Blog | Westinghouse Nuclear

Care About Carbon. Care About Nuclear Energy.

Written by Westinghouse Electric Company | February 11, 2021

Nuclear energy is part of the solution for those who care about a changing climate.

You care about creating a carbon-free future. So why should you also care about the benefits of nuclear energy? Because nuclear power offers these important benefits while providing safe, clean and reliable energy:

Care for a changing climate.
Nuclear energy, together with wind and other renewable energy sources, can counter the effects of a changing climate driven by the burning of fossil fuels. Every year, nuclear-generated energy saves our atmosphere 528 million metric tons of CO2. That’s equivalent to taking 111 million cars off the road.

Care for air quality.
Nuclear power plants produce virtually no air pollutants, while fossil fuel-based electricity generation continually releases tons of sulfur, nitrogen compounds and other greenhouse gases into our atmosphere.

Care for environmental impacts.
Advanced reactors, such as micro reactors and small modular reactors, offer fuel cycles that can reduce environmental impacts.1

Care for power production.
The power from five nuclear reactors is equal to 16 natural gas combined-cycle plants, which would emit a total of 12 million metric tons of CO2 per year.1

Care for a more reliable source.
Nuclear energy runs 24/7/365 days a year. In fact, nuclear power plants typically operate for longer stretches – 1.5 to 2 years – before refueling. Operating at full power more than 93% of the time, nuclear power plants reliably fill the renewable energy void that intermittent sources such as wind and solar power cannot.

Care for the next generation.
Emerging technologies such as small modular reactors can reduce the capital investment associated with nuclear power generation, enabling broad access to clean, safe, reliable energy.

Westinghouse is committed to a carbon-free future. Together, we can make it happen.

If you care about carbon, then you care about nuclear energy. And if you care about nuclear energy, you care about our work.

Find even more reasons to care about nuclear energy.

1 Source: Global Nexus Initiative report, "Nuclear Power for the Next Generation: Addressing Energy, Climate, and Security Challenges"