What Comes to Mind When You Hear the Words ‘Nuclear Waste Repository’? A Study of 10,000 Images

Attempts by the federal government and the nuclear industry to develop sites for disposal of high-level and low-level radioactive wastes have been stymied by public and political opposition. The record of strenuous protest against nuclear waste repositories, as well as the findings of numerous public opinion surveys, make it clear that public opposition is widespread and deeply felt. It is also clear that there is an immense gap between the perceptions of the public and the views of technical experts and nuclear-industry officials.