The Nuclear Anthropocene and the Myth of Containment in the U.S.

Abstract

International expert agencies and the nuclear industry concur that nuclear technology is necessary to solve both energy and climate crises. This argument is based on the still-alive ideology of containment, a set of discursive and material practices that aim at isolating nuclear technology from the environment. Based on a brief discussion of recent nuclear decommissioning cases, the article argues that containment is a myth invented to expand commercial nuclear applications. It describes the emergence of containment strategies through the illustration of three strategic regulatory turns in the US: the Price-Anderson Act, the development of siting criteria, and the establishment of radioprotection standards.

Keywords

• containment
• nuclear decommissioning
• cold war
• environment
• climate change