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Debate Wars

nuclear power - Page 2

Re: nuclear power

Posted by: Izwzyzx
Date: 2006-09-20 00:03:45

What's the problem with the waste?  The waste was already radioactive before being used as fuel, so I don't see a problem with putting it in a hole in the ground somewhere.


The problem with nuclear waste is that it continues to be radioactive waste for thousands and thousands of years, and the containers will probably eventually leak. If it's underground, then you have radioactive crap seeping through the ground ruining the environment and polluting water.

Re: nuclear power

Posted by: rjaguar3
Date: 2006-09-20 02:39:59
But it already was radioactive waste before being used as fuel.  If we didn't use nuclear power, it would still be underground and still be radioactive.  The fact that it is used as energy does not change whether it is radioactive:  it would stay radioactive even if we left it alone.

Yes, radioactivity can cause problems with health.  But again, this depends on the concentration and the half-life.  First, if the half-life is short, it will be very potent but will rapidly decay; whereas if it is long, it will not have much effect but will remain for a long time.  Second, one can put the waste in concentrated areas and make those uninhabitable, or one can dilute the waste and its effects over a large area.

The worst case scenario is that the waste can go back to the places whence the uranium was mined.  This way, the radioactivity, which has failed to harm humans significantly for millennia, can continue to be a very minor danger.

Re: nuclear power

Posted by: philip1992
Date: 2006-09-24 14:30:25
I think its good.