World Nuclear Energy Day is on Dec. 2, and the day marks a global celebration of nuclear energy and the people who make it happen. The recognition is well deserved, as the industry works to decarbonize the electricity sector and develop innovative, game-changing technologies. This year’s world nuclear energy day celebrates the theme “nuclear in the neighborhood.”
This is appropriate, as nuclear energy’s benefits reach neighborhoods across the world in a variety of ways—from medicine to agriculture to space missions. A large way it impacts our communities is through its ability to provide 24/7/365 carbon-free energy.
As the world seeks to reduce its CO2 emissions and transition to clean energy, we are faced with the challenge of powering the world to net zero. Nuclear power plants provide many benefits to the communities where they are built, including lasting, high-paying jobs.
Each plant currently operating employs 500 to 800 workers, and for every 100 nuclear power plant jobs, 66 more jobs are created in the local community for people from a wide range of fields and educational backgrounds.
The industry also employs a large number of veterans, as recent surveys show that the workforce at nuclear utilities is almost 20 percent veterans.
In addition to creating work for multiple generations of workers, salaries in the industry are 50 percent higher on average than those of other electricity generation sources.
Because nuclear power plants are a great source of economic prosperity, there were multiple communities vying to be the location of a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) advanced reactor demonstration project (ARDP) by TerraPower and Pacificorp.
Earlier this year, TerraPower and Pacificorp announced a partnership to advance the Natrium nuclear demonstration project at the site of a coal plant scheduled for retirement in Wyoming, offering a solution to efficiently and economically bridge the nation’s energy transition as coal plants retire.
It is vitally important to reduce emissions, but closing any major power plant can harm communities that have come to rely on the jobs and tax revenues those plants provide. Nuclear energy can solve that problem.
“The energy communities that have powered us for generations have real opportunities to power our clean energy future through projects just like this one, that provide good-paying jobs and usher in the next wave of nuclear technologies,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm in a TerraPower press release.
The companies evaluated four potential locations, and all four communities leaned forward into the process, expressing their strong interest in the project. TerraPower and Pacificorp spent time in these towns evaluating environmental factors and construction logistics, as well as talking to members of the communities.
They recently selected the Naughton Power Plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, where two coal units are scheduled to retire in 2025, as the preferred site for the Natrium reactor.
According to TerraPower, approximately 2,000 workers will be needed for construction at the project’s peak, and once the plant is operational, approximately 250 people will directly support day-to-day activities.
“On behalf of Kemmerer and surrounding communities, we are pleased and excited to host the Natrium demonstration project. This is great for Kemmerer and great for Wyoming,” said Bill Thek, the mayor of Kemmerer.
The coal to nuclear transition demonstrates how nuclear can impact local communities, while nuclear energy works around-the-clock to provide reliable, carbon-free energy to neighborhoods across the nation.
