Public perception of nuclear waste management issues

The purpose of this report is to examine perceptions of nuclear waste management held by the general public. First, trends in general levels of public concern over issues surrounding nuclear waste storage and disposal will be discussed for the decade of the 1970s. Second, the extent to which beliefs concerning nuclear waste issues are associated with attitudes toward the continued development of nuclear power will be analyzed. The data presented are based on two comprehensive analyses of survey research dealing with public attitudes toward nuclear power and related energy issues (Melber, B.D., Nealey, S.M., Weiss, C.S., and Rankin, W.L. Nuclear Power and the Public: Update of Collected Survey Research, Battelle Human Affairs Research Centers, B-HARC-411-021, 1980; Melber, B.D., Nealey, S.M., Hammersla, J., and Rankin, W.L. Nuclear Power and the Public: Analysis of Collected Survey Research, Battelle Human Affairs Research Centers, PNL-2430, 1977). Over 150 national, state and special group surveys were included in those research reviews. 9 references