ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with an examination of legislative acts that facilitated the infrastructure to develop civilian nuclear energy, with an emphasis on three initial acts: the 1946 Atomic Energy Act, the 1954 Atomic Energy Act, and the 1957 Price-Anderson Act. It then examines a series of crises that occurred with the development of civilian nuclear energy. The usage of nuclear technologies creates some of safety, lack of awareness of the potential dangers. By the 1950s, the Atomic Energy Commission's promotion of civilian nuclear energy has gained an increasing number of supporters. The 1954 Atomic Energy Act, the government was indicating its desire to demonstrate that private industry could begin to engage further in the development of the field of civilian nuclear energy production. The chapter concludes with a reexamination of use of civilian nuclear energy despite the risks that became a reality in the disasters.
