This is illustrated in an exaggerated way by Figure 1. Another area in which governments indirectly subsidize a specific type of energy is nuclear power. In most countries, operators of nuclear power plants are not liable for the full costs of any accidents. This means that nuclear operators do not require expensive insurance policies to cover the risks of an accident. Electricity produced by nuclear power is therefore cheaper for consumers than it would be if the insurance costs were internalized, and the risks of a nuclear accident are transferred to those living near the nuclear plants.
All energy use has some negative impact on the environment.
Burning fossil fuels such as coal and oil produces emissions of greenhouse and acid gases which result in global warming and acid rain respectively. Nuclear power plants expose the environment to low levels of radiation during many stages of the nuclear fuel cycle, and also impose the risk of a major accident such as Chernobyl. Even renewable technologies using energy from the sun have some negative impacts on the environment. Hydro-electric dams, for example, can flood vast areas of land and damage aquatic ecosystems. In general, however, renewables such as solar and wind energy have a smaller impact on the environment than fossil fuels and nuclear power.