Law requiring state to clean up radioactive debris enacted+

TOKYO, Aug. 26 Kyodo -
A special law requiring the state to clean up debris and sludge heavily contaminated with radioactive matter as a result of the quake and tsunami-caused nuclear disaster was enacted Friday.
The measure, which was sponsored by lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties -- including the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Democratic Party -- and on Friday cleared the House of Councillors, will take effect Jan. 1, 2012.
There was no Japanese law on such measures as it was not presumed that the current situation -- the release of massive amounts of radioactive materials outside nuclear power plants or research facilities -- would occur.
The new law establishes a temporary framework for cleaning up contaminated waste and performing decontamination work as the central and local governments work on recovery in areas damaged by the March earthquake and tsunami, and the subsequent meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
The law stipulates that the state bears a responsibility for handling the contamination matter because of its past promotion of nuclear power as a national policy, while noting that local governments should cooperate with the state.
The environment minister will be responsible for setting basic policies on measures for contamination control, establishing rules for the disposal of contaminated waste and soil, and designating areas which need special management to control contaminated debris.
The state will dispose of waste in such areas as well as in areas outside them, if the waste there is found to be contaminated beyond certain levels, according to the law.
For areas where soil is particularly contaminated, the minister will designate them as special decontamination areas, and the state will subsequently remove contamination in the soil.
Tokyo Electric Power Co., which operates the crippled power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, will pay for costs for decontamination work and related work.