Accounting for the mean values of emissions associated with each part of the nuclear life cycle,the value for the average nuclear power plant is at the most 66 g CO2e/kWh. This takes into account factors indirectly attributable to nuclear plant construction, operation, uranium mining and milling, and plant decommissioning. Nuclear power barely emits any greenhouse gasses directly. Electricity generation emits 9,500 million tons of CO2 annually and thanks to the small number of nuclear power plants in the world, providing 13% of the worlds electricity, carbon emissions were cut by 2 billion tons per year.
On April 13 2014 United Nations scientists said as part of a comprehensive study on global warming that to meet the 2-degree goal, annual spending on fossil fuel plants must drop by $30 billion a year by 2030, the panel said. Annual expenditure on renewables, nuclear, and carbon capture and storage must rise by $147 billion, and spending on energy efficiency measures for transportation, buildings and industry needs to increase by $336 billion, it said.
Even if your a climate change skeptic, coal still produces more toxic substances, radiation and pollutants into the environment that cause sickness and death than nuclear power plants. In one year a 1,000-MWe reactor will generate 7.9 billion KWh of electricity when working at 90% capacity (which is the average capacity for nuclear power plants in the world). That's enough to supply electricity for 740,000 households. If this electricity was generated from other sources it would require:
The co-author of the study, Pushker Kharecha, stated:
"If the role of nuclear power declines significantly in the next 20-30 years the International Energy Agency predicts that achieving the major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions that are required to mitigate climate change would require "heroic achievements" in the use of emerging low-carbon technologies, which have yet to be proven."
Dr James Hansen of NASA, who has consistently urged a radical decarbonisation of global energy supplies as our last shot at averting catastrophic climate change, strongly supports renewables and he adds: “It is not feasible in the foreseeable future to phase out coal unless nuclear power is included in the energy mix.”
Coal ash contains arsenic, mercury, lead, and over a dozen other heavy metals, many of them toxic. The Environment Protection Agency ignores fossil fuel waste and allows it to go unregulated. From the EPA website:
"Fossil fuel combustion (FFC) wastes are the wastes produced from the burning of fossil fuels (i.e., coal, oil, natural gas). This includes all ash, slag, and particulates removed from flue gas. FFC wastes are categorized by EPA as a "special waste" and have been exempted from federal hazardous waste regulations under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)."
The table below shows the CO2 emissions from each process in the nuclear power life cycle.
On April 13 2014 United Nations scientists said as part of a comprehensive study on global warming that to meet the 2-degree goal, annual spending on fossil fuel plants must drop by $30 billion a year by 2030, the panel said. Annual expenditure on renewables, nuclear, and carbon capture and storage must rise by $147 billion, and spending on energy efficiency measures for transportation, buildings and industry needs to increase by $336 billion, it said.
Even if your a climate change skeptic, coal still produces more toxic substances, radiation and pollutants into the environment that cause sickness and death than nuclear power plants. In one year a 1,000-MWe reactor will generate 7.9 billion KWh of electricity when working at 90% capacity (which is the average capacity for nuclear power plants in the world). That's enough to supply electricity for 740,000 households. If this electricity was generated from other sources it would require:
- Oil: 13.7 million barrels of oil (1 barrel yields 576 KWh)
- Coal: 3.4 million short tons (1 ton yields 2,297 KWh)
- Natural Gas: 65.8 billion cubic feet (100 cubic feet yields 12 KWh)
The co-author of the study, Pushker Kharecha, stated:
"If the role of nuclear power declines significantly in the next 20-30 years the International Energy Agency predicts that achieving the major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions that are required to mitigate climate change would require "heroic achievements" in the use of emerging low-carbon technologies, which have yet to be proven."
Dr James Hansen of NASA, who has consistently urged a radical decarbonisation of global energy supplies as our last shot at averting catastrophic climate change, strongly supports renewables and he adds: “It is not feasible in the foreseeable future to phase out coal unless nuclear power is included in the energy mix.”
Coal ash contains arsenic, mercury, lead, and over a dozen other heavy metals, many of them toxic. The Environment Protection Agency ignores fossil fuel waste and allows it to go unregulated. From the EPA website:
"Fossil fuel combustion (FFC) wastes are the wastes produced from the burning of fossil fuels (i.e., coal, oil, natural gas). This includes all ash, slag, and particulates removed from flue gas. FFC wastes are categorized by EPA as a "special waste" and have been exempted from federal hazardous waste regulations under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)."
The table below shows the CO2 emissions from each process in the nuclear power life cycle.
gCO2e/kWh
|
Front End
|
Construction
|
Operation
|
Back End
|
Decommission
|
Total
|
Minimum
|
0.58
|
0.27
|
0.1
|
0.4
|
0.01
|
1.36
|
Maximum
|
118
|
35
|
40
|
40.75
|
54.5
|
288.25
|
Mean
|
25.09
|
8.2
|
11.58
|
9.2
|
12.01
|
66.08
|
N
|
17
|
19
|
9
|
15
|
13
|
From: http://www.nirs.org/climate/background/sovacool_nuclear_ghg.pdf
Front end includes mining and milling, conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication and transportation. Construction includes all materials and energy inputs for building the facility. Operation includes energy needed for maintenance, cooling and fuel cycles, backup generators and during outages and shutdowns. Back end includes fuel processing,
conditioning, reprocessing, interim and permanent storage. Decommissioning includes deconstruction of the facility and land reclamation.
France generates 80% of its electricity using nuclear power and has one of the lowest greenhouse gas emissions per capita in Europe as well as cheapest electricity. Since introducing nuclear power in France the air pollution has been reduced fivefold. Sweden relies on mostly nuclear and hydroelectric power for their electricity and emits 6 tonnes of CO2 per capita. Denmark which is leading the way with wind technology (20% wind) has the highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita and highest electricity costs in Europe. Denmark emits 11 tonnes of carbon per capita because of a still large reliance on fossil fuels. Environmentalist have been so against technology and nuclear power they lost sight of fossil fuel growth such as coal, oil and gas that emitt enormous amounts of greenhouse gasses. Finland is in a similar situation but with 28% of its energy being generated from nuclear power but still emitting 10.6 tonnes of CO2 per capita. According to the U.S. Geological Survey Finland is the largest user of peat energy which has the worst global warming emissions in the world and is considered worse than the lowest grade of coal.
Since the March 2011 nuclear shutdown, Germany’s power imports from Poland increased by 500 megawatts a day. Poland hopes Germany will continue this trend, which is boosting its power sector and its coal industry. Poland generates 90% of its electricity using coal and the Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, said that Germany’s decision will put coal power back on the agenda. I can't believe people are seeing Germany as a shining example for clean energy. Germany is building 12 new coal-burning plants along with more natural gas plants which is trading a potential risk for a real one. The shuttering of 8 of Germany's 17 reactors has led to
an increase in carbon dioxide emissions of 25 million tons annually in
Europe, said Laszlo Varro of the International Energy Agency, a European
intergovernmental organization. It is estimated that because of the nuclear shutdowns Germany will
further increase their CO2 emissions by 40 million tonnes per year. Germany has also imported around 2 gigawatts of electricity from nuclear powered France since its plant shutdown.
Because the potential for blackouts is growing as a result of the shut-down of nuclear power plants, the German Federal Network Agency is suggesting to suspend legal emission limits for plants. Old coal and gas power stations, which are due for shut down due to their high environmental impact, should continue to operate.
Germany produced 20% of its electricity from renewable energy in 2011. Of this 20%, 9% was produced by 5GW of biofuels and 4GW of hydro with capacity factors of 70% and 50% respectively. The remaining 11% was produced by 29GW of wind and 25GW of solar with capacity factors of just 20% and 10% respectively. The US$250 billion spent by Germany on renewables could have constructed 50GW of nuclear power generation which with a capacity factor of 80% could potentially produce 350 TWh of carbon free electricity or 60% of Germany’s annual requirement of 620TWh and reduced per capita emissions to 6 tonnes the same as France.
Yoriko Kawaguchi, the former Japanese Foreign and Environment Minister, says "Japan is an island nation with scant natural resources and cannot follow Germany, which has decided to shut down all of its nuclear power plants. We are not like Germany where you can import energy from France where electricity is produced using nuclear power."
Because the potential for blackouts is growing as a result of the shut-down of nuclear power plants, the German Federal Network Agency is suggesting to suspend legal emission limits for plants. Old coal and gas power stations, which are due for shut down due to their high environmental impact, should continue to operate.
Germany produced 20% of its electricity from renewable energy in 2011. Of this 20%, 9% was produced by 5GW of biofuels and 4GW of hydro with capacity factors of 70% and 50% respectively. The remaining 11% was produced by 29GW of wind and 25GW of solar with capacity factors of just 20% and 10% respectively. The US$250 billion spent by Germany on renewables could have constructed 50GW of nuclear power generation which with a capacity factor of 80% could potentially produce 350 TWh of carbon free electricity or 60% of Germany’s annual requirement of 620TWh and reduced per capita emissions to 6 tonnes the same as France.
Yoriko Kawaguchi, the former Japanese Foreign and Environment Minister, says "Japan is an island nation with scant natural resources and cannot follow Germany, which has decided to shut down all of its nuclear power plants. We are not like Germany where you can import energy from France where electricity is produced using nuclear power."
The table below shows the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by each energy source.
Technology
|
Capacity
|
Configuration
|
Fuel Estimate(gCO2e/kWh)
|
Wind
|
2.5MW
|
Offshore
|
9
|
Wind
|
1.5MW
|
Onshore
|
10
|
Hydro Electric
|
3.1MW
|
Reservoir
|
10
|
Biogas
|
Anaerobic Digestion
|
11
| |
Hydro Electric
|
300 kW
|
Run Off River
|
13
|
Solar Thermal
|
80MW
|
Parabolic
|
13
|
Biomass Forrest
|
Wood with Hard Coal
|
14
| |
Biomass Forrest
|
Wood Steam Turbine
|
22
| |
Biomass
|
Short Rotation Forestry with Hard Coal
|
23
| |
Biomass
|
Forest Wood reciprocating Engine
|
27
| |
Biomass
|
Forest Wood Steam Turbine
|
31
| |
Solar
|
PV Polycrystalline Silicone
|
32
| |
Biomass
|
Short Rotation Forestry Steam Turbine
|
35
| |
Geothermal
|
80MW
|
Hot Dry Rock
|
38
|
Biomass
|
Short Rotation Forestry Reciprocating Engine
|
41
| |
Nuclear
|
Various Reactor Types
|
66
| |
Natural Gas
|
Various Combined Cycle Turbines
|
443
| |
Fuel Cell
|
Hydrogen from Gas Reforming
|
664
| |
Diesel
|
Various Generator & Turbine Types
|
778
| |
Heavy Oil
|
Various Generator & Turbine Types
|
778
| |
Coal
|
Various Generator Types with Scrubbing
|
960
| |
Coal
|
Various Generator Types without Scrubbing
|
1050
|
Even when taking into account "full life-cycle emissions" including mining of uranium, shipping fuel, constructing plants and managing waste, nuclear's carbon-dioxide discharges are comparable to the full life-cycle emissions of wind, hydropower and solar power.
