A
nuclear power plant |
Imagine what your house would be like if no one
EVER took out the garbage. Not only would your home
be dirty and stinky, but it would also be a very
unhealthy place to live. To stay healthy, we need
to take our garbage out.
What if we took out the garbage, but let it pile
up in our yards? Over time, our neighborhoods would
become very unhealthy places to live. So we have
sanitary workers pick up our garbage and properly
dispose of it in landfills.
Right now, nuclear
waste is piling up in a lot of places around
the country. But nuclear waste is not like normal
garbage. Most of the waste is large metal rods that
are no longer useful for making electricity at nuclear
power plants. Other nuclear waste is from government
programs and is made of a solid glass-like material
inside sealed metal canisters.
All of the nuclear waste is very radioactive.
It gives off invisible energy rays that can make
people sick and even die. Nuclear waste will stay
radioactive for hundreds of thousands of years.
Right now, we store nuclear waste in special
buildings and containers that are safe for a
certain amount of time. But it isn't right to let
the waste keep piling up and expect someone else
to take care of it later on. We must be responsible
for our nuclear waste and put in a place where it
can never harm people or the environment.
Last reviewed 06/07 |
