Nuclear Waste Disposal At Yucca Mountain: Right Or Wrong? Essay

Nuclear energy is the world's largest source of emission-free energy. Nuclear power plants produce no controlled air pollutants, such as sulfur and particulates, or greenhouse gases. "Renewables" like solar, wind and biomass can help. But only nuclear power offers clean, environmentally friendly energy on a massive scale. The use of nuclear energy in place of other energy sources helps to keep the air clean, preserve the Earth's climate, avoid ground-level ozone formation and prevent acid rain. “Currently, there are 103 commercial nuclear power plants producing electricity in the United States, located at 64 sites in 31 states. They are, on average, 24 years old, and

Nuclear waste is a radioactive waste that is dangerous, and a fair percentage of people would agree on this topic. However, is it really dangerous or is it just harmful to an extent? In society, many debates are held over trying to prove to the world that this substance is harmful. In the essay, “Nuclear Waste,” Muller states clearly that he sides with the anti-nuke of the debate and how he pinpoints the facts of nuclear waste with great persuasion. Yet, it is uncertain whether Muller clearly has a good argument and/or answers the questions that many people linger to know.

Chapter thirteen of the textbook, Biosecurity and Bioterrorism Containing and Preventing Biological Threats, by Jeffrey R. Ryan, examines a wide range of techniques, set up, to help the United States, or U.S., in becoming prepared for a potential biological terrorist attack. A portion of the techniques mentioned throughout chapter thirteen were early warning detection systems. These systems are known as the Autonomous Detection system, and the Biohazard Detection System (Ryan, 327-329). Although both these detection systems have their benefits, the one that has conveyed more consideration over the years is the Biohazard Detection

Highly radioactive waste disposal has become one of the most controversial aspects of nuclear technology. As the amount of spent nuclear fuel from commercial nuclear reactors and high-level radioactive waste from defense-related processing plants has continued to mount, the issue has become increasingly contentious and politicized.2 The politicization of this issue is especially evident in the site selection process of a permanent national repository for the disposal of highly radioactive waste.

The decision in the NWPAA to pick Yucca Mountain without any real selection process created one of the biggest altercations between groups and organizations interested in this policy. By picking a site in Nevada, a state with no nuclear reactors and a strong majority opinion against the construction of a repository, Congress pitted the entire state against the federal government and other states. Nevada residents are so opposed to the completion of the facility, polled at 76% in 2007 (Las Vegas Review-Journal), that it has become a requirement of anyone hoping to hold federal office in the state to feel the same sentiment. Because of this governors, senators, and representatives from Nevada all view the permanent closing of Yucca as a priority and adamantly oppose motions that would see the facility operational. Congressmen from Nevada try

All the changes above seem to have a positive effect on the community and seems to be no complaints. However, one recent change in the community has sparked major controversy. The Ranger Uranium Mine is in Kakadu National Park and commenced operation in 1980. The Indigenous people living in the area (who hadn't had much intrusion from "white" culture) reluctantly allowed the government to start mining on their sacred lands. The uranium that is mined there is sold internationally which benefits Australia's economy immensely.

The word “Nuclear” instills fear in the general American public’s mind. The simple utter of said word brings memories of huge mushrooms clouds and destruction, or the thought of communism and 50 years of an uncertain, yet terrifying Cold War. Whatever it may be the fact of the matter is that Americans are extremely afraid of anything that has the word Nuclear in it. In the article “Nuclear Waste” published in 2008 by physics professor, and winner of the MacArthur Fellowship award, Richard Muller claims that storing nuclear waste under the Nevada Yucca Mountains can prove to be a safe and efficient way to solve the problem of nuclear waste disposal. Muller supports his argument by first providing the reader with the anti-nuke

Nuclear waste should be stored in Texas because Texas has a big area where it is enough space to store in nuclear waste because it’s better storing it in Texas than in Yucca Mountain because Yucca mountain

Sean Whaley wrote, “State to Keep Battling Yucca” for Las Vegas Review-Journal. Here we go again, Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage controversy. The most irritating part of this debate brought up within this article is that the politicians fail to tell the whole truth. As I once informed Senator Reid, “When it come to nuclear waste it is easier to scare people to vote for you than telling the truth and the advantages for Nevada.” To sum up, the article; Nevada will fight all efforts to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. According to the article Nevada will spend more than $7.5 million with a Virgina legal firm Egan and Associates. Hiring an out of state law firm is also irritating on the back of the largest tax increase passed by State

The morning of April 26, 1986 started just like all other mornings in Chernobyl, with just one exception, there was an emergency systems test underway at the near-by nuclear power station. This test was unauthorized, none the less, it was designed to ensure cooling water for the reactor could still be controlled with little or no power to the station. The cold war was in full swing, and Russia was still poised to go to war with the United States at any moment. It was due to this “distrust” that the test was being run that morning. The head nuclear scientist on shift, Anatoli Dyatlov, was from the “old school” and thought that he alone could control the whole reactor process, and he also thought he knew more

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) has been safely storing and disposing radioactive wastes since 1979. The WIPP is located in Carlsbad, New Mexico and could be potentially harmful to future populations. The nuclear waste is held approximately 2,157ft below the Earth’s surface, and within the layers of the Salado Formation. If the WIPP does form into a nuclear and radioactive disposal plant, then we will need to warn future populations about the hazardous waste that will remain in New Mexico for the next ten thousand years. The main goal of creating a solution for this problem would be to protecting the future population of New Mexico and the United States.

The United States has always been known as the home of the brave and land of the free. We tend to think our country is dominant, advanced, and stable; we also like to overshadow our problems with our glorious recognition as almost the entire world has seen our patriotism in some sense. “Every year one American produces over 3,285 pounds of hazardous waste”; the total population in the United States is around 300,000,000. In other words, if we calculate the number of Americans living in the United States and the number of pounds each American produces, the total of hazardous waste is about 925,500,000,000. That is 115 times more waste than the entire population on Earth; China and India’s population exceeds 1,000,000,000. Just imagine how much waste is being produced on a global scale. This hazardous waste is not only destroying species but also their habitats, which are more important because they provide intrinsic value to our community as a whole. Together, we must preserve and conserve Earth’s natural ecological system and its citizens

“A tiny speck of plutonium-239, as little as three millionths of a gram, can cause lung cancer. One pound of plutonium-239 contains enough specks to kill nine billion people instantly” (Pringle 26). Plutonium-239 is a human-made element, also known as the most dangerous substance on earth. As a by-product of uranium fission, plutonium-239 is created by generating electricity from nuclear sources. Contrary to popular belief, nuclear energy is hazardous and threatening to health. The use of nuclear energy should be banned as evidenced by the number of accidents, health effects, and global impact.

Nuclear power was the world’s fastest growing form of energy in the 1990’s. However, presently it is the second slowest growing worldwide. Considering that nuclear power accounts for eleven percent of the world’s energy supply, one must ask what happened [Nuclear Power]. Why is it that the growth of nuclear power has almost completely stalled? The simple answer is that after meltdowns such as Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, many people are afraid of nuclear power plants, which causes great opposition to the expansion of the industry. Unfortunately, most people are not well informed about nuclear energy; many do not take the time to view its positives and negatives.

Hazardous waste and its proper disposal have become a major sociological problem today due to its capability of contaminating the area in which we live and its potential to be lethal to all living things. In order for the United States and the rest of the world to save itself from a potentially life threatening problem they must fix the causes which lead to the improper disposal of hazardous wastes and like materials. Some reasons that hazardous waste has become a problem in the United States today is due to the breakdown in enforcing laws for the proper disposal of such wastes, a lack of initiative on big companies behalf to spend money on proper disposal, and the ease of disposing of such wastes illegally.