THE PROS AND CONS OF NUCLEAR ENERGY:

BATAAN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

A Term Paper Presented

to Ms. Maria Hannah Martin

Department of English and Applied Linguistics

College of Liberal Arts

De La Salle University

In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for ENGLRES

Second Trimester, AY (2014-2015)

By

Apacible, Patrick Anthony M.

Pacayra, April Oilec Deanielle B.

DECEMBER 2014
 FINAL OUTLINE

I. Introduction
A. Background of the Study
1. History of Nuclear Energy in the Philippines
B. Statement of the Problem
1. Energy Crisis in the Philippines
C. Process of Nuclear Energy
D. Energy Sources in the Philippines
1. Non-renewable Energy
a. Coal
b. Oil and Gas
2. Renewable Energy
E. Purpose of the Study
II. Advantages of the use of Nuclear Energy
A. Low Cost Energy
B. Lesser Fuel Requirement
C. Cleaner Energy
D. Large Power Generating Capacity
E. Reliable Source of Energy
F. Lesser Deaths
III. Disadvantages of the use of Nuclear Energy
A. Expensive Capital Cost
B. Hazardous Effects
1. Health
2. Environment
C. Vulnerable to Natural Catastrophes
IV. Data and Results
V. Current State of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant
VI. Conclusion
 INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

In 1958, the Philippines started a nuclear program with the formation of the

Philippine Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) under Republic Act 2067. In July 1973, the

Marcos administration publicized its assessment to build a nuclear power plant which will be

constructed by Westinghouse. In 1977, the construction of the US$ 2.2 billion Bataan Nuclear

Power Plant (BNPP) began at Napot Point in Morong, Bataan which is nine kilometers from the

Mt. Natib volcano located between the Philippine Fault and the West Luzon Fault.

The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant construction was immediately stopped due to the

1979 Three Mile Island catastrophe in the United States. An examination on the safety of the

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant revealed 4,000 defects. Former Senator Lorenzo Tañada (1983)

stated that "Mr. Marcos and his nuclear advisers may well be long remembered for having put up

the most expensive and dangerous nuclear power plant in the world, thereby saddling present and

future generations of Filipinos with enormous foreign loans".

Statement of the Problem

Department of Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla (2014) said to a conference that in

the year 2015, Luzon will experience energy crisis due to dearth reserve. Additionally, among

the ASEAN countries, the Philippines has the most expensive power rate. However, the

advantage of the Philippines is that it has sustainable resources. The country only needs to

develop more sources to prevent energy crisis because of a drastic demand for power in the

future.
Process of Nuclear Energy

Atoms contain a large amount of energy that holds the nuclei together. Through

fission or splitting, certain isotopes of some elements will release part of their energy as heat, a

series of which is called a chain reaction. The heat released can be used to generate electricity in

nuclear power plants. Uranium-235 is one of the isotopes that fissions easily. Nuclear power

plants operate like any other steam-electric power plant. The steam from the boiling water turns

the turbines then generates electricity.

Non-Renewable Energy Sources in the Philippines

Coal has the largest reserve and is often the cheapest of the fuel options. Now that

clean coal technologies are emerging, the demand for coal has remained stagnant despite the

current stringent standard on environmental concerns. The Philippines consumes largely on coal

having the highest contribution to power generation. Additionally, the country has a wide

potential for coal resources to contribute to the energy self-sufficiency program.

The largest gas discovery in the Philippines, Malampaya gas field, was discovered

by Shell in 1990. It started to commercially produce and provide clean fuel for power generation

in 2002. Today, the Malampaya natural gas provides almost half of the power requirement of

Luzon.
Renewable Energy Sources in the Philippines

The utilization of renewable energy has been a critical component of the strategy

of the government in providing energy supply for the country. Increased generation from

geothermal and hydro resources has reduced the dependency of the country on imported and

polluting fuels. Renewable energy sources such as solar, micro-hydro, wind and biomass

resources are maximize in rural areas.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this research is to identify the advantages and the disadvantages of

operating or reviving a nuclear power plant and to know how can the people sustain the nuclear

program in the Philippines. This paper argues that although nuclear energy is beneficial and

economical to consumers, nuclear energy is still inevitable to produce hazardous effects to the

country and its people economically and physically.

Advantages of Nuclear Energy

There are several advantages of nuclear energy, one of which is being a low cost

energy. In a paper written by Dr. Clarence A. Hardy (2006, July 13), he contradicted the claims

of those who oppose nuclear energy that it is a high cost energy. According to him, the high

quality of nuclear facilities, as well as its high end security, makes the capital costs of nuclear

energy expensive. However, if the fuel costs are considered, the lifetime cost of nuclear nuclear

energy is cheaper compared to other energy sources. In addition, the cost of waste management

of nuclear facilities is also cheaper in comparison to other energy sources which depend only on

the amount of electrical energy produced, unlike coal and gas power plants wherein the cost of

air pollution is being considered.

 Another advantage of nuclear energy over coal and gas power plants is its absence

of carbon dioxide emission. Coal and gas power plants produce tremendous amounts of carbon

dioxide in the atmosphere, which is about 726.99 metric tons of carbon dioxide emission per

Gigawatt – hour of electrical energy produced for coal and 441.82 metric tons of carbon dioxide

emission per Gigawatt – hour of electrical energy produced for natural gas power plant (Kabang

Kalikasan ng Pilipinas & University of the Philippines Solar Laboratory, 2003). These

significant amounts of carbon dioxide emission in the atmosphere have been the cause of global

warming and climate change.

In terms of fuel, the fuel requirement of nuclear energy is lesser compared to

other energy sources. To produce high amounts of electrical energy, only a few amount of

uranium of plutonium fuel is needed, which makes it easy for importation, although security

makes the cost a little bit more expensive.

Nuclear energy is also said to be a reliable energy. Its reliability is associated to

the fact that electrical energy can always be harnessed from a nuclear power plant, regardless of

the weather conditions present unlike solar energy, wherein the presence of sun is very

important, as well as the wind energy, which needs wind to produce electrical energy.
Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

One of the negative environmental impacts of nuclear energy is its excessive use

of land and water in uranium mining. Hundreds of thousands of toxic materials and waste

products are being produced just to extract uranium which can run a nuclear reactor for a year.

Uranium mining is also dangerous to human health. This is due to the fact that

miners get to inhale radioactive dust which affects their health negatively, regardless of the

method of mining the uranium. If constantly exposed to radioactive dust, miners might develop

pulmonary diseases such as lung cancer. In addition, radioactive dust exposure can make life

shorter. In fact, based from the data gathered by International Commission of Radiologic

Protection, 5 to 35% workers per year die because of uranium mining. Worse, there is no safe

level exposure to radioactive nucleids. This means that even small amounts of radioactive

exposure have adverse effects to human body in the same way a large amount does (Sovacool,

B.K., 2011).

Nuclear energy is also disadvantageous in terms of security. In the Encyclopedia

of Espionage, Intelligence and Security by Larry Gilman (2004), he presented two basic security

concerns regarding nuclear power plants. The first concern is that the fuel used in nuclear power

plants (uranium and plutonium) can be used to produce nuclear weapons. Another concern is the

possible use of used radioactive fuel to create nuclear bombs, which can be done by stealing the

used fuel from nuclear waste storage facilities. By mixing this with other explosive weapons, a

nuclear weapon can be made. Another way of using the radioactive fuel to aid terrorism is by

releasing it in the environment, sabotaging the security system.

 To address these concerns, nuclear proliferation, defined as possession of large

amounts of nuclear weapons, has been recognized as a global hazard since 1960’s. This was

done to avoid the large scale use of nuclear energy in acts of terrorism, specifically in making

nuclear weapons, due to its fatal effects to humans even in low concentrations.

The Philippines is susceptible to natural catastrophes such as storms, floods,

earthquakes, tsunamis, etc. The reason for this is that the country is a tropical archipelago

situated in the pacific ring of fire. Robert Pollard (1983), a nuclear safety engineer, made an

investigation about the Bataan nuclear power plant. He concluded that the nuclear power plant

has no environmental impact assessment and it has a poor quality of the design of the

construction.

Given the fact that the Philippines is a tropical country, it is visited by several

storms with intense winds. Nuclear power plants and storms do not mix well. According to an

article by Lucy Birmingham (2012), superstorms with strong winds create floods that may cause

electrical disruption in the nuclear power plant similar to what happened in Atlantic City, USA

when hurricane Sandy made landfall. Additionally, floods caused by storms may cause a

meltdown like what happened to the Fukushima power plant in Japan which was flooded by

tsunami waves caused by the Great East Japan earthquake.

Data and Results

For the past years, the country has been experiencing shortage of energy supply,

specifically in Visayas and Mindanao. This 2014, the scarcity of electrical energy became more

evident as Luzon had suffered several rotational brownouts. By the year 2015, the Department

of Energy predicted that there will be no reserve energy. This prevailing problem in electrical

energy led the researchers to study about the feasibility of nuclear energy, specifically the use of

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in the Philippines. In order to investigate the capability and

sustainability of nuclear energy as an alternative source of energy in the country, the researchers

interviewed Engr. Josue Robertson Reyes, a mechanical engineer and an advocate of nuclear

energy.

According to Engr. Reyes, nuclear energy, along with the other renewable energy

sources, should be the source of energy in the Philippines. He emphasized that compared to coal

and oil power plants, the number of deaths related in nuclear energy is definitely lesser. The fuel

is also cheaper in contrast to other energy sources. In terms of risks, he stated that they can be

addressed through proper system and training, as well as by following the safety guidelines and

standards regarding the operation of nuclear power plants.

If nuclear energy will not be possible, he suggested that solar energy should be

the other alternative source of energy. Regarding the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, he said that

even if nuclear energy will be used in the Philippines or not, the facility is no longer usable since

it is already outdated, not to mention the fact that the machineries in the facility were already

stolen. However, there are probable places in the country that are suitable for constructing and

operating a nuclear facility; it only needs to follow certain guidelines to prevent hazards.
 The interviewee said that importing plutonium, the source of nuclear energy

which is better and cheaper than uranium, is cheaper than other imported sources such as oil and

gas. However, considering the fact that the Philippines is experiencing energy crisis due to high

prices of energy resources, importing nuclear resources will not do much help in the economy

because the demand will be greatly higher than the supply adding the operational and

maintenance costs of the facility. Even though the resource person is an expert in the field of

nuclear energy and his statements are parallel with the researchers’ literature, the data gathered is

evidently biased towards the use of nuclear energy. This can be associated to the fact that he is

one of the few advocates of nuclear energy.

Current State of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant
CONCLUSION
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

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 APPENDIX: Interview Questions

Interview Questions

 What is your opinion about nuclear energy in the Philippines? Are you in favor or against it?

 In the face of the current energy crisis, are you considering nuclear energy as a source of

energy?

 How can the government or any private institutions make nuclear energy possible

considering the costs, fuel and safety?

 Do you think nuclear energy can sustain itself and be a long-term source of energy?

 If nuclear energy is not possible in the Philippines, what do you think can be an alternative

source of energy?

 What can be done with Bataan Nuclear Power Plant? Can we convert it into another energy

facility?