In this blog post, we will focus on why reducing and decommissioning existing nuclear power plants is a more realistic and safer option than building new ones, the dangers of radiation, the development of alternative energy sources, and the need to improve energy consumption patterns.
Human civilization developed rapidly in the 20th century. Maintaining this advanced civilization required large amounts of energy, and many power plants were built to generate the necessary electrical energy. Nuclear power is one of several methods of power generation. In Korea, the first nuclear power plant, Kori Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1, began operating in April 1978. Thanks to its low cost and lack of greenhouse gas emissions, many nuclear power plants have been built and now account for a significant portion of the country’s electricity generation. As of 2023, Korea’s total electricity production was approximately 621.3 terawatt hours (TWh). Of this, nuclear power accounted for about 32%, with approximately 199 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity generated through nuclear power. To this end, 25 reactors are in operation at four power plants. The government is planning to build additional nuclear power plants to secure electricity supply. However, in my opinion, the construction of additional nuclear power plants is the wrong choice. On the contrary, now is the time to reduce the number of nuclear power plants. Although it is true that nuclear power accounts for a large share of Korea’s electricity supply, I believe that the disadvantages of continuing nuclear power outweigh the advantages. Let’s look at the principle of nuclear power generation to find the reason.
Nuclear power generation produces electricity from the energy released when atoms undergo nuclear fission. Except for three pressurized heavy water reactors, all nuclear reactors in Korea are pressurized light water reactors, and both types use uranium-235 to generate electricity. When this atom absorbs neutrons, it becomes unstable and splits into two other atomic nuclei, such as cesium, rubidium, iodine, and yttrium, and neutrons. In addition, a small amount of mass is lost during fission, and according to Einstein’s famous formula E = mc², energy equal to the lost mass is generated. Although the lost mass m is very small, the speed of light c is a very large constant, so the energy E generated is quite large. This reaction does not stop at one. Each fission produces an average of 2.5 neutrons, which are absorbed by other uranium-235 atoms, causing a chain reaction. As a result, a huge amount of energy is generated as heat, which is used to generate steam to turn turbines. Control rods and cooling water are used to control the speed of the chain reaction and the temperature of the reactor. The byproducts remaining after power generation are reprocessed and stored underground.
The problem with nuclear power is the byproducts produced during power generation. Some people argue that nuclear power is a clean energy source because, unlike thermal power, it does not produce carbon dioxide and therefore does not cause global warming. However, this is an unreasonable claim. This is because radioactive isotopes, which are much more dangerous than carbon dioxide, are produced as by-products. For example, cesium, rubidium, iodine, and yttrium, which are produced each time uranium-235 fissions, are cesium-137, rubidium-82, iodine-131, and yttrium-90, respectively, which are unstable radioactive isotopes. Radioactive isotopes emit radiation as they change to a stable state, and exposure to this radiation can cause fatal damage to the human body. This is called radiation exposure. When exposed to radiation, DNA is mutated, causing cells to mutate or necrotize, destroying body tissue. Mild exposure can be treated and survived, but exposure above a certain level has a 100% fatality rate, causing death within a month.
Nuclear waste is usually managed safely, so it is safe to say that there is little harm to humans. However, since nuclear power plant operators are human, they can make mistakes, and accidents can occur due to disasters that cannot be overcome by human power. The most serious accident is a meltdown, which is a serious accident in which the temperature of the reactor becomes excessively high, causing the inner wall to melt and radioactive elements to leak. The possibility of a major accident such as those in Fukushima and Chernobyl cannot be ignored. In the Chernobyl accident, the speed of the chain reaction could not be controlled due to a mistake by the operator, and in the Fukushima accident, the cooling water supply pump stopped due to a tsunami, causing a meltdown. As we saw in the Fukushima accident, once a core melt occurs, the damage caused by radiation is enormous. The area around the accident site becomes uninhabitable, and radioactive isotopes spread by the wind affect the entire world. If such an accident were to occur in a small country like Korea, the entire country could become contaminated with radiation and uninhabitable.
In this sense, nuclear power generation is like having an atomic bomb that could explode at any moment. People are aware of the dangers of radioactive elements and nuclear power plants, so they are reluctant to have nuclear power plants or waste storage facilities built in their neighborhoods. When the government planned to build a nuclear power plant in Samcheok, a referendum was held to decide whether to proceed with the project, and 85% of residents voted against it. Not all of them are calling for nuclear reduction. At the very least, they are aware of the dangers of nuclear power plants and do not want them near them.
Given the enormous risks involved, nuclear power plants must be operated under strict supervision and management, but the management system of nuclear power plants in Korea cannot be said to be perfect. There have even been cases of defective parts being delivered to nuclear power plants. Because of people who abandoned their morals for personal gain, our nuclear power plants were operating with defective parts until we realized what was happening. Another major problem is the unreasonable extension of the life span of nuclear power plants. The oldest plants, Kori No. 1 and Wolsong No. 1, have already exceeded their design life. However, the government continues to operate nuclear power plants through continuous repairs and life extensions. With minor accidents continuing to occur, such as the power outage at Kori Unit 1 in January 2012, continuing to operate old nuclear power plants without any measures in place is increasing the risk of a major accident.
Those who oppose reducing nuclear power argue that electricity supply is insufficient during peak demand, and that nuclear power should be increased to supplement supply. However, in my opinion, the best solution to this problem is not to build more nuclear power plants. Recently, developed countries such as Germany and Japan have shown that society can function adequately even with fewer nuclear power plants. Japan has overcome the absence of nuclear power through large-scale power saving measures. Japan suspended the operation of all nuclear power plants in May 2012 following the Fukushima accident. However, as a result of joint efforts by the government and the private sector to save power, the country has been able to continue without any major problems. However, the current situation in Korea is far from energy conservation. As of 2023, Korea’s electricity consumption reached approximately 530 TWh (terawatt hours). Per capita electricity consumption is approximately 11 MWh (megawatt hours), which is 50% higher than the OECD average. Korea ranks among the top OECD countries in terms of electricity consumption. Korea is among the countries with the highest electricity consumption in the OECD, and electricity consumption is steadily increasing. The main reason for the high electricity consumption is the large share of industrial electricity consumption. However, electricity rates in Korea are excessively low compared to other countries, so people do not feel the need to save electricity. In fact, GDP/kWh, which is the total GDP divided by total electricity consumption, ranks high at $3.45 as of 2023. In addition, industrial electricity, which accounts for more than 50% of Korea’s electricity consumption, is subject to additional discounts, so companies use electricity without hesitation. It is necessary to raise awareness of the need for energy conservation through reasonable electricity pricing. In line with this, if companies strive to develop technologies that enable low-power production activities and households make efforts to reduce small amounts of electricity wasted in their daily lives, it will be possible to save a large amount of electricity. In Germany, recognizing the dangers of nuclear power after Chernobyl, the country completely abandoned nuclear energy in April 2023 with the closure of its last nuclear power plants, Isar 2, Emsland, and Neckarwestheim 2. This decision was part of a policy that began after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident and aimed to switch to renewable energy in accordance with Germany’s Energiewende (energy transition) plan. Currently, alternative energy sources account for 57% of total electricity production. (As of 2023) Through the development of these alternative energy sources, Germany is considered the first country where renewable energy accounts for a significant portion of the economy.
However, the cases of Germany and Japan do not provide perfect solutions for Korea. No matter how much energy is saved, power consumption will increase as the economy develops, and at some point, power generation will become insufficient. If we start developing alternative energy sources and shut down nuclear power plants immediately, we will need to fill the energy gap through other means until alternative energy sources are sufficiently commercialized. Germany has overcome this problem to a certain extent through thermal power generation using its abundant lignite reserves, but in Korea, which has few underground resources, filling the energy gap through thermal power generation would require enormous capital expenditure on fossil fuel imports. Rather than thermal power generation, we must strive to eliminate the gap by constructing additional wind power plants and tidal power plants that are suitable for Korea’s environment.
Learning from the examples of Germany and Japan and considering the current situation in Korea, we can set goals for Korea to aim for. The ultimate goal is to phase out all nuclear power plants and replace nuclear power with alternative energy sources. This does not mean that all nuclear power plants should be shut down immediately. No country in the world can afford the aftermath of shutting down all its nuclear power plants at once. Rather, we should prevent the construction of additional nuclear power plants and, before the existing nuclear power plants reach the end of their service life, commercialize power generation through the development of alternative energy sources, as Germany has done, to secure enough power generation to replace nuclear power plants. However, nuclear power plants that have reached the end of their design life and pose a high risk due to frequent breakdowns should be decommissioned as soon as possible to relieve the public of their concerns.
However, the current government does not seem to have any plans to decommission nuclear power plants. In order to decommission a single nuclear reactor, the remaining radioactive materials must be removed, which will require a tremendous amount of time and money to reach a level where people can live safely. However, the government is only concerned with building more nuclear power plants, and there is no discussion about decommissioning them. As time passes, more nuclear power plants will reach the end of their service life, and the risk of accidents will increase. One of the causes of this year’s Sewol ferry disaster was that the ship was over 20 years old and had exceeded its design life, yet it was still being operated. Therefore, we must stop extending the life of nuclear power plants and establish measures to decommission them, starting with those that have already reached the end of their service life. It is also necessary to develop alternative energy sources to secure the amount of electricity lost due to the decommissioning of nuclear power plants, as well as to improve systems and public awareness to prevent electricity waste.
