What Role could/ will nuclear power play in North America? Explain the advantages and disadvantages of viable energy alternatives? What Role could/ will nuclear power play in North America?

Explain the advantages and disadvantages of viable energy alternatives? Non-Renewables Oil- large reserves yet high demand, reserve decreasing, main contributor to climate change Coal- Highly available in developing China and developed USA, very cheap yet very polluting, tech such as CCS to reduce CO2 emissions Gas- the least polluting of all fossil fuels, most used energy source in the UK, quite high reserves left and demand isn’t that high Nuclear- Controversial form of energy as it has been criticized for explosions, radiation however it is a carbon free source and is highly energy efficient

Explain the advantages & disadvantages of viable energy alternatives? Renewables Solar- Very good potential as solar energy is available around the world however the best locations would be the tropics as the intensity of sunlight is at its highest here. Solar panels require rare materials to produce. Wind- Best sources are coasts and oceans however very hard to maintain and very expensive to build, each wind turbine doesn’t produce that much energy, create an eye-sore. Geothermal- Very focused around highly tectonically active areas such as Iceland, fault lines, the poles. These places usually have low populations, also very expensive to build. Reliable alternative energy source. Hydroelectric- China. Brazil, USA and Canada account for almost half of global production. Very reliant on climate change as requires the presence of a river flow in a channel in order to produce energy. Biofuels- Some biofuels actually use up more energy to be produced than what they actually produce when used, biofuels have been linked to global food shortages and famine however in the USA farmers are subsidised if they grow crops for the use of biofuels rather than for food.

Evaluation of non-renewables Highly polluting, coal doesn’t only produce CO2 it produces sulphur dioxide of which contributes to acid rain Oil is in increasing decline due to increasing demand from developed nations. Gas is the main source of energy in the UK, gas doesn’t have many resources left so this could be a crisis. Nuclear is highly radioactive and can cause cancer and explosions. Fossil fuels are very easy to extract as the technology to do this already exist and doesn’t need producing. Coal is fairly cheap and this is why China uses this as a main energy source.

Evaluation of renewables Very expensive to produce the technology needed, requires high levels of fossil fuels. Not always reliable for example solar and wind Not all sources are available to everybody, each source requires certain climates to be used. Carbon free Technology used to produce energy has short life. Can often save the investor a lot of money on electricity bills.

What Role Could/Will Nuclear Power Play in North America? Reasons for Nuclear Power Nuclear operates in all weather conditions Resources available from politically stable countries in the eyes of the consumer Carbon Free Reliable source of energy Energy efficient USA has 104 reactors the most in the world so has very high production

What Role Could/Will Nuclear Power Play in North America? Reasons against Nuclear Power Very dangerous waste materials produced of which if not handled appropriately can cause many problems. Waste must be buried and sealed as it takes thousands of years to decompose. Power plants are hugely expensive to produce and if anything does go wrong a catastrophe could occur. Once a power station reaches the end of its working life it needs to be rebuild of which is expensive meaning that countries build the plants over a period of years so that all do not reach their working life at the same time.

What Role Could/Will Nuclear Power Play in North America? Conclusion Nuclear power has a very good future ahead of it in the USA but is reliant on the safety of the plants and incidents due to this factor. Areas need to be found of where nuclear waste can be buried if nuclear power is to grow. Nuclear power available from friendly countries such as Canada and Australia, Canada supplies uranium without a tax fee as it is part of NAFTA.