Is Nuclear Energy Part of the Solution?
For decades there has been an ongoing debate as to whether nuclear energy is a viable alternative to other forms of energy. With the advent of nuclear power plants came concerns – some justifiable – about accidents and other issues that could harm people and the environment, especially those near the power plants themselves.
Then there were accidents in places around the globe – including the United States – and the fear that came along with the accidents, as well as the myths that were perpetrated as a result.
As our fuel and energy sources have waxed and waned over the years the debate about nuclear power has continued. With the fuel crisis in full bore, we are hearing more and more about alternative forms of energy these days.
Natural gas has been touted as one form of energy that can be used to replace oil that is so scarce and so expensive. The problem with that is that the United States gathers much of its natural gas from Canada, and Canada has put the U.S. on notice that there is little natural gas that they can spare due to having to tap into their own reserves to keep their industries moving forward. In addition,
there have also been huge price hikes in the cost of natural gas, making it ineffective to use in many businesses.
Natural gas has been used to replace electricity but this drove the prices up and has caused over a million jobs to be cut in order to keep up. The cost of natural gas has risen 93% just since last August. In addition, natural gas is a finite resource. North America – particularly the United States – has not been increasing its natural gas production, and with Canada having said that it cannot spare much, if any, of its natural gas, the United States needs to come up with a new commodity – fast.
This is where nuclear energy may or may not come in. Researchers suggest that nuclear energy would be a good source of energy for electricity, while using other types of energy for other needs. There is debate about how this would work and whether this would work.
Regardless of what the result may be, it is clear that we need to look into all types of energy – including nuclear energy – in trying to address and solve the fuel and energy crisis before it is too late.