UNEP honors Katsurao Mayor

September 3, 2013

Mayor in Fukushima honored for disaster response

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130903_15.html

The UN Environment Programme and others have honored the mayor of a village in Fukushima Prefecture for his role in evacuating local residents right after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in March 2011.

Katsurao Mayor Masahide Matsumoto received a Green Star Award in Geneva on Monday.

He was recognized for taking the initiative to lead the immediate evacuation of about 1,600 villagers, saving them from being exposed to radiation. Their community is about 25 kilometers from the damaged nuclear plant.

The biennial awards are a joint initiative between the UNEP, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Green Cross International.

They recognize outstanding efforts to reduce the environmental and humanitarian impacts of disasters and conflicts.

Speaking at the award ceremony, Matsumoto recalled that the evacuation of all the residents was a daunting task without any working communication lines. He said many of the people are still forced to live in temporary housing, but he will work to enable their return home.

He told an NHK correspondent that he hopes to use the award to accelerate efforts for reconstruction.