page_title: Nuclear power in the United States
section_title: Water use in nuclear power production
hierarchical_section_title: Nuclear power in the United States / Water use in nuclear power production
caption_attribution_description: English: U.S. 2014 Electricity Generation By Type. Source: http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_1_01
context_page_description: Nuclear power in the United States is provided by 96 commercial reactors with a net capacity of 98 gigawatts, 64 pressurized water reactors and 32 boiling water reactors. In 2019 they produced a total of 809,409 thousand megawatt hours of electricity, which accounted for 20% of the nation's total electric energy generation. In 2018, nuclear energy comprised nearly 50 percent of U.S. emission-free generation.
  As of September 2017, there are two new reactors under construction with a gross electrical capacity of 2,500 MW, while 34 reactors have been permanently shut down. The United States is the world's largest producer of commercial nuclear power, and in 2013 generated 33% of the world's nuclear electricity. With the past and future scheduled nuclear plant closings, the United States could lose its position to China and Russia.
  As of October 2014, the NRC has granted license renewals providing a 20-year extension to a total of 74 reactors. In early 2014, the NRC prepared to receive the first applications of license renewal beyond 60 years of reactor life, as early as 2017, a process which by law requires public involvement.
context_section_description: A 2011 NREL study of water use in electricity generation concluded that the median nuclear plant with cooling towers consumed 672 gallons per megawatt-hour (gal/MWh), a usage similar to that of coal plants, but more than other generating technologies, except hydroelectricity (median reservoir evaporation loss of 4,491 gal/MWh) and concentrating solar power (786 gal/MWh for power tower designs, and 865 for trough). Nuclear plants with once-through cooling systems consume only 269 gal/MWh, but require withdrawal of 44,350 gal/MWh. This makes nuclear plants with once-through cooling susceptible to drought.
  Once-through cooling systems, while once common, have come under attack for the possibility of damage to the environment. Wildlife can become trapped inside the cooling systems and killed, and the increased water temperature of the returning water can impact local ecosystems. US EPA regulations favors recirculating systems, even forcing some older power plants to replace existing once-through cooling systems with new recirculating systems.
  A 2008 study by the Associated Press found that of the 104 nuclear reactors in the U.S., "... 24 are in areas experiencing the most severe levels of drought. All but two are built on the shores of lakes and rivers and rely on submerged intake pipes to draw billions of gallons of water for use in cooling and condensing steam after it has turned the plants’ turbines," much like all Rankine cycle power plants. During the 2008 southeast drought, reactor output was reduced to lower operating power or forced to shut down for safety.
  The Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station is located in a desert and purchases reclaimed wastewater for cooling.
caption: U.S. 2014 Electricity Generation By Type.[184]
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