Paper short abstract:

Research in a community next to one of Germany's last nuclear power plants analyzes local negotiations of uncertainty, risk, and safety. Where and how does the dispositive of nuclear power emerge in the everyday life in the community?

Paper long abstract:

As of today (December 2022), the nuclear power plant in Neckarwestheim in southwestern Germany will finally be shut down at the end of April 2023. This phase-out had initially been set for December 2022 by the German government after the disaster in Fukushima in 2011. But what had been considered for sure for a decade was shaken by the energy crisis. The operating lives of the last three nuclear power plants remaining on the grid in Germany were extended by four months in September 2022. The paper provides insights into how this extension of the power plant's operating life was negotiated, perceived and organized locally. This is because the operating life and dismantling of the nuclear power plant have a direct impact not only on the lives of the local employees, but also on the economic income of the community, right down to the role of the steam cloud in the everyday lives of local people. How did the dispositive of nuclear power with its infrastructure, architecture and the discourses around clean energy and risk inscribed itself into the place and how are these controversial issues part of the everyday life of diverse groups in the community? The presentation draws on field research I am conducting with seven master's students during a three-semester teaching research project (October 2022 - February 2024).