Seven municipalities unite around Hamaoka

February 18, 2014

Seven municipalities seek safety agreement over Hamaoka nuclear plant

http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/politics/AJ201402180040 

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

Feeling neglected, seven municipal governments in Shizuoka Prefecture will ask Chubu Electric Power Co. to sign a safety agreement requiring their consent before operations can resume at its Hamaoka nuclear power plant.

The five cities of Fujieda, Yaizu, Shimada, Fukuroi and Iwata, and the two towns of Yoshida and Mori, all lie within a radius of between 20 and 31 kilometers of the Hamaoka plant.

“Until now, we have been kept in the dark,” Fujieda Mayor Shohei Kitamura said at a Feb. 17 news conference. “However, we have the responsibility of protecting a region that bears a huge risk of a nuclear accident.”

Chubu Electric has signed safety agreements requiring prior consent for Hamaoka plant operations with four cities: Omaezaki and Makinohara, which lie within the 5-km radius of the plant known as the Precautionary Action Zone, and Kakegawa and Kikugawa, which are within a 10-km radius.

When Chubu Electric on Feb. 14 submitted an application for safety inspections that would allow for a resumption of operations at the Hamaoka plant, it only notified those four municipalities. The seven municipal governments were not informed beforehand about the application, prompting them to seek their own safety agreements with Chubu Electric.

However, while the utility may enter such agreements, it will likely be reluctant to include a condition of prior consent that will make it more difficult to restart its nuclear reactors.

After the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident caused damage to a wide area, the government required municipalities within about a 30-km radius of nuclear plants to compile safety precautions in the event of an accident, including evacuation procedures. The area within this radius is known as the Urgent Protective Action Planning Zone (UPZ).

The seven municipalities seeking to enter safety agreements with Chubu Electric all fall within the UPZ. The utility and the seven municipal governments have already established a coordinating council to exchange information.