By KELLY OLSEN
TOKYO—Japan's industry minister sought support Saturday from local leaders to restart a pair of nuclear reactors that the government wants back online to help meet peak summer demand.
"I request your understanding and that of local people for the restarts," Yukio Edano, who heads the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, told Issei Nishikawa, the governor of Fukui prefecture in western Japan.
The government is struggling to overcome public anxiety about nuclear power in the aftermath of last year's Fukushima Daiichi disaster. Mr. Edano's visit to Fukui came a day after he announced that the government had decided that the two reactors in the Fukui town of Oi are safe to restart. It was a key step toward bringing plants throughout Japan that have been shut down for maintenance back online for the first time since the Fukushima meltdowns.
Local opposition is strong, however. Mr. Edano emphasized Friday that the government's stance on safety wasn't a decision to restart the Oi reactors, and the administration will keep trying to gain the understanding of local people toward that end.
Mr. Nishikawa asked Mr. Edano to clearly explain to the nation the necessity of nuclear power and said he wants the prefecture's nuclear safety committee to conduct a rigid check of the appropriateness of restarting the reactors.
"I will convey the thinking of Fukui prefecture after sufficiently seeking the opinions of the prefectural assembly and the town of Oi," Mr. Nishikawa said.
Mr. Edano also met Oi Mayor Shinobu Tokioka during the visit.
Japan currently has only one reactor in operation, located on the northern island of Hokkaido, although that one is scheduled to shut down May 5.
Both the government and industry have said that without nuclear power, Japan could suffer power shortages during the peak summer season. Before the Fukushima disaster, nuclear power provided 30% of Japan's electricity.
The government has been debating the possible restart of the two Oi reactors since early this month. The discussions began after two expert bodies separately approved results from first-stage of stress tests on the plant's resilience to natural disasters.
Though local governments have no power under Japanese law over nuclear-plant operations, they have some input, as all nine regional utilities that own and operate nuclear plants have safety agreements with hosting municipal and prefectural governments.
No comments:
Post a Comment
This is an unmoderated blog. Please be professional and respectful as you post.