Back to home
Nuclear power in societal flux: the renewal of nuclear power in Finland in the context of global concern over energy security LITMANEN Tapio Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, FIN-40014, Finland (tapio.litmanen@jyu.fi)   Abstract: This paper will address nuclear power's relationship with societal flux. The history of nuclear power indicates that this type of technology is unusually sensitive to societal flux. Instability in nuclear power’s societal status is created by the ambiguous nature of the technology itself, changing public opinion, the fluidity of political judgments, the flow of cultural meanings attaching to nuclear power and the unpredictability of media processing. Even though the risks of nuclear technology are highly regulated by the companies themselves and by the state and public administration, it remains capable of inflaming political debate and igniting controversy. One public opinion survey after another reveals how divisive nuclear power is. Unlike most other industrial activities nuclear power decision-making involves extraordinary levels of political consideration, societal processing and cultural valuation by stakeholders and the media. In order to illustrate the idea of societal flux, the paper will deal with major shifts in Finnish nuclear power policy since the 1950s, focusing particularly, however, on changes between 1986–2010. The recent changes in the country’s nuclear power policy prove interesting having proceeded from a phase of rejection during the period 1986-1993, to a revival between 1994-2002 and renewal between 2002-2009. The rejection period ended in 1993 during which time the Parliament of Finland had rejected the further construction of nuclear power plants in the wake of the Chernobyl accident. In less than a decade, however, nuclear power policy changed. The revival period ended in 2001 as Parliament ratified a Decision in Principle for the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel and in 2002 for the construction of a new nuclear power plant unit, Olkiluoto 3. Characteristic of the ongoing renewal period is that in 2008–2009 the nuclear industry submitted three further applications for the construction of new NPP units. Thus Finland today has acquired a reputation for being a pioneer in implementing the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel and in the new build of nuclear power technology.   Keywords:nuclear power; societal flux; Finland; nuclear power policy
	Click here for viewing full text.