Nuclear Energy:  Boon or  Bane
                     NUCLEAR ENERGY – BOON OR BANE?
INTRODUCTI
ON
Nuclear power is a clean and efficient 
way of boiling water to make steam, 
which turns turbines to produce 
electricity. 
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
NUCLEAR 
POWER 
PLANTS 
Nuclear power plants use low-
enriched uranium fuel to produce 
electricity through a process called 
fission the splitting of uranium atoms 
in a nuclear reactor. 
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
HOW IT WORKS?
Uranium fuel consists of small, hard 
ceramic pellets that are packaged into 
long, vertical tubes. Bundles of this 
fuel are inserted into the reactor.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
HOW IT WORKS 
CONT.
 Each uranium fuel pellet provides up 
to five years of heat for power 
generation. And because uranium is 
one of the world’s most abundant 
metals, it can provide fuel for the 
world’s commercial nuclear plants for 
generations to come.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
BENEFITS
Nuclear power offers many benefits 
for the environment as well. Power 
plants don’t burn any materials so 
they produce no combustion by-
products.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
CLIMATE 
CHANGE
 Additionally, because they don’t 
produce greenhouse gases, nuclear 
plants help protect air quality and 
mitigate climate change.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
GENERATE 
LARGE-SCALE OF 
ELECTRICITY
When it comes to efficiency and 
reliability, no other electricity source 
can match nuclear. 
Nuclear power plants can continuously 
generate large-scale, around-the-clock 
electricity for many months at a time, 
without interruption.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
ELECTRICITY 
GENERATION 
WORLD WIDE
Nuclear energy supplies about 10 
percent of the world's electricity and 
approximately 20 percent of the 
energy in the United States. 
A total of 30 countries worldwide are 
operating 440 nuclear reactors for 
electricity generation.
Source: nuclear.gepower.com
SAFETY 
MEASURES
The lessons learned from disaster 
included the need to 
• Adopt risk-informed regulation
• Strengthen management systems so 
that decisions made in the event of a 
severe accident are based on safety 
and not cost or political repercussions
• Periodically assess new information 
on risks posed by natural hazards such 
as earthquakes and associated 
tsunamis
• Take steps to mitigate the possible 
consequences of a station blackout.
Source: britannica.com
RADIOACTIVE-
WASTE 
DISPOSAL
Spent nuclear reactor fuel and the 
waste stream generated by fuel 
reprocessing contain radioactive 
materials and must be conditioned for 
permanent disposal.
Source: britannica.com