15.07.2007 Lauri Myllyvirta

Support for building another nuclear power plant in Finland has almost halved in two months. Opponents of nuclear power now clearly outnumber the proponents.

According to a poll commissioned by two Finnish regional newspapers, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat and Satakunnan Kansa, 46 percent of Finns are now opposed to new projects while only 36 percent are in favor. The previous poll published in the end of May by Finnish magazine Suomen Kuvalehti, found 57 percent of Finns to be in favor.

Although the results of the different polls are not directly comparable, the steep decline in support now observed is in stark contrast to the growing trend that has persisted in the polls in Finland since the Chernobyl accident. There has been intense discussion about the neglect of safety in Olkiluoto EPR project, plans to mine uranium have met unprecedented opposition, and the controversial proposals of a new nuclear project in numerous Finnish municipalities are leading to a new recognition of the hazards of nuclear power in Finland.