Nuclear Energy & Fuelwood (Cambridge (CIE) O Level Geography)

Nuclear Energy & Fuelwood

Nuclear energy

• Nuclear fuel has the potential to provide large amounts of energy

• It is often used countries who do not have their own supplies of fossil fuels such as France 

Share of Electricity Production from Nuclear

• In 2019 approximately 4% of the global primary energy supply was from nuclear power

• There are 439 active nuclear reactors across the world. Most of these are in just five countries:

  • USA (92)

  • France (56)

  • China (54)

  • Russia (37)

  • Japan (33)

Controversy

• Nuclear energy is controversial due to the issues surrounding waste disposal and nuclear accidents

• Three Mile Island in the USA in 1979

  • Partial meltdown of the nuclear reactor

  • Slight increase in cancer rates in the area affected by the release of radioactive contamination

• Chernobyl (now in Ukraine at the time part of the USSR) was the site of a reactor explosion in 1986

  • 50 direct deaths (UN estimate)

  • Estimated 4000 people have or will die as a result of exposure to radioactive materials

  • Radioactive fallout entered the atmosphere and fell over a large area including Scandinavia and the UK

• Fukushima nuclear reactor failed in Japan in 2011

  • The tsunami which resulted from the 2011 earthquake flooded parts of the power station causing loss of power which meant they lost the ability to cool the reactor. This led to explosions, meltdown of the reactor and the release of radioactive contamination

  • 154,000 people evacuated

  • There has been an increase in thyroid cancers in the area since 2011 but this may be that more are being detected due to the screening program established after the event

Advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy

Fuelwood

• It is estimated that more than between 2 and 3 billion people across the world rely on fuelwood for heating and cooking usually because they do not have access to other forms of energy

  • Approximately 13% of the world's population does not have access to electricity

  • This is mostly an issue in LEDCs within Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia

• Fuelwood is often included as a biofuel but the wood is not usually grown specifically for use in heating and cooking

  • The trees felled are not replaced which would make them sustainable 

• The reasons for this include;

  • It is free 

  • Does not require technology 

  • Can be renewable if the trees are replaced

  • No high technology equipment is needed to use the fuel

• There are disadvantages of this reliance on fuelwood: 

  • The use contributes to deforestation, soil erosion and desertification in many countries

  • The amount of wood cut each year is greater than the rate of replanting and regrowth

    • In many areas there is little wood left, and people have to walk further and further to collect it

  • Indoor pollution leads to health issues from exposure to smoke. It estimated that it is responsible for 1.5 million deaths each year in LEDCs

Case Study: Nepal

Energy use

• Nepal is a developing country located between China and India

• The landscape is mountainous and includes much of the Himalayas

• The population is rural with only 16% of the population living in towns and cities

• Energy demand is very low but growing as the country develops

Energy use per person in Nepal and UK

Energy mix

• The main source of energy for 82% of the rural population is fuelwood

• In urban areas the use of fuelwood is 36%

• Nepal has no suitable coal, oil or gas reserves so these have to be imported

• 98% of all electricity in Nepal is generated through hydropower

Energy Mix in Nepal

Sustainable future

• Access to electricity has increased rapidly over the past 15 years:

  • 88% of the population now have access to electricity

• Support from the World Bank has led to more investment in hydropower

• There are now over 3000 micro-hydro plants in Nepal

Ruma Khola micro-hydro

• Completed in 2009

• Provides electricity for the town of Darbang and five neighbouring villages

• It supplies energy for 22 industries including:

  • metal workshops, furniture manufacturers, cement block manufacturers, a noodle factory, poultry farms and dairy farms

• Built and operated by the community the micro-hydro plant was funded using grants from the government with support from the World Bank

• The loans are paid back using money that the community pay for the electricity supply

• It has improved the standard of living in the communities

• Reliance on kerosene and fuelwood has reduced and emissions have fallen

• Deforestation has decreased