Awareness and Appeal of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs): Some Insights from Surveys of the U.S. Public and Nuclear Power Plant Neighbors
Ann Stouffer Bisconti, PhD
Bisconti Research, Inc.
April - May 2023
According to the 2023 National Nuclear Energy Public Opinion Survey, U.S. public support for nuclear energy continues at a record high level, including 71 percent who agree that we should definitely build more nuclear power plants in the future. One type of advanced-design nuclear power plant that is likely to be built in the U.S. is the Small Modular Reactor (SMR). This year’s National Nuclear Energy Public Opinion Survey conducted April 28 - May 5, 2023[1] included some questions to measure current public awareness of SMRs and the appeal of its various advantages. In addition, the ninth National Survey of Nuclear Power Plant Neighbors measured the acceptability of SMRs at the nation’s existing plant sites.
As of 2023, 20 percent of the U.S. public reported that they had heard something about “advanced-design nuclear power plants called Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).” That number is a baseline for measuring awareness over time, as SMRs progress through developmental steps and begin to operate.
U.S. Public Awareness of SMRs 2023
Have you heard anything about advanced-design nuclear power plants called Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)? (%)
Demographic differences in reported awareness are striking. Those most aware of SMRs are men, college graduates, and millennials; 42 percent of men college graduates, compared with just 9 percent of women who are not college graduates, have heard about SMRs.
% of U.S. Public Who Heard about SMRs in 2023, by Demographics %
Appeal of SMR Features
The survey asked about the “importance to you” of 9 SMR features in two ways:
1) Rate on a scale of extremely important, very important, somewhat important, not too important, and not at all important; and
2) Select the three most important.
At least two-thirds of respondents rated almost all of the 9 features extremely or very important. The most important feature is that SMRs “have advanced safety features.” Also very important to the public are that they “produce no greenhouse gases or other air pollution,”and “cost less to build than larger plants, and so are more affordable to consumers.” Note that focus groups tell us that the public considers the cost to build important only if that cost is related to consumers.
Other features that could round out a positive image for SMRs include their ability to convert seawater into safe drinking water, their ability to minimize or re-use nuclear waste, and their support for renewables. The ideas of taking little land and of starting small and adding new units as needed may require more explanation—or may be more relevant to prospective plant neighbors than the general public.
The feature judged least important was one about the beautiful designs of some SMRs. They offer the jobs and economic advantages of an industrial facility while adding a visually attractive piece of architecture to a community. This concept may be one that is best communicated with pictures that the public can see and also may be more important to potential plant neighbors than the general public.
Importance to U.S. Public of 9 Features of SMRs 2023
How important to you are the following features of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)? (%)
Select the three SMR features that are most important to you. (%)
“Advanced safety systems” appealed more to women than men. The appeal of this feature was also directly associated with age—more important with older groups who remember past reports of safety issues. Men college graduates are more likely than others to see waste as a barrier to nuclear energy, and they gave highest importance to the fact that SMRs minimize waste and some can use it to produce electricity. Political differences appeared, as always, on the importance of a feature related to climate change—no greenhouse gases or other air pollution. This feature is more important to Democrats than Republicans.
Top Three Most Important Features of SMRs to U.S. Public[2] in 2023, by Demographics
Select the three SMR features that are most important to you. (%)
SMRs Acceptable to Plant Neighbors
The ninth National Survey of Nuclear Power Plant Neighbors revealed high support for adding SMRs at the nearest plant site. This survey, conducted in June 2022, found that 78 percent of respondents would find a new reactor acceptable at the plant site, and, even more, 86 percent, would find an SMR acceptable. The survey described the SMR as an “advanced alternative for supplying electricity.”
This biennial survey gained the opinions of 910 full-time residents within the 10-mile radius of nearly all nuclear power plants in the U.S. The plant neighbors are well distributed across 52 operating sites. Households with people who work at a nuclear power plant were excluded due to vested interest.[3]
Plant Neighbors, June 2022: Acceptability at Site for a New Reactor
If a new power plant were needed to supply electricity, would it be acceptable to you or not acceptable to you to add a new nuclear reactor at the site of the nearest nuclear power plant? (%)
New Reactor
Plant Neighbors, June 2022: Acceptability at Site for a New Advanced-Design SMR
Innovative Small Modular Reactors, known as SMRs, are a new advanced alternative for supplying electricity. Would it be acceptable to you or not acceptable to you to add a Small Modular Reactor (SMR) at the site of the nearest nuclear power plant? (%)
New Advanced-Design SMR
At least 78 percent of every demographic group of plant neighbors said that an SMR would be acceptable at their plant site.
These findings show that gaining public buy-in for new reactors may not be as difficult as some commentators imagine. There are many existing nuclear power plant sites where new reactors could be considered, including SMRs.
Plant Neighbors June 2022: Acceptability of Adding a Small Modular Reactor (SMR) at the Site of the Nearest Nuclear Power Plant, by Demographics
Innovative Small Modular Reactors, known as SMRs, are a new advanced alternative for supplying electricity. Would it be acceptable to you or not acceptable to you to add a Small Modular Reactor (SMR) at the site of the nearest nuclear power plant?
[1] The survey included 1,000 nationally representative US adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points, and was conducted by Bisconti Research, Inc with the Quest Mindshare Online Panel.
[2] This question was asked for all 9 features, but the table looks at demographics only for the 6 features with the highest importance ratings.
[3] By Bisconti Research, Inc. with Quest Mindshare. All nine surveys were funded by the Nuclear Energy Institute.
© Ann Stouffer Bisconti, 2023.