| Summary: | The nuclear fuel cycle is categorized into nine
components. Each component is described with respect
to its operations and radioactive effluent streams.
Engineering estimates of radioactive releases to the
environment are summarized for each component from the
1976 report of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
entitled, "Final Generic Environmental Statement on
the Use of Recycle Plutonium in Mixed Oxide Fuel and
Light Water Cooled Reactors."
Actual radioactivity release data reported semi-
annually by licensed facilities in the U.S., plus
actual release data found in the literature for Canadian
and European facilities, are summarized to the extent
that data are available for the years 1970 through
1976. These actual data are compared with the engineer-
ing estimates of the NRC. Particular emphasis is
given to a comparison of reactor types, including:
pressurized water reactors, boiling water reactors,
high temperature gas cooled reactors, European gas
cooled reactors and several types of heavy water
cooled and/or moderated reactors. Figures showing
relative magnitudes of releases for the different reactor
types and trends versus time are drawn.
Estimates of world population exposures for each
fuel cycle component are calculated for the actual
release data from information provided for the estimated
release data. Similarly, total radiological health
effects resulting from the production of one giga-watt-
year of power for the various nuclear fuel cycles are
estimated.
Lastly, a comparison is made of these health effects
to the radiological health effects of the fossil fuel
cycles of natural gas, oil and coal. No attempt is
made to characterize the non-radiological health effects
of any fuel cycle.
|
|---|