- Avoidance
- Worldwide
- North America
- Western Europe
- Eastern Europe
- Far East
- Rest of the World
- Conservation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   The International Nuclear Forum
Greenhouse Gas Emissions - North America		  
 

Information from: Nuclear Energy’s Clean Air Benefits on a Worldwide Scale, Nuclear Energy Institute, November 1997


Electricity supply in North America

There were 132 nuclear power units in operation in North America in 1995.

Country Number of Units Capacity(MW) 1973-1995 generation (million kWh)
 Canada  21  14 907  1 280 601
 Mexico  2  1 308  29 046
 United States  109  99 414  9 336 728
 TOTAL  132  115 629  10 649 375

 

Nuclear contribution to electricity by country region, 1995

North America's 132 nuclear plants generated 820 billion kilowatt-hours in 1995.

On a country-by-country basis, North America's nuclear energy plants supplied the following shares of electricity in 1995.

Fuel displacements by nuclear energy in North America

In addition to nuclear energy, North America has traditionally relied principally on coal for baseload generation purposes. Therefore, as indicated below, the vast majority of the fossil fuels that has historically been displaced by the region's nuclear plants is coal.

During 1995, North America's 132 nuclear energy plants avoided the use of approximately:

297 million tons of coal.

1.8 trillion cubic feet of gas.

69 million barrels of oil.

 

Over the period 1973-1995, the use of nuclear energy in North America avoided the burning of fossil fuels by about:

3.8 billion tons of coal.

19 trillion cubic feet of gas.

17 billion barrels of oil.

Emissions reductions as a result of nuclear in North America

North America's nuclear energy plants reduced the region's carbon dioxide emissions by:

174 million metric tons of carbon in 1995

2.2 billion metric tons of carbon since 1973.

Electric utilities in North American would have emitted 31% more carbon dioxide in 1995 without their nuclear generating capacity.


During 1995, North America's 132 nuclear energy plants avoided the discharge of approximately:

6 million tons of sulphur dioxide.

3 million tons of nitrogen oxide.

Over the period 1973-1995, nuclear energy in North America reduced the sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions by about:

88 million tons of sulphur dioxide.

39 million tons of nitrogen oxide.

North America's electric utility sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions would have been 31% greater in 1995 in the absence of nuclear energy.

  

 

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