To be read after Lesson 3

Nuclear Power? Well, Yes

Although nuclear reactors have generated electricity commer­cially for more than 40 years and nearly 400 now in operation, two major accidents — in the US in 1979 and Chernobyl in the USSR in 1986 — have put the industry under a radioactive cloud. In the popular imagination, reactors are nuclear bombs; even if they don't explode, they go on accumulating waste that will finally cause a global catastrophe.

As a result, an energy source once considered as the fuel of the future became questionable. But not everywhere. Nuclear power provides nearly a quarter of the electricity generated in the indus­trialized Western world by the 24-member countries of the Organi­zation for Economic Cooperation and Development. In France more than 76 % of electric power is nuclear-generated, in Belgium — 62 %, Sweden — 50 %, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and Fin­land come in at one third, Japan — a little less; Britain, the US and Canada — under 20 %. Some countries have no nuclear power plants at all and don't want any.

Not only the strong emotions of fear have worked against nu­clear power. Energy demand grew more slowly than expected in the past decade. Prices of oil and coal have reduced. However, energy prices can rise. Moreover, supplies of fossil fuel are limited, while

energy needs and tide (прилив) can't meet the increasing require­ments. Besides, nuclear power doesn't add to global warming.

All this causes the people to believe that the world can't live and work without nuclear power.