RD&D-Programme 2004 - SKB

Previously existing material is being used in the study, comprising approximately 9,000 articles,
debate books, pamphlets, surveys and research reports. The project will take two years, starting
in the autumn of 2004.
• Attitudes towards a deep repository for spent nuclear fuel.
The project is being carried out by the Centre for Risk Research at the Stockholm School of
Economics. The project will last for two years, starting in the autumn of 2004.
International research on risk attitudes is dominated completely by pessimistic results concerning
the possibilities of siting a repository for spent nuclear fuel in consensus between industry,
politicians and the local population. American research has often been accepted without any
closer critical examination, and there is a need for research from a special Swedish perspective.
The factors which have contributed towards the constructive development of the siting process
in Sweden and Finland are therefore of great interest to investigate. Among these factors are
trust and morals, which have often been neglected in previous research.
The factors that influence risk perception and risk attitudes regarding final disposal of spent
nuclear fuel will be studied in the project. The purpose is to contribute towards a better understanding
of risk and policy attitudes, which is in turn a prerequisite for better and more effective
risk communication. The study is a continuation of the internationally acclaimed investigation
which was conducted in 2001 and which for the first time observed a positive or accepting
attitude towards the siting of a deep repository. Some of the material that will be used in the
project will be collected by questionnaire surveys on two occasions (September 2004 and
March 2006) in Östhammar and Oskarshamn, plus a suitable reference municipality.
Global changes
• National nuclear fuel policy in a European union.
The purpose of this study, which will be carried out by the Department of Law at the School
of Economics and Commercial Law at Göteborg University, is to clarify and analyze the
legal situation at both the Swedish national and European community level when it comes to
responsibility for and authority over nuclear waste management. The project will last for two
years, starting in the spring of 2005.
Based on the interest of Sweden, and certain other member states, in maintaining a national
nuclear fuel policy, it is of vital importance to analyze relevant parts of community law in this
area. The purpose of such an analysis is to try to make a forecast of the interpretation of the
rules and to define more precisely the legal potential for a national nuclear fuel policy. Such
knowledge is necessary in order for rational political decisions to be made at the national level.
The research task also includes a forward-looking, analytical perspective: What are the likely
future trends in European community law, and how could they impact the formulation of a
national nuclear fuel policy?
306 RD&D-Programme 2004