The 'tolerability' of nuclear risk?

In 1988, responding to a recommendation by the Inspector at the Sizewell B Public Inquiry, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) published a discussion document on the tolerability of risk. The Inspector considered that there was insufficient public information to allow an understanding of the basis for the regulation of nuclear safety, and so recommended that the HSE publish a document to enable public, expert and parliamentary discussion. Although the discussion document went a long way to explaining how the HSE reaches its decisions on nuclear safety in a clear and useful way, its proposals on levels of maximum tolerable risk were widely criticised, particularly at the Hinkley Point C Public Inquiry. As explained in this article, the inquiry inspector, Michael Barnes, accepted a number of the points made by objectors and suggested more stringent levels of maximum tolerable risk. In October 1992, the HSE published a revised version of its 'Tolerability of Risk' report, which contains significant changes in its discussion of proposed levels of maximum tolerable individual and societal risk. (author)