A survey on the public's radiation perception in the region surrounding a proposed nuclear power plant

Abstract

Objective To investigate the public's perception and attitudes on the development of nuclear power, assess their knowledge about nuclear power and radiation, and to build a database on the public's perception for the purpose of providing better public health service, associate technical support and give suggestions for decision-makers. Methods In total of 1 440 local residents who live within 30 kilometers of a proposed nuclear power were chosen for in-person interviews. Questionnaires comprised of 49 questions designed to assess the public's knowledge of radiation and nuclear power, their attitudes to the development of nuclear power, their evaluation of local government and their informational environment. ANOVA was used to compare the influence of different factors on cognitive level. Multivariate linear regression was used to analyze the main factors affecting the level of public awareness. Comparison among groups (respondents in this survey vs. other comparable surveys) was conducted using χ2 test. Results Of the respondents, 29.7% and 39.5% of respondents knew about nuclear power and radiation, respectively, 24.2% supported the construction of a nuclear power plant in their own area, which was lower than the average national support for construction of nuclear power plants (29.0%) (χ2=8.71, P<0.05). When queried about safety cncerns 36.8% of respondents worried about the safety of nuclear power plant and 78.5% of respondents were afraid of the damage to their health, while 34.1% of respondents held the belief that the nuclear power plant could bring harmful effect even under normal operation. Regarding the informational environment, 90.0% of the respondents could not or barely got access to knowledge on nuclear power plants, 71.1% hoped to acquire the knowledge on nuclear power plants, 48.4% hoped to acquire this knowledge by television programs, and 62.4% mostly trusted information given by experts from universities or institutes. In comparison to other findings acquired in similar surveys on the Tianwan and Qinshan nuclear power plants before the Fukushima accident, the findings indicated that safety assessment of nuclear power plant were lower (χ2=20.49, 56.96, P<0.05). Conclusions The public's knowledge level on nuclear power and radiation directly influenced their attitude on nuclear power. The related agencies should strengthen publicity and education in order to increase the public's knowledge on nuclear power and radiation. The communication platform between the related agencies and the public should be established. Active and continued risk communication should be carried out to increase public acceptance of nuclear power. Key words: Nuclear power plant; Nuclear power; Radiation; Perception; Risk communication