Nuclear Power: A Problem, or an Answer?
Let’s explore the science, risks, and benefits of nuclear power. About 10% of U.S. power is generated by 96 operating nuclear reactors in 28 states. And the incentives for building more nuclear power facilities are increasing. However, it is important to gather all the evidence on both the risks and the possibilities of nuclear power before advocating for or against its expansion as a viable energy source.
We may feel trepidation when we hear the word nuclear, and justifiably so. History shows the catastrophic effects of nuclear bombs and warfare, not only from the immediate destruction at an explosion site, but also from persistent radiation years after an explosion. Above-ground nuclear explosive testing in the 1950s led to health issues and cancer clusters in communities downwind of the Nevada testing site. We remember the nuclear reactor meltdowns at Chernobyl and Fukushima that resulted in deaths, illnesses, and mass displacement. But nuclear science also encompasses peaceful and safe uses of nuclear power.
How do nuclear power plants work?
Nuclear power plants work much like traditional power stations, using heat and steam to generate electricity. Refined uranium ore pellets are loaded into a nuclear reactor, where they are introduced to extra neutrons. These neutrons cause the uranium atoms to split into smaller fragments; this process is called fission. More neutrons are released to split more atoms, creating a chain reaction that produces heat. This heat boils water, creates steam, turns a turbine, and generates electricity.
Where the atomic bomb was designed to split atoms and release heat to create a chain reaction that increased in intensity until a tremendous energetic explosion, nuclear reactors are designed to maintain the chain reaction at a controlled, constant level. Because the uranium pellets are not burned like coal and gas, the same amount of pellets that are placed into the nuclear reactor are taken out after the fuel is spent, which takes approximately two years. This spent fuel is radioactive and is initially stored on site in steel-lined concrete pools surrounded by water. After several years of cooling, they can be transferred to dry cask storage while awaiting permanent disposal.
What are the benefits of nuclear power?
Nuclear power produces very low carbon emissions
Along with wind and solar power, nuclear power is a clean source of energy. Because nuclear power plants do not burn fuel, zero emissions are released into the atmosphere during the process. In the United States, 60% of energy is produced by burning fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal. Emissions from fossil fuels pollute the air we breathe and act as greenhouse gases that are known to be key contributors to millions of deaths around the globe.
Nuclear power has a high capacity factor
Capacity is the amount of electricity a generator can produce while running at full speed, and the capacity factor is a measure of how often a plant is running at maximum power. A nuclear reactor can reliably produce more electricity for longer periods than any other energy source in the U.S. Nuclear plants can produce maximum power more than 91% of the time. Fossil fuel generators have a capacity factor of 40-56%, depending on the fuel. Wind at 36% and utility-scale solar at 25% are hampered by intermittency, though the emergence of battery energy storage is rapidly compensating for these generation gaps.
Nuclear power is efficient
The nuclear bonds inside atoms hold so much energy that nuclear power plants can make more energy with less fuel than any other technology. A uranium fuel pellet the size of a fingertip can produce as much energy as one ton of coal. This efficiency means nuclear power plants produce much less waste comparatively, which is not only financially advantageous but also ensures that fewer resources are mined from the earth and that nuclear power plants take up much less space and land than other power-generating plants. Nuclear power plants are relatively cheap to run and require little maintenance once they are up and running.
Nuclear power is safer today than ever before
Per terawatt-hour of electricity produced, nuclear, along with wind and solar, have almost non-existent death rates from accidents and air pollution. Governments have put much into the safety of building nuclear reactors, producing nuclear power and disposing of nuclear waste, and the evidence shows.
In the 70-year history of civil nuclear power generation, there have been three significant accidents at nuclear power plants around the world: Three Mile Island (USA, 1979), Chernobyl (Ukraine, 1986), and Fukushima Daiichi (Japan, 2011). As the world has learned from these events, serious laws and guidelines have been implemented, and nuclear power is considered one of the safest forms of generating power.
What are the risks of nuclear power?
Radioactive nuclear waste
It is well known that radiation in high doses causes cancer and that nuclear reactors produce radioactive waste. All power sources produce waste, and while nuclear waste is relatively small, the radiation in nuclear waste lasts thousands of years and requires careful storage that must be securely isolated for a long period of time. This means the more nuclear power plants we build, the more nuclear waste we will have to store. As of 2025, the U.S. is storing about 90,000 tons of nuclear waste without a permanent operating repository.
And even though current nuclear power plants abide by careful storage of radioactive waste, normal operation can release very small, regulated amounts of radioactive material. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says these releases are monitored and generally constitute a small fraction of public exposure limits. But recent observational studies found an association between living within 50 miles of a nuclear reactor and elevated risks of certain cancers, particularly among older adults. An association does not establish that radiation from the reactors caused those cancers, and further research is needed.
Decommissioning plants
Decommissioning a nuclear power plant involves dismantling contaminated equipment and structures, managing radioactive materials, transporting waste, and remediating land, in addition to other significant costs. This dangerous work increases workers’ exposure risk to radioactive materials. While the average age of nuclear reactors in the U.S. is about 44 years old (with a life expectancy of 60), decommissioning nuclear power plants is considered to be part of the cost and risk of building one.
Expense
Although nuclear plants can be relatively inexpensive to operate once they are running, constructing them requires enormous upfront investment. On average, it takes 10 years to build a nuclear facility, and with the regulator fees and licensing process fees at more than $200 million per country to ensure safety and limit environmental damage, simply getting started is extremely expensive. In the case of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, state regulators allowed Georgia Power to charge ratepayers $7.56 billion for the cost of two nuclear reactors, resulting in a 4.9% to 6.6% increase in rates for customers.
Because of the extensive and expensive cost of building a nuclear power plant, some nations have started building small modular reactors (SMRs). These reactors are smaller and cheaper to build; Wyoming is hoping to build the first SMR in the U.S. by 2030. However, SMRs produce much less electricity — one reactor can power about 300,000 homes compared to 500,000 powered by a traditional nuclear reactor. SMRs are cheaper to build up front, but due to the lower amount of electricity produced, some wonder whether the still-high cost of SMRs is justified compared to larger, traditional reactors or even cheaper renewables.
Mining and refining uranium
While nuclear power plants produce zero carbon emissions, the process of mining and refining uranium is not so clean.
Decaying uranium produces gamma radiation that is released during the mining process, and when ore is mined and crushed in the mill, radon (a radioactive inert gas) is released to the atmosphere.
Because natural uranium ore found in the earth only has a fraction of usable uranium fuel, after it is mined it is moved to a mill that crushes and grinds the ore to extract mineral particles that are then leached in tanks with sulfuric acid. The solution is processed to recover uranium.
During the cold war, the U.S. government extracted uranium ore from mines near or on Indigenous lands and left behind more than 500 abandoned uranium mines on Navajo Nation lands. Indigenous miners and local residents faced high rates of lung cancer from radon inhalation and bone cancer and kidney damage from exposure to radionuclides in contaminated drinking water.
Although the U.S. has uranium ore mines in places like Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming, almost all the uranium used in U.S. nuclear energy must be imported from other countries, which creates vulnerabilities to supply cutoffs, sanctions, and trade restrictions.
Significant amounts of water
Nuclear reactors require cooling systems to remove the enormous amount of heat generated during electricity production. Depending on the cooling technology, plants may withdraw and consume substantial quantities of water. Once-through cooling systems can also return heated water to rivers, lakes, or oceans.
In water-stressed regions, the amount of water required by a nuclear facility can compete with municipal and ecological needs. This issue may be particularly important in the arid western U.S., where communities already face increasing competition for limited water resources. During heatwaves and droughts, nuclear power plants are required to slow production or shut down entirely to protect the environment.
“Governments and members of society have an obligation to exercise responsible stewardship of the earth, thereby protecting not only the wellbeing of their citizens, but also that of both future generations and other citizens of the planet.” MWEG Principle of Ethical Government 2f
Nuclear power might be the answer to clean energy. Nuclear reactors worldwide have supplied district heating systems, microreactors are used at mining facilities and data centers to decarbonize their operations, and nuclear technology is used in marine propulsion. It is important to consider whether the effects of mining and refining uranium, building and decommissioning nuclear power plants, and storing nuclear waste are being taken into account when nuclear power facilities are being incentivized.
Ultimately, there are risks and benefits of nuclear energy. Political leaders, decision makers, and citizens honor their environmental stewardship by carefully considering the impacts of nuclear power, and not just in comparison to fossil fuels but on its own merits.
This article was written by Natasha Rogers, researcher and writer for Mormon Women for Ethical Government, with Paulette Stauffer Henriod, environmental program specialist for Mormon Women for Ethical Government.
