Wednesday, April 30, 2014

The use of nuclear energy to produce electric power is found in approximately 13% of the World’s countries. Some of the biggest producers of electric power in this manner are the United States of America, Japan, China, France, United Kingdom and Russia. Countries that rely on a smaller percentage of their electric needs include Sweden, and South Korea. At this time, nuclear power plants reactors are under construction in Brazil, South Korea. There are over 440 Operating Nuclear Power Plants worldwide. Most countries rely on light water nuclear reactors, which are inherently safe, with the gas-cooled, graphite moderator reactor being the safest. Canada, however, relies on heavy water nuclear reactors, which when compared to light-water reactors, are far more dangerous to run, and therefore provide additional risk relative to cyber-security. Similarly, the Russian Chernobyl reactor design, a high-power channel reactor is a combination pressurized water-cooled reactor with individual fuel channels and using graphite as its moderator, whose design has core characteristics that make it prone to power surges. The disaster at Chernobyl depicts very well the threat of this reactor design and the potential threat of the peaceful use of the atom. In anticipation of issues, which are naturally going to occur, the United Nations, in 1957, established the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) whose intent is to provide a word-wide collaborative effort between States regarding the use of nuclear energy for peaceful means or “Atoms for Peace.” The programs of the IAEA encourage the development and sharing of information for the peaceful applications of nuclear technology, provide international safeguards against misuse of nuclear technology and nuclear materials, and promote nuclear safety. The mission of the IAEA includes development of nuclear security standards and their implementation. In this regard, nuclear security involves the prevention, detection, and response to, criminal or intentional, unauthorized acts involving or directed at nuclear material, other radioactive material, associated facilities, or associated activities, and other intentional acts that could directly or indirectly produce harmful consequences to persons, property, society or to the environment.

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