Why the US military should build modular nuclear reactors

The 2022 National Security Strategy identified climate change as an existential challenge , and the Defense Department’s Climate Adaptation Plan calls for reducing carbon emissions across the services. The Department of Defense is the largest energy user in the U.S. government and uses approximately 29 million megawatts of electricity annually. Despite being such a large energy consumer, only 6.5% of the electricity the DoD uses comes from renewable energy sources, which lags well behind the national average of about 20% .

To address the existential challenge of climate change and reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the U.S. military should build and operate modular nuclear reactors to power its domestic bases. Along with reducing its impact on climate change, this would also prepare the military services to operate forward-deployed nuclear reactors in support of combat operations.

Although addressing climate change and reducing the emission of greenhouse gases is a multifaceted challenge, one of the most critical aspects is producing electrical power without releasing carbon dioxide. Electric power production was the source of 25% of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States in 2020. There is a growing push for using renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. However, without significant technological leaps, these do not offer a realistic path to greenhouse gas-free electricity at the scale needed.

Nuclear power is a well-proven technology that offers carbon dioxide-free electricity. One of the main objections to the expansion of nuclear power in the U.S. is based on the perception that it is dangerous. This is primarily based on the historical cases of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl . In reality, there have been very few safety issues with nuclear power since it first came into use in the 1950s.

Some countries have embraced nuclear power, such as France , which produces 70% of its electricity from nuclear power. The new modular reactors are even safer than existing reactors and, according to some experts, do not pose any threat of a meltdown. For example, Bill Gates wrote about the TerraPower reactor design that “accidents would literally be prevented by the laws of physics.”

The U.S. military has a long history of using nuclear energy. It is well known that the Navy operates nuclear-powered ships and submarines, but the Army also had a nuclear power program from 1954 to 1976 . This program operated small nuclear reactors both domestically and at deployed locations. So there is a strong historical foundation of safe operations of nuclear power reactors to build upon.

In addition, there are existing nuclear power programs that could be expanded. In 2022, the Pentagon announced that it was designing and building a mini-nuclear reactor under Project Pele . The Air Force also announced that it plans to operate a modular reactor at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska , with “ demonstration and operational testing ” expected to start in 2027. These projects are both good starts but are focused on microreactors at very remote or overseas locations . These programs should be expanded to include larger modular reactors housed on bases throughout the continental United States.

Along with reducing the department’s carbon footprint, modular nuclear reactors could increase the military’s combat capabilities. This has been recognized by the Pentagon and is one of the driving factors behind Project Pele. The ability to operate and deploy nuclear reactors could be vital in supporting operations during a high-end global conflict. The military is becoming more reliant on electrical power as we develop systems such as directed-energy weapons and electric-powered combat vehicles . The U.S. military has had relatively uncontested logistics access during all of its conflicts since World War II due to air and sea power superiority, which has given us the ability to control vital lines of communication.

However, it should be assumed that potential adversaries in the future will have the ability to disrupt lines of communication, particularly on bulk shipments like fuel oil. Modular nuclear reactors would reduce the U.S. military’s reliance on fuel shipments and ensure the availability of the energy needed for high-tech combat systems. Developing and operating the capability domestically would provide the military training and experience needed to operate nuclear reactors in support of overseas operations.

By building and operating modular reactors to power U.S. domestic bases, the military could help address the existential challenge of climate change by reducing the department’s carbon footprint. Since the military has a long history of operating nuclear power reactors and has high security — and often remote bases to house them — there may be less public pressure against building military nuclear power facilities than there would be against the immediate expansion of civilian facilities.

Furthermore, once the military developed a safe track record of operating modular nuclear reactors, that could be used to support the further development of civilian nuclear power facilities. If this were successful, it could have a much larger impact on the nation’s overall greenhouse gas reduction.

U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Jared Harlow is a graduate student at the National War College. He currently holds a bachelor’s degree in marine environmental science and a master’s degree in defense and strategic studies. During his most recent role with the service, Harlow oversaw and executed maritime law enforcement missions. The views expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the U.S. Coast Guard or the National War College.

2022年《国家安全战略》将气候变化列为一项关乎生存的挑战，国防部的《气候适应计划》也呼吁各军种减少碳排放。国防部是美国政府最大的能源用户，每年用电量约为2900万兆瓦。尽管能源消耗量如此之大，但国防部使用的电力中只有6.5%来自可再生能源，远低于约20%的全国平均水平。

为了应对气候变化带来的生存挑战并减少二氧化碳排放，美军应该建造并运行模块化核反应堆，为其国内基地供电。这不仅能减少对气候变化的影响，还能使美军做好运行前沿部署核反应堆以支持作战行动的准备。

尽管应对气候变化和减少温室气体排放是一项多方面的挑战，但其中最关键的方面之一是实现不排放二氧化碳的电力生产。2020年，电力生产占美国温室气体排放量的25%。目前，人们越来越倾向于使用风能和太阳能等可再生能源。然而，如果没有重大的技术突破，这些能源无法以所需的规模实现温室气体零排放电力。

核能是一项成熟可靠的技术，能够提供不排放二氧化碳的电力。美国反对扩大核能发展的主要理由之一是人们普遍认为核能很危险。这种看法主要源于三里岛和切尔诺贝利核事故的历史教训。但事实上，自20世纪50年代核能投入使用以来，其安全问题极为罕见。

一些国家已经接受了核能，例如法国，该国70%的电力来自核能。新型模块化反应堆比现有反应堆更安全，一些专家认为它们不会造成堆芯熔毁的风险。例如，比尔·盖茨在谈到TerraPower的反应堆设计时写道：“物理定律实际上可以防止事故发生。”

美国军方使用核能的历史由来已久。众所周知，海军拥有核动力舰艇和潜艇，但陆军也曾在1954年至1976年间开展过核动力项目。该项目在国内和部署地点运行小型核反应堆。因此，美国在核动力反应堆安全运行方面拥有坚实的历史基础。

此外，现有的核电项目也具有扩展潜力。2022年，五角大楼宣布正在“佩莱计划”（Project Pele）下设计和建造一座小型核反应堆。空军也宣布计划在阿拉斯加的艾尔森空军基地运行一座模块化反应堆，预计将于2027年开始“示范和运行测试”。这些项目都是良好的开端，但都侧重于位于偏远地区或海外的微型反应堆。这些项目应该扩展到包括在美国本土各基地部署的大型模块化反应堆。

除了减少国防部的碳排放外，模块化核反应堆还能提升军队的作战能力。五角大楼已经认识到这一点，这也是“佩莱计划”（Project Pele）背后的驱动因素之一。在高端全球冲突中，运行和部署核反应堆的能力对于支持作战行动至关重要。随着定向能武器和电动战车等系统的研发，军方对电力的依赖性日益增强。自二战以来，由于拥有空中和海上力量优势，美军在所有冲突中都拥有相对畅通无阻的后勤保障，这使我们能够控制重要的交通线。

然而，必须假定未来的潜在对手有能力破坏通信线路，尤其是在燃油等大宗运输方面。模块化核反应堆将减少美军对燃料运输的依赖，并确保高科技作战系统所需能源的供应。在国内开发和运行这项能力，将为军队提供运行核反应堆以支持海外行动所需的军事训练和经验。

通过建造和运营模块化反应堆为美国国内基地供电，军方可以通过减少自身碳排放来帮助应对气候变化这一生存挑战。由于军方拥有长期运营核电反应堆的经验，且安全级别高，并通常拥有偏远的基地来安置这些反应堆，因此，与立即扩建民用核电设施相比，建造军用核电设施可能面临的公众压力较小。

此外，一旦军方积累了安全运行模块化核反应堆的经验，就可以用来支持民用核电设施的进一步发展。如果成功，这将对国家整体温室气体减排产生更大的影响。

美国海岸警卫队指挥官贾里德·哈洛是美国国家战争学院的研究生。他目前拥有海洋环境科学学士学位和国防与战略研究硕士学位。在最近任职期间，哈洛负责监督和执行海上执法任务。本文观点仅代表作者个人立场，并不一定代表美国海岸警卫队或美国国家战争学院的观点。