Originally published in 1990. This book argues that a better understanding of the social impact of decommissioning - in areas such as jobs, waste, economics, opinion, law, public policy, land-use and legacies - is vital to the successful application of any technical solution. The issues raised are divided into three areas which deal with those problems that have already been recognized, the questions that decommissioning itself will raise and those that may result from likely future developments. The book aims to initiate a process of appraisal by examining several of the more obvious social ties to decommissioning.