The Effect of TMI on the Electric Grid or: How We Did Not Learn to Stop Worrying and Love Nuclear Power

68 Pages Posted: 8 Oct 2024

Date Written: August 05, 2024

Abstract

With the goal of 1000 nuclear power plants by the year 2000, the US was on the path to energy independence. However, the 1979 Three Mile Island accident turned public opinion against nuclear energy and spelled decades of stagnation for the industry. We show that the accident both halted the growth of the US reactor fleet, and stifled innovation in nuclear physics. We propose a mechanism by which accumulated scientific knowledge determines the capacity of nuclear reactors, and find that some 55 billion tons of CO2 emissions, 2.3 million premature deaths, and 14 trillion USD in health costs could have been avoided, had we displaced fossil fuels with nuclear power.

Suggested Citation

Poberejsky, Roma and Gex, Guillaume, The Effect of TMI on the Electric Grid or: How We Did Not Learn to Stop Worrying and Love Nuclear Power (August 05, 2024). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4944793 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4944793

Roma Poberejsky

Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management ( email )

2001 Sheridan Road
Evanston, IL 60208
United States

HOME PAGE: http://rpober.github.io

Guillaume Gex (Contact Author)

Northwestern University ( email )

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