<P> The nuclear power debate is a long - running controversy about the risks and benefits of using nuclear reactors to generate electricity for civilian purposes . The debate about nuclear power peaked during the 1970s and 1980s, as more and more reactors were built and came online, and "reached an intensity unprecedented in the history of technology controversies" in some countries . Thereafter, the nuclear industry created jobs, focused on safety and public concerns mostly waned . In the last decade, however, with growing public awareness about climate change and the critical role that carbon dioxide and methane emissions play in causing the heating of the earth's atmosphere, there's been a resurgence in the intensity nuclear power debate once again . Nuclear power advocates and those who are most concerned about climate change point to nuclear power's reliable, emission - free, high - density energy and a generation of young physicists and engineers working to bring a new generation of nuclear technology into existence to replace fossil fuels . On the other hand, skeptics can point to two frightening nuclear accidents, the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 and subsequently the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, combined with escalating acts of global terrorism, to argue against continuing use of the technology . The debate continues today between those who fear the power of nuclear and those who fear what will happen to the earth if we don't use nuclear power . At the 1963 ground - breaking for what would become the world's largest nuclear power plant, President John F. Kennedy declared that nuclear power was a "step on the long road to peace," and that by using "science and technology to achieve significant breakthroughs" that we could "conserve the resources" to leave the world in better shape . Yet he also acknowledged that the Atomic Age was a "dreadful age" and "when we broke the atom apart, we changed the history of the world ." </P> <P> Proponents of nuclear energy argue that nuclear power is a clean and sustainable energy source which provides huge amounts of uninterrupted energy without polluting the air or emitting the carbon emissions that cause Global warming . Use of nuclear power provides plentiful, well - paying jobs, energy security, reduces a dependence on imported fuels and exposure to price risks associated with resource speculation and Middle East politics . Proponents advance the notion that nuclear power produces virtually no air pollution, in contrast to the massive amount of pollution and carbon emission generated from burning Fossil fuel like coal, oil and natural gas . Modern society demands always - on energy to power communications, computer networks, transportation, industry and residences at all times of day and night . In the absence of nuclear power, utilities need to burn fossil fuels to keep the energy grid reliable, even with access to solar and wind energy, because those sources are intermittent . Proponents also believe that nuclear power is the only viable course for a country to achieve energy independence while also meeting their "ambitious" NDC's (nationally determined contributions) to reduce carbon emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement signed by 195 nations . They emphasize that the risks of storing waste are small and existing stockpiles can be reduced by using this waste to produce fuels for the latest technology in newer reactors . Finally, even though alarmist media reports of nuclear accidents raised fear levels a lot, in fact the Chernobyl disaster caused 56 direct deaths and Fukushima reactors caused no actual deaths as a result of the nuclear meltdown . The operational safety record of nuclear is excellent when compared to the other major kinds of power plants and by preventing pollution, actually saves lives every year . </P> <P> Opponents say that nuclear power poses numerous threats to people and the environment and point to studies in the literature that question if it will ever be a sustainable energy source . These threats include health risks, accidents and environmental damage from uranium mining, processing and transport . Along with the fears associated with nuclear weapons proliferation, nuclear power opponents fear sabotage by terrorists of nuclear plants, diversion and misuse of radioactive fuels or fuel waste, as well as naturally - occurring leakage from the unsolved and imperfect long - term storage process of radioactive nuclear waste . They also contend that reactors themselves are enormously complex machines where many things can and do go wrong, and there have been many serious nuclear accidents . Critics do not believe that these risks can be reduced through new technology . They further argue that when all the energy - intensive stages of the nuclear fuel chain are considered, from uranium mining to nuclear decommissioning, nuclear power is not a low - carbon electricity source . </P> <P> Three of the world's four largest economies now generate more electricity from non-hydro renewable energy than from nuclear sources . New power generation using solar power was 33% of the global total added in 2015, wind power over 17%, and 1.3% for nuclear power, mostly due to development in China . </P>

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