Comparative analysis of public consultation in nuclear energy governance in both policy and practice

Governments mandate the standards and frameworks of public consultation for nuclear energy governance. Even within a regulatory framework, social and political factors influence the execution of consultation, creating a gap between legislative intent and practice. While the framework for consultation standards varies by jurisdiction, it is assumed that there will be similar discrepancies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. This study aims to compare case studies regarding the discrepancy in nuclear public consultation in different national jurisdiction contexts (focus on three different selected cases). The results of the research aim to detail the written expectations for consultation in each jurisdiction. Part of the study is to create a framework for analysing the gap between mandated standards and practice. The research should be based on literature reviews of existing papers for each country, government reports and legislation, and news reports of relevant events. Government reports and legislation will provide the basis of the theoretical consultation standards while news reports and selected interviews will provide a source of public opinion following consultation. Existing research papers will need to be consulted in order to create a rounded point of view. The outcome of the internship research will be a paper elaborating on a comparative framework built from this research, with the aim to inform legislation and practice.