Perceptions of Risks Associated with Transporting Radiological Waste: Community Focus Group Findings

Ann S. Oakes
Suzanne Donnelly

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DOI: 10.2190/V2JP-HUNW-L79E-U392

Abstract

The transportation and storage of radiological wastes are of concern to policymakers and the lay public. On the one hand, technical experts believe that their scientific knowledge will assure that wastes are handled safely, with minimal risk to people and the environment. On the other hand, policymakers are reluctant to proceed with a shipping and storage program until the lay public has the opportunity to participate in decision-making about the prospective storage site and mode of transportation. Our research examines the attitudes of residents in an area near a present temporary storage location, the Idaho National Engineering Laboratories, who also happen to live near an "officially" preferred transportation corridor, Interstate 15. This article reports the attitudes and perceptions elicited from focus groups in seven southeastern Idaho communities.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.