Risk politics and the pro-nuclear growth coalition in Japan in relation to the Fukushima

Abstract

This paper focuses on the development of the pro-nuclear growth coalition in Japan. It also describes how, after the Fukushima disaster, the coalition was challenged by an increasing number of anti-nuclear movements and scientific discussions of nuclear energy policies. By analyzing the risk politics associated with nuclear power, the study helps explain the development of pro-nuclear narratives and the pro-nuclear coalition. Based on archival analysis of accounts from the media, governments, and experts, it argues that governmental and nongovernmental actors in Japan and the United States formed a pro-nuclear growth coalition to pursue economic growth and then cooperated to promote pro-nuclear energy policies. The research also illustrates that post-Fukushima risk narratives challenged pro-nuclear energy policies and the dominance of the pro-nuclear growth coalition with fear. Although anti-nuclear sentiment has increased after Fukushima, it has not coalesced enough to be considered a consensus.