MANAGING NUCLEAR ENERGY EVENTS: AN EVALUATION OF CAUSES AND RISK MANAGEMENT MEASURES

Nuclear energy can be beneficial, yet risky when there is an accidental release or unforeseen disastrous event. As more countries start their nuclear energy programmes, it is important to revisit how safe working practices can be ensured to prevent or minimise the impacts of nuclear incidents, accidents and emergencies. To this end, the research aims to identify and critically examine the major causes of emergency in nuclear power stations, and to evaluate the effectiveness of risk management methods and practices in nuclear power stations, in order to develop holistic guidance for safer working practices in countries starting to build nuclear power stations and their nuclear power programme.
The causes of emergency in nuclear power stations and what constitute effective risk management measures were identified in a survey completed by 317 respondents working in the nuclear energy sector in the USA, South Korea and other countries. Twelve interviewees from Europe with several years of working experience in the sector further explained the major causes that need to be better managed through holistic safer practices to prevent the causes of emergency in nuclear power stations.
The findings from the mixed methods approach indicate that no single risk management method is sufficient for dealing with nuclear energy hazard events that occur on levels 4-7 (IAEA scale). The two major causes of nuclear energy events require a combination of ISO risk management process, application of framework and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) standards as well as reflection on lessons learned. Through risk management principles, more effective and safer working practices can be achieved by countries starting nuclear energy operations.
The main implication of the research findings is that the safety culture in nuclear power stations needs to be improved through better understanding that the characteristics of major causes identified in this research need to be mitigated. Therefore, the holistic guidance developed based on this research finding has both theoretical and practical contributions. The theoretical contribution of this research is that this study advances current accident causation theories like situation awareness, domino and multiple cause theories by tailoring explanations for, and characteristics of, causes of emergency in nuclear power stations. Originality is demonstrated in this research as it provides evidence-based recommendations for countries starting nuclear energy industries in order to successfully manage, prevent (where possible) and mitigate the impact of future accidents and emergencies in the energy sector in general and in nuclear power stations in particular.