The evolution of the environmental movement in Belarus: from Chernobyl to global climate change

Nuclear power debate and public opinion in Belarus: From Chernobyl to Ostrovets

“…The Chernobyl accident was either not mentioned in these articles at all or was presented as an unfortunate incident which should not impede the development of nuclear power. Anti-nuclear mobilisation in Soviet Belarus in 1986–1987 remained very weak and increased only in 1988–1990 because of changes in the political opportunity structure under the twin names of perestroika and glasnost (Novikau, 2015). The decision to terminate construction of the NPP near the Belarus capital of Minsk and a similar project in the Vitebsk Region can be explained not by the state’s loss of enthusiasm for nuclear power, but rather by the tactical interests of the Communist authorities.…”

“…All signees were mandated to provide access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters. However, precise mechanisms of public participation are not specified and in Belarus institutions of civil society are excluded from the environmental decision-making process (Novikau, 2015).…”

“…Not surprisingly, Chernobyl affects the dynamics of every environmental debate in Belarus even to this day, almost 30 years after the accident (Novikau, 2015). However, in 2006–2008, the Belarusian authorities announced plans to build a state-owned NPP in Belarus, in order to decrease dependency on the importation of fossil fuels from Russia.…”

Emergent themes? A year in the life ofEnvironmental Sociology

“…This diversity of analytical approaches to environmental governance is mirrored, interestingly, in the activities of environmental social movements. Operating in a variety of settings, articles published in Environmental Sociology show social movements to be evolving (Novikau 2015), forging novel alliances with business and governments (Bruce and Shwom 2015;Cordner and Brown 2015), and grappling with how best to integrate concerns about social and environmental justice with more traditional green politics (Busca and Lewis 2015;Harrison 2015). Here again we find boundaries being troubled with social movement organizations, including environmental justice organizations, working simultaneously towards tighter regulation of capitalist enterprises and towards more equitable participation in the market economy.…”