Nuclear reprocessing is a method for separating the waste from nuclear reactors into three streams: plutonium, highly radioactive waste, and relatively benign low-level waste. Proponents of reprocessing argue that the reprocessing is justified by the production of new fuel (the plutonium) and the reduction in the volume of the highly radioactive material. We argue here that these benefits are very small (the energy gain is small and the storage volume of the waste is not significantly reduced) and that the risks from reprocessing are large (proliferation of nuclear weapons and harm to the environment).
Figure 6. A Trinity-type weapon made with weapons-grade plutonium is likely to give a blast radius of about one mile, as depicted by the light-grey. The same weapon made with MOX-grade plutonium -- the kind generated by commercial reprocessing -- is likely to give a blast radius from about one-third to one-half of a mile, as depicted by the dark grey circle.
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