Divergence between general public's risk perception and environmental risk assessment: A case study of p-xylene projects in China

The growing public opposition to p-xylene (PX) project proposals in China requires understanding the divergence between the general public's risk perception and environmental risk assessment (ERA) results and its implications on its decision-making. In a case study in Fujian Province of China, a questionnaire was designed to investigate the public perception of risks of a proposed PX project, interviews were further conducted in Zhangzhou City and Xiamen City, and the survey results were compared with the ERA results of the proposed PX project. Results indicate that the environmental risk is acceptable according to current technical ERA guidelines and standards, while the public acceptance of the PX project is very low. The underlying factors causing the difference between the general public's risk perception and ERA results were identified from the ERA technical perspective. A better understanding of the risk perception divergence from different disciplinary perspectives is helpful for the public acceptance of these kinds of projects, which are on high demand in China. This study not only highlights the necessity to improve the risk communication but also provides insights on future research of ERA for this kind of large-scale project proposal.