Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
fusion reaction (Nersesian 2010, 288). Consequently, even if it becomes technically feasible to
generate electricity with nuclear fusion, its use on a commercial scale is unlikely to be economi-
cally feasible. In the absence of substantial direct subsidies, the capital costs of constructing such
a large and technically complex facility would likely be beyond the capability of anyone other
than government. Construction of a commercial nuclear fusion power plant is unlikely to com-
mence before 2050 (Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory 2005). In the United States it usually
takes ten to fourteen years to bring a new fission plant online (Hamilton and Wengert 1980, 69),
and it seems unlikely a fusion plant would take less time to build.
One nuclear fusion plant would not make a significant contribution to U.S. electricity demand in
2060. Under the most optimistic and favorable circumstances, it seems extremely unlikely nuclear
fusion could provide a substantial contribution to meeting U.S. electricity demand before the year
2100. The American electric utility industry is not known for early adoption of new technologies,
displaying instead a strong preference for tried-and-true generation and transmission technology.
With few exceptions, electric utilities resisted interconnecting their networks with others (some
still do), despite substantial financial and reliability benefits of doing so, and were notoriously
slow to adopt simple, inexpensive load-shedding equipment to prevent blackouts in the 1960s
and 1970s. Most electric utilities have been slow to adopt energy conservation, fluidized-bed
coal combustion, solar photovoltaic, and wind technologies until strongly encouraged to do so by
regulatory authorities. It took fifty years for the electric utility industry to build the nuclear fission
power plants that now provide about 20 percent of total generating capacity in the United States. It
seems unlikely it would take less time for the electric utility industry to construct enough nuclear
fusion plants to make a significant contribution to meeting U.S. electrical demand.
Dollar Costs of Utilizing Nuclear Power
The market cost to consumers for nuclear energy consumed in calendar year 2009 was estimated at
a bit over $4.5 billion, and almost $4.0 billion in 2008 (USEIA 2011a, Table 3.5). Historically, the
capital costs of constructing nuclear electric generating plants have been comparatively high, and
operating costs, especially for fuel, have been relatively low when compared to other generating
technologies. High capital costs are in part a reflection of the technological sophistication of nuclear
generating plants and in part based on concerns for reactor safety: as concerns for safety have in-
creased, capital and operating costs have increased. Still, most efforts to estimate the dollar costs of
utilizing nuclear power have neglected to include the significant costs of repairing environmental
damage done by the mining and milling of uranium, which have either been externalized or paid
by the U.S. government, and the very long-term but as yet unknown costs of permanent high-level
radioactive waste management, which under current policy will be paid by the U.S. government.
Any discussion of the costs of utilizing nuclear electric power that failed to take such costs into ac-
count would be intellectually dishonest. Token contributions by industry for permanent high-level
radioactive waste are limited by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act and will not be sufficient to pay for
these additional unknown costs, which must be acknowledged as likely to be exceedingly large.
Capital Construction Costs
Electric utilities applying for U.S. government loan guarantees supporting construction of new
nuclear generating units in October 2008 estimated their costs would average about $9 billion
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