title: "Dioxins are the easiest topic to mention": Resident activists' construction of knowledge about low-level exposure to toxic chemicals.
abstract: This article discusses how residents in a local area contributed to the construction of knowledge in regard to scientific assessments in relation to a fire in a storage dump of burnable waste. Building on analytical concepts primarily from Social Worlds theory as well as some concepts from Actor-Network Theory, the analysis shows how dissent and a number of scientific controversies were initiated by some residents living nearby the waste dump who proved to be excellent network builders and who built a number of alliances with media and independent scientists, thus questioning the authorities' and their experts' legitimacy. Furthermore, the situated analysis identifies how a few persons--not very organized--were able to create a debate about scientific matters using their combined resources and strong alliance-building abilities, thus proving that in some cases there is no need for a higher level of organization.
authors.affiliation: Roskilde University, Denmark ninablom@ruc.dk.
authors.forename: Nina Blom
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Andersen
mesh_terms: D003718:Denmark; D004147:Dioxins / Q000032:analysis; D034462:Dissent and Disputes; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis; D011639:Public Opinion; D018570:Risk Assessment; D064091:Waste Disposal Facilities
chemical_list: D004147:Dioxins; D004785:Environmental Pollutants
keywords: Social Worlds theory; low-level exposure; public understanding of science; resident activism; risk communication; waste dump