Nuclear "safety" accord between Kyoto and Kansai Electric

February 28, 2015

Kyoto Pref., Kansai Electric sign nuclear safety accord

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150228p2g00m0dm017000c.html

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Kyoto Prefecture and Kansai Electric Power Co. signed a nuclear safety accord Friday, giving the western Japanese prefecture more say over the utility's operation of nuclear reactors in nearby Fukui and greater access to related information.

The signing came after Kansai Electric's two reactors at the Takahama plant, located on the Sea of Japan coast in Fukui Prefecture, were cleared for safety by regulators earlier in February in a major step toward resumption following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis.

Neighboring prefectures such as Kyoto and Shiga have demanded they be involved more in the process of ensuring nuclear safety. Under the accord, Kyoto can state its opinion about a restart of the Takahama plant in the event its operation is halted due to an accident, and Kansai Electric is obliged to provide a response to it.

This is the first time a nuclear safety pact stipulating the local government's right to state an opinion and the utility's obligation to respond to it was signed with municipalities that do not host a nuclear plant, according to Kyoto Prefecture.

As seven towns and cities in Kyoto Prefecture are located within a 30-kilometer radius of the Takahama plant, safety concerns have increased among the some 128,000 residents. The city of Maizuru is within a 5-km radius of the facility.

However, as Kyoto is not a community hosting the facility, Kansai Electric is not required to obtain approval from it on a restart.

Kyoto and Kansai Electric also agreed that the utility will provide explanations in advance when it intends to build new nuclear reactors, and that the prefecture can conduct on-site investigations when necessary.

Currently, all of Japan's 48 commercial reactors remain offline amid safety concerns after they were gradually taken offline since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. To bring them back online, operators need to pass the Nuclear Regulation Authority's safety screening and obtain approval from host communities.

February 27, 2015

Kyoto, nuclear plant operator sign agreement

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20150227_49.html

Feb. 27, 2015 - Updated 15:10 UTC+1

The operator of a nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture has signed a new safety agreement with neighboring Kyoto Prefecture.

Kyoto Prefecture required Kansai Electric Power Company to sign the agreement as a condition of restarting reactors at the Takahama nuclear plant.

All of Japan's nuclear reactors remain offline after the 2011 nuclear disaster in Fukushima.

On Friday, Kyoto Governor Keiji Yamada and the utility's president, Makoto Yagi, signed the 15-article document.
Under the agreement, the power company has to explain key changes to the prefecture.

The utility must do this when it makes adjustments to the reactors or facilities. It must also adhere to these rules before it restarts any reactor if it goes offline due to an accident.

The prefecture will be able to give its opinions to the utility. The power company will have to genuinely respond to the officials.

Prefectural officials say it's the first agreement with a local government which does not host the plant that stipulates the utility must answer a municipality's questions.

The agreement does not include Kyoto's initial demand that the operator obtain the prefecture's consent before it puts idle reactors back online.

The utility says it would seek such approval from Takahama Town and Fukui Prefecture, where the plant is located.

Some local officials demand the utility obtain a similar go-ahead from all municipalities within the plant's 30-kilometer zone. Those local governments are obliged to draw up disaster preparedness plans.

Shiga Prefecture, which is partially included in the 30-kilometer zone around the Takahama plant, is also seeking a similar safety agreement to Takahama Town and Fukui Prefecture.