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Nuclear power in Australia: A comparative analysis of public opinion regarding climate change and the Fukushima disaster

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  • Bird, Deanne K.
  • Haynes, Katharine
  • van den Honert, Rob
  • McAneney, John
  • Poortinga, Wouter

Abstract

A nation-wide survey was conducted in 2010 to investigate the Australian public's attitudes to nuclear power in relation to climate change and in comparison to other energy alternatives. The survey showed a majority of respondents (42%) willing to accept nuclear power if it would help tackle climate change. Following the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Complex in Japan, an event triggered by the 11 March 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, it was expected that support for nuclear power in Australia would change. In light of this, a follow-up survey was conducted in 2012. Indeed, the post-Fukushima results show a majority of respondents (40%) were not willing to accept nuclear power as an option to help tackle climate change, despite the fact that most Australians still believed nuclear power to offer a cleaner, more efficient option than coal, which currently dominates the domestic production of energy. Expanding the use of renewable energy sources (71%) remains the most popular option, followed by energy-efficient technologies (58%) and behavioural change (54%). Opposition to nuclear power will continue to be an obstacle against its future development even when posed as a viable solution to climate change.

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  • Bird, Deanne K. & Haynes, Katharine & van den Honert, Rob & McAneney, John & Poortinga, Wouter, 2014. "Nuclear power in Australia: A comparative analysis of public opinion regarding climate change and the Fukushima disaster," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 644-653.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:65:y:2014:i:c:p:644-653
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.09.047
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    7. Okubo, Toshihiro & Narita, Daiju & Rehdanz, Katrin & Schröder, Carsten, 2020. "Preferences for Nuclear Power in Post-Fukushima Japan: Evidence from a Large Nationwide Household Survey," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 13(11).
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    21. Jorge Hugo Barrientos-Marín & Sebastian Ospina-Valencia & Sebastian Giraldo, 2020. "The economic cost of natural disasters the case of the tsunami and nuclear emergency in Japan in 2011," Lecturas de Economía, Universidad de Antioquia, Departamento de Economía, issue 93, pages 225-260, Julio-Dic.
    22. Dainius Genys & RiÄ ardas KrikÅ¡tolaitis, 2020. "Clusterization of public perception of nuclear energy in relation to changing political priorities," Insights into Regional Development, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 2(4), pages 750-764, December.
    23. Wei Wang & Xue-Zhou Zhao & Feng-Wen Chen & Chia-Huei Wu & Sangbing Tsai & Jiangtao Wang, 2019. "The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility and Public Attention on Innovation Performance: Evidence from High-polluting Industries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-20, October.
    24. Navratil, J. & Picha, K. & Buchecker, M. & Martinat, S. & Svec, R. & Brezinova, M. & Knotek, J., 2019. "Visitors’ preferences of renewable energy options in “green” hotels," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 1065-1077.
    25. Guo, Yue & Ren, Tao, 2017. "When it is unfamiliar to me: Local acceptance of planned nuclear power plants in China in the post-fukushima era," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 113-125.

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