A structural model analysis of public opposition to a high-level radioactive waste facility

Studies show that most Nevada residents and almost all state officials oppose the proposed high-level radioactive waste repository project at Yucca Mountain. Surveys of the public show that individual citizens view the Yucca Mountain repository as having high risk; nuclear experts, in contrast, believe the risks are very low. Policy analysts have suggested that public risk perceptions may be reduced by better program management, increased trust in the federal government, and increased economic benefits for accepting a repository. The model developed in this study is designed to examine the relationship between public perceptions of risk, trust in risk management, and potential economic impacts of the current repository program using a confirmatory multivariate method known as covariance structure analysis. The results indicate that perceptions of potential economic gains have little relationship to opposition to the repository. On the other hand, risk perceptions and the level of trust in repository management are closely related to each other and to opposition. The impacts of risk perception and trust in management on opposition to the repository result from a combination of their direct influences as well as their indirect influences operating through perceptions that the repository would have serious negative impacts on the state`s economy due to stigmatization and reduced tourism