Nuclear Hazards To The Environment

By Author: Pierce Brosnan
Total Articles: 127
Comment this article

Introduction to nuclear hazards to the environment :

Nuclear power is widely used for generation of electricity. Developed countries like France, Finland, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Sweden, Spain and Switzerland generate more than 30% of their total electric power by using a variety of nuclear reactors.

Nuclear Hazards or Harmful Effects of Nuclear Energy :

Though nuclear power has significant benefits, some serious incidents have changed attitude of people towards the nuclear power plants. Nuclear energy has following dark sides:

1. Nuclear weapons : The nuclear weapons have devastating implications. The atom bombs dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki can never be forgotten. These bombs killed numerous people and destroyed everything. A nuclear explosion

(i) produces tremendous heat

(ii) gaseous matter rising up like a cloud, dispersing radioactive materials and causing pollution of air, water and soil.

2. Disasters: Use of nuclear energy can result in major disasters. One of these is Chemobyl Disaster of 1986 in east while USSR. The nuclear reactor caught ...
... fire and resulted in world's worst nuclear accident that took 10 days to control the runaway reaction. Thousands of people died immediately, 24,000 people received high doses of radiations. After ten years of the incident (1996) it was found that increased rate of thyroid cancer in children was one of the long term effects. Fused fingers (monodactyly) to form a paddle and more than 5 digits (polydactyly) in hands and feet were the other genetic defects observed in Chemobyl.

3. Other effects: There are many more kinds of damages from nuclear accidents and use of nuclear energy. The most common and long term effect of radiations is the mutation, leading to abnormalities in the off springs. Leukemia and breast cancer are the two common types of cancers linked to exposure to radiations. The disposal of the nuclear waste is another major problem.

Nuclear Hazards to the Environment

Human bodies, as well as materials, including buildings are seriously affected by nuclear radiations. In general the ill effects produced by nuclear weapons are of two types:

(i) Somatic and (ii) Genetic

In somatic effects, the general body cells of the person exposed to nuclear radiations are affected. This may lead to deadly diseases like cancer and shorten the lives of the people. In genetic effects the genes of the person exposed to nuclear radiation get damaged. The genetic disorders are passed onto the next generations. These effects are more dangerous than the somatic effects.

If all the nuclear weapons in the world were used, then all the humanity would most likely be destroyed. Later, the world would go into what is called "Nuclear Winter". Global temperature would drop significantly, as well as the amount of sunlight received by the earth. The combination of radioactivity, lack of food, and lowering temperatures cause a Nuclear Holocaust, with the chances of humans surviving very low.

Comprehend more on about What is the Atomic Mass of an Element and its Circumstances. Between, if you have problem on these topics Formula for Potential Energy Please share your views here by commenting.