Water-cooled and moderated nuclear fission is a power source that does not directly
generate GHGs. Indirect GHG emissions do occur and are accounted for by life cycle
analysis (IAEA, 1994). Nevertheless, these emissions are at least one order of
magnitude lower when compared with fossil fuelled plants of the same electric
capacity (Uchiyama, 1996; Taylor, 1994; Dones et al., 1994). Major reasons for
the significant slowdown in construction of these plants are the huge capital
investment required for the construction of the plant, the handling of nuclear
fuel materials which can be used for military purposes, the large volume of radioactive
materials which can cause significant social and environmental disasters if improperly
handled, and issues related to nuclear waste storage (WEC, 1998). Considering
the positive aspect of low GHG emission, the technology could be considered provided
it can contribute to sustainable development that is advocated in Article 12 of
the Kyoto Protocol.
