The objective of the RISKGOV Project is to improve the governance of industrial activities giving rise to risks to people and the environment from radioactive and chemical discharges during normal operations. For this purpose, the goal of RISKGOV is to develop, in discussion with stakeholders, a set of criteria to characterise the governance of risk activities. The research rests on an Interdisciplinary Work Group composed of 6 teams (CEPN, MUTADIS, IRSN, HSL, University of Westminster, KTH) from 3 European countries (France, Sweden and United Kingdom) and combines public authorities and research organisations in radiological risk and chemical risk, as well as consultants and universities involved in risk governance. The expertise of the Interdisciplinary Work Group covers notably: radiation protection, risk assessment, economics, risk governance, sociology, political sciences, regulation and risk policy.

RISKGOV, by focusing on good risk governance can enhance the competitiveness of the European nuclear industry (and industry more generally) by promoting the development of decision-making and information systems which are characterised by openness and trust and which therefore increase the chances of resources being used safely, effectively and efficiently with a high degree of acceptance.

In greater detail, the first contribution to economic development offered by such improved risk governance systems is with regard to the development of more efficient protection. Far from increasing costs, enhanced risk governance is explicitly concerned with achieving optimal economics in the allocation of resources for protection. The decentralisation of governance can permit, for example, new resources for protection to be identified and deployed and contribute to cost savings or the more efficient use of existing resources.

The second contribution relates to the question of the limits of protection: how far to go with the reduction of risk? The present situation with regard to radiological risk management calls for new governance mechanisms to be found. In other words, the application of the ALARA principle (allowing economic and social factors to be taken into account in the protection strategy) when mainly based on quantitative processes, has reached its limits especially for public exposures. There is a need to promote choice of protection actions, involving the stakeholders in order to ensure their accountability, the practicability of decisions reached and improving their economic efficiency. The search for reasonable levels of risk in the ALARA perspective will be more successful with the construction of acceptability in decentralised governance systems where the involvement of the stakeholders will enhance openness, accountability and mutual learning.

The third contribution will be in the form of improving timely access to worthwhile technology by promoting more participative governance. Enhanced risk governance systems can ensure improved mutual understanding of the relationship between social objectives and technological advances. It is obvious that enhanced participation can also produce negative effects in terms of costs, efficiency and the ultimate acceptance of technology. RISKGOV, however, will seek to identify from its case studies examples of best practice that can be emulated elsewhere as well as pitfalls and tension points from which positive lessons can equally be learned.