Nuke workers & anti-terrorism

September 7, 2016

Japan to start background checks of nuclear workers in anti-terrorism effort

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/07/national/japan-start-background-checks-nuclear-workers-anti-terrorism-effort/#.V8_1WzVdeos

Kyodo

The nation’s nuclear watchdog decided Wednesday to require background checks for workers at nuclear power plants and other facilities as part of its anti-terrorism measures.

Following recommendations from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Nuclear Regulation Authority will introduce the measure in late September.

Still, actual implementation is expected to begin next year or later due to necessary regulation changes needed in regards to handling nuclear materials.

It is also unclear how the new measure will be effective in improving security as the operators will conduct the background checks based on information provided by the workers rather than in cooperation with police or other law enforcement authorities.

The regulation will cover employees and subcontractors who enter restricted areas where nuclear materials are kept and those who have access to important information at such facilities.

Under the system, operators will make the workers submit a copy of their resident registry and a written oath stating they have no association with terrorist organizations or crime syndicates. Employees will also be asked where they have traveled overseas, whether they have committed any crimes in the past and whether they have a history of drug addiction.

While such background checks are the norm in other countries’ nuclear industries, Japan had fallen behind due to privacy concerns.

Nuclear plants and facilities in the United States and Europe conduct such background checks in cooperation with the authorities, who check applicants’ criminal records.

Workers at nuclear power plants include employees of utility firms, plant manufacturers and construction firms.

At Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata Prefecture, for example, 6,700 people were working there as of August even though its seven reactors are shuttered.

Background checks for nuclear workers

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20160907_28/

The operators of nuclear power plants in Japan are to start background checks on facility workers next year as part of terrorism prevention efforts.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority decided to introduce the security regulation at a meeting on Wednesday.

The new regulation will cover workers who enter critical areas or who have access to information on nuclear material. Power companies will ask them to declare their medical history, including alcohol and drug addiction, as well as any criminal record or links to terrorist groups. The workers will self-report such information or submit documents to prove their declarations.

The utilities will be allowed to share the written declarations.
Japan is said to be the only major country without such a security system. The International Atomic Energy Agency called for countries to introduce background checks on workers at nuclear facilities after the 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.

At Wednesday's meeting, an official of the NRA said the new guidelines would benefit the public despite privacy concerns.

A major challenge will be how to make the system effective. Some of the general population called for a stricter framework to allow statements on criminal records to be cross-checked by administrative offices.