The Scottish Government

« Previous | Contents | Next »

Listen

Public Attitudes to the Environment in Scotland

6.4 RADIOACTIVE WASTE TREATMENT

The Scottish Executive is currently working with the UK government and the other devolved administrations to develop a policy for the management of radioactive waste ⁶³. The UK Government and devolved administrations jointly set up the independent Committee on Radioactive Waste Management ⁶⁴ in 2003 to look at the long-term management options for higher activity waste and the Committee is due to report in mid 2006. The Energy Act 2004 will establish the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, a Non-Departmental Cross-Boarder Public Body, with strategic responsibility for civil public sector nuclear liabilities in the UK. Connected with this, the survey asked what people felt about different methods of radioactive waste disposal. Six in ten people (59%) felt that waste should all be kept underground, and around one in ten felt that it should either be kept above ground (11%) or some above and some below ground (9%). A final two in ten (19%) did not have a view on this question. Of those who wanted all or some of the waste to be kept underground, there was an almost equal split as to whether it should be stored so that it can be recovered or closed in with no possibility of returning to it.

[Table 6.10]

Dealing with radioactive waste could provide many jobs for many years and, therefore, be of positive benefit for local economies. Respondents were asked how they felt about radioactive waste being dealt with near where they lived given this fact. Three quarters of those asked were either slightly or very negative towards the processing of radioactive waste near them (Table 6.11). Levels of concern were lowest amongst the youngest age group; 66% of 16-24 year olds felt slightly or very negative towards this waste being dealt with near to where they lived, compared with 78% of 45-64 year olds. Those holding professional qualifications or degrees tended to be less amenable to the idea than other groups.

Social renters were less likely to state a negative view than home owners. Rural dwellers held stronger views than their urban counterparts; 63% of those from remote small towns and remote rural areas said they thought waste processing would be very negative, despite the job creation potential, compared with 51% of large urban area residents. Very negative views were stronger among those who thought they lived more than 50 miles from a source compared with those who thought they lived between 5 and 20 miles (63% of the first group and 53% of the latter said they were very negative).

[Table 6.11]

6.4 TRANSPORT OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE

The survey then went on to examine what people felt about the transportation of radioactive waste to and within Scotland. Views were divided over whether radioactive waste should be dealt with where it is produced or moved to a specialist disposal unit. Half favoured processing waste where it is produced (49%) and 42% favoured moving it to a specialist site (Table 6.12).

Not much was known about how often radioactive waste is transported around Scotland presently. Two in five people did not know how often this occurred, although one in five people thought it was at least every day and a further fifth thought it was a little less frequent, but at least once a week (Table 6.13).

Figure 6.3 shows that nearly six in ten people questioned in the survey thought that radioactive waste was brought into Scotland from other countries (including England and Wales) (58%). This view may be in line with reality since radioactive waste materials can be moved around the UK, although it is current UK government policy not to import radioactive from other countries (although there are some occasional exceptions). A greater proportion of those with professional qualifications or degrees thought that Scotland does receive waste from other countries (70%) than those with O grades or equivalent certificates (51%) or no educational qualifications (53%). These latter two groups were more likely to say they did not know whether Scotland received radioactive waste from elsewhere (Table 6.14). Remote rural dwellers were more likely to believe that waste had been brought into Scotland from other countries than urban dwellers. For example, 57% of those living in other urban areas thought that waste had been received into Scotland while 73% of people from remote rural areas thought the same.

There was some confusion over whether other countries, including England and Wales, have taken radioactive waste from Scotland. Again, although other countries in the UK may have received Scottish radioactive waste, current UK government policy is not to export radioactive waste to other countries. Around a quarter of people (24%) thought that other countries (including England and Wales) had received waste from Scotland, but a third (32%) thought this was not the case. The remaining 44% of respondents said they did not know (Figure 6.3).

The majority of people thought that waste brought into Scotland should be sent back to the country it came from ⁶⁵ (Table 6.14). Over seven in ten people (72%) thought that this should always be the case, but around one in ten people (12%) thought that there might be exceptions to this. Age and education were related to views on sending waste back to the country of origin. Those in the youngest age group were less fervent in the view that waste should always be returned (58% said always and 16% said sometimes) and were least sure about what should happen to this waste; one in five (20%) said they did not know. In contrast, around three quarters of respondents in each of the other three age groups said it should always be sent back. Those with the highest educational attainment also held a more divided opinion than other groups; 61% thought that nuclear waste should always be sent back, but 24% thought that this should sometimes be the case.

6.5 RESPONSIBILITY FOR RADIOACTIVE WASTE

In the UK, those who produce radioactive waste are currently responsible for dealing with it. The majority of current waste in the UK has been produced as a result of past government activity and most of the licensed sites in the UK are in the public sector. The UK government and devolved administrations proposals in the July 2002 White Paper to improve clean up of these sites are being implemented by the new Nuclear Decommissioning Authority ⁶⁶. The survey asked people how much they trusted those involved in dealing with radioactive waste as being concerned to protect public safety.

Over four in ten people trusted those involved in dealing with radioactive waste either quite a lot or a great deal (44%). On the other hand, a very similar proportion of people said they had not much or no trust at all (42%). Almost half of all the men questioned said they trusted those with responsibility for public safety either a great deal or quite a lot (49%). Although 40% of women said the same thing, a greater proportion were unsure how much they trusted in these safety overseers (17% of women said they did not know compared with 10% of men).

Scepticism was highest among the oldest age groups, yet they were also most likely to say that they did not know how much they trusted those in charge of radioactive waste in Scotland. As Table 6.15 highlights, trust in these sources also increased significantly with education. A third of people (35%) without qualifications said they trusted the bodies responsible, and 19% did not know. In contrast, six in ten people (59%) with degrees or professional qualifications trusted those dealing with nuclear waste, and 6% did not know. People in rural areas had more faith in those responsible for radioactive waste than their urban counterparts. Between five and six in ten people living in accessible or remote rural areas had either a 'great deal' or 'quite a lot' of trust (55% and 59% respectively). Four in ten people with homes in one of large urban areas thought the same thing (41%).

Asked who should be responsible for dealing with radioactive waste in Scotland, over 40% of people thought that those who produce radioactive waste should also be the ones to deal with it (43%). However, over a quarter of people (27%) felt that the Scottish Executive should have a lead role in dealing with waste, and a slightly smaller proportion (23%) felt that this responsibility should not be devolved, but should lie with the UK government at Westminster.

[Figure 6.4]

6.7 SUMMARY

• Despite high levels of concern about nuclear waste and the generation of electricity by nuclear power among the public, knowledge about what produces radioactivity was low.

• 'Radioactivity as a result of war or terrorism' concerned three quarters of people asked. 'Explosion or accidents at a nuclear plant' and 'radioactivity getting into land and water and affecting food and drinking water supplies' represented the next greatest concerns.

• Half of those who thought they lived within five miles of a major source of radioactivity actually lived over 20 miles from one (48%). In contrast, four in ten people who said they lived greater than 100 miles from a major source lived within 50 miles of one in reality (41%).

• The potential for waste to leak back into the environment slowly over time was perceived as the principal risk of storing radioactive waste by half the respondents. Just over one in ten people thought that the creation of a terrorist target was the main risk of storing radioactive waste.

• Six in ten people thought that radioactive waste should be kept underground.

• Three quarters of respondents felt slightly or very negative about radioactive waste being dealt with near to where they lived.

• Six in ten people thought that waste was brought to Scotland from other countries and a further third of people did not know if it was. Over seven in ten people said they thought that radioactive waste should always be sent back to the country it came from.

• Under half of respondents said they had either a great deal or quite a lot of trust in those mainly responsible for dealing with radioactive waste in Scotland. A similar proportion of people felt that those producing this waste should also be responsible for dealing with it.

« Previous | Contents | Next »