information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
9 Juillet 2015
July 9, 2015
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html
Jul. 9, 2015 - Updated 03:27 UTC+2
The head of Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority says regulators will continue to be careful in screening reactors for restart even though the process may be slow.
Shunichi Tanaka spoke at a news conference on Wednesday, the second anniversary of the implementation of new regulations for nuclear plants. The stricter rules were introduced after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident.
Not a single reactor has been put back online in the past 2 years, including those at Sendai nuclear plant in southern Japan, which were the first to pass the screening.
Tanaka said the authority is looking at 25 reactors at 15 plants. He said the process is taking time, but that their job is not easy.
Tanaka said some people seem unable to wait, but rushing means ignoring safety and returning to the past.
He suggested the authority will remain careful, while improving its efficiency.
Some experts have pointed out there are no scientific grounds for limiting a nuclear plant's operation to 40 years in principle.
Tanaka defended the life-span limit, saying the United States and France also conduct very strict screening over whether to allow operation over 40 years. He said he does not have enough knowledge to say whether or not 40 years is scientifically valid and if a change to that rule is required.
/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.over-blog.com%2Ft%2Fcedistic%2Fcamera.png)