New and unexpected stakeholders in decommissioning projects

Abstract Experience has disclosed that decommissioning projects may have wider impacts than it was previously assumed. An ample range of stakeholders has been involved in decommissioning decision-making in a number of countries. It should be appreciated, however, that varying categories of stakeholders have been universally involved and to different extents. Stakeholder involvement has specific national or even local features. The term “stakeholders” in the decommissioning literature often designates the local communities. This is not so for this chapter, where nonlocal categories of the population and diverse public opinion interests are addressed. A general definition of stakeholders is more appropriate for this chapter: “Individuals or organizations which may have interests or concerns in an industrial decision or are affected by that decision.” Stakeholders can be located anywhere; they are not only the neighbors of the nuclear facility under decommissioning. Impacts from a large project can be felt in distant countries (e.g., in financial terms or in image) or in the least unexpected groups. It is therefore essential for those responsible for a decommissioning project to identify their prospective stakeholders in a timely fashion and to start fruitful interactions well before the onset of decommissioning.