Resources & Stats

This fact sheet highlights nuclear as a reliable source of energy and includes information on environmental and economic benefits, safety and used fuel issues, and public opinion data.

Safety

• U.S. nuclear energy facilities are held to the highest of standards by independent Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspectors, who engage in ongoing oversight at each reactor every day.
• The regulatory approach is to expect the unexpected and plan for it with layer upon layer of redundant safety features.
• U.S. nuclear energy facilities have four-foot-thick concrete and steel containment domes that surround the reactor, plus backup safety systems that function in the event of an emergency.
• The nuclear energy industry began making immediate safety improvements as part of a self-assessment of U.S. nuclear facilities within days of the accident at Fukushima Daiichi. The industry has committed to work in the short and long term to ensure that lessons learned are well understood and that improvements are effectively coordinated and implemented industrywide.

 
Reliable Electricity

• One hundred and four nuclear facilities in 31 states provide nearly 20 percent of all U.S. electricity.
• Nuclear energy generated 790.2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2011.
• Improved efficiency and technologies at U.S. nuclear energy facilities since 1990 have led to an increase in electricity production capable of powering nearly 20 million homes, the equivalent of building 27 new nuclear reactors.
• The industry has added more than 6,400 megawatts of capacity through facility improvements called uprates—enough to power more than four million homes.
• Nuclear energy facilities generate electricity 24/7 at an 89 percent capacity factor. This is more efficient than other types of energy—coal-fired, with a 61 percent capacity factor; combined-cycle natural gas at 46 percent; and wind at 32 percent.

 
Uranium Fuel

• One uranium fuel pellet creates as much energy as one ton of coal or 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas.
• Significant uranium resources are available from U.S. sources or friendly trading partners such as Canada and Australia.
• A typical large nuclear energy facility produces enough electricity for more than 690,000 homes while using only 20 metric tons of uranium fuel each year.
• The volume of used nuclear fuel rods created over the past 40 years—67,500 metric tons—would cover one football field 7 yards deep.
• The U.S. nuclear industry has built a comprehensive system for safely and securely storing used fuel that keeps the public and environment safe. Used fuel rods are stored safely in steel-lined, water-filled concrete vaults or in concrete and steel containers at each nuclear energy facility site.

Economic Benefits

• Production costs at nuclear energy facilities in 2011 averaged 2.19 cents per kilowatt-hour, cheaper than coal (3.23 cents) and natural gas-fueled plants (4.51 cents).
• The average nuclear energy facility pays approximately $16 million in state and local taxes and $67 million in federal taxes annually.
• Each nuclear energy facility generates about $470 million annually in sales of goods and services in the local community.
• Approximately $40 million is spent annually in wages at each facility.
• Ten license applications are being reviewed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for 16 new reactors.
• Five new nuclear reactors are under construction in three states: Georgia (Vogtle 3 and 4), South Carolina (V.C. Summer 2 and 3) and Tennessee (Watts Bar 2).
• Some 19 companies and consortia are studying, licensing or building more than 30 nuclear power reactors. Up to 21,000 high-paying jobs will be created if all planned nuclear reactors come on line.
• One reactor creates up to 3,500 jobs at peak construction.
• A new nuclear energy facility creates 500 permanent jobs per 1,000 megawatts of electricity generating capacity, compared to 190 jobs for a coal plant, 50 for a wind farm and 50 for a natural gas plant.
• An equivalent number of additional jobs are expected to be created indirectly with each project.

Environmental Benefits

• Nuclear energy produces more clean-air energy than any other source and is the only one that can produce large amounts of electricity 24/7. Nuclear energy produces 63.3 percent of all U.S. emission-free electricity.
• In 2011, nuclear energy facilities prevented 613.4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, almost equal to the amount of carbon dioxide emissions from all U.S. passenger cars.
• Nuclear energy facilities also prevented the emission of 1.41 million short tons of sulfur dioxide and 0.54 million short tons of nitrogen oxide in 2011.
• A nuclear energy facility’s life-cycle carbon emissions are among the lowest of any electricity generation source at 17 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per gigawatts-hour, comparable to geothermal (15 tons) and wind (14 tons).
• Protecting the environment extends to safely managing used fuel, protecting water quality, and preserving and improving habitat for plants and wildlife. All U.S. nuclear energy facilities have extensive environmental monitoring programs, which are under the oversight of the NRC and state regulators.

United States	790.2	Germany	102.3
France	421.1	Canada	90.0
Russian Federation	161.7	China	87.4
Japan	156.2	Ukraine	84.8
Republic of Korea	147.7	Sweden	58.0