There are currently 61 nuclear power plants operating in the US, containing 99 nuclear reactors. Most plants are located along the east coast, with the highest concentration between New Hampshire and Virginia. Nuclear plant meltdowns can be extremely dangerous, as seen at Fukushima in 2011 where up to 10,000 deaths are estimated from the three meltdowns and radioactive release. Radiation exposure can cause health effects like hair loss, cancer, and birth defects depending on the dose. While nuclear power provides around 19.5% of US electricity, the radioactive waste remains a challenge to store safely for thousands of years and nuclear accidents continue to be a risk that some argue is not worth the benefit of the energy.

1. Nuclear Power
is it worth the risk?

2. How many nuclear power plants are in the US?
There are 61 plants in the US, and these plants
contain 99 operating nuclear reactors.
The majority of these plants are located from the
middle of the country to the east coast.
The highest concentration of nuclear power
plants is from the coast of New Hampshire to the
coast of Virginia.

3. How dangerous can nuclear plant meltdowns be?
The Fukushima Daiichi Disaster in
Fukushima Japan was caused by a
tsunami. The damage caused three
nuclear meltdowns and released
radioactive materials.Human fatalities
from this accident are estimated to up
to 10,000.
This is the worst nuclear accident in the
world, so far.

4. How can radiation affect humans?
Humans absorb radiation on a daily
basis, and medical x rays are very
concentrated in radiation.
A local nuclear disaster would
cause much more harm than a CT
scan at the doctors office, though
receiving too many high radiation
scans can be equal to surviving a
nuclear catastrophe.

5. Long term effects of radiation on humans
Being exposed to high levels of
radiation can cause:
hair loss
brain damage
reproductive harm
malignant tumors
cataracts
blood disorders

6. How long has nuclear power been utilized?
The science of harnessing nuclear reactions for power
was investigated and researched from 1895 to 1945,
and in 1945 it was deemed an appropriate idea to
fund for creating electricity. Since 1956, research has
been focused on attempting to further secure the
safety of using such a risky source of power. The first
US soil nuclear power plant opened on May 26, 1958.
The first fatal nuclear reactor accident happened in
Idaho in January of 1961, and since there have been
many more accidents, though not always fatal.
Chernobyl, Russian power plant

7. Are these plants necessary? What happens to the waste?
19.5 percent of US electricity is produced
by nuclear plants, and plants do not need
to run at their highest potential output to
reach this number. Nuclear waste is
created after the fuel is spent powering the
plant’s core, and this waste can remain
radioactive for up to 15.7 million years.
Nuclear waste is either stored under water
within the facility that burned it as a
resource, or buried in radiation proof
containers.

8. What other sources of power are available?
Solar and wind power are
environmentally friendly and
entirely renewable. The sun shines
almost constantly during the
daylight hours in the dry parts of
the country, and there are plenty of
states with consistently gusty
winds. At this time, wind and solar
energy only provides about 5% of
US electricity.

9. How are people affected?
People live in fear of nuclear fallout.
There are some extremists who have
built themselves fallout shelter in
case of a nuclear attack, but they
would also be useful in case of a
nuclear plant disaster. The opinions
on citizens living near a nuclear
power plant are mixed, and the
plants make sure to keep radiation
levels monitored.

10. References
“What if the Fukushima nuclear fallout crisis had happened here?” 12 December 2015. http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/fallout/
(location of nuclear power plants)
Wellerstein, Alex. “NUKEMAP” 2012, 12 December 2015. http://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/ (interactive nuke map)
Rossenfield, Carrie. “Long Term Effects on Humans” 1998, 12 December 2015. http://www.atomicarchive.com/
“How Much Electricity Does a Nuclear Power Plant Generate?” December 2015, 12 December 2015. https://www.eia.
gov/tools/faqs
Cohen, Bernard L. “Risks of Nuclear Power ” 12 December 2015. http://www.physics.isu.edu/radinf/np-risk.htm