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September 5, 2015

Gov't lifts evacuation order for Fukushima town after nuclear crisis

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150905p2g00m0dm001000c.html

FUKUSHIMA (5, Kyodo) -- The government on Saturday lifted its evacuation order for a town in Fukushima Prefecture issued after the 2011 nuclear disaster, although it is uncertain whether residents will actually return to their homes.

Effective midnight Friday, the government lifted the evacuation order for Naraha.

Similar decisions were made for two smaller areas in Fukushima Prefecture last year, but this is the first time to lift an order for a municipality whose entire population was ordered to evacuate.

Most of Naraha lies within a 20-kilometer radius of the radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, where three reactors experienced meltdowns after a huge earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.

The government plans to lift its evacuation order for areas with relatively low amounts of radiation by the end of March 2017.

Some 7,400 citizens of Naraha, where the estimated annual radiation exposure is 20 millisieverts or lower, remain evacuated, with nearly 80 percent staying in Iwaki, about 30 kilometers south of the town.

Since April, they have been allowed to stay for days in Naraha. As of Monday, however, only some 10 percent had applied for such stays.

With the lifting of evacuation order for Naraha, such orders are still in place for nine municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture.

Evacuation order lifted in Fukushima's Naraha Town

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

Sep. 5, 2015 - Updated 02:15 UTC+2

Japan's government has lifted an evacuation order for Naraha Town, near the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

The measure took effect on Friday at midnight. Nearly all of the area is located 20 kilometers from the plant in Fukushima Prefecture and was subject to the March 2011 evacuation order.

The government says decontamination has been completed in the area. Officials say the town's environment is almost ready for residents to return to their homes.

This is the third evacuation order to be lifted since the accident. The previous 2 were the Miyakoji district in Tamura City and the eastern part of Kawauchi Village.

But Naraha is the first municipality among the 7 towns and villages around the plant to have its evacuation order lifted.

These 7 municipalities totally emptied of residents, as well as local government workers. The evacuation was ordered by the central government soon after the disaster.

The lifting of the evacuation order allows the town's approximately 7,300 residents to return to their homes. It also permits them to resume commercial and business activities.

At the same time, the town faces the challenge of addressing residents' concerns about radiation and building a safe environment for its residents. It also faces the task of resuming the town's commercial and medical services for the first time in 4-and-a-half years.
An evacuation order remains in place for about 70,000 people in 9 municipalities surrounding the Daiichi plant.

The central government plans to lift the order for the remaining municipalities once decontamination is complete and services are capable of supporting people's lives.

September 5, 2015

Evacuation order lifted completely for town of Naraha near wrecked Fukushima plant

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/09/05/national/japan-to-lift-evacuation-order-for-fukushima-town-of-naraha/#.VerlFJfwmic

JIJI

FUKUSHIMA – The town of Naraha in Fukushima Prefecture celebrated Saturday, following the midnight lifting of the government’s evacuation order 4½ years after the eruption of the March 2011 nuclear disaster.

Naraha became the first of seven radiation-tainted municipalities in the prefecture to be entirely cleared for repopulation since the triple-reactor meltdown following the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.

“The clock that was stopped has now begun to tick,” Naraha Mayor Yukiei Matsumoto said at a ceremony held to promote the early return of local residents as well as the reconstruction of their hometown.

About 100 people took part in the event, including central government officials.

Most of the town is within the 20-km no-go zone set up around the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, which spewed radiation into the air and sea after the earthquake-triggered tsunami knocked its power out, prompting the meltdowns.

Naraha is “at the starting line at last,” Matsumoto told reporters early Saturday, adding that he would continue working toward reconstruction.

Naraha had a registered population of 7,368 residing in 2,694 households as of Tuesday. According to a survey by the government and others, some 46 percent of the residents hope to return.

But only a portion is expected to return immediately, including 780 in some 350 households who were cleared for long-term stays.

The central and town governments will reopen a medical clinic in the town in October, while a new prefectural clinic is slated to be built as early as February.

To handle sudden illnesses among the elderly, medical services will be boosted, such as by distributing emergency buzzers to people who need them.

To meet requests for shopping services, a supermarket in the town launched free delivery in July. A publicly built, privately run shopping center with a supermarket and do-it-yourself store is due in fiscal 2016.

To address lingering radiation concerns, dosimeters will be handed out and 24-hour monitoring will be conducted at a water filtration plant. Also, tap water will be tested at households worried about radioactive contamination.