Is the concept of a ‘mad cow syndrome’ relevant for nuclear power?

Abstract

In the debate following the Chernobyl catastrophe, a suggestion was made that all reactors of the same type should be closed down. While this has not been deemed practicable, the existence of serious risks common to a large number of reactors of a certain type is still of concern. There is a saying that, with respect to nuclear risks, ‘an accident anywhere is an accident everywhere’, which represents what may be called a ‘mad cow syndrome’ in nuclear power. Indeed, some features of the mad cow issue can be related to similar problems in the nuclear field. One example of a possible catastrophe in nuclear power stations in the West is a failure of the main pressure vessel, eventually causing a sudden and rapid dispersal of large amounts of radioactivity over densely populated areas. This case, and a few others, are discussed in the present paper with the aim of shedding light on processes which may lead to situations comparable to that of the mad cow predicament. Possible explanations are suggested, based on systems theory, political decision theory, social anthropology, social psychology, interdisciplinary thinking, etc. A recommendation is made that the problem should be approached through the use of metaphor.