Japan Reactivates Nuclear Reactor on Kyushu

The Sendai plant is the furthest away of Japan’s reactors from the capital Tokyo, where protesters also regularly gather to oppose atomic energy, mostly outside Abe’s official residence.

He said the disaster had “exposed the myth of safe and cheap nuclear power, which turned out to be risky and expensive”. Japan has no natural coal, oil or gas in the country. Sendai 1 is the country’s first to resume operation.

Still a highly controversial issue, nuclear energy has the support of business people who say high energy costs are stifling their companies and the economy.

In the Three Mile Island incident we saw how the private corporations aren’t afraid to cut corners to pad their bottom line – even if that risks a partial nuclear meltdown. The plant’s No. 1 reactor became operational in July 1984, and the No. 2 reactor went online in November 1985. Power output from these sources fluctuate depending on the weather.

The government has said the nation’s best power mix for fiscal 2030 is to ensure that the percentage of nuclear power generation vis-a-vis the total power supply stands somewhere between 20 percent and 22 percent.

“There are strong vested interests to reopen nuclear reactors”. “Many Japanese continue to be upset and anxious about the conditions in Fukushima, and of course, any trouble in Sendai would remind the public what a horrific disaster Fukushima Daiichi has been, and how irresponsible the nuclear power ‘village, ‘ including the political leaders like Abe, have been”, said Nakano.

But not everyone is convinced the NRA’s new measures are sufficient. Tens of thousands of residents have been evacuated from the area, any many may not see a return.

The Sendai plant faces some specific risks. The national government has tolerated the local body’s failure.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority rolled out new regulation standards two years later. Suga insisted the government is prioritising safety over anything else.

A lack of clarity for responsibility over reactivating nuclear plants has not changed since before the March 2011 outbreak of the nuclear plant crisis.

Utilities are seeking approval to restart 23 other reactors, including the second at Sendai. With this in mind, the government should adopt a policy of extending the life of reactors in operation up to 60 years, while building new ones.

What steps have been taken to improve safety at Japan’s nuclear sites in the wake of Fukushima?

There are more fundamental problems. “I hope to gain the public’s understanding of the situation”, Miyazawa said.

In a poll conducted last week by the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, 57 per cent were against the Sendai reactor’s restarting, and 30 per cent were positive about it.

Even without nuclear power, Japan has managed to avoid power rationing and blackouts.

First and foremost, the government should draw up a specific road map toward scrapping nuclear power.

The head of the Saskatoon, Sask.-based uranium miner said he doesn’t expect the restart to “move the needle” immediately on uranium demand in Japan, where utilities have accumulated significant stockpiles of the atomic fuel.