12 Mar Nuclear Energy : Evaluation in context of its security , maintenance and credibility and significance
Context : However nuclear energy is a good source of the energy but the nuclear reactors are not very secure and reliable at the time of any natural disaster like an earthquake and the war. The destruction of nuclear reactors can bring huge disaster for human life . Apart from it, its maintenance cost is too high and there is an alternative to nuclear energy . Therefore, the government should rethink about the expansion of the nuclear reactors .
Introduction : Nuclear energy has been a good source of energy for a long time . But after the availability of the solar energy , the government should rethink the substitution of nuclear energy with solar energy. The energy policy of the government must be reviewed and a proper debate of the experts of the country should be heled.
Hazardousness of Nuclear Technology could be seen on March 3, when a fire broke out near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine (Europe’s largest) during the course of a military battle. However by God’s grace any disaster could not occurred because during the military operation , the fire could not affect the cooling system, the plant’s power supply, or its spent fuel pool
In the past , because of the earthquake, multiple reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant suffered severe accidents on 11th March 2011. Japan was not fortunate enough so it had to face a huge disaster and their radioactive cores continued producing heat and eventually melted down because the tsunami knocked out the cooling system.
After the incident in Japan , world policy makers are shifting their energy policies from Nuclear energy to solar energy , however some policymakers insist on expanding nuclear power, ostensibly in response to climate-change concerns.
The plan of Indian government regarding Nuclear reactors
On December 15, 2021, the Indian government informed Parliament regarding some new additional reactors imported from France, the U.S. and Russia and planning of manufacturing of 10 “10 indigenous reactors… in fleet mode”. In this way the government will increase its capacity for manufacturing nuclear reactors and thus the nuclear industry however it would neither be good economically nor be good for the climate .
Drawbacks of Nuclear reactors :
- These are capital intensive and recent nuclear builds have suffered major cost overruns.
- Against the environmental conservation
- Risk during the time of natural disaster or war
- Dependency over the suppliers of uranium (Mainly on west and Russia )
- Unviable imports – India would import many light-water reactors after the India-U.S. civil nuclear deal. But, the deal has not led to the establishment of a single new nuclear plant, over 13 years after it was concluded. Of the 24 foreign reactors with “in principle” approval, six are of the VVER (water-water energetic reactor) design that has had multiple operational problems at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu.
Significance of Solar Energy
- Environment friendly
- No risk at the time of war
- It is cheaper in comparison to nuclear energy . The cost of electricity from solar photovoltaics and wind turbines in the U.S. declined by 90% and 72%, respectively
Conclusion
As per the above analysis it can be easily concluded that, Government should reevaluate its energy policy . The central government and our policy makers should not follow any polies blindly . Solar energy would be the most efficient and the most powerful energy resource in future. For defense purposes, the government should continue its research related to atomic energy but for the fulfillment of energy requirements , nuclear energy has not been a good alternative after the experience of the Russia Ukraine war
Source : The Hindu (Editor)
GS Paper III
Plutus IAS Current Affairs Team Member
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