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Very little, the main pollution generated by a properly functioning nuclear power plant is thermal pollution (i.e. heat that would not normally be present otherwise).
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∙ 8y ago
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago15 tonnes
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How much waste do the nuclear power plants in the US make each year?
1.7billion
How much electrical energy was produced by nuclear power plants?
2,598,000,000,000 kWh a year, that was estimated in 2008.
How much hazardous waste does the US produce in a year?
"The USA EPA estimates that 256 million tons of officially classified hazardous wastes are produced in the USA each year. This does not include toxic and hazardous waste produced by industries not monitored by the EPA."
Does nuclear energy produce a lot of waste?
Yes; the average nuclear power plant yields about 3 tons of radioactive waste each year.
How much household rubbish is produced per day?
The UK generates 290 million tonnes of waste per year
How much nuclear waste is produced each year?
The radioactive fission products from a nuclear reactor are contained in the spent fuel and they stay there whilst the fuel is stored under water or eventually in concrete flasks. Waste will only be produced if and when the spent fuel is broken down and chemically treated, probably to separate out the U-238 and plutonium, which may be worth doing. The waste is then the proportion which is not useful and it will consist of the fission products, ie a range of different elements and their isotopes, many of which are highly radioactive. This material is highly dangerous to life and must be stored safely for a long time (centuries)
Is it safer to generate electricity from nuclear power than coal?
Yes, nuclear power is far safer than coal.Nuclear power plants do not pollute the environment because of strict regulations governing their waste. The only danger from nuclear power plants are due to accidents like meltdowns or explosions. There have been a number of nuclear power plant incidents, but altogether, not including Chernobyl, these have only killed around 13 people. Only the Chernobyl incident resulted in widespread loss of life, estimated at around 6,000 people.For comparison, coal power plant pollution kills as many people as Chernobyl every few weeks.The amount of radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants is about 3 metric tons per terawatt-hour, while the amount of radioactive waste produced by burning coal is about 2 metric tons per terawatt-hour. However, the nuclear waste is contained and tightly regulated. The coal radioactive waste is dumped into the atmosphere as ash or stored in ponds with much less regulation.Because the coal power plant radioactive waste is dumped into the environment, and the nuclear power plant waste is stored safely, coal power plants actually irradiate you 100 times as much as nuclear power plants:You are exposed to 5 person-rem/year of radiation from nuclear power plants.You are exposed to 500 person-rem/year of radiation from coal power plants.Every 2 days, coal power plants in the US release as much radioactive pollution as the Three Mile Island disaster.
What are the pros and cons of coal wind power and nuclear power?
I don't know which is cheaper, but nuclear is far safer than coal:Nuclear power plants do not pollute the environment because of strict regulations governing their waste. The only danger from nuclear power plants are due to accidents like meltdowns or explosions. There have been a number of nuclear power plant incidents, but altogether, not including Chernobyl, these have only killed around 13 people. Only the Chernobyl incident resulted in widespread loss of life, estimated at around 6,000 people.For comparison, coal power plant pollution kills as many people as Chernobyl every few weeks.The amount of radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants is about 3 metric tons per terawatt-hour, while the amount of radioactive waste produced by burning coal is about 2 metric tons per terawatt-hour. However, the nuclear waste is contained and tightly regulated. The coal radioactive waste is dumped into the atmosphere as ash or stored in ponds with much less regulation.Because the coal power plant radioactive waste is dumped into the environment, and the nuclear power plant waste is stored safely, coal power plants actually irradiate you 100 times as much as nuclear power plants:You are exposed to 5 person-rem/year of radiation from nuclear power plants.You are exposed to 500 person-rem/year of radiation from coal power plants.Every 2 days, coal power plants in the US release as much radioactive pollution as the Three Mile Island disaster.
How much electricity do you waste in a year?
I waste as little as possible.
How much pollution has Styrofoam caused in the world?
About 1% of the 300 million tons of solid waste produced each year in th US. I dont know about the world.
How much food does Europe waste per year?
Despite have a greater population, Europe still does not waste as much food every year as does the United States.
How much waste can an elephant make each year?
As much as he needs to.
