From Radioactive Blue to Sustainable Green: Arguments about Nuclear Energy in the EU Taxonomy

Gabor Sarlos; Dorottya Egres

From Radioactive Blue to Sustainable Green: Arguments about Nuclear Energy in the EU Taxonomy

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Following the Fukushima accident in 2011, several European countries decided to phase out nuclear energy production. However, with climate change in the forefront of interest globally, acceptance of nuclear energy reached a higher level.
Our research looks at how the European public perceives the relation between nuclear energy and the global challenge of climate change. It focuses on the analysis of feedback provided to the European Union in relation to the formulation of the EU taxonomy, a classification system of environmentally sustainable economic activities, finalised in 2022. The research analyses how commenters framed the issue if nuclear energy could be a tool in fighting climate change. Environmental modernisation, sustainability and technological neutrality provided conceptual frameworks to the analysis.

Our study confirms that supporters and opponents to nuclear energy have fundamentally different views on its role in fighting climate change and that sustainability is the most relevant framework for further thinking.

Original language	English
Journal	Environmental Communication
Publication status	Submitted - 28 Feb 2023

Keywords

climate change
EU taxonomy
nuclear energy
sustainability

Cite this

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title = "From Radioactive Blue to Sustainable Green: Arguments about Nuclear Energy in the EU Taxonomy",

abstract = "Following the Fukushima accident in 2011, several European countries decided to phase out nuclear energy production. However, with climate change in the forefront of interest globally, acceptance of nuclear energy reached a higher level. Our research looks at how the European public perceives the relation between nuclear energy and the global challenge of climate change. It focuses on the analysis of feedback provided to the European Union in relation to the formulation of the EU taxonomy, a classification system of environmentally sustainable economic activities, finalised in 2022. The research analyses how commenters framed the issue if nuclear energy could be a tool in fighting climate change. Environmental modernisation, sustainability and technological neutrality provided conceptual frameworks to the analysis. Our study confirms that supporters and opponents to nuclear energy have fundamentally different views on its role in fighting climate change and that sustainability is the most relevant framework for further thinking.",

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AB - Following the Fukushima accident in 2011, several European countries decided to phase out nuclear energy production. However, with climate change in the forefront of interest globally, acceptance of nuclear energy reached a higher level. Our research looks at how the European public perceives the relation between nuclear energy and the global challenge of climate change. It focuses on the analysis of feedback provided to the European Union in relation to the formulation of the EU taxonomy, a classification system of environmentally sustainable economic activities, finalised in 2022. The research analyses how commenters framed the issue if nuclear energy could be a tool in fighting climate change. Environmental modernisation, sustainability and technological neutrality provided conceptual frameworks to the analysis. Our study confirms that supporters and opponents to nuclear energy have fundamentally different views on its role in fighting climate change and that sustainability is the most relevant framework for further thinking.

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KW - nuclear energy

KW - sustainability

M3 - Article

SN - 1752-4032

JO - Environmental Communication

JF - Environmental Communication

ER -