Pioneering Equality: Nuclear Technology is a Solution for Equitable Energy, Healthcare, and Food Access
When we think of nuclear technology, an image of reactors and toxic waste comes to mind; it is a collage of dangerous and hazardous weapons. With the devastation of Chernobyl, Fukushima, and Nagasaki fresh to many, nuclear technology has become stigmatized and synonymously connotated with death. This, however, creates a barrier against the share of the innovative technologies nuclear chemistry has created for society- far beyond simply weapons. Though nuclear technology has been misused for harm, it has also been used as a revolutionary form of climate activism, life-saving machinery, and a method of societal advancement.
From University of Norte Dame
Most importantly, nuclear technology is being developed as a combatant against climate change and injustice. Nuclear energy has saved over 1.8 million lives that would have been lost to air pollution as this is a green, carbon-free energy source. Though many fear the waste nuclear energy makes, in reality, 1 tonne of thorium is equal to approximately 3,500,000 tonnes of coal; 64 Giga tons of fossil fuel have not been pumped into the atmosphere due to this energy source. Every year millions die from climate-related disasters, it is an inevitable fact that change is necessary to the survival of the human race. Though nuclear energy may not be the best long-term solution, it can still save millions of lives of those who live in impoverished places with poor infrastructure, it is a solution to aid those who face the greatest repercussions of society's environmental errors.
Nuclear technology has had further positive effects by advancing the medical field, a third of all patients admitted to the US are treated using radiation (energy.gov). Camera imaging and cancer treatments are revolutionary and have saved countless lives, a feat possible due to nuclear technology. Radiation treatment is generally only available to developed countries, if we were to further enhance this technology it is possible to reach more patients worldwide. Nuclear technology is crucial to ensuring the growth and accessibility of global health. the Surprisingly, nuclear technology has also enhanced the field of agriculture. Currently in agriculture, specific crops are being exposed to radiation therapy to further yield, Indonesia now has more than 35 new crop varieties because of this special treatment. This is a system meant to help alleviate poverty and hunger, yet another one of nuclear technology's radical uses.