Many people don't realize the role that nuclear energy plays in our daily lives. Here's the lowdown on this clean, constant, and cool energy resource.
June 28, 2017
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This week the Administration is celebrating the contributions of America’s energy sector to our economy and our security through a series of events dubbed “Energy Week.” There’s a lot to be proud of — from a booming oil and gas sector to a surging market for renewable energy, the United States continues to be a dominant player on the world’s energy stage.
Here in the Energy Department’s Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), we’re particularly proud of the contributions being made by the nation’s nuclear power plants. Nuclear is, in short, a clean, constant, and downright cool energy resource. Unfortunately, many people may not understand how remarkable this unique energy source truly is, or the role that it plays in our energy portfolio and Americans’ daily lives.
So, in honor of Energy Week, here are some key facts about nuclear energy and how it makes our world a better place:
- Nuclear energy is truly “American made.” The United States pioneered the peaceful use of atomic energy in the years after World War II, and was the first nation on earth to harness electricity from a nuclear reactor.
- Today, nuclear energy generates roughly 20 percent of America’s electricity while emitting zero greenhouse gases, making it by far the largest source of clean energy in the country.
- Nuclear plants can operate around the clock, seven days a week, for 18 months or more at a time without stopping to refuel. It’s the most constant, reliable energy resource we have in our portfolio.
- Nationally, the nuclear industry supports an estimated 475,000 direct and indirect jobs, and adds approximately $60 billion to the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
- Internationally, the United States has set the gold standard for the safe, peaceful use of nuclear technology, with the world’s strongest safety measures and oversight. While other nations like Russia and China have developed nuclear industries of their own, the world has benefitted greatly from American leadership.
- Beyond our planet, nuclear technology powers deep-space exploration. The Mars Rover, the Cassini Saturn orbiter, and the New Horizons craft that flew past Pluto all use Plutonium-238 to generate the electricity needed for their missions. Pretty cool, right?
So, what does the future look like for nuclear? We believe it is bright, and we’re working to keep it that way. In NE, we are working with industry and other stakeholders to extend the lifecycles of our current fleet of reactors, and we’re also working to support the next generation of advanced nuclear reactors. We have supported the development of state-of-the-art and exciting new small modular reactors (SMRs), which could prove to be cheaper, more flexible alternatives to the larger-scale reactors we have today. We are also supporting the development of accident-tolerant light water reactor fuel and advanced proliferation-resistant fuels for sustainable fuel cycles. And we are supporting the next generation of nuclear engineers by providing undergraduate scholarships and graduate fellowships to students.
As we celebrate the Administration’s “Energy Week,” we will keep working to achieve NE’s core mission of advancing nuclear power as a resource capable of meeting the nation's energy, environmental, and national security needs. With the demand for electricity on the rise both domestically and around the world, American leadership on nuclear energy is more important than ever.
Edward McGinnis
Edward McGinnis was formerly the acting Assistant Secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy. Prior to that role, he served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy and the Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Nuclear Energy Policy and Cooperation. As Deputy Assistant Secretary, he was responsible for the Department of Energy's international civilian nuclear energy activities, including international nuclear energy research, development and demonstration cooperation, multilateral nuclear energy cooperation, international nuclear energy policy, international nuclear safety cooperation, and advocacy for U.S. civil nuclear exports and industry. As part of these responsibilities, Mr. McGinnis served as Steering Group Chairman of the International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation that consists of more than 65 countries and 4 international organizations. He also served as the Departmental Representative in the U.S. interagency for civil nuclear energy trade and promotion. Mr. McGinnis has also served as a Vice Chairman and Principal U.S. Representative to the Generation IV International Forum and was responsible for U.S. domestic nuclear fuel assurance matters, including technical oversight activities regarding the United States Enrichment Corporation, uranium inventory management matters, as well as U.S. nuclear energy security matters.
Prior to working in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Mr. McGinnis led a number of other high-priority U.S. government initiatives at DOE, including having served as the senior director for the Office of Global Radiological Threat Reduction where he managed global operations involving the search, recovery, security, and disposal of high-risk radiological and nuclear sources in cooperation with over 40 countries, including within the United States. These activities included recovery of high-risk radiological sources from Iraq, establishment of a Global Radiological Regional Partnership Program, and the first-of-its-kind repatriation of high-risk U.S.-origin plutonium-239 sources. Mr. McGinnis also established and served as the director of the Nuclear and Radiological Threat Reduction Task Force, which was created to carry out a number of key Secretarial national security initiatives, including the development of a global nuclear materials removal and research reactor security study that included the identification of nuclear research reactors throughout the world by level of vulnerability and an action plan to effectively mitigate such vulnerabilities.
Mr. McGinnis also served as senior advisor and special assistant to four Assistant Secretaries and Deputy Administrators for nonproliferation and national security at the Department of Energy where he served as a senior advisor for all aspects of the Department's nonproliferation missions, including nonproliferation research and development, materials protection, control and accounting, and warhead security.
Edward McGinnis is the acting Assistant Secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy. The Office is responsible for conducting research on current and future nuclear energy systems, maintaining the government’s nuclear energy research infrastructure, establishing a path forward for the nation’s spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste management program, and a host of other national priorities.
Prior to this role, he served as the former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy and the Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Nuclear Energy Policy and Cooperation. As Deputy Assistant Secretary, he was responsible for the Department of Energy's international civilian nuclear energy activities, including international nuclear energy research, development and demonstration cooperation, multilateral nuclear energy cooperation, international nuclear energy policy, international nuclear safety cooperation, and advocacy for U.S. civil nuclear exports and industry. As part of these responsibilities, Mr. McGinnis served as Steering Group Chairman of the International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation that consists of more than 65 countries and four international organizations. He also served as the Departmental Representative in the U.S. interagency for civil nuclear energy trade and promotion. Mr. McGinnis has also served as a Vice Chairman and Principal U.S. Representative to the Generation IV International Forum and was responsible for U.S. domestic nuclear fuel assurance matters, including technical oversight activities regarding the United States Enrichment Corporation, uranium inventory management matters, as well as U.S. nuclear energy security matters.
Prior to working in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Mr. McGinnis led a number of other high-priority U.S. government initiatives at DOE, including having served as the senior director for the Office of Global Radiological Threat Reduction where he managed global operations involving the search, recovery, security and disposal of high-risk radiological and nuclear sources in cooperation with over 40 countries, including within the U.S. These activities included recovery of high-risk radiological sources from Iraq, establishment of a Global Radiological Regional Partnership Program, and the first-of-its-kind repatriation of high-risk U.S.-origin plutonium-239 sources. Mr. McGinnis also established and served as the director of the Nuclear and Radiological Threat Reduction Task Force, which was created to carry out a number of key Secretarial national security initiatives, including the development of a global nuclear materials removal and research reactor security study that included the identification of nuclear research reactors throughout the world by level of vulnerability and an action plan to effectively mitigate such vulnerabilities.
Mr. McGinnis also served as senior advisor and special assistant to four Assistant Secretaries and Deputy Administrators for nonproliferation and national security at the Department of Energy where he served as a senior advisor for all aspects of the Department's nonproliferation missions, including nonproliferation research and development, materials protection, control and accounting, and warhead security.
Mr. McGinnis holds a master's degree from The American University's School of International Service in Washington, D.C., and is a graduate of the Kennedy School's Senior Executive Fellows Program as well as the Program for Senior Executives in National and International Security at Harvard University.