Public perception of energy transition in Korea: Nuclear power, climate change, and party preference

Abstract

Since President Moon Jae-in took office in May 2017, South Korea has been embroiled in a major social controversy about energy transition. The president's pledge to transition toward renewable energy represented a dramatic change in Korean energy policy, which has been focused on nuclear and coal-fired plant expansion policies since the 1970s. This study examines public perception of energy, with focus on the relationship between nuclear power and climate change as well as party preferences, based on a nationally representative survey of Korea. The survey data shows that the risk-risk tradeoff strategy, reframing nuclear power generation as a way to mitigate the risks of climate change, seems to be ineffective in Korea. Furthermore, nuclear power represents the values of the elderly, materialists, developmentalists, and conservative political parties. These results suggest that Korean energy policy is a very political issue rather than a strictly scientific or economic one. Therefore, this issue should be deliberated through a democratic process.