ID :
172283
Thu, 03/31/2011 - 18:32
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/172283
The shortlink copeid
Kan eyes thorough review of gov't plan to build more nuclear plants
TOKYO (Kyodo) - Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Thursday he will look into reviewing from scratch the government's plan to build at least 14 more nuclear reactors by 2030, as Japan battles to overcome its worst nuclear crisis.
Japanese Communist Party chief Kazuo Shii told a news conference that Kan also told him during their talks that the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, with all six reactors, must be scrapped.
Under Japan's basic energy plan endorsed in June 2010, the government said nuclear power will be the country's ''core source of energy in the medium- and long-terms'' and that it would build 14 or more nuclear reactors by 2030, of which nine will be completed by 2020.
But the March 11 powerful earthquake and ensuing tsunami crippled the Fukushima plant and led four of its six reactors to lose cooling functions and caused radiation leaks. The ongoing nuclear crisis has since then fueled calls against the presence of nuclear plants across the country.
In the course of examining why the accident occurred, the prime minister said in a news conference that there is a ''need to discuss again'' the energy policies being promoted by the government.
Top government spokesman Yukio Edano told a separate news conference these policies must be studied without making any prejudgment after reviewing the Fukushima plant accident.
Before the quake, Japan had 54 nuclear reactors in operation nationwide, accounting for about 30 percent of power supply, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
But the idea to fully discard nuclear plants is a tricky question for the resource-poor nation that has to rethink efforts to fight global warming and export nuclear power technology.
Once the nuclear issue is put under control, Kan said how utilities firms function should be discussed. Plant operator and utility firm, Tokyo Electric Power Co., is a private company.
The accident has also affected the lives of local residents, with people living within a radius of 20 kilometers of the plant ordered to evacuate and those within 30 km to stay indoors.
The government later recommended that people in the 20-30 km area ''leave voluntarily'' due to concerns over access to daily necessities but not due to residents' safety.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano said there are no immediate plans to evacuate those beyond 30 kilometers, but acknowledged that it will look into the possibility if it sees there are health risks in the long run.
''Naturally, high radiation levels in soil, if continued over a long period of time...will likely affect human health, so we need to step up our (radiation) monitoring, and if need be take steps to deal with it,'' Edano said.
He made the remarks after data released Wednesday by the International Atomic Energy Agency showed that radiation measured at the village of Iitate, about 40 kilometers from the Fukushima plant, exceeded a criterion for evacuation.
To assuage residents' fears about their health, the government is accelerating the plan to conduct health checkups for residents within the 30-km radius.
In another telling sign of stress in the aftermath of the quake and nuclear disaster, Edano said he has received reports about cases of crimes including scams in the guide of donations to quake victims and comprehensive measures must be in place to resolve this.
Japanese Communist Party chief Kazuo Shii told a news conference that Kan also told him during their talks that the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, with all six reactors, must be scrapped.
Under Japan's basic energy plan endorsed in June 2010, the government said nuclear power will be the country's ''core source of energy in the medium- and long-terms'' and that it would build 14 or more nuclear reactors by 2030, of which nine will be completed by 2020.
But the March 11 powerful earthquake and ensuing tsunami crippled the Fukushima plant and led four of its six reactors to lose cooling functions and caused radiation leaks. The ongoing nuclear crisis has since then fueled calls against the presence of nuclear plants across the country.
In the course of examining why the accident occurred, the prime minister said in a news conference that there is a ''need to discuss again'' the energy policies being promoted by the government.
Top government spokesman Yukio Edano told a separate news conference these policies must be studied without making any prejudgment after reviewing the Fukushima plant accident.
Before the quake, Japan had 54 nuclear reactors in operation nationwide, accounting for about 30 percent of power supply, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
But the idea to fully discard nuclear plants is a tricky question for the resource-poor nation that has to rethink efforts to fight global warming and export nuclear power technology.
Once the nuclear issue is put under control, Kan said how utilities firms function should be discussed. Plant operator and utility firm, Tokyo Electric Power Co., is a private company.
The accident has also affected the lives of local residents, with people living within a radius of 20 kilometers of the plant ordered to evacuate and those within 30 km to stay indoors.
The government later recommended that people in the 20-30 km area ''leave voluntarily'' due to concerns over access to daily necessities but not due to residents' safety.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano said there are no immediate plans to evacuate those beyond 30 kilometers, but acknowledged that it will look into the possibility if it sees there are health risks in the long run.
''Naturally, high radiation levels in soil, if continued over a long period of time...will likely affect human health, so we need to step up our (radiation) monitoring, and if need be take steps to deal with it,'' Edano said.
He made the remarks after data released Wednesday by the International Atomic Energy Agency showed that radiation measured at the village of Iitate, about 40 kilometers from the Fukushima plant, exceeded a criterion for evacuation.
To assuage residents' fears about their health, the government is accelerating the plan to conduct health checkups for residents within the 30-km radius.
In another telling sign of stress in the aftermath of the quake and nuclear disaster, Edano said he has received reports about cases of crimes including scams in the guide of donations to quake victims and comprehensive measures must be in place to resolve this.
