Outside Experts to Review Nuclear Power Deliberation; Environmental and Nuclear Sectors' Arguments to Get Equal Coverage

Fairness to be reviewed from Citizens' Panel selection through deliberative forums
Disagreements between both sides to be presented equally in the materialsաժողով

Yonhap News Agency

An evaluation panel made up of outside experts will take part in the public deliberation process on nuclear power as the government draws up its next Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand. The measure is intended to ensure fairness and neutrality by reviewing every stage of the process, from selecting the Citizens' Panel to running deliberative forums. The arguments made by the environmental community and the nuclear industry over expanding nuclear power will be presented to the Citizens' Panel in the same format and with equal space.

According to the Public Deliberation Committee on Nuclear Power for the Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand, the committee held its fourth meeting the previous day at the Electric Power Infrastructure Center in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, chaired by its head, Eun Jaeho. The committee discussed plans to form and operate a public deliberation evaluation panel and a draft of the deliberation materials for the Citizens' Panel.

The committee decided to operate a public deliberation evaluation panel made up of outside experts to ensure the fairness and neutrality of the process. The panel will observe and review the selection of the Citizens' Panel and the operation of deliberative forums.

After the deliberation process concludes, the panel is expected to submit a report containing the results of its review and evaluation of the overall process, along with recommendations for improvement. The aim is to have outside experts assess whether not only the deliberation's outcome but also the process of gathering public opinion was conducted fairly.

The committee also set out detailed principles for preparing the deliberation materials to be provided to the Citizens' Panel. The materials will include key facts about nuclear power, as well as the arguments and supporting evidence put forward by both the environmental community and the nuclear industry, with sources cited for each piece of evidence.

In particular, points agreed upon by both sides will be identified as areas of agreement, while issues on which they disagree will be presented side by side in the same format and with equal space. This approach is intended to prevent either side's position from being disproportionately emphasized or downplayed, enabling the Citizens' Panel to compare both sides' arguments in a balanced way.

The meeting also approved operating rules for the expert committee. The expert committee will handle practical matters, including advising on the deliberation agenda and detailed issues, holding public forums, preparing deliberation materials for the Citizens' Panel, and organizing the forums.

However, final authority over the deliberation agenda, materials, and deliberative questionnaire will rest with the Public Deliberation Committee on Nuclear Power. Under this structure, the expert committee will prepare materials and organize discussions, while the committee will make the final decisions.

Nine committee members, including committee head Eun Jaeho, as well as the head and deputy head of the Public Deliberation Support Group, attended the meeting. The committee received a report on plans to use the evaluation panel, approved the expert committee's operating rules, and discussed drafts of the materials and questionnaire for the Citizens' Panel.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.