Understanding the Societal Challenges Facing Nuclear Power Proceedings of a Workshop (2022) / Chapter Skim
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In sessions focused on nuclear power and society's relationship to it, par ticipants explored how public perceptions and attitudes toward nuclear technology have evolved over time, how understanding of risk percep tion and science communication can inform public engagement around nuclear energy, and the many factors that play into a community's willing ness to accept nuclear energy solutions. In several sessions, participants examined lessons learned from public engagement efforts surrounding 5
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6 UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIETAL CHALLENGES FACING NUCLEAR POWER nuclear facilities, including the siting of new plants, the decommissioning of old ones, and the storage of nuclear waste. Other sessions revealed lessons from public engagement around other highly scrutinized or con tentious areas such as the aviation industry and efforts to gain community approval for wind and solar installations.
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during this period: promoting nuclear energy while ensuring reactor safety. Nuclear energy was promoted through one-way public education campaigns that stressed the safety of nuclear power and emphasized 7
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This changed after a construction permit was issued for the Fermi 1 liquid sodium fast breeder reactor near Detroit, a facility whose design had been criticized, leading to public outcry. After that, more of the licensing and construction process was made public, but industry and pro-nuclear elected officials welcomed public hearings, believing that more information would only reassure the public.
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For its part, the NRC established its Principles of Good Regulation: independence, openness, efficiency, clarity, and reliability. Essentially, the present strategy is to hope that the industry's long, documented safety history can rebuild public trust in a nuclear energy future, Wellock concluded.
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From page 10... ...
This opposition, brought to a head after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, was framed in terms of two factors: safety and pollution. In addition to concerns over catastrophic accidents, the focus on pollution tapped into a visceral sense of revulsion and the idea that a tiny particle of nuclear waste could cause environmental harm across large distances and on long timescales.
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From page 11... ...
In addition to the clear health dangers of air pollution from fossil fuel use, Weart noted that "the policy decisions we make in this decade will determine the planet's climate for the next 10,000 years." Yet, perceptions of fossil fuels have not tapped into our fears of unchecked power and apocalypse, or a visceral sense of disgust, in the same way that nuclear energy has throughout its history. Despite the science indicating that climate change has a high chance of causing widespread disruptions and some chance of causing "apocalyptic" changes, Weart said, "we haven't gotten properly scared of climate change." THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY'S RECORD OF PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT M.V.
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From page 12... ...
Regaining Public Trust Panelists discussed the challenges of regaining public trust once it is lost, and whether there are process improvements that could help. Wellock said that, based on past experience, public hearings have generally not been an effective mechanism for engendering public trust in nuclear energy.
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