Question: Are there any risks associated with such energy production if it was to become widely used?

David Armstrong answered on 13 Jun 2011:

One of the biggest advantages of nuclear fusion is that it is much safer than nuclear fusion. The fuel would be hydrogen (actually two isotopes of hydrogen called deuterium and tritium) and we would only require small amounts (a few grams) of these for he reaction to take place. There is no way for the reaction to run away as if the conditions are not correct the reaction just stops. The reaction mainly produces helium which is inert and non-toxic.

However the vessel which the reaction takes places in does become radioactive during operation. The designs uses only materials which are “low activation”. This means they are radioactive for only short periods of time (only a few hundred years opposed to tens of thousands for nuclear waste from fission reactors). This means the waste can be stored safely before disposal using conventional means.