Communication with media in nuclear or radiological emergencies : General and practical recommendations for improvement

Communication with mass media during and after a nuclear emergency presents both a challenge and an opportunity for emergency management. The challenge lies with the different motivations and types of process applied by mass media and emergency management; the opportunity arises from the power of mass media to reach out to an audience with information important for compliance with protective actions. This article summarises recommendations for improved media communication by nuclear emergency management professionals. Recommendations address both the traditional and new media, and are the result of empirical and qualitative research conducted in the context of the FP7 PREPARE project, including: (i) a media content analysis of newspapers articles reporting about Fukushima (N = 1340); (ii) a content analysis of tweets about Fukushima (N = 914); and (iii) a qualitative approach - round table discussions with stakeholders (N > 100) involved in communication about nuclear emergencies. Results show that although challenging, nuclear emergency communication can be improved by using mass media and developing skills, training and resources during the preparedness phase of a nuclear emergency cycle. Some general recommendations and practical advice for communication with media is given

Guidance on communicating about uncertainties in nuclear emergency management

Within the European project CONFIDENCE, an extensive research programme has been conducted on a range of different tools, including Apps, SMS, numerical, narrative or mixed news messages and videos linked to uncertainty communication following potential nuclear or radiological emergencies. For this purpose, qualitative and quantitative research methods were applied in different European countries. Based on the results of these studies, we have formulated guidelines for efficient and effective communication about uncertainties that can be used in nuclear or radiological emergencies

The limits of public communication coordination in a nuclear emergency : Lessons from media reporting on the Fukushima case

Coordination of public communication has become a key issue in management of complex emergencies, and is a matter of debate between nuclear emergency management professionals. A particular problem is when inconsistent information is sent to the media and public by official sources from different levels, which has led to calls for a more coordinated approach. The IAEA created guidelines recommending a one-voice communication approach that provides clear, consistent and coordinated information by relevant stakeholders. The reviewed theory on the emergency communication coordination and the empirical results in this paper demonstrate some challenges regarding the feasibility of the above stated goal. This paper explores the communication process in the two-month period of the Fukushima nuclear emergency by using a quantitative comparative content and discourse analysis of 1340 printed media articles on the Fukushima nuclear disaster from two major newspapers in Spain ('El Pa\ueds' and 'El Mundo'), Italy ('Corriere della Sera' and 'La Repubblica'), Norway ('Aftenposten' and 'Dagsavisen'), Slovenia ('Delo' and 'Ve\u10der'), Belgium ('Le Soir' and 'De Standaard') and Russia ('Komsomolskaya Pravda' and 'Izvestiya'). The results show that it will be difficult to achieve a truly coordinated approach and one-voice communication in severe nuclear and radiological emergency due to the communication difficulties created by the dispersion of information sources, a broad and dispersed focus of the reported information, partially subjective and conflicting media reporting. The paper suggests ways to improve public communication coordination in nuclear and radiological disasters

Societal uncertainties recognised in recent nuclear and radiological emergencies

The paper aims to stimulate reflection and debate on the issue of uncertainty as a key component of nuclear or radiological emergency management. It identifies and discusses different types of uncertainties that appeared during and after real emergencies. For this, seven different case studies of nuclear and radiological events have been analysed using three separate methodological approaches: i) case descriptions (document review); ii) media analysis; and iii) semi-structured interviews. The overall objective was to elucidate the understanding and response to scientific and social uncertainties, and related ethical issues. A range of different uncertainties were identified and roughly grouped into categories related to: 1) technical and measurement uncertainties; 2) societal impacts and societal framing; 3) contradictory information and communication aspects; 4) ethical aspects. This analysis intends to inform emergency managers on the types of uncertainties that may appear to different actors during nuclear or radiological emergency. The results should serve to stimulate preparation on the uncertainty response and by this also to reduce some of the identified uncertainties

Social, ethical and communication aspects of uncertainty management

The European project CONFIDENCE identified, conceptualised and addressed social uncertainties through a multi-method research approach. The research highlighted the uncertainties faced by publics, emergency management actors and decision-makers in nuclear emergencies and during the recovery phase. It showed that nuclear emergency management is dominated by decisions under uncertainties, that non-experts face also different uncertainties than experts, that emergency plans need a (continuous) reality check and that sound communication, openness and transparency about uncertainties may contribute to better decisions. It also suggests that national emergency response and recovery policies should consider and support the capacity of local actors to deal with an emergency or post-accident situation, for instance by carrying out their own measurements. This way, social uncertainties can be addressed and in some situations reduced, and the communication improved

Overview of the PREPARE WP3: management of contaminated goods in post-accidental situation – Synthesis of European stakeholders' panels

STUK vahvasti mukana parantamassa eurooppalaisia valmiusjärjestelyjä Laajassa PREPARE-hankkeessa STUK teki säteilyvaikutusten arviointia pitkäkestoisen päästön tapauksessa. Siinä käytettiin kansallisia annos- ja leviämismallinnustyökaluja arvioimaan vastatoimenpiteiden tarkoituksenmukaisuutta kahdessa erilaisessa pitkäkestoisessa päästössä. Suomen tapauksessa tarkasteltiin kahta voimalaitospaikkaa ja käytettiin Ilmatieteen laitoksen tarjoamaa sääennustemallidataa. Pohjoismailla on yhteinen ohjeistus säteilyvaaratilanteissa tarvittavista suojelutoimista, jota sovellettiin tässä työssä. Johtopäätöksenä neljän osallistujamaan tarkastelussa oli, että nykyiset kansalliset valmiusohjeet soveltuvat varsin hyvin myös pitkäkestoisen päästön tapauksessa. Toisessa osahankkeessa STUK järjesti kaksi sidosryhmäpaneelia teollisuuspoolien valmiuspäälliköille. Paneelien tavoitteena oli kehittää saastuneiden raaka-aineiden ja teollisuustuotteiden hallinnointia säteilyvaaratilanteessa. Projektin tuloksena ensimmäinen laaja-alainen vuoropuhelu teollisuustuottajien, STUKin ja huolinta-alan välillä saatiin käyntiin. Tämä toimii kansallisena alustana, kun kehitetään raaka-aineiden ja teollisuustuotteiden hallinnointia säteilyvaaratilanteessa. Muissa PREPARE-projektin työpaketeissa kehitettiin ohjelmistoja, joita käytetään päätöksenteon tukena onnettomuustilanteissa. Päästöjen leviämisen mallintamiseen ilmakehässä ja vesiympäristössä tehtiin parannuksia. Lisäksi kehitettiin erillinen Web-pohjainen sovellus ”Analytical Platform”, jolla eurooppalaiset toimijat voivat paremmin vaihtaa tietoja keskenään valmiustilanteessa. Teknisten asioiden ohella viestintään kansalaisille sekä sidosryhmille kiinnitettiin erityistä huomiota. EU:n rahoittama PREPARE-hanke alkoi helmikuussa 2013 ja päättyi tammikuussa 2016. Hankkeen tarkoituksena oli tarjota ratkaisuja niihin eurooppalaisten valmiusjärjestelyjen puutteisiin, joita havaittiin Fukushiman onnettomuuden yhteydessä. Ongelmakohdiksi tunnistettiin suunnitteluvaiheessa muun muassa pitkäkestoisen radioaktiivisen päästön hallintaan ja valtakuntien rajoja ylittävien tavaroiden monitorointiin ja elintarviketurvallisuuteen liittyviä asioita. Mukana hankkeessa oli 46 osapuolta Euroopasta ja Japanista: yliopistoja, tutkimuslaitoksia ja säteilyturvallisuusviranomaisia. Hankkeen päätulokset on julkaistu Radioprotection-lehden erikoisnumerossa 51 (joulukuu 2016). Artikkelit ovat vapaasti saatavilla osoitteessa http://www.radioprotection.org/articles/radiopro/abs/2016/06/contents/contents.html. STUK on mukana viidessä julkaistussa artikkelissa