Research on Developing the System to Build Public Acceptance toward Chemical Industry's Safety in Japan

Abstract

Chemical industry's accidents always have a risk to cause serious hazards, such as explosion, fire disaster, leak and spill, which may involve many residents. In terms of sharing such risk information, the U.S. and Europe have developed various systems to promote dialogue between citizens and industries. In Japan, however, in order to build public acceptance on chemical industry's safety, Japanese style systems are required getting along with our unique cultural background. In this report, we examine two systems to form public acceptance: an interactive information system over the Internet between citizens and a company, and a perceptual communication system, e.g. direct talks. Finally, we suggest how to adjust their problems toward a more efficient system.