Is the Role of Nuclear Energy Vital in Reducing Carbon Footprint? An Examination of the Twelve Highest Nuclear Energy Consumption Countries

Authors : İrem YALKI

Pages : 15-29

Doi:10.58620/fbujoss.1320579

View : 44 | Download : 35

Publication Date : 2023-06-30

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The crucial problem in the last few decades is environmental degradation unquestionably. The main cause of environmental degradation is burning fossil fuels, and they dominate the energy sector. Besides, energy demand has been increasing, and this situation forces policymakers to make a decision on economic development versus climate change. Also, the Paris Agreement put pressure on the countries to reduce CO2 emissions, so it accelerated countries\` transition to clean energy resources. At this point, nuclear energy comes to the forefront as it is classified as clean energy status. On the other hand, the notion of nuclear energy is clean or not is a matter of debate. In case of a nuclear accident, it becomes the most environmentally damaging resource. Thus, this study aims at investigating the role of nuclear energy on the axis of reducing carbon footprint. For this purpose, the values and the shares of nuclear energy in the World and the top twelve nuclear energy consumption countries, and also their CO2 emissions are examined by using descriptive analysis. The results should be interpreted as the CO2 emissions avoided by using nuclear energy is not vital for these countries. Moreover, the emissions could be provided by renewable energy resources.
Keywords : nükleer enerji, karbon ayak izi, temiz enerji, çevresel bozulma