Anti-nuclear movement

Anti-nuclear movement is a social and political movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, national, and international level. The initial objective of the movement was nuclear disarmament, though since the late 1960s opposition has included the use of nuclear power. Many anti-nuclear groups oppose both nuclear power and nuclear weapons. The formation of green parties in the 1970s and 1980s was often a direct result of anti-nuclear politics.

Origins

The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, national, and international level. The initial objective of the movement was nuclear disarmament, though since the late 1960s opposition has included the use of nuclear power. Many anti-nuclear groups oppose both nuclear power and nuclear weapons. The formation of green parties in the 1970s and 1980s was often a direct result of anti-nuclear politics.

Nuclear disarmament

Nuclear disarmament refers to both the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons and to the end state of a nuclear-weapon-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term denuclearization is also used to describe the process leading to complete nuclear disarmament.

Nuclear power and the environment

The anti-nuclear movement has been based on concerns about nuclear accidents and radiation from nuclear plants and nuclear waste. The Chernobyl disaster and Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster are two of the most publicized nuclear accidents.

Anti-nuclear groups and campaigns

There are large anti-nuclear groups that have evolved based on concerns about nuclear power: Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, and Nuclear Information and Resource Service. Some of the most influential groups in the anti-nuclear movement have had members who were elite scientists, including several Nobel Laureates and many nuclear physicists.

See also

• Nuclear power
• Nuclear weapons
• Nuclear disarmament
• Nuclear accidents
• Chernobyl disaster
• Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster