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California Science Center

Science Matters

Nuclear Energy: Timely

AlternativeDennis R. Spurgeon

Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy

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Forecasted Energy DemandBy 2030, domestic demand for energy is projected to grow by 40 - 50 percent.

During the same time, global demand is expected to nearly double.

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Current Electricity Generation

Coal 49.0%

Petroleum 1.6%

Natural Gas 20.0%

Nuclear 19.4%

Hydropower 7.0%

Net Non-emitting Sources of Electricity

Nuclear

72.3%

Wind 1.6%

Geothermal 1.3% Solar

0.05%

Hydropower

24.9%

Net U.S. Electric Generation (2006) 4,065 billion kWh

Renewables (non-hydro)

2.4%

FACT: The U.S. leads the world in total nuclear

energy production

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CarbonAbatement

The volume of nuclear waste generated by producing the same amount of electricity from nuclear plants that would otherwise result in a gigaton of CO2 emissions from coal plants would fit into 8 semi-trailers.

20.8

224.3

681.9

13.1

0.5

Carbon Dioxide Prevented by U.S.

Electric Power Industry

(in million metric tons)

Nuclear Hydr

o

Geothermal Win

d

Solar

FACT: Electricity production contributes 40% of world carbon

dioxide emissions

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Nuclear Facts If you got all your electricity for your lifetime from nuclear power your total share of the waste would weigh 2 pounds and fit into one

coke can.

In 2005, the volume of greenhouse gas emissions prevented by annual nuclear power generation is the equivalent of taking 96% of all passenger cars off American roadways, totaling approximately 131.1 million automobiles.

The radiation dose from a flight across the United States is 50 times more then the average annual dose to the U.S. public from nuclear power.

(5 mrem/flight VS <0.1 mrem/year)

The annual output of high-level waste from one nuclear reactor with recycling would fit in two large beer kegs or approximately two 1 cubic meter barrels.

The used fuel from 50 years of U.S. reactor operations could fit in a single football field; it amounts to 77,000 tons or a height of 15 feet. With reprocessing, the high-level waste would fit into one-third of the end-zone.Sources: DOE Climate Vision Report; Gwyneth Cravens, “Power to Save the World: The Truth about Nuclear Energy ; Brew Baron, CEO, Duke Power, selected speeches.

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Nuclear Power Domestic Growth Today, Seventeen utility companies are projected to build thirty-one

new reactors in the coming years. When completed, those plants will provide over 41,000 megawatts of

electricity, enough power to supply almost 30 million homes with clean and reliable electricity.

Five COL applications for nine new reactors have already been submitted and three early site permits have been approved for the Clinton, Grand Gulf and North Anna sites.

To sustain nuclear power’s current 20% share, 40 to 45 new reactors must be built by 2030. And to begin significantly impacting carbon emissions, nuclear power must increase to at least a 30% share of electricity generation by 2050, resulting in up to 300 new reactors under operation in the United States.

FACT: Currently operating U.S. nuclear plants produce electricity for 1.72 cents per kilowatt-hour, compared to 2.37 cents for coal and 6.75 cents for natural gas.

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Nuclear’s International Growth Today, thirty-one countries operate 439 reactors totaling

372 GWe of electricity capacity.

Worldwide, 34 new nuclear power plants are under construction, totaling 28 GWs of new nuclear power, with construction taking place in every major region in the world.

Projections anticipate 55 total countries will operate 630 reactors totaling approximately 630 GWs by 2030.

Potentially, a total of 86 countries could have nuclear reactors by 2050.

Globally, nuclear energy avoids on average the emission of more than 2 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.

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Global Nuclear Energy PartnershipGNEP Purpose

The United States “will build the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership to work with other nations to develop and deploy advanced nuclear recycling and reactor technologies. This initiative will help provide reliable, emission-free energy with less of the waste burden of older technologies and without making available separated plutonium that could be used by rogue states or terrorists for nuclear weapons. These new technologies will make possible a dramatic expansion of safe, clean nuclear energy to help meet the growing global energy demand.”

Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman at the GNEP Ministerial meeting

—September 2007

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Global Nuclear Energy PartnershipStatement of PrinciplesGlobal Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) is cooperation of those States that

share the common vision of the necessity of the expansion of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes worldwide in a safe and secure manner. It aims to accelerate development and deployment of advanced fuel cycle technologies to encourage clean development and prosperity worldwide, improve the environment, and reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation.

States participating in this cooperation would not give up any rights, and voluntarily engage to share the effort and gain the benefits of economical, peaceful nuclear energy.

Commitments and international obligations, including IAEA safeguards and the requirements of UN Security Council Resolution 1540, will be strictly observed. The highest levels of nuclear safety and security will be maintained.

The cooperation will be carried out under existing and, where appropriate, new bilateral arrangements as well as existing multilateral arrangements such as the Generation IV International Forum and the International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles.

While recognizing the need for a variety of approaches and technical pathways in achieving a long-term vision of the future global civilian nuclear fuel cycle, which will help ensure that nuclear energy makes a major contribution to global development in the 21st century consistent with non-proliferation and safety objectives, this cooperation will be pursued with the following objectives:

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Global Nuclear Energy PartnershipStatement of PrinciplesExpand nuclear power to help meet growing energy demand in a sustainable

manner and in a way that provides for safe operations of Nuclear Power Plants and management of wastes.

In cooperation with the IAEA, continue to develop enhanced nuclear safeguards to effectively and efficiently monitor nuclear materials and facilities, to ensure nuclear energy systems are used only for peaceful purposes.

Establish international supply frameworks to enhance reliable, cost-effective fuel services and supplies to the world market, providing options for generating nuclear energy and fostering development while reducing the risk of nuclear proliferation by creating a viable alternative to acquisition of sensitive fuel cycle technologies.

Develop, demonstrate, and in due course deploy advanced fast reactors that consume transuranic elements from recycled spent fuel.

Promote the development of advanced, more proliferation resistant nuclear power reactors appropriate for the power grids of developing countries and regions.

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Global Nuclear Energy PartnershipStatement of PrinciplesDevelop and demonstrate, inter alia, advanced technologies for recycling spent

nuclear fuel for deployment in facilities that do not separate pure plutonium, with a long term goal of ceasing separation of plutonium and eventually eliminating stocks of separated civilian plutonium. Such advanced fuel cycle technologies, when available, would help substantially reduce nuclear waste, simplify its disposition and draw down inventories of civilian spent fuel in a safe, secure, and proliferation-resistant manner.

Take advantage of the best available fuel cycle approaches for the efficient and responsible use of energy and natural resources.

Other countries that share this vision will be welcome to participate.

We voluntarily affirm this Statement of Principles while acknowledging its non binding nature.

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Global Nuclear Energy PartnershipGNEP Partners 1. Australia 2. Bulgaria 3. Canada 4. China5. France6. Ghana7. Hungary8. Italy 9. Japan10. Jordan 11. Kazakhstan12. Lithuania 13. Poland14. Republic of Korea 15. Romania 16. Russia17. Senegal18. Slovenia 19. Ukraine 20. United States

GNEP Observers1. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) 2. Generation IV International Forum

(GIF) 3. Euratom

Attending Candidate Partner and Observer Countries

1. Argentina 2. Belgium 3. Brazil 4. Czech 5. Egypt 6. Finland 7. Germany 8. Mexico9. Morocco10. Netherlands11. Slovakia12. Spain13. Sweden14. Switzerland15. Turkey16. United Kingdom

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Our National Security Depends on Our Energy SecurityWith rising energy demands, our security, our prosperity, and our environment all require reducing our dependence on fossil fuels that emit greenhouse gases.

No serious person can look at the challenge of our national security, greenhouse gases and climate change and not come to the conclusion that nuclear power has to play a significant and growing role in meeting these challenges.