Building trust in nuclear’s safety culture

While nuclear and radiological accidents are few and far between, in-depth analyses show that weaknesses in safety culture are root causes in most cases. Since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011, the safety culture concept that puts layers of safety first has been and is being implemented rapidly.

To better understand how attitudes are shifting towards strengthening safety in the nuclear industry, we spoke to Tom Mitchell, Chairman of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO). At the helm of WANO for two years, and with over 40 years of experience in the nuclear industry, Mitchell is leading the nuclear operator community's focus towards a strengthened safety culture.

WANO is a non-profit organization that helps its global membership of commercial nuclear power plant operators achieve operational safety and reliability by providing peer reviews, and access to technical support and a global library of operating experience.

Next month, experiences and lessons learned from the accident, as well as achievements undertaken by national, regional, and international communities since, will be the focus of the International Conference on a Decade of Progress after Fukushima-Daiichi