District of Schwandorf, Upper Palatinate, in the 1980s. The Bavarian state government is quietly planning to build a nuclear reprocessing plant (WAA). The structurally weak region with constantly growing unemployment figures seems ideal for this. Hans Schuierer, acting district administrator, is lured by the economic upswing. Soon the social democrat can be celebrated as the savior of the district. There are only a handful of crazy people who are not really serious about the planned nuclear plant. It was only when the state government reacted violently to the harmless action of a newly founded citizens' initiative that Schuierer began to have doubts and began to ask questions. When the health risks of the WAA become apparent and Schuierer realizes that the state government has no interest in informing the people about it, the district administrator decides lonely against the project: with the result that not only his best friend and mayor falls away from him, Instead, the Strauss government even tried to get rid of them with impeachment proceedings and changes in the law. But the citizens' movement is growing stronger every day and has now found a staunch supporter in Schuierer. Then the worst case scenario happens in Chernobyl.