Nuclear power in the United States

Nuclear power in the United States
Name	Nuclear power in the United States
Country	United States

Contents

Nuclear power in the United States is the deployment and use of nuclear fission reactors for electricity generation across the United States. The sector encompasses reactor design, construction, operation, regulation, fuel cycle services, waste management, and decommissioning carried out by entities including General Electric, Westinghouse Electric Company, Exelon, Duke Energy, and Tennessee Valley Authority. Nuclear power has been shaped by events such as the Atucha, Three Mile Island accident, and policy initiatives like the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and interactions with institutions including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy, and Environmental Protection Agency.

History

The origins trace to research at Manhattan Project facilities, experiments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and early reactors such as Shippingport Atomic Power Station, with technology transfer involving firms like Westinghouse Electric Company and researchers from Los Alamos National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory. Commercial expansion during the 1960s–1970s saw orders for reactors by utilities including Pacific Gas and Electric Company and Consolidated Edison using designs from General Electric and Westinghouse Electric Company, influenced by licensing processes at the Atomic Energy Commission and later the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Three Mile Island accident in 1979 and policy responses such as litigation involving Pennsylvania and actions by state legislatures led to a construction hiatus; later incidents like Chernobyl disaster influenced public perception and regulatory tightening by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and research priorities at Brookhaven National Laboratory. In the 21st century, initiatives under the Department of Energy and incentives from the Energy Policy Act of 2005 spurred interest in advanced reactors by companies like NuScale Power, alongside projects linked to Vogtle Electric Generating Plant and proposals from Westinghouse Electric Company and General Electric.

The fleet consists primarily of light-water reactors built at sites such as Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, and Indian Point Energy Center with ownership or operation by Exelon, Duke Energy, Entergy Corporation, and the Tennessee Valley Authority. Reactor designs in operation include variants of the Pressurized water reactor and Boiling water reactor originally developed by Westinghouse Electric Company and General Electric; new concepts under development include small modular reactors from NuScale Power and advanced modular designs promoted by TerraPower and research at Idaho National Laboratory. Capacity factors and performance metrics are tracked by institutions like the Energy Information Administration and Nuclear Regulatory Commission, while retirements and uprates have involved plants such as San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant; fleet modernization programs reference partnerships with General Electric and Westinghouse Electric Company.

Regulatory authority rests with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for reactor licensing, oversight, and enforcement; safety frameworks draw on standards from the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, American Nuclear Society, and guidance from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Key safety episodes—Three Mile Island accident and licensing reviews following Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster—prompted rulemaking and emergency preparedness coordination with state agencies such as those in Pennsylvania and California and federal entities like the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Nuclear security intersects with mandates from the Department of Homeland Security and interagency work with the Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration concerning material control, cyber security, and insider threat programs. Legal and regulatory disputes have involved litigation in federal courts, petitions from organizations like the Natural Resources Defense Council, and oversight hearings in the United States Congress.

Economic viability has depended on capital cost, financing structures, and market signals in regions governed by state public utility commissions such as those in Illinois and New York, and wholesale market operators including PJM Interconnection and Midcontinent Independent System Operator. Policy instruments—tax incentives in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, state-level zero-emission credits in New Jersey and New York, and federal loan guarantees administered by the Department of Energy—have affected projects at Vogtle Electric Generating Plant and proposals by Westinghouse Electric Company. Competition from natural gas supplied from plays like the Marcellus Shale and renewable deployment by companies involved with NextEra Energy Resources and policies in California have pressured economics; analyses by the Energy Information Administration and academic centers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University frame debates over levelized cost, carbon pricing, and grid reliability.

Used fuel storage practices include on-site dry cask storage at sites like San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and pooled wet storage managed under NRC rules; long-term repository policy has been shaped by the cancellation of the Yucca Mountain repository and alternatives proposed by the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future. The Department of Energy and contractors such as Bechtel Corporation oversee cleanup at legacy sites including Hanford Site and Savannah River Site, with scientific input from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Idaho National Laboratory. Decommissioning projects at plants like Zion Nuclear Power Station involve trust funds regulated by federal statutes and agreements with state radiological control programs; private firms such as EnergySolutions and Holtec International participate in dismantlement and site remediation.

Public attitudes toward nuclear power are influenced by events such as the Three Mile Island accident, Chernobyl disaster, and Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, studies by organizations like the Pew Research Center and campaigns by advocacy groups such as the Sierra Club and Union of Concerned Scientists. Environmental assessments consider lifecycle emissions compared with natural gas and coal, biodiversity concerns at sites like Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, water use impacts on rivers such as the Mississippi River, and seismic risk analyses referencing the United States Geological Survey. Climate policy debates in venues like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and research at institutions including the National Renewable Energy Laboratory weigh nuclear power's role in decarbonization, resilience, and land-use tradeoffs.