrorism, where many believe that continued nuclear energy development might lead to increased production of nuclear weapons that are highly destructive to the environment, and also a high risk to humanity, especially in America, which is a major target by terrorists. According to Pandit, Madhura, “Nuclear energy can be used for production and proliferation of nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons make use of fission, fusion or combination of both reactions for destructive purposes. They are a major threat to the world as they can cause a large-scale devastation.”

Nuclear energy can produce large amounts of energy from small amounts of the reactant, and this makes it quite a viable source, but however, the costs involved are also high, and the time it takes to make it economically viable. According to Pandit, Madhura, nuclear energy requires large capital, since it takes around 15-20 years to for a single plant to be fully developed, and also adds that nuclear reactors will only work as long as uranium exists, which could go extinct and result to a great loss. Many people feel that such costs are not worth it; hence, nuclear energy continues to face many critiques.

From environmentalists, nuclear energy is very harmful to the environment due to the radioactive emission that results from the waste products of the reaction. Te radioactive emissions pose a great danger to the environment as well as human life, and it requires that such waste be handled with professional care, away from the environment. According to Pandit, radioactive wastes reduces its effects over time after decaying, hence, it requires that they are stored until they decay, which may not be possible for a long period of time. Considering that the reactors are quite explosive, a possibility of explosion is high in case of an error, which could lead to grave problems. The disadvantages of nuclear energy lie in the safety, where a small era could lead to grave results, and its magnitude would be felt wider. Generally, those who appose nuclear development argue that despite its safety being there, if an error occurred, this could be a mass destruction.

While many countries do not consider nuclear energy as a future primary source of energy, Japan seems to be doing opposite as it continues to expand its nuclear energy production for domestic purpose as well as export purposes. Initially, Japan was depending on fossil fuel for energy production, which was imported mostly from the Middle East. The vulnerability of this commodity became critical in 1973, and at this time, there was a growing industry of nuclear energy in Japan, with five companies. This was one major reason that made Japan focus on nuclear energy for domestic purpose to reduce the dependency on oil, which was doubling in prize. “Nuclear power seems set to play an even bigger role in Japan’s future,” (World Nuclear Association). Japan plans to reduce emission of carbon gas emission by 54% by 2050, which would eventually lead to 90% reduction by 2100. It is deemed that nuclear energy will account for about 60% of primary energy in 2100, 10% will be from renewable, and 30%from fossil, which would mean that nuclear energy would account for 51% in reduction of the carbon emissions (World Nuclear Association).

Currently, nuclear energy in Japan produces around 30% of the electricity, and the government plans to increase this even more, to around 50% by 2030. Japan imports majority of its fuel, which is about 61%, and nuclear power is intended to reduce this further, and at the same time, Japan uses nuclear energy due to its low harm on the environment, except if there is an accident. By so doing, they will be observing the Kyoto protocol that was set for countries to reduce pollution. Nuclear energy does not produce harmful gases to the environment such as carbon gases and green house gases that result to global worming. As many countries campaign against nuclear energy, Japan continues to advocate for it since it influences well on their economy, and technology as well as industries that rely on nuclear energy.

Japanese energy policy has been driven by the need to reduce dependence on fuel imports. Recently, Japan aims to continue with nuclear energy production despite the accident at Fukushima Daiichi, where the earthquake left some radiation active elements from the nuclear plants free in the environment. To highlight the impact of nuclear energy on the economy, looking at the consequences of this accident illustrates well. According to Bangalore, “… dangers of the nuclear reactor meltdown at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant could raise fears about nuclear energy, push up oil prices, and lead to a disruption of the economy.” Japan is a major exporter of electronic devices, and such an accident would affect to the whole world especially the countries that import from them. This is because companies such as Hitachi and Toshiba, which are manufacturing and electronic producers, use nuclear energy for production and at the same time, have been exporting nuclear energy to other Asian countries, and has been an economic activity that will be affected by the accident. These companies have formed international alliances or taken over foreign nuclear companies to expand. Heavy manufacturing companies’ especially large forgings and Japanese steel works are world leaders in export of nuclear reactants. “According to the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) exports of electronics from Japan in 2010 accounted for over $133 billion,” (Bangalore.).

Nuclear power can be used as a source of energy for big ships, submarines and space rockets as well as airplanes. Since small amounts of reactants produce a lot of energy, the dependence of these locomotives on oil will be reduced, and considering they are the major carbon emitters, carbon in air would be reduced dramatically, and at the same time fossil fuels would be saved, hence, the environment would be more freed from pollution. It is important to note that nuclear energy is easily transportable, and quantities needed are quite few since a kilogram of nuclear energy could produce 20,000 times more energy than a kilogram of coal, making large amounts of energy portable (World Nuclear Association). Nuclear energy may be expensive during construction of a plant, and take long before it is commercially viable, yet, upon completion, nuclear energy is less costly to maintain than other fossil sources such as oil, which is rising all the time. This would have a direct impact on the economy and technology too, since being a reliable source of energy can guarantee innovation, and continue to be a great economic contributor in Japan just as oil has been to the Middle East countries. It also requires high technology in locomotive engines such as ships, to ensure that they can use the nuclear energy safely, without posing a great danger. Again, this would contribute to efficiency of transport technology, since nuclear power can produce much energy to propel bigger ships and planes without much pollution.

In terms of reliability, Japan aims to renew the uranium energy since it can be reprocessed many times; hence, more energy from less input is achieved. Considering the current condition of the global market, energy demands are increasing, while oil, the major source of energy is facing crisis, prizes are going up, and more energy sources need to be considered. Most people advocate for green energy sources such as solar and wind energy, which might not be so reliable. The next likely source is nuclear, and it might affect the well-being of humanity, as long as its harmful waste is properly disposed without any harm to the environment. People all over the whole world are affected by the harmful emissions of carbon from fossil fuels, which are not renewable, and many health problems come with it, such as asthma. Global worming is another harm caused by harmful gases emitted through fossil fuels, and there has been increased awareness on the environment. Since nuclear energy does not emit such gases, its reliability is good, and Japan has proved this since it has the highest reliance on nuclear energy compared to many of the countries already using it.

Nuclear energy may have a devastating harm on humanity, like in the example of Chernobyl, where the nuclear plant exploded, killing many people and having a long-term effect on a big region. This makes it very controversial, and at most times, people overlook the advantages, and criticize it on such basis of danger. For instance, comparing water transport and vehicle transport, if a ship sinks, it becomes a big tragedy, while a car being involved in an accident is given less attention. The same applies to nuclear power compared to fossil fuel. Nuclear energy would have a better effect on the future of the economy of the world since uranium is readily available, and pollution will be minimized while at the same time it will remain reliable.

Work cited:

Bangalore. Japan events’ direct impact on Infosys minimal: CEO. thehindubusinessline.com, 18 March. Web. 9 May 2011.

Pandit, Madhura. Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy. buzzle.com, 2011. Web. 9 May 2011.

Tulloch, James. The Nuclear Environmentalist. allianz.com, 18 December 2009. Web. 9 May 2011.

World Nuclear Association. Nuclear Power in Japan. world-nuclear.org April 2011. Web. 9 May 2011.