The nuclear accident is our biggest problem, say most mayors

March 8, 2013

Mayors of disaster-hit towns bemoan manpower shortages, delayed decontamination

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130308p2a00m0na013000c.html

A Mainichi survey targeting mayors in municipalities heavily affected by the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami and the ensuing nuclear disaster has highlighted ongoing problems in the disaster areas.

The Mainichi questioned the mayors of 42 municipalities in three prefectures -- 12 from Iwate Prefecture, 15 from Miyagi and another 15 from Fukushima -- in February as part of an ongoing survey. It received replies from all of the mayors except for the mayor of Futaba in Fukushima Prefecture, whose position was vacant at the time. The vice mayor answered on the mayor's behalf.

Most of the municipalities lie in tsunami-hit coastal areas and evacuation zones set up after the onset of the disaster at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.

Thirteen mayors from Fukushima Prefecture, and the mayor of Sendai named the nuclear power plant accident as the biggest cause of trouble in the wake of the March 2011 disaster. Some nine mayors said that the biggest problem was "financial resources" and another seven answered the "limited capacity of municipalities for administration affairs and manpower shortages" as their biggest obstacles.

The mayor of Yamamoto, Miyagi Prefecture emphasized the town's need to increase manpower, saying "Although the fiscal 2013 general account budget is 14 times larger than the pre-disaster budget, the number of town officials has increased only by 1.5 times."

Some five town mayors cited "securing land for housing" as their biggest hurdles, an increase by two since a survey taken six months ago. Their comments revealed that they are facing a new problem as the reconstruction of houses has sped up.

Out of 15 towns in Fukushima Prefecture that were subject to the survey, 13 mayors answered the nuclear plant accident as their biggest problem. On the progress of decontamination work, five mayors answered that it has been "considerably delayed" compared to the initial decontamination plan and another five said it's been "delayed." Among the reasons for the delays, some answered a lack of decontamination technology and a delay in the preparation for the interim storage of radioactive waste.

On the subject of grants for disaster recovery that the national government announced on March 7 it would reconsider, some 31 town mayors out of 42 answered they were "problematic." Disagreements between the municipalities and the national government have emerged in different cases, such as when the latter turned down a proposal made by the town of Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, requesting a grant to have roads prepared for use in evacuation in times of disasters. Many mayors also expressed their dissatisfaction with the national government's decision to limit the use of the grants to 40 projects among five ministries. "The government could trust us town mayors to make decisions to some extent," said the mayor of Higashi Matsushima in Miyagi Prefecture

March 6, 2013

Local mayor seeks long-term support to recover from Fukushima fallout

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Norio Kanno, mayor of Iitate in Fukushima Prefecture, says his village is struggling to recover from the radioactive fallout caused by the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.

The nuclear disaster triggered by the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami was "a decisive blow to our agriculture industry," Kanno told reporters at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan (FCCJ) in Tokyo on March 6.

But the mayor said he and residents are hopeful that decontamination work will accelerate to allow the village, about 40 kilometers northwest of the stricken nuclear plant, to pursue options such as building greenhouses to produce farm products safely and boosting its production of flowers.

"We are facing a very tough battle," Kanno said. "But we are determined to continue this battle because we cannot sit by and allow our wonderful hometown and our homeland to be contaminated and destroyed." He also said, "We must have the support of the government and we must have the long-term support of the Japanese people" in order to succeed in the struggle.

All of the village's 6,000 residents were ordered to evacuate more than one month after the meltdowns at the nuclear power plant. They have not been allowed to stay overnight in the village to this day. About 500 people work indoors during the daytime and 300 people are involved in crime-prevention patrol duties, the mayor says.

Kanno is an advocate of a "Madei" (genuine hands) lifestyle in which people use both hands to engage in activities with great care. He derides Japan, the United States, Europe and China for placing too much emphasis on economic growth.

"Things are not quite right" in these countries which, in Kanno's view, are pursuing growth at all costs. "Perhaps the nuclear power plant accident can serve as a catalyst to get people thinking more about important issues," he said.

The mayor criticized Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), the operator of the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, for refusing to realistically deal with compensation claims by Iitate landowners who have inherited land from their parents and grandparents without written records of ownership.

There is no crisis management policy in place at TEPCO, Kanno says, adding that the giant utility has "a very high-handed arrogant attitude" because it has this pride as a company and believes it is "basically supporting the very foundation of all economic activities in the greater Kanto region." (By Shiro Yoneyama, Staff Writer)