Popular democracy and waste management
The US has moved from representative democracy to popular democracy and public scrutiny is unrelenting. Any hope of success on their part in resolving the nuclear waste question hinges on their ability to condition themselves to operate in a popular democracy environment. Those opposed to the siting of high- and low-level waste repositories have already developed a set of recurring themes: (1) the siting criteria are fatally flawed; (2) the criteria are not adequate; (3) the process is driven by politics not science; (4) unrealistic deadlines lead to dangerous shortcuts; (5) transportation experience is lacking; (6) the scientific community does not really know how to dispose of the wastes. They must continue to tell the public that if science has brought us problems, then the answer can be only more knowledge - not less. Failure by their profession to recognize that popular democracy is a fact and that nuclear issues need to be addressed in humanistic terms raises the question of whether America is philosophically suited for the expanded use of nuclear power in the future - or for that matter for leadership in the world of tomorrow.
- Research Organization:
- General Electric Co., San Jose, CA
- OSTI ID:
- 6674876
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-860610-; TRN: 87-016053
- Journal Information:
- Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; (United States), Vol. 52; Conference: American Nuclear Society annual meeting, Reno, NV, USA, 15 Jun 1986
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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