Opponents to the restarting of Japan’s nuclear operations have highlighted the fact that the country records more earthquakes than any other nation and the Sendai facility is located 60 kilometres from an active volcano. The Fukushima nuclear disaster was triggered by a powerful earthquake in March 2011 and is the second disaster, along with the Chernobyl meltdown in Russia in 1986, to measure Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale.Ī tsunami caused by the earthquake swamped the facility’s cooling systems and triggered reactor meltdowns, prompting the shutdown of Japan’s 50 reactors in 2013, which came to an end on Tuesday with the restarting of the Sendai facility. In a statement Kyushu Electric Power said: “We will continue to seriously and carefully cooperate with the country’s inspections, making safety our top priority, cautiously advancing the restart process.”Įnvironmental groups and activists have warned that no adequate plan has been introduced for evacuating residents in the event of a Fukushima-style meltdown. 1 reactor at the Sendai facility on Tuesday and power plant could start generating power as early as Friday August 14. Kyushu Electric Power started to reactivate the No. ![]() Protestors have rallied outside Japan’s Sendai nuclear plant against its reopening four years after the Fukushima meltdown. Before the Fukushima meltdowns, about a third of its power generation came from nuclear, but in 2020 the figure was less than 5%.Japan has restarted its first nuclear power plant since the Fukushima disaster in 2011 caused a shutdown of all nuclear facilities, sparking protests across the country. Japan has set a target for nuclear power generation to account for 20-22% of its electricity supply in 2030. Plants can operate for up to 40 years in principle, but can continue generating electricity for another 20 years if they undergo safety upgrades and pass screenings conducted by regulators. The government will also consider extending the lifespan of existing reactors beyond the legal limit by excluding the period they remained shut down – in some cases several years – when calculating their operating time. Some areas near the plant remain off-limits, while others have only recently reopened to residents. The 2011 disaster sent huge quantities of radiation into the atmosphere and forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes. Restarting the plant would be particularly controversial, since it is run by Tokyo Electric Power, the same company that operates Fukushima Daiichi. Dozens of others are still going through a relicensing process under stricter safety standards introduced after the 2011 disaster, which some experts blamed on the “ nuclear village” of operators, politicians and regulators.Ī bigger role for nuclear in Japan’s energy mix could see seven additional reactors being restarted after next summer, including two at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, the biggest nuclear plant in the world. Seven reactors are currently in operation, with three others offline for regular safety inspections. “It is the first step towards the normalisation of Japan’s energy policy,” said Jun Arima, a project professor at the Tokyo University’s graduate school of public policy. The country is heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels. Officials believe voters have become more receptive to nuclear power due to rising fuel costs and after an energy crunch in Tokyo during a recent heatwave. ![]() Kishida conceded that the government would have to win support from the public, which turned against nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima meltdown. From that perspective, we will also consider all options regarding nuclear power.” The economy and industry minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura, said it was “extremely important to secure all options to redesign a stable energy supply for our country. “To overcome an imminent crisis caused of a power supply crunch, we must take the utmost steps to mobilise all possible policies in the coming years and prepare for any emergency.” “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has vastly transformed the world’s energy landscape … Japan needs to bear in mind potential crisis scenarios,” he said at an energy policy meeting this week. If realised, Kishida’s plans would mark a dramatic reversal of that stance. Most of Japan’s nuclear plants have remained idle ever since, while the government said it would not build new reactors or replace ageing reactors, fearing a public backlash. Successive governments have been forced to lower Japan’s dependence on nuclear since the March 2011 disaster, when a powerful tsunami destroyed Fukushima Daiichi’s backup electricity supply, causing three of its six reactors to suffer meltdowns.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |