Clean Air PrimerContact UsDelphi InternationalSan Diego County Air Pollution Control District
OverviewScienceIssuesHealthSolutionsActivitiesMovies
Nuclear Power

Nuclear power plant

Click on a choice:

  Energy Pollution

  Dirty Cars

  California Leading

  Car Makers

  What Can I Do?

  New, Cleaner Cars

  Clean Energy Sources

  Polluting Energy Sources

Generating electricity from splitting uranium or plutonium atoms emits no CO2, SO2, or NOx, but nuclear power is and has been damaging to human health and our environment. Operating nuclear power plants is never risk free. When rare accidents do happen (like the Chernobyl disaster, for example), they can cause catastrophic damage as radioactive materials spew into the atmosphere and are swept around the globe by the wind. Also, there is the problem of where to store the dangerous waste from nuclear fission which leaves leftover materials that are highly radioactive for thousands of years. It is impossible to guarantee that any storage site will be safe for such a long period of time. Even though supplies of uranium and plutonium should last for more than a century, no more nuclear plants are being built in the U.S. because of the high costs. Nuclear power currently provides 22% of electricity generated in the U.S.

NextNext - Natural Gas

© 2004 Delphi International. All Rights Reserved.