Is nuclear energy production more deadly than renewable energy production?
Nuclear-plant accidents have garnered wide attention, but statistics show that nuclear energy sources, when compared with the energy generated, are responsible for fewer deaths overall than renewable energy sources. A 2016 study in the Journal of Cleaner Production reported that 0.01 deaths per terawatt hour (TWh) are attributable to nuclear energy, while solar energy is associated with 0.019 deaths/TWh.
“The relative safety of nuclear ends up being extremely counter-intuitive,” The Visual Capitalist reports, as people overlook “slow, consistent deaths that occur over time with other energy sources.”
Fossil fuel sources tend to be associated with much higher death rates than either nuclear or renewables, reflecting the effect of air pollution as well as risks to workers involved in their extraction and production.
