Resources & Stats

For the nuclear energy industry, 2011 will be remembered as the year of Fukushima. The combination of a powerful earthquake and a massive tsunami that overwhelmed the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear energy facility was a significant event for our industry. Although a similar event in the United States is highly unlikely, the experience raised questions about the safety of U.S. nuclear energy facilities in the face of extreme events. It also caused some countries to rethink their energy strategies. The industry is compiling lessons learned from Japan that will have a lasting impact on our industry's approach to safety worldwide. But while some nuclear energy critics predicted that Fukushima would signal a pivotal shift away from nuclear energy, it has not happened. Here is a snapshot of the situation in Japan and the state of America’s industry as we look toward 2012.