Nuclear Energy News Assignment

Nuclear Energy Storage –
Impact of Expansion at the Prairie Island Site
Chemistry 111 Spring 2004

Did you know that two nuclear reactors are located less than 50 miles from Northfield? The reactors at Prairie Island are operated by Xcel Energy to provide for Minnesota’s energy needs. In this assignment we will investigate the issues around the Prairie Island reactors.

The assignment will begin today, will continue in class on Thursday, March 11, 2004 and culminate with the position paper you turn in on Thursday, March 18, 2004. As individuals and as a class, we will work together to explore the science and policy behind nuclear power by following these steps (note the process is slightly different than last time):

1. Read the assigned information about nuclear energy and the Prairie Island reactors.
Each class member will read some information about the nuclear energy and the Prairie Island reactors. Not everyone will read the same material. The resources you are assigned should be read thoroughly before coming to class on Thursday, March 11.

Information sources:

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

Group 4

2.    Identify the Scientific/Technological Issue
In an effort to help you deepen your understanding about the information you read in step 1, above, identify the issue(s) raised in the reading. To do this, answer the questions listed below and on the back of this sheet before coming to class on Thursday, March 11. Write your answers on this sheet, it will be turned in with your position paper on March 18.

3.     Formulate opinion of author; identify alternative opinions
This step will be carried out individually before coming to class on Thursday, March 11. Based on the reading of the assigned information and your analysis of the issues, write a single sentence that summarizes the authors’ opinion about being nuclear energy at Prairie Island. If your reading lead to different opinions, write more than one sentence.

4.     Find and summarize opinions and factors from other sources
Other students in the class read different information about nuclear energy and Prairie Island. Form a group composed of students who read different material, with one representative having read each of the sets of materials. Take turns conveying information gained from your readings and your summary sentences from part 3. Summarize the opinions from the various sources and articulate a single sentence (if one opinion emerged) or several sentences (if multiple opinions emerged). Each student should record the group sentence below.

5.    Write a position paper stating and supporting your position on the scientific issue or course of action
Based on your reading, discussions within the student groups in the classroom, and general class discussion, formulate your own opinion about nuclear energy and Prairie Island. Write a one-page position paper stating and supporting your position. Staple the Part 1 and Part 2 pages to your paper (put the paper on the top). This paper is due on Thursday, March 18 and will be graded according to the rubric described on the course web page.

For this paper you should consult additional sources of information. One source that might be of interest is the Minnesota Public Radio news reports on the 2003 Minnesota Legislative Session, when the expansion of dry cask storage was considered.

Group 1: Yucca Mountain Group

Information Sources	Questions
Help fight the growing problem of America’s nuclear waste by MPIRG	What is high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel? How is it generated and what is done with it?
Questions and Answers on the Proposed Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Dump by MPIRG	Where is Yucca Mountain and how will nuclear waste be transported there?
Roads or Rails? Government offers few details on how 70,000 tons of radioactive waste will get to Nevada dump site by Jeff Johnson, Chemical and Engineering News	What reasons did you find in favor of creating a federal repository of spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain?
	What reasons did you find against creating a federal repository of spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain?

Group 2: Minnesota Legislature Group

Information Sources	Questions
Resources on Minnesota Issues: Prairie Island Nuclear Waste Storage	When did the reactors at Prairie Island begin operation? When do the licenses for operating these reactors expire?
Nuclear Energy and Xcel Energy’s 2002 Resource Plan	What is a baseload energy resource? What percentage of Minnesota’s energy needs are supplied by nuclear energy?
	How is spent nuclear fuel being stored at the present time?
	What are renewable energy sources and what is Xcel Energy doing to develop renewable energy sources?

Group 3: MPIRG and Prairie Island

Information Sources	Questions
Prairie Island Campaign (primarily 1990-95): MPIRG gets strongest limits on waste storage ever; establishes lasting coalition by MPIRG	What is MPIRG?
Oppose Nuclear Waste Buildup on the Mississippi River by MPIRG	Are the nuclear reactors at Prairie Island safe?
Minnesota Meltdown? Safety concerns plague Minnesota’s nuclear power plants by MPIRG	What reasons did you find against increasing the dry cask storage capacity at the Prairie Island site?
	What alternatives to nuclear energy or dry cask storage did you find?

Group 4:

Information Sources	Questions
MIT Study Sees Nuclear Power as Green Weapon Against Global Warming in Physics Today by Jim Dawson	What reasons did you find in favor of continuing to invest in nuclear power?
The Future of Nuclear Power, News Release	What happens to the Prairie Island plant when/if it is shut down?
Nuclear Power Can Work by John Deutch and Ernest Moniz	Where is radioactive waste from the Prairie Island reactors stored?
Minnesota Department of Commerce Report: Background on Nuclear Power in Minnesota	How much storage space is currently available and how much is required for future operations?

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