Energy Resources

One of the most pressing problems facing humankind today is the lack of long-term assurance of energy supplies. Most energy resources in use are finite; there are only so many coal, oil, and natural gas reserves that can be tapped-and those reserves are not bottomless in quantity. The limit is fast approaching, as technology demands higher and higher levels of what resources are available. One of the most controversial sources of alternative energy is that of nuclear power. The mere mention of the phrase brings immediate response, whether of the enthusiastic or the (more common) hostile variety.

The idea of nuclear power as a viable source of energy has been around for at least half a century now. Yet, general acceptance and usage of this potentially constant resource is no closer today than back when it was regarded merely as a science fiction device. Currently, the true value of nuclear power is difficult to ascertain; the public's perception of its value is clearer-"[t]he course of public events, especially in nuclear science,..has demonstrated over the last 10 to 15 years that scientists and engineers who speak on behalf of nuclear power ... are not trusted (5:7)."

As Ray notes, "[o]f all the civilian applications of nuclear science, none has generated more opposition than the production of electricity (5:123)"-although that has not always been the case. At first, nuclear energy was hailed as a futuristic panacea by groups as surprising as the Sierra Club and

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radioactive materials in smoke alarms, for sterilizing hospital supplies, in exit signs, in luminous dials, and for a multitude of other uses. In fact, 0[m]ore than 95 percent of all prescription drugs that have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration were initially tested with radioactive tracers (6:121)." The prevalence of radioactive materials in everyday use does not, however, preclude the possibility of a future, latent danger from these same commonly used materials or from other radioactive materials that have different characteristics but that may be mistakenly lumped together with anything labeled radioactive. One difference, for example, is that waste from nuclear energy plants is classified as "high-level" waste. The uranium pellets that power nuclear reactors are housed in long canisters called fuel rods that need to be replaced every three years. High-level wastes take much longer to decay than low-level wastes, necessitating different forms of disposal. In the United States, dumping in the ocean, the original method of choice, has been replaced by dumping at landfills around the country, although the IAEA has stated that "the amount of radioactivity deposited in the ocean is very small compared t

Category: Science - E