The progress of industrialization in developing countries has placed additional demand for carbon-based energy sources for these societies to continue to grow. If developing countries wish to avoid blanketing the world in smog, acid rain and greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, it is imperative that nuclear energy be considered, along with whatever limited use may be made of conservation and of decentralized energy coming from solar or wind. energy generation. Nuclear power plants should be a key component of international plans for increased power generation capacity in the twenty-first century because they are clean, cheap and safe. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayCompared to any traditional energy source such as coal or natural gas, nuclear energy produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions while generating more electricity. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) study estimates that tripling the world's nuclear generating capacity by 2050 would eliminate 25% of carbon emissions while keeping nearly two billion tons of carbon-based resources underground. According to Oxford Energy, electricity consumption is increasing rapidly as new large economies develop in developing countries such as China and India. As of 2019, China has approximately 45 nuclear reactors in operation, approximately 15 under construction, and more about to begin construction. India, which currently has 22 nuclear reactors in operation at seven sites, plans to have 30 in operation by 2022. International cooperation should also promote the construction of safer and cheaper reactors in these developing countries. The need for electricity drives a growing demand for electricity generation, especially in developing countries, with thousands of new power plants needed in the coming decades. Many other countries outside the United States have continued to build clean, safe, and efficient nuclear power plants. In 2014, 450 nuclear power plants were operational in 31 countries, providing a total of 16% of the world's electricity. However, during the third decade after its inception, nuclear energy was attacked by environmental activists, and this environmental movement was used as a proxy for antiwar activists' protest against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Public opposition peaked during the 1980s due to the Three Mile Island nuclear leak (1979), the Chernobyl disaster (1986), and the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear leak (2011). But these accidents, although very high profile, are the only significant accidents to have occurred at nuclear power plants in the last fifty years, with Chernobyl causing the only direct fatalities. There is still emotional baggage attached to nuclear energy because of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. Many environmental groups try to shoot themselves in the foot by opposing nuclear energy when it is one of the safest and cleanest forms of energy production. It would also mean eliminating catastrophic spills caused by crashed oil tankers, as happened when the Exxon Valdez spilled about 11 million gallons of oil along 1,300 miles of Alaska's coast. According to data collected by the Paul-Scherrer Institute (PSI) on global electricity production from 1970 to 2000, nuclear power is 10 times safer than generation powered by natural gas, the second safest alternative. It is 43 times safer than coal and 52 times safer than oil. These figures take into account accidents.