Not excluding nuclear power: the dynamics and stability of nuclear power policy arrangements in Finland

In this article, we aim at using the policy arrangement approach to explain the renewal of nuclear power policy in Finland from 1986 to 2010. From the point of view of national nuclear power decision making, we distinguish three different policy arrangement periods: (1) rejection (1986–1993), (2) revival (1994–2002) and (3) renewal (2003–2010). Within each period, the four dimensions which are, such as policy coalitions, ‘rules of the game’, policy discourses and resources are analysed. The three periods indicate that policy development has not been unilinear. In the rejection period, the ‘shock event’ of Chernobyl mixed up the policy arrangement. For example, the supporting coalition was t…

Is there a Nordic model of final disposal of spent nuclear fuel? Governance insights from Finland and Sweden

This paper explores citizen participation in Swedish and Finnish regulatory processes for final disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF). Finland and Sweden are considered the most advanced worldwide in term of SNF disposal plans. Our aim is to analyze the institutional waste management frameworks, focusing on the role of civil society organizations (CSOs); how lay-people and civil society organizations have been able to participate and contribute to radioactive waste licensing processes; and the nature of radioactive waste risk debates. We review official documents of the waste companies and nuclear safety authorities, plus information from civil society organizations and laypeople. Our theore…

The rationality of acceptance in a nuclear community: analysing residents' opinions on the expansion of the SNF repository in the municipality of Eurajoki, Finland

The project to build a final disposal repository for Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) in the municipality of Eurajoki, Finland, is approaching its 2012 deadline for the application of a construction licence. At the same time, the nuclear waste company Posiva is already planning to expand the disposal capacity of the repository. This paper addresses the question of acceptance among the residents of Eurajoki regarding the repository's expansion, and examines what aspects should be taken into consideration when explaining local opinions. The local acceptance figures for Eurajoki are analysed in relation to assumptions of the six common explanation types. The relationship between information deficit, s…

The Art of Being Ethical and Responsible : Print Media Debate on Final Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel in Finland and Sweden

AbstractAfter decades of preparation, the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel has reached the construction stage in Finland, and the neighboring Sweden is likely to soon follow in the footsteps. These Nordic countries rely on a similar technical concept based on passive safety, advocated as a means of minimizing the burden to future generations. The scholarly literature on the ethics of nuclear waste management has thus far paid little attention to the views of the broader publics on the associated ethical challenges. This article helps to fill the gap through a longitudinal and comparative analysis of ethical discussion of the final disposal of SNF in news articles and letters to the edit…

Socio-technical risk governance through dyadic risk dialogue : copper corrosion as a safety challenge in the geological disposal of spent nuclear fuel

The risk of corrosion in oxygen-free water has become an issue of scientific controversy possibly even threatening the realisation of the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel in Finland and Sweden. In Sweden there has been extensive discussion about the issue since 2007, but only recently has this debate increased in Finland although the similar disposal concept (KBS-3) is applied in both countries. In this report, we analyse how the implementer, Posiva (a Finnish nuclear waste company), and the regulator, STUK (the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority), have been engaged in a dialogue on the risk of copper corrosion. For over thirty years the implementer and regulator have been e…

”Ja Rosatom on varmasti erittäin hyvä toimija myös Fennovoimalle” : kuinka kansanedustajat perustelivat venäläistä ydinvoimakytköstä

Venäjä miehitti Krimin niemimaan keväällä 2014. Kärjistyneestä geopoliittisesta tilanteesta huolimatta eduskunta hyväksyi samana vuonna Fennovoiman ydinvoimalahankkeen, jossa keskeisessä roolissa oli venäläinen valtionyhtiö Rosatom. nonPeerReviewed

The (de)politicisation of nuclear power: The Finnish discussion after Fukushima

When the Fukushima accident occurred in March 2011, Finland was at the height of a nuclear renaissance, with the Government’s decision-in-principle in 2010 to allow construction of two new nuclear reactors. This article examines the nuclear power debate in Finland after Fukushima. We deploy the concepts of (de)politicisation and hyperpoliticisation in the analysis of articles in the country’s main newspaper. Our analysis indicates that Finnish nuclear exceptionalism manifested in the safety-related depoliticising and the nation’s prosperity-related hyperpoliticisation arguments of the pro-nuclear camp. The anti-nuclear camp used politicisation strategies, such as economic arguments, to sho…

Healthy mistrust or complacent confidence? : Civic vigilance in the reporting by leading newspapers on nuclear waste disposal in Finland and France

Trust and confidence have been identified as crucial for efforts at solving the conundrum of high-level radioactive waste management (RWM). However, mistrust has its virtues, especially in the form of “civic vigilance”—healthy suspicion towards the powers that be. This article examines civic vigilance in the form of “watchdog journalism,” as practiced by the leading Finnish and French newspapers—Helsingin Sanomat (HS) and Le Monde (LM)—in their RWM reporting. Although both countries are forerunners in RWM, Finland constitutes a Nordic “high-trust society” while France has been characterized as a “society of mistrust.” Employing the methods of frame analysis, key RWM-related news frames were…

The critical Swedes and the consensual Finns: Leading newspapers as watchdogs or lapdogs of nuclear waste repository licensing?

Abstract The final disposal of spent nuclear fuel has long stirred up societal debate and controversy in most countries utilizing nuclear energy. Various discourses contextualising the issue affect both the general public and policy-making. Both Finland and Sweden are considered forerunners in implementing final disposal. In this paper we explore similarities and differences in media attention paid to final disposal in Finland and Sweden by focusing on two leading newspapers in each country during the time period of 2008–2015. A longitudinal comparative study suggests that there are clear national differences in the roles assumed by print media in the handling of the final disposal issue. I…

Perceptions of justice influencing community acceptance of spent nuclear fuel disposal : A case study in two Finnish nuclear communities

Final disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from nuclear power plants (NPPs) is an ethical issue with implications within and across generations. We address this issue from the perspective of nuclear communities that host nuclear waste disposal sites. These are primarily the communities that face injustice due to the potential radiological risks. A resident survey (n = 454) was conducted in two Finnish nuclear communities, i.e. Eurajoki and Pyhäjoki, that are being considered as alternative sites for a second repository for SNF. The nuclear waste management (NWM) company Posiva is already building a repository in Eurajoki, the first in Finland. These communities are in different stages of th…

Yleisökysymyksiä vailla vastauksia : käytetyn ydinpolttoaineen loppusijoituslaitoksen laajennushankkeen yleisötilaisuudet Eurajoella 2008-2009

'We have a solution': Delivering on the promise to take national responsibility for nuclear waste management

We examine the realization of the umbrella promise to assume national responsibility for the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel. Three case studies are used to illustrate how Finland delivers on the promise to take care of its own nuclear waste - a promise that has greatly contributed to the legitimacy of nuclear power in Finland. The article shows how this promise is being challenged by new competitors, business visionaries, and the public. The case studies illustrate the tensions between those who made the promise and the actors who interpret and mobilize the promise for varying purposes and under changing circumstances. We investigate techno-scientific promises by looking at debates ab…

Nuclear community considering threats and benefits of final disposal. Local opinions regarding the spent nuclear fuel repository in Finland.

This paper focuses on local opinion regarding the siting of a spent nuclear fuel repository in the municipality of Eurajoki, Finland. The research question is how the residents perceive the final disposal. The analysis showed that positive perceptions regarding spent nuclear fuel siting issues are more likely to be found among men and more affluent residents, which can be viewed as an indication of the ‘white male effect’. Contrastingly, women and less-advantaged people are more likely to resist the disposal of spent nuclear fuel in ‘their backyard’. Two approaches, ‘nuclear oases’ and ‘industry awareness’, are used to interpret the findings.

Does technical risk dialogue entail socioeconomic valuation? : The case of scientific dispute over copper corrosion in a spent nuclear fuel disposal project

Among the proponents of nuclear power, the project for the safe and secure disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) in Finland is often deemed as a success story. Opponents have had difficulties getting publicity for their claims about the risks of the project. Their most powerful arguments have been mostly ethical, but on technical issues the opponents have been in a weaker position than the proponents. However, recently the risk of corrosion in oxygen-free water has become subject to scientific controversy, possibly threatening even the realisation of the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel. In Sweden, this issue has been intensively debated since 2007, but only recently has this debate take…

Identifying remaining socio-technical challenges at the national level: Finland : working paper (WP 1 - MS 5)

Muuttunut hanke : Fennovoiman ydinvoimalahankkeen YVA-yleisötilaisuudet Pyhäjoella vuosina 2013-2014

Työraportissa tarkastellaan Fennovoima Oy:n ydinvoimalahankkeen ympäristövaikutusten arviointimenettelyn (YVA) ohjelma- ja selostus- vaiheen yleisötilaisuuksia. Hankevastaava Fennovoima ja yhteysviran- omaisena toiminut työ- ja elinkeinoministeriö (TEM) järjestivät tilai- suudet Pyhäjoella 17.10.2013 ja 18.3.2014. Raportissa keskitytään siihen, millaisiin sisältöluokkiin yleisötilaisuuksissa esitetyt puheenvuo- rot jakautuivat ja millaisia painotuksia, samankaltaisuuksia tai eroja tilai- suuksissa käydyissä keskusteluissa oli havaittavissa. YVA-menettelyn ohjelma- ja selostusvaiheen yleisötilaisuuksissa esi- tettiin yhteensä 95 kommenttia ja kysymystä. Ne luokiteltiin seuraa- vasti: 1) YVA-…

Ydinjäte käsissämme : Suomen ydinjätehuolto ja suomalainen yhteiskunta

The roles of the state and social licence to operate? Lessons from nuclear waste management in Finland, France, and Sweden

The concept of social licence to operate (SLO) is an increasingly popular tool for companies to manage their relations with the local communities. SLO is very seldom used in the nuclear sector, which has nevertheless applied similar approaches, under notions such as partnership and participatory governance. This article explores the specific challenges that the application of SLO faces in the nuclear waste management (NWM) sector, by applying an often-used SLO framework of Boutilier and Thomson to illustrative case studies concerning nuclear waste repository projects in Finland, France and Sweden. Among the specificities of this sector, the article focuses on the central roles of the state …

The socio-economic and communication challenges of spent nuclear fuel management in Finland

Abstract One of the key factors behind the expansion of nuclear energy policy in Finland is nuclear waste management. As in many countries, nuclear waste management agencies are still struggling with the siting of intermediate and low level nuclear waste management facilities, in Finland Posiva, the nuclear waste company owned by the two nuclear power utilities Teollisuuden Voima (TVO) and Fortum Power and Heat (FPH), has been excavating a underground characterization facility since 2004 in the Olkiluoto site in the municipality of Eurajoki. The facility under construction is meant to be for a part of the final repository for disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF). The site selection process …

Uuden ydinkeitaan etsintää : Fennovoiman ydinvoimalahankkeen YVA-ohjelmavaiheen yleisötilaisuudet Kristiinankaupungissa, Ruotsinpyhtäällä, Pyhäjoella ja Simossa