ABSTRACT
Advocacy of citizen participation in power plant siting is an outgrowth of nearly universal dissatisfaction with adjudicatory hearings as the basic forum for communication among those with a stake in the decision process. Although the reasons for political resistance to power plants are many and complex, concern over the choice of site and its environmental and social implications usually plays a key role. Indeed, with the possible exception of "No to Nukes," the most familiar cry to a utility executive's ears is almost certainly "Don't Put It Here." One possible explanation, usually espoused by those with a perspective unterapered by field experience, is that such reluctance is merely a reflection of hidebound conservatism on the part of utility executives. While there may be a grain of truth in this view, it must also be said that many of the proponents of collaboration are equally guilty of taking its efficacy completely for granted, as if it were an Aladdin's Lamp.
