Energy supply and sustainable development: the need for nuclear power

Abstract

Some important conclusions for achieving an energy supply system which satisfies the concept of sustainable development are that: The use of limited stocks of energy is compatible with the concept of sustainability provided that we can guarantee future generations a technically and economically viable energy base which is at least of the same size. The use of scarce resources, including the environment as a resource, is decisive when assessing the sustainability of energy systems. The full costs (generation costs plus external costs) should be considered as a helpful indicator for assessing the contribution of power generation technologies to a sustainable energy system. The technical progress made possible by increasing knowledge, which contributes to expanding the technically and economically exploitable raw materials and energy resources and allows a further uncoupling of economic development and the use of resources, will play a key role in achieving sustainable development. A life-cycle-based evaluation employing a variety of sustainability criteria clearly shows that nuclear energy is an attractive source of low-cost electricity that can foster economic development and reduce greenhouse gas emissions cost effectively while broadening the available energy resource base for future generations. Low total material requirements and the total energy requirements of nuclear electricity production are indications of the rational use of scarce resources in comparison with other electricity technologies. Estimates of health risks including those of severe accidents indicate that nuclear power, when constructed and operated according to present safety standards, is associated with health impacts that are in the lower range of all electricity systems. Nuclear energy combines economic, resource, climatological and environmental attractiveness making a sustainable electricity supply system a practically feasible and economically affordable target for many countries.